Huayu 2011: Starting with Hilarious Men

Chapter 113 Movie Selection

In the arena of public opinion, whoever reacts quickly gets the spoils, while those who react slowly are left with nothing but scraps.

Among the various Weibo platforms, Sina Weibo reacted the fastest. On the night "The Voice of China" aired, related topics quickly topped the Sina Weibo real-time hot word ranking.

It allows viewers to watch on television while also engaging in real-time discussions on Weibo.

This popularity didn't come out of nowhere. Sina Weibo's content operations team had made preparations long ago. They set up the topic page before the show even aired, communicated with the production team in advance about interactive gameplay, and even displayed the prompt "Search 'The Voice of China' on Weibo to participate in real-time discussion" at the end of the show.

[Is anyone watching The Voice of China? The blind audition and selection process is so interesting!]

[I was watching too. There was a contestant named Deng Chuan who sang really well, but the judges didn't turn their chairs, which really annoyed me.]

The four mentors are highly professional; ordinary people think they're great, but the mentors themselves feel they're not good enough.

[The idea of ​​spinning the chair is brilliant, especially the thrill of the moment the instructor turns around!]

Finally, a music talent show that doesn't judge by looks or background, just by voice! That's exactly what I want—fairness!

I wasn't particularly impressed with the contestants' singing, but I especially enjoyed the segment where the four mentors competed to recruit the contestants.

I have 32 concerts planned. If you leave nice comments about me in the comments section, I will randomly select lucky audience members to attend my concerts.

Does 111 Bro really smoke?

Zhang Wei's rendition of "High Song" really got me hyped! This guy's high notes are amazing!

I prefer the blind singer's rendition of "Alone on the West Tower"; the moment she begins to sing, I feel the whole world quiet down.

Chen Li's "Half a Song" is the best of this episode; it's so moving.

[After watching this episode, I realized that the saying "there are many hidden talents among ordinary people" is truly true.]

Zheng Nan also watched the premiere of "The Voice of China" on her computer.

In the first episode, Chen Li's performance of "Xiao Ban" made her one of only three contestants to receive four turns, sparking a lot of discussion. Many netizens got to know Chen Li through the show.

The fact that Zheng Nan, the lyricist and composer, was also involved has sparked discussion among netizens.

Netizens are delighted to have discovered a new gem of a talent show.

Zheng Nan, however, saw the impact of the explosive popularity of "The Voice of China".

This is far more than just a show becoming popular; it's like a fuse that ignited a massive "era of variety shows" that far exceeded everyone's imagination.

Zheng Nan has a better grasp than anyone else in this era of how lucrative and star-making variety shows will be in the future.

He remembered clearly that in his previous life, the title sponsorship fee for the second season of "The Voice of China" alone was sold for a sky-high price of 200 million yuan. This was only the title sponsorship fee, not including special sponsorships, advertising, online copyright distribution and other derivative income.

Popular variety shows like "Running Man," "Go Fighting!" and "Where Are We Going, Dad?" can revive the careers of hastily-faded stars, make minor celebrities a sensation, and make established stars even more popular!

Later, this even spawned the variety show movie format, where a few edits were made and the movie was released in theaters to rake in hundreds of millions at the box office, reaping huge profits from fans.

Variety shows are a huge market.

The problem is that, given Sennan Entertainment's current size and resources, Zheng Nan is not yet capable of taking a bite out of this pie.

The most they can do is send their artists to these variety shows as contestants or guests, hoping to gain some exposure on a stage set up by others and get some scraps.

Zheng Nan could only think positively. After Chen Li and Zhuang Xinyan became popular on The Voice of China, they were also signed artists under Sennan Entertainment. Their popularity could generate more revenue for the company.

After watching the first episode of The Voice of China, Zheng Nan rubbed her temples and opened an encrypted document she had created a long time ago.

When the document is opened, it only contains some movie titles that have not yet appeared.

Jianbing Man, Goodbye Mr. Loser, Hello Mr. Billionaire, The Breakup Guru, Detective Chinatown

"To Make a Name for Oneself" —

These movie titles were added by Zheng Nan when he was filming the first season of "Hilarious Men".

Zheng Nan's idea at the time was simple: the style of the first movie must follow that of "Hilarious Men". If the style is too different, fans may not accept it.

This resulted in many foreign films being unsuitable, so Zheng Nan removed some foreign film titles.

During the day, Zheng Nan discussed the company's current financial situation with her uncle.

