Chapter 315 I, Liu Shishi, voted
In mid-December, as autumn faded away and winter arrived, Beijing welcomed the first snow of 2010.
In a quiet and elegant coffee shop room, the warm yellow light inside forms a sharp contrast with the ice and snow outside.
The two men sat together by the window, looking at the falling snowflakes through the glass.
The younger man of the two looked down at his watch, a little anxious: "Teacher, it's almost 4 o'clock. Are the investors introduced by Teacher Xue Jian reliable? Will they stand us up?"
Another older man called "teacher" sighed: "Who knows, but now I have to be more patient when asking for help. Besides, isn't there still more than ten minutes left before the appointment time?"
Hearing this, the young man could only calm down and continue waiting.
About ten minutes later, the cafe staff suddenly pushed open the door of the private room and led the two women in.
The two men looked in the direction of the voice and saw a girl who was plump and had a festive look on her face.
The other one was wearing a snow-white down jacket, a tight hat and a mask, revealing only a pair of bright eyes and willow-shaped eyebrows, revealing a unique charm.
The girl in snow-white came straight to the dining table, gracefully took off her hat and mask, revealing a gentle and charming face.
The girl smiled and said in a clear voice, "Director Kong, Producer Hou, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. I'm Liu Shishi, and this is my assistant Jiang Yuanyuan."
It turns out that the two men are the well-known producer Hou Hongliang and director Kong Sheng of the hit drama "Crossing the Guandong".
The two had not expected that the investor they had been waiting for would be the popular young actress Liu Shishi. After a moment of pause, they quickly stood up and said, "Teacher Liu, you are too polite. It is not the agreed time yet. We are early. Please take a seat."
Liu Shishi smiled and nodded in response, then sat down opposite the two of them with her assistant.
"Ms. Liu, Ms. Jiang, what would you like to drink?"
The waiter had a professional smile on his face and spoke in a familiar tone, obviously accustomed to the arrival of big stars.
"Two lattes, please."
"Please wait a moment." The waiter gently closed the door, leaving space for the guest.
Liu Shishi was very graceful and generous: "Producer Hou, Director Kong, I have heard of your names for a long time. My whole family is a loyal audience of "Crossing the Guandong", and the show is so well made."
Hou Hongliang said modestly: "Thank you for the compliment. I am just a little famous."
While a few people were exchanging greetings, the waiter brought two cups of coffee.
Yijie picked up a small spoon, gently stirred the fragrant coffee, and got straight to the point: "Producer Hou, Director Kong, my master Li Xuejian told me that you two are looking for investment. Do you have a new drama to shoot?"
The master and disciple looked at each other, with surprise in their eyes for a long time. They didn't expect that the popular actress Liu Shishi would actually be Li Xuejian's disciple. It was really unexpected.
"Hongliang, you talk to Teacher Liu." Kong Sheng handed the right to speak to Hou Hongliang, who was an artist and not good at speaking.
Hou Hongliang nodded: "It's like this, Teacher Liu. It's not that we need funds to shoot a new drama. It's that you and I are planning to set up a film and television company and are currently looking for a suitable investor."
"Open a film and television company!" Sister Yi raised her eyebrows slightly, a little surprised, "As far as I know, Producer Hou, you and Director Kong are both from Shanying, right? Are you planning to leave Shanying and start your own business?"
"Yes!" Hou Hongliang's response was sonorous and powerful. He, Kong Sheng, Li Xue and others were all core members of Shanying.
However, in recent years, the film and television market has undergone tremendous changes, gradually shifting from the traditional "director-centered system" to a more market-oriented operating model.
However, Shanying faces institutional constraints as a state-owned enterprise and finds it difficult to fully adapt to market competition. Some innovative projects are difficult to implement due to cumbersome approval procedures and conservative decision-making mechanisms.
He and his teacher Kong Sheng have discussed many times that only by establishing his own company can he be more flexible in shooting works and boldly explore the path of film and television commercialization.
Another point is that the entertainment industry is now booming like never before, and countless practitioners are making a fortune. He, Kong Sheng, Li Xue and others are naturally jealous. They feel that they have the ability and connections, and can completely break free from the shackles and make more profits.
Everyone hit it off and decided to leave Shanying and set up their own film and television company.
But starting a company is not just talk. Purchasing equipment, renting office space, and paying employee salaries all require real money.
Although Hou Hongliang and Kong Sheng are well-known in the circle, they did not accumulate much wealth when they worked at Shanying before.
Naturally, people were not happy to be asked to empty their family savings to invest in a new company. After all, film and television production is risky. Many people made money, but there were also many more who lost everything and went bankrupt.
After some discussion, Hou Hongliang and Kong Sheng wanted to seek capital injection from an external investor.
