Rebirth: I'm filming extra scenes on the set

Chapter 124: Not being able to tell stories is a disease
"Chen Cheng, The Banquet premieres tonight, let's go watch it together."

"Okay."

"Hey, you don't think highly of "The Banquet", do you?"

"Director Han, you asked me to go, how can I not go?"

"I didn't ask you to go. Director Feng invited you to come."

"Haha, Director Feng is so thoughtful."

Chen Cheng smiled.

With such an invitation, he could still understand Feng Xiaogang's thoughts.

"Since Director Feng invited me, I must go."

"Okay, I'll wait for you at Wanda Cinemas."

7 pm.

Chen Cheng came to Wanda Cinemas.

Wanda Cinemas was established in 2005 and is based on Wanda Real Estate.

Wanda Cinemas has established numerous cinemas across the country.

Although Wanda Cinemas is not as influential as it will be in the future, at their speed, it will definitely be the largest cinema in the future.

even.

Got to the back.

Many filmmakers have to look at Wanda Cinemas's attitude.

There was an interesting thing in my previous life.

It means that Feng Xiaogang's new movie did not do well at the box office.

So he criticized Wanda Cinemas in the media, saying that they did not give them more screenings.

Then Principal Wang came forward and said.

Do you think those of us who run cinemas would do business at a loss?

We all know very clearly which movie is good, which movie is not, which movie has box office potential, and which movie has no box office potential.

It's impossible to schedule a large number of screenings for films that have no box office potential.

Obviously this means that Feng Xiaogang's movie is just like that.

If you can really make a good movie, and it's both critically and commercially successful, how can we not make money?

"Chen Cheng, go to the second floor box."

"it is good."

Following the message sent by Han Sanping, Chen Cheng went to the box on the second floor.

At this time, several people were already sitting in the box. Seeing Chen Cheng coming, Han Sanping introduced them to everyone, saying, "Everyone, this is Chen Cheng, the contracted director of Hengdian World Studios, this is Mr. Wang from Huayi, and this one is also surnamed Wang, the CEO of Guangguang. Haha, two kings have arrived today, let's give you a king bomb."

The two Mr. Wangs were well-known, so Chen Cheng greeted them politely.

Then he sat aside and didn't say anything.

Although he knew that Han Sanping thought highly of him and would take him to some high-end games whenever he had time.

But he hasn't reached that status yet, so keeping a low profile and keeping silent is the best way.

However, Chen Cheng didn't say anything, but the two Mr. Wangs were very interested in Chen Cheng.

Before the movie started, Mr. Wang from Huayi said, "Heroes are born young. Director Chen, are you interested in working with us at Huayi? We at Huayi do have a lot of resources, but we lack high-quality directors."

Another CEO of Guangguang, Mr. Wang, even tried to poach the talent: "Director Chen, although Hengdian Film and Television has good hardware strength, its soft power is average. Are you interested in joining us at Guangguang? We have businesses in production, distribution, and investment. As for the penalty for breach of contract, we will help you pay it."

Chen Cheng just smiled and said, "Thank you for your favor, Mr. Wang. If there is any business we can cooperate on, I will definitely do it."

This statement was neither a rejection nor an agreement.

Chen Cheng would not take such polite words too seriously.

If you take it seriously, it's a joke.

"Haha, Director Han, you are a very cautious little brother. I like that."

Han Sanping said with a smile: "Of course I have to be careful when talking to you two old foxes. Who knows if you are trying to trick people."

"How can you fool people? Others can be fooled, but how dare we fool the people you, Director Han, introduced to us?"

A few jokes were made at the same time.

A few minutes later, the movie started quickly.

Several people didn't say anything, just stared at the screen in front of them.

It should be said.

Feng Xiaogang's directing skills are still acceptable.

Although The Night Banquet was criticized by countless people in later generations, the production of it was still quite sophisticated.

Not to mention the movie kings, movie queens and big names in front of the screen.

The team behind the scenes is also extremely powerful.

For example, the action director is Yuan Heping, who is known as the best martial arts director in Hong Kong.

There is also the music master Tan Dun.

Well-known art director Ye Jingtian.

He was once the executive artist of "A Better Tomorrow".

Another work he participated in designing was "Rouge" for his brother and Anita Mui.

In 93, he won the Golden Horse Award for Best Art Design for "Temptation".

The screenwriter is also a well-known figure, Sheng Heyi.

He is also the screenwriter of "The Emperor of Han Wu" and "Towards the Republic".

There is also the famous photographer Zhang Li.

The participation of these behind-the-scenes teams tells you that "The Banquet" is definitely not in vain.

"Wow……"

As the first shot appeared, the audience couldn't help but exclaim.

