The entertainment industry: My 99 future timelines!

December 209, 4.

"Soulmate" has officially ended its theatrical run.

On that day, it happened to rain lightly in the capital.

The fine rain tapped on the promotional poster for "Soulmate" at the cinema entrance, blurring the gold-plated numbers "box office over 2 million".

Although "Soulmate" was a big-budget film that won two Best Actress awards at the Berlin Film Festival, its box office performance was actually much worse than Li Xu's previous film "You Are the Apple of My Eye".

But for an art film, even an award-winning one, this number is respectable enough.

This box office performance has already raised the bar for the best performance of art films in the current domestic film market by a significant margin, and it is unlikely to be broken for several years to come.

So, the final box office performance of the movie "Soulmate" was significantly worse than that of "You Are the Apple of My Eye".

The major media outlets, however, used terms like "phenomenal," "a new benchmark in the art-house film market," and "a commercial success of the Berlin Silver Bear."

In the domestic film and television industry, a number of production companies, investors, directors, and actors couldn't help but gossip, discussing privately: "That kid Li Xu really knows how to have it both ways; he won awards and he made money too."

But Li Xu didn't pay much attention to it.

As Han Sanpin said, art films can elevate the prestige of actors and directors, but what can truly save domestic films are commercial blockbusters.

Moreover, Li Xu's gaze became somewhat complicated as he recalled the success of "Soulmate".

The acceptance of art films in China has always been low, both now and in the future.

Even though "Soulmate" won two Best Actress awards at the Berlin Film Festival, which greatly boosted the morale of the Chinese people, it only grossed a mere 2300 million yuan on its opening day, despite having a nationwide screening rate of nearly 50%.

Even after a period of time, thanks to its high reputation, the film's box office decline was slow.

That only brought in 6500 million yuan at the box office in the first three days of its release.

It grossed 1.03 million yuan in its first week of release.

It grossed 1.65 million yuan in just half a month after its release.

It grossed 220 million yuan in its first month of release, and ultimately grossed 250 million yuan, a difference of nearly 50 million yuan compared to "You Are the Apple of My Eye".

Despite these box office results, plus overseas box office revenue, Xujing Pictures still earned over 100 million yuan.

But Li Xu has no intention of making any more art films.

His focus began to shift to future top-tier IPs like "The Wandering Earth".

-

4 month 21 day.

Li Xu gave a media interview and began to publicly announce his plans for his next film.

A reporter asked, "Director Li, with 'Soulmate' doing so well at the box office, will you continue to make art films next?"

Li Xu smiled at the camera: "My dear reporter, as you know, since I started making movies, all three of my films have been successful."

"But my first film, 'Love Announcement,' was a commercial romance film, my second film, 'You Are the Apple of My Eye,' was a youth campus film, and my third film, 'Soulmate,' was an art film. I've made enough of all three styles."

"Therefore, for my next project, I want to tell a slightly different story, which is also a challenge for myself."

Reporter: "May I ask Director Li, what are you planning to talk about in your next film?"

"A funny story, but also a more commercial one, the kind of comedy that will make you laugh out loud in the movie theater."

After Li Xu's interview report was published, many netizens began to discuss it online.

But most people held positive opinions until May 1st, a few days later.

On this May Day Labor Day.

When Xujing Pictures issued a notice on its official company blog, it instantly triggered a huge online uproar.

The announcement was very simple, consisting of only two lines: "Xujing Pictures' next film is titled 'Extreme Job,' a comedy directed by Li Xu, with Li Xu, Liu Yifei, and Jing Tian confirmed to star."

Movie Synopsis: What happens when a group of police officers go undercover at a fried chicken restaurant in order to catch a suspect, only to find it unexpectedly popular?

-

5 month 2 number.

In the small office of Xujing Film Industry, Shen Ao casually tossed a stack of freshly printed A4 papers, still warm from the ink, in front of Li Xu, his voice somewhat annoyed:

"Junior Li Xu, look at what the internet has become since we came up with this idea. I've had some of the main points and controversial issues collected; take a look."

Upon hearing this, Li Xu remained silent and casually picked up the A4 sheet of "intelligence" on the table in front of him to read it.

