Chapter 47
In addition to Xinghuo Entertainment, several medium and large entertainment companies also released trailers for new dramas at about the same time.
These were the directors who had received the news in advance and had already hidden their weapons for the Nine Stars merger.
Although the three are Cang Tianxing's trump cards, they did not show their swords in the first round and will appear at the most critical moment.
As for the big entertainment companies that appeared in the first round, in order not to embarrass Cang Tianxing during the confrontation between the two stars, they also sent out powerful warriors, at least they were all veteran directors of gold level. They might not be innovative enough, but the works of these veteran directors were mainly stable.
At this moment, the leaders of several large companies are holding an online meeting under the leadership of the Big Three.
The entertainment companies participating in the meeting almost monopolized the top forces in the entertainment industry of Cang Tianxing.
Ding Sheng's secretary, who was presiding over the meeting, projected the data his staff had just compiled onto the public screen. "Everyone, we just received news that Haotianxing Film and Television has revealed its first competitor."
"Just as we predicted, the other party also sent several veteran directors to release films to test the new market during the initial stages of the merger."
After a pause, the secretary said with a serious expression, "What's a little off-base is that there's a maverick platinum director across the street who announced a new work without any prior publicity and then immediately went out of business."
"This platinum director has already won the Best Film Award on Haotian Star. In the past two years, he seems to have disappeared from the Star Network. He must be in seclusion studying the tastes of our Cangtian Star audience."
"Now, with my first strike out of seclusion, I'm afraid I'm officially announcing that I'm about to embark on the thorny and bloody path of Star Guidance."
"The other party's film should have been shot before, and they chose to release it now. Obviously, they want to take advantage of the fact that the other strong platinum rivals of the two stars have not yet made their moves and reap the first wave of traffic during the merger chaos. This platinum director is very confident." The other party does have the capital to be confident.
The bosses of the various companies began to discuss the Secretary General's issue. The boss of Xinyi Media said: "Since the other party's platinum director left early, shouldn't we also send out a platinum director of equal strength to exchange resources with the other party and win the favor of the Haotianxing audience?"
Needless to say, among those who are equally matched and can compete for the position of star director, there are only three of them who have free time. Although they don't know it clearly, there are definitely platinum directors among the three who have extra films in reserve. I just don't know if there are any suitable ones for Haotianxing.
Before the three major companies made their statements, other bosses expressed different opinions. The boss of Yuedong Video:
"The other side's two top entertainment companies, which are competing against the Big Three, haven't made their moves yet. If our Big Three make their moves first, the other side's top companies might continue to increase their stakes. If both sides keep raising the stakes, and they've used up all their chips in the first round, how will they proceed?"
What Yuedong's boss said made sense. Seeing that the bosses on both sides split into two factions during the meeting, when it was time for the three to come forward to take charge of the situation, the middle-aged boss of Dingsheng coughed lightly to attract everyone's attention.
Just when everyone wanted to hear his insights, he showed his excellent leadership qualities and started talking nonsense:
"Everyone, calm down for a moment. Both sides have valid points. They're all for the sake of giving our Cangtian Star more initiative and benefits during the planetary merger. Everyone has good intentions, so there's no need to get really angry. Let's calm down first and then work together to solve the problem. If that doesn't work, we can always vote."
In the past, they were the bosses who always tried to smooth things over for their subordinates: “…” These official terms sound so familiar.
Pretending not to notice the other bosses' complicated looks, which seemed to be hesitant to speak, Dingsheng's boss laughed heartily, then thought of something and looked at the secretary general:
"By the way, Xiao Meng, don't just talk about aliens. There are so many excellent directors in our vast universe. Apart from the official team, I don't believe that there are no other directors who will end up like this."
It really does exist.
Secretary Meng flipped through the data report and said, "According to current statistics, many small entertainment companies have also had several Silver and Bronze Directors test the waters. Comprehensively comparing, our strength is comparable to that of the mid-level directors under Haotianxing."
At this point, Secretary Meng paused, a strange look on his face. Some of the bosses noticed and hurriedly urged, "Secretary Meng, if there's something unexpected going on, please speak up."
