Chapter 467 Three Art Films Released

After returning to China, Lu Yanhe first went back to the school.

I checked in with my counselor, Chen Shiqiu, and then had a meal with my roommates and classmates.

My roommate Xiao Jing has already gone to England.

Mao Jiayang and Zhou Mukai both successfully obtained their postgraduate admission qualifications and are temporarily free from the pressure of the future, making this their most relaxed time.

"I wonder how Xiao Jing is doing in England. He must be having a great time." Mao Jiayang clicked his tongue twice. "I wonder if I'll ever have the chance to go abroad for a while."

"You want to immigrate?" Zhou Mukai asked Mao Jiayang with some surprise.

He was surprised because he had never thought that Mao Jiayang had the mindset that "foreign countries are better".

"Immigration is out of the question; I can only stomach Chinese food," Mao Jiayang laughed. "But I really want to experience life in different places."

Lu Yanhe said, "I had the same idea before."

"Yeah?"

“Yes,” Lu Yanhe said. “When I first had the opportunity to go abroad, I was quite excited. Wherever I went, I would try to squeeze out some time to explore the local area. But after going to more places, I gradually lost that excitement. I also think that I still have a Chinese stomach and can only eat Chinese food. It’s okay to go to other places for two or three days to experience different customs and history, but if I stay for too long, I just can’t get used to the food. This time in Venice, I really missed the food in our country, so as soon as I got back, I made plans to have dinner with you guys.”

Zhou Mukai: "I really want to go to Japan once."

“I’ve been to Japan, and the food there is better than in Korea,” Lu Yanhe said with a smile. “Korean food really isn’t good at all.”

Zhou Mukai: "I'm not interested in food, but I really want to see the scenes that appeared in the cartoons I watched when I was a child."

"Japanese animation is truly exceptional," Mao Jiayang said. "I don't know why, but most of the animations I watched as a child were from Japan and the United States, and we didn't have many domestically produced animations."

Lu Yanhe: "Well, mainly because there aren't many good ones; they're all cartoons for young children."

“We’ve actually made some progress,” Zhou Mukai said immediately. “I’ve seen a lot over the years, and things are getting better and better.”

"Really?" Lu Yanhe was surprised. He himself didn't watch much animation anymore, and even seeing an animated film like "The Angry Raven" occasionally felt like a novelty.

Zhou Mukai: "There are now many animated works adapted from online novels."

Mao Jiayang suddenly remembered something, nodded, and said, "Yes, I watched one a while ago called 'Dragon Master.' I didn't even know it was adapted from a web novel until I finished watching the first twelve episodes. It's really well made. I never thought that we could make such an animation in China."

"Our domestic animation industry started quite early, but I don't know why it suddenly went dormant for a long time."

“Those science and engineering students often say that liberal arts are useless. I’m speechless every time I hear that,” Zhou Mukai complained.

Mao Jiayang, a computer science student, immediately raised his hand: "Zhou Mukai, don't generalize. I don't think so at all. I actually envy you literature students. To be honest, it's because the knowledge of science and engineering is explicit, objective, and visible, while the knowledge of humanities is implicit, subjective, and has different effects on different people. That's why there's this argument that humanities are useless."

"If the humanities were truly useless, then the entire history of human civilization would be useless. Anyone with a brain wouldn't say that. It's like wanting to travel to Japan—isn't that because you're influenced by their anime?"

“I’ve always felt that Yan He is doing something great because he is creating our own culture. A momentary hit or box office success is just a temporary thing. But his works will remain. Maybe in ten or twenty years, ‘Friends’ will become a window for others to understand the young people of our time, and movies like ‘Three Mountains’ and ‘Late Spring’ will attract foreigners to China just like Japanese animation attracts you.”

"Look at every Olympic Games opening ceremony, which host country doesn't showcase its own history, culture, and development? Which opening ceremony doesn't use literature and art, representing the achievements of spiritual civilization, as a window to the world?"

Mao Jiayang looked at Lu Yanhe with genuine envy and said, "I also hope that one day I can create something of value that can be written into the history of our country and the history of human civilization."

Lu Yanhe and Zhou Mukai looked at Mao Jiayang in surprise. After a long while, he exclaimed, "Mao Jiayang, your ideals are so grand!"

Mao Jiayang looked a little embarrassed.

"That's a bit of an exaggeration. I feel inexplicably ashamed right now."