The visual impact of this kind of blockbuster is not comparable to those low-budget movies.

Whether it is the costume design, character modeling, or architectural design, "The Banquet" all reflects his aesthetic sense.

just.

Apart from these, there is nothing else.

Like many great directors, The Banquet has its common problem, which is that it fails to tell a good story.

In other words, they don't tell a good story.

Or even more.

The good stories in their minds are far from the good stories that the audience thinks of.

Even though Chen Cheng had seen the Night Banquet in his previous life.

But after watching it again, Chen Cheng still felt that the story of the movie "Night Banquet" was really disappointing.

I don't know if it's a coincidence or something else.

The story background of The Banquet is the same as that of Curse of the Golden Flower, both of which are fictional historical time and space.

This time and space is exactly the same as that of Golden Curse, both are set in the time and space of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms close to the Tang Dynasty.

What’s even more bizarre is that the stories of The Banquet and Curse of the Golden Flower were both based on the play Thunderstorm.

As a result, all kinds of chaotic and indecent incidents continued to occur in the palace.

of course.

Chen Cheng could only think that they were coincidental.

It is impossible for two great directors to copy each other.

But such a coincidence also seems to indicate that the storytelling skills of the two great directors are not that good.

of course.

This also includes Zhang Yimou.

But a great director is a great director.

If it were an ordinary director, the audience would not have the patience to appreciate this movie.

Although the story of this movie is not that good, the audience can still discover the beauty of "The Banquet" from other aspects.

then.

It's quite dramatic.

At the end of the premiere that day, most of the audience gave it quite high reviews.

"It's great. This is the best movie I've ever seen."

"China also has a blockbuster movie. Thumbs up for Director Feng."

"Wonderful performance, excellent production, awesome pictures, Director Feng, awesome."

The movie ends.

Director Feng Xiaogang appeared on stage in person with a group of actors and accepted comments from the audience.

undoubtedly.

These comments made Director Feng and all the actors feel greatly honored.

"Looks good."

Mr. Wang, CEO of Guangxian, said with a smile.

Mr. Wang from Huayi also said, "Mr. Wang, for the next film, will Huayi and Guangxian invest together?"

"That's not impossible."

Mr. Wang of Guangxian nodded.

"Director Han, what do you think?"

Mr. Wang of Huayi looked at Han Sanping.

Han Sanping took a sip of water and said, "I don't know much about movies, so you ask me."

Huayi CEO Wang said, "Director Han, if you don't understand movies, then no one in our circle understands movies. By the way, it seems that our Director Chen said a few days ago that the box office of The Banquet is estimated to be between 1.2 million and 1.3 million."

Done.

All three of them looked at Chen Cheng.

Mr. Wang of Huayi said, "Director Chen, after watching "Night Banquet" today, do you still think so?" Chen Cheng nodded.

Huayi Wang was a little unhappy and said, "Let me show you some data."

As he spoke, Huayi CEO Wang took out his phone and said, "As of 9pm, the box office for our The Banquet has reached 800 million. That means that before midnight tonight, our The Banquet will have grossed over 0 million on its first day, which is twice the box office for Feng's A World Without Thieves. The box office for A World Without Thieves was 1000 million in 1.2."

Chen Cheng smiled and did not refute.

Seeing that Chen Cheng was still stubborn and seeing Director Han was present, Huayi President Wang didn't say much.

"Director Han, let's have a midnight snack together tonight."

Director Han shook his head and said, "Forget it. I'm old now and my appetite is poor. It's already 9 o'clock and it will be almost 10 o'clock when I get home. Maybe next time."

talking.

Han Sanping stood up and said, "Chen Cheng, let's go back."

Chen Cheng nodded.

"Chen Cheng, what do you think of the box office of The Banquet?"

On the way back, Han Sanping asked.

Chen Cheng said: "Director Han, I think I said that."

"Or 1.2 to 1.3 million?"

"If nothing unexpected happens, it should be this box office. If something unexpected happens, it may not be reached."

"Hahaha……"

Han Sanping laughed: "Fortunately you didn't tell Mr. Wang from Huayi. If he heard it, he would be furious. However, based on my experience, your prediction may be wrong. I just checked the box office for the day. The first day box office of "The Banquet" has reached 850 million. There is no problem in breaking 1000 million today. According to this prediction, the first week box office may be 4000 million to 5000 million."

"If the total box office is 3-4 times that of the first week, The Banquet may reach 2 million yuan, or even exceed it."

He is indeed a big shot in the industry.

Although the box office has not yet fully concluded today, Han Sanping has already estimated the total box office of "The Banquet".

Just speculation is speculation.

Chen Cheng said, "Director Han, you may have made a wrong prediction."

