Director of Photography Department of Huayu

Chapter 170 First Day Box Office
The summer night in Beijing is still hot.

Outside the CPPCC auditorium, a breeze came from the direction of Beihai Park across the street, wrapped in the coolness of the lake, passing over the street lights, tree shadows and traffic, and blowing the undone curtains at the corners of the red carpet.

The residual warmth is still there, but it is not hot.

At this time, the steps in front of the auditorium were still brightly lit.

The staff were dismantling the lighting stands and red carpet settings one after another, several photography teams were still capturing the "script supervisor's finishing touches", and media reporters quickly installed their cameras and hurried out, preparing to publish their articles overnight.

The lights in the auditorium were still on, and most of the audience and guests had left, but a few people had not yet left.

Ren Zhonglun deliberately slowed down his pace in the crowd leaving.

He first shook hands with Wu Chen warmly, but his words were quite forceful; then he turned sideways to Michael Burns of Lionsgate and spoke to him in a low voice.

This deliberate action made Han Sanping very angry.

On the other side, Wang Zhongjun and Wang Zhonglei walked out of the auditorium side by side.

"Brother, it seems that Lionmen's attitude is hesitant. Does he not want to say it, or is he deliberately trying to trick us?" Wang Zhonglei couldn't help but whisper.

"Whichever it is, it proves that what happened is true." Wang Zhongjun said firmly, "I noticed that Han Sanping kept glancing at us while he was talking to Michael."

At this time, in the backstage area of ​​the auditorium, Wu Chen was handling some temporary matters.

"Jason, I'll trouble you from now on." Before he finished speaking, he turned to Han Sanping and said, "Mr. Han, I have to go first to see my classmate off."

"I understand. Go ahead." Han Sanping glanced at Liu Yifei, who was waving to Wu Chen on the stage, and smiled meaningfully.

The teachers from Beijing Film Academy who were about to leave also noticed this scene.

Adding to the rumors circulating in school, someone jokingly asked, "Old Mu, is your photography department being taken over by the acting department?"

Wang Jinsong and other teachers from the acting department happily responded, "Nonsense, it's just young Mu Ai, it's not like he's stealing."

"Yes, yes, it's a good thing to keep the wealth within the family. It will also be a good story for the school!"

"Then who do you think is the fat water?"

"That's hard to say!"

"Hahaha"

"Senior Sister, let Brother Chen take you back." Park Songri suggested.

"What about me? Who will take me there?" Shu Chang pointed at himself.

"Take a taxi yourself." Wu Chen said seriously, but with a teasing tone.

Everyone laughed.

"Sister Shu Chang, we are all here, how could we forget about it?"

"Okay, I originally wanted to stay at Xixi's house for one night." Shu Chang muttered, but followed Xiang Zhuo and the others with brisk steps.

Liu Yifei was left with a slightly red face, her little toes rubbing against the ground subconsciously, the tip of her shoes drawing circles on the edge of the steps.

The night breeze blew.

Liu Yifei wore a dark green dress with a loose shawl swaying in the wind. Her low-heeled sandals accentuated her slim and graceful figure.

The two walked side by side, the lights in the auditorium slanted down, and their shadows stretched into long lines on the ground.

"You just gave a really good answer. I was worried you'd be confused by the media's questions." Liu Yifei said briskly, her eyes slightly shifting, but with a hint of complaint, "Those old professors are really something. They criticize this and then criticize that."

"It's a matter of the times. Not everyone can keep up with the times. It was like that in their era. Just ignore it." Wu Chen smiled slightly.

"Yeah." Liu Yifei responded softly, then suddenly stopped and raised her head.
"Are you free at the end of the month?"

"At the end of the month?" Wu Chen was stunned, then suddenly realized, "Yes."

A faint smile played on Liu Yifei's lips. The night breeze ruffled her hair by her ears, like light rippling on the surface of a lake. "Then I invite you to attend my graduation ceremony."

Wu Chen watched her face slightly tilted under the light, a smile in the corner of her eyes, light and shadow wandering on her fair face, a strand of hair by her ear was tucked behind her ear by her slender hand, and the gentle grace of a young girl was revealed in her movements.

