Huayu: As a child star, I just want to be famous

Chapter 487: Secrets, Profit Sharing and Old Grudges

At the end of November, after returning from Wandao, Chen Linfeng went back to school twice.

The first class of students he taught achieved outstanding results.

With the help of the crew bosses to arrange learning and practice, students' speed and success rate of success are indeed much higher than studying in school.

After all, the students taught by Chen Linfeng have already got enough basic knowledge.

Except for a few of the most outstanding students who were directly retained by Chen Linfeng, the other students, when they graduated this year, all had no shortage of jobs and were almost snatched away by several film crews.

After a few months, according to the feedback we have received from the college, these graduates rarely have problems with acclimatization and basically all of them have mastered the skills.

This also confirms that the new model introduced by the college is indeed very useful.

On the one hand, the college’s leadership was wondering if they could try to replicate it.

On the other hand, the students who heard the news were looking forward to it and anxiously waiting for Teacher Chen to start the class again.

When he first arrived at the school, he caused quite a stir. Many students crowded around and hoped that he would start the class as soon as possible, waiting to choose his class.

However, what made the students both happy and disappointed was that although Chen Linfeng taught the class, the specific practical classes were scheduled for next year.

Everyone still has to study in school this year.

However, despite this, the enrollment is still full.

Following the old rules, Chen Linfeng selected those who were familiar and had excellent grades from among the graduate students and students who were about to graduate, and kept them for joining the group next year.

During his honeymoon, he didn't just play around, he still spent some time every night writing novels.

If the outline is adjusted, it only takes two hours a day to copy the book, which is more than enough to type out 6 words. You can even squeeze out time for fine-tuning it.

Including what I wrote before, the first volume has actually been completed.

Chen Linfeng showed the novel to Liu Qianqian.

After she finished reading it, she seemed quite hesitant.

"Just say what you have to say."

"Did I really say that?"

"Say!"

She said carefully, "Overall, from the feeling, it seems that it doesn't look that good."

Chen Linfeng looked at him with a frown, "You don't need to add so many modifiers, just say it directly."

Liu Qianqian quickly waved her hands and explained, "It's definitely not bad. The content of the divination and the plot describing the Nighthawks, including the part about Old Neil, are all pretty good.

I just feel that overall, I don’t have the same anticipation as when I read your novels before, where I couldn’t wait to know the subsequent plot.”

Chen Linfeng was silent for a moment. It seemed that he had heard similar comments in his previous life.

He called Sister Mei again.

After she finished reading it, her evaluation was slightly different from Sissi's.

“I think it’s pretty good, the daily life is written very well, and I feel that it is a big improvement compared to my previous novels.

Maybe because of this, the main plot seems a bit messy, but my overall impression is quite good. "

Chen Linfeng attaches too much importance to this book. His previous novels, such as "Infinite World" or "Destiny", actually have quite a few problems.

It’s just that the exciting main storyline often overshadows other content.

As for "Lord of Mysteries", he is actually not worried about the main storyline at all.

Because the achievements of the previous life have proved that even if some people don’t like the first volume, the content that follows will definitely be deeply rooted in people’s hearts.

But now, he is a little worried and wants to achieve perfection.

Chen Linfeng carefully read the contents of the first volume twice. After all, he was not the real original author, so he could still look at it from the perspective of an outsider.

He focused on the main plot, especially the investigation into why the original owner, Klein, died, and Zangwill, the mastermind behind the death.

In his previous life, when he saw the end of the volume, he almost forgot who this person was.

Naturally, this situation will not occur in the content I write now, but the impression formed at that time is still there.

So we also need to find ways to improve it.

It took a week to adjust, and it was already early December.

This time he asked Zheng Yuling, a budding senior editor, to judge.

In Zheng Yuling's opinion, there are no major problems with the improved content.

In response to the uncomfortable problem mentioned by Xixi, she reminded,

“Is it an inherent problem of Western-themed novels that people may not like reading because the names of the characters are hard to remember?

I have received a lot of similar feedback in my many years working in the magazine.

Many people find it difficult to remember the names of people when reading Western classics, which becomes an obstacle in the reading process. "

Chen Linfeng thought about it. Because of his memory problems in this life, he had never paid attention to this problem.

He no longer had much of an impression of what his previous life was like. He only remembered that when he first read the first volume, it was indeed a bit difficult to read, and it was only from the second volume that he really got into it.

He looked at Sissi who was sitting next to him, "Did you feel this way when you watched it?"

Liu Qianqian tilted her head and thought for a while. "It seems so. I only remember the names of Klein and Old Neil. As for the others..."

She stuck out her tongue. "For example, old captain, captain's mistress, curly-haired baboon, sister, that's how I remember them."

Chen Linfeng slapped his forehead speechlessly, as he remembered that it seemed to be the same in his previous life.