“What’s there to be ashamed of? It’s great.” Zhou Mukai changed his expression and said to him, “To be honest, it’s thanks to being your and Xiao Jing’s roommates for the past four years that I’ve changed my opinion of science students a bit. When I was in high school, almost everyone, from teachers to classmates, firmly believed that only people who were bad at science would study humanities. I really hated them.”

Mao Jiayang laughed.

“It’s okay. Look how good things are now. Most of the people around you don’t think that way anymore,” Lu Yanhe said. “Prejudiced people exist everywhere, but as long as you get better and better, you can distance yourself from those prejudiced people.”

“These are my honest words.” Mao Jiayang laughed. “Look at what Lu Yanhe said to Yong Shanhe at the media conference in Venice. Even with Lu Yanhe in his old age, there are still idiots like Yong Shanhe spouting nonsense.”

Zhou Mukai complained, "That guy is an idiot."

Lu Yanhe looked at them in surprise.

"You all actually know about Yongshanhe Three?"

“People are cursing him on our school forum every day,” Mao Jiayang said. “You have no idea how many people in our school are helping you to criticize him, right? Many students have even gone abroad to criticize him.”

Lu Yanhe was extremely surprised.

"No way? Everyone... there's no need to do this."

“There’s nothing we can do. You might not use the school forum much, and there aren’t many forums that are active these days. But at Zhenhua, our school forum still has a lot of active users every day. Many alumni who graduated ten or twenty years ago still like to post there. Everyone really enjoys chatting on the forum. And since you’re the most famous person at Zhenhua right now, people are bound to talk about you a lot. If you’re being bullied, how can we just sit idly by?” Mao Jiayang said. “Our alumni are very united.”

Lu Yanhe suddenly realized.

"Besides, it's just a little teasing of Yongshanhe San. Everyone wants some entertainment these days," Mao Jiayang said. "Sometimes when I get tired of coding, I'll use a VPN to go and curse him out. Anyway, I don't feel any psychological pressure when I'm cursing him out."

Lu Yanhe clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Respect!"

-

Lu Yanhe actually admired his roommates quite a bit.

At Zhenhua University, a university teeming with outstanding students, almost everyone here was a top student in their respective high schools before coming here.

After arriving at Zhenhua, almost everyone needs to go through a process of adjusting their mindset.

How to adapt from being "far ahead" to an environment where you can "fall behind at any time".

Lu Yanhe also knew that as a celebrity, no matter how hard he tried to minimize the impact, he would inevitably affect his roommates to some extent.

But his roommates not only never complained about it, they were also never affected by it.

Whether in their studies or in other aspects, each of them has always been serious and hardworking.

Lu Yanhe's state of mind is far from that of an ordinary student. Having someone like him around can significantly impact one's own well-being. Yet, they not only maintain excellent academic performance every year but also strive to expand and improve themselves in other areas.

Like Zhou Mukai, who was a top student who spent almost every day in the library, he later took the initiative to ask Lu Yanhe if there was an opportunity to work as a part-time editor for "Jump Up" magazine. Now he has become a pillar of "Jump Up" magazine.

Compared to himself, Lu Yanhe always felt that they were the representative examples of people who relied on personal effort and hard work.

Actors and the entertainment industry are not fields that are universally representative.

Lu Yanhe dared not arrogantly believe that his ability to earn tens of millions of yuan a year at such a young age and become a nationally renowned person was entirely due to his own hard work and so-called talent.

He knew how much of the industry and the era's benefits he had taken.

-

At the film seminar for "The Road to Glory", Lu Yanhe mentioned this point again.

In the eyes of outsiders, film seminars are often just a formality or a standard procedure.

But Chen Ziyan gave Lu Yanhe some special instructions.

“This time you can share more about your understanding of film and the industry,” Chen Ziyan said. “Now that you’re no longer just an actress, you should let them hear more of your thoughts.”

So when it was Lu Yanhe's turn to speak, he said as soon as he opened his mouth: "Actually, I am a very lucky young actor. Because I have worked with many very reliable and talented producers, directors, editors and crew members, I have gained a lot of fame through one film after another. In fact, it is the achievements of film and television dramas that have given me the halo."

These were Lu Yanhe's heartfelt words.

When he spoke, many of the older generation present looked at him with much gentler eyes.

Which senior doesn't like a humble junior?

Especially a younger person who is very famous and whom they feel they cannot control.

Lu Yanhe first got into position before continuing.

