Chapter 382 Quota
Every year at the end of September and the beginning of October, in addition to the Lunar New Year period, the selection of domestic films for the Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film is also a major event in the mainland entertainment industry.

But the situation in China this year is a bit embarrassing. Among the films that have been released so far, there are no outstanding movies.

According to policy requirements, only films that have been released domestically are eligible to be recommended to compete for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.

But the people above looked around and couldn't find any movie suitable for winning awards.

You know, since the mainland film industry decided to compete for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, so many years have passed, and mainland directors have never succeeded, which has become a regret in everyone's heart.

Especially in recent years, the influence of Hollywood movies has become more and more widespread, and repeated failures have become a pain in everyone's hearts.

Originally, "Alone on the Beach at Night" met the requirements. It was directed by the famous director Gu Wei and starred by the international actress Liu Yifei, and the subject matter was novel.

Unfortunately, this movie has already participated in the Berlin Film Festival and won the Best Actress award, so there is no way it can win an Oscar again.

Brother Chen Kai is busy with his new movie "Search" and cannot take care of this matter this year.

Even though the subject matter and genre of Feng Xiaogang's "1942" were suitable for awards, it was too late in the film.

As for Jiang Wen, there is no sign of his new movie and no one knows when it will be released.

After looking at several major directors in the industry, Zhang Yimou's "The Flowers of War" is the most suitable.

In order to represent the mainland in the 84th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film, Zhang Weiping kept an unusually low profile before the results came out.

Afterwards, the film was screened commercially for a week in the VIP hall of the Capital Cinema. Although the cinema was located in a rather deserted area, the seven-day tickets were sold out in an instant.

According to media reports, ID cards are required to be checked when purchasing tickets. The security is so tight that it is intended to make strangers or people with ulterior motives feel annoyed or prevent them from entering.

Such a public screening is actually a limited internal screening, and there is almost no risk of the film being leaked.

This screening is to meet a strict requirement for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film nomination, which is that the films must be selected from those released in the region between October of each year and September of the following year, otherwise they are not eligible for the nomination.

Although the screening was small-scale and lasted only a week, its purpose was to ensure that "The Flowers of War" was eligible for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.

In the end, Zhang Weiping achieved his wish and successfully won the prize.

When this decision was announced, it was not a big deal. At most, some people complained that the Oscar spots were basically in the hands of a few directors, and that the General Administration's early appointment was unfair.

As a result, Zhang Weiping, who had been low-key for a while, began to show off after seeing the dust settle.

“Which Chinese-language film is more suitable for Oscars than The Flowers of War? You don’t even need to see it to know there is none.

War and redemption are common topics around the world.

The combination of internationally renowned director Zhang Yimou, Oscar-winning Best Supporting Actor Christian Bale, and the right subject matter is definitely the most competitive combination for Best Foreign Language Film. This year, this film has a high chance of winning the Best Foreign Language Film award.”

It has always been taboo to open champagne before the game, but Zhang Weiping didn't care. Not only did he open it, he also mocked other movies.

I feel that compared to "The Flowers of War", other movies are garbage, whether in terms of awards or box office, even though Zhang Yimou's movie has not been released yet.

As soon as this statement came out, Zhang Yimou and "The Flowers of War" immediately became the target of public criticism, and many film producers attacked them.

Everyone in the circle knows what Zhang Weiping did. If it was an exception, why was he only making an exception for "The Flowers of War"?

Why not compare all the movies that don’t meet your requirements, and then decide on the most suitable one?
However, this is the result decided by the General Administration. Although everyone can criticize Zhang Weiping, no one dares to say a bad thing about the General Administration. This is a very realistic situation.

...

The "The Flowers of War" incident is still sparking heated discussions.

Gu Wei and Liu Yifei also saw the news. "Everyone is discussing the Oscars online. Some say Director Zhang's film deserves the title, while others think White Deer Plain is good and more suitable for Best Foreign Language Film. It's very lively."

"We don't need to consider whether it's appropriate or not. What's most important is whether the Oscar judges think it's appropriate. After all, you submit the movie for others to watch." Gu Wei looked at the young lady and said with a smile.

"So what is appropriate?"

Liu Yifei suddenly changed the subject, as if she understood something: "I see, actually there are some skills to winning awards. The right subject matter and type are the basics, and public relations are the most important, right?"

"Haha, how clever."

Gu Wei glanced at her and then praised her. Liu Yifei also smiled when she was praised.

"You know, there are so many movies that apply for the Oscars every year. Every country and region in the world considers each movie suitable, but there is only one winner in the end, and the judges play a decisive role. If you don't spend money on PR, why would they give you the award?"

While chatting with Liu Yifei, Gu Wei suddenly thought of a possibility.

