Huayu: Hard fight against Zhang Weiping at the beginning

Chapter 433 New Media Copyright

Feng Xiaogang was actually quite nervous when filming "Night Banquet".

He himself said that he knew that one day his comedies would not be a hit, so he wanted to try other genres while they were still popular.

In fact, I am quite self-aware~
It just so happened that Wang Zhonglei brought him the script of "Night Banquet" and told him that the film could attract an investment of 1.2 million yuan, so of course he shot it.

Before that, his position was awkward.

At the beginning, Lao Mouzi, Chen Shishi and Xiao Gangpao were known as the three major directors in China, but in fact Xiao Gangpao is far behind Lao Mouzi.

Zhang Yimou’s movies can sell 2000 million US dollars overseas, but Xiao Qiang can’t do that, let alone 2000 million, it’s not even certain that he can sell 200 million US dollars.

"A World Without Thieves" also has King Liu, but it still doesn't sell well~
Later, the three major directors became four major directors, and with the addition of Zhang Chen, who was even more capable, it became even more embarrassing.

Feng Xiaogang had never handled such a large project before. Although he wanted to make a blockbuster, he didn't know if he could do it, so he hired the best people behind the scenes.

Yuan Heping's team $100 million~
Ye Jintian's team $250 million~
Tan Dun's team $40~
Let professionals do professional things, this is the easiest way to produce high-quality products~
After the film was completed, we originally wanted to have a preview, but it was suddenly moved up and we were caught off guard and there was no time at all.

"The Banquet" has received very bad reviews online!
Some people say it more objectively:

The plot is full of loopholes, making the whole film unconvincing, but the pictures and costumes are great~
There are total denials:

I watched "The Banquet", which was a complete imitation of Lao Mouzi, disgusting, and the plot and dialogue were unbelievable~
There are also those who hold a negative attitude towards Chinese blockbusters:
"House of Flying Daggers", "The Promise" and "The Banquet" have completed a perfect three-hit combo, and I am completely disappointed with Chinese blockbusters~
With the development of the film industry to this point, many audiences have come to their senses and no longer believe in so-called blockbusters. It is not that a movie with a big investment, a big director, or a big star is necessarily a good movie.
"The Promise" fed them shit once, and "The Banquet" fed them shit again~
Some people simply look down on Feng Xiaogang:
It's neither Chinese nor Western. Feng Xiaogang just copied Hamlet. His level is not good enough.
There is another point of complaint, which is about the laughter~
If it is still Feng's comedy, then laughing is a good thing~
But "The Banquet" is not like that. It is a serious drama and frequent laughter will distract the audience.

The audience is generally not satisfied with Feng Xiaogang's transformation.
Feng Xiaogang doesn't care whether they are satisfied or not, he only cares about the box office in the first weekend.

"How much is the box office?"

"4100."

Inside Huayi, everyone cheered.

According to the convention that the first weekend's box office is approximately one-third of the total box office, that means that the total box office of "The Banquet" can exceed 100 million yuan, which is a big victory.

"The Banquet", Huayi borrowed 100 million yuan, the pressure is huge~
Feng Xiaogang is facing enormous pressure to recoup his investment. If "Night Banquet" fails, it will not only mean that his transformation has failed, but also that he will most likely never have the opportunity to make blockbuster movies in the future.

The Wang brothers were so excited that they wanted to open a bottle of champagne. According to their estimation, the total box office of "The Banquet" would be between 1.3 and 1.4 million yuan, so the investors would probably get 6000 to 7000 million yuan in profits, plus 1500 million yuan from DVD copyright, 500 million yuan from movie channel revenue, and 1500 million yuan from advertising revenue, a total of 9500 million yuan.

This means that almost three quarters of the costs can be recovered domestically.

As long as the remaining 2500 million is made up overseas, the investment can be recovered, and the rest is pure profit.

As for overseas copyrights, Harvey's bid is 500 million US dollars, which means they can at least make 1500 million in profit.

Don’t think it’s not much, it’s already very generous.

Feng Xiaogang, however, was somewhat unhappy.

"Xiao Gang, what are you worried about?"

"I think the reputation of The Banquet is too bad, I still have to take care of it, otherwise I'm afraid it will affect the box office in the second week~"

After he reminded him, Wang Zhonglei also reacted: "Yes, yes, yes, we have to take care of it. I will contact the Internet trolls tomorrow to give us good reviews. Damn it, it must be Xingchen Entertainment who did it~"

Those who kill will be killed.
Sooner or later, you will pay for what you have done.
When they decided to make "A Quiet Place", they thought this day would come. It was inevitable.

Inside Xingchen Entertainment, Dong Jianqiang and Zhang Chen were also discussing the first weekend box office of "The Banquet".

How could a movie that has a bad reputation still earn 4100 million at the box office?

Dong Jianqiang shook his head: "Most of the people who watched the film in the first week had very clear purposes, such as being fans of Feng Xiaogang or a certain actor, and these people are unlikely to be influenced by reviews.

It takes time for word of mouth to develop, and I estimate it will take at least the second week for it to have an impact.”

