The entertainment empire began with Liu Yifei's premarital pregnancy.

Lin Bufan was never worried that the directors he signed with Kyoto Entertainment would leave.

First of all, his guiding principle has always been that everyone should make money together.

If the contract expires and the other party wants to go solo, he can fund the establishment of their own studio. As for equity, that can be decided on a case-by-case basis.

The only requirement is that Kyoto Entertainment has priority in investing in any future films the other party makes.

If they don't want to go solo and want to continue under contract, Kyoto Entertainment's A-list contract is definitely the dream of most directors in the industry.

Not for any other reason than simply because of Hollywood's resources.

Hollywood, whether you're an actor or a director, isn't a place you can just go to if you want to. Take Zhang Ziyi, for example; one movie can make her a legend.

Therefore, attracted by the A-type visa, no matter what the other party chooses, they will eventually stay in Kyoto Entertainment in another way.

……

"Are you really going to entrust this project to me?"

After Ning Hao left, Lin Bufan called Chen Zihan over.

Since Lin Bufan fell out with Huayi Brothers, Chen Zihan and Huayi Brothers have also gone to court. First of all, Chen Zihan has planned to move behind the scenes, and with Lin Bufan backing her up, she is not afraid of Huayi Brothers at all.

Otherwise, how could a star in the industry, without anyone backing them up, dare to challenge their company?

They can remove your resources and all announcements in a heartbeat; in other words, they'll freeze your account.

In the entertainment industry, even being sidelined for three months, let alone a year, can severely damage one's popularity.

Just like Xue Zhiqian in later years, his song "Serious Snow" was almost a hit across the country back then, but because he was blacklisted by his company, his career collapsed. Only after his contract with the company was terminated did he slowly re-enter the public eye.

If Lao Xue hadn't been blacklisted for those few years, he might have become even more popular in later years.

"What's wrong? Lack of confidence?"

Lin Bufan stood up, walked to the sofa next to Chen Zihan, sat down, gently took her small hand, and looked at her with a smile.

"Um!"

Chen Zihan nodded with a somewhat conflicted expression.

She was interested in switching to behind-the-scenes work as a producer, but she was also worried that she didn't know anything right now and that if she took on a big role rashly, she might cause Lin Bufan to lose money because of her lack of professionalism.

That was a movie with a budget of five million. I haven't saved that much money in all these years since I debuted.

In this era, celebrities are paid very little. Even someone of Zhou Xun's stature only earns around 5 to 10 yuan per episode of a TV series.

Chen Zihan's status is so low, and her salary is only a few thousand yuan per episode. She certainly earns more than the average person, but similarly, celebrities also have considerable expenses.

For example, you have your own assistant team, and you are responsible for all their travel expenses.

Don't be fooled by the fact that these assistants are provided by the company; their salaries and benefits are all paid for by the celebrities themselves.

Why do celebrity assistants always fly economy class? It's because the company doesn't pay for their tickets.

Of course, there are also some conscientious entertainment companies that cover the salaries and travel expenses of these assistants.

Therefore, five million is definitely a huge sum of money for Chen Zihan.

"Don't worry, I'm here for you even if we lose money, it's okay!"

Lin Bufan gently hugged Chen Zihan and patted her back to encourage her.

Of course, on the production team side, Lin Bufan also prepared an experienced person to be Chen Zihan's assistant, to slowly teach her how to be a good producer.

……

"Director Chen, Sister Hong!"

At 8 p.m., at the Mei family banquet, in the same private room as last time, Lin Bufan led Bai Bing into the private room and saw Chen Kaige and Chen Hong.

"Bu Fan has arrived! Please come in!"

Upon seeing Lin Bufan and his companion enter, Chen Kaige warmly stood up to greet them.

"Brother Bufan is here, sit here!"

Chen Hong looked at Lin Bufan with shifty eyes.

She hadn't seen him for a long time since the last time.

As the saying goes, "Thirty is like a wolf, forty is like a tiger..."

Born in 68, Chen Hong is now 38 years old, the prime of her life. After experiencing a period of happiness, how could she not miss it?

Unfortunately, she never had a proper excuse, and since Lin Bufan was also filming a movie, she couldn't visit him on set. If the media took pictures of her, she wouldn't be able to explain herself no matter how many mouths she had.

"Old Chen is flying to Los Angeles the day after tomorrow, so he specially organized this gathering to thank Brother Bufan..."

After some casual conversation at the dinner table, Chen Hong revealed the purpose of the banquet.

"Brother Bufan, I'm not good with words and don't know how to say anything, so I'll toast you."

Chen Kaige stood up, looked at Lin Bufan with gratitude, and downed three glasses of wine in quick succession.

The film "The Promise" almost shattered Chen Kaige's reputation. Both inside and outside the industry, there was a great deal of doubt about him, and some people even doubted whether he was the one who directed "Farewell My Concubine".

He swore that he definitely filmed "Farewell My Concubine" himself. If it were really filmed by a proxy, and he was credited, with so many people in the crew, it would have been exposed long ago.

If the celebrities are afraid to expose themselves for fear of offending Chen Kaige, what about the crew members and extras?

They're never afraid, are they?

Especially those extras who once participated in "Farewell My Concubine" and are no longer in the industry, their stories have probably already been exposed.

In fact, Chen Kaige definitely has the ability to direct, but he is too idealistic. Once he is in charge of a film, he starts to let his ideals take flight.

But if you put a "tight rein" on him and let him work within a limited framework, he can definitely produce works of above-average quality.

It was precisely for this reason that Lin Bufan appointed Chen Kaige as the director of "Night at the Museum".

"Brother, as long as you make a good movie, that's the biggest thank you you can give me!"

Lin Bufan smiled and looked at Chen Kaige, his gaze inadvertently glancing at Chen Hong beside him.

"Besides, Chen Hong has already thanked them on your behalf..."

……

As expected, Chen Kaige drank too much again and fell asleep on the table.

"Brother, thank you..."

Chen Kaige, who was lying on the table, was still muttering thanks to Lin Bufan.

It was thanks to the film "Night at the Museum" that "The Promise" didn't completely condemn him to infamy.

"Old Chen, Old Chen..."

Chen Hong sat down next to Chen Kaige and gently nudged him a few times to make sure he was asleep.

"Brother Bufan, I need your help with something..."

Chen Hong looked at Lin Bufan with a gaze that seemed to want to devour him.

"Ahem!"

Lin Bufan coughed lightly and looked at Bai Bing beside him: "Xiao Bai, go outside and get me a drink."

"Yes, boss!"

Bai Bing responded helplessly. She knew perfectly well that the boss was trying to get rid of her, and she knew without even thinking what would happen next.

Sure enough, a few minutes later, when Bai Bing returned from outside with a drink in her hand, she heard the same sound as last time as she stood at the bathroom door.