Chapter 830: A shot in the arm for domestic films
Jiang Wen, Li Baotian, Qu Ying and others are all actors. No matter how big their names are, the image of journalists as the uncrowned kings has long been deeply rooted in people's minds, and they dare not offend them easily. This has led to some journalists habitually looking down on actors.
Lin Weimin doesn't tolerate these reporters, and these reporters also know his impressive record.
It has been many years since the "Nandu Weekend" incident. Although there was no conclusive evidence back then to prove that Lin Weimin was the one who did it, rumors have been rife in the news and media circles in recent years that it was Lin Weimin who did it.
Just because someone reported a piece of news he had, a major newspaper with a circulation of millions of copies per issue was almost killed. The infamous reputation that Lin Weimin left in the Chinese news industry makes many practitioners tremble when they mention it today.
After Lin Weimin finished scolding the reporter, he continued, "Someone just asked, saying that the themes of Hero and The Emperor's Ode are similar. Now is the press conference for Talk It Out, so we shouldn't talk about this topic, but since everyone asked, I'll say a few words on behalf of Yimou."
His words attracted the attention of all the reporters present. "The Emperor's Ode" is a big-budget movie produced by Xi'an Film Studio and Xiangjiang Film Company at a cost of 40 million RMB, while "Hero" is also a blockbuster produced by Wenhua Film and Television in cooperation with Yan Film Studio, Columbia Pictures and other institutions with an investment of 80 million RMB. The two films have similar themes and even have certain overlaps in content. Since the news came out, they have been the focus of attention of the media and the film industry.
"The movie "The Emperor's Ode" has not been released yet, so it is not convenient for us to comment publicly. We can only talk about "Hero". This movie is a tribute film prepared by our Wenhua Films for Hong Kong's return to China. This theme was chosen to fit the theme of "unification" and is not related to "The Emperor's Ode".
Everyone always discusses similar topics, I don’t deny that.
But chefs only have so many ingredients to cook, and there are very few dishes that taste the same. Director Yimou and Director Zhou Xiaowen are directors of two different styles, and the routes that their films take are completely different.
I can say responsibly that we positioned "Hero" as China's first domestically produced commercial blockbuster, with the aim of opening up a brand new path for Chinese films.
If you think we are just trying to imitate others, you are underestimating us."
When Lin Weimin said this, he had a slight smile on his face, but his expression was full of domineering aura as if no one else could do it better than him.
There are always people who talk about momentum in a mysterious way. The same words, the same tone, the same expression, when used by different people, will produce completely different effects.
But in the final analysis, this thing is inseparable from strength and status.
Just like Lin Weimin sitting here, he has all the fame, reputation and power. He speaks lightly, but he can shock the many reporters present who are accustomed to big scenes.
Momentum is created by the audience's imagination.
Lin Weimin arrived at the press conference and took complete control of the situation in just a few minutes.
The reporters who had been jumping around at the beginning finally calmed down and their questioning style became gentler.
Jiang Wen had a bit of pride on his face. These bastards still need Teacher Lin to discipline them.
Zhang Yimou quietly wiped his sweat. He had decided to go back to the crew tomorrow. Movie promotion was not a job for humans.
About 20 minutes later, the press conference ended. Lin Weimin smiled and said to Zhang Yimou and the others, "I'm sorry for stealing your limelight today."
Zhang Yimou waved his hands quickly, "Thanks to you for saving the situation, otherwise I don't know how to deal with these reporters today."
"Teacher Lin, you are still the one with strong aura and can calm the situation. These reporters are simply lawless now. Usually when we hold press conferences, they act like big bosses." Jiang Wen rarely saw reporters being humiliated, and there was a hint of gloating in his words.
"Is there anyone you are afraid of?" Lin Weimin teased.
"I'm not afraid. He's the uncrowned king!"
Jiang Wen's tone was mixed with fear and caution. Actors like them hope to gain media attention, but they are also afraid of too much media attention.
After chatting for a while, Zhang Yimou asked Yu Dong for leave and prepared to return to the crew. Yu Dong couldn't stop him no matter what, and finally had no choice but to let him go.
Then Yu Dong turned his attention to the leading actors including Jiang Wen. The director had run away, so he couldn't let these actors run away too, otherwise the film promotion in the next few days would not be possible.
The atmosphere of the first premiere press conference was so intense that it did leave some shadows on several of the leading actors. If it weren't for Lin Weimin keeping the situation under control, they really didn't know how the press conference would end.
Fortunately, there will be no press conference next time. All the films will be screened, with reporters, critics and fans. The atmosphere should be much better than this one.
The intense scene at the premiere press conference of "If You Are the One" did not affect the box office after the film was released.
On September 29, "Life is Beautiful" had been raging in the domestic film market for nearly a month, and the total box office reached 112 million.
In its fourth week of release, "Life is Beautiful" only earned less than 10 million yuan at the box office. Compared with the performance in the third week, this result is almost a cliff-like drop. The biggest influencing factor is naturally the impact of piracy.
But even so, the box office performance of "Life is Beautiful" was much stronger than other domestic films of the same period, so even after four weeks of release, theaters around the country had no intention of removing the film from theaters. They just gave up some of their prime showtimes and prepared to allocate them to the soon-to-be-released "If You Are the One".
It is also an adaptation of Lin Weimin's work, it also won a major award at a top foreign film festival, and it is also a new work by the great director Zhang Yimou. Domestic distribution companies and theaters have given "If You Are the One" enough face.