Dong Jianqiang's judgment is surprisingly similar to Feng Xiaogang's.

Sure enough, starting from the second week, the box office was not very strong and it dropped precipitously.

If things continue to develop like this, it remains to be seen whether "Night Banquet" can make money.

Everyone's mentality immediately changed again, and they just hoped not to lose money.

For Huayi, even if it doesn’t make money, it is still making money as long as it breaks even.

Because a director will be treated completely differently depending on whether he has made a blockbuster or not.

For example, Feng Xiaogang’s previous films have never sold well in South Korea.

"A World Without Thieves" has grossed over 100 million yuan in the country, and it even stars King Liu, but no one in Korea bought it.

But if "The Banquet" sells well abroad, those overseas investors and overseas film producers will be willing to invest in Feng's new film. By the way, they will also inquire about Feng's previous works. Maybe "A World Without Thieves" and "Cell Phone" can be sold.

This is the same principle as when readers read books. If they think a book is good, they will choose to read other books by the author after finishing it.

In the interview, Feng Xiaogang was very stubborn: "I seem to have always been a 'problematic director'. When I was shooting Party A and Party B, everyone watched the film and said, what is this? Is this a movie? This is a TV series, a video sketch! Feng Xiaogang can't make a movie at all.

As of today's "The Banquet", the media and critics continue to "denounce" me, but this time it's good, no one says that I can't make movies, and no one says that I can't use movie shots.

To put it bluntly, Zhang Chen and I are actually not from that circle at all. Our presence has affected those people’s interests, so there are so many people attacking The Banquet…”

The little cannon was quite smart. Seeing that Zhang Chen had just had a fight with those academic people, he decisively took advantage of the situation.

Even Zhang Chen was a little impressed after seeing it.

There is a reason why this guy has been so popular for so many years. He is clear-headed and thick-skinned.

……

Golden Harvest Screening Room, Hong Kong

"Congratulations, boss. A Quiet Place is a big hit. It is said that the total box office has exceeded 1.5 million..."

The chubby Wang Jing smiled and bowed to congratulate.

"A Quiet Place" became so popular because of the war of words that its box office in the third week reached 5000 million, exceeding the previous two weeks.

Zhang Chen waved his hand and said that he came here today to see the sample film.

The filming of "Extreme Job" has been completed. Wang Jing is indeed a quick shooter. He even finished the post-production in just over a month.

Even Chen Xi was amazed at the speed, but she was more afraid that Wang Jing would reduce the quality of the film in order to increase speed.

But after checking, I found that there was nothing, so I called Zhang Chen to check it out~
After all, it is the first film after joining Golden Harvest~
"Extreme Job" is a pure comedy film. It tells the story of a useless anti-drug team who took over a fried chicken shop that was about to go bankrupt in order to complete their undercover mission. Unexpectedly, due to a series of coincidences, they turned the fried chicken shop into a nationally famous comedy story.

Starring Liang Jiahui, Gao Yuanyuan, Wu Zhenyu, Li Cansen, Zhang Mo, special appearances include Twins, Wu Junru, Zhang Guoli, Simon Yam, Ge Minhui...

Zhang Chen originally wanted Zhao Benshan or Chen Daoming to guest-star as a drug dealer, but unfortunately neither of them agreed.

Really, I like to stay in my comfort zone~
Brand investment is not going smoothly either.

There is nothing wrong with all the other investment projects in the movie, except for the fried chicken restaurant.

In the first half of the movie, the Loser Squad took over a small shop selling fried chicken in order to monitor drug dealers.

Unexpectedly, the fried chicken they make has become an Internet celebrity restaurant because of its delicious taste.

If the movie only went this far, there would definitely be no problem with the fried chicken restaurant's brand investment.

But in the second half, drug dealers use fried chicken shops to sell drugs, which has a huge impact on the brand image. Hong Kong's local fried chicken brands are worried about being affected by the movie, and no one cooperated.

There was no other choice, so he simply looked for a fried chicken restaurant in the mainland and finally chose Yanqingguan, a fried chicken restaurant that Zhang Chen liked very much, headquartered in Henan.

The boss of Yanqing Temple happened to be a fan of Zhang Chen. When he learned that a movie was looking for a brand advertiser, he immediately agreed.

He had a different opinion from others. It just so happened that Yanqing Temple was going to expand across the country, which was consistent with the first half of the movie. As for the second half, he automatically ignored it.

The movie was over in 90 minutes.

Wang Jing heard Zhang Chen burst into laughter several times during the speech, and the heart that had been hanging in his heart finally settled down.

It seems that there should be no problem~
He had always worried that his style of comedy would not be accepted in mainland China, but now it seemed that at least Zhang Chen and Chen Xi could empathize with him.

The lights came on and Zhang Chen applauded.

“A good work~”

"Thank you for the compliment, boss~"

Wang Jing did a good job. The script of "Extreme Job" was not very amazing to begin with, and it was very good that he could complete it to this extent.

