Chinese Entertainment

Chapter 777: Let's Get the Big Hope of Life

the next day.

The news of the premiere of "Dragon Blade" has not yet died down, and the producer struck while the iron was hot and released a set of stills of Jackie Chan and his brothers drinking and singing in Yanmen Pass, saying that the scene can be called the Western Han Dynasty version of the Spring Festival Gala.

It is said that the Spring Festival Gala has been very unpopular among young people in recent years. I don’t know whether it is irony or sarcasm that the distributor of "Dragon Blade" wrote the press release in this way!

Afterwards, "Dragon Blade" held a press conference for the theme song of the first film, which unsurprisingly took advantage of the popularity of "Little Apple".

On the same day, "The Man from Macau 2" held a press conference in the capital and released a trailer, saying that Chow Yun-fat said he wanted to beat up Nick Cheung.

On the same day, the theme song release conference of "Zhong Kui Conquers the Demons" was also held in the capital. Due to the "psychedelic" style and extremely high singing difficulty of the song, it was ridiculed by the media as the "new divine song".

There is constant news about various movies on the Internet, and the competition among them is fierce.

After being "dressed up" by the makeup artist, Gu Wei and Miss Liu put on their best clothes, left the villa together, got into a nanny car that they rarely used, and headed to the company.

As the Spring Festival approaches, artists naturally need to participate in various activities. Take today's "Mojin: The Lost Tomb" press conference for example, there were indeed not many celebrity artists who came.

However, there were quite a few media reporters and directors and producers in the circle. Except for a few directors who went to Berlin, almost all the big names in the circle came.

The reason why everyone came so actively was naturally because they heard various rumors from the circle. The most widely circulated one was that Xingchen Film and Television Company was preparing to use "Mojin: The Lost Tomb" to compete with "The Ferryman" produced by Ali Pictures.

It was still the same auditorium as last time. When Gu Wei and Liu Yifei arrived, there was still more than half an hour before the press conference was about to start.

However, the filmmakers present were not idle. They gathered in groups of three or five and talked about topics of interest.

As a new director with little fame in the circle, Wen Muye naturally followed Gu Wei as soon as he saw him.

Since the other party was going to direct "Mojin: The Lost Tomb", Gu Wei naturally took him around to greet other big directors and filmmakers.

Miss Liu found Su Chang, and the two of them gathered with several female stars, chatting and laughing about something.

"The movie 'Lost in Thailand' produced by Director Gu's company is pretty good. The pre-sale box office has exceeded 80 million. I think it should exceed 100 million before it is released."

Brother Chen Kai looked at Gu Wei and Wen Muye coming over and said with a smile.

"Almost. If Director Chen is interested, we can get some ticket subsidies when the promotion of "The Taoist Goes Down the Mountain" is released."

In front of directors such as Chen Kaige and Xu Ke, Gu Wei naturally didn't mind promoting a wave of Star Tickets. After all, the bigger the cake is, the more profit will be obtained after it goes on the market.

Hearing this, Brother Chen Kai's eyes lit up. Now, there are more and more promotional methods for domestic entertainment films before they are released. However, relying on the ticket subsidies brought by "The Wandering Earth", it has gradually become one of the most important promotional methods.

Brother Chen Kai once said in front of the media that he looked down upon methods like ticket subsidies. However, as ticket subsidies became the mainstream method in the circle, even though Director Chen attached great importance to the box office of "The Taoist Goes Down the Mountain", it was still a bit embarrassing for him to easily lower his posture and use ticket subsidies.

Now with Gu Wei's words, even if he provides ticket subsidies later on, Director Chen can publicize it as giving face to Gu Wei, taking care of the other company's business, etc.

"Haha, since Director Gu has spoken, we can contact each other later if there is any need." Brother Chen Kai said happily.

Hearing what Brother Chen Kai said, Gu Wei kept smiling, but he had some evil guesses in his heart. He wondered if Director Chen would still be able to laugh when Ji Luyang announced that "Assassins 2" would also be scheduled for the summer vacation.

A few of them chatted and laughed for a while, and then Xu Ke spoke up and asked directly: "Director Gu held a new movie press conference today and invited so many filmmakers in the circle. Things shouldn't be that simple."

