Chapter 25 Box Office
"Time and Space Lovers" is being released in multiple regions, not only in China, but also in several neighboring countries. China Film Group has handed over the North American distribution to Warner Bros., which is expected to start one week after its domestic release.

The box office on the first day in Hong Kong Island was only 150 million. Emperor Entertainment Group did a simple publicity and promotion there. The place is so small that they will definitely give priority to local films when making movies.

Gu Wei is not very sure about the box office there, but in his opinion, as long as there is box office, there is profit. He does not expect to generate much profit there, and the focus is still on the mainland.

Except for the first day of its release when the box office of "Time and Space Lovers" exceeded 900 million, it slowly declined in the following days, from 800 million to 600 million, until a week later, the daily box office was only around million.

After one week of release, the movie grossed over 5000 million. Given the rate at which the box office is declining, it’s hard to say whether it can eventually break million.

China Film, Light Media and Huayi Film Group all stepped up their publicity and promotion efforts. The official media published articles praising the film. Huayi continued to operate as usual, allowing other artists to promote the film vigorously. Light Media promoted the film at various events and on broadcasts.

Several companies hope that the box office can exceed 100 million yuan, especially Huayi. Participating in the production of a movie with a box office of over 100 million yuan is a good gimmick for them, and it can also attract funds and other artists to join the company.

"Time and Space Lovers" took only half a year from filming in August to its release. Considering the cost of 1500 million, the movie is sure to make a lot of money before it's even released, and many people in the industry are jealous.

News reports are updated online every day, and the media releases the cumulative box office of movies every day. For a time, the film and television industry was in turmoil again.

More and more funds are flowing into this industry. Gu Wei has heard that many coal bosses are waving their cash to invest in the film and television industry, which has also made a number of directors very happy.

February 2, China Film Group Office.

In the office, Han Sanping was drinking tea and listening to his assistant's work report.

"Mr. Han, according to Warner's reply, 'Time and Space Lovers' will be officially released in North America starting tonight at midnight."

The assistant from China Film Academy came in and reported.

"The box office in the first three days of a movie's release is very important. You must keep a close eye on it and report the specific data to me as soon as possible," Han Sanping instructed.

"Okay, Mr. Han."

Seeing his assistant leave the office, Han Sanping picked up his cell phone and made a call.

.........

Since the movie was released in early February, Gu Wei has stayed in the company for a week. Currently, most employees have gone on vacation, and only a few people are on duty in the company.

"Jingle Bell".

Hearing his cell phone ringing, Gu Wei picked up the phone and answered it. As soon as he put it to his ear, Han Sanping's voice came from the other end.

"Let's have dinner together in the evening. I have also notified Guangguang and Huayi. We'll be at the usual place."

"Okay, Mr. Han."

After hanging up the phone, Gu Wei looked at the time and guessed that it should be the time when the movie was released in North America.

Turning on the computer, Gu Wei browsed the news online.

"'Time and Space Lovers' has been released for only one week, and its cumulative box office has exceeded that of 'Big Shot'."

"The film's reputation continues to grow, with more and more positive reviews, marking a new breakthrough for domestic commercial films."

"Zhang Weiping said in an interview with reporters that "Time and Space Lovers" is nothing to be afraid of."

There was a different one among the bunch of comments, and Gu Wei curiously clicked on the webpage.

The entire article is Zhang Weiping's speech in an interview with reporters. In general, Zhang Weiping feels that "Time and Space Lovers" takes advantage of its novel subject matter and cannot represent domestic commercial blockbusters.

When the new movie directed by Zhang Yimou is released at the end of this year, the audience will know what a commercial blockbuster is.

Then he introduced Zhang Yimou's new movie from all aspects, including the investment in the movie, the big-name stars invited and the grand shooting scenes. He said a lot of things, which was just a disguised way of promoting the new movie and criticizing "Time Lovers".

After reading the interview, Gu Wei felt a little annoyed. If you want to promote your new movie, you don't have to do it by belittling "Time and Space Lovers". I didn't provoke him, it's purely disgusting.

However, director Zhang Yimou said in an interview that the script of "Time and Space Lovers" is good, the subject matter is relatively innovative, and the shooting technology and character portrayal are first-class.

"'Time and Space Lovers' was filmed very well, so it's normal to have this box office. It also represents that the domestic film and television industry is developing better and better."

Director Feng Xiaogang, whose movie had just been released, praised "Time and Space Lovers" when he was interviewed by reporters.

Every director is confident in the work he shoots. When facing interviews with reporters, apart from a few affirmations about "Time and Space Lovers", most of them take advantage of the popularity to promote their new movies to be released this year.

After staying in the company until the evening, Gu Wei went directly to Liuquanju to attend the dinner party organized by Han Sanping.

When they arrived at the place, they heard what Han Sanping said. As Gu Wei had guessed, the movie was officially released in North America, and now they just had to wait for the box office data after its opening there.

Upon hearing the news, Huayi and Guangguang were quite excited. Both companies participated in the investment and production of the film. As long as the film is successfully released there and can get good box office, it will be a success for both companies and the best publicity.

The atmosphere at the dinner was very lively. It was obvious that Han Sanping was in high spirits tonight. Whether it was the current domestic box office or the film's release in North America, they were both political achievements for him.

During the group's annual meeting, Han Sanping spoke louder. The success of the project he led made him more confident. The meal lasted for several hours, and after it was over, Gu Wei went straight home.