The first image features sensational headlines from major news outlets:

"A new film by renowned art-house director Li Xu, a crime comedy?"

"Berlin Silver Bear-winning director making a fried chicken restaurant film?"

"Liu Yifei, Jing Tian, ​​policewomen?"

Then, beneath these news headlines, there is a lot of text content, mostly containing skepticism.

Li Xu didn't even glance at it, and went straight to the second A4 sheet, which contained some points of great controversy among netizens on various online forums.

"??? Am I seeing things? Li Xu? In a comedy? Or a police drama?"

"From 'Soulmate' to infiltrating a fried chicken shop? That's a range wider than the East African Rift Valley."

"Got it. They win awards in Berlin, come back to make easy money. The ultimate fate of art-house directors is to bow down to capital."

"Don't rush to criticize, upstairs. When has Li Xu ever acted according to common sense? When 'Soulmate' was announced to have two female leads, who was optimistic about it?"

"Liu Yifei and Jing Tian are playing policewomen! And comedic ones at that, the casting itself is hilarious (in a derogatory sense)!"

"Disappointment warning. I'm waiting for it to flop in terms of reputation."

"..."

Li Xu flipped through the comments page by page, his expression remaining unchanged.

He flipped through the pile of A4 papers until he finally caught his eye with a short article from a well-known domestic film critic.

The article's title is eye-catching: "From the Berlin Golden Bear to the Fried Chicken Bucket: Is this Li Xu's Decline, or a Tragedy for Chinese-Language Cinema?"

The article states: "We just thought that a young director with artistic aspirations and a caring perspective was emerging, and he proved the voice of Chinese-language films on the international stage with 'Soulmate'."

"Yet, in the blink of an eye, this 'rising star' has thrown himself into the most superficial and thoughtless commercial comedy, with themes so absurd that they even include police officers selling fried chicken. Is this a victory for capital, or a loss of self for the creator?"

"Currently, the domestic film market is about to see the release of Transformers, 2012, and Avatar. Transformers 1 alone raked in 2.81 million yuan at the domestic box office two years ago."

"As for Avatar, needless to say, its director is the world-renowned King of Directors, James Cameron. His film Titanic is still the highest-grossing film in China, a record that stood for a full 12 years without being broken."

"In this situation, isn't it a tragedy for our talented director Li Xu? I feel utterly saddened for our domestic films from the bottom of my heart."

Li Xu read the article carefully, bit by bit.

During this process, Shen Ao couldn't help but stare intently at Li Xu's face, trying to find some change in his expression.

But even after Li Xu finally finished reading the article and put down all the A4 papers, he only made a very soft "tsk" sound.

Seeing this, Shen Ao couldn't help but speak again: "Director Li, are you really not worried at all? Didn't our Chairman Han put any pressure on you either?"

"They gave me a little, but it doesn't matter."

"I'm confident in my abilities, and I'm confident in this film. That's all."

Upon hearing this, Li Xu didn't even raise his head, his tone remaining calm.

"Alright, since you're so determined, how much have you decided to invest in this movie? And are you going to bring in other people?"

"After all, the success of your three consecutive films, each with a different theme, means that even with the current online buzz, I think a few hints would be enough for you to attract a lot of companies to invest."

"Whether it's Huayi Brothers, China Film Group, or Enlight Media, they all definitely have ideas."

Upon hearing Shen Ao's words, Li Xu waved his hand, directly refusing:

"No need. I only plan to invest 2000 million RMB in this film, that will be enough."

"We currently have over 100 million in cash sitting in our company's accounts, and none of that has been distributed yet."

"In a few days, I'll distribute a portion of this money, leaving only 3000 million as a reserve. Why should we rely on others for things we don't need?"

"Alright, then everything will be as you wish. Anyway, both Senior Yifei and Miss Jingtian trust you unconditionally."

"Of course, I believe it too, after all, you haven't failed since your debut."

Shen Ao twitched the corner of his mouth, nodded, and said nothing more.

There was a few seconds of silence in the office.

