Chapter 125 Investing in "Assembly"

Just when Gu Wei and others were discussing "Curse of the Golden Flower".

Huayi Company announced that they will join hands with Hollywood film companies to start a new co-production.

The film's major investors include Lionsgate and Relativity Media of the United States, while Huayi Film Group is the only domestic investor.

The co-production has two male protagonists. Hollywood Kung Fu superstar Jie Li has accepted the invitation and is confirmed to be one of the male protagonists. The film will be released worldwide.

It was as if a depth bomb was dropped into the circle, and the news was pinned to the top of all major media outlets. This was the biggest news in the domestic entertainment industry at the beginning of this year, bar none.

Looking around in China, there are only a few actors who can be ranked alongside Li Lianjie as the leading actor.

Gu Wei learned the news from Han Sanping, and heard that the other male lead was most likely Cheng Long.

He has no interest in this movie. How can a Sino-US co-production, directed by an American director, be a good movie?

Instead, he was somewhat interested in another movie produced by Huayi.

Qin Hao has been idle for a while, so it's time to arrange a movie for him, Gu Wei began to think.

...

Huayi Company.

In the office, Wang Zhonglei was listening to his assistant's report.

"You mean Xingchen Films is asking about Director Feng's next movie?"

"Yes, Manager Wang Chen asked us about film investment and casting."

"Okay, I understand. Let's go down."

After the assistant left, Wang Zhonglei picked up the phone and called Wang Zhongjun to tell him what had happened.

"Brother, what do you think about this?"

"This is a good thing. This is the first time Director Gu has invested in a movie produced by another domestic company. You should contact him first and see what he thinks."

Wang Zhongjun didn't dare to mention the premium. Gu Wei's joining in would be a huge boost to the box office.

"I see. In terms of share?"

"It can't exceed 30%. You can handle the rest."

"it is good."

...

In the circle, there are many actors graduating from major universities every year, but only a few of them become famous. Most of them are reduced to playing supporting roles or even change their careers.

Gu Wei's purchase of a new company was not concealed from the media. It was announced by reporters as soon as the funds were transferred.

"Director Gu's new company's address has been determined. It is suspected that he is expanding the company's business."

"It cost hundreds of millions, and Director Gu paid the full amount. He is currently going through the relevant transfer procedures."

This incident attracted the attention of other artists in the circle, including a teacher from Beijing Film Academy who called.

What she meant was that she wanted him to give priority to the actors who graduated from the school so that the benefits would not be wasted on outsiders.

Gu Wei did not refuse. He did plan to recruit a group of people from Beijing Film Academy, but not actors, but graduates from other departments.

Afterwards, Gu Wei took some time to visit the school and went through all the major departments, including the Department of Directing, Department of Photography, Department of Literature, as well as the Academy of Fine Arts and the Academy of Animation.

Since we are planning to expand the company, we must have the corresponding talents to fully equip it. It is necessary to greet those professional teachers behind the scenes in advance.

He is now a business card and representative figure of the school. When other teachers heard his ideas, they patted their chests and expressed their strong support, and he got commitments from many teachers.

"Here I am. I came back a while ago, but I didn't see you come to see us. Instead, you came to the school to do recruitment first."

In the office of the Directing Department, Director Xie Xiaojing joked that he is now in high spirits and will soon be promoted to vice dean.

"Haha, everyone knows that our school's behind-the-scenes production and management major has always been the best. I came here as soon as the company was settled."

Gu Wei didn't hesitate and picked up the teacup in front of him and started drinking.

"Okay, it's a good thing that you can think of these younger students in school. I definitely support you."

"Why didn't you go to the acting department?"

"The company is not considering signing artists for now. Let's talk about it later."

"I have no problem with that, but I'm afraid the teachers in the acting department might have an opinion. I went to other departments, but not theirs."

"It's okay. I'm not coming to school, so I'm not afraid of being blocked by the acting teachers, haha."

After staying in the office for a while, Gu Wei left the school. Before leaving, he asked for a list of teachers from various departments, planning to contact them after the New Year and have them come to the company for interviews.

...

The next morning, Gu Wei arrived at the department meeting on time.

As soon as I stepped into the conference room hall, I saw a lot of people coming, but the leaders had not arrived yet.

Representatives from various companies, directors, actors, and students, almost everyone who could come came.

"Director Gu, here we are."

People kept greeting him, and Gu Wei responded one by one.

"Gu Wei, come here."

Han Sanping waved and shouted when he saw him.

Then he came and sat down next to him.

After taking a quick look around, I saw Zhang Yimou sitting in his seat calmly. Occasionally, a few people came over to say hello, and they were all very polite.

