Huayu: Starting from joining the mainstream entertainment industry in 96

Chapter 272: Let's see the strength.

In November, the dry, cold north wind howled through the gaps between the tall buildings in Beijing, swirling up the scattered fallen leaves on the ground and making a rustling sound.

Inside the Jingxin Building, however, there was a warm atmosphere, which contrasted sharply with the bleakness outside the window.

On the morning of February 26, 1999.

Wang Sheng sat in the large chair in the general manager's office of Shengying Media, reviewing the latest internal briefing.

"A Little Thing Called First Love" has been in theaters for 21 days. Although the complete national box office statistics only cover the first 18 days, the data is already impressive enough.

After raking in about 4300 million in two weeks, the first few days of the third week still saw an average daily income of about 200 million, bringing the total to around 5100 million.

However, as expected, the growth rate has indeed begun to slowly decline from its peak.

"Based on this trend, the final box office for the first month of screenings should be between 6000 and 7000 million, no problem." Wang Sheng put down the briefing and calculated in his mind.

This achievement is almost on par with that of "Flying Colors" during the summer, once again proving Shengying Media's stable output capability in commercial genre films.

However, achieving a box office of over 100 million yuan for a single film remains an insurmountable barrier in this era.

Rampant box office underreporting and ubiquitous piracy of VCDs are like two giant bloodsuckers, constantly devouring the profits that should belong to the producers, severely restricting the market's ceiling.

Unless it's a "chosen one" like "The Birth of a Warrior," which has multiple advantages such as being a tribute film, having a patriotic theme, being sponsored by organizations, and being watched by the public spontaneously, it will be difficult to reach that dream number.

dong dong dong.

The knocking interrupted Wang Sheng's thoughts.

"Enter."

Li Tingting pushed open the door and entered, followed by a slightly overweight middle-aged man wearing a sophisticated dark suit and with his hair neatly combed. He was none other than Jung Tae-won, the president of Tae-won Entertainment in South Korea.

He wore a humble, even slightly modest, smile, but the moment he entered the office, his eyes quickly and imperceptibly swept across the entire space, as if assessing the owner's strength and taste.

He was followed by an assistant carrying a gift box.

"Mr. Wang, this is Mr. Jung Tae-won, the president of Tae-won Entertainment in South Korea," Li Tingting introduced.

Wang Sheng stood up, walked around the desk, a businesslike smile on his face, and extended his hand: "President Zheng, welcome, welcome. It's an honor to meet you."

"Mr. Wang, it's a pleasure to meet you! You are truly young and promising, living up to your reputation!" Zheng Taiyuan grasped Wang Sheng's hands with both of them and shook them vigorously. His Chinese had a noticeable accent, but he spoke fluently and his attitude was so warm that it was almost obsequious.

After exchanging pleasantries and taking their seats, Li Tingting served tea and then quietly withdrew.

Instead of getting straight to the point, Jung Tae-won had his assistant present the gifts he had brought.

One long, rectangular wooden box contained a metal dagger inlaid with silver wire in the style of the Korean Peninsula that looked quite old. Another exquisite brocade box contained high-quality Korean ginseng.

"This is just a small gift, nothing special, but I hope Mr. Wang will accept it."

Zheng Taiyuan said with a smile, "This short sword is an antique from the Joseon Dynasty. Although it is not a royal item, it is still quite exquisite. This Korean ginseng is genuine; it's for President Wang to nourish his body."

Wang Sheng glanced at the gifts, his smile unchanged, but his mind was perfectly clear.

Antiques and rare medicinal herbs are gifts that show sincerity without being too expensive, making them a common way for these "opportunists" to get in touch.

The president of the company in front of me, Mr. Zheng, is older than me. His words and actions reveal a shrewdness and calculation. He has a similar temperament to Dong Ping. Both of them are shrewd businessmen who are good at finding opportunities in the gaps of the rules and profiting from information gaps and policy loopholes.

Wang Sheng immediately realized that this person's intentions were far more complex than simply importing the film.

"President Zheng, you're too kind. This gift is far too valuable," Wang Sheng said politely, without refusing it, and gestured to his assistant to put the gift away.

He knew this was just the prelude to negotiations.

Sure enough, Zheng Taiyuan took a sip of tea and began to steer the conversation back on track: "President Wang, I went to see your company's production, 'A Little Thing Called First Love,' in the cinema when I was in Shanghai. It was really well made!"
The emotions are genuine, the visuals are refreshing, and the feelings of unrequited love and the courage to grow are very touching.

I believe that such an excellent work has the potential to succeed in the Korean market.

Wang Sheng nodded slightly, remaining composed: "President Zheng, you flatter me. The Korean film and television industry has developed rapidly in recent years, producing many excellent works. We still have much to learn from them." "President Wang is too modest." Zheng Taiyuan leaned forward, showing great interest: "The reason I've taken the liberty of visiting today is precisely to hope that 'First Love' can be introduced to Korea. Our Taiyuan Entertainment is willing to purchase the relevant copyrights for this film in Korea."