Starting with the copyright revenue from the first season of "Hilarious Men", then the copyright revenue from the second season shared with GG, and then the revenue from ringtones.

In the past year or so, Sennan Entertainment has earned a considerable amount of money, but at the same time it has also spent a lot, such as office building rent, staff salaries, and so on.

Ding Xiu finally settled the accounts. With monthly revenue from ringtones and without affecting the company's operations, he could currently allocate a maximum of 15 million yuan for Zheng Nan to make a movie.

"With 'The Best of Us' airing at the end of the year, it shouldn't be a problem for the show to be a hit. Should we add a romance movie to it?" After thinking about it carefully, Zheng Nan gave up on the idea.

Romance movies may have a lower limit, but their upper limit is not high.

Moreover, making a romance movie would be a complete waste of the box office potential of "Laughing Man".

I still have to choose from comedy movies.

The first one is "Jianbing Man".

Zheng Nan rejected it almost without hesitation.

Choosing this movie means he's completely following the old path of large-scale production. The production cost was indeed low, and the box office numbers after its release will indeed be impressive. However, this box office success relies on piling up celebrity cameos and exploiting nostalgia. The aftereffects are toxic, and the backlash in reputation will come sooner or later.

The higher the box office, the more debt will need to be repaid later, PASS.

The second one is "Goodbye Mr. Loser".

This movie was actually Zheng Nan's ideal choice.

The filming cost was low, mainly consisting of campus scenes and studio sets, with no expensive special effects, and the overall budget was well controlled; it received good reviews, had a solid story, and a high density and consistent quality of jokes; it had high box office returns, with the data from its previous production serving as a classic example of a small investment yielding big returns.

But there is one hurdle it cannot overcome.

"Goodbye Mr. Loser" is adapted from the stage play of the same name created by the Happy Twist team. According to the timeline, the script should still be in the creation stage, and the first draft is expected to be completed in September this year.

It's too late for Zheng Nan to copy it now. He can only wait until it's created and then communicate with Happy Twist about the copyright issue. If he can get the copyright, it would be best to make this work.

"The premise is that we can actually get it." Zheng Nan put "To be determined" in parentheses on the document for "Goodbye Mr. Loser".

Two words.

The third one is "Hello Mr. Billionaire".

This film is an adaptation of the foreign film "Brewster's Millions," and adaptation rights must be obtained before it can be made.

Cross-border copyright communication is not a simple matter; it takes a long time, involves many variables, and the licensing fees demanded by the other party are not low.

In addition, the production cost of this film far exceeded Zheng Nan's current affordability. The various large-scale set designs, the filming of football matches, and the visual effects of throwing money all over the city were all major expenses.

At this stage, there's no need to even think about it; just pass.

The fourth one is "The Breakup Guru".

Adapted from Yu Baimei's play of the same name, the premise itself bears a strong trace of theatrical performance. The plot goes too far, the characters are more and more insane, and the humor is built on constant awkwardness and offense.

The movie "Past Life" was released in 2014, and even then, some viewers felt it was too much and unacceptable; it would be even more so now.

The market environment and audience aesthetics are not yet at that stage; forcing it would be suicidal, so we'll pass.

The fifth is "Detective Chinatown".

It's an original script that doesn't involve any adaptation, so it can be used directly.

The film is of high quality, and the combination of suspense and comedy is very competitive in the market; both its critical acclaim and box office performance have proven its worth.

However, the problem is that the filming cost is too high. It requires shooting on location in Thailand, and the various action scenes and group scenes cannot be handled by a small production.

We'll put this movie on hold for now and consider it when the company has more funds. For now, we'll pass on it.

The sixth is "Making a Name and Establishing a Fortune".

The original script is set in a villa during the Republican era. The story is almost entirely set indoors, with concentrated scenes and a limited number of characters. It inherits the serious yet nonsensical style of "Unexpectedly" while adding a suspenseful mystery element.

This film achieved great success with a small budget in its previous life, receiving excellent reviews and far exceeding box office expectations.

Given Zheng Nan's company's current financial situation and production capabilities, the cost of producing this work is acceptable, the risks are controllable, the quality is guaranteed, and it can also cater to the fan base of "Hilarious Men," making it the second most perfect choice after "Goodbye Mr. Loser."

After some thought, Zheng Nan deleted all the other movie titles from the document, leaving only "Goodbye Mr. Loser" and "Fame and Fortune".

If we can acquire the copyright from Mahua FunAge, we'll make "Goodbye Mr. Loser"; if we can't, we'll make "Fame and Fortune"!