Huayu 02: The Days of Extreme Pulling and Rolling with the Fairy

When Xie Jin looked at the purchase price, CCTV-1 was 500,000 yuan per episode but only 32 episodes were available, and CCTV-8 was 550,000 yuan per episode, also requiring 32 episodes.

Both channels only buy the first broadcast and do not consider the second broadcast (second run).

All three provincial-level TV stations agreed on 40 episodes, and a second broadcast was also being considered.

The prices of the three companies differed significantly. Surprisingly, Lake N, which should have been financially powerful, offered fewer episodes, at only 35 per episode.

Zhejiang TV's willingness to pay 40 yuan per episode was unexpected, which truly exceeded Xie Jin's expectations.

At this time, Jiang S TV was not the wealthy and powerful Jiang S TV of later years, but their conditions still caught Xie Jin's eye.

They didn't even consider the premiere. With over 100 million yuan in revenue in a year, they didn't dare to talk about the premiere like others. Instead, they directly offered 210,000 yuan per episode for a second run.

However, the requirement is that the third round of broadcasts must be eight episodes later than theirs.

(The first round of broadcasting has the highest price, the second round is generally 30%-50% of the first round, and the remaining rounds are even lower.)

The price offered by Jiang S TV for this second round of broadcasting is very competitive... it's more than half the price of Zhejiang TV's price.

Xie Jin put down the materials: "Reducing the number of episodes is impossible. Reducing one or two episodes is negotiable, but reducing eight episodes? Am I supposed to cut them with my feet?"

"We can discuss CCTV's price, but not the number of episodes. If it doesn't work out, then forget it. You can reply to Jiang S TV now: I agree to their request, but you still need to discuss the price with them."

Gu Renlong thought for a moment: "CCTV will most likely disagree. Their window of opportunity isn't that long. If the provincial level has to choose one, which one should they choose, Zhejiang or Hubei?"

Xie Jin thought for a moment, not understanding why the price from Hunan would be so low: "What's going on with Hunan? This price isn't normal."

Gu Renlong smiled wryly; he knew Xie Jin was going to ask, "Actually, it's not that Hunan TV is stingy; it's that they're out of money."

"Huh? Hunan TV doesn't have money? Are you kidding me? Where does the 500 million yuan in annual funding go?"

  

Gu Renlong began to explain in detail, and Xie Jin finally understood.

Lake N station has made great strides this year, and its finances are indeed very tight.

"Princess Pearl 3" was a self-produced drama with an investment of 2500 million yuan, while "The Clouds of Heaven and the Fog of Earth" cost a total of 1320 million yuan to purchase.

Lin Xinru's "Half a Lifetime Romance" was purchased for 1280 million, and Zhang Weijian's "The Peerless Swordsman" for 1140 million.

The three dramas, "Director GA", "Love in the World", and "Protecting Love", cost a total of 1800 million yuan for their second run.

The TV series "War and Beauty," imported from Hong Kong and Taiwan, cost another 1600 million.

The Thai drama "The Princess Who Escaped," the Taiwanese drama "The Wedding Dress of Heaven," and the Korean drama "Dae Jang Geum" cost a total of more than 2800 million.

There are also five or six short plays that run twice, used to fill the late-night theater slots.

The purchase of the drama alone cost nearly 150 million yuan.

They also produce their own variety shows and run various businesses; I heard they've even built a new venue.

Moreover, they also need to import top-of-the-line audio equipment from abroad at exorbitant prices.

No wonder they're broke.

Even five hundred million wouldn't last long if spent like this...

Xie Jin thought for a few minutes: "Let's go with Zhejiang TV. Hunan TV doesn't lack dramas right now, and the resources they give us are limited. Plus, we might have to give way to their self-produced dramas."

"Although I prefer Zhejiang J license plates, I'll still say you need to negotiate the price."

"Zhejiang TV is currently lacking dramas to boost their popularity and ratings. If it's a provincial-level import, the provincial radio and television station will most likely require the city-level stations below to cooperate in promotion. We'd rather be a big fish in a small pond than a small fish in a big pond."

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With Xie Jin setting the tone, all that was left was for Lao Gu to deal with the disputes.

