Huayu: A Commercial Director

Chapter 71 He had grown old.
Fortunately, Chen Shou is not suited for this kind of work, otherwise he would have to fight with those peers.

After the Basha party ended, Chen Shouzhe continued to immerse himself in his work. A few days later, his beard grew back, but he was too lazy to groom it.

After several days of waiting, good news came from the Film Bureau.

The script "Let the Bullets Fly," submitted by Buyiyuehu, has passed the script review and is permitted for filming.

[It is reported that the script was written by renowned commercial film director Chen Shouzhe, and Ge You is currently confirmed to star in the film.]

Following Stephen Chow, Chan Shou-che is once again teaming up with a renowned director, with Jiang Wen directing the film.

The confirmed cast for this film includes award-winning actor Ge You, Liu Jialin, and more.

Major media outlets rushed to report that Chen Shouzhe broke Jiang Wen's box office record 10 years ago with "Goodbye Mr. Loser," and then left him far behind. Later, Stephen Chow's films also grossed over 1 billion yuan. Currently, in the mainland film market, the director with the highest single-film box office is Chen Shouzhe, followed by Stephen Chow, and then Jiang Wen.

Now the other two are working with Chen Shouzhe, which has attracted the attention of many directors. Some directors think that if they can get a script from Chen Shouzhe, they might be able to find investment.

It seems that Chen Shouzhe's films never lack investment, and some even receive premiums.

Chen Shouzhe didn't know what those people were thinking. Some people he knew from the directing department had called him to ask if he had a script.

There were even some unknown directors whom Chen Shouzhe didn't recognize, who came up with a big mouth and said they could do this or that as long as Chen Shouzhe gave them a script.

Chen Shouzhe was too lazy to pay attention to them and treated them like they were mentally ill.

Even if he has a script, he still needs to find a capable director, like Director Chen Kaige. As long as you don't change his script, no one can compare to Director Chen's directing skills.

"You're crazy." Chen Shou hung up the phone, but it rang again shortly after.

Just as Chen Shou was thinking it was a spam call, he saw the name displayed on the screen and picked it up anyway.

"Keep an eye on me, are you busy?" A familiar voice came from the other end of the phone.

"Sorry, Mr. Han, I just received a few phone calls." Chen Shouzhe picked up his phone and walked into the office.

"It's normal to be busy. Are you free lately?" Han Sanping's tone on the phone was very gentle, which made Chen Shou feel a little uncomfortable. Anyone who had met Han Sanping knew that he was an extremely assertive person, and it was rare to hear him speak like this.

"I'm not busy right now. Is there something you need, Mr. Han? I'm currently working on post-production for the film," Chen Shou said.

"It's nothing, I just wanted to invite you to come to China Film Group. It seems like you haven't been to China Film Group in a long time," Han Sanping said.

Chen Shouzhe nodded. Since the incident at the beginning of the year, Chen Shouzhe had not been to China Film Group. When filming "The Martian", he was in contact with Vice Chairman Wang.

"Okay, I'll come over another day."

"No need to reschedule, you can come and sit down now if you have time."

Chen Shou could tell that Han Sanping probably had something to say, but it wasn't convenient to say it over the phone.

"Okay, I'll be there right away."

Chen Shou didn't waste any words. Since his boss had invited him, he was bound to be there. The distance wasn't far, and he soon drove to the entrance of China Film Group.

He arrived at Han Sanping's office, where his secretary led him inside.

"Director Chen, Chairman Han is already waiting for you," the secretary whispered.

Chen Shou didn't ask any more questions and walked into Han Sanping's office. The office was a bit strange, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

"Chairman Han!"

"I've come to see you." Han Sanping said happily when he saw him.

Chen Shouzhe was somewhat puzzled, as if he was being overly enthusiastic; he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

"Mr. Han, is there something you need from me?"

"Can't I invite you over for a chat if there's nothing else? It's nothing else, but China Film Group was inconsiderate before. I want to apologize for that."

"That's all in the past. We're still in a cooperative relationship now."

"That's good. Jiang Wen has already told me that 10% is a bit low."

"That's already quite a lot."

"You still remember? Fine, I'm quitting next year. But the problems I leave behind will still be resolved here. As for my previous mistakes, I hope you won't implicate China Film Group. After all, China Film Group is a state-owned enterprise, and in many cases, the state should take the lead..."

Chen Shouzhe didn't pay attention to what Han Sanping said next. His head was buzzing, and all he knew was that Han Sanping was about to step down.

Although many people in the industry criticize Han Sanping, they cannot deny that it was precisely because of the tough Han Sanping that domestic films had more than ten years of development opportunities, preventing foreign films from dominating the market.

It was because he supported blockbuster films that the domestic market was not turned into a box office dump like Taiwan.

Only blockbusters can truly handle big-budget films. Those who cripple themselves and fawn over others will never be treated as human beings.

Some people with 50 followers are still clamoring online to abandon the mushroom egg and pander to foreigners; these people deserve to die.

He's just as bad as those who only know about art and literature, constantly claiming that his films are art, yet he's never respected the audience.

"Mr. Han, you must be joking. How could you possibly retire? You're still very young."

"It's all settled. I'll be retiring next March. You have to come to my retirement banquet then," Han Sanping said, trying his best to smile.