"Director Xu guessed right. At today's press conference, I was going to tell you a few words from my heart. Some things are meaningless if said behind closed doors. It's better to spread them through the media and let some people hear them." Even in front of these people, Gu Wei did not hide his disgust for some people.

"Humph, Director Gu is right. Our circle was originally fine, but it became a mess because of some people coming in, especially..." Director Chen's tone was unfriendly at this moment, and he complained directly in public.

At the last Shanghai Film Festival, Zhang Qiang from Ali Pictures embarrassed Chen Kai on the spot, and he has always kept this in mind.

"Haha, since this is Director Gu's valuable advice, then we will listen attentively and learn from it." Xu Ke complimented with a smile.

"Let's communicate with each other." Gu Wei waved his hand.

Seeing that the time was almost up, Gu Wei said something to a few people and then took Wen Muye to the stage.

When the reporters present saw Gu Wei sitting in the main seat, they immediately smiled at each other.

Sure enough, it seems that this person is going to make a big move, and some people are silently guessing in their hearts.

At nine o'clock, the press conference for "Mojin: The Lost Tomb" officially began.

...

On the stage, after the host warmed up the audience, Wen Muye began to introduce himself.

The opening introduction was naturally nothing new. It was nothing more than topics such as "Mojin: The Lost Tomb" was adapted from the "Ghost Blows Out the Light" series and that Xingchen Film and Television Company invited director Wen Muye to direct it.

As Wen Muye mentioned that the male and female protagonists were Huang Bo and Tong Liya, the atmosphere on the scene gradually became lively.

After all, these two are big-name artists in the domestic entertainment industry. Their joining also proves that the investment in "Mojin: The Lost Tomb" is not small.

But when Gu Wei took over the microphone and said, "The cost range of "Mojin: The Lost Tomb" is to be determined, and there is no upper limit," many people in the audience turned their eyes to Zhang Qiang.

Some people sneered, some were curious, and some were more concerned about the expression of the person coming from Ahri.

At the same time, netizens who watched the live broadcast of the press conference through Tudou Video also started discussing it.

"Fuck, there is no upper limit, are we really going to compete with The Ferryman?"

"I'm afraid it's not just a competition. The Ferryman has just confirmed that Liang Chaowei and Jin Chengwu will appear in it, and Gu Wei has also introduced Huang Bo and Tong Liya. From this point of view, it can be regarded as an open competition between mainland artists and Hong Kong artists."

"Haha, Director Gu is so domineering. I don't care about Ali or anything else. I just want to fight you head-on."

In the auditorium, Gu Wei continued speaking. Because the interview time had not yet arrived, even though the reporters present were scratching their heads anxiously, they were unable to ask questions.

However, anyone with a discerning eye could see that Zhang Qiang's expression was gradually becoming ugly.

Another ten minutes passed, and when Gu Wei finished speaking, the host signaled for the interview to begin, and the reporters all raised their hands.

Finally, the reporter from Sina Entertainment took the lead again and asked in the jealous eyes of the crowd: "Director Gu, may I ask if there is no upper limit for "Mojin: The Lost Legend". Does this mean that this movie was designed to compete with "The Ferryman" from the beginning?"

"Wow." Hearing the reporter's blunt question, everyone immediately started whispering.

"That's right. Mr. Zhang is here today, so I'll just make a statement here. No matter when The Ferryman is scheduled, Mojin: The Lost Tomb will accompany you to the end." After saying that, Gu Wei deliberately glanced at Zhang Qiang and continued in a joking tone, "I don't know if Mr. Zhang will accept the challenge. Of course, if you don't have the confidence, just ignore what I said."

In an instant, Brother Chen Kai and others looked at Zhang Qiang, and silently complained in their hearts, you are not joking, you are clearly forcing the other party to accept it.

As the saying goes, it's better to lose the battle than the person. Being called out like that, Zhang Qiang naturally couldn't remain silent, so he took the microphone and said, "Director Gu, the investment in The Ferryman is not low. Is Xingchen Films so confident that they can compete with us at the box office?"

"Haha, I still say that, we will invest as much as you invest. Not only that, no matter when The Ferryman is scheduled to be released, Mojin: The Lost Tomb will definitely accompany it." Gu Wei said with a smile.