"Our domestic film and television market is among the best in the world, which gives our film and television industry a very solid industrial foundation to further promote the development of our film and television production. In the past two years, we have also seen more Chinese-language films at international film festivals. While commercial films are booming, art films are also showing new vitality. This is a particularly lucky time for me as an actor. No matter what kind of film I want to act in, I can find a suitable project."

Lu Yanhe's words in such a setting, in front of the film department's leaders and other influential figures, undoubtedly made them feel comfortable.

Lu Yanhe had no interest in becoming a cannon and firing at them.

He himself is a beneficiary of this industry, so why is he making such a fuss?

"It was quite a surprise that 'Road to Glory' won the Best Film award in the Horizons section at the Venice International Film Festival. This shows that it's not only films that reflect the dark and ugly side of our country that can win international awards, right?"

Lu Yanhe smiled.

There is a growing argument in China that only films that depict the ugly and dark side of China can win international awards.

Lu Yanhe wouldn't dare say there were none at all, but based on the many films he'd seen, especially award-winning films from film festivals, almost all of them, regardless of the country of origin, were satirical and critical.

Satire and criticism are among the most important themes in artistic creation.

Of course, Lu Yanhe didn't dare to say too much in this setting. He only mentioned it briefly before moving on to what he really wanted to talk about.

“A couple of days ago, I was having dinner with my classmate, and he said he really wanted to go to Japan. We asked him why, and he said it was because he watched a lot of Japanese animation when he was a child, so he wanted to see it. I was thinking that movies and TV shows are the same. Although we strongly encourage foreign friends to come to China, we also know that very few foreign friends actually come to China and set foot on our land. Movies and TV shows have become an important window for other people in the world to understand our country, and it can even be said to be the most three-dimensional window.”

"Why do I say that? Because each of us is influenced by factors such as history, politics, and culture when it comes to different countries, which leads to our attitudes and opinions. This in turn leads to our thoughts about everything related to that country. But movies and TV shows are about characters, stories, and emotions. Since we can't personally go to those countries to experience their customs and culture, we often experience them through movies, TV shows, and other literary and artistic works."

“The same is true of other people in the world who have the same prejudices against China,” Lu Yanhe said. “How can we get rid of people’s prejudices against China and against Chinese people, and let them see the development of the times and the country, and see the courage, diligence, justice and enthusiasm of the Chinese people? These wonderful things cannot be imposed on people’s minds by simply reading from a textbook.”

"Film and television dramas are a proven calling card for introducing one's country's image and culture to people in other countries."

"Good works, regardless of their subject matter, all contribute to shaping a positive national image. This applies to commercial films, art films, and genre films alike. It's not something that only patriotic films can achieve. None of the films I've made, such as Friends, Late Spring, Three Mountains, and this one, Glory Road, are patriotic works. However, they have all been well-received abroad, and many foreign friends have developed a greater interest in China and Chinese culture because of these films."

The reason Lu Yanhe is saying all this today is to express one point.

In the past, when the domestic film market was not large enough, there was a strong force in the film and television industry to seek recognition and a sense of existence outside, even if at that time they were actually insecure and felt that what was outside was better. But in any case, it led many creators to work hard to make the voice of Chinese people heard on the international stage.

But now, their overconfidence has led to another extreme. They feel that they don't need others' approval anymore, that their domestic market is big enough, and that even if Chinese-language films and television dramas have little influence in the world, it won't affect their ability to make money. This has become another form of "working behind closed doors." Behind this phenomenon lies another kind of "arrogance," and they even label those who try to continue "going global" as "worshiping foreign things and fawning on foreigners."

Twenty years ago, Chinese-language films frequently appeared on the international film scene; they never disappeared.

Ten years ago, Chinese-language films suddenly started appearing less and less frequently.

It wasn't until the last two or three years that one or two works slowly reappeared, bringing them back into the international film scene's view.

“I think we should encourage Chinese-language films to participate in more international film festivals. This doesn’t mean we have to win awards, or that international awards are superior to domestic ones.” Lu Yanhe smiled and said in a student-like, non-aggressive tone, “But domestic awards, no matter what, will always be won every year. However, if we don’t actively participate in international awards and don’t encourage everyone to make films suitable for film festivals, we might disappear from the international film scene for another seven or eight years.”

"These are just my feelings. There are definitely many things I haven't thought through because I'm young. If there's anything wrong, please feel free to criticize and correct me."

-

We encourage Chinese-language films to participate in more film festivals.

It's not for the sake of prestige, nor because foreign awards are more prestigious or impressive than domestic ones.

Simply because international film festivals still hold the power to define the artistic discourse of film, a globally recognized art form.