It's true, I have only had a good memory for a few years, but I have actually forgotten my status as an ordinary person in my previous life.

"Okay, I get it. This is a congenital defect and there is really no way to change it. The names in it are already quite recognizable."

In fact, looking back, Squid was probably aware of this problem when he was writing it.

In the plot, Captain Dunn's forgetfulness is used to repeatedly emphasize certain content to deepen the reader's memory.

Chen Linfeng spent another two days trying to find a way to make adjustments.

Then it was time to find Alex.

In fact, he had already learned about the progress of the novel writing from Sister Mei.

After hearing the call, I flew to Yanjing the next day.

Along with him was another editor from a publishing house.

Several people met at Qilin’s headquarters.

"Chen, this is Brown. He speaks very good Chinese and can read Chinese literature novels without any problem. That's why I brought him here. He will probably be your editor in the future, if you have no objection."

Brown extended his hand and said directly in Chinese, "Hello, Chen, I am Brown. I have been in China for more than 10 years and am now in charge of relevant affairs in China."

"Hello."

Chen Linfeng rarely saw a foreigner who spoke such standard Chinese, so he smiled.

He printed out the revised content and handed it to them.

Alex simply motioned for Brown to take over, there was no point in him looking, he certainly wouldn't understand it now anyway.

Brown took the printout into another room to examine it.

Alex discussed other matters with Chen Linfeng.

"Chen, May told me a new piece of news. I heard that you are interested in Warner's Joker character?"

"Yes, I think there is a lot of room for creativity in this villain. Can you let me adapt it?"

"Of course, you know, we have no resistance to your story at all."

Alex asked, "Can I know which direction you'd like to take this?"

Chen Linfeng thought for a moment and said bluntly, "The story I envisioned has little to do with Batman. It should be considered the origin of the Joker."

He is not like the director and screenwriter of the previous "Joker" who insisted on cutting himself off from the DC universe.

The timing is different now.

Marvel MCN is getting better and better, and is about to start the first phase of collecting stories.

As for Warner, they haven't even finished the single-player story yet.

"Green Lantern" was originally intended to be an opening story like "Iron Man", but the beginning was terrible.

Warner is worried about this.

Now I heard that Chen, one of the best screenwriters in the world, is interested in DC stories.

Alex's eyes lit up, "Why only adapt the Joker? If you want, you can choose Superman, Batman, Flash, or Wonder Woman."

"No, there's no need. I'm only interested in the Joker. As I said, I think he has room to develop."

Chen Linfeng is not very interested in DC.

In his opinion, Warner has big management problems at DC, and he has no interest in getting involved in this mess.

"Well, all right then."

Alex said regretfully, "I will convey your opinion to the company's top management."

Chen Linfeng nodded. "I still follow the old rules here. I want 40% of the shares. The rest is up to you. If Warner is not very interested, I can also help find other people to invest."

"No, Chen, you can't do this, 40% is too much." Alex objected.

Although he knew about Chen's practice of cooperation with Disney, as a Warner employee, he couldn't just accept it.

Even though Warner executives may not care, that's not how it works.

"I think Warner can afford all the investment and give you the highest director's salary in Hollywood. What do you think?"

"not so good!"

Chen Linfeng said speechlessly, "You don't need to tell me, my current director's salary is not low, and the little money I'm short of will be enough for one or two more movies at most. I have the confidence.

You can go back and discuss it with others, but this is my condition anyway."

If it's those first-line superheroes, it might be difficult to talk about.

It is impossible for Warner Bros. to refuse the offer of a clown when they are racking their brains over how to start the DC Universe.

Besides, everyone knows the problems of big companies. As long as there is a precedent to follow and there is nothing to criticize in the process, there is nothing they can do.

Alex also knew this. He smiled awkwardly and said that he would give an answer after going back to discuss it.

During the waiting process, Alex tried every possible way to communicate with Chen Linfeng.

He has almost maxed out his skill in conversation.

He speaks in a humorous way, and when he talks about Hollywood gossip, he can make even ordinary stories sound thrilling and exciting.

Chen Linfeng's communication skills were a little behind the times, and he was quite interested in the conversation.

Especially talking about this year's global box office list.

There is no need to explain the first three billion-dollar movies, and the next one is "Infinite World", which grossed $8.23 million.

There is a big gap between this and the fifth-ranked "Kung Fu Panda 2" which grossed $6.65 million.

As the first film in a series, such results can be said to have exceeded most people's expectations.

When Alex said this, his envy was evident in his words.

The Harry Potter movie he had worked on has already ended, and he really wants to make another one.

"Infinite World" is good enough, he is not greedy at all.

Chen Linfeng felt a little elated as he was filled with envy and praise.