Zhang Qiang was also provoked by the other party, "If that's the case, then Ali will accompany you to the end."

Perhaps he felt that saying these things was not satisfying, so Zhang Qiang thought for a moment and continued, "It seems that Gu Wei is obsessed with Xingchen Film's past achievements, but in my opinion, Ali has its own unique development model, and maybe it will end your box office legend in the future."

The tension between the two sides is getting stronger and stronger. In the eyes of many people, this is no longer a simple fight, but a matter of reputation for both companies.

Hearing this, Gu Wei was delighted. He was just worrying about having no excuse to talk about your model, but he didn't expect that one would be delivered to his door.

“From the beginning to the end, I did not agree with the model proposed by Ali Pictures, and I do not agree with the view that movies are just pure commodities.

So here today, I would also like to advise Mr. Zhang that making movies is just making movies, make more high-quality works, and don’t mess around, otherwise the whole industry will be ruined in the end.”

As soon as these words were spoken, the reporters became excited. Just by reporting these words, everyone could guess what kind of stir it would cause.

But there is a saying that goes, the bigger the storm, the more expensive the fish.

At this moment, many reporters wished that Gu Wei could say more, the more unpleasant the better, otherwise how could they attract the attention of netizens?

But to Zhang Qiang, these words sounded so hurtful that he almost couldn't help but stand up and leave.

"Hmph, Director Gu, don't worry about how the Ali model is. Let's just see how it performs at the box office." Zhang Qiang spoke each word with a hint of gritted teeth.

"Interesting." Gu Wei muttered to himself, then rolled his eyes and said, "Haha, if that's the case, then besides comparing the box office, I wonder if Mr. Zhang is interested in betting on something else?"

Zhang Qiang had a bad feeling, but he still responded.

"How about whoever loses at the box office pays the other party an extra 100 million? Ali's family is big and powerful, so there shouldn't be any problem, right?"

As soon as the words fell, not only the people present, but even the netizens who were watching the live broadcast were excited.

"Report to the police uncle, someone is live streaming gambling!"

"What nonsense are you talking about? Director Gu clearly said it was a bet agreement, hahahaha."

"Director Gu, are you getting carried away? Are you comparing who has more money with Alibaba?"

On the other side, Tai Chi Ma, who was reminded by his assistant, looked grim after seeing the live broadcast and immediately sent a text message.

In the auditorium, Zhang Qiang was feeling a little embarrassed at the moment. After all, he was just an employee at Ali Pictures and had no right to decide on the flow of large amounts of funds.

Seeing the commotion at the scene and people looking at him with gloating expressions, beads of sweat slowly appeared on Zhang Qiang's forehead.

Just when he didn't know how to respond, the assistant next to him whispered something in his ear.

Instantly, Zhang Qiang felt that he was back to normal. He straightened his back and said, "One hundred million is too little. Since Director Gu wants to play around, how about using the cost of these two movies as the bet?"

"Fuck." Some people couldn't help but swear.

You know, both sides said that there is no upper limit on the cost of the film. If things go on like this, the final bet may be very shocking. Wen Muye, who was next to Gu Wei, was already confused at the moment. This was still a movie press conference. How could the police come over as soon as this one ended?

When the time comes, I’ll put on the silver bracelet and sing “Tears Behind Bars”!
Wen Muye was not the only one who was sweating. Upon hearing this, Song Ge turned around and said to Gu, "There's no need to make such a big deal."

Gu Wei waved his hand. Since he had come up against Ali, he was prepared to use the box office of one movie after another to defeat the other party's ideas to fool netizens and let Tai Chi Ma know that it was not easy to enter the domestic entertainment industry.

Furthermore, even if there is no investment cap for the two films, how much will the final cost be?
To put it bluntly, Gu Wei can still afford 1 billion or 2 billion.

"Okay, that's settled then." Gu Wei agreed directly in front of everyone.

Since we're going to do it, let's just go for the big one and not worry about anything else!
"Ah, my brother-in-law is serious. I thought he was joking." Su Chang was dumbfounded and muttered to Miss Liu next to him.

"Hehe, my man is so domineering." Miss Liu replied with a silly smile, but Su Chang rolled his eyes in return.