Secretary Meng was a man of few words. He simply uploaded another page to the public screen before adding in a subtle tone, "Besides our official Cang Tian Xing team, two other Director Jins have released trailers for their new dramas."
"A wealthy director from a personal studio. The announcement says the film will be released next week."
"There's also Director Jin who was recently promoted. His new drama will be released tomorrow, and the release time conflicts with that of Director Bai Jin from Hao Tianxing."
The Xinghuo official website interface appeared on the public screen. The Xinyi boss asked in surprise, "Xinghuo? That Director Huan?"
Everyone is familiar with Xinghuo, and Huan Xu is even more familiar with him.
After a while, the Yuedong boss sighed, "As expected of a young man, he's full of energy, skilled and bold. It's just a pity that he's not very lucky."
If Platinum got into a car accident, it would be bad luck. At that time, the people of Haotian Star would definitely support Platinum, and a lot of people from Cangtian Star would probably be attracted as well.
The boss of Crown snorted. He still held a grudge for the Man Jiang Hong incident. At that time, Fenghuo's chaos disrupted his plan, causing his plan to attack Xuantian Star to completely fail. But in the final analysis, it was not without reason because of Man Jiang Hong and Huan Xu who filmed Man Jiang Hong.
When he heard that Huan Xu was going to be in trouble, he was happy.
Unexpectedly, before the Crown CEO could pick up the small comb to take care of his hair, he suddenly felt a chill on his scalp. He turned his head in the direction of the cold air and saw Yan Ze staring at him expressionlessly.
Crown CEO: What’s wrong with this kid again?
Their eyes met, and Yan Ze continued to stare at him calmly, causing the Crown CEO to doubt himself, wondering if his hair was messy or if there was something on his face. He leaned closer and lowered his voice: "Xiao Yan, what are you staring at me for?"
Yan Ze didn't answer but asked, "What did you just hum?"
Crown CEO: ...He hummed Spark, no, what right does he have to tell Yan Ze what he hummed, and it has nothing to do with this kid and the topic they are discussing now.
The Crown CEO resisted the urge to roll his eyes: "I can hum if I want to, so why are you staring at me, Xiaoyan?"
Yan Ze glanced at the Crown CEO again inexplicably, then retracted his gaze and said indifferently, "Look if you want."
Crown CEO: ...No, there are cat biscuits, right?!
The topic quickly shifted from Huan Xu and Xing Huo. Except for Yan Ze, no one present thought that Huan Xu could gain the upper hand in the contest with Director Bai Jin.
The bosses returned to the previous question: whether to continue betting.
Neither side was able to convince the other, and the meeting proceeded to the voting stage.
In the first round of voting, the other companies outside the Big Three voted by raising their hands, and the two sides tied at one to one.
When it was the turn of the Big Three, Crown and Dingsheng also expressed their views one after another.
Dingsheng’s CEO smiled and said, “Let it be.” This is consistent with Dingsheng’s usual style, not following the trend but seeking victory in stability.
The Crown CEO's statement was also consistent with Crown's usual dominance: "Crown never admits defeat. I support the pursuit. Crown's director can lead by example."
The votes were tied again, only Yan Ze did not speak. His decision will also affect Cang Tianxing's response.
Becoming the focus of everyone's attention, Yan Ze did not speak immediately, but looked at the Crown CEO again.
The Crown CEO has dead eyes. Why are you looking at him again?
Could it be that this kid has realized his disrespect to his senior and is now ready to stand on his side to show goodwill? As expected, Yan kid didn't dare to make enemies with him. He, Luo Aotian, was a king who was born to be domineering and ruled everything.
“Young people are enterprising…”
Before the Crown boss could finish, Yan Ze slowly raised his arm, which was closer to the Dingsheng boss, and said calmly, "Just follow the original plan."
There is no need to think so complicated. Director Platinum has chosen the strongest opponent for himself, so they don’t need to do anything extra.
With a "creak", the virtual image of Crown's CEO suddenly stood up from his chair during the meeting.
"You kid..." Facing Yan Ze's calm gaze, the Crown CEO calmed down a little and barely suppressed his anger in his heart: "Yan Ze, are you sure you have thought it through?"
Yan Ze: "Yeah."
The Crown CEO went offline without saying anything.
