Chapter 463 The idea of ​​joining the online platform

Late May.

The Cannes Film Festival is coming to an end.

Liu Yifei was wearing casual sportswear, long hair and sunglasses. Gu Wei personally sent her to the airport.

On this trip, Liu Yifei did not bring anyone else except her assistant. Cheng Long and several crew members will be there to meet her at the airport.

Outside the airport, Gu Wei and Liu Yifei hugged each other.

The two of them stayed together for a while, then Gu Wei hugged Liu Yifei in his arms, kissed her, and was reluctant to let her go.

"Hurry up and go in. It's not good to be stuck here." Gu Wei held the young lady's hand and said gently.

"Okay, then I'll go. I'll call you when I get there." Liu Yifei said crisply with a smile on her face.

The reporters waiting at the airport kept taking pictures.

Many people also had smiles on their faces, thinking in their hearts, "Now we have new material."

After seeing Liu Yifei off, Gu Wei was still busy filming "The Wandering Earth" when reporters from outside media reported the latest news.

"Director Gu Wei personally saw Liu Yifei off at the airport, and the two kissed passionately."

"Director Jiang Wen will announce his new film plan at the Cannes Film Festival."

"Cheng Long and Liu Yifei release trailer for "Chinese Zodiac" at the Cannes Film Festival."

.........

Online, Hu Ge, who had kept a low profile for over a month, suddenly posted on Weibo that his agent contract with Tangren Film and Television Company had expired and would not be renewed.

At the same time, the official Weibo of Xingchen Film and Television Company updated its status again.

The message "Welcome Hu Ge to join Xingchen Film and Television Company" instantly became a hot topic in the circle.

Ragnarok: "I was wondering why Hu Ge didn't renew his contract. It seems like he has already found his next club!"

Fish in the Clouds: "Leaving Tangren was definitely the right decision for Hu Ge."

C落幕z: "That's right, staying in Tangren and continuing to be a nanny has no future at all. Just look at Cai Yinong's tricks. He filmed first and then reviewed. He must be dumbfounded now."

By the way, Tangren Film and Television has been pretty unlucky recently.

An incident was just reported by the media two days ago, and now Hu Ge has announced his departure. These several things happened at the same time, making Cai Yinong very busy and overwhelmed.

Normally speaking, whether you are shooting a movie or a TV series in China, you must at least submit the script to the General Administration first. After it is reviewed and approved, and you get a shooting permit from the General Administration, you can officially start filming.

But Tangren Film and Television did not follow the rules and did the opposite.

In early March this year, the media reported that Tangren started filming the TV series "The Desert Ballad" in a low-key manner. As a result, Cai Yinong did not respond positively, as if this matter had never happened.

Now, more than two months have passed, and people in the circle finally understood why Tangren was so low-key at that time.

Because "The Desert Ballad" was filmed without approval and without authorization.

My goodness, when the script of "The Desert Ballad" was submitted for review, it was not approved at all.

You know, "The Desert Ballad", which was originally scheduled to be completed in June, was filmed according to this script and has already cost tens of millions.

Now that the filming is almost done, it still fails the review, and even the General Administration has given a clear response.

The reasons why "The Desert Ballad" failed the review: it was suspected of being filmed in violation of regulations, not conforming to mainstream values, seriously distorting and falsifying history, and smearing historical celebrities.

After the incident, Cai Yinong had no choice but to find a way out and use his connections.

As for how to find connections, I guess someone will have to make "sacrifices" again.

...

Speaking of the film industry, perhaps because the threshold for becoming a director is getting lower and lower, there are more and more cross-border directors recently. There seems to be news about Han Han, Guo Jingming and others who seem to have the intention to become directors.

Online, there are media reports that these two people are frequently soliciting investments, and it seems that they are considering filming their own works for publication.

The directors in the circle didn't say anything. After all, being a director at this stage is not something that can be done by simply investing some money. But the fans of the two have been clamoring online.

Therefore, those who switch to become directors in China basically start with youth films and comedies.

Because it is easy to shoot, youth films are nothing more than premature love, car accidents, abortion, and some sentimentality. Comedy films are just some funny jokes from the Internet, all kinds of crazy and stupid things to make you laugh.

In a Chinese-language film market where many big directors are generally immersed in their own world and various types of films are aloof, youth and comedy films that are a little more down-to-earth and more open-minded are naturally popular with the audience, and the box office continues to set new records.

Speaking of directors in the circle, Gu Wei hasn't talked to Zhang Yimou for a while. Even at the Capital Film Festival some time ago, Zhang Yimou only showed up.

So, after being idle for a while, Zhang Yimou seemed to have succeeded in his "cultivation" in seclusion, and took the initiative to find Gu Wei.

Perhaps knowing that Gu Wei was currently busy filming The Wandering Earth, Zhang Yimou chose the time after the crew finished work in the evening.

