Chapter 821 Thank you for your tolerance
It's not cool, of course it's just a joke.
Lin Weimin did not participate in the screenwriting work, mainly because he was in a compromising situation.
He once set rules for Wenhua and Wencheng. No matter whether it was a movie or a TV series, the contribution of the main creative team was of utmost importance, and dividends were inevitable if the profits were satisfactory.
Lin Weimin is now the president of Guowen Publishing House and is the screenwriter for "Hero". If there is any profit in the future, will he be given a share?
It's better not to get involved in such matters.
Besides, even if he gets 10 or 20 million, what’s the point for him?
They are just numbers.
Tong Zhonggui and Mo Yan both come from pure literary backgrounds. Lin Weimin provided the framework for them to rewrite the script of "Hero", which just happened to get rid of the affectation in the original "Hero" script.
Lin Weimin acknowledges the quality of the original "Hero", but that doesn't mean the film has no flaws. On the contrary, it has quite a few flaws, but it also has quite a few strengths.
Since it is Wenhua’s own “Hero”, of course the shortcomings of the later version must be avoided. Otherwise, what is the point of copying the same work again?
Strengthen the driving force of the core of the story, remove the pretentious character settings, and refine the character lines. As long as you work hard on the script, it is actually not difficult to come up with a good script without interference from investors.
The funds are in place and the script is being written in full swing and progress is going smoothly. The production of "Hero" is off to a good start.
It didn't take long for the news about this movie to spread throughout the domestic film and even cultural circles.
Guowen Publishing House plans to invest 80 million RMB to shoot a domestic blockbuster!
When hearing the news, most people's first reaction was that it was a joke.
What is the concept of 80 million RMB?
Last year, the total box office revenue of the national film market was less than 1 billion yuan. The investment in a single film is equivalent to one-tenth of the total annual box office of a country as big as China.
How much box office revenue will it take to recoup the investment?
Someone calculated that the box office revenue would be at least 210 million yuan.
This time it’s not one-tenth, but one-fifth.
In order to recoup the investment in the country, it is necessary to obtain at least one-fifth of the total box office in a year.
But is this possible?
In the history of Chinese cinema, there are only a handful of movies that have grossed over 100 million yuan, let alone over 200 million yuan.
There is only one movie, "Farewell My Concubine", which reached the box office threshold of 200 million yuan in the past few years.
But what kind of mass base does "Farewell My Concubine" have?
The original work by Lin Weimin has sold more than 10 million copies of the novel alone, and the drama adapted by the People's Art Theatre has become a classic of the generation.
The director is Cheng Kaige, one of the twin stars of China's new generation of directors, and the starring actors are big names such as Leslie Cheung, Gong Li, and Han Zhuangzhuang.
It has won many awards including the Cannes, Golden Globe, and Oscars, and has a place in the history of world film.
Moreover, when "Farewell My Concubine" was released, the Chinese film market had just begun to decline, and ticket prices were liberalized. Although the number of moviegoers decreased, the decline was limited. This is how "Farewell My Concubine" achieved a box office of 200 million yuan.
Everyone who heard the news was filled with disbelief and felt that the Guowen Society had been carried to its head by victory.
The full copyright operation plan they have been carrying out in the past two years has achieved good results, but it is not necessary to be so arrogant.
To make such a blockbuster movie, they might have to spend all the money they earned over the years.
The film and cultural circles were full of misunderstanding and distrust of Guowen Publishing House's seemingly rash move, and many rumors followed, but this did not hinder the preparation of "Hero".
In his spare time, Zhang Yimou is busy with the post-production of "If You Are the One", and is also preparing for "Hero", and is having a great time.
Time flies and it is already mid-July. During this period, "Life is Beautiful", which was a big hit at the Cannes Film Festival this year, has been released in several countries in Western Europe.
The film was first released in Italy, where it grossed an impressive 1.15 million US dollars in its first week.
Europe has a developed economy, but it is a small country with a small population, and the single film market is not particularly large. For a country like Italy, the performance of 1.15 million US dollars in the first week is already very outstanding, but what is more terrifying is the box office afterwards.
"Life is Beautiful" achieved a box office of 1.58 million US dollars in its second week of release, which is not surprising. Generally, the box office of a movie will increase in the first two weeks of its release.
But in the third week of the movie's release, it actually grossed 2.02 million US dollars, successfully reversing the box office decline, which is extremely rare in the film market.