"Oh?"

"The total box office is usually about 2 times the first week's box office, not 3-4 times."

"You are talking about the average of all the movie box office. Director Feng is not an ordinary director. His influence far exceeds that of ordinary directors."

"Then wait a few more days."

"You are still very stubborn."

Han Sanping also became interested: "Why don't we make a bet?"

"Director Han, gambling is illegal."

"puff……"

Han Sanping was choked: "You kid, here you go again."

"Okay, no bet. Just as you said, if the box office of The Banquet is really only 1.2-1.3 million as you predicted, or even less than that, then I will make a movie for you and let you be the first assistant director."

"Which movie?"

"I can't tell you now."

Han Sanping kept it a secret: "Let's see what you think first."

"Director Han, I'll wait for your call when the time comes."

"Haha, you are quite confident."

Chen Cheng got off the car.

Han Sanping waved at Chen Cheng and said, "Oh, I forgot to tell you, if The Banquet exceeds your expectations, hey, kid, work for me for three years. After three years, I can consider becoming the chief director."

"make a deal."

Chen Cheng said.

……

"Director Chen, have you seen The Banquet?"

"Looked."

"What do you think?"

"Okay."

After the premiere of "The Banquet", Chen Cheng continued to teach advanced courses at the Beijing Film Academy.

undoubtedly.

During this week, "The Banquet" was the absolute protagonist.

Whether inside or outside the circle, everyone is talking about "The Banquet".

Simultaneously.

The box office of "The Banquet" has continued to rise amid such popularity.

Since the premiere of Night Banquet, it has grossed over 4000 million yuan.

Some media predict that the box office of "The Banquet" will reach 6000 million in its first week.

Although this number failed to break the first-week box office of "Hero", "The Banquet" ranked second in the domestic first-week box office ranking.

If it was just second, that would be fine.

The box office of "Night Banquet" of 6000 million in the first week stimulated Feng Xiaogang.

As one of the top directors in the country.

Feng Xiaogang has always made it his mission to surpass Zhang Yimou.

Logically speaking, the 6000 million box office of "The Banquet" in its first week could not have exceeded the 2.4 million of "Hero".

But this time is different from the past.

"Hero" was released in 2002.

"The Banquet" was released in 2006.

The time difference between the two is 4 years.

In the past four years, the domestic film market has undergone significant changes.

The most obvious.

That is, the number of domestic cinemas is growing rapidly.

In particular, cinema companies led by Wanda have made large investments across the country, and the number of large screens in the country is increasing significantly every year.

From the data point of view.

As long as the audience is supportive, the current market capacity can far exceed that of 2002.

"Mr. Wang, I think we can increase the publicity for our "Night Banquet"."

Director Feng called Mr. Wang from Huayi.

Mr. Wang asked, "What do you think the final box office of The Banquet will be?"

“More than 2.4 million.”

"very good."

After receiving Feng Xiaogang's reply, Huayi President Wang was in a good mood.

Although he did some calculations.

Even if the box office of "Night Banquet" reaches 2.4 million, considering the total investment of "Night Banquet" is 1.6 million, they may still lose money.

But there is also the international market, various copyrights, advertisements, peripherals... and so on.

Adding it all up, if there is a loss, it probably won’t be that much.

But now for Mr. Wang of Huayi.

What he cares about most.

It’s no longer a question of whether the film will make a profit or not, but whether it can break Zhang Yimou’s box office record of 2.4 million yuan.

If it breaks.

Then Feng Xiaogang will be the number one in domestic movie box office.

This will be a huge boost for Huayi, which is tied to Feng Xiaogang.

“Increase advertising investment.”

One order goes down.

The advertisement of "The Banquet" has exploded again.

Airports, stations, advertisements, buses...even the streets.

You can see ads for The Banquet everywhere.

just.

Just as everyone thought.

The box office data of "The Banquet" in its second week will reach a higher level.

Dramatically.

On the first day of the second week, the first day box office statistics gave Huayi a heavy blow.

"Five million, how can it be only five million?"

Look at the box office for the day.

Feng Xiaogang was a little dumbfounded.

Mr. Wang from Huayi was also a little confused: "It was fine last week, but with so many ads this week, why did the box office drop so much?"

"Damn, some trolls have appeared. But, Mr. Wang, it doesn't matter. We can invite some more media and publish more soft articles. There shouldn't be any problem. Our reputation is still good."

"Ah."

President Wang nodded.

result.

On the second day of the second week, the box office was even worse, only 400 million.

On the third day, 400 million.

Day 300: million.

At the end of the second week, the box office not only did not exceed the original 6000 million, but was halved to only 3000 million.

(End of this chapter)