He suspected that Yan Ze was deliberately opposing him and had evidence.
Sitting in the office, the Crown CEO became more and more angry, and finally came up with a bad idea. He found out the phone number of Yan Ze's father, and the secret technique that elementary school students are best at: telling their parents.
"Yan Lanhai, let me tell you, Yan Ze is going too far. You don't know..."
A gentle female voice rang out from the other side as a conversation was heard: "Lao Yan, who is it, a friend from work?"
Listening carefully to the background sound and the sound of waves hitting the beach, one can imagine that Yan Ze's parents should be walking on a beautiful beach at this moment.
A calm middle-aged man's voice rang out from the other side. He looked about three or four times like Yan Ze and lied calmly, "No, it's a promotional junk mail."
“Beep, beep, beep—”
The Crown CEO's call was directly disconnected, and a busy tone came from his mind. The Crown CEO was still a little slow to react.
After a while, the Crown CEO cursed angrily: "Fuck."
Like son, like father. The father and son of the Yan family are more infuriating than the other!
"Hang up the phone, how uncultured! You've got love encephalitis, there's no cure for you!"
On the Star Network, Huan Xu and Xinghuo’s blogs are also very lively at the moment.
The previous outrageous remarks made by the Cangtian people on Haotian Star were recorded by some enthusiastic Haotian people and spread out. Word spread from one person to ten, and from ten to a hundred. Driven by curiosity, more and more Haotian people came to Huan Xu and Xinghuo.
Whether you are curious or skeptical, you have to take a look.
And because it happened to clash with the work of Haotianxing's big director, more spectators came to watch for unknown reasons, including those from Cangtianxing, Haotianxing, and the number of melon-babies x2.
There are also some bored people from Haotian who deliberately moved the promotional announcement of Platinum Director Zhang Du to Huan Xuxingbo.
[Director Zhang Du: I am late, thank you all for waiting. The two stars merge and walk with love.
"His and Her" will be aired tomorrow night at 9:00 PM. Welcome new and old friends to watch and comment.
Xiao Luohao's haters, eager to watch the fun, even @ed Huan Xu, making sarcastic remarks: "If Huan is not good enough, just change the release date. Embarrass yourself, don't embarrass Cang Tianxing."
As soon as the comment came out, the crow faction came faster than the fans.
"Why are you hungry again? Even if Director Huan loses, it's an honorable defeat. You who are sneering and mocking me at this time are the ones who bring shame to my Great Canglan."
"He's in a trance: I'm a casual fan, but I'm on Huan Xu's side."
"Dadabai: Director Huan, keep going! Huan fans will always support you."
Obviously, except for a few black fans who really don't know what's going on, the rest of the people in Cangtian unconditionally support the director of their own star and comfort the young director of their own star in advance:
"Even though we lose, we still have honor."
"If you dare to fight, we will win."
“Failure is the mother of success.”
Huan Xu was at a loss whether to laugh or cry. He didn't know whether everyone had confidence in him or not. It seemed that they didn't have much confidence, but he was still very touched by everyone's support.
In the conference room, Uncle Wang stroked his chin and said, "So, it seems like Xinghuo has become the monkey being watched."
Ye Qian: "The more people who watch, the more traffic and viewers will be converted after the release tomorrow."
Huan Xu glanced at Ye Qian and remained silent, as if he had been betrayed.
Huan Xu turned to look at Xiao Gu. Gu Chen didn't speak for him, but nodded in agreement: "It's free publicity. We should thank that audience member."
Huan Xu: ...Okay, as long as you are happy.
On the other hand, under the star blog of Zhang Du, the platinum director of Haotianxing, someone also asked Zhang Du what he thought about the conflict in the release of his film with that of director Jin of Cangtianxing.
Not long after, Director Zhang’s blog was updated with only one picture: the King’s Sword wrapped in thorny roses.
The meaning of the Sword of the King of Thorns is well known. Zhang Du released a picture to officially announce to the public on his behalf, starting the charge of the Star Guide.
It is a response to the car crash, but not really a response.
Pointing his sword at Director Xing, he had a higher vision in his eyes. It meant that Director Zhang didn't take Huan Xu, Director Jin's junior, seriously at all.
