Huayu: Starting from joining the mainstream entertainment industry in 96

Chapter 198, Section 196: The Peerless Twins

In November, the autumn wind in Beijing carried a chilling whistle, swirling up the last few stubborn sycamore leaves in the Beijing Film Studio compound, which then spun and pelted against the windowpanes, making a soft, rustling sound.

The day after the film festival ended, Wang Sheng returned to China to prepare for the preview screening of "The Pursuit of Happyness".

On November 10th, a preview screening of "The Pursuit of Happyness" was held in the auditorium of Beijing Film Studio.

The screening concluded in a harmonious and confident atmosphere.

After seeing off the representatives, Wang Sheng immediately arranged for the production manager to send the finished film of "The Pursuit of Happyness" to the Film Bureau for final review.

Given the subject matter and the influence of this film, passing the censorship is just a formality, and no one is worried.

After finishing the two important tasks of test screening and submission for review, Wang Sheng seemed to have transformed from a rapidly spinning top into a leisurely angler.

For the rest of November, he suddenly entered a rather "laid-back" state.

No longer needing to spend every day in the editing workshop overseeing the post-production of "The Pursuit of Happyness," the Tokyo awards have been decided, Cai Yinong and Li Guoli are handling the second round of sales for "The Four," "Beijing Bicycle" has been released as scheduled, and Gao Yuanyuan and Fan Xiaopang's first appearance on the big screen, while not achieving the nationwide fame of Cecilia Cheung, has still garnered some attention. Projects such as "Rainbow Cat and Blue Rabbit: 3000 Questions" also have their respective project leaders...

He, the leader of the entire organization, suddenly discovered that there were far fewer things that required his immediate decision-making and personal involvement.

Thus, his daily routine became:

He would sleep in until he naturally woke up in the morning, then leisurely stroll to the Beijing Film Studio office to process the accumulated daily documents and listen to the routine reports from various project teams. In the afternoon, he would either go to the Beijing Film Academy's Management Department to check in and attend two theoretical classes that were already somewhat "retro" for him, or he would stay at home and watch movie videotapes. In the evening, he would either play a friendly match with Li Xiaoran or a friendly match with Zhang Bozhi, who had briefly returned to Beijing for work. He rarely had any social engagements.

Whether Beijing Film Studio will be absorbed or maintain relative independence is no longer of much concern to Wang Sheng.

It's true that he made his fortune through the Beijing Film Studio over the past two years, but he also replenished the studio's cash flow and provided it with a sustainable film library. The employees' livelihoods were also secured, unlike after the studio was acquired by China Film Group Corporation, where they were thrown into an outsourced art creation center and struggled to make ends meet.

In such a short time, taking advantage of the prevailing trends of the times, we have done our best, if not our absolute best. We can say we have done our best without any regrets.

This long-lost sense of relaxation made Wang Sheng feel quite comfortable.

Of course, this "laid-back" state is relative. A certain area of ​​the brain is still receiving and processing information from all sides, but it no longer needs to do everything personally.

November 16th, afternoon.

Wang Sheng was reclining on the sofa in his office, flipping through the latest issue of "China Film Market" magazine, with a cup of steaming Longjing tea beside him.

China Film Market magazine is a national-level journal sponsored by China Film Corporation and supervised by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television. It was founded in 1951 and is the only film economics journal in China, focusing on industry economics, market dynamics and policy research.

The articles published in this issue of the magazine are all building momentum for China Film Group's integration of Beijing Film Studio and other units.

It's so drowsy it makes you want to fall asleep.

A soft knock sounded on the door.

"Enter."

The door was pushed open, and Cai Yinong, dressed in a smart business suit, walked in, holding a folder in her hand.

With the successive successes of "Love in Beijing and Hong Kong" and "The Four Great Constables," coupled with the emergence of Cecilia Cheung as a phenomenal idol, Tsai Yin-Nong has become increasingly shrewd, capable, and charismatic.

"Mr. Wang, I hope I didn't disturb your rest?" Cai Yinong asked with a smile, her tone familiar.

"It's nothing, I'm just free."

Wang Sheng sat up straighter and gestured to the chair opposite him: "Sit down, Mr. Cai. Judging from your expression, is something good happening?"