Because "Life is Beautiful" is different from those movies that are screened on a small scale at the beginning and then gradually expand in scale. It has been screened on a large scale from the very beginning.
It is rare that the box office was able to reverse the decline in the third week under such circumstances.
While achieving success at the box office, the film also received extremely high praise in Italy, making it a double harvest of box office and word of mouth.
Roberto Benigni's popularity in Italy has also skyrocketed due to the hit movie. He was originally a well-known comedy star in Italy, and after the release of "Life is Beautiful", he is showing a tendency to evolve into a national treasure-level comedy star.
Following Italy, "Life is Beautiful" was released in several Western European countries including France, Spain, Belgium, etc., where it performed equally well. After being released for one and a half months, the cumulative box office exceeded 18 million US dollars.
At present, the number of countries where "Life is Beautiful" has landed has not reached half of the European countries, and it has been released one after another before. According to this trend, this movie can earn at least more than 60 million US dollars at the box office in Europe, which is not much less than "Farewell My Concubine" that year.
A few days ago, "Life is Beautiful" just won the Best Film and Best Actor awards at the 10th European Film Awards.
Roberto Benigni took time out from promoting the film and attending film festivals and award judging sessions to call Lin Weimin to tell him the news. In addition to the box office and award news, China Film Group has also recently been introducing "Life is Beautiful" and is doing intensive dubbing work on it, and it is expected to be released in China in August.
A few days later, Lin Weimin received a phone call from Liu Jinyun.
Liu Jinyun is the vice president of the People's Art Theatre and took over Yu Shizhi's position after his retirement.
The National Theatre of China is currently rehearsing the drama "Tanghulu", which is a major drama that the National Theatre of China has carefully prepared this year. For this purpose, the theatre has specially invited many old actors who have retired from the stage to perform on the same stage.
This weekend, the drama will premiere at the Capital Airport, and Liu Jinyun invited Lin Weimin to watch the performance.
On Sunday afternoon, Lin Weimin drove to the Capital Theatre with his wife and daughter.
After entering the theater, his seat was in the middle of the front row, next to the dean, Liu Jinyun.
Liu Jinyun was very happy to see him coming and chatted with him in a low voice.
Lin Weimin's position in the People's Art Theatre is very special. He is not a formal employee of the People's Art Theatre and has no establishment. However, when talking about the history of the People's Art Theatre, especially the 1980s, Lin Weimin is a name that cannot be avoided.
He is not only the last disciple of Mr. Wan, the president of the People's Art Theatre, but also the screenwriter of a batch of classic dramas produced by the People's Art Theatre in the 1980s. He has a close relationship with the People's Art Theatre.
The screenwriter of "Tanghulu" is Liang Shanzheng, the director is Chen Shun, and although Lin Weimin is not familiar, there are many familiar faces among the actors.
Zheng Rong, who played Chang Siye in "Tea House", Niu Xingli, who also played Kang Liu in "Tea House", and his lover Jin Yaqin, who later won the Best Actress Award at the Tokyo Film Festival for "The Two of Us"...
In addition to these people, Lin Weimin actually saw Shi Yizhi on the stage.
"Why is Old Yu here too?"
Lin Weimin asked Liu Jinyun beside him softly.
Liu Jinyun said: "Many old colleagues from the academy participated this time, and Teacher Yu could not be left behind. He was in poor health, but it was no problem for him to play a passing role. We told him so at the time, and he agreed immediately."
After listening to Liu Jinyun's explanation, Lin Weimin nodded.
Having performed for a lifetime, Yi Shizhi's love for the stage is beyond the imagination of most people.
He now has obvious symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, and suffers from aphasia from time to time.
While watching the performance on stage, Lin Weimin couldn't help but worry for Yi Shizhi.
Yi Shizhi does not have many scenes. He plays a couple with Zhu Lin, who has starred in dramas such as "Thunderstorm" and "Tiger Tally" and is also one of the leading actors in the People's Art Theatre.
On the stage, the two were performing according to their lines, and Yi Shizhi's lines suddenly got stuck.
Lin Weimin could see from the audience that Yi Shizhi's expression was somewhat anxious.
He forgot the words!
"Keys, can't you find your keys?"
Zhu Lin, who acted opposite him, was very experienced. She immediately saw through Shi Yizhi's embarrassment and took over his lines.