When Lao Mouzi saw Gu Wei looking at him, he smiled and nodded, and Gu Wei also smiled and nodded in response.

Zhang Weiping, who was sitting next to Zhang Yimou, had an arrogant look on his face, and it seemed that few people present were worthy of his attention.

Director Jia Zhangke was sitting not far from him, and when the two looked at each other, it was obvious that they both had some emotions.

The story began with a movie. When Jia Zhangke screened his Golden Lion Award-winning film, Still Life at Peking University, he said something that won applause from the audience:
“I want to see who is still paying attention to the ‘good guys’ in this age full of ‘gold’.”

Afterwards, Zhang Weiping directly responded:

"I don't even bother to care about his film Jia Zhangke. Didn't his film just win a Golden Lion Award? He talks like no one has ever won one before. These are all the leftovers I won."

In the end, he even criticized the president of the Venice Film Festival.

Fortunately, Zhang Yimou has a good reputation in the circle and the incident did not become a big deal. However, Zhang Weiping's remarks still made Zhang Yimou bear all the blame.

Now that we are face to face, it’s a good thing that we didn’t fight.

As the leaders arrived one after another, the meeting officially began.

First, each representative gave a summary, and everyone praised the film industry, saying that it is currently developing rapidly and is thriving.

Next is to discuss the problems and point out the bad aspects.

The representative of the production company of "City of Pain" was not polite and immediately accused Zhang Weiping of monopolizing theater resources and suppressing other films.

After all, it was an annual meeting and department leaders were all there. Zhang Weiping didn't dare to speak out loud. He first talked about the importance of box office to movies, and said a lot of things. In summary, he made great contributions to the domestic film industry.

Immediately afterwards, Jia Zhangke started to argue with Zhang Weiping again, saying that the movies he made had never lost money, and in terms of making money, he was no worse than Zhang Weiping.

As the argument went on, other film companies and theater chains joined in. Everyone had conflicts and no one could stand the other.

It was a good summary meeting, but it ended abruptly. Everyone had their own reasons, and the leaders were in a difficult position.

After the meeting, everyone left in groups of three or five.

"Director Gu."

As soon as Gu Wei walked to the door, Wang Zhonglei came up to him and greeted him.

"Mr. Wang, I haven't seen you for a long time. How have you been lately?"

"Haha, not bad."

Afterwards, Wang Zhonglei looked around and saw that there was no one around. He did not hide anything and said:
"Director Gu, I heard that you are interested in the company's new movie?"

"It is true. It depends on whether Mr. Wang will give us a chance."

"Look at what you said. Now that Director Gu has spoken, we can discuss it.

Otherwise, we can take advantage of this time to have a meal tonight and discuss it face to face."

Wang Zhonglei invited him directly.

"Okay, let's do it tonight. We can chat then."

Gu Wei thought about it and agreed.

"Okay, then I won't bother Director Gu. I'll make arrangements tonight and I guarantee you'll be satisfied."

"Fuck, I don't like men." Gu Wei muttered to himself. The Er Wang's reputation in the circle was not that good, which was somewhat related to the fact that he was popular with both men and women.

"Okay, see you tonight."

Gu Wei nodded to him and then left.

...

In the afternoon, Gu Wei called Qin Hao and told him about this, and the other party agreed immediately.

Qin Hao has been very idle recently and has been performing in dramas. It is also a good thing for him to be able to star in Feng Xiaogang's blockbuster.

After the call, Gu Wei thought for a while. The investment was certain, the role was also wanted, and the star status could not be low. As for how to solve it, let Feng Xiaogang worry about it. At worst, he could just change the script.

In the evening, Gu Wei brought Wang Chen to the appointment on time. The location was arranged by Huayi, a private club that provided a one-stop service for eating, drinking and entertainment.

"I'm here, Director Gu, sit here."

After entering the private room, Gu Wei looked around and saw that in addition to Wang Zhonglei and an assistant, there were also several young girls, each with a pretty face.

Gu Wei had some impression of one of them.

"Director Gu, let me introduce you. These are all artists under Huayi. They admire your style and want to meet you."

Wang Zhonglei arranged the seats so that everyone was accompanied by a beautiful woman.

"Hello, Director Gu, I'm Huo Siyan."

Huo Siyan, 26 years old, made her debut by shooting commercials. After joining Huayi in 04, she won the favor of the two kings and became well-known in the circle.

"Hello."

Gu Wei responded without saying anything else, saying that this girl had a good figure.

Huayi is indeed unique in its drinking table culture. After the meal, Gu Wei felt uncomfortable all over, and Huo Siyan next to him almost stuck to him.