Chen Shou could tell that his smile was somewhat forced, and he was clearly reluctant to step down. It seemed that he really was going to retire, and not because he wanted to, but because of external pressure that forced him to.

"Okay, I'll definitely be there." Chen Shou nodded.

After chatting for a while, Chen Shouzhe was still somewhat dazed when he left China Film Group. Although he had some disagreements with China Film Group because of the "The Day After Tomorrow" incident, it was still the top company in China, and Chen Shouzhe did not want to be its enemy. He was not Zhang Dapao, who had the support of the national director.

Look at Zhang Dapao now. Does he really think he's so great? Without the national advisor, he's practically a nobody in the industry. No one will want to invest in him, and no one will want to be invested in by him.

No such person exists in the entertainment industry.

Back then, he could do whatever he wanted with the help of the Imperial Advisor, acting like a fox borrowing the tiger's power. Now that he has lost the Imperial Advisor, he is nothing. At the beginning of the year, he even approached Chen Shouzhe, wanting to invest in him.

Although Chen Shouzhe was dealt a blow, it didn't mean he would be without investors. As soon as he made the announcement, a bunch of people would come to him with money.

Capital isn't stupid; they can see very clearly who can make money. They can't expect them to spend money to let Wong Kar-wai show off. Only someone like Jack Ma, who likes to show off, would like Wong Kar-wai.

Once Chen Shouzhe's science fiction film is successful, as long as news of another one is released, a huge crowd will immediately flock to it.

He hadn't expected Han Sanping to retire. After all, Han Sanping was still very young, only sixty years old. Was he really retiring now? It was too early.

"No wonder his tone has become gentler. Sigh." Chen Shou sighed, shook his head, and left Zhongying.

Instead of going back to Xiaoxiaomeng, he went to Shouzhe Film Studio.

"The funding for the film has been secured, with Emperor Entertainment Group contributing 20% ​​and China Film Group contributing only 10%."

"Isn't the 'Isn't it a pleasure to receive' package forty percent? Why is Emperor Entertainment getting an extra ten percent?" Chen Shou asked in surprise.

“Emperor Entertainment paid a premium, and they jointly supplemented our 20 million with this money,” Tao Le explained.

"That's fine, we can't be missing any." Chen Shou nodded.

“No less, the amount is still 150 million, but we will only contribute 40 million,” Tao Le said.

"That's only right. If he hadn't contacted me, I wouldn't have wanted to give him the script. I just went to China Film Group."

"You went to China Film Group?"

Tao Le looked at Chen Shouzhe in surprise. It seemed like it had been almost a year since he had been to the Central Motion Picture Corporation. Why did he suddenly go?

"Third Master is retiring."

"ah?!!!"

Tao Le stared at Chen Shouzhe in disbelief.

"You...you're telling the truth?"

"Third Master invited me over for a while. It's been confirmed that he will retire next year. I guess it's because of the trade talks this year. There's a lot of external pressure." Chen Shou sighed.

"He's had a tough time, but things will get even harder for us from now on, as foreign films will make their way into the market."

"So next year will be very difficult. These two months are probably the last period of comfort. After this year, our films will probably have to go head-to-head with those foreign blockbusters next year."

"Damn it." Tao Le couldn't help but swear.

Chen Shouzhe had told him this many times. He was a farsighted man and naturally knew what Han Sanping meant to the domestic film industry.

It can be said that in the face of floods and ferocious beasts, he and Zhongying were the soldiers who rushed to the front line of flood control, always standing at the forefront.

Now I'm just getting old and can't keep going anymore; China Film Group has just too much power.

The right to import and export films holds the power of life and death over many film companies.

"How will we discuss our future cooperation with China Film Group?" Tao Le asked.

"Let's see who goes up. Besides, they have connections with Chairman Wang," Chen Shou said.

Tao Le nodded. The person Chen Shouzhe was closest to was Chairman Wang. He also knew that Chairman Wang could not replace Third Master's position because he was too inexperienced. If it weren't for Chen Shouzhe's efforts in the past two years, he probably wouldn't have reached his current position.

Among so many vice chairmen at China Film Group, his ability and qualifications are not enough to warrant the position.

"We should still cooperate where necessary, but things will be tough from now on," Tao Le said.

"It's okay, let's face them head-on. I believe our movie won't be bad either."

Tao Le nodded, but he wasn't very confident.

After all, foreign films have been suppressed too badly in recent years, and it was because Han Sanping was strong enough that he was forced to step down.

Another reason is that he has reached the age of sixty. Although he was supposed to retire at sixty-five, he has now been called out and has no choice but to step down. The people below do not want him to continue in that position.

Otherwise, if he continues in this line of work, what opportunities will they have?

Without those on the front lines of flood control, and having to fight the enemy in real combat, next year's market will be incredibly difficult. If Chen can't even hold on, relying on those people's films will be even harder.

The reason Han Sanping invited him for tea today was because he hoped that Han Sanping could make more blockbuster films to compete with foreign films and show them that our country also has blockbuster films.

Originally, this responsibility should have been borne by listed companies like Huayi, but instead, this guy went off to speculate in real estate. What a piece of crap.

(End of this chapter)