After the release of Titanic 3D, Gu Wei rarely appeared in the public eye, except for sending Liu Yifei to the airport. The rest of the time, he was either thinking about the filming of The Wandering Earth or busy with the special effects production of this movie.

As for film festivals, award ceremonies, charity dinners and the like, he would avoid going if possible, as he finds them quite boring anyway.

After all, "Titanic" is a movie that has been released, but it was not filmed by him. It would be better for him to spend his free time thinking about other scripts in his hands!

The two did not choose to meet in the company, but found a private restaurant nearby, ordered some food and drinks, and started chatting.

"A few days ago, I got together with some old friends. Everyone felt that the current era is developing too fast and we can hardly keep up with the pace." Zhang Yimou said casually after a few drinks in the private room.

Hearing this, Gu Wei chuckled, raised his glass and clinked it with Zhang Yimou's, "Do you think anyone can jump out, attract investment, and become a movie director overnight?"

"Yes, looking at the reports online, there are all kinds of people, writers, singers, crosstalk performers, actors, and even those who have no previous experience, all started making movies. It's hard to say whether it's a good thing or a bad thing."

Gu Wei smiled helplessly: "From a broad perspective, it's a good thing. After all, it will drive the development of the industry. From the perspective of the audience, it may not be so good.

After all, when there are too many people, the quality varies, and most of the movies they make are bad. In the end, the audience will curse them."

After saying this, Zhang Yimou just smiled and shook his head without refutation.

Gu Wei knew that his senior brother would not come to visit him for no reason, so he chatted for a while and said, "Senior brother, how did you like the script of Parasite?"

Speaking of business, Zhang Yimou's expression turned serious. "I'm here to talk to you about this today. I've been thinking about the script for more than two months. I've even finished drawing the storyboards. I was thinking of waiting for you to be free someday so I can show it to you."

Zhang Yimou is also a proud person. After receiving the script provided by Gu Wei, he spent several months polishing the storyboard alone. After that, he revised it several times according to his own style before he was completely satisfied.

When he heard Gu Wei's question, he handed the storyboard and script he was carrying to Gu Wei.

After Gu Wei took it, he started to look at it. Zhang Yimou on the opposite side was not in a hurry either.

This took me about half an hour to watch.

After putting down the script, Gu Wei also sighed slightly. It turned out that each director has his own style. The script revised by Zhang Yimou and the one provided by Gu Wei have changed a little. How should I put it? The contradiction of human nature is more profound. There is a shadow of the movie "To Live" in it.

"Okay, let's leave it like this. There aren't many changes, and the social contradictions aren't highlighted that obviously, so it's enough to win the prize.

Brother, tell me what you expect the cost to be."

After hearing what Gu Wei said, Zhang Yimou felt a little relieved. After all, his junior brother was well versed in some foreign affairs. He nodded and said yes. Naturally, the most critical problem was solved.

After hearing the cost, Zhang Yimou slowly opened his mouth and said a number of around 60 million.

In Zhang Yimou's opinion, even if Liu Yifei's salary was deducted, the remaining tens of millions would be enough for the filming. After all, this movie did not have very high requirements for the shooting environment, unlike "The Flowers of War" and "Hero" which required "city building" and the like.

Hearing this, Gu Wei shook his head slightly. It seemed that his senior brother still had some concerns. The cost of this movie in the original time and space was about 80 million yuan. Now it was produced by Xingchen Film and Television Company and directed by Zhang Yimou. It was a mere 60 million yuan. It was a bit chilling to say it out loud.

"One hundred million, let's make it an even number." Gu Wei said a number, and when he saw Zhang Yimou coming, he continued, "Brother, listen to me, an investment of 60 million is too low. Without mentioning other things, the salary of Qianqian alone should account for at least one-third. Add in the other actors, and it is estimated that the money that can be used for filming the movie may be less than half.

Besides, this is your first film since joining the company, so you can’t be too stingy. I would say that a cost of 100 million is too little.”

"But, with such a huge investment, making a profit is a problem. After all, it's an art film and the box office is limited." Even though Gu Wei's analysis was well-founded, Zhang Yimou was still a little worried.

Seeing this, Gu Wei explained a few more words and it was considered a preliminary settlement.

As for the actors, there is no rush for now. Let’s submit the script for review first. After all, Tangren’s previous experience is right in front of us.

.........

May is almost over.

Promotions for the Children's Day period are coming one after another, but judging from the current situation, the situation is not optimistic.

It’s not that there aren’t many movies, it’s that there are too many. On June 6st alone, 1 new movies were released.

Including imported films "The Pirates", "Snow White and Mirror Mirror", "Hugo", domestic cartoons "Frog Warrior: The Mighty Instructor", "Submarine 2", as well as guest appearances by stars such as Yang Mi and Tian Liang "Run Out", "37" starring Liu Xiaoqing, Yang Caini, Lin Miaoke, etc.

