Entertainment: 1990

Chapter 406, above average level
"Shameless! Absolutely shameless!"

On July 22nd, on the way to Beijing, Jiang Wen shook her head and said with a look of disdain, "So, people from Beijing go to New York to work like slaves just to make money to invest in your Tianjin, right?!"

The TV station not only wanted Feng Xiaogang to film a sequel to "North New York," but also wanted Jiang Wen, the male lead, to appear in the documentary, so as to completely turn the popularity generated by "North New York" last year into publicity for Tianjin's business environment.

Jiang Wen refused no matter what he said. After all, he still needed to make a living in the capital. How could he do something like betraying his own people?

Zhang Yan scoffed, "You don't know anything. This is called coordinated development of Beijing and Tianjin. Investing in Tianjin is like adding bricks and tiles to the capital."

This is actually true. After all, every bit of development in Tianjin will "help" Beijing, and every bit of resources in Ji Province will nourish Beijing and Tianjin. Otherwise, why would it be called Beijing-Tianjin-Ji Province?

Zhang Yan only occasionally tries to take advantage of the situation in the capital, but he can't fundamentally change the overall trend.

All the best.

After arriving in the capital, the group agreed to meet again on the night of the 24th, and then temporarily parted ways.

Zhang Yan first went to see Liu Xiaoqing. After some tender moments, Liu Xiaoqing made a request: he could go to Europe, but Jiang Wen had to promise not to flirt with that foreign girl.

"That's asking too much of you."

Zhang Yan said speechlessly, "They're about to meet the parents, and their French in-laws don't care at all. How am I supposed to take care of them?"

"Then tell him that if he's all lovey-dovey with that foreign girl, I'll crawl into your bed tonight!"

Well, so it's coming at me now!

"I seriously suspect that your real intention is not what you seem..."

…………

Zhang Yan's doubts remained unanswered, but he was certainly exhausted that afternoon.

So when he called Yu Hua out for barbecue that night, he first ordered ten skewers of lamb kidneys, which he then gulped down with draft beer.

"Old Yu, you've finally made it through!"

Zhang Yan patted Yu Hua on the shoulder. This was the first time the two of them had a proper chat alone since "To Live" won an award at Cannes.

After all, Zhang Yan was busy, but Yu Hua was even busier—busy giving reports in various places.

"Yes, we've finally made it through!"

Yu Hua was also filled with emotion. Although "To Live" was highly praised in literary circles, its physical book sales were actually just so-so.

It wasn't until he won the award that the sales of his physical books skyrocketed, and he was instantly elevated from a rising star in the literary world to a position of great stature.

"No wonder everyone wants to adapt it into a film or television series."

Wearing a vest and shorts, Yu Hua ate some kidneys while remarking, "The feeling of being famous and rich is truly wonderful."

Zhang Yan chuckled: "Simply adapting it into a film or television series won't have the same effect. The key is that it's more fragrant abroad than at home—these days, even the farts of foreign devils smell better than the Manchu Han Imperial Feast you make."

He was actually quite conflicted about going to Europe to attend the film festival. Mainly due to the influence of the internet trend in later generations, he didn't value the three major awards that much, and even had a bit of a rebellious mentality.

But rationally, Zhang Yan knew that winning a major international award these days would be very beneficial for everyone.

"You should say less of these things in the future," Yu Hua advised. "You stirred up that hornet's nest last year, and people are still buzzing around about it every now and then."

Before going on a concert tour in a border province last year, Zhang Yan had a fight with so-called liberal intellectuals and was labeled as a "Yu Yong intellectual".

Later, after the hit TV series "A Native of Beijing in New York" aired, he faced a new wave of attacks, with people believing that he was deliberately and despicably smearing the beacon of freedom.

However, Zhang Yan has been busy with his career, so he hasn't responded much this time.

"Say whatever you want."

Zhang Yan scoffed, "Does the sound of cicadas stop us from farming? Let's not talk about that. Let's talk about the football team's training camp. We're playing a friendly match against Hong Kong Island in mid-November. If you, the liaison officer, don't do your job, I'll have to find someone else."

