Chapter 613: Lao Han's Routine Tai Chi Ma's Invitation

In the Xingchen Film and Television conference room, casting is still going on.

"Oh, I don't know who will be lucky enough to be chosen by Director Wang and Director Zhang. How great it would be if it were me. Then I would die without regrets!" Li Jinming was a little emotional. At this time, she had not yet chosen medical beauty and looked quite sweet.

To be honest, mainland netizens often lament that the beauties in Hong Kong films all have their own characteristics, while domestic entertainment actresses make people face-blind.

But before the explosion of the mainland film market, domestic female stars also had their own characteristics. Later, with the invasion of Korean wave, the trend of medical beauty also came, which led to the emergence of many similar face shapes and looks.

Hearing Li Jinming's words, Lou Yixiao sighed and said, "I even temporarily postponed other scripts just for this opportunity. I wonder what the final result will be?"

Li Jinming said: "I don't know what Xingchen Films wants. They have Tong Liya, Zhao Liying, and Yifei..."

Seeing that she was speaking without restraint, Lou Yixiao coughed quickly. Seeing that Jin Chen and Guan Xiaotong were looking at her, Li Jinming quickly shut up.

At this time, the staff stood at the door and called Lou Yixiao's name. The latter's hands were shaking when she stood up. Li Jinming and Sun Yizhou both encouraged her and watched Lou Yixiao enter the door.

At this time, the staff stood at the door and called Lou Yixiao's name. The latter's hands were shaking when she stood up. Li Jinming and Sun Yizhou both encouraged her and watched Lou Yixiao leave.

After about ten minutes, the staff called Jin Chen to audition. Lou Yixiao came in, and Li Jinming asked hurriedly: "How is it, how is it, what did the director ask you?"

Lou Yixiao said rather frustratedly: "They just said that my performance as Hu Yifei was good, but I needed to find a way to make a breakthrough, and then they gave me a short script and asked me to act it out!"

"What role are you playing? Tell me quickly!" Li Jinming asked excitedly. In her opinion, she might be able to learn about the scope and general topic of the audition through Lou Yixiao in advance.

Lou Yixiao said with a sad face, "I was given a tragic role and asked to perform a tragic scene. I performed according to their requirements, but before I finished, the director laughed and said that he was used to seeing me play Hu Yifei, and suddenly he felt a little uncomfortable, wuwuwu!"

"Pfft."

"Haha."

Sun Yizhou laughed out loud when he heard this, but after laughing for a while he thought about how he would perform the same way when he went for the audition, which would be a disaster.

Li Jinming was frustrated, "Hey, your acting skills are worse than mine, it seems I can't do it!" Then he patted "Lu Xiaobu" on the shoulder and said seriously: "You must cheer for us to perform!"

"Lv Xiaobu" nodded and said with a smile: "Don't worry, I will definitely do my best!"

The number of people in the room gradually decreased. After Jin Chen, it was Li Jinming, then Jiang Yan, and then Sun Yizhou.

.........

Suddenly, there was more news about "The Taiping" in the media.

It seems like something went wrong with the crew and it got stuck, just like the disaster-ridden filming of "Red Cliff". Maybe God doesn't want John Woo to continue filming?

Just like that, the entire crew of "The Crossing" stopped.

"I am really impressed, damn..."

"You're known as a great director, but this is all he is? He can't even control himself when filming a movie. When he was filming Red Cliff, he had high expectations but poor skills, and he still can't change this habit..."

Han Sanping called to complain and started cursing directly on the phone.

It was five full minutes before the other party stopped.

"I regret investing in this movie now. The key is that he can't control his mouth. If it affects the box office of The Wandering Earth, I will never forgive him."

Hearing this, Gu Wei knew what the other party was talking about.

Due to negative reports from the Hong Kong media, The Wandering Earth had average box office in Hong Kong, but this was not a big deal. Unexpectedly, as the movie's box office overseas continued to grow.

There are even predictions from Hollywood and mainland media that "The Wandering Earth" will win the North American box office championship this year.

After the news spread, the names "Chinese Sci-Fi Blockbuster", "The Wandering Earth" and "Gu Wei" all became hot searches, and the media were very eager to interview Gu Wei.

At this time, a tabloid in Hong Kong published an article saying that John Woo was the first person to win the global annual box office champion, and he won this honor as early as 2000 with "Mission Impossible 2"...

The key point is that John Woo also has problems. When he was interviewed, he directly complained that there were problems with the content setting of "The Wandering Earth" and bluntly stated that "The Crossing" would surpass "The Wandering Earth" at the box office when it was released.

Originally, a few words between directors was not a big deal, but the Hong Kong media exaggerated it and reported that director Gu Wei secretly had sexual relations with many female stars in the domestic entertainment industry.

