Against the Current Hong Kong 1979

Chapter 169 confirms the year-end blockbuster as "Mr. Zombie" (3rd update, please subscribe)

Tianxia Pictures, conference room.

At this moment, all the wise men and women gathered, young and old alike.

As the company's boss, Zhang Shuai'an naturally sat in the center position, presiding over the meeting.

On either side of him stood two women: his personal secretary, Yu Sijia, and the executive director, Shi Nansheng.

Next were Vice General Manager Wang Pangzi, Production Department General Manager Chen Xunqi, Production Vice General Manager Shu Qi (Ye Jianxing), President Assistant He Jiatong, Production Manager Ling Zhijian, and screenwriters Liu Guanwei, Huang Bingyao, and so on.

There were more than a dozen people in the conference room, which is not a small number among Hong Kong film companies.

As for the company's contracted actors, they didn't need to attend this meeting, so none of them came.

"I've called everyone here for a meeting to discuss three main things."

Zhang Shuai'an never liked to talk a lot of nonsense. After seeing that everyone was there, he got straight to the point and said, "One is that the box office revenue of 'Chasing Girls' has been received. I have asked Director Shi to draft an appropriate amount of bonus for everyone. It should be directly deposited into your bank cards in a couple of days."

"Clap clap clap clap————"

Without saying a word, Fatty Wang immediately started clapping and shouted, "Long live the boss!"

17

The others immediately joined in the shouting.

"Alright, this is what everyone deserves anyway." Zhang Shuai'an waved his hand and skipped over the topic: "The second thing is 'Thirty-Six Strategies for Chasing Girls,' which is planned for release around Christmas. I will talk to Mr. Zou and Mr. Lei about the specific time."

"You guys also need to do a good job of publicity," Zhang Shuai'an said to Fatty Wang with a smile. "Jingzai, you can go back and cry to Mr. Shao and your dad, and ask them for help too."

Fatty Wang patted his belly and chuckled, "Brother An, don't worry, I'm good at this. I guarantee I'll get some benefits in return."

Zhang Shuai'an nodded, then said to the others, "Brother Qi and Brother Ye, you two will be in charge of the specific publicity work."

.

Chen Xunqi and Ye Jianxing exchanged a glance and said in unison, "No problem."

"And there's a third thing, which is actually more important."

Zhang Shuai'an finally got to the point of what he most wanted to discuss in the meeting: "There are only three months left until the Chinese New Year. We definitely can't miss out on such a big film season. We need to come up with a plan and fight for this slot."

This is indeed very important.

For a newly established film company to gain a foothold, the first thing is to keep making films.

If it stops, the film company will basically be finished within six months.

This has been demonstrated by the numerous failed film companies that have exemplified this.

To put it simply, there's Liu Songren's Zeus Pictures and Chen Huimin's Eagle Pictures.

Chen Huimin's lousy film company hasn't made any moves since they finished making "Handcuffs," and they've probably already gone down the same old path as in the original timeline.

"Boss, how about we make a gambling movie?"

Fatty Wang suddenly had an idea and said, "Your novel, 'The King of Gamblers,' has already aired on TVB and received a very enthusiastic response. Making a similar movie might be a surprisingly successful idea."

A gambling movie?

Zhang Shuai'an was stunned for a moment. His first thought was of Chow Yun-fat's "God of Gamblers" and Stephen Chow's "All for the Winner" from the original timeline.

However, it was only 1980, and making "God of Gamblers" at that time would likely not have had the same explosive impact as it did in later years.

Although Hong Kong people are fond of gambling, most gambling films are still compilations like those by Li Hanxiang, which try to persuade people to quit gambling.

We need to use similar TV dramas for a few more years to cultivate people's awareness of gambling skills and cheating techniques as special abilities, so that they become a common understanding among all Hong Kong citizens. Only then can we achieve twice the result with half the effort when making "God of Gamblers".

"You can write a script about cheating and gambling techniques, and keep it for future reference."

Zhang Shuai'an didn't directly reject Wang Pangzi's suggestion, and then asked Huang Bingyao, "Brother Yao, do you have any good tips?"