Cai Yinong sat down as instructed, placed the folder on her lap, and said, "It is indeed something I wanted to report to you. Zhenglong International Communication Co., Ltd. from Taiwan contacted me yesterday. I have previously collaborated with film and television companies from Taiwan."

“Zhenglong International?” Wang Sheng raised an eyebrow in confusion, signaling Cai Yinong to continue.

"They want to collaborate with us on a TV series," Cai Yinong continued, her tone tinged with a businessman's excitement. "The genre is martial arts, *The Legendary Twins*." "The Legendary Twins?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Sheng put down the magazine in his hand, leaned forward slightly, and showed obvious doubt on his face: "Gu Long's works? They... have the copyright?"

It's no wonder Wang Sheng asked this question.

The film and television adaptation rights for Gu Long's novels are notoriously chaotic these days, a truly murky mess.

The main reasons for this chaos are as follows:

Firstly, Mr. Gu Long was a prolific writer, but he was also a chivalrous and righteous man (or perhaps he was negligent in managing his work). In the 1970s and 1980s, he authorized the film and television adaptation rights of many of his works in various ways, either clearly or vaguely, and they were scattered among many film companies, television stations and even individuals in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Southeast Asia. The scope and duration of the authorization were often unclear, and there was a lot of overlap and controversy.

Secondly, Mr. Gu Long passed away at a young age (he died in 1985), and the issues of his estate inheritance and copyright ownership were not clearly defined and uniformly managed by law, leading to further confusion in subsequent copyright maintenance and authorization.

Different heirs or organizations claiming to have management rights may authorize others, and they may even sue each other.

Third, the copyright legal environment and enforcement in Hong Kong and Taiwan at that time were relatively lenient, and the cost of piracy and infringement was low. Many production companies adopted the mentality of "shoot first and worry later." As long as they were not too targeted by the original rights holders, they could often get away with it, which further exacerbated the disorder in the market.

Therefore, when he heard that an obscure Taiwanese company was approaching him about co-producing "The Legendary Twins," Wang Sheng's first reaction was to worry about copyright risks.

Cai Yinong was clearly prepared for this. She opened the folder and explained, "I have also asked about the issue that you are concerned about, Mr. Wang, in detail."

Zhenglong International claims that they hold valid film and television adaptation rights to Gu Long's "The Legendary Twins," which they obtained through a copyright management association in Taiwan.

They also presented copies of the relevant authorization documents… Of course, as you may know, the certification and documentation for this type of copyright in Taiwan are sometimes… well, rather 'flexible'.”

She used careful wording, but her meaning was clear—the other party's authorization might not be entirely valid and could have legal flaws.

However, in the current environment, this "flexibility" is often the basis for operation.

"What were their proposed terms for cooperation?" Wang Sheng asked noncommittally.

"The terms are quite generous."

Cai Yinong's tone became excited: "They only want the distribution rights in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan, as well as overseas distribution rights, mainly in Southeast Asia and possibly the Japanese and Korean markets. All rights within mainland China, including television broadcasting rights, audio-visual distribution rights, and even future derivative developments, will belong to us!"
They entrusted the entire filming process to us and are willing to bear a portion of the production costs.

However, the other party specifically requested Lin Zhiyin and Su Youpeng to play the male lead and second male lead, respectively, leaving the selection of the other roles to us.

Oh, so you brought your own funding to the project.

"Do they have a script? Have they expressed interest in a director or lead actor?" Wang Sheng asked.

"They said they have a first draft of the script, but they hope to work with us to refine it to suit the tastes of mainland audiences."

"Okay, I agree to this in principle."

Wang Sheng made the decision: "President Cai, you should continue to maintain contact with them and get their first draft of the script to take a look."

If the story framework is sound, then arrange for a writing team to follow up and refine the script to meet the broadcast requirements and aesthetic standards of mainland China.

As for the casting of the female lead and the second female lead...

He paused for a moment: "Let's leave it blank for now, no rush to decide. We'll talk about it when the manuscript is finished."

"Understood!" Cai Yinong smiled and neatly closed the folder. "I'll follow up right away and get the script out as soon as possible."

Watching Cai Yinong leave with great enthusiasm, Wang Sheng leaned back on the sofa, picked up the now lukewarm Longjing tea, and took a small sip.

(End of this chapter)