Internet moguls are being held hostage by the entertainment system!

Chapter 385 Warner Bros.' Cooperation Intent

Upon returning to Datang Film Studio, the first thing Chen Xiu did was to make coffee.

Then, he called Wei Feng to his office to hear his report on the company's operations during this period.

"...The review of 'The Xuanwu Gate Incident' has been approved this week."

Seeing the weariness on Chen Xiu's face, Wei Feng subconsciously quickened his pace in reporting: "I am currently in contact with iQiyi, Tencent, and CCTV to try to broadcast it on both TV and online platforms to avoid the situation of 'The World of Chang'an'."

What's the situation with "The World of Chang'an"?

Chen Xiu asked in confusion, wondering why Wei Feng had brought up this drama.

"The Longest Day in Chang'an is also a historical drama set in the Tang Dynasty and Li Shimin. It has the same theme as our drama. The cast is pretty good. Thanks to the popularity of Qin Wang Po Zhen Qu, the copyright was also well purchased. It was originally scheduled to premiere last month."

"However, due to communication issues between iQiyi and CCTV, both sides wanted the show to be broadcast on their own platforms first in order to seize traffic. In the end, they couldn't reach an agreement, and the entire show was suddenly suspended on the day of its premiere. The production company also had problems, and now it's unknown when it will be able to resume broadcasting."

"To prevent this situation from happening in 'The Xuanwu Gate Incident,' I have been communicating with all three parties these past few days. Kiwi learned its lesson from 'The World of Chang'an,' and it has become more cautious this time."

Upon hearing this, Chen Xiu was speechless, and for a moment she also felt sorry for Kiwi and the producers of "The Longest Day in Chang'an".

What was supposed to be a win-win situation for all parties has turned out like this...

"You did a great job. A show is only effective if it's broadcast immediately. If it's delayed for several years, the audience's tastes will have changed, and it's bound to lose money!"

Chen Xiu took a sip of coffee and gestured for Wei Feng to continue.

"The domestic rights for 'The Xuanwu Gate Incident' are currently under negotiation, and as for overseas broadcasting rights, Netflix and NHK have already sent people to inquire about them."

"Their initial offer was twice as high as the price of 'Qin King's Battle Song'. I felt that we could negotiate further, so I kept delaying and didn't give a definite answer."

At this point, Wei Feng paused, waiting for Chen Xiu's possible questions.

Chen Xiu was indeed bothered by the bargain price at which the overseas rights to "The Song of Qin King Breaking the Enemy's Formation" were sold last year.

At the time, we had no bargaining chips, so we sold it anyway.

As it turned out, "The Song of Qin King Breaking the Enemy's Formation" was very well received overseas, so its sequel, "The Xuanwu Gate Incident," could no longer be sold at such a low price.

Thinking of this, Chen Xiu asked, "Do you have a price range in mind for the overseas sales of the copyright for 'The Xuanwu Gate Incident'?"

"Yes, based on the performance of 'Qin King's Battle Song' on these two platforms, the bottom line for Xiaorizi should be between $10 and $12 per episode, while Netflix is ​​around $15 per episode."

"The total is less than $30, which is less than 200 million RMB per episode."

Chen Xiu curled her lip, clearly not satisfied with the price.

Although the domestic online and television premiere rights were enough to generate revenue for "The Xuanwu Gate Incident", other sales made even more money.

However, the overseas copyright sales were rather meager.

Wei Feng said helplessly, "Actually, these two prices are already the highest acquisition prices of the two platforms. They are almost three times higher than the acquisition price of 'Qin King's Battle Song'."

"I understand. The main problem is that there are too few episodes. I hope they can buy them at this price when 'The Longest Day in Chang'an' premieres next year."

Chen Xiu said jokingly.

"The Xuanwu Gate Incident" only has 24 episodes. In the current TV drama market where 60 to 70 episodes are common, the number of episodes is not advantageous, which will put it at a disadvantage in terms of sales.

Fortunately, the TV series is of good quality, and the price per episode is much higher than that of other shows on the market.

"The Longest Day in Chang'an" is much longer than "The Xuanwu Gate Incident" and is also a TV series set in the Tang Dynasty. With the Tang Dynasty craze brought about by Chen Xiu, its sales price next year will definitely not be bad.

Wei Feng chimed in with a comment on the topic, and then began to report on other matters.

"Bai Yu's popularity soared after the broadcast of 'Guardian'. His starring role in 'The Silent Truth' is considered by iQiyi to be one of the hottest shows next year. The company has also invested in it, and filming started smoothly last month."

"The script for 'Joy of Life' has been approved, and the production team has been initially assembled. This afternoon, the director, producer, and the male and female leads will come to the company for a small meeting, and then we will begin auditions for the other actors."

After reporting on the TV series, and seeing that Chen Xiu had no questions, Wei Feng quickly moved on to reporting on the film section.

"The Journey Home has passed censorship and is confirmed for release during the National Day holiday. China Film Group and Maoyan Movies will be responsible for the publicity and distribution. Then, Sheep Without a Shepherd is confirmed for release during the December New Year's holiday..."