Li Xu lowered his head, took something out of the drawer of the table, and handed it to Shen Ao:

"Come on, Shen Ao, here is the complete storyboard for my new movie, 'Extreme Job.' I've finished writing it all."

"In addition, there are shot sketches for the first twenty scenes, character biographies, comedic pacing design, and data analysis of similar films done by the marketing department."

"Take this and study it. You'll still be the executive director for this movie. And aren't you planning to make a movie about overseas scams? I'll convince Tian Tian to invest in it, and you can direct the shots yourself. I won't interfere."

Upon hearing Li Xu's words, Shen Ao's face lit up with surprise.

He only had a basic idea for this fraudulent movie.

However, the investment in this film will not be small, and this type of film has never appeared in China before. He is a little worried about how to persuade Jing Tian to get this investment.

Now that Li Xu had spoken, he knew the matter was settled.

After all, Jing Tian would not refuse any of Li Xu's suggestions.

So he quickly took the copy of "Extreme Job" from Li Xu, nodded without even flipping through it, and chuckled, "Okay, I'll definitely work on the support role when I get back. You make this movie perfect."

"I have always had unwavering faith in your abilities, Li Xu. As for my movie, let's talk about it after I help you finish filming this new movie. I'm not in a hurry."

"become."

Li Xu chuckled and gave a brief reply to Shen Ao's beaming smile and corrected attitude.

He was already used to Shen Ao's reckless personality, and he was well aware of and trusted him.

Upon hearing this, Shen Ao, clutching his movie script, strode out the door with a cheerful expression.

in the office.

Li Xu glanced at Shen Ao's departing figure, then refocused his gaze on the stack of printed A4 papers on the table in front of him.

Looking at the phrases "Li Xu's depravity," "making easy money," and "bowing to capital," he gave a dismissive sneer and muttered to himself:

"It's 2009 already, and these old-school filmmakers and critics in China are still rotten to the core. They think that only art films are truly high-class, while comedies are low-class and just a way to make money off the audience."

"They don't care at all what the audience likes to watch or what they want to watch. It's pathetic."

"When my new movie is released, I'll show these old fogies what it means to say that while film is an art form, it's also a business, and making money from movies isn't shameful!"

"As for competing with Hollywood, as for greater pursuits, these things can wait until I make enough money in a way that audiences like, and then use that money to make the things I want to make. That's a virtuous cycle."

Li Xu was considering this.

After hesitating for a moment, he dialed a number he hadn't contacted in some time—the contact person was Wang Lihong.

As soon as the call connected, Wang Lihong's familiar voice came through the phone. He immediately asked three questions in a row: "Li Xu, you finally called me! What's wrong? Have you thought it through? Are you finally willing to make time for my concert?"

Hearing Wang Lihong's enthusiastic invitation on the other end of the phone, Li Xu smiled and said, "I was indeed busy before, and I'm still a bit unfamiliar and nervous about concerts."

"Haha, after all, I only played a pop star in my debut film 'Love Announcement,' not someone you actually played."

"But I've made up my mind. I'll come to your concert in a while. I'll sing a few songs and we can rehearse together beforehand."

"Alright, as long as you're willing to come, you can sing as many songs as you want."

Wang Lihong's voice was tinged with laughter, "As for the rehearsal, I don't think you have anything to worry about. Your voice is perfectly fine."

"And most importantly, you and I are both creative geniuses. I love everything from 'The Things You Don't Know' that we created together before, to 'Those Years' and other songs you created later."

"If you weren't so talented in film, I would have liked to have you join me as a professional singer. Maybe then our country would have another pop star."

"You haven't released any serious songs in the past two years, except for movie theme songs. I know you have a lot of fans who are urging you to release an album online."

In response to Wang Lihong's praise, Li Xu smiled and returned the compliment with a string of compliments.

To be honest, Li Xu is quite confident in his singing abilities right now.

Just a few days ago, he finally obtained his third future timeline ability, just like the skills of a director or movie star.

He fully inherited the musical talent and memory of that Asian superstar singer Li Xu, and his musical abilities have once again made leaps and bounds.

After a short while of exchanging pleasantries, Li Xu and Wang Lihong finalized the arrangements. He hung up the phone and waited for the concert to begin in a while.