After the dinner, the cooperation between the two parties was confirmed. The investment cost of "Assembly" was determined to be 8000 million, and Huayi gave 30% of its share to Gu Wei, which is 2400 million.

As for other investment companies, they have been abandoned by Wang Zhonglei. Being able to cooperate with Gu Wei is much better than them.

...

That night, the news of Gu Wei and Wang Zhonglei's meeting was posted online, along with photos.

Gu Wei felt a little headache after seeing the news, wondering if Wang Zhonglei did it on purpose.

"Sissi, come and see."

In the villa, Su Chang shouted loudly.

"what happened?"

The young lady was applying a facial mask and came over when she heard the words.

"Look at this news, this is Director Gu, right?"

Liu Yifei took the phone and saw the photo of Gu Wei and his friends walking out of the club. There was a woman next to him looking at him with a smile on her face.

The young lady's face suddenly changed and her breathing became rapid.

Just as I was about to call Gu Wei, my cell phone rang. I picked it up and saw it was Gu Wei calling.

"Hey."

Hearing Gu Wei's voice, Liu Yifei was suddenly filled with grievance.

The two chatted for more than half an hour before Gu Wei finally succeeded in getting the young lady.

After the call, Gu Wei also breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, he read the news when he got home, otherwise who knows what might have happened.

"Xixi, is Director Gu okay?"

Su Chang dared to ask only after seeing a smile on Liu Yifei's face.

"It's okay. He was discussing cooperation with Huayi tonight, so he went out for dinner and went straight home after the dinner."

"Sissi, let me give you a suggestion."

"What advice?"

Liu Yifei stared at her with a puzzled look.

"Find an opportunity to take down Director Gu directly, and don't let others take advantage of you."

"what."

Liu Yifei is not a child, so of course she understands what she means, but it is a little embarrassing to talk about it in person.

Looking at Liu Yifei's red face, Su Chang pulled her aside and said, "Let me tell you..."

As Su Chang spoke slowly, the young lady's eyes were full of determination.

"Iceland."

These two words popped up in Liu Yifei's mind, and she forgot all about her mother's instructions.

The next day, Gu Wei asked Wang Chen to go to Huayi Company and sign a contract, and the funds for the film would be in place before filming began.

After the contract was signed, Huayi did not delay and directly joined hands with Feng Xiaogang to announce the next film plan.

At the press conference, Feng Xiaogang announced his new movie, titled "Assembly," which is a war film.

But the question the media asked most was which co-production film it was, after all, it cost 5.6 million yuan.

Feng Xiaogang rarely cursed anyone on the spot. Wang Zhonglei also announced that Gu Wei had invested in a movie, and everyone's attention was drawn back.

After all, Gu Wei is much more famous than Feng Xiaogang. Then the reporters began to ask questions and Wang Zhonglei answered them on the spot.

“We definitely can’t reveal so much at this point, but don’t worry, the company has already signed a contract with Director Gu.

I believe everyone recognizes Director Gu’s ability and he is very optimistic about this movie.

The actors of the film will be selected from all over the country and will not disappoint the fans."

"Director Gu confirmed to invest in Huayi's latest film, and Wang Zhonglei answered reporters' questions on the spot."

"Director Feng's latest war film. It is said that Director Gu is very optimistic about the script of this film."

...

"Although The Banquet flopped, I still believe in director Feng Xiaogang."

"Since Director Gu is optimistic about the script, it must be good. I am looking forward to the release of the movie."

.........

"Haozi, I heard that you went to shoot a music video for Jingtian. Is the competition among billionaire directors so fierce in China now?"

Gu Wei teased directly across the phone.

Ning Hao heard Gu Wei's voice and knew he couldn't hide it anymore, so he said, "The billionaire director also has to eat, I don't want to go, but they pay too much."

During the few days that Gu Wei returned to China, he heard the company's employees talking about Ning Hao.

This guy is a billion-dollar box office director, and he was invited to shoot a MV for newcomer Jing Tian. Gu Wei was a little skeptical at first.

"Okay, see you at the press conference."

Gu Wei suddenly said.

"Director, did they invite you too?"

"Guess what? I received invitations and phone calls non-stop, and I was even given an appearance fee."

Just as Ning Hao said, Ye Ning and Lu Zheng called Gu Wei several times. Gu Wei decided to go there because Wanda was an investor.

"How many?"

Ning Hao was a little curious about the appearance fee Lu Zheng gave to Gu Wei.

"It should be higher than when you shoot the music video, haha."

Gu Wei did not say the specific amount.

"Fuck, big directors are treated differently. I'm a little jealous."

"Don't be sour, I'll see you then."

After saying that, Gu Wei hung up the phone, left the company, and went to find the young lady.

...

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(End of this chapter)