Liang Jiahui's performance in the film is also good. He is good at acting in comedies. He even beat Stephen Chow in the film "Red Rose and White Rose"~
The story takes place in Hong Kong, and Liang Jiahui and the other five are all members of the Narcotics Investigation Division of Tsim Sha Tsui Police Station.

When he was writing the script, he considered setting the story in mainland China, but then he thought better of it.

This play takes the absurd route, and the five-member team of the protagonists are all useless in order to create jokes.

If it were placed in the mainland, it might be suspected of insulting drug enforcement police.

In order to avoid trouble, Zhang Chen set the story in Hong Kong.

Anyway, even the black police can be filmed here~
Regarding absurd comedy, it's very strange~
This form of comedy generally does not have high box office performance.

Except for Star Lord's~
Zhang Chen felt that Wang Jing was a good tool. He was capable and not pretentious. If you gave a film project to him, he might not be able to give you a perfect score, but he could at least get 70 or 80 points.

"Director Wang, do you have any schedule next? Are you interested in working together on another movie?"

Wang Jing was slightly surprised, and then overjoyed. Look, his statement has had an effect. He just submitted his pledge of allegiance two days ago, and received feedback today.

"Of course, even if I don't have time, I will make time for it. It's a great opportunity to work with Director Zhang~"

Speaking of these compliments, Wang Jing did not feel any psychological pressure at all.

Old Jianghu~
Know the rules of the underworld.

What is most respected in the underworld is strength. Only those incompetent people would talk about seniority every day.

Zhang Chen is now a big boss, and should not be underestimated~
"But it's not Golden Harvest, it's my company in mainland China - Xingchen Entertainment. The company has a costume sitcom, and the ratings are very good. I'm planning to make a movie version, and I want to invite Director Wang to join~"

"What I wish for~"

"Well, we'll talk about it in detail after the script comes out~"

After discussing the matter of "Wulin Waijiao Movie" with Wang Jing, Wang Jing left.

Chen Xi's eyes were filled with envy: "Is there going to be a movie version of 'Wulin Wai Zhuan'?"

"Well, I also made a temporary decision. I will cooperate with Benshan Media. It should be a series~"

Chen Xi did not continue the topic, but asked: "Are you going to the roadshow this afternoon?"

Zhang Chen shrugged: "I won't go, let Fan Binbin and Jason go~"

This time they came not only to watch the movie, but also to promote "A Quiet Place".

Golden Harvest is responsible for the promotion of "A Quiet Place" in Hong Kong.

The box office is not bad at the moment. Hong Kong is very fond of movies of this type. "The Shallows" and "A Quiet Place" both sold well in Hong Kong.

"Should we give Dongfang Films a warning? I heard they used some tricks when A Quiet Place was released~"

This is not a secret at all. Chen Xi found out about it the last time he talked on the phone with Dong Jianqiang.

"No need, they are also doing this for Dragon Tiger Gate, and their methods are still within a reasonable range, everyone can just rely on their own abilities~"

Chen Xi has some opinions about Wong Jing. Both of them worked together on "Ip Man". When "A Quiet Place" was released in mainland China, Dongfang Film dared to use tricks...

But Zhang Chen didn't think it mattered.

Where there is cooperation between companies there will certainly be competition.

As long as the means are within reasonable limits.

Oriental Films did buy some negative reviews, but they were all still within an acceptable range. Zhang Chen also bought it when "Dragon Tiger Gate" was released.

Looking at it from another perspective, Oriental Films is cooperating with Hong Kong's Golden Harvest, not mainland China's Star Entertainment.

It's just that the two companies happen to have the same boss.

"Well, I have something else I want to tell you~"

"what?"

“I want to do streaming~”

“Streaming?”

"To be exact, it's a video website~"

"Why did you think of doing this?"

"I see Li Zekai is working on it. He has created a streaming platform called Viu, which is mainly aimed at Southeast Asia. It is said that he will also create a streaming TV station. I think this is the future direction, and we should plan it early~"

Zhang Chen once again looked at her with admiration, worthy of being the strong person who would acquire Wanda Cinema Line in the future.

"I also think it is the future direction of development, but we can't afford it~"

Chen Xi was surprised: "Why?"

"Streaming media inevitably involves film and television copyrights, and the acquisition of this is extremely expensive. In addition, the development of streaming media in the future will be a process of constantly burning money. Unless there is a big capital platform behind it, it will not work at all~"

Chen Xi was puzzled: "Where did you hear that? I don't know anything else, but the copyright is not sky-high. It's very cheap. It's even okay not to have the copyright. I see many people are doing this."

"It's OK now, but it definitely won't be OK in the future. The state will formalize this."

"No wonder a company called LeTV contacted me a few days ago, wanting to buy the new media copyrights of all Golden Harvest films..."

"You sold it?"

"How is that possible? I'm just an employee. If I want to sell it, I must get your approval..."

Zhang Chen breathed a sigh of relief: "It's good that I didn't sell them. I'll keep them. I'll need them in the future."

He didn't expect that his fellow villager would start making trouble now, so it seems that he has to hurry up and take action.

(End of this chapter)