Only when China has its own Hollywood and Oscars, starting from scratch and no longer relying on other people's distribution channels, can you, like Hollywood movies, wait for others to come and invite you to participate.

With the Chinese market being so large, even a young newcomer like him receives a warm welcome from the officials of major film festivals once he is nominated, simply because he comes from the Chinese film market—are they all after him personally?

Lu Yanhe doesn't have that much face.

-

Lu Yanhe's remarks did not generate much discussion at the scene, but after the event, someone relayed a message saying that his speech was excellent and that as a Chinese filmmaker, he should continue to work hard and bring Chinese-language films to the international stage to showcase their artistic charm.

“That’s enough.” Chen Ziyan nodded and said to Lu Yanhe, “With this statement, you have the power to act as an imperial edict.”

Lu Yanhe was still oblivious, vaguely aware of something, but hadn't fully figured it out.

It wasn't until he heard that a comedy blockbuster released by Chenguang Film Company, "Left Foot Immortal," wanted to be released during the Mid-Autumn Festival to compete with "Rouge" for box office revenue, but was blocked and forced to withdraw from the Mid-Autumn Festival release, that Lu Yanhe understood what Chen Ziyan meant.

Chen Ziyan said, "There are many ways for the government to protect art films. Setting up funds to support creation is one thing, and setting aside a few slots for art films is another. The reason why a film like 'Left Foot Immortal' suddenly wants to schedule a Mid-Autumn Festival release is because it found that there are no other big films during the three-day holiday, and it felt that it could pick up a loophole. Of course, we can't let it pick up a loophole."

Release scheduling is an art, and its impact on films goes without saying.

The film "Lost in Thailand," which was released in the summer, lost at least 300 million yuan, according to industry estimates, because it was not released during the Spring Festival.

Lu Yanhe was still a little embarrassed and asked, "Then... isn't that a bit unfair to 'Left Foot Immortal'?"

"Fair?" Chen Ziyan rolled her eyes. "Lu Yanhe, can you please stop being so saintly at a time like this? Movies can be art, but they are competitors. Do you believe that a film like 'The Left Foot Immortal' can directly take away at least 5% of the screenings that originally belonged to 'Rouge'?"

Lu Yanhe: "Uh, I'll put away my saintly heart and not lash out."

Chen Ziyan said, "We need to prove what a film like 'Rouge' can bring to Chinese cinema, and let the industry see what good films can bring to the world besides box office success."

Lu Yanhe hissed, "Sister Ziyan, the pressure you've suddenly put on me has increased significantly."

Shortly after "Road to Glory" announced that it would begin limited screenings on September 10, "Happy Time" also announced that it would be released during the Mid-Autumn Festival.

For a time, the Mid-Autumn Festival film season was dominated by three films that had won major awards at international film festivals: "Rouge," "Happy Hour," and "Road to Glory."

The media were stunned when they saw this list of films.

What? Suddenly the Mid-Autumn Festival film season has turned into an art-house film season?

What about those commercial films?

Nobody wants to come to this release window? Do they look down on this smaller window and want to all flock to the National Day holiday?

Lu Yanhe still had a vague feeling that this was wrong. Films released in the same period are naturally in competition, but is this the way they should compete?

As he thought about it, he also reminded himself not to be too compassionate.

He felt that he really did have this problem.

I didn't realize it before, but now I know it really is.

But then he wondered, is this what you call a saintly heart?

He just wanted to compete fairly and squarely.

But no matter what Lu Yanhe thinks, this is a situation he can't change.

The withdrawal of "Left Foot Immortal" from the Mid-Autumn Festival release schedule must have been agreed upon with others.

Lu Yanhe finally stopped himself from thinking about it any further, telling himself that he had never asked for any "protection of release dates for art films," he had only called for more support and encouragement for art films. How to do it was not something he could control.

-

After attending the seminar on "The Road to Glory", Lu Yanhe went to Jiangzhi to visit the crew of "My Own Swordsman" who were filming. He also met Chen Siqi in Jiangguang and had a meal with the members of Jiangguang's "Jump Up" team.

While he was busy with his own affairs, the domestic film and television industry was also in turmoil.

The TV series "Deviation," starring Zeng Qiao, was suspended halfway through its run because one of the actors in the show was arrested for soliciting prostitution.

Zeng Qiao sent a message to Lu Yanhe, cursing his bad luck.

Lu Yanhe also felt frustrated for Zeng Qiao and the crew of "Deviance" - anyone would be frustrated if everyone's efforts were suddenly wasted because of one bad apple.