Now, the reaction of mainland netizens was to go to Weibo and criticize "The Crossing". They wanted to take advantage of the popularity of my director Gu, but there is no such thing!

In fact, John Woo's reputation as a great director is mainly gained from the gun battle action movies he directed.

But he messed up a war drama "Windtalkers" in Hollywood, and now the suspension of filming of "The Crossing" further proves that he has no ability to direct a blockbuster.

The criticisms from the media were very unpleasant. It is said that director John Woo, who was already in a bad mood, was so depressed after seeing such comments that he almost died.

"Haha, you really valued this project at that time, Mr. Han." Gu Wei couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"That's why I'm angry because I value it." Han Sanping said unhappily, then changed the subject and continued, "The group has lost some confidence in The Crossing, and it's probably going to look for other companies to take over a portion of the shares."

"Do you have a target?" Gu Wei asked curiously.

"Well, China Film Group has been communicating with LeTV recently. Once The Crossing starts filming, the media will probably hype it up. Otherwise, they are not fools and would not be willing to pay for it."

Gu Wei was stunned when he heard this. No wonder after John Woo made his criticism of "The Wandering Earth", the mainland media hardly reported it.

In love, Ying is waiting for the right person.

.........

The auditions for "The Journey of Flower" are still going on...

When media reporters reported that Xingchen Film and Television Company received thousands of audition resumes, netizens were greatly shocked.

Everyone only now understands that a fantasy drama can actually attract so much competition. To be honest, the number is somewhat astonishing.

However, since the news that Zhao Liying and Chen Xiao will play the male and female protagonists, some popular actresses in the circle have become less enthusiastic.

After all, they all position themselves as popular superstars, and it is really embarrassing to act in TV dramas, especially if they are not the protagonists.

As a result, many people turned their attention to the Hollywood movie "Jurassic World".

First, Lu Zheng brought Jing Tian to discuss with Gu Wei whether Jing Tian could be allowed to play a role.

While the two were talking, Jing Tian was full of expectations. He felt that he had a good relationship with Gu Wei and his acting skills had improved a lot. Even if he couldn't play the main role, he could at least get a supporting role, or even a cameo appearance would be fine.

To be honest, Jingtian's development in 13 was quite good. He collaborated with Zhao Wenzhuo and Wu Jing on "Special Identity", with Cheng Long on "Police Story 2013", and with Chow Yun-fat and Chef Xie on "The Man from Macau", which will be released one after another from November.

If Jingtian’s acting skills needed to be improved and his performance was mediocre, the 13 and 14 Lunar New Year movie season would have been truly “sweet”!

Fortunately, the film industry is not the food industry, and there is no "salty party" to fight against heresy. At most, they complain that this person has no acting skills but a lot of resources. "Mr. Lu, this is really not something I can decide. You see, I haven't received an invitation from Universal Studios to audition as a judge." In the end, Gu Wei still rejected Lu Zheng's request. After all, the other party didn't get Zhang Yimou's consent when he approached him. If he promised the role, he would be asking for trouble.

Afterwards, Huang Xiaoming, who had just joined the crew of "The Crossing" a few days after the roadshow ended and was facing suspension of filming again, took Yang Ying to find Gu Wei and asked if he could keep a role for Yang Ying.

Some actresses are strange. They are very talented when they first debuted, but after they become famous, maybe they get too many roles, or maybe they lose their reverence and are unwilling to work hard to understand the characters, so their performance is not as good as before.

Yang Ying made her debut in Hong Kong and once filmed a romantic comedy with Wang Zhulan called "Shorty, Passionate", in which she played a very caring rich girl. She didn't have many scenes, but she had a sweet appearance and a likable personality.

As a "vase" actor, especially one with few lines and roles, Yang Ying can still barely hold up.

But some producers took a fancy to her popularity and Yang Ying was happy to make money, and ended up producing some films that could be described as "disasters".

Now that she has volunteered to be a "vase", Gu Wei is afraid that her "reputation" may be hurt.

Da Tiantian and Da Baobei, this is not a math problem of one plus one equals two, but a chemical reaction.

If, when the movie is released, someone who is unhappy with Zhang Yimou hires 800,000 internet trolls to criticize the acting skills of these two actors, no matter how big a director is, he won't be able to handle it!
.........

It is already late October.

As soon as the news that "The Wandering Earth" would be postponed for one month was announced, it immediately caused a cry of grief in the industry.

"Just give all the box office revenue to Xingchen Films Company, and we don't have to play anymore."

"Why not postpone it for a month and just postpone it until the end of the year to cover the Lunar New Year holiday as well?"

Many filmmakers couldn't help but complain, but things have already been decided and no one can change it.

After settling the postponement issue, Gu Wei felt a lot more relaxed. Now he only had to wait for the other two things to be resolved before he could head straight to Hollywood.