The key point is that these movies released in mainland China have the potential to become bad movies just from their names.

How to compete with imported films
26 number.

This year's Cannes Film Festival came to a close in the small coastal town of Cannes in southern France.

Mainland director Jia Zhangke won the Best Screenplay Award for his film "A Touch of Sin".

Abdellatif Keshish, a director with French and Tunisian citizenship, won the film festival's highest award, the Palme d'Or, for his film "Blue Is the Warmest Color".

The number of domestic films exhibited there this time has more than doubled compared to previous years.

Regardless of whether it can be sold or how much it can be sold for, everyone is ready to give it a try, otherwise the only outcome is that it will be killed by imported films.

There were not many reports on the Palme d'Or winning films in the media, because reporters in the circle discovered that director Zhang Yimou, who had been immersed in the film for a long time, seemed to have made new moves.

"Director Zhang Yimou visited the set of The Wandering Earth twice in three days. It seems that he has a new film in the works!"

"Director Zhang Yimou and Director Gu Wei, discussing the 'new script' on the set?"

"According to insiders, Zhang Yimou's new film is suspected to be based on a new script written by Gu Wei."

Various speculations followed on the Internet.

.........

The emergence of the Internet has not only changed the communication and exchanges between people.

It has also changed the social and lifestyles of the Chinese people, as well as the film industry. The simplest and most direct change is ticket subsidies.

As early as around 2010, watching movies was not a common consumption. The public had the impression that the front-desk ticket price of the cinema was between 60 and 120 yuan, while the actual lowest ticket price was maintained at 30 to 40 yuan.

而这一年的《阿凡达》开启了电影的3D时代，在国内大中城市3D电影票价为80-100元，IMAX电影票价为100-150元。

For the working class of this era, if they watch two or three 3D movies a month, it would definitely be a considerable expense.

What really changed the history of ticket prices in China was the 14 film "Transformers 4", when online ticketing platforms began to subsidize ticket prices on a large scale.

"Transformers 4" grossed over 6 million yuan in the mainland over the weekend, with Maoyan selling 450 million tickets, contributing more than 30% of the box office.

The limited number of "9.9 yuan movie tickets" has aroused great enthusiasm for watching movies, allowing both the platform and the public to taste the sweetness of the box office carnival.

After that, subsidies continued for the National Day and summer vacation periods. Online ticketing platforms such as Maoyan, Tao Piaopiao, and Baidu Nuomi all launched discounted movie tickets at 9.9 yuan, 15 yuan, and 19.9 yuan, making watching movies no longer a "luxury". The total box office of the domestic film market began to surge.

14 billion in 296, 15 billion in 440, 16 billion in 457, and 17 billion in 524. The growth rate is so fast that even Hollywood is paying attention.

Ticket subsidies are the main battlefield for e-commerce. Internet e-commerce platforms spend money lavishly in order to compete for the consumer market and gain industry status.

Although Internet ticketing platforms suffered a lot in the process of burning money to gain publicity, after the reshuffle, they began to play a role in theater scheduling and film promotion, and gained the right to speak from theaters.

Ticket subsidies have gradually changed from the platforms burning money to the film producers burning money to subsidize the film.

For example, Wang Zhonglei of Huayi complained, "If you don't pay, I will tell you how much money the competitors have paid. If you don't pay, the cinema will not give you a chance to show your film."

As time went on, any movie that had any box office ambitions had to have a "high-end publicity" plan, covering everything from Internet opinion to offline venues, and the publicity costs rose sharply.

Although the country partially controlled ticket subsidies during the 18 Spring Festival, online ticketing platforms have become a trend and there are few people buying tickets at the front desk ticket office of theaters.

Cinemas miss the days before ticket subsidies when they had complete control over scheduling films.

Because at that time, even the superstar Liu Dehua had to drink with theater owners in order to ask for screening schedules.

In the future movie ticketing platform market, Maoyan Movies and Tao Piaopiao will together account for nearly 70% of the market share, while cinema counters will only account for a dozen percent, which can be said to be divided into two parts.

“We must build an online ticket purchasing platform!”

Looking at the investigation report handed over by the assistant, Gu Wei said in a firm tone.

And now is the best time. Tao Piaopiao will be launched at the end of 14, but it is not yet online now.

Maoyan was formerly Meituan Movies. It does exist, but it was just renamed Maoyan in January this year. It probably still hasn’t figured out what to do next.

Gu Wei has no interest in e-commerce companies, but he must have a place in the online ticket purchasing business.

After all, he is a big director in the mainland and cannot be restricted by others in the online field.

After the idea came to him, Gu Wei did not rush to take the next step, but instead made careful calculations.

After all, in the field of e-commerce, the key is concepts and spending money, which cannot be easily told to others.

.........

(End of this chapter)