.........

In the outside world, the press conference of "Mojin: The Lost Legend" instantly topped the hot search list.

Originally everyone came here to watch the fun, but no one expected it to be so big?

There is no need to mention the bet between the two parties. There have been reports online that after the press conference, Zhang Qiang directly signed an agreement with Xingchen Film and Television Company.

However, because there is no specific amount, even if some people joke that both parties are suspected of gambling, there is a lack of evidence.

In the eyes of netizens, both companies are not short of money, and the amount of gambling has little to do with them. However, another statement made by Gu Wei at the press conference triggered many netizens' likes.

“To put it bluntly, our circle used to be called the literary and artistic circle, with culture and art, so everyone looked up to us.

Later, with the development of the times, it was called the entertainment circle. It lost its art but still had some culture, and everyone watched it reluctantly.

But now it has become the entertainment industry, there is no art or culture, why should the audience spoil us?

So in my opinion, when a movie loses money at the box office, there is no need to find so many excuses. Self-reflection is the most important thing. Everything else is nonsense. "

Although these words did not specify who they were, different people would feel differently when hearing them.

Some people felt as if they had been enlightened after hearing it, some showed disdain, and some felt that although what it said was unpleasant, it was the truth.

Some people who already disliked Gu Wei became even more annoyed with him after hearing what he said.

Anyway, no matter what, Gu Wei’s remarks at the press conference completely set off the domestic entertainment industry.

The Berlin Film Festival, the competition for domestic films during the Spring Festival, and so on are all so weak.

...

"Awesome, brother, I really admire you."

Jiang Wen, who was far away in Berlin, called and wanted to bow down to him.

"Do you need to tell me whether I'm awesome or not? You'd better take care of yourself. Don't come back if you can't win the Golden Bear Award." Gu Wei joked directly.

"Fuck you, I'm not the chairman of the jury. I can give it to whoever I want."

The two of them joked around for a while, and after the call ended, Zhou Yun said with some concern, "Director Gu, will there be any problems with this? Some of the things you said were too explicit."

"Explicit? What's explicit? I think it's being tactful. Some people just can't be given face." Jiang Wen is like this in his bones.

Just like what happened today in Berlin, Jiang Wen attended a roundtable meeting held by mainland media and directly confronted the reporters present.

The controversy was sparked after the Berlin premiere of "One Step Away", when Taiwanese film scholar Jiao Xiongping posted on Weibo that only seven people left the theater out of thousands of viewers.

Unexpectedly, it was because of this report that Jiang Wen was criticized by many netizens. The reason was that some media had published reports titled "Nearly 40% of the audience left" and "The highest withdrawal rate in this year's main competition."

Jiang Wen, who attended the roundtable discussion, took the initiative to talk about his attitude towards the "40% exit" statement, saying it meets the basic needs of the public: "This is biased, but you have the freedom to do so."

Who knew that a reporter at the roundtable said that the 40% withdrawal was an objective fact and he could be responsible for this report.

Jiang Wen then directly hit back, saying, "The majority of people who walked out were at the film company's internal previews and the media screenings. It's normal for people to walk out of the media screenings at a film festival, not to mention that it overlaps with the premiere of Fifty Shades of Grey, so many reporters have to go there."

The reporter on the other side of the round table was unyielding and insisted that reporters could not enter the premiere because it was arranged by the organizing committee. So he reported the facts he saw and there was no problem with his attitude in his writing.

Later, Hong Huang and Zhou Yun also joined the roundtable discussion and expressed their support for Jiang Wen.

But even in this situation, Jiang Wen and the reporter's views were still incompatible, and the two sides started to argue with each other.

So much so that Jiang Wen finally said, "So what if I'm just not behaving well?" and left immediately.

Hearing Jiang Wen's words, Zhou Yun was both angry and amused, "You and Director Gu really get along well, so you're quite suitable for a visit."

"Haha, that means we are the same kind of people. We can't tolerate any injustice." Jiang Wen laughed and continued, "Don't worry about Gu Wei. He is much more capable than we thought. If things don't work out, he can go to Hollywood to develop his career. He has many options."

The two were chatting here, while Gu Wei received a call from Han Sanping.

