Chapter 779 Three Requests
[Changjin Lake] is a typical mission film. The real producer is the State Film Administration, and the project was approved as early as the end of 2019.
Originally, Bona had not planned to make a blockbuster, but the crew had various issues during the preparation stage.
First, they encountered the epidemic and the team that was originally building the outdoor scenes was forced to stop, and then the original director Liu Weiqiang was temporarily transferred to the "Chinese Doctor" crew.
Without the director, the preparation of the film also came to a standstill.
But a lot of the money invested upfront has already been spent.
Yu Dong communicated with the Film Bureau and told them about his difficulties. They decided to make it a super production to rival "Wolf Warrior 2" and "The Wandering Earth".
Then China Film Group, Shanghai Film Group and Bayi Film Studio joined in one after another and became one of the producers second only to Bona.
[Changjin Lake] is going to be a super production and it’s not just talk.
Bona's professionals have calculated that in order to achieve the ideal effect, at least thousands of staff members must cooperate, tens of thousands of extras must be mobilized, and a huge number of props such as various military uniforms, guns, airplanes and tanks must be used.
The initial filming would require at least one billion dollars to complete.
Even Bona is now very cautious about this level of investment.
Yu Dong hesitated again and again, and felt that only by asking Gu Wei and Wu Jing to work together could the film ensure that it would not lose money.
He knew that Gu Wei had been busy with filming, so he went to find Wu Jing first. Everyone in the circle knew about their relationship. If Wu Jing accepted the job, it would be easier to persuade Gu Wei.
When he found Wu Jing, he had just finished leg surgery and was recovering.
Wu Jing's legs have always been injured. Action actors like him work very hard while filming and are often injured.
My leg injury was sustained while filming Wolf Warrior 1 and it has never fully healed. It became even more serious when I was filming Wolf Warrior 2 with Gu Wei. After finishing the movie, I went to film The Climbers before my injury was fully healed.
When Yu Dong approached him, Wu Jing didn't want to take the role at first, but after reading the script, he became interested.
Wu Jing has always had no resistance to playing the role of a soldier, and the script of "Changjin Lake" is particularly well-written. Through the tragic war, it highlights the iron will and heroic fighting spirit of our volunteer army.
Yu Dong saw that Wu Jing was wavering, so he struck while the iron was hot and promised to wait until his leg injury healed before restarting the filming. He also promised him a portion of the investment share, and only then did Wu Jing agree.
".I have already reserved a table for tonight. Mr. Gu, please be kind enough to come.
See you that night."
In the office, Yu Dong just hung up the phone call to Gu Wei.
After sending the script to Gu Wei, he contacted him twice. He could feel from Gu Wei's words that he was also a little moved, so he decided to make another effort.
Although Wu Jing has agreed to star in the film, it is not safe for him to do it alone.
"Wolf Warrior 2" and "The Wandering Earth" hailed Wu Jing as a star, but last year's "The Climbers" caused his reputation to drop significantly.
Although the box office appeal is still strong, without Gu Wei, his cooperation with others cannot satisfy the audience.
"Changjin Lake" should essentially be considered an ensemble drama, but only with the participation of Gu Wei and Wu Jing, Yu Dong can be completely relieved and no longer have to worry about the future box office being unsatisfactory.
"Boss, the Film Bureau has sent a letter stating that domestic cinemas will likely reopen around the end of next month. Should we consider releasing the several films our company has in the works in the second half of the year?"
In the company's small conference room, Gu Wei and a group of executives were holding a meeting.
Since the beginning of the year, domestic cinemas have been shut down. Without screening channels, the finished films have to be shelved.
[Wei Ming Tian Xia] currently has three completed films waiting to be released, [Detective Chinatown 3], [Life Events] and [Zhou Chu Eliminates the Three Evils].
"[Detective Chinatown 3] definitely can't be shown. Given the film's appeal, it can only maximize profits if it's released during the Spring Festival.
If cinemas can remain open in the second half of the year, I plan to release Detective Chinatown 3 during next year’s Spring Festival.”
Gu Wei first decided on the most important project in the company.
"Detective Chinatown 3" is the only comedy among the three movies, and it is also the third part of the super IP "Detective Chinatown". Judging from the previous works, the box office of "Detective Chinatown 3" can reach at least 4 billion, making it a real top blockbuster in China.
"As the market recovers in the second half of the year, there will likely be a wave of retaliatory movie-watching.
However, in my opinion, audiences who haven't watched a movie for more than half a year may like some more stimulating films with better audio-visual effects.
Although I have great confidence in [Life Events] as a feature film, I still don’t want to release it this year.”
Gu Wei has always believed that the box office performance of a movie is not only determined by the quality of the movie itself, but also by the time of its release.
For example, Wu Jing's "Wolf Warrior 2" was released at a very good time. It was released at a time when the domestic people's self-confidence was gradually growing, and it reaped a large wave of patriotic dividends.
