Huayu: From an ordinary person to a happy director

Chapter 117 Promotion and release plan for 300 Spartans
As time passed, Shi Lei worked while talking with Zhao Liying about his ideals in life.

He thought he could stay in the country for another two months, but after just over a month, he received a call from Mike.

"Are you sure you want me to come over right now? Are you guys so efficient? Have you finished all the special effects for 300?"

Mike's voice came from the phone: "Yes, the special effects are ready. Isn't this within your expectations?

Let the special effects team participate in the filming. When the green screen shot comes out, the special effects team will have special effects drawn in their minds.

The special effects of "300" are not difficult.

Shi, this is the strength of Hollywood. As long as the preparatory work is sufficient and the crew members do their job, the film can be completed quickly. The preparatory work is the most time-consuming in Hollywood movies. "

"Honestly, Shi, I think you should stay in Hollywood. There's no need to go to China, where the highest box office is $3000 million."

Shi Lei Weiwei, it is impossible to live in North America permanently, the Blade of Sanction is too terrifying.

"You don't need to explain this to me. I understand the strength of Hollywood. I just don't understand it. My mission as a director has been completed. As long as it is promoted and distributed, I believe in Warner's strength."

"Shi, have you forgotten that you are also an investor?" Mark reminded.

"It's not that I forgot that I'm an investor, but I trust you guys, Warner Bros. I believe you can do a good job of publicity and promotion, and I don't need to worry about it."

"Shi, you are the soul of this film. With you here, we can do a better job of publicity and promotion. In addition, you are also the producer of the film. For both public and private reasons, you have to come here." Mike's voice came from the receiver.

"Okay! I'll go over and take a look."

Since Warner Bros. has asked, he might as well go over there.

In fact, he felt that there was no need to personally participate in the promotion of "300".

It's not that he doesn't take it seriously, but he is not confident in "300". "300" had a very high global box office in its previous life, so it will definitely not be bad this time.

Because "300" is really a very special film. This film has a unique style. It made Zack successful in his previous life and also provided a lot of inspiration to other directors.

"300 Spartans" is adapted from the work of the same name by Frank Miller and Lynn Varley, telling the story of the Persian Empire's invasion of Greece in 480 BC.

The film was widely acclaimed for its unique visual style and action scenes, and had a profound impact on the film and television industry.

The film achieved a huge breakthrough in film and television technology.

It is unique in technology, expression and production standards, and has achieved certain results in awards, becoming an iconic film work.

The most attractive part of a movie to the audience is its visual performance.

The biggest selling point of "300" is also the creation of color tone and visual atmosphere. The creation of tone and visual atmosphere is the key to the success of the film.

The film uses a specific color palette and modulated tones to create a haunting visual style.

The colors used in the movie are mainly cold colors such as blue and gray, creating a cold and cruel atmosphere.

This cold tone highlights the severe challenges faced by the Spartan warriors when facing the invasion of the Persian Empire, while also presenting the solemnity and ruggedness of ancient Greece.

The color treatment in the film highlights the contrasts and differences.

The film presents an epic visual effect through strong black and white contrast and rich contrasting colors.

This contrast creates a sense of drama and mystery, increasing the audience's attention and investment in the storyline and the characters' fate.

Dark tones and highlights are also used in the film to emphasize the strength and courage of the characters.

By highlighting the character's body lines and strong muscles, the Spartans in the movie are portrayed as brave and fearless characters, reflecting their toughness and strength. The movie "300 Spartans" creates a unique visual atmosphere through the use of tones and palettes.

It is not just a movie, but also an epic presentation of the ancient Greek world through visual expression.

In terms of visual effects, the visual effects in the movie "300" are one of its unique ways of expression.

Extensive use of green screen technology and digital synthesis creates a grand and realistic world of ancient war.

The film uses green screen technology to combine real shooting with virtual scenes. By building a huge green screen in the studio, the actors perform in a virtual environment, and then digital synthesis is used in post-production to merge the real scene with special effects.

The technology makes battle scenes in the film, such as a Viking army charging on a beach and a duel between two warriors, look lifelike and impressive.