Yi Shizhi nodded immediately, "Of course!"
These two sentences seemed not to be in the script, but the two of them reacted quickly on the spot and cooperated perfectly.
As the performance was coming to an end, music started on the stage. Listening to the prelude, Lin Weimin felt it sounded very familiar.
"People say that candied haws are sour
It is sweet inside the sour
Everyone says that candied haws are sweet
But it is sweet with a hint of sourness
..."
After being in a daze for several seconds, he finally reacted. Isn't this "Tanghulu"?
Thinking of the name of the play "Tanghulu", he suddenly laughed and asked Liu Jinyun: "Old Liu, you guys can do it. Now we have to provide music for plays!"
Liu Jinyun was a little proud when he heard this, "'Tanghulu' is the theater's big play this year, and we are just looking for some publicity points!"
As he spoke, he began to explain to Lin Weimin again.
The song "Tanghulu" was released at the beginning of last year. The singer is Feng Xiaoquan, who also composed the song. The lyricist of the song is Zhang Heping from Yanjing Culture, Art and Audio-Visual Publishing House.
The National Theatre of China wanted to find some gimmicks for the drama "Tanghulu", so they thought of the song "Tanghulu", and obtained the authorization of the song through Zhang Heping, and then used it on the stage.
"A drama can have its own exclusive theme song. This is probably the first time in the history of domestic drama, right?" Lin Weimin asked with a smile.
Liu Jinyun nodded, a hint of pride showing on his face.
The play officially ended and the actors took their bows.
There was warm and prolonged applause in the Capital Theatre, which showed the audience's special preference for the People's Art Theatre.
On the stage, the actors are generally over 60 years old. They are all meritorious actors of the People's Art Theatre. They have performed on the stage all their lives and listened to applause all their lives, but the applause tonight is full of special meaning for them.
Several of them have left the stage for many years. If it weren't for the drama "Tanghulu", they would not have the opportunity to return to the stage.
There was thunderous applause and the actors on the stage bowed in thanks.
A few minutes later, the curtain call ended.
Liu Jinyun accompanied Lin Weimin to the backstage and greeted the actors. Everyone was particularly enthusiastic when they saw Lin Weimin.
However, the one who was more popular than Lin Weimin was the little bean bun held in Tao Huimin's arms.
Unfortunately, this little girl was not one who would stay quiet. Later, she twisted her body and insisted on getting out of Tao Huimin's arms.
It’s so much fun backstage, with actors wearing performance costumes and all kinds of makeup on their faces, and people coming and going, it’s very lively.
"Don't run! Stop right there!"
Without Tao Huimin's arms, little Doubao was like a cunning rabbit out of a cage, and it was not an exaggeration to give him the nickname "Let Go".
The little boy started to run with his short legs and blended into the crowd in just a few steps.
Tao Huimin anxiously chased after her. The mother and daughter were one running away and the other chasing. Xiao Doubao thought her mother was playing hide-and-seek with her. The more Tao Huimin chased her, the faster she ran away, and while running she did not forget to let out a childish and somewhat naughty laugh.
"Hui Min, stop chasing me. We are all family members backstage, so it won't be a problem."
Jin Yaqin, who was sitting backstage removing her makeup, said to Tao Huimin, who then stopped panting, "This crazy girl!"
Little Doubao moved among the actors of the National Theatre of China, calling out to uncles, aunts, grandpas and grandmas endlessly, making the actors backstage laugh uncontrollably. Everyone loved this quirky, cute and adorable little guy very much.
While Xiao Doubao was mingling among the actors of the National Theatre of China and fully displaying his charm, Lin Weimin was chatting with Yi Shizhi.
Today was the first time that Shi Yizhi appeared on stage after four years away. He made a mistake on the stage, thanks to Zhu Lin's quick reaction.
For Shi Yizhi, who has always pursued perfection on stage, this is unacceptable.
He is conscious now and is surrounded by his family, but he is a little depressed.
“Thank you for your tolerance.”
He said this and left the Capital Theatre accompanied by his family.
Before leaving, Yi Shizhi had already said goodbye to Liu Jinyun and asked someone else to replace him in the next performances of "Tanghulu". He didn't want the last memory of himself on stage to be incomplete for the audience.
This night, an actor bowed out in front of the audience with an old and sick body!
(End of this chapter)
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