1977: The beginning of the blind date with the daughter of the king

Chapter 603: Seeking cooperation at the Academy Awards!

"Oh, by the way, there's something else I just happened to tell you about."

"It's related to our film company."

"Our film Parasite won the Palme d'Or at Cannes. There is a magazine in Hong Kong called Film Biweekly, formerly known as Close-Up. Its founder is Tang Shuxuan, the granddaughter of the former warlord Tang Jiyao."

"But now she has immigrated to the United States, and Film Weekly may have been inspired by Parasite and now wants to set up a film award in Hong Kong Island, imitating the Oscars in the United States and also setting up a Hong Kong Film Awards."

"But as a magazine, it certainly doesn't have much strength. Now it's looking for partners everywhere, and of course, it found us!"

"I think this can be done. If it is done well, we can get the exclusive broadcasting rights for the Academy Awards, which is actually a good thing for Asian TV stations."

"What do you think?"

Shao Weiming remembered another thing at this time and said to Li Changhe.

"Academy Awards?"

Yes, Hong Kong Island does not have a film award at the moment.

It seems that it was not established until 82 or 83.

Li Changhe is not very clear whether the biweekly already had plans for the Academy Awards, or whether the biweekly's plan for the Academy Awards was brought forward because "Parasite" was selected for the Cannes Film Festival.

But now that the opportunity to win the Academy Awards is right in front of him, Li Changhe certainly won't miss it.

Although under his influence, the Golden Rooster Awards are no longer just an award for domestic entertainment, there is no doubt that the Golden Rooster Awards' review of overseas films is still very strict.

In the next twenty or even thirty years, Hong Kong Island will still be the core of the entire East Asian and Southeast Asian Chinese cultural circle.

In fact, in Li Changhe's opinion, among the three major Chinese film awards, Hong Kong's Academy Awards is the most likely to become an international award for Chinese-language films, especially when Hong Kong has a special status.

Unfortunately, with the weakening of Hong Kong Island's economy and the self-conceit of Hong Kong filmmakers, the Hong Kong Film Awards have become a private preserve for the Hong Kong film industry to entertain itself.

But now.
"Of course it can be done. Not only should it be done, but I think it should be done seriously."

"Hong Kong Island is actually a very special place. It is a zone where various forces intersect. The British, the island, and the mainland are the three forces that are entangled with each other."

“Therefore, this kind of place actually has a different kind of balance. I think it can actually be made into an international award for Chinese-language films.”

"Of course, if we are going to do it, we must ensure that the Academy Awards are fair, just, open and transparent, just like Cannes, and make it a business card for Hong Kong Island, rather than becoming a mouthpiece for various forces."

"You can talk to the biweekly magazine and strengthen cooperation. I even think that we can invest and acquire the film biweekly magazine."

"Then, on the "Film Biweekly", we will design a rating system for the movies released each month, with fans giving ratings and comments, and critics giving ratings and comments, and then we will design a comprehensive score."

"And our Academy Awards can use this score as a reference."

The idea given by Li Changhe is exactly the model of Douban in the future, but there were no websites in that era, only movie magazines could give ratings.

"You also want to acquire Film Fortnightly?"

Shao Weiming was a little surprised when he heard Li Changhe's suggestion.

Originally they were talking about the Academy Awards, but now they are directly going to acquire the Film Biweekly?
"It doesn't matter if I acquire it. It's not just the movie biweekly. In fact, I am also considering acquiring or starting a newspaper next."

“I also want to enter the print media field.”

"I want to advance the three major propaganda fields of television, film, and print media simultaneously to create a comprehensive Chinese media group, just like the MCA media group in the United States." "And this media group should be a fair, just, and objective disseminator of world information."

Li Changhe said to Shao Weiming seriously.

After listening to this, Shao Weiming looked at Li Changhe in shock.

"Your idea is really big."

Li Changhe smiled and said, "Brother Weiming, if this is done well, it will also be a good protection umbrella for us."

"Think about it, if we have a world-class media mouthpiece in our hands, then whether it's the British, the island, or the mainland, they will have to seriously weigh their attitude towards us."

"You know, oftentimes, the biggest shock to economic power does not come from opponents, but from the crushing of political power."

"If we have a media group in our hands, not to mention Europe and the United States, as long as it has enough influence in the Chinese region, it will be a huge trump card for us."

“So, we must have print media.”

"The simultaneous advancement of television and print media will allow us to influence enough people and have enough channels for them to speak out."

"Movie awards can often sync up with our group's reputation and direction. For example, if we emphasize that our media group is fair, objective, and provides real information, then the word-of-mouth advantage brought by film selection can also add to our reputation."

"Ayang, your idea is really..."

After hearing this, Shao Weiming didn't know what to say.

Because of what Li Changhe said, he had never considered it.

Of course, this level is beyond his reach. After all, ordinary businessmen do not need to consider the impact of politics on business.

To put it bluntly, Li Changhe's way of thinking is something that only top-level consortiums need to consider.

But thinking about Li Changhe's current industries, Shao Weiming felt that Li Changhe now owns a huge consortium.

Even if we don't count Bao Yugang's company, Li Changhe's own company alone is probably not inferior to Jardine Matheson back then.

Perhaps it is precisely because of this kind of thinking that Li Changhe was able to build such a large business force.

"Ayang, your idea is good, but to be honest, I don't know much about print media."

"I'm already busy enough with ATV and Shaw Cinemas. If I add print media to the mix, I'm afraid I won't be able to take care of it all."

Shao Weiming said seriously.

He is now very self-aware. ATV and Shaw Cinemas are already enough to keep him busy. If he adds a print media to the mix, he really won't be able to handle it.

He also thinks that he doesn't have that much ability.

"It's okay, Brother Weiming, just talk to Film Biweekly first and see if you can acquire them. Then they can be the organizer of the Academy Awards and a professional film rating magazine."

"As for the print media, I'm just saying hello to you first. I'll see what happens next and then proceed."

He is not in a hurry about the print media now and will wait until the Sino-British negotiations are settled.

What's more, by that time, the 77.78 and classes of the Journalism Department of the Chinese Department of Peking University would have graduated. By then, he might be able to find a suitable person to take the helm.

(End of this chapter)