Feng Gong was in charge of the celebrity football team in Tianjin, while Yu Hua volunteered to act as the liaison in Beijing. However, he was busy with the award-winning novel "To Live" and had been traveling all over the country for the past two months, so he didn't have time to take care of the football team at all.

"Don't bother me."

Yu Hua hurriedly said, "We call this sharpening the axe before chopping wood. With 'To Live' as our brand, my words will carry more weight in the future. I guarantee I'll arrange everything clearly for you!" "Then you should communicate more with Feng Gong recently."

Zhang Yan said, "I need to see tangible results by the time I return from Italy in mid-August, otherwise I'll have no choice but to dismiss him and investigate him."

"Tch, it's just a friendly match, and you've made it sound more official than the Jia-A League—by the way, your Tianjin football team should be a shoo-in for promotion to Jia-A, right? So, have you thought about taking over their team?"

Although Tianjin team was relegated to League B in 94, their strength was undeniable, and their promotion to League A was practically a foregone conclusion.

Zhang Yan curled his lip and said, "What nonsense! I have to stay neutral and not get involved in professional football. Otherwise, what's the point of playing celebrity friendlies?"

While the current Jia-A League is dazzling, the future Dongda Football Team can be described as a toilet in the sports world. It's okay to use its popularity for charity, but there's no need for real money investment.

The two were eating and chatting about football when Han Sanping suddenly called to ask if Zhang Yan was in Beijing.

"I just arrived at noon."

Zhang Yan asked in bewilderment, "Director Han, how did you know I was here?"

"I heard it from Dong Ping."

Han Sanping asked anxiously, "Where are you now? I'll come find you; there's something I'd like to hear your opinion on."

"What is so urgent?"

Zhang Yan covered the microphone, asked Yu Hua for her opinion, and seeing that Yu Hua didn't mind having more people, told Han Sanping the location of the barbecue stall.

Han Sanping arrived quite quickly.

He sat down opposite Zhang Yan and ate a few skewers before saying, "Have you heard? Hollywood is going to be released in Chinese cinemas."

"Ok?"

Zhang Yan made a gesture with his hand: "Like Jurassic Park?"

"Are you comparing dinosaurs or turtles?"

Han Sanping complained for a moment, then said solemnly, "I just heard the news. In order to do business better with the Americans, the higher-ups intend to open up the film market. They are currently negotiating with Hollywood. It is estimated that after the agreement is reached, about ten American films will be imported every year."

Seeing his tense and anxious demeanor, Zhang Yan knew that he was worried about the impact of Hollywood on mainland Chinese films.

After all, Beijing Film Studio is also preparing to carry out commercial reforms, and he has no confidence that he can beat Hollywood in the field of commercial films.

"Then what's the point of you contacting me?"

Zhang Yan asked in bewilderment, "Since the country has already set the tone, you don't think I can influence the higher-ups' thinking, do you?"

Han Sanping said, "It's definitely not feasible in the long run, but we can still come up with some restrictive clauses and let the higher-ups adopt them as appropriate. After all, our local films also need to be protected."

"This……"

Zhang Yan thought for a moment and then asked in return, "Can the annual import quota be changed?"

"It can be changed, but not too much."

Han Sanping calculated, "I estimate that eight titles would be the limit, and the most likely scenario is ten titles per year."

"I meant to raise it."

"Raise it up?!"

Han Sanping was stunned: "Everyone's crying 'wolf' when it comes to ten films a year, what will happen to our domestic films if the quota is raised any higher?!"

"Don't just import the good stuff."

Zhang Yan explained, "Could we do this: while importing ten good films, we also import twenty bad ones? You have to let the public know that Americans also make bad films, and they're terribly bad. Otherwise, if we keep comparing them to good films, won't domestic filmmakers be waiting to be criticized?"

This broadened Han Sanping's thinking. Since he couldn't compete with the best, he might as well compete with the worst.

If there are ten good movies and twenty bad movies, and domestic films are ranked in between, then aren't they still above average?
(End of this chapter)