The film was released nationwide on September 29, covering almost all theaters in the country.
It's pitiful to say, after the continuous decline of the domestic film market in recent years, the destruction of piracy and foreign blockbusters, the number of cinemas is less than 600, and most of them are concentrated in first-tier cities and provincial capitals.
At the same time, the top 100 cinemas accounted for more than 35% of the box office. Under the fierce market competition environment, the polarization of the film market has become increasingly severe.
The domestic film market is still in a downturn this year. From the beginning of the year to now, more than half a year, "Police Story 4: Simple Mission" has 80 million yuan, "Twister" has 54.5 million yuan, "Broken Arrow" has 50.5 million yuan, "Jumanji" has 47.7 million yuan, and "The Rock" has 47 million yuan...
If we count the top ten box office movies from 1996 to the present, we can find that they are all monopolized by imported blockbusters. Add to that "Life is Beautiful", which has been raging in the movie market for nearly a month and has raked in 112 million yuan at the box office, and the domestic movie market is full of foreign monks.
The only domestically produced film was "Kong Fansen", which achieved a box office of 36 million thanks to group viewing.
"If You Are the One" brings together several important elements such as "famous director", "famous work", and "famous award", and it has a strong cast. Not only do theaters across the country have high hopes for this film, even Liu Jianzhong, the head of the Film Bureau, made a special call to Lin Weimin to inquire about the film's release.
Lin Weimin naturally understood Liu Jianzhong's psychology.
No one wants their own market to be dominated by films from other countries. The reform pains brought to domestic films by the previous series of reforms in the film industry are continuous and severe, and have exceeded everyone's imagination.
Firstly, no one expected imported blockbusters to be so powerful, and secondly, no one expected domestic films to be so weak.
From the launch of the "9550 Project" last year, it can be seen that the government hopes to pull domestic films out of the quagmire, but judging from the current situation, this effort may not produce any significant results in the short term.
Lin Weimin chatted with Liu Jianzhong for half an hour before hanging up the phone, and then called Yu Dong to ask him about the box office performance of "If You Are the One" in the Yanjing area.
These days, compiling box office information is a complicated project, but Yanjing is the base camp of Wenhua Film and Television, and the efficiency of compiling box office information is still good.
Yu Dong responded quickly. Within three days of the movie's release, it had grossed a total of 1.36 million yuan in the Yanjing area.
This result is slightly lower than that of "Life is Beautiful", but it is already an outstanding leader among the many films released in the film market.
After hearing this number, Lin Weimin felt relieved and called Liu Jianzhong back.
Liu Jianzhong was very happy when he got the news and asked, "Weimin, do you think it can exceed 100 million?"
Lin Weimin heard a kind of expectation from his question, but still said frankly: "It's not good enough. Now that the movie is in the later stage of release, the impact of piracy is really too great. You can refer to "Life is Beautiful". After the widespread spread of pirated discs, the box office of this movie in the fourth week directly dropped from 30 million to less than 10 million. If "If You Are the One" can achieve more than 60 million in the first two weeks, there is still some hope."
"If You Are the One" wants to achieve a box office of 60 million in two weeks, which is almost catching up with the performance of "Life is Beautiful". However, looking at the current performance of "If You Are the One", there is a clear gap between it and "Life is Beautiful".
Liu Jianzhong couldn't help but sigh and said, "Take your time. It seems that we can't rush things. Let's take a look at "Ode to Qin" at the end of the month."
Xi'an Film Studio's "Song of Qin" has been scheduled for release on October 30. The film has an investment of 40 million yuan. Two heavyweight male actors, Jiang Wen and Ge You, will star on the same stage. Many domestic colleagues are looking forward to the release of this film.
If a domestic film could have a box office of over 100 million yuan at this time, it would not only boost market confidence, but also bring honor to leaders like Liu Jianzhong.
The rise of a single movie is at most a psychological effect. It is even more ridiculous for Liu Jianzhong to pin his hopes on "The Emperor's Shadow". Even if that movie was not withdrawn, its box office would not be good because it was too literary and the director also had his own agenda.
Lin Weimin couldn't say these words to Liu Jianzhong. In fact, he didn't need to say it. Having reached this position, it is impossible for Liu Jianzhong not to understand the problems that exist in domestic films. It's just that the pressure he is under is too great, and he is beginning to have a tendency to "ask ghosts and gods instead of the people."
During the National Day holiday, movie theaters experienced a long-awaited boom. The hit of "Life is Beautiful" in September continued to drive the trend of the entire market, so that the box office of "If You Are the One" released in late September also soared.
The first week box office was 21.6 million yuan, which broke the best record of Zhang Yimou's works released in the same period, and also broke the best first week record of a domestic film since "Farewell My Concubine".
In order to promote the movie, Yu Dong immediately reported this number to the newspaper. The news was quickly published, causing a strong response in the domestic film industry and countless filmmakers were delighted.
It has been many years since a domestic film achieved such impressive box office results.
Some people even discussed the fact that "If You Are the One" had a box office of over 100 million based on the first week's box office results. With a box office of over 20 million in the first week, breaking the 100 million mark does not seem to be a difficult thing.
Although this argument is a bit blindly optimistic, it has to be admitted that the impressive box office performance of "If You Are the One" has indeed given a shot in the arm to the gloomy domestic film market.
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