Digital compositing technology is also widely used in the film. Through digital compositing, the director created a detailed ancient Greek world with cities, mountains, dynamic skies and huge imperial legions.

These digitally synthesized scenes and elements make the film more grand, presenting a majestic and epic feel.

The film also uses slow motion, fast editing and other techniques to enhance the tension and visual impact of the battle scenes.

By adjusting the camera speed and switching images, the action scenes in the movie can be presented more clearly, allowing the audience to immerse themselves in the excitement and tension of the battle.

Muscles, fast and slow motion, epic background... all these combinations give "300" a unique charm, attracting countless audiences who like blood and violence.

After watching the film, many people couldn't help but think: This is the real Sparta!!!

That's what Spartans were supposed to be like.

This style even influenced the later TV series "Spartacus".

A huge epic background and pornographic scenes are the key to the success of this type of film.

Shi Lei knows the key to the success of "300", but he has no intention of continuing to delve into this genre.

As a qualified capitalist, he should not be bound by the style or genre of the film.

Every director has his own style and his own strengths, but he is a capitalist, and he wants everything, of course!

……

Seven days later, in a Warner film screening room, Shi Lei brought a group of people to watch the finished film.

When the film finished, there was thunderous applause in the screening room.

Shi Lei was very pleased with the applause, but he still humbly asked, "How is it?"

“Please give any suggestions you have.”

"For example, plot flaws, editing errors, bloopers, color grading, etc. As long as you see problems, please point them out."

"The success or failure of the film affects your jobs, so please bring your professional knowledge to the table."

"Don't worry about offending me. I'm not from your company."

As soon as the words fell, there was silence.

The people in the screening room were all professionals, and they knew that what Shi Lei said made sense.

but……

"Director Shi, how can you see it carefully just by watching it once?" a manager began.

"I was negligent. Let's watch it a few more times."

The movie was played again, and this time, they were no longer immersed in the film, but began to find fault with it with a professional eye.

Shi Lei also watched it very seriously and began to compare it frame by frame with the film in his memory.

This is his advantage as a time traveler. As an urban entertainment traveler, clear memories of past lives are one of the necessary golden fingers.

To be more precise, it is a necessary skill for all time travelers. Normal college students forget most of their knowledge within a few years after graduation, but time travelers remember everything. "300 Spartans" was invested with 6500 million US dollars. It was his first special effects blockbuster, and he also attached great importance to it.

The movie was played over and over again, and everyone, including Shi Lei, took notes.

After watching the film, everyone expressed their opinions.

Shi Lei thought about every opinion and gave a response.

Hollywood's industrial system is really good. The film producer or director takes the lead, and the rest of the people fill in the gaps.

Unlike in China, film screenings are just a formality to see the results, not to fill in the gaps for the director.

However, this is also related to national conditions. North America focuses on interests, while China is a huge society based on human relationships.

Even if problems are found in domestic films, at most they will just give a subtle reminder.

Even if you are brave enough to raise a question, the director’s first reaction is not to look at the problem, but to feel unhappy inside, and then to see how others respond.

The director of a low status thinks, "Who are you? How dare you say there is something wrong with my film?"

Directors with higher status are more friendly, but they may not change it. "What do you know? This is art. I have my own ideas when I shoot and edit it this way."

A colleague with a high status would also arouse the director's inner resentment, "They can't stand my box office success, so they are probably trying to squeeze me out."

In the entire film industry, generous directors are rare, and most directors are ordinary people.

Shi Lei shook his head, suppressed the chaotic thoughts in his mind, and seriously considered everyone's opinions. He would accept them directly if they were correct, and would give explanations if they were wrong.

However, even though the film-watching seemed very harmonious, there was still some power involved, and as long as he gave an explanation that would not change, others would not force it.

This is the director's authority.

The film screening lasted for three days, and he gained a better understanding of the operating model of Hollywood.

Seven days later, the film was finalized, and Shi Lei discussed the publicity and promotion issues with Warner's people.

The first step is to determine when the film will be released.

Shi Lei suggested setting the date for Independence Day in July, which is very consistent with the theme of the movie.