The results of the General Administration's grading system meeting have not yet been announced to the public, but the Domestic Screenwriters Association has started a fuss again.

Thousands of screenwriters have united to demand an increase in script fees and better treatment for screenwriters.

Some people even called Gu Wei privately, hoping that he could stand up and support the Screenwriters Association and speak out.

Upon hearing this request, Gu Wei immediately refused. Domestic screenwriters and directors are different. After years of suppression from directors and producers, they can't make any waves at all. Naturally, Gu Wei would not seek revenge.

industry.

Not all film and television companies have smooth sailing when they go public. Bona Film Group went public earlier than Huayi and Guangxian.

But until now, Bona’s market value is still lower than that of these two companies, and it can only rank third among private enterprises in the industry.

Today, Pony.com is in an even worse situation as its IPO was halted by the China Securities Regulatory Commission. The reason given was that they should conduct a self-inspection. It is obvious that something went wrong within the company, and there was no notice of the time for reopening.

Pony.com is now like crazy, looking for a target for a backdoor listing.

At this time, Huayi brought up the acquisition issue again. I wonder if Xiao Ma can withstand it this time.

At the same time, Alibaba's acquisition of China Culture Media went smoothly, which also marked the official entry of Internet companies into the entertainment industry.

On the other side of the ocean, Leonardo called and asked when Gu Wei could rush to Hollywood. The premiere of "The Revenant" was approaching, and as a director, he naturally could not be absent.

In the company, Gu Wei was holding the invitation letter sent by Alibaba and chatting with Leonardo.

"I'll go there at the end of the month, at the latest." Gu Wei said casually while playing with the gold-stamped invitation letter.

"Great, Matt just wanted to talk to you in person!"

"Is something wrong?"

"He received an audition invitation from Universal Studios for the leading role in Jurassic World..."

"It seems that Universal is making a big move this time." After hearing this, Gu Wei thought silently in his heart.

But think about it, with all the hype in the early stages, it would feel a bit anticlimactic if it didn't get a top Hollywood male star to star in it.

Star-Lord has not yet become famous with "Guardians of the Galaxy", so he is naturally not a Hollywood superstar. Taking into account the schedule issue, there are indeed not many people to choose from.

Matt Damon, thanks to movies like the "Jason Bourne" series and "2012", is now even more capable of carrying the box office than Leonardo DiCaprio, Will Smith and others.

After the two chatted for a while, Gu Wei just hung up the phone and then received a call from Tai Chi Ma.

"Director Gu, congratulations! The Wandering Earth is a huge hit at the box office, with the overseas box office exceeding 200 million US dollars, which has greatly boosted the morale of the Chinese people."

"Mr. Ma, you're too polite. It's just a movie. Even if the box office is high, it's not worth mentioning." Gu Wei didn't know what the other party meant, so he said with caution.

"Director Gu, you're joking. The scale of the mainland film market is visibly growing, and Alibaba also wants to contribute to the spread of Chinese culture. I wonder if you, Director Gu, are interested in the shares of China Culture." Tai Chi Ma's tone was full of temptation.

According to Alibaba's analysis, although Huayi, Bona, and Guangguang dominate the film market, they are not large enough after all, and there is every chance that they will be swallowed up and a large cultural and entertainment industry chain will be created.

However, both Penguin and Alibaba currently have such ambitions and plans, and there are two variables.

One is the Xingchen Film and Television Company, which is extremely powerful in content production and also has overseas channels that other mainland companies do not have.

Another one is Wanda. Wanda Pictures may also occupy a place with its cinema advantages.

Among them, Wanda has a strong background and the richest man Wang is ambitious, so Penguin and Alibaba have little chance.

Only the Star Film and Television Company, which has not yet been listed, will see a surge in its reputation and strength, whether through investment or acquisition.

It can be said that at this moment, Gu Wei is a peerless warrior in the eyes of Tencent's Ma, Tai Chi's Ma, and Wang, the richest man. The Star Film and Television Company, which has not yet gone public, is a fertile land that everyone is coveting.

Penguin, Ali and Wanda have no other advantages in the film market except that they are rich, rich, and fucking rich.

So Tai Chi Ma wanted to persuade Gu Wei to invest in China Culture, so as to find an opportunity to invest in Star Film and Television Company, and then completely acquire it with money.

"Mr. Ma, Xingchen Films is enough to keep me busy. I understand the principle of biting off more than you can chew." Gu Wei knew very well that there is no free lunch in the world, so he refused without thinking.

Hearing this, Tai Chi Ma was slightly stunned, and then changed the subject and said: "Director Gu, you must come to the dinner the day after tomorrow, and we can have a good chat then."

Well, originally Gu Wei planned to find an excuse to decline the invitation, but the other party had already said this.

"Okay, see you then."

.........

(End of this chapter)