The next day, Gu Wei woke up around noon. After getting up, washing up, and preparing to eat something at the entrance of the community.

His parents' workplace hasn't closed for the holiday yet, so they usually don't come home for lunch and eat directly in the company cafeteria. Gu Wei doesn't know how to cook, so he can only eat something outside.

He walked to the entrance of the community, found a noodle shop, and ordered a bowl of ramen. When the noodles came, Gu Wei looked at the large pieces of meat in the bowl and started eating with relish.

At this stage, prices are not high and the things in ordinary small stores are relatively affordable. After finishing a bowl of noodles, Gu Wei burped, paid the bill, and went straight home.

Having nothing to do at home in the afternoon, Gu Wei turned on the TV and watched it leisurely.

The fighting scenes in the 02 version of "The Smiling, Proud Wanderer" are truly amazing, but the special effects are a bit crude, and the entire TV series is all about cannibalism.

After watching for a while, Gu Wei casually changed the channel and saw the TV series "Young Zhang Sanfeng" which premiered this year. This TV series, starring Zhang Weijian, Li Bingbing, Yan Yikuan, Wang Yan and others, is also a drama with many star actors in Gu Wei's memory.

Gu Wei, who was staying at home in the afternoon, received a call from Han Sanping. "Time and Space Lovers" has been released for 10 days and the total box office has exceeded 6000 million. China Film predicts that the box office has a high probability of exceeding million.

On the phone, Han Sanping spoke in a relaxed tone, shouting that he wanted to prepare a celebration banquet in advance and hold it in a grand manner when the time came.

Gu Wei listened to what Han Sanping said on the other end of the phone with a smile on his face. Mr. Han's habit of ostentation came back again, but it was not a bad thing.

The two chatted for more than half an hour, and Gu Wei heard someone on the phone calling him to a meeting. For a leader of his level, there is no such thing as rest all year round.

It was almost 8 o'clock in the evening when my parents got home from work. The day after tomorrow is the Spring Festival, and all government agencies have started their holidays. My unit was in a meeting today, so they came back late.

After hearing what his parents said, Gu Wei realized that it was already the Spring Festival. He had been keeping an eye on the box office these days and hadn't thought about these things.

For Chinese people, the Spring Festival is the most ceremonious and grand festival of the year. Old BJ has a folk song: "Sugar melons are offered to the Kitchen God, the New Year is coming, the girls want flowers, the boys want firecrackers, and the old men want a new felt hat."

The next morning, Gu Wei went out for a walk with his parents. The streets and alleys were filled with the festive atmosphere, and the shopping malls were crowded and bustling. No matter old people or children, they all had big and small bags in their hands and smiles on their faces.

In the meantime, Gu Wei received another call from China Film Corporation. The box office revenue for the first three days in North America had come out, and the total box office for three days had reached 540 million US dollars.

Listening to the excited voices of the China Film staff on the phone, Gu Wei felt relieved. According to the data, it would be no problem for the box office to exceed 2000 million, and million is also possible.

His parents were making preparations for the New Year by cleaning the room, putting up spring couplets, and steaming buns and date cakes. Gu Wei also had a rare moment of quiet time.

Today, the Spring Festival Gala can still be enjoyed happily by the whole family, and every actor and artist is proud to appear on the Gala.

The sketches by Uncle Benshan, Guo Da and Niu Qun are still classics.

After twelve o'clock, the outside was filled with the sound of fireworks and firecrackers, and the atmosphere was full of the New Year atmosphere.

As the final song "Unforgettable Tonight" sounded, the party ended successfully, marking the end of the old year and the beginning of the new year.

Early in the morning of the New Year, Gu Wei received New Year greetings calls and text messages from a lot of people he knew and didn't know, including people from film and television companies such as China Film, Huayi Brothers, and Guang Guang, as well as various directors and celebrity artists. The first thing they said was Happy New Year.

Gu Wei did not reply to each one individually, mainly because there were too many people. He replied to a few companies and actors and artists he was familiar with, and ignored the rest.

Then he picked up the phone and sent New Year greetings text messages to the teachers, directors and dean of the school.

Starting from the third day of the Lunar New Year, Gu Wei followed his parents to visit relatives to wish them a happy new year. After one trip, he had delivered most of the family's New Year goods. He was busy until the sixth day, when he received a call from China Film.

China Film Group plans to hold a celebration banquet before the movie is taken off the screen to greet Gu Wei first, and China Film Group will take care of the specific matters.

Gu Wei had no objection. Since China Film Group was willing to organize it, he would just leave it to them. He could just have some free time.

As the Spring Festival comes to an end, various units and companies begin to return to work one after another.

Early in the morning on the eighth day of the New Year, Gu Wei went directly to the company.

"Boss, Happy New Year, I wish you a happy new year."

As soon as I arrived at the company, the front desk employee said loudly.

Red envelopes are a must, and everyone in the company gets one. The amount is not large, and it is mainly for good luck.

In the office, Gu Wei looked at the data sent by China Film and felt a bit of a headache. There are pros and cons to releasing "Time and Space Lovers" before the Spring Festival.

Although audiences have time and money to watch a movie to relax during the Spring Festival, February only has 28 days, which is a bit disadvantageous in terms of release time compared to other months.

20 days after the movie was released, the box office has successfully exceeded 8 million, but it is still a bit away from the million yuan threshold. Judging from the current daily box office, it will be difficult to reach million before the end of the month.

Forget it, let China Film Group solve it and let them figure out a solution, Gu Wei thought to himself.

(End of this chapter)