"Besides these two films, Light Chaser Animation's 'White Snake' is also expected to be released before the Spring Festival. Wang Wei hopes that Douyin can provide some promotional assistance during the film's release..."

"Next year's Spring Festival film season will see the release of 'The Wandering Earth,' for which we accounted for 40% of the investment. China Film Group, as both the producer and distributor, will be responsible for the film's publicity and distribution..."

After reporting on the progress of Datang Pictures' important projects leading up to the Spring Festival, Wei Feng glanced at the empty coffee cup in front of Chen Xiu and said something unrelated.

"Boss, there's one last important thing. After I finish reporting, why don't you go home and adjust to the time difference?"

Hearing Wei Feng's words, Chen Xiu knew that he was concerned about her health.

"Sure! Go ahead and tell me."

"Okay, in addition to Light Chaser Animation, Warner Bros. is also one of the producers of White Snake."

"Warner Bros. in Hollywood?" "Yes! They contacted us through Light Chaser Animation, expressing their interest in collaborating on film projects."

Chen Xiu's eyes, which had been narrowed, flashed with a sharp light upon hearing this news.

He doesn't have much of a Hollywood aura. Last week, he went to the Hollywood Walk of Fame with Tian Xinwei, which is just a street.

However, the six major Hollywood studios are indeed far ahead of their Chinese counterparts in the field of film and television production.

Warner Bros. took the initiative to seek cooperation, and if it was beneficial to them, they would naturally agree.

"How do they want to cooperate?"

"Warner Bros. means they can provide us with local filming support in the US, as well as help from a special effects company, and even provide a few supporting roles for our artists."

"If they're willing to offer so many benefits, they must want a lot in return, right?"

"They hope to participate in the investment of Datang Pictures' projects, and at the same time, they hope that Datang Pictures can invest in their film projects."

Upon hearing this, Chen Xiu glanced at Wei Feng in surprise.

He wasn't surprised that Warner Bros. had such a big appetite, but rather that they wanted so little.

In the past two years, the number of films produced by Datang Pictures has been gradually increasing.

Although some film companies, such as Enlight Media, China Film Group, and Wanda Pictures, have been brought in to co-produce films.

However, Datang Pictures still holds a 50% investment share in the project as the primary producer.

Therefore, even if Warner Bros. participates in the projects invested in by Datang Pictures, the investment share they receive will definitely not be too large.

Having put in so much effort and demonstrated their sincerity in advance, if it were just for a small share of investment in a few movies, Chen Xiu would have to wonder if Warner Bros.' CEO had lost his mind.

"Besides film investment, did they ask for anything else?"

"No, that's true. I also found it strange at first, but after several contacts, I finally figured out Warner's true purpose."

"what?"

"Warner Bros. must have investigated Datang Pictures beforehand, and also investigated your situation, Boss."

"go on."

"They discussed internally that China's film market will eventually become the world's number one, and Datang Pictures also has the potential to become a giant in the domestic film and television industry. With Douyin added to the mix, Warner Bros. believes that they can lift the restrictions on film investment for us, so that when their films are released in China, we can help promote them."

Wei Feng calmly analyzed the situation and then explained his thoughts to Chen Xiu in detail.

At first, he also felt that Warner had given a lot, but after thinking about it carefully, he realized that Warner was getting something for nothing.

First of all, the local filming support and special effects company assistance they provided in the United States were definitely purchased by Datang Pictures at their expense, and Warner Bros. could also make a profit from this.

Secondly, there's not much to say about arranging a few supporting roles for the artists of Datang Pictures.

Li Lianhua and Zhang Ziyi both played supporting roles in Warner Bros. films, and they didn't pay much of a reward; at most, they just closed their eyes and...

It can only be said that Warner Bros.' practice of casting Chinese actors in minor roles in their films is an attempt to curry favor with the Chinese market. Since they can cast anyone, they might as well use that opportunity to establish a partnership with Datang Pictures.

In summary, what Warner Bros. really contributed was its cross-investment projects with Datang Pictures.

Even so, they still had their eyes on the value of the Tang Dynasty itself and the Douyin in Chen Xiu's hands, hoping to gain an advantage in the film's promotion.

After listening to Wei Feng's analysis, Chen Xiu gave him an approving look: "You've made a lot of progress in the past few years, being able to see so much."

"Mainly, I don't want to disappoint you, boss."

"how come."

Chen Xiu smiled and continued, "Now that you've figured out their purpose, what's your view on cooperation?"

"I think we can cooperate with reservations and try to ensure that core projects are not open to Warner investment."

"I think there's no need for restrictions; we just need to take the lead in the project."

Seeing the confusion on Wei Feng's face, Chen Xiu explained, "Let them invest in good projects. Warner Bros. will also help with the promotion when the movie is released overseas. The cooperation is more beneficial than harmful. Warner Bros. wants to use us to expand its market share, and we can also use their resources to grow stronger. It's a win-win situation!"

"Understood. Then I can be a little more lenient with them next time I talk to them."

"You can decide for yourself."

Chen Xiu had no reason to worry about Wei Feng's abilities anymore.

Watching Wei Feng leave the office, and knowing that Meng Ziyi wouldn't be back until evening, Chen Xiu simply dozed off in the office.

(End of this chapter)