Southerners have a unique way of discussing cooperation. They are usually very meticulous and have many things to discuss before signing a contract, but after signing the contract, there are very few things to discuss, and they can generally keep their promises.

The purchasing directors from Zhejiang TV and Jiangsu TV stayed in Beijing for three days. During those three days, they thoroughly scrutinized Gu Renlong. There were no major issues, but they were very meticulous about the details of the contract.

After a week, the contract was finally signed smoothly. Now we're just waiting for the premiere at the end of May or the beginning of June, with the second episode airing two episodes later.

Given Gu's penny-pinching nature, it was no surprise that he managed to snag several talk shows from Jiangsu TV and Zhejiang TV for free.

Let Ning Hao promote "Crazy Stone".

Both TV stations were happy to cooperate, given Vision Light & Magic's production quality; a long-term partnership would naturally be beneficial.

Moreover, the daily life programs that the station keeps airing repeatedly, while having social value, don't get high viewership.

Sending Huang Bo and his group over might boost the viewership.

········

It's like this: either they don't come at all, or they all come.

We just finished negotiating the premiere and second run of the TV series.

The release of Ning Hao's movie will follow shortly after.

Fortunately, Mr. Yu was very helpful, and the publicity and distribution were handled very well. I only need to attend the premiere tomorrow.

Xie Jin is confident about the effect of viewing the film from inside the stone.

Moreover, with the increased budget, my senior colleagues worked even harder, and the production quality has improved significantly.

...........

Unlike the previous "Crazy Stone" publicity campaign which involved a naked run, this time Yu Dong is very enthusiastic and is giving the stone a lot of resources.

Xie Jin was also very curious. In her previous life, "Crazy Stone" had zero publicity and grossed 2534 million in mainland China and 20 in Hong Kong.

This time, "Crazy Stone" has generated a lot of hype, with Bona Film Group contributing its efforts and TV variety shows promoting it.

Xie Jin wondered if she was adding fuel to the fire...

..........

Xie Jin picked up the phone: "Hey~ what are you doing?"

On the other end of the phone, Jeremy was filming Initial D in Hong Kong.

"What are you doing, thanking me, dog?"

Xie Jin complained on the phone, "Hey! It's been so long! Can't you be a little more enthusiastic? You're being so difficult!"

Jelun chuckled: "I can't be enthusiastic at all! Think about how many months it's been since you last called me."

Oh dear... she's still a big baby...

"I was wrong, I've just been incredibly busy. Look, I just sold one drama, another movie is about to be promoted, and I've invested in two more dramas. I'm so busy!"

Jelun pursed his lips, realizing something was amiss, and his nose practically twitched with anger: "Xie Gou, are you showing off to me? I've discovered you're quite wicked."

"Just showing off a little, hehe."

They both laughed as they spoke.

"Speak, Xie Gou, what's the matter?"

Xie Jin coughed slightly: "Shall we exchange a few more pleasantries?"

"No need. I can feel your fake, sly smile even over the phone. Just get to the point."

Xie Gou blushed, realizing Xie Gou had hit the nail on the head: "Jie Lun, this is a blatant slander against me."

Will you tell me or not?

Xie Jin was a little embarrassed: "Ahem, Lao Ning's film is going to Hong Kong Island for promotion in a few days, could you show up and support him there...?"

"That's all? Ning Hao is my friend, no problem."

Jelun thought for a moment: "But thank you, dog. It's mainly Director Xu's side of filming... how should I put it..."

"Easy, give me Director Xu's phone number. His film is also coming to the mainland for promotion, I'll bring men, women, and children to support him, I'll give him a huge boost. But it's not for him, it's for you."

Jay Chou smiled smugly and said, "Wow, you didn't even call. Go ahead and yell at whoever you want. Tell me before you come."

After hanging up with Jielun, Xie Jin and Xu Laoguai secretly chatted for half an hour, eventually reaching a shady little consensus.

Whenever it's a film by either party, they'll promote each other's films and avoid scheduling conflicts!

·······

With Xie Jin feeling excited, the premiere of "Crazy Stone" finally arrived!