As they were chatting animatedly, Brown pushed the door open and shouted excitedly, "This is great! I love this novel."

He widened his eyes, stared at Chen Linfeng, and spoke the most cowardly words in the loudest voice.

"Chen, is there any sequel? I want to see it, please."

Chen Linfeng didn't expect him to react so strongly. Wasn't the first part a bit mediocre?

This foreigner is not performing for me, is he?

Alex quickly soothed, "Brown, you need to calm down."

Brown also sensed something was wrong and sat down, hesitant to speak.

The Harry Potter series is long gone, and Infinite Worlds belongs to someone else after all. What matters most is to stay grounded in the present. Alex looked at Brown expectantly, "You just finished reading the novel, tell me about it?"

Brown thought back to the experience just now, aftertaste, "It's a rare novel with the old British style. I can see that the current content is just a preparation, and the grand world view is still to come.

But judging by the current content, the description of the old British era is very accurate. "

As he said this, he looked at Chen Linfeng, "Chen, how did you write in this style? You are even Chinese!"

Chen Linfeng smiled and said, "It would be better if I could read more books."

This is due to the amount of reading he has done in this life. Based on the original work, he added some detailed descriptions.

Because there was too much knowledge in his mind, he even had to delete a lot of similar content during the refinement process.

The current version is one that does not affect the plot as much as possible while also incorporating exotic elements.

For Brown, of course, that's Victorian fantasy.

It really made him feel good that Brown praised this right at the start.

Well said, say more.

Brown continued, "The setting of supernatural powers is also very interesting, especially the 0-08, which is simply a genius imagination..."

Except for the beginning, you can tell that this is a novel with a strong Western flavor.

After that, Alex was a little confused about the rankings that Brown kept saying.

But what he could understand was that Brown was indeed full of praise for the current content of the novel.

"Brown, let's stop here for the discussion of the specific content and plot. You just need to state your judgment."

Brown was a little dissatisfied with being interrupted, but when he saw the look in Alex's eyes, he was startled and his rationality returned instantly.

"My opinion is that it's a good enough novel, but..."

After calming down, he discovered some problems from an editing perspective.

"But what?"

"However, as I said just now, the world view has not yet been fully developed, and the story has temporarily come to an end. In terms of appeal, the content of the first volume of about 60 words alone is not enough."

From the perspective of a physical novel, Brown thought that this book was really good.

But from the perspective of a bestseller, the sequel is a little less attractive.

Therefore, he is really scratching his head now.

Alex frowned. "Give me your advice, Brown."

"I suggest that it would be best if the next volume of the novel is published soon, and it would be best not to wait too long."

"That's it."

He turned and looked at Chen.

Chen Linfeng nodded and said, "I can consider it, but I see that you still don't feel reassured. How about you wait until the novel is translated before making a decision?

As for the follow-up content, whether Warner approves or not, I will continue to write. I have nothing to do recently, and the second volume will be out soon. "

He had heard similar suggestions from Zheng Yuling before.

Physical publishing is different from serialized online articles, and maintaining expectations has always been a problem.

You may find online literature boring at first, but you will continue to follow it out of inertia, and it won’t be long before the next exciting part comes.

With physical publication, there may be a long interval between two books.

This is also the difficulty for series novels to be sold through physical sales.

Chen Linfeng also thought that the development of the story of "Lord of Mysteries" and the truly exciting and fun part, that is, the Tarot Club plot, are all in the second volume.

Even the content that really describes Victorian style in great detail - Backlund, the capital of Loen, is in the second volume.

If they are released consecutively so that the audience can see them earlier, the effect should be better than releasing the second volume a year later.

Alex also had his own considerations, and what Brown said was somewhat contradictory.

The beginning was so exciting, but the issues of plot and length were mentioned later.

In this case, he was not very reassured, so it would be better to wait for the translation to be completed and for him to read it before making a decision.

However, of course, it is unacceptable to ask whether you agree or not what the other party said.

Alex said seriously, "Chen, you don't have to worry about anything. We will abide by the agreement no matter what."

Only a fool would think of offending a great writer who is at the peak of his creative career.

Chen Linfeng smiled without comment.

He has full confidence in "Lord of Mysteries".

Now I am just worried that the opening is not attractive enough, which will affect subsequent results.

After all, he didn't want to go through the process of first being depressed and then rising, which is what traditional time travelers always encounter.

It's not necessary.

This is how things are settled for now.

There will definitely be a second round of negotiations later.

Chen Linfeng began to write the contents of the second volume, which was originally the essence of the original work.

Writing becomes smoother.

At the same time, he also paid some attention to the recent events in the entertainment industry.

It is almost mid-December and the Lunar New Year movie season is about to begin.

The profit-sharing negotiations designed by Han Shanping and Zhang Weiping went smoothly because Chen Linfeng had been predicting and planning behind the scenes.