Wang Sheng understood immediately and asked, "I wonder what kind of cooperation President Zheng wants? And what price are you planning to offer?"

Jung Tae-won, already prepared, immediately said, "We hope to acquire all the copyrights to 'First Love' in South Korea. This includes theatrical distribution rights, television broadcasting rights, videotape and VCD/DVD distribution rights, and related screening rights. A one-time purchase, and the price..."

He paused, observed Wang Sheng's expression, and stated a figure: "We are willing to offer one million US dollars."

One million US dollars, at the exchange rate of approximately 1:8.27 at the time, was equivalent to about 8.27 million yuan.

For a foreign youth film that had not yet been tested in the South Korean market, especially one produced in the Chinese mainland market, this asking price was already quite reasonable in 1999.

However, Wang Sheng had some suspicions about Zheng Taiyuan's background and motives.

This person is enthusiastic about Sino-Korean co-productions, and one of his fundamental motives is likely to defraud the South Korean government of various subsidy funds established to encourage the export of cultural industries and promote international cultural exchanges.

For example, the Korea Archives under the Ministry of Culture and Tourism or other related institutions may provide financial support or tax rebates for cooperative projects or imported films that have achieved certain results overseas or are considered to help enhance Korea's cultural influence.

Jung Tae-won imported "A Little Thing Called First Love" at a low price, and then used its popularity in China as a selling point to apply for a considerable "subsidy for the import of excellent foreign cultural products" or "cultural exchange and promotion fund" from the relevant South Korean authorities. The difference in price was his profit.

His speculative nature lies in this—he may be more interested in making money from government subsidies than from the market itself.

The current context for cultural cooperation between China and South Korea is that, following the normalization of relations after the establishment of diplomatic ties in 1992, bilateral cultural exchanges have become increasingly frequent.

Especially after the financial crisis, the South Korean government officially established the "culture-based nation" strategy, regarding the cultural industry as a new pillar of the national economy in the 21st century. It actively promotes the export of Korean culture, while also encouraging the import of excellent cultural products from other countries to demonstrate its openness and provide reference for domestic creation.

China's enormous market potential, long-standing cultural heritage, and cultural similarities make it an object that the South Korean cultural industry cannot ignore.

Wang Sheng slowly took a sip of tea, then put down his teacup, looked at Zheng Taiyuan, and stated his price clearly and firmly: "President Zheng, one million US dollars... This price probably won't even cover the investment cost of our film, let alone the value and brand effect it creates in the Chinese market."

He paused, and under Jung Tae-won's slightly surprised gaze, continued, "My target price for the complete rights to 'First Love' in South Korea is five million US dollars. A one-time buyout."

Five million dollars?!

Jung Tae-won's smile froze instantly, and he almost cried out in surprise. He quickly composed himself, but the shock and distress in his eyes were obvious: "President Wang, this price... this... this is far beyond what the Korean market can afford!"

He hurriedly began to complain, while also stating some facts: "Mr. Wang, you may not know this, but although the South Korean film market has been developing in recent years, its scale is still limited. Currently, the box office of popular South Korean films is roughly between 1000 million and 2000 million US dollars..."

To date, the highest-grossing film in South Korean film history is "Shiri," released in February of this year, which grossed approximately $21 million, breaking the record set by "Titanic." However, this achievement was made possible by domestic protectionism.

Jung Tae-won also emphasized: "But that's a big-budget local film. Foreign youth romance films like 'First Love' don't have an advantage in terms of genre. Even if the quality is extremely high, market expectations need to be conservatively estimated."

Reaching several hundred thousand viewers would be a great success. After deducting distribution and promotion costs, the net profit we, as the importer, can obtain is very limited when converted into box office revenue.

A buyout fee of five million dollars is far too risky; we simply cannot break even!

Jung Tae-won was telling the truth. In 1999, the South Korean film market, although recovering, was indeed not comparable in size to that of later years.

It is extremely difficult for a foreign art film or youth film to achieve exceptionally high box office returns.

His initial plan was to acquire the property for a low price of one million US dollars, and then profit from both government subsidies and potential box office revenue through his operations.

But Wang Sheng asked for five million, which directly shattered his profit and safety margin.

Wang Sheng listened quietly, offering no comment.

He knew that some of what Zheng Taiyuan said was true.

In 1999, the South Korean film market was on the eve of the rise of domestic films, but its overall scale was indeed incomparable to that of later years, making it difficult for a foreign romance film to achieve explosive box office success.

But he was more aware of the unique emotional resonance of "First Love" and the potential government subsidies that Jung Tae-won might be working behind the scenes.

After Zheng Taiyuan finished speaking, Wang Sheng slowly opened his mouth, his tone still steady: "President Zheng, the value of a film lies not only in its box office performance in the domestic market. It lies in its emotional impact, in the discussions and long-tail effects it can generate. The success of 'First Love' in China has already proven this point."

Zheng Taiyuan frowned, caught in a fierce internal struggle.

(End of this chapter)