Chinese Entertainment: Directors Start with the Fairy Sister

"Wow, this is considered average-looking? So normal people are considered extraordinary?"

"That bastard Zhao Yanxi, why does it feel like he's showing off something?!"

"How could I not brag? Being able to have a scandal with a goddess like her, who wouldn't brag! If it were me, I'd be in the newspapers for three days straight—"

"Look at how worthless his smile is!"

"Brothers, we can't let this scoundrel get away with it. We can't gossip about them anymore. What if he actually talks about Liu Yifei? Wouldn't that be letting him off easy?"

...

The interview with the Shanghai Theatre Academy sparked a heated discussion online.

Or rather, let's call it criticism.

After all, Zhao Yanxi's carefree smile when talking about the rumors really made countless Liu Yifei's fans feel heartbroken.

Despite fierce competition from "The Myth," "You Are the Apple of My Eye" still achieved considerable box office success during the National Day holiday, riding on this wave of popularity.

It still maintains a daily box office of nearly six to seven million, with a total box office of 4000 million over seven days.

With the initial box office of around 68 million yuan, "You Are the Apple of My Eye" has officially surpassed 100 million yuan at the box office!

"It's already broken 100 million??"

Liu Xiaoli, who raised this question, had never mocked Zhao Yanxi's overestimation of her abilities or refused her daughter's participation in the film. However, the box office results still felt like a slap in the face.

The problem isn't with teen movies, but with your own taste in choosing films!

"Of course, look who's acting in it."

"It's a pity you're going to Japan to study music soon, otherwise you could have continued your career in the film industry in China. You've wasted this wave of popularity," Liu Xiaoli said with some regret.

When she and Chen Jinfei were planning Liu Yifei's career path, no one expected that Zhao Yanxi's low-budget production would become one of Liu Yifei's representative works!

At the height of her popularity, she had to retire from the entertainment industry for more than half a year... Liu Xiaoli felt it was a pity just thinking about it.

"It's okay, Mom," Liu Yifei comforted her mother. "Singing is something I enjoy, and doing what you love isn't a waste of time."

"That's right."

Zhao Yanxi nodded in agreement, then smiled and reassured her, "Auntie, don't worry, 'You Are the Apple of My Eye' was just a practice film for me. I believe my future films will get better and better."

"When Sisi returns to the film and television industry, my leading lady role will always be reserved for her!"

"Hehe, Yan Xi, you're so nice~"

Liu Yifei smiled brightly, revealing two cute tiger teeth and small dimples. Liu Xiaoli listened to these somewhat inappropriate remarks and didn't know what to say for a moment.

Inside the car, Zhu Yawen, Luo Jin, and the others lowered their heads, concealing their gossipy expressions, and exchanged glances.

"Is Director Zhao confessing his feelings?"

"No, I don't think so. Yifei didn't understand at all."

"Aunt Liu is still here, Director Zhao doesn't have the guts!"

...

On the first day after National Day, the headlines of the entertainment sections of major media outlets and portal websites all featured congratulatory messages:

[The directorial debut of Zhao Yanxi, a rising star at the Beijing Film Academy, "You Are the Apple of My Eye," has officially surpassed 100 million yuan at the mainland box office after just over ten days of release!]

[“You Are the Apple of My Eye” surpasses 100 million yuan at the box office; as another youth film, what accounts for its success?!]

[The box office for "You Are the Apple of My Eye" has surpassed 100 million yuan, with daily revenue still around 5 million yuan. The final box office is expected to exceed 150 million yuan.]

Even the Norwegian Film Academy issued a brief statement:

"Congratulations to Zhao Yanxi, an outstanding graduate of the 2002 class of the Photography Department of our school, for her debut film, 'You Are the Apple of My Eye,' which has surpassed 100 million yuan at the box office!"

"You Are the Apple of My Eye" is of great significance to the Beijing Film Academy, not only because the director is from the Beijing Film Academy, but also because the lead actors and the main members of the crew are from the Beijing Film Academy.

To put it bluntly, apart from the filming location not being at the Beijing Film Academy, everything else belongs to the Beijing Film Academy!

Students of Beijing Film Academy are truly fortunate and honored.

In the freshman class of the 05 Performing Arts Department, everyone was talking about it.

"It's such a pity we enrolled so late, otherwise we might have had a chance to get in too!"