If it had been released two years earlier or two years later, it wouldn't have gotten such a high box office.
With Gu Wei's performance and the excellent quality of the film, "Life Events" will have a good guaranteed box office no matter when it is released. However, since it has the potential to be a big hit, it is still necessary to consider choosing a suitable release date for "Life Events".
"Mr. Gu, do you intend to release "Zhou Chu Eliminates Three Evils" in the second half of the year?" Yang Liwen asked.
Gu Wei nodded.
"The plot of [Zhou Chu Eliminates the Three Evils] using violence to fight violence is actually very exciting, especially the part at the end of the movie that reaches the climax of the plot.
But whether and when to release it will depend on the market after cinemas reopen."
Having said this, Gu Wei hesitated.
“The market is actually very difficult to predict. I think there will be a wave of revenge movie-watching, but it’s also possible that due to the overall environment, the market will remain cold even after theaters reopen.
If that is the case, the authorities will most likely focus on supporting some films to "save the market."
[Zhou Chu] If it is selected, it can be released."
As he said this, he looked at Yang Liwen beside him, and she immediately understood.
"In the past two months, I will be actively communicating with the Film Bureau and China Film Group, keeping a close eye on their developments."
Gu Wei nodded with satisfaction.
In fact, in addition to these three films, he also has another movie to be broadcast [Send You a Little Red Flower].
However, the main controller of this drama is Han Yan's team, and it is jointly produced by China Film, Tencent, Hengdian Film, Ruyi Film and Television, Maoyan, Tao Piaopiao and other companies.
Although Gu Wei has a 30% share, he is only responsible for promotion when the film is released, and he is not responsible for other matters.
After discussing the company's upcoming films, Manager Zhao Mingcheng, who is in charge of film and television production, spoke.
"The company is currently working on three projects, and filming of "Love in the City 2" has already begun in Shanghai.
[Raging Fire] and [Joy of Life 2] are still in preparation.
Among them, the preliminary preparations for [The Crowd] are almost completed, and the filming will start at the beginning of next month.
The original filming start time for [Joy of Life 2] was a little later, probably after the filming of [The Crowd] was finished, so there is still some work that has not been completed."
[The Love Master 2] is the second film in the company's IP series [The Love Master]. Although it is the second film, the plot has nothing to do with the previous one. It is a bit similar to the relationship between several films in the [Ex-Files] series.
This film is a remake of the Argentine film "A Friend for Wife", a comedy film that "Wei Ming Tian Xia" started preparing for a long time.
Directed by new director Cui Rui, starring Xiao Yang, Zhang Tianai, Zhang Songwen, Clara and others.
The original time and space [Love in the City 2] was withdrawn from the schedule and has not been released since it brought together two artists who have fallen out of favor, Wu Xiubo and Bai Baihe. It is very likely that it was buried, and all the investment of the producer Wanda was wasted.
However, the [Wei Ming Tian Xia] version has its own artists, so there won't be any problems.
With the foundation of the first film, plus the current fame of Xiao Yang and Zhang Tianai, even if the box office doesn't explode, it will still achieve good results.
"Has Director Wen joined the crew?" Gu Wei asked.
“I joined the team after finishing the post-production of [Zhou Chu Eliminates the Three Evils].”
Wen Mu is also the director of "The Love Master 1". With him as the producer, even if Cui Rui is a new director, the quality of "The Love Master 2" can be basically guaranteed.
"Manager Yang, have you bought the copyright for the American movie I asked you to buy?"
When Yang Liwen heard her boss ask her, she thought about it for a moment.
"I recently completed the copyright transaction for 'The Imminent' with New Line Cinema, and I was just about to report to you."
"Um"
Gu Wei nodded slowly, then looked at Chen Xiang from the screenwriting department.
"Manager Chen, this film [Imminent] is your department's next project. I plan to make it the sequel to [Manslaughter], and try to keep the script style close to the first one.
There is also the script for Joy of Life 3. After the second part starts filming in the second half of the year, the script for the third part will also be put on the agenda."
"Understood, Mr. Gu."
[Wei Ming Tian Xia] was established in 2011 and has developed from [Gu Wei Studio] into a large-scale group company. It has now become one of the giants in the mainland's cultural and entertainment field.
Even without the support of superstar boss Gu Wei, the company can still develop well.
Not to mention other things, just in the film industry, after years of development, the company has accumulated three high-quality IP film series: "Detective Chinatown", "The Love Master", and "The Accidental Detective".
As long as they are handled well, these are the hens that truly lay golden eggs.
After leaving the company in the evening, Gu Wei took a car to the hotel booked by Yu Dong.
"Mr. Gu~"
When he pushed the door open and entered the private room, Yu Dong was already in the room, greeting Gu Wei with a smile.
"Director Yu, Director Lin"
Gu Wei replied, then looked at the other familiar figure beside him in surprise.
"Brother Jing, why are you here?"
