Literary Master 1978.

Chapter 260 If you don’t bid, how can I raise the royalties?

After a week of publicity, "The Shepherd" gradually created a whirlwind of movie-watching in the city of Yanjing. Not only were the movie theaters packed with audiences who came to watch the movie, but the discussions of ordinary people on the streets and alleys were also inseparable from this newly released movie.

Its popularity was even greater than that of "Lush Mountain Love" which was released two years ago. Many newspapers and media in Yanjing reported on the grand occasion after the movie was released.

Not only in the Yanjing area, but also in Shanghai since its release on New Year's Day, "The Horse Wrangler" has been released in many provinces across the country in just half a month, and has been warmly welcomed by audiences everywhere. During this period of time, media from all over the country have reported on this movie.

All of a sudden, overwhelming praise came like a tide, and the always picky critics gave the film overwhelming praise.

On the day of the Little New Year, Xie Jin called Lin Chaoyang. He was extremely excited on the phone. He was happy that the movie was well received by the audience and critics, but more importantly, he felt a sense of accomplishment that his work was a success.

He talked nonstop on the phone for more than ten minutes, all about media reviews and audience responses after the movie was released.

Judging from the current situation, "The Horse Wrangler" has achieved double success in box office and word of mouth, but this does not mean that the movie has no shortcomings.

Xie Jin said with some regret: "Looking back now, the scenes in Yanjing are not as vivid and touching as the scenes in the grassland. They are more rational and conceptual, lacking some warmth and more like preaching. The portrayal of the two overseas Chinese, Xu Jingyou and Miss Song, was too one-sided. It was because I, as a director, lacked understanding of the lives and languages ​​of overseas Chinese."

At the end of the conversation, Xie Jin brought up another topic.

"The Shepherd is out now, and I have to work on my next movie. Chaoyang, how about leaving your The Garland Under the Mountain to me?"

"Aren't you going to film Qiu Jin?"

When Lin Chaoyang visited the crew in the first half of the year, he heard Xie Jin talk about how he had always wanted to make a movie about Qiu Jin and planned to start preparing after finishing filming "The Shepherd".

"You can write the script first, and then shoot "Garland Under the Mountain" after you finish filming "Qiu Jin"."

"Your behavior is called eating more and taking more. You have to keep an eye on the pot while eating from the bowl." Lin Chaoyang joked.

"We worked well together before, wouldn't it be great to work together again?"

Lin Chaoyang pondered for a while and said, "Let's talk about this later."

Seeing his ambiguous attitude, Xie Jin stopped pestering him, thinking that they could meet again in Yanjing to discuss the matter in detail after the New Year.

The two spoke a few more words before hanging up the phone.

Lin Chaoyang glanced at his watch. Wow, this call lasted twenty minutes.

He said hello to Master Xie in the message room, returned to his work and continued writing letters.

He had just received a letter from Lu Yao in the morning. "Harvest" has decided to publish "Life", and Lu Yao wrote a special letter to express his gratitude.

After finishing the letter, Lin Chaoyang continued to write his novel. At this time, a note came from the front desk downstairs saying that someone was looking for him.

Lin Chaoyang went downstairs and saw that it was Jiang Huaiyan from Yanying Studio. He asked in surprise, "Old Jiang, what brings you here?"

Jiang Huaiyan smiled and shook hands with Lin Chaoyang, "It's the northwest wind from The Shepherd."

Lin Chaoyang pulled her to a corner and asked, "What did you mean by that?"

Jiang Huaiyan's smile faded, revealing a subtle look on his face. "We are old friends, so I won't beat around the bush. I came here on behalf of the studio to ask you for the adaptation rights to "The Wreath Under the Mountain."

After listening to his words, Lin Chaoyang immediately understood why he had that expression.

"Is it the task given by the leader?"

Jiang Huaiyan nodded casually, "I feel embarrassed if you ask me to come on my own initiative!"

Earlier this year, Yan Film Studio invited Lin Chaoyang to be a script consultant for the film "A Game of Chess That Has Not Been Finished". However, a disagreement arose between the two sides and Lin Chaoyang was kicked out of the crew.

Although Lin Chaoyang is good-tempered and generous, he has not yet reached the level of repaying evil with kindness. He looked at Jiang Huaiyan with a playful expression.

Jiang Huaiyan sighed upon seeing this, "After what happened last time, it's understandable that you have opinions about our factory. Anyway, I'm just passing on a message. It's up to you whether you agree or not."

Lin Chaoyang sighed and said, "Forget it. We haven't seen each other for a long time. Let's not talk about these disappointing things. I'll treat you to lunch at noon."

Seeing that it was almost noon, Lin Chaoyang took Jiang Huaiyan to the Long March Restaurant outside the school.

The two chatted while eating, and Jiang Huaiyan talked about the reason why Yanying Studio entrusted him to negotiate with Lin Chaoyang for the adaptation rights.

"The Garland under the Mountain" was published in the summer of 79. This novella, set against the background of the war against our southern neighbors, created a group of flesh-and-blood soldier images and told the touching fate of these ordinary people in a fascinating way.

Once published, it caused a huge response among readers. After the novel was published, it caused a sensation and was reprinted by many newspapers and magazines.

The single volume of the novel received great attention from the leaders, who purchased thousands of copies and gave them to the soldiers on the front line, further enhancing the influence of the novel.

The publication of "The Garland under the Mountain" was like a hydrogen bomb exploding over the heads of the Chinese people. The sensation and shock it caused was beyond everyone's expectations. Even now, two years have passed, it is still unforgettable.