Unfortunately, because the period dramas and realistic themes they are good at have weak commercial attributes and are not favored by mainstream investment institutions, the road to financing is more difficult than imagined.
Even if some individual investors were willing to invest, their demands were exorbitant and they would demand more than 50% of the shares right away, which was unacceptable to this new entrepreneurial team.
By chance, when everyone was running into obstacles everywhere, Hou Hongliang and Kong Sheng met Li Xuejian at a meeting.
Li Xuejian is from Shandong Province. His father is also a leader in the propaganda system. He has dealt with Shanying and is an old acquaintance of Hou Hongliang and Kong Sheng.
After learning about the two's predicament, she couldn't bear to see their talents being buried, so she thought of her own rich apprentice, and introduced the two to Liu Shishi, which led to today's meeting.
It was warm as spring in the coffee shop. Liu Shishi leaned against the window, her eyes looking across the bustling street to the towering building across the street.
Pick up the coffee cup, take a sip of latte, and let the bitter taste fill your taste buds.
Although her teacher Li Xuejian strongly recommended it, she would invest some money in this film and television company.
But deeply influenced by her husband's investment philosophy, she understood that investment is something that cannot be rushed and that one must take the initiative into one's own hands.
Seeing that Liu Shishi had no more words and was just looking out the window intently, Hou Hongliang and Kong Sheng also looked out in the direction of Yijie's gaze, and what caught their eyes was the shining "Tenda" logo on the top of the building opposite.
"Producer Hou, Director Kong, isn't this building opposite spectacular?" Yi Jie was in high spirits. Sometimes when she had nothing to do and was waiting for her husband to get off work, she would sit here and drink coffee. The angle here was excellent and she could see the office of the chairman of Tengda.
"This is the headquarters of Tengda Culture! It is indeed majestic and magnificent as expected of a super giant in the Internet industry." Hou Hongliang replied softly.
It gets dark early in December. I don’t know when, but the neon lights on the walls of the Tengda Technology Building have quietly lit up, dazzling in the gradually darkening sky.
Liu Shishi smiled and raised her hand, revealing the wedding ring on her ring finger. "My husband works across the street, so I like sitting here and looking at his company."
Hou Hongliang was both surprised and confused. He didn't expect that the most popular young actress in the entertainment industry was secretly married, but now she was talking about investment. He didn't understand why the other party mentioned marriage.
When the two were confused, Liu Shishi continued, "My husband is a learned and cultured man. He also appreciates your work and thinks it has depth and originality. Plus, because of my master's face, I will invest in your company."
Kong Sheng and Hou Hongliang felt relieved. Liu Shishi did not refuse directly. It was a good thing that she was willing to invest, but the other party had taken such a big detour, so there must be something else going on. So they waited quietly for her to put forward the conditions.
“My husband is a famous investor who has invested in numerous excellent companies. He told me that starting a business requires great courage and determination.
You also need the ability to draw a beautiful blueprint and be able to effectively organize a group of people to help you realize your dreams and ambitions.
Producer Hou, Director Kong, tell me, what kind of film and television company do you want to set up? "
Hou Hongliang's face turned stern and he sat upright. He knew that the next speech would be the key to financing.
Moreover, Liu Shishi's unique opening remarks and unique way of thinking gave him a glimmer of hope, a glimmer of hope that he could both raise funds and control the company without being interfered with in his creation.
“My teacher and I believe that a good film and television company should put the script first and focus on literary quality and depth.
In terms of subject matter, we will play to our strengths, choose to focus on society and history, and reflect the changes of the times through realistic themes. . . ”
Hou Hongliang's eyes sparkled as he spoke to Liu Shishi. When he got excited, he even danced with joy:
"In short, our business and creative philosophy can be summarized as taking content as the core, truth as the background, technology as the support, and responsibility as the use."
Kong Sheng sat aside, frowning slightly. He was well aware of the disadvantages of the realistic themes they were good at.
Compared with urban dramas and idol dramas with light plots and high popularity, realistic themes have weaker commercial attributes and poor economic benefits.
I quickly added: "Of course, the marketization of film and television works is a trend. We will also follow the trend of the times, integrate traffic and quality, and respond to the needs of younger people."
Liu Shishi held her chin with her hand, looking thoughtful. She has been in the industry for several years now, and her husband is an entertainment mogul with a vision ahead of his time. After being influenced by him, she is no longer the ignorant person she used to be.
“What Producer Hou said about focusing on quality and content sounds grand, but it also carries risks.
Nowadays, the pace of life is fast and audiences prefer fast-food entertainment. How do you balance artistry and commerciality to make your works both popular and well-received? "
"This!" Hou Hongliang was speechless for a moment. Nowadays, the film and television market is highly competitive, and young people have little interest in period dramas. No producer or director dares to guarantee that a film or TV series will make money. There are also many works in the circle with high reputation and low ratings.