"It was Director Yu who dragged me here."
Director Yu smiled and said, “Wu Jing has already taken over ‘Changjin Lake’, and I brought him in as a lobbyist, as well as Director Lin.
Mr. Gu can choose not to give me face, but he should at least give them some face."
Gu Wei walked in and sat down: "Director Yu, you are determined to get me to join you."
Yu Dong smiled bitterly: "I'm not trying to embarrass Mr. Gu, it's just that the investment in Changjin Lake is too huge.
The total investment is expected to be 1.3 billion yuan, which is unique in China.
I would be really scared if Mr. Gu didn’t join in to help support such a large investment.”
Yu Dong was quite sincere. This was the third time he invited Gu Wei to star in "The Battle at Lake Changjin", and he was very humble from beginning to end.
Gu Wei hesitated for a moment.
In fact, he is not opposed to filming "Changjin Lake".
Although the investment in this film was huge, the returns were even greater.
There are two parts in the original time and space of "Changjin Lake", "Changjin Lake" and "The Watergate Bridge of Changjin Lake".
The two films were shot together, which means 1.3 billion is the total investment of the two films.
However, the total box office of these two films reached 9.777 billion yuan, making it the highest-grossing series of films in Chinese film history.
Compared with this exaggerated box office performance, the 1.3 billion investment is nothing.
"I can take on [Changjin Lake], but I don't have any schedule this year."
Gu Wei finally gave in.
"No problem. Since there's so much to prepare for the film, we can postpone it until early next year. Wu Jing also needs time to recuperate."
Hearing Gu Wei say this, Yu Dong was overjoyed.
"Also, Director Yu is also aware of the rules for my acceptance of roles. The old rules cannot be changed."
Yu Dong hesitated slightly.
"I understand this, we can continue with the way we worked together before.
However, although Bona is the main controller of "Changjin Lake", China Film Group, Shanghai Film Group and August First Film Studio are also important producers.
There is definitely no problem with the share, but the specific proportion still needs to be discussed with other parties.
Of course, no matter what they do, we will definitely not disappoint Mr. Gu in terms of market share. At worst, we can use Bona’s market share to pay for it.”
Yu Dong speaks in a way that first criticizes and then praises, which is very skillful in language.
What he promised to Gu Wei will not change, and he will definitely get the share he deserves, but it is hard to say whether it will come from Bona or from the shares of China Film and other companies.
After things were settled, a few people started to eat and drink.
Gu Wei and his companions can be said to be among the people with the highest status in the domestic entertainment industry. They are the bosses of film and television companies, big directors, and top actors.
Of course, in addition to being actors, Gu Wei and Wu Jing are also directors and company owners respectively.
Gu Wei has [Wei Ming Tian Xia] and Wu Jing has [BJ Dengfeng International].
During the conversation, Gu Wei learned that Wu Jing's [BJ Dengfeng International] was also one of the production companies of [Changjin Lake]. Needless to say, it was naturally the share given by Yu Dong in order to invite him to perform.
Gu Wei didn't ask about the specific share, and it was not easy to ask. Even if they had a good relationship, such questions were personal privacy.
Just like Yu Dong just promised him an investment share but didn't specify how much, there was a tacit understanding between the two that the specific number would not be revealed to outsiders, and company personnel would naturally discuss it later.
"Brother Jing, how is your leg?" Gu Wei asked about Wu Jing's health while everyone was drinking and chatting.
"I had surgery at the beginning of the year and am still recovering."
"Is this the leg that had the accident during the filming of Wolf Warrior 2?"
"Yes, that one. It's an old problem for many years. It's nothing serious."
Wu Jing smiled and didn't take the injuries seriously.
Gu Wei looked at him and smiled, "I guess your sister-in-law must have told you not to drink before you came out today, right?"
"I did say that, but if you listen to everything a woman says, you won't be able to accomplish anything. Don't take it too seriously."
Wu Jing waved his hand and changed the subject.
"Let's not talk about this, I didn't expect that we would work together again so soon.
When the filming of The Wandering Earth was finished, I thought I wouldn’t have another chance for a while.”
Gu Wei smiled and said, "It all depends on the box office performance of Wolf Warrior 2 and The Wandering Earth. If there's any chance, others will try to bring us together."
Isn't that right, Mr. Yu?"
Yu Dong laughed and said, “Haha, that’s right.
The powerful combination of Mr. Gu and Wu Jing is a guarantee of box office success for domestic films, and no director or producer can refuse it."
"In [Wolf Warrior 2], we played master and apprentice, in [The Wandering Earth] we played father and son, and this time in [The Battle at Lake Changjin] we have to play brothers. There aren't many relationships left for us," Gu Wei said with a smile.
Wu Jing also joked, "We're playing brothers. When we stand together, you can tell that the parents favor the youngest son. After all, you're tall and handsome!"
After he finished speaking, Yu Dong and Lin Chaoxian also laughed.
(End of this chapter)
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