Zhang Du's fans are obviously used to their director's excellence and arrogance, and they left messages one after another:
"Uncle Zhang is so awesome!"
"You're still the familiar old Zhang after returning. I just like your attitude that you're so arrogant that others can disobey you but can't defeat you."
"Cang Tianxing, our King Zhang is here, hahaha."
"Director Huan, right? It's your bad luck to run into our Old Zhang. Don't feel pressured. Even if other Platinums come, they will have to admit defeat. After all, our Old Zhang has the qualities of a star director."
The Haotian people's remarks were too outrageous, and the Cangtian people could not help it. Even if they knew they would lose, they would rather lose the battle than the people. It was just empty talk, and they would do it without asking for money.
Cang Tianren: "Don't be too happy too soon. We are Director Huan's five-time trophy winner. During the novice protection period, we have become Director Jin's genius. Before the results are released, it is still uncertain who will have the last laugh."
"That's right. Back then, Huan Dao killed a Gold level player at Bronze level. Now he's also at Gold level. He might be able to achieve another success by surpassing his level and killing a Platinum level player!"
"Your old Zhang has the potential to be a star director, and our director Huan is known as the Little God of Peace. Will the old king defend the throne, or will the new king ascend the throne? We will see tomorrow!"
As they were talking, even the people in the sky, who had originally fought for their reputation instead of the steamed buns, looked at each other and said, "Don't say it, don't say it. After thinking about it, in front of Director Huan's brilliant record, it seems that tomorrow is not a game that will be lost."
During the one-day wait for the release of the film, more and more people came to watch both Huan Xu's and Zhang Du's films, and the atmosphere became more tense as more people came.
The Cangtian people were still quite conservative, but the Haotian people, perhaps emboldened by Director Zhang's record, shouted slogans of victory.
"Tomorrow, everyone in heaven will be ready to bow down before King Zhang's suit pants."
"I admit that your Director Huan is excellent, and I admit that your intentions in welcoming us are good, but regarding the movie that will be released tomorrow... I shook my head."
"Let me be clear, the tastes of us Haotian people are not that easy to figure out. If you want to enter the Haotian market without three to five years of preparation, you are a leek. Ha, if guide dogs are good-looking, I will directly perform a live broadcast of eating table legs while standing upside down."
The moment Xinghuo released the link, the audience from Cangtian Star and Haotian Star entered the screening channel at the same time.
The overall tone of the promotional poster is warm, with green mountains as the backdrop and a small courtyard at the foot of the mountain.
In the setting sun in the yard, an old man was sitting on a small bench. A big black dog was lying drowsy at his feet. The old man was holding a wooden comb in his hand to raise the black dog's back hair, and the black dog's tail was sweeping back and forth leisurely.
The white hairs of a dandelion next to it bid farewell to its mother plant in the gentle evening breeze, and floated away in the distance in the dance steps of nature, to explore the vast new world.
Although the old man looked a little scary with a hideous scar on his face, the smile at the corner of his lips, the wrinkles under his eyes, the kindness and tolerance in his eyes, and the patience and caution in his movements all told us that appearance does not mean everything.
Looking at the harmonious scene between humans and animals, my impetuous mood seemed to settle down. I couldn't wait to enter the beautiful Xiaohe Village for a pleasant and relaxing journey.
Below the poster, there is a one-sentence summary: A puppy’s love is forever.
When pet owners at home saw this, they couldn't help but smile, touched their pet's head, and clicked the watch button with a smile.
Even the Haotian people who came to find fault couldn't find anything to criticize for the time being.
Whether it is the style of the poster or the one-sentence promotion, they all have the style of their favorite stars.
Winning first doesn't count as winning. Let's wait and see. The poster and introduction are simple. The most important thing is the content. Maybe it's just a disguise like some directors who trick people into being scammers.
Taking a few deep breaths, Haotian people clicked to watch with a mentality of eating shit, and they were determined to see whether the newcomer who appears once in a century is really a hype.
The show started playing, but the plot didn't get into it right away.
What caught my eye was a notebook spread out on the table, with an uncapped pen pressed on the yellowed pages, and the tip of the pen pressed at the end of the title - The Story of Grandpa Li and Awang.
Before the audience could see the other ink marks under the pen, the camera suddenly shook.
