Chinese Entertainment: Directors Start with the Fairy Sister

Chapter 111 Using Bingbing? Celebrity Management!

Liu Dehua is a good actor.

His character, image, and acting skills are all fine, but he just can't carry the box office.

With an investment cost of $1600 million, period dramas are considered high-cost productions. "A Battle of Wits," set against the backdrop of siege warfare during the Warring States period, involves numerous war scenes and special effects, making its production cost even higher.

However, despite such extremely high costs, the box office figures released on the 24th were alarming!

The film grossed 400 million yuan in mainland China and 80 yuan in Hong Kong. Even "Crazy Stone," which doesn't quite fit the Hong Kong typhoon style, still grossed 90 yuan on its opening day in Hong Kong.

Inside Huayi's general manager's office, Wang Zhonglei's face was as black as charcoal!

Outsiders may not know, but insiders do; "The Banquet" has already suffered huge losses. The fantasy film "A Battle of Wits" is probably even worse.

"Quickly contact the media and release more announcements. Let Zhang Zhiliang continue to promote the film with the crew. Liu Dehua and Fan Tao, get moving!"

Wang Zhonglei's roar shook the heavens.

In his anger, he couldn't help but think of Zhao Yanxi, who was far away in Hollywood.

Yanxi Films has produced quite a few works this year. Ding Lang's "First Love" is one thing, as it's similar in style to "You Are the Apple of My Eye"; but Ning Hao's "Stone" has nothing to do with Zhao Yanxi.

"What incredible luck!"

Wang Zhonglei was extremely jealous. With such low costs and such high box office returns, Zhao Yanxi was going to make a fortune this year!

[“A Battle of Wits” raked in 400 million yuan at the box office on its opening day; Fan Bingbing's performance moved audiences!]

[The box office performance of "A Battle of Wits" is booming nationwide, and it is expected to break 6000 million yuan.]

[A Battle of Wits is a better Oscar contender than The Banquet!]

While abroad, Zhao Yanxi read these news reports from China and thought that Huayi was really going all out.

This is because ordinary viewers don't care about the cost of "A Battle of Wits" or what the opening day box office represents. Through a lot of bad luck, the film directly leaves the name "A Battle of Wits" in the minds of the audience.

Huayi Brothers has spared no effort in its publicity and promotion efforts to boost box office revenue. It remains to be seen whether the increased publicity and promotion costs can be recouped through the improved box office figures.

After all, reputation can't be faked.

"I watched a movie and then regretted it—'A Battle of Wits'!"

"It seems like it should be called 'Mozi's Strategy,' maybe because the name sounds a bit like a second-rate Hong Kong movie, like 'Tokyo Raiders,'"

It's a guide to Seoul, so they used a shortened title, "Mo Gong" (墨攻), why not "Zi Gong" (子攻)?!

"This lousy movie, the editors took ten years to write?? Why not just say the screenwriter started writing it from the womb, then it could be called 'The Legend of the Womb'?"

""

"If arson weren't illegal, I'd burn down the movie theater!"

"If I could get on the big screen, I'd slap Fan Tao twice across the face," Zhao Yanxi thought, not believing the comment in front of her.

If he were to actually appear on the big screen, the hand that used to slap someone would probably end up in the wrong place.

At twenty-five or twenty-six, Fan Tao is at the peak of her beauty. Whether it's her figure, appearance, popularity, or buzz, there aren't many actresses in the industry who can rival her.

Xiao Liu can only barely keep up now. To surpass her, he'll probably have to wait another two years until he's fully grown. "If You Are the One...maybe Fan could give it a try~"

Zhao Yanxi knew that Ning Hao had already submitted the script for review, but before the project was officially approved, Ning Hao still needed to conduct on-site investigations based on some scenes in the script.

In particular, regarding the Hokkaido scenes that were directly copied from the script, after discussing it with Ning Hao, they decided to cancel the filming plans in Japan and choose to film in China instead.

The Hokkaido segment in the drama primarily serves to showcase the tranquil, healing, and slightly lonely aesthetics of nature.

There are many places in China that can be represented by this, such as Tianchi Lake in Changbai Mountain. The magnificence and mystery of the crater lake far surpasses that of the lakes in Hokkaido. The snow scenes and desolate atmosphere in autumn and winter are very strong, making it suitable for shooting grand and lonely shots.

Or Dongfushan Island, the easternmost island on the mainland, with its iconic lighthouse, giant rocks, and boundless sea, is perfect for shooting scenes of dialogue and contemplation reminiscent of "the ends of the earth".

Even though there were many scenes to film in the country, it was still better than filming in Hokkaido.

It's not just a matter of production costs; the more crucial issue is the filming location for "If You Are the One," which poses a significant challenge for the filming locations.

This kind of promotional opportunity is better given to domestic tourist attractions than to foreign ones.

Once Ning Hao has inspected the location, the auditions and casting will begin.

By then, Fan should have already terminated his contract with Huayi Brothers—what does someone who's been blacklisted by Huayi have to do with my Yanxi Films?

Let's also give Wang Zhonglei a piece of our mind, since he's like a mad dog, always badmouthing Xiao Liu!

Jiang Wen's art film has finally wrapped up filming.

Many people in the industry are waiting to see the joke. An art film has been in production for a year and a half. It is said that Yinghuang has increased the investment again and again, with the total investment approaching 60 million.

With such a high investment, unless you can actually win a gold medal at one of the three major European competitions, you're bound to lose a fortune.

The effect of Yang Shoucheng's "spending a fortune to buy horse bones" was indeed very obvious, and Yang Shoucheng frequently appeared at major conferences and events in mainland China.

However, this did not delay the establishment of the "Ip Man" project. According to Yang Siwei's report, the heir of the Ip family has agreed to serve as the artistic consultant for the production team, and auditions for various roles have begun. Zhao Yanxi did not pay attention to the specific audition list.

Although Zhao Yanxi didn't have much affection for Zhen Zidan from her past life, she wasn't particularly disgusted with him either.

At least after seeing his portrayal of Guan Yu, Zhao Yanxi felt that his performance as Ip Man was not bad.

Yanxi Films hasn't signed any artists, so there's no need for them to get involved in auditions and incur Yinghuang's favor for no reason.

However, this also served as a reminder to Zhao Yanxi. Before she knew it, her company had been established for two or three years, and it had been quite successful in both commercial and art films. Perhaps she could consider signing some artists!

Although talent agency business and production business are somewhat contradictory, one's own artists may not necessarily be suitable for one's own projects.

However, even if we don't sign many people, just two or three men and two or three women, the resources we have and the resources we exchange with other investors are enough to train these people.

In two years, artists' film salaries, endorsement fees, and appearance fees will all enter a period of rapid growth.

Training a few top-tier artists is no less profitable than the annual profit of a small to medium-sized listed company!

With artists around, our film and television resources won't go to waste!

Whether it was Zhao Yanxi's "reminder" before leaving Hollywood last time that had an effect, or because of the approaching financial crisis, these employees cherished their jobs even more.

The special effects for "Painted Skin" progressed faster than Zhao Yanxi had imagined. From the end of August to the end of November, in about three months, 98% of the special effects were completed.

At this rate, they should be able to complete their mission and return home by the beginning of December?!