To resist invasion is to maintain independence.

“不行，6月30日有我们公司的《超人归来》，7月7日有《加勒比海盗2》。”很快就有人反对。

Of course Shi Lei knew that it wasn't possible, he was just talking.

I have the impression that "Superman Returns" was a box office failure and Warner suffered huge losses.

Of course he would not predict the box office of "Superman Returns" so as not to displease Warner.

He is not that familiar with Warner and will not interfere in Warner's internal affairs, and he is not an employee of Warner.

"Then let's hold it on July 7st. This way we can avoid Pirates of the Caribbean 21." Shi Lei continued to suggest.

Everyone glanced at the screening schedule and confirmed that the films showing that day were "Water Monster" and "My Super Ex-Girlfriend".

"Water Monster" is a horror film, "My Super Ex-Girlfriend"

"agree."

"agree."

……

Once the release date is set, the next step is to develop a promotional plan.

Shi Lei doesn't know much about North American promotion. Shuimitao Films' promotion and publicity are all handed over to the distribution company, and it has fewer channels for promotion and publicity.

The main reason is that horror movies do not require high requirements for publicity and promotion. Unlike other special effects blockbusters, they do not need to be warmed up three months in advance, promoted a month in advance, and then there is overwhelming brainwashing propaganda within a month.

Warner spent 5000 million U.S. dollars on publicity and promotion, which was beyond his expectations.

However, this shows that the people at Warner still have vision and are very confident about "300".

"Director Shi, do you have any ideas about publicity?"

Shi Lei shook his head very straightforwardly, "I'm a director, I'm better at making movies and promoting them, I don't have any good ideas."

He was speaking the truth. When he thought of publicity, he thought of news and advertisements. News is already out of date in the film and television industry, and as for advertisements, the first thing that came to his mind was the Thai sand sculpture advertisements.

If you don’t watch it to the end, you won’t know what the advertisement is.

Such advertisements are not suitable for the film and television industry.

For movie ads, just go with the regular trailer.

As for the publicity channels, the publicity resources controlled by Shuimitao Film and Television are relatively low.

"Director Shi, you are too modest. You must have thought of the promotion method before shooting your first commercial film!" A staff member wearing glasses suddenly spoke up.

Shi Lei frowned slightly. This sentence seemed like a compliment, but it was actually a sarcasm. His first commercial film was riding on the popularity of "The Matrix 2".

Sold in bundle with "The Matrix 2", at least half of the global box office of over 2 million yuan came from "The Matrix ".

But whether in the past or now, he is not ashamed of this, but proud of it.

Why should he be ashamed of the experience that made him so successful?
In later generations, short videos have become the norm for attracting traffic, and everyone has become accustomed to it.

It was impossible to make him feel ashamed.

But just because he didn't feel ashamed doesn't mean he didn't mind.

He is now an international director, so he still has the temper he deserves.

He immediately turned around and said to Mike beside him, "I don't like the guy with glasses. Can you kick him out of the team?"

Mike was stunned, and the other staff members also frowned and looked displeased.

"What did you say?" The staff member wearing glasses stood up and pointed at Shi Lei and questioned.

Shi Lei rubbed his ears and said calmly: "Are you a dog? Why are you barking so loudly? Didn't you hear what I said clearly?"

Shi Lei stood up slowly, looked straight at the white man wearing glasses, and said coldly: "I'll say it again, I don't like it, please quit the publicity team."

"You don't understand what people say? Or are you deaf?"

"You..." The white man with glasses pointed at Shi Lei and wanted to curse, but the person next to him covered his mouth.

Mike also stood up at the same time, "Shi, harmony brings wealth, harmony brings wealth."

Shi Lei had no intention of going forward to hit him, but said in a cold tone: "I didn't start this trouble, he was the one who mocked me first. Mike, just tell me what you are going to do?"

He is an internationally renowned director, worth hundreds of millions of dollars, and beating someone up would lower his status.

Mike also looked embarrassed, but he immediately said loudly: "Today's meeting ends here. The next meeting time will be notified later."

(End of this chapter)