The theater chains now have face and are not as resolute as in the past in their fight for interests.

Especially once the trick of dividing interests was used, the theater alliance was almost defeated.

The terms finally negotiated were also a huge loss.

This was completely different from the result in his previous life, which made Chen Linfeng drop his jaw in shock.

It is not just a 45% share, but on this basis, there are several tiered profit-sharing terms extended.

One is the Hollywood-style deduction that changes based on time. This is more common, and the theaters don’t give up that many points.

Only in the first week, an additional 45 points were added to the 2% benchmark, bringing the ratio to 47%.

Starting from the third week, it dropped by 4 points to 41%, which is even worse than the current level.

This is a good thing for the producers of purely commercial films.

The theaters are not losing too much money, so it will be easier to get rid of the junk movies that make almost no money.

And they are also more motivated to release some highly acclaimed movies with long-term advantages.

Overall, there are gains and losses.

The second type is more daring.

During the initial negotiations, the producers kept using "Your Name" as an example, which made the theater chain miserable.

So the theater chain was so angry that they proposed a plan:
The revenue will be distributed in a tiered manner based on the box office.

For the part less than 5 million, it is calculated at 43%, and for the part between 5 million and 10 billion, it is calculated at 45%.

For the part between 10 billion and 20 billion, it is calculated as 48%, and for the part above 20 billion, it is calculated as 50%.

Aren’t you always talking about “Your Name”? This movie is awesome, we admit it.

Then let’s follow this standard.

You say that the global split is 50-50, and that domestic theaters earn more, and you also complain that "Your Name" earns little.

It's exactly like the one you took.

Okay, let’s do something ruthless.

When this plan came out, the production side really quieted down all of a sudden.

5 million?
Are you kidding? If I can easily get a box office of 5 million, would I still bother with you about this?
I didn't see that Director Chen didn't even come to the meeting.

In the end, the theater chain had to include this plan in the joint statement in order to avoid confrontation.

Chen Linfeng: ...

There is no doubt that he will use this plan in two years.

Chen Linfeng calculated that even if this clause was used, the cinema would still make a profit, just a little less.

Movies with super high box office have high attendance and traffic, and correspondingly, the profits that theaters can earn from peripheral merchandise will also increase.

The fact that the global revenue sharing ratio is almost 50% explains a certain problem.

Moreover, these theaters are not stupid. No matter how fiercely they fight, they will not write a condition that may result in losses.

Originally, this was done quite well.

Both Han Shanping and Chen Linfeng, who found out later, were very happy.

As a result, when the producers came up with the plan, even though the theater alliance was in disarray, it was not completely idle.

The two main films from the production side are "The Flowers of War" and "Flying Daggers of Dragon Gate".

The people behind these two films - Zhang Weiping and Yu Dong.

Fall out.

"Ah?" Chen Linfeng was shocked.

"Xiao Chen, how about you come forward and try to mediate this matter?"

Han Shanping said with a headache, "We just won a battle, we can't make a fool of ourselves like this."

"what?"

This was the only reaction he had left.

"No, why?"

Han Shanping sighed, "This is a long story."

This incident started around 06.

When "Curse of the Golden Flower" was released, Zhang Weiping was at the peak of his powers.

“I want to take all the box office at the end of the year!” “City of Sadness will die miserably!” “Let The Good Man of Three Gorges die on its own.”

These were all shouted out by Zhang Weiping.

Oh, by the way, "City of Pain" became unknown later on. It was actually a movie starring Liang Chaowei and Jin Chengwu, which was represented by Yu Dong.

The movie itself is average, so I won't introduce it in detail.

The key point is that "City of Sadness" was originally released first.

As a result, Zhang Weiping temporarily announced that the release date of "Curse of the Golden Flower" would be moved up to less than a week after the release of "City of Pain".

There was no choice but for Yu Dong to give in and move it to half a month later.

From then on, the two of them faced off.

When "Three Guns" was released, Yu Dong was representing "The Siege of the City in October".

As a result, Zhang Weiping repeated his old trick and moved up the release date. This time, Yu Dong did not back down and relied on "The Siege of the City in October" to persevere to the end.

As a result, thanks to Chen Linfeng's help in adjusting the script, this life's "Three Guns" is not that bad.

"The Siege of the City in October" lost only a little in the end.

Chen Linfeng thought about it and decided that this was still his fault. In the previous life, "The Siege of the City in October" should have won.

Although it is a huge improvement compared to the "City of Pain" period, Yu Dong is still not convinced.

So this is the third time they are facing each other again.

He hadn't paid much attention to it before and didn't really know there was something going on.

"But Mr. Han, this matter has nothing to do with me. It's not my turn to mediate, right?"

(End of this chapter)