"Row"

At around 11pm, approaching midnight, news about the premiere of Now You See Me had already flooded the homepages of major portals and some forums:
Wu Chen's Hollywood blockbuster premiere, "Now You See Me," lights up the CPPCC auditorium!

"Now You See Me" reviews after its domestic premiere: Thrilling, intense, and magical!

At the premiere of "Now You See Me," Wu Chen addressed artistic and commercial concerns, stating that films, like finding a soulmate across thousands of miles, can be appreciated by both the general public and the refined.

……

June 16. Now You See Me opens worldwide.

Before six o'clock in the evening, cinemas in the core business districts of first-tier cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou were almost full during many prime-time shows.

The attendance rate in second-tier cities also far exceeded expectations.

Even in some third-tier cities, cinema attendance is very encouraging.

Inside the theater, some viewers even took photos of the ticket sales area and posted them on the forum after returning home: "Brothers, it's overcrowded!"

"Holy crap, is this true? It's really this beautiful?"

"It seems pretty good. The ticket prices are about the same anyway, so I might as well spend my money on a blockbuster. I heard others say that Wu Chen's movie has a fast pace and a Hollywood commercial style, not a traditional domestic commercial blockbuster."

"How can I put it? I can only say it's good. It's really good. Wu Chen is right. The movie is not complicated and is very enjoyable. But if you want to see the connotation, this movie really doesn't have much."

"."

Chongqing, Wulong, evening.

The crew of "Curse of the Golden Flower" is currently filming here.

Zhang Yi looked at the newspaper, which contained Wu Chen's speech on business and art at the premiere yesterday, and muttered to himself:
"You're better at speaking highbrow and lowbrow than I was back then!"

He also struggled with the word "business".

In an era when the overall environment was still praising art, it was already a rebellion for him to tinker with commercial blockbusters, and he was under the halo of an academic.

However, the popularity of commercial films seems to be becoming a trend.

This time, the voices criticizing Wu Chen were much weaker than those back then.

"Old Zhang, the premiere of 'Curse of the Golden Flower' won't be weaker than the so-called 'Now You See Me'. Let's hold it in the Great Hall of the People," Zhang Weiping shouted while looking at the report.

After Gong Li finished filming her scenes, he was finally able to appear on the set.

Zhang Yimou shook his head: "I know where the premiere of 'Curse of the Golden Flower' will be held. It doesn't fit there. Let's put it in a studio."

"Ah?" Zhang Weiping was stunned, and then started arguing with Zhang Yi again.

Jason Blum and Michael Burns have not left yet. They plan to wait until the first day's box office in China is released before returning to Hollywood.

State Guest House, Banquet Hall.

Everyone was being treated to a meal by China Film Group.

Gao Chengsheng suddenly received a call. After listening, he hung up silently. Then he took two steps and whispered in Han Sanping's ear:

"Boss Han, we've got news from our people visiting the cinema. It's actually just as some reports say. The prime time shows are packed, and the theaters are packed.

It happened to be a Friday, so many people came after work to buy tickets to watch the movie."

Han Sanping was delighted when he heard this, but then he thought of The Promise and cautiously asked, "How's the reputation?"

"The staff invited some people to do post-screening reviews, and the reviews were quite good. They all said it was a great experience and worth the price of admission."

After hearing this, Han Sanping smiled immediately and said, "Everyone, eat, eat, eat. You're welcome. I just got some good news. The domestic box office should be booming today. The word of mouth is very good."

Michael Burns of Lionsgate also smiled and said: "The situation in North America is also very good!"

"Then let's congratulate Wu Chen first." Han Sanping took the lead, and glasses of wine came one after another.

"Mr. Han, the first day's box office hasn't come out yet. Let's wait for it first. We can't open champagne at halftime." Wu Chen joked.

Everyone laughed when they heard this.

The next day, ten o'clock in the morning.

Inside the China Film Building, everyone was anxiously waiting for the first day's data. Due to the time difference, the data from China would be released first, and Hollywood would have to lag behind for a while.

At this moment, Gao Chengsheng called, and Han Sanping was on speakerphone:

"Boss Han, the first day box office data is out—"

The air freezes.

Everyone is looking forward to the release of the data.

“It exploded!
2235 million on the first day."

(End of this chapter)