The room fell into darkness.
With a "click".
A yellow light source lit up in the dark lens, and in the center of the light source, an old film camera appeared on the desk where the laptop was previously placed.
The camera lens keeps zooming in, looking through the camera casing, and the tightly meshed gears are turning, as if opening the intersection of certain destinies.
Just then, a deep male voice narrated.
"I am a director, and also a child who walked out of the mountains."
"My hometown is called Xiaohe Village. There aren't many people in the village. The video I shot today records the story of Grandpa Li at the foot of the mountain and a black dog named Awang."
"As I recall, there lived a lonely old man at the foot of the mountain. He was silent and serious, with scars on his face. He looked ferocious and evil. Children were very afraid of him, and adults didn't dare to provoke him."
"However, starting from that year, Grandpa Li gradually changed. That year, Grandpa Li, who lived alone, was no longer lonely. He had a little black dog who depended on him for everything. That was Awang."
“Maybe it’s not just Grandpa Li who’s changing, but outsiders like us as well.”
"Grandpa Li is still as quiet as ever, but the children are no longer afraid of him because everyone knows that he is a good man."
"Grandpa Li also has a pair of skillful hands. In his hands, the green grass by the roadside can be transformed into a jumping frog, a flying dragonfly, and a cute little rabbit in the blink of an eye."
"Grandpa Li is also very generous. After he finishes weaving frogs, dragonflies, and rabbits, he will give them away to any children who ask for them."
"The children gradually began to like going to Grandpa Li's house, where they could get some small toys and occasionally listen to the old man tell Awang stories about the world beyond the mountains."
"Awang is also a good puppy. He is loyal, capable, and smart. He is a good guard dog."
"Oh, I forgot to mention that Grandpa Li's eyesight is not good. Fortunately, he has Awang."
"Today, many years have passed since Grandpa Li and Awang left, and I have experienced many people and things. However, these years, I think more and more often of the silent Grandpa Li and his family Awang in the small mountain village."
"It was touching and sincere, and it softened even my hard heart."
"Today I am sharing the story of Grandpa Li and Awang with everyone, hoping it can warm more people late at night."
Along with the "director's" confession, the gears on the screen disappeared, revealing the familiar desktop, the familiar yellow light source, and a projector quietly placed on the desktop. The film reel rotated, and a series of frozen photos appeared in front of the audience.
Before the light brain, neither the audience nor the filmmakers had expected that this time, Huan Xu actually added a prologue to the film.
And it's in the form of a monologue.
We have long been accustomed to the fast-paced life. The prologue, especially the long and boring prologue, has long been abandoned by the audience and directors. Wouldn’t it be better to click play to enter the plot directly and save everyone’s time?
The film critics quickly took notes.
The two words that were repeated most often were: “Bold!”
The film has never touched upon a field before, and even added an old-fashioned prologue to the beginning of the film. Only a "new" director like Huan Xu, who is stubborn and young and has not experienced much social hardship, would dare to stack debuffs fearlessly.
Among the audience, Huan Xu was once known by the nickname Huan Daodao. Now among film critics, Huan Xu has another stage name - Huan Dadan.
It really dares to innovate and really dares to shoot it.
Critics worried that the monologue prologue would be boring and drive away viewers. However, although some King Gigi took a look and left, more viewers chose to stay and found it quite interesting.
In fact, apart from notebooks, they have never seen old tape cameras, players and films.
But if you think about it, you can also think of its function.
The narrator spoke slowly, his bass voice pleasant to the ear.
Whether it is the framing, lighting design, or the capture of the atmosphere, the camera gives the audience a sense of novelty and awe, as if they were caught in a time machine and felt a sense of immersion and freshness.
The newly joined people from Haotian Star feel this even more strongly than the people from Cangtian Star - it tastes right!
The feel of artistic youth! They really love this kind of tune.
Plus vintage equipment and gear that's fascinating.
At the last second of the movie's official opening, a viewer from Haotianxing left a four-word mantra that was later passed down by word of mouth among the people of Haotianxing: [Renaissance].
Against the backdrop of lights, countdown numbers appear.
3, 2, 1.
"Click."
The author has something to say:
To be continued, dog head
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