"Yes, I heard that Director Zhao paid special attention to alumni in this film, and the scripts for other supporting roles were also written by students from the class of 03 and 04."

"I really envy Liu Yifei. Several of her TV dramas have been huge hits, and now she can become a leading lady at the 100 million yuan box office with just one movie..."

Listening to the crowd's discussion, Zhang Xiaofei whispered to Yang Mi, "Mi Mi, Director Zhao has really soared to new heights this time. Aren't you friends with him? Maybe you can get in through connections with him in the future."

"hehe..."

Yang Mi smiled, her expression somewhat unpleasant.

I was initially the one who got along better with Zhao Yanxi, so why did things change after Liu Yifei fell into the water? Why is it that Xixi is now so close to Liu Yifei...?

In "The Return of the Condor Heroes," she played Xiaolongnu, while he himself was just a supporting character.

Now her good friend is hanging out with her too, and they even filmed such a popular movie together, with her now playing a supporting role.

This is just too unfair of fate...

However, she has now landed the lead role in the TV series "Wang Zhaojun", and she may not be inferior to Liu Yifei in the future!

......

"Director Zhao, it's only been ten days and it's already reached 100 million! Is there any hope that 'You Are the Apple of My Eye' will break 200 million at the box office? The leaders are paying close attention!"

"Teacher Mu, please just call me Xiao Zhao. I'm a little uncomfortable with you calling me that all of a sudden." Zhao Yanxi smiled and said, "Don't even think about 200 million. China Film Group told me yesterday that pirated DVDs have already appeared."

"That's a pity."

Although cinemas in 2005 used film prints and did not yet have "keys," there was naturally no "30-day theatrical run."

However, due to piracy, a movie's box office often plummets after only ten days or so of release.

Theaters need to make money, and when a film's attendance is insufficient to cover the theater's expenses, the theater will pull it from the screens immediately.

Therefore, before 08, the release date of a movie was generally determined by its box office performance.

For example, "Hero" in 02 was shown for more than two months, while most movies can hardly last even a month.

With pirated DVDs of "You Are the Apple of My Eye" now available, the box office is likely to plummet in the next few days.

"Anyway, this time you've brought honor to the school!" Mu Deyuan said with a smile. "The school is planning to include 'Those Years' in its educational film library, so we'll waive the rental fees for your equipment. What do you say?"

"Okay, then I guess I'm the one who benefited from the school's arrangement~"

Art schools typically acquire the copyrights to a batch of films each year. Since these films are only used for school research and are not intended for external profit, the prices are generally not very high.

Films that have won awards at major overseas film festivals may be more expensive, while domestic films generally cost tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of yuan.

Zhao Yanxi's rental fee is as high as 30!

...

After the National Day holiday, pirated DVDs appeared, and unsurprisingly, the box office of "You Are the Apple of My Eye" plummeted again.

His daily income plummeted from seven or eight million to just over one million.

However, for a film with only a little over three million yuan including promotional expenses, a box office of one hundred million yuan is already considered a huge profit, and Zhao Yanxi doesn't expect to enter the two hundred million yuan club with it.

The film is still showing in theaters, and the media's estimate of 1.5 million yuan is hopeless. Zhao Yanxi only hopes that it can reach 1.3 million yuan in the end.

In this way, he is at least not at the bottom of the 100 million yuan box office club.

With rampant piracy, the effectiveness of roadshow promotions is greatly diminished.

More than ten days after leaving Beijing, the crew finally returned to the capital.

"Go home and get some rest. I'll come visit you in a couple of days."

"Yes," Liu Yifei nodded repeatedly, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Liu Xiaoli, "When I get home, I'm going to sleep until midnight every day!"

"no problem."

Liu Xiaoli lovingly stroked her daughter's hair, having witnessed all the hard work she had endured during this time.

Every day, I get up early to travel to different places for roadshows, promotions, events, and interviews. My schedule is packed.

"By the way, Sisi, did I have the finance department transfer your payment directly? I'll give you a big red envelope at the wrap party~"

"Okay, director, you're so kind~"

After saying goodbye to Liu Yifei and her daughter, Zhao Yanxi returned to the company.

Although the box office revenue share hasn't been received yet, some payments have already been deposited into the company. It's time to calculate the profits from this round!