The call ended.
Shen Fang raised the corners of his mouth slightly and looked at Zhang Yimou with a smile on his face.
"Senior, our domestic box office has reached nearly 240 million RMB in just 14 days. South Korea, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and other Asian markets have also contributed nearly 80 million RMB in box office revenue, all of which have won the weekly champion title. You are really going to become world-famous this time."
Man raised his glass: "Director Zhang, shouldn't we have a drink? You've made history by grossing 320 million in 14 days, and that doesn't even include the North American results. You're amazing."
Jet Li nodded repeatedly: "In today's domestic market, this achievement is beyond words, except perhaps as a miracle. Of course, the film itself is indeed very well made. Director Zhang, you are truly amazing."
Jet Li's assessment is quite fair and rational. Having been in this industry for so many years, in today's domestic market, a film that can earn 50 million yuan at the box office is considered a great success. Although the film "Hero" had a large investment and deserved a high box office, the risks were even greater. If things went wrong, the film could lose everything. It's not that you can make a good movie or make money just by spending money.
Just like the Hangzhou Ma and Shenzhen Ma of later generations, and Wang Wanda, people here truly understand what it means to throw money into the water and not make a sound. Especially the Shenzhen Ma, who has dominated the business world for many years, and whose penguin can stand out from the crowd, what did he rely on? He relied on big data, user base, their publicity methods, and throwing money at it.
When he had everything he wanted, he used big data to create the script with the highest user support, cast the most popular actors, did a lot of promotion, and invested a lot of money. What was the result? The audience didn't buy it at all, and there was a lot of criticism. Of course, this is also related to some directors and actors, but these capital tycoons trusted big data too much.
Whether a movie is good or bad depends on many factors. The most crucial is the script. If the script is bad, no matter how you film it, it will be mediocre. The second is the director. A good director can visualize the scene just by looking at the script and knows exactly how to film and act. The third is the actors. Which is more important, acting skills or looks?
Of course, it's all about acting. Let's not even talk about anything else; just look at the entire cast of *The Nameless*. How many of them are handsome? How many are beautiful? The female lead, Ren Suxi, is practically considered one of the ugliest in the industry, and the male actors are even more unattractive. Yet, in an era dominated by young, handsome actors, she completely outshone them. It grossed 800 million yuan at the box office, and none of the cast members were famous; most had little film experience, mostly just extras or television actors.
But their acting is good; they can tell the story clearly, and the comedic effect is also good. The story is engaging and can make the audience laugh.
In fact, an actress who is too beautiful can often limit her acting roles. Take Liu Yifei, for example. She's just too beautiful. She can play princesses, rich ladies, and beauties without any acting skills. She *is* the character; she just needs to be dressed up. She's a perfect fit for the role. If the storyline is good, the box office will explode, and the audience will naturally praise and love her.
But if you ask this young lady to play a child from a poor family, a woman, a mother, or a comedic character, she's absolutely unsuitable. Where's her presence? Where's her appearance? Even if she gets into character, the audience won't be able to connect with her. This is Liu Yifei, the fairy goddess, a celestial beauty!
This is also the main reason why viewers say Liu Yifei's acting skills are not good. If you watch the movie with a filter on your eyes, no matter how well she acts, you will still think that she is Xiaolongnu or Wang Yuyan.
It's hard to look away from it; it's too classic. It's so beautiful.
However, this young lady is quite reckless, liking to challenge her weaknesses by filming melodramatic dramas, like "The Flowers of War," where she plays a woman from a poor family. Can she really pull it off? What kind of woman looks like that?
So there are many reasons why a movie might be good or bad. If you don't understand the industry, and you try to make movies, thinking that big investments, IP scripts, popular stars, and crazy promotional channels will guarantee high box office returns, that's just nonsense.
It's really hard to make money from art. If it's not a good piece of work, people are unlikely to buy it or support it willingly.
Film is the seventh art, and it also encompasses and promotes the essence of the nine major arts.
"Wow, Senior Brother Zhang, you're amazing!" Liu Tianxian looked at Zhang Yimou with admiration. She was also in the industry, and through Liu Xiaoli's influence, she knew very well how amazing Zhang Yimou was; he was simply groundbreaking.
"Senior brother, look how much Sisi admires you. Sisi toasts you, senior brother. Once you've honed your acting skills, I'll definitely collaborate with you. I'll invest in you then, and we'll make a name for ourselves internationally and become superstars."
Liu Qianqian obediently held up the orange juice.
"Senior brother, let me toast you."
Zhang Yimou chuckled: "Junior brother, you're setting me up. But we're from the same school, and you're willing to spend money to promote me, so I'm sure I'd like to work with Xixi. But let me make this clear beforehand: we need to wait until Xixi's acting skills are up to par. She's still a fledgling, and she hasn't learned her skills yet. Don't try to force her on me."
"Haha, don't worry, senior brother. Qianqian is still young, so there's no rush. I made a promise with you, and I won't make things difficult for you. Qianqian, you have to work hard!"
"Yes, I will work harder. Hehe."
"Oh my, Qianqian, tell me how good your brother Chen is to you. After this movie, Director Zhang will be an internationally renowned director. If we want to work together then, we might as well beg for it. Look at you, you've already landed the lead role promised by Director Zhang. Tsk, I'm so envious." Man Shen pinched Liu Qianqian's cheek and teased her.
Liu Qianqian looked very happy. "Brother Shen Fang is the best to me. I love you!"
Zhang Ziyi, standing to the side, felt so sour that her teeth fell out.
Liu Qianqian had just one small idea.
Shen Fang made the arrangements right away, providing both money and manpower as needed.
She put in so much effort to land the lead role in Zhang Yimou's "My Father and Mother." She betrayed her best friend and roommate, Zeng Li, endured the ridicule and scorn of the entire school, and suffered for two months in the countryside before finally landing the part. If she hadn't become famous overnight, her future would have been ruined. Because of this, her former roommates became distant, and countless people at school spoke ill of her.
Her methods were certainly not honorable, but she didn't care. As long as she could become famous, she didn't care about anything else.
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