The old ones are the wisest. At the critical moment, Kong Sheng stepped forward and said, "Teacher Liu, our work will pursue perfection in costumes, props, scene construction, and sound design. It will be both artistic and entertaining. Even if the subject matter is serious, it can attract young audiences."
The teacher's interruption gave Hou Hongliang time to buffer and think: "Teacher Liu, our company will focus on film and television production and will not be involved in artist management business.
In the future, we can cooperate with Tangren and transfer some character resources to Tangren Films.”
Hou Hongliang believed that as the top female star of Tangren, Liu Shishi must attach great importance to the development of Tangren. Proposing ideas for cooperation would certainly increase her willingness to invest.
Liu Shishi nodded slightly, looking at the two people in front of her who were extremely dedicated to art, and silently compared them with Cai Yinong in her heart.
After some thought, I suddenly realized that such a comparison underestimated them. Sister K seemed to have a huge gap compared with the two of them in terms of both pattern and concept.
"Producer Hou, Director Kong, I admire your craftsmanship very much. I, Liu Shishi, have invested in your film and television company. Let's discuss the details of the financing amount and equity distribution."
As soon as these words came out, Hou Hongliang was overjoyed and quickly took out a document from his briefcase and handed it to Sister Yi:
"Teacher Liu, this is our detailed business plan, including financial planning, team structure, equity details, etc. Please take a look."
Liu Shishi took the business plan and flipped through it page by page. She found that Hou Hongliang, the major shareholder of Dongyang Noon Sunshine Film and Television Co., Ltd., held 31% of the shares and was the company's largest shareholder.
Next are Kong Sheng 25%, Li Xue 18%, and Sun Molong 15%. These four are the company's major shareholders, and other team members own the remaining 11% of the shares.
While Liu Shishi was reading the materials, Hou Hongliang was troubled and thought that he should say something up front:
"Teacher Liu, no matter how much financing we raise or how many shares we give up, creative freedom is our bottom line. We have the right to make creative decisions, and this must be written into the financing terms."
Sister Yi didn't care: "That's fine. My husband said that investment is not just about money, it's also about trust."
Seeing that Liu Shishi was so open-minded, Hou Hongliang and Kong Sheng looked at each other secretly, and a silent understanding was conveyed. They both made up their minds that they would keep this investor even if they had to give up a little more equity.
"I saw on the report that 5 million in start-up capital is needed, not counting the project investment?"
"Yes, in the early days of Noon Sunshine, the production capacity of a medium-sized film and television company was benchmarked. The equipment, venue, operation, human resources and salaries, etc., added together, would cost at least 5 million!"
Liu Shishi calculated and nodded in approval: "That's reasonable. How many shares can I get if I pay 5 million?"
Hou Hongliang stared at the beautiful face of Tangren's number one sister, and quickly weighed the options in his mind. After a moment, he carefully probed, "5 million in exchange for 30% of the shares. You can participate in daily operations, but you won't interfere with creation."
Liu Shishi did not answer immediately, but continued to look down at the plan. The box was silent for a while, and the atmosphere became strangely depressing.
Just when Hou Hongliang was about to lose his temper and was about to make some concessions on the shares, Liu Shishi spoke first: "I have my own business, so I'll leave the management of the company to Mr. Hou."
Sister Yi was actually observing Hou Hongliang quietly just now. Seeing that he looked conflicted, she knew that she should leave him alone for a while as there was still a possibility of making concessions on the shares.
But there is no need to do so. Investing is also investing in people. Excessive exploitation will inevitably lead to unpleasantness with the founding team, which will not be worth the loss.
Hou Hongliang and Kong Sheng were ecstatic. Noon Sunshine had finally reaped the rewards of their hard work and met an angel investor.
Liu Shishi closed the proposal and said, "Producer Hou, 5 million is not worth spending. I have another suggestion. I will pay 8 million and get 40% of the shares.
This way, the company has the initial funding for its first project, but there is an additional condition: I have priority investment rights for Noon Sunshine’s projects.”
After investing in "Love Apartment" and "Lost on Journey", she became extremely interested in investing in film and television projects.
Hou Hongliang agreed without any hesitation to Liu Shishi's proposal to invest 8 million yuan in exchange for 40% of the shares. In his opinion, as long as the investor does not interfere with the operation and creation, it does not matter whether the shares are a few points more or a few points less.
Outside, the first snow in Peking stopped quietly; inside, Liu Shishi signed her name on the investment intention booklet, invested 8 million in the name of the studio, and became the largest shareholder of Noon Sunshine Film and Television Company.
(End of this chapter)
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