As early as two or three months after the novel was published, some film studios had the idea of ​​adapting the novel into a movie. However, because the war was still dragging on and the troops had concerns, no studio took the action seriously.

As time goes by, although there are still disputes on the border, the impact of the war has gradually subsided.

This month, the movie "The Horse Herder", adapted from Lin Chaoyang's novel of the same name, set off a viewing craze as soon as it was released, fully demonstrating the adaptation potential of Lin Chaoyang's works.

Yanying Studio immediately realized that this was a great opportunity. Adhering to the principle of "whoever is close to the water gets the moon first", they sent Jiang Huaiyan to communicate with Lin Chaoyang, hoping to obtain the adaptation rights of "The Garland under the Mountain".

Jiang Huaiyan's rambling on about the little tricks of Yanying Studio did not surprise Lin Chaoyang. They had ignored him before, but now they came to him and asked for cooperation. It was simply because they saw the profit.

"Why do you think I will give you the adaptation rights of "High Mountain"? Even if I want to cooperate with the production studio, I should give them priority since I have the basis for cooperation with Director Xie and Shanghai Film Studio!" Hearing this, Jiang Huaiyan smiled bitterly, "Well! You're just trying to get something for nothing. I guess the production studio is thinking that with the popularity of "The Shepherd", more and more production studios will come to you for cooperation in the future, so they want to get a piece of the pie first."

After he said this, he straightened his expression and asked Lin Chaoyang seriously, "Tell me the truth, you won't give the adaptation rights of your novel to our studio, right?"

Lin Chaoyang looked relieved, "I didn't say that, did I?"

Jiang Huaiyan was surprised when he heard this, "What do you mean?"

Lin Chaoyang said calmly, "Public is public, private is private. Your company had conflicts with me before, and that was a private matter between us. The adaptation of the work is a public matter, and we will discuss the matter based on the facts. As long as the royalties are in place, it is not impossible to give it to you."

Jiang Huaiyan's eyes lit up when he heard his words.

"Can you really give it to us?"

Lin Chaoyang reminded: "I am talking about the premise that the royalties are in place."

Jiang Huaiyan asked: "How much do you want?"

"How much can you offer?"

Lin Chaoyang's question made Jiang Huaiyan hesitate. Lin Chaoyang asked this because he was naturally not satisfied with the conventional standard of royalties. But when Jiang Huaiyan came, the leader did not mention the issue of royalties!
However, he was the director of the literary planning department of Yanying Studio, so he had some say in the treatment of screenwriters. He thought about it and said, "Two thousand yuan, I can make the decision."

Lin Chaoyang shook his head, "Too low."

Jiang Huaiyan was surprised, "Two thousand is still too low?"

That expression seemed to say that Lin Chaoyang was killing him.

"I said that you, Yanying Studio, are not sincere!"

Lin Chaoyang's move of putting the blame on someone else made Jiang Huaiyan laugh angrily, "If you don't want to give it, then don't give it. Why are you making up such an excuse?"

"What do you mean by making excuses? Can I not even make money just because I'm angry? It's really because your royalties are not enough." Lin Chaoyang said calmly.

"Then tell me, how much does it cost?"

Jiang Huaiyan looked at Lin Chaoyang and stretched out a finger. This was definitely not "one thousand yuan", "ten thousand?"

Lin Chaoyang nodded.

Jiang Huaiyan stood up in shock, "Are you trying to rob me?"

"Don't get excited, sit down and talk. If others don't know, they might think I did something to you!" Lin Chaoyang advised.

After being surprised, Jiang Huaiyan sat down again, but his mood was still fluctuating violently. Even though he had a good relationship with Lin Chaoyang, he was frightened by the exorbitant price.

Jiang Huaiyan stared at Lin Chaoyang, "You don't want to give us the adaptation rights, right?"

"Lao Jiang, what you said is disrespectful to me. I told you, I'm not the kind of person who would not even make money just to be angry.

As long as you are sincere, I will definitely give it to you.”

Lin Chaoyang's expression was full of confidence, but in Jiang Huaiyan's eyes, it seemed like he was making fun of Yanying Studio.

"Forget it. If you don't want to give it, then don't give it. It's already a festival, so it's normal for you not to give it to us."

Lin Chaoyang said anxiously: "You, hey, you, you should... bargain for a price!"

Jiang Huaiyan looked at his expression and felt suspicious. Could there be room for bargaining?
"What about the two thousand five?"

Lin Chaoyang immediately refused, "No, it's too low."

"Just tell me how much you want. Two thousand dollars is already a high price. I really can't decide if it's any higher."

"Ten thousand."

Jiang Huaiyan turned his head away, speechless.

Well! It's the same as saying nothing.

"You're just teasing me."

Lin Chaoyang sighed, "I said you guys are not sincere. The Shepherd is so popular now, and my The Wreath Under the Mountain has sold millions of copies. If it is really adapted into a movie in the future, it will be more popular than The Shepherd? You are not even willing to spend 10,000 yuan."

Jiang Huaiyan pondered over Lin Chaoyang's words and found that they made sense.

Seeing that Lin Chaoyang's attitude did not seem like one that would hold a grudge, he thought he could go back and talk to his leader to get him to pay more royalties.

After all, the influence of "The Garland under the Mountain" is indeed too great, and the single volume alone has sold four to five million copies.

If Yanying Studio gets the adaptation rights for this novel, it won't be a loss at all!
"Okay, I'll go back and ask for instructions from my leader."

"That's right!"

If you don't bid, how can I raise the royalties?

(End of this chapter)