Two days later, Zeng Qiao came to him again and asked: "Yan He, do you know anyone at HP and Maxine? Could you help us make contact and see if they are interested in 'Deviance'?"

If a TV series just disappears without a trace, it will be a huge financial loss.

Zeng Qiao actually starred in "The Silent River," a film produced by Maxine, but he didn't have much contact with Zhong Benshuo.

He felt that if he contacted them through Lu Yanhe, they might take it a little more seriously.

Lu Yanhe didn't object, so he helped make the contact.

Both Jong Bon-seok and Tom White said they would give it a serious evaluation.

That's all Lu Yanhe can do to help.

He couldn't possibly say that he could make someone spend tens of millions of dollars to buy the broadcasting rights to a Chinese-language drama with just one phone call.

That's unrealistic.

-

"The Road to Glory" began limited screenings on September 10th.

In Yuming, for example, only three cinemas each show a film a day.

As a result, the tickets for all three shows sold out within ten minutes of the pre-sale opening, with even the most remote seats being snapped up.

Some people even complained online: "This is unbelievable! For the first time, buying movie tickets feels like scrambling for concert tickets."

On the first day of the limited-scale preview screenings, the national box office was 23,000 yuan, with an occupancy rate of 83%. On the box office statistics platform, this figure was initially thought to be due to a system malfunction. Then, everyone checked again and found that there were only 10 screenings nationwide that day.

"..."

This is a "small-scale preview screening" that no film production company in China has ever done before.

Its scale is so small that it has shocked the industry.

However, the movie theater was quite satisfied.

A single screening can earn so much money; the return on investment must be incredibly high.

From that day on, "Road to Glory" earned around 30,000 yuan in box office revenue every day.

Many cinemas wanted to increase the number of screenings, but they disagreed.

Anyway, "Road to Glory" is not a movie that's afraid of being spoiled.

Its focus is not on the plot.

And so, the Mid-Autumn Festival arrived.

On this day, "Road to Glory" finally expanded its screenings slightly.

The impact of star power was evident in the box office performance of these films.

Because of its deliberately limited screenings, "Road to Glory" only had a 7% screen share, yet it still grossed around 17 million yuan at the box office.

"Rouge" earned around 43 million yuan at the box office thanks to its 32% screening rate and the appeal of Wang Zhong, Chen Bige and Huang Kairen, especially the support of Huang Kairen's die-hard fans.

"Happy Time" also capitalized on the popularity of the Venice International Film Festival and the gimmick of Ning Xiulian winning the Venice Film Festival Best Actress award, attracting around 14 million yuan in box office revenue.

Besides these three films, several older films also saw a surge in box office revenue thanks to the holiday season.

On the day of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the box office exceeded 100 million yuan.

This is the holiday with the lowest daily box office in recent years.

However, the advantages of art films became apparent at this moment.

On the day of their release, the level of discussion surrounding the three films on social media far exceeded the industry's expectations.

Especially "Rouge".

"Rouge" is the film with the highest public opinion and popularity among the three films.

Although it's a romance film, it has a plot and a sad ending that brings tears to your eyes.

"Rouge" resonates strongly with women, especially young women, who feel as if they themselves have become Ru Hua, who has waited for many years, to say goodbye to a man who has betrayed them in their delusions.

On this day, countless self-media outlets published advertorials similar to "Women, even if you're a ghost, be a ghost who cherishes yourself," igniting empathy among women on social media.

"Paths of Glory" became a vehicle for artistic youths to express themselves, their lives, and their insights. It also became a work publicly praised by many veterans in the film industry. However, due to its low screening rate, the discussion surrounding it was far less than that of the other two films.

The most discussed topic is "Happy Hour".

The most controversial aspect is that for every person who praises the female consciousness and self-reliance reflected in this film, there is just as many who criticize the female protagonist for lacking self-respect in the end.

In conclusion, in such a short period led by three art films, after setting a record for the lowest opening day box office in recent years during holiday periods, another small miracle was created—the box office on the second day actually increased instead of decreasing.

"Where does the greatest commercial value of art films lie? It lies in the fact that almost every film has a natural theme that allows many people to express their views and attitudes."

That's what Chen Siqi said. Her "Jump Up" team was responsible for the marketing of two movies, "Rouge" and "Road to Glory".

"Whether it's liking or criticizing, it has to be seen by the audience. Only when it's seen and discussed can there be anything else."

(End of this chapter)