"Last month, I went to Sanmao's place to help out. His film 'Encounters of the Spooky Kind' seems pretty good and might become a dark horse during the Christmas season."

Huang Bingyao said, "Should we make a similar movie, one with horror, zombies, comedy, and exciting fight scenes?"

Shu Qi objected, saying, "Isn't that inappropriate? Who watches horror movies during the Lunar New Year?"

Huang Bingyao was about to retort, but then he thought that what he said wasn't entirely wrong, so he silently looked at Zhang Shuai'an and waited for him to make a decision.

"Encounters of the Spooky Kind" isn't exactly a pure ghost movie.

Zhang Shuai'an thought for a moment and said seriously, "This notebook is something I wrote for Brother Sanmao. It's indeed a good subject, and there are aspects worth exploring in depth."

Zhang Shuai'an was mentally assessing whether it was possible to film "Mr. Zombie" at this time.

The original timeline, this movie was released in November 1985. The director was Liu Guanwei, and the main actors were Lin Zhengying, Qian Xiaohao and Xu Guanying. The female lead was Li Saifeng, who was only 20 years old at the time.

The initial investment for this film was HK$400 million. However, due to Lau Kwun-wai's overly meticulous nature, the film repeatedly exceeded its budget, eventually reaching HK$850 million, and the filming period was extended to 120 days.

It's important to know that at that time, most Hong Kong films only had a shooting period of one to two months, and films that could be shot in three months were extremely rare.

These problems arose because Liu Guanwei lacked experience in directing films, and because he paid too much attention to every detail.

However, it was precisely because of Lau Kwun-wai's attention to detail that he ultimately crafted a classic film, which grossed over 20 million Hong Kong dollars upon its release, ranking seventh in the Hong Kong box office that year, and becoming an indelible classic in film history.

If Zhang Shuai'an were to film it himself, it certainly wouldn't take that long. Two months would be more than enough, and the cost wouldn't even need to be HK$850 million, or even HK$400 million.

As for the actor, Lam Ching-ying is currently in his prime, and there's no need to worry about his appearance. He's looked this old since he was a teenager; with a little makeup, he'd be Uncle Nine.

There's no need for Qian Xiaohao to play Qiu Sheng; he can do it himself. He's currently one of the highest-paid male stars in Hong Kong, second only to Jackie Chan and Xu Guanwen. His involvement will definitely boost box office sales.

The character Wen Cai doesn't need to be changed; Xu Guan Ying can be used directly.

As for the role of Ren Tingting, it might be necessary to replace her.

Li Saifeng is only fifteen years old now, but she has already starred in RTV's "The Land of Love: Home in the Pearl River", but her acting skills are still too immature.

On the other hand, the role of Ren Tingting is not actually that difficult; it all comes down to temperament.

After thinking it through, Zhang Shuai'an made the decision: "Perfect timing! I have a new idea about zombies. Jingzai, Yaoge, and Guanwei, you guys work together to write a script based on this idea as soon as possible. Oh, and while you're at it, call Huang Ying over. I heard that kid's got a knack for writing about ghosts and zombies."

As he spoke, Zhang Shuai'an explained the main character settings and plot of "Mr. Zombie" to them.

With the talents of Fatty Wang and his ilk, writing the script for "Mr. Zombie" based on his outline would be no difficult task at all.

However, the male lead in this version is very clear from the beginning. This is a drama with two male leads: Qiu Sheng, played by Zhang Shuai'an, and Uncle Jiu, played by Lin Zhengying.

Qiu Sheng is naturally the male lead, since he is the only character in the film with a romantic storyline.

The relationship between Wen Lao and Ren Tingting wasn't even a romantic story; it was purely a case of a simp and a goddess. Moreover, the goddess didn't respond to the simp at all, at most praising him as a good person.

Since Zhang Shuai'an has been cast as the male lead in this version of "Mr. Zombie," his screen time will likely be increased.

Who can blame them when Zhang Shuai'an is the boss and a big star who can carry the box office?

Even Zhang Shuai'an himself felt that giving Qiu Sheng more screen time was not a problem, and it wouldn't steal Uncle Jiu's thunder.