You know, since the mainland decided to apply for the Oscar, it has never won the trophy. Gu Wei originally thought that the mainland directors and filmmakers did not understand the social customs of foreign countries and did not think about public relations. Is Li An the only one who is gifted? Is Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon the only one that meets the taste of Oscar judges?

On the other hand, even if you don't understand it the first few times, after participating more times, how can you not understand it? How can you not see the trick?

To be honest, when it comes to social etiquette, Chinese people are experts. How could they not think of it?
Perhaps, is it possible that everyone regards participating in the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film as a gimmick? Instead of spending millions or even tens of millions of dollars on public relations, it is better to rely on publicity through participation.

If we win, everyone is happy and we win glory for the country. If we lose, we can still say that we lost with honor, killing two birds with one stone.

The more you think about it, the more terrifying it is. Gu Wei originally thought that he was standing on the fifth floor, but now it seems that others might be standing in the atmosphere.

Of course, this is just Gu Wei's guess, and there is no way to know the truth of the matter.

"What's the matter?" Looking at Gu Wei who was lost in thought, the young lady asked curiously.

"Ah." Then, Gu Wei expressed his guess. After listening, the young lady widened her eyes, and the two of them couldn't help but look at each other.

...

The box office competition among "White Snake", "Painted Skin" and "Flying Swords of Dragon Gate" is still going on, but "Revolution of 1911", which was originally highly anticipated, has completely failed.

While everyone else is eating the meat, the latter can only drink the soup at most. But looking at the downward trend of the box office, it is possible that in the end they won’t even be able to drink the soup.

Juli's Yang Zi spoke out again: "The Legend of White Snake invited the special effects team of Pirates of the Caribbean to create special effects at a cost of hundreds of millions of yuan, just to give the audience a visual feast."

When this statement came out, the audience who had seen the movie sneered at it, but those who had not seen it became curious and decided to watch it first.

I have to say that this trick is still somewhat useful. After all, it is a domestic fantasy blockbuster of the same type as "Painted Skin 2", and one of the highlights is the special effects.

“Wouldn’t this be too much of an exaggeration?”

Huang Shengyi said with some concern about the negative reviews online.

But Yang Zi didn't care at all: "What's the big deal? Movie promotion is just hype. Everyone else does it this way. Anyway, who else knows the real data except us?"

After this was said, Huang Shengyi remained silent. Her reputation had been very bad recently and she urgently needed a high-grossing movie to restore her reputation as a leading actress.

The publicity has some effect. The box office has been rising steadily during the two days of National Day. At its peak, it exceeded 30 million a day. The situation is very good.

Yang Zi also took the opportunity to praise the high and criticize the low, and severely criticized "Painted Skin", saying that it was a fairy love story in heaven and on earth, so vulgar, and that if you want to watch something better, you should watch "White Snake".

The box office of "Painted Skin" just exceeded 10 million on the first day, which is far less than "Legend of White Snake". Yang Zi is very confident.

As for "Flying Daggers of Dragon Gate", its box office was much higher than that of "White Snake", and Yang Zi was also very tactful in promoting it.

It is said that Li Lianjie starred in both movies. After watching "Flying Daggers of Dragon Gate", you can also take a look at "Legend of White Snake". Different types of movies will bring you different visual enjoyment.

On the other hand, Wang Changtian was not discouraged when looking at the box office of "Painted Skin". The National Day holiday has just begun and the real competition is still to come.

When it comes to publicity and promotion capabilities, the newly-entered Juli Film and Television poses no threat in his eyes.

"Go and get some information for me." In the Guangguang Company office, Wang Changtian called his personal secretary and gave him an order.
...

The film industry is bustling, while the television industry is dominated by one company.

After a period of fermentation, "Startling by Each Step" has swept the entire film and television industry, just like "Palace" at the beginning of the year.

To this end, Tangren Film and Television has stepped up its publicity efforts, and the Internet is full of news about the TV series, photos and news of the leading actors traveling to various places and various programs.

Cai Yinong’s goal is very clear, which is to bring Liu Shishi into the team of first-line female stars. Not to mention other big stars, but at least she has to surpass Yang Mi first.

At the same time, Bona's "Flying Daggers of Dragon Gate" has completely taken off, with a momentum that is a bit like last year's "Let the Bullets Fly" and "Painted Skin 2".

30 million on the first day, 35 million thereafter, and at its peak the average daily box office was close to 40 million.

"Haha, we still have to make a special effects blockbuster. The company's next movie should come up with a plan as soon as possible. For the special effects, we should go to Xingchen Films."

These past two days, Yu Dong has been very arrogant and his voice has been much louder when he greets CEOs of the same industry.

Even his old leader, Han Sanping, invited him to meet with him twice, and even praised him in his words.

Director Xu Ke has become one of the most sought-after commercial film directors in the industry, and has received countless invitations and social events to discuss collaboration.

.........

(End of this chapter)