"You, can you please be more low-key? Why do you have to make such a fuss with the other party? More friends mean more paths."

Han Sanping now regrets making the appointment with Gu Wei and Zhang Qiang. Although this matter has nothing to do with him, Old Han still feels that he has meddled in it.

"Hey, stop it, Mr. Han, we are not the same kind of people at all, and there is no need for us to be friends."

Gu Wei emphasized once again that there were some things he could not tell Han Sanping. He couldn't perform a big prophecy in front of him.

If this were really done, and someone with ulterior motives found out, Gu Wei would definitely not be able to escape the fate of being kept in captivity.

"Okay, I know what kind of person you are. I won't say anything more." Han Sanping originally wanted to act as a peacemaker, but after hearing what Gu Wei said, he immediately gave up the idea.

The topic changed and Old Han talked about the daughter of the Han family.

"Can my daughter's script really win an Oscar?"

It is said that a daughter is a father’s little cotton-padded jacket. Even if the jacket is leaky, the old father still thinks about his eldest daughter.

Ever since Gu Wei talked about the script of Han Jia Nu at the annual meeting two days ago, Comrade Han has been pondering the script over and over at home these days. In order to confirm that Gu Wei is not fooling his daughter, Han Sanping naturally took the opportunity to continue listening to Director Gu's thoughts.

"I can't guarantee that."

"I knew you were..."

"Don't be impatient, Comrade Han." Seeing that Han Sanping was about to lose his temper, Gu Wei immediately interrupted him.

"The script is indeed a good one. If I take it to Hollywood to film it, the chances of it being shortlisted are quite high."

"That's nonsense. What role will my daughter have in filming in Hollywood?" Han Sanping was totally unwilling.

"Junior sister is still a screenwriter, there is no difference." Seeing that Old Han had taken the bait, Gu Wei began to deceive him.

"There's a huge difference. How can foreign-language films and Chinese-language films be the same for both Oscars?" Having worked in the film industry for a lifetime, Han Sanping still has his own principles.

"Then what do you say we should do? You've read the script, and the subject matter is very explicit. If we really want to film it this way, can it be released in China? Can it pass the review and participate in the Oscars?"

In the original time and space, even though "Dying to Survive" added a lot of comedy elements, the final result was still that Lu Yong went to jail, which is indeed in line with the national conditions and the reality.

But Gu Wei felt that if he really wanted to enter the Oscars, he would first have to change the name to "Hope of Life". Of course, it would also be fine to use "Dying to Survive" when it is released in mainland China.

If circumstances permit, it is best to make the ending open ended, after all, that's what foreigners like.

But in reality, this approach would cause serious problems. Not to mention whether it conforms to the real plot, an open ending alone would be difficult to pass the review of the General Administration, let alone be nominated for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.

Hearing this, Han Sanping was also stunned. The domestic entertainment censorship is becoming more and more strict now, and even he is not sure that he can pass the review.

Hearing no movement on the phone, Gu Wei did not speak either.

The two were silent for a while, and then Han Sanping spoke up, "If you can shoot this work, I think some things can be polished slowly."

Hearing this, Gu Wei smiled bitterly, "Boss Han, you know my schedule. I probably won't have time to do this in the next one or two years, let alone in the near future."

In Gu Wei's plan, he will mainly focus on innovative films in the future. He will at most participate in the investment of some domestic high-grossing films in the original time and space, but will not personally participate.

"Haha, with this script, you can't film it now even if you want to."

"So what do you mean?" Gu Wei vaguely guessed the other party's thoughts.

"First, hand in the script, then promote it in the circle, and then make it happen little by little through hard work..."

"Even if that's the case, it will probably take several years, and you might still not pass in the end."

Han Sanping told the story in detail. It has to be said that even though Comrade Han has stepped down, his brain is still working well.

Hearing this, Gu Wei changed his mind and thought that it was okay. At worst, he could just shoot it according to the original time and space version. If this version really didn't pass, Han Sanping couldn't expect him to direct it.

From this perspective, it really kills two birds with one stone without wasting time.

Afterwards, the two of them discussed some details and decided that Han Sanping would be in charge of this matter. After all, Gu Wei was too popular now, and some old guys would definitely not agree if he came forward.

.........

(End of this chapter)