Chapter 95 Chapter 95 I am your biggest trump card. ...
Chen Zhuo received an email from the Film Bureau confirming that "Like Her" had passed review and could apply for a release permit. Since this was her first investment project, she was a little unfamiliar with the process, so she arranged to meet Li Yaqi for dinner and ask about the progress of "Fog Lights."
Li Yaqi told her that the most important thing next was to find a distributor. Generally, foreign copyrights would go to large state-owned companies like Huaying or Zhongxia, which had the strongest theater resources, scheduling capabilities, and publicity and marketing capabilities.
Li Yaqi said, "I can recommend two people to you. They are from these two distribution departments. If you want to find them to distribute the film, you can contact them to see the film in advance."
Chen Zhuo smiled: "Really? Thank you so much!"
"No need to thank me. Just consider it my way of repaying you for the favor I did for Fog Lights." Li Yaqi, in her many years with the production, has encountered actors who canceled their roles before filming began for various reasons. When a replacement artist was brought in, their agent would usually double their pay. She concluded that the production couldn't afford to delay filming, but couldn't find a more suitable replacement besides her own. In such cases, she had no choice but to rush into filming, paying a high price to sign the artist, even offering him or her amenity beyond their status.
At that time, the crew of "Fog Lights" was facing problems with funding and actors. Chen Zhuo recommended Jiang Rui in a timely manner, and the price he asked for was very fair. He did not ask for an exorbitant price. Li Yaqi was relieved of a lot of pressure on the budget, and she always remembered it.
"So what's the current situation with Fog Lights?" Shen Zhuo asked.
Li Yaqi said, "We were originally thinking of trying for Cannes, but because of the Qiao Xinyue incident, it was delayed for two months and we can't make it. Mai Xu said we should apply for Venice and Berlin this year. As for China, it might not be released until the second half of the year. How about you, how's your studio doing?"
Chen Zhuo smiled and said, "It's okay. I signed two more girls who haven't graduated yet and I want to train them. Guan Siyu will go to Hong Kong to join the crew in April. Now my top priority is to release "Like Her". I just don't know if I can make the money back. The further I push it, the more uncertain I feel." Most of her investment is now in this movie. If there is a loss, her little heart really can't bear it.
Li Yaqi comforted her: "It's okay, just take your time."
After parting ways with Li Yaqi, Chen Zhuo immediately added the staff of Zhongxia Distribution Department. They were also old friends of Li Yaqi who had known each other for many years. Knowing the situation on Chen Zhuo's side, they all welcomed her to the company to discuss cooperation. Chen Zhuo made a quick decision and made an appointment with the two of them to watch the movie.
Soon, Chen Zhuo arrived downstairs on time. Liu Ying, who was in charge of connecting with her, came down to take her to the company's screening room. This place was basically a small movie theater. Chen Zhuo chose to sit in the last row. Soon, more than a dozen people came in one after another. There were five rows in total, and the first two rows were almost full.
Liu Ying debugged the equipment and walked to the front to briefly introduce the film that was about to be played.
When getting the film source and adding subtitles in post-production, Chen Zhuo had already watched it many times in the machine room. She was familiar with the plot, so she moved a row of seats forward and began to pay attention to the status of the film leaders.
Halfway through the movie, three male leaders were already checking their phones and replying to messages. They hardly watched the movie seriously in the second half. One of them even fell asleep leaning back in his chair. On the contrary, the female leaders were all watching the movie very seriously.
This is a movie from a female perspective, and it is obvious that men cannot empathize with it. Although her sample size is only a dozen people and is not sufficient, it does reflect the problem.
After the movie, Liu Ying took Shen Zhuo to a conference room for a brief chat.
Liu Ying gestured for Shen Zhuo to sit down and poured her a cup of tea. "Just now, colleagues from our distribution department, publicity department, marketing department, data department, theater chain manager, and production copyright department came. We should be able to issue a written opinion in two days."
Chen Zhuo nodded, "Okay." This was her first time participating in such an evaluation, and she felt a little unsure. She asked tentatively, "Teacher Liu, what do you think of this film?"
Liu Ying replied: "I actually like this movie very much. Both the story and the performance are good. However, the audience of this movie is a bit too limited. It basically abandons the male market. Although our statistics show that there are more female viewers, many of them are couples. They would not choose this movie first when they go to the cinema."
Just as Shen Zhuo expected, she smiled and said, "I see. So, how will your company promote this?"
"If we agree to release the film after evaluation, we will charge a distribution fee of 10% of the box office revenue. As for publicity, for independent and niche films like this, the copyright holder usually covers the publicity and marketing costs."
Chen Zhuo frowned slightly: "From what I understand, it seems that the publisher can advance the publicity costs?"
"Yes, but the market risks are getting bigger and bigger now. Many films have failed to perform well at the domestic box office as expected. Currently, we only advance payment for some Hollywood blockbusters or films by well-known directors like Hayao Miyazaki and Makoto Shinkai. The rest are all paid by the copyright holders. In addition, although "Like Her" has a high rating on the platform, it is not a big IP and does not have top stars. So I don't think it is likely that we will advance payment."
"I understand. Thank you."
Leaving Huaying, Shen Zhuo's heart sank. She had thought she could save some publicity and promotional expenses, but she hadn't expected it to be hers. If this was the case for Huaying, then Zhongxia should be the same. She called the finance department and asked how much money was left on the company's books.
Just over three million, this is the remuneration for all the collaborative projects between Guan Siyu and Jiang Rui in the first half of the year, the amount received after tax deduction and equal division.
Chen Zhuo was a little annoyed. She couldn't put all three million into publicity. Besides, money was scarce in the film industry. Three million in publicity wouldn't make a splash. It would take at least ten million to make a splash.
The next day she went to Zhongxia, and the cooperation method offered there was the same as that of Huaying.
Soon, she received feedback from both parties on the film. Huaying affirmed the advantages and also pointed out the shortcomings, but because of the market audience, the other party's final opinion was: commercial distribution in theaters is difficult, and commercial theater distribution is not recommended. It is recommended to negotiate cooperation with streaming platforms or development companies.
It was like a bolt from the blue...
She never expected that Huaying would not be able to pass the distribution.
Zhongxia agreed to issue the shares, but asked for a 15% issuance fee.
The land bidding that Shao Chengzhang participated in has ended, and he is awaiting the final results, but he can go home early. When he returns, he finds Shen Zhuo sitting on the floor in a daze. He calls her several times before she responds, slowly turning her head and letting out an "ah," which reminds him of the sloth named Lightning.
"What are you thinking about? Why are you so engrossed?" Shao Chengzhang walked over with a smile, stood behind her, lifted up the cushion on the side, and kicked it over to her. "Aren't you cold if you don't use the cushion?"
Chen Zhuo didn't care whether the floor was cold or not. Her heart and her project were completely ruined.
She suddenly curled her lips and whimpered at him, "It's over, Shao Chengzhang, I'm finished." She looked pitiful.
"What do you mean it's over? I'm still here even if the sky falls. What's wrong?" He sat down next to her.
"The project I invested in is over. I went to see the film these two days. Huaying refused to distribute it, but Zhongxia's distribution fee is very high. I have to pay for the publicity myself... But the publicity..." Shen Zhuo thought about his meager salary and sighed heavily. "The maximum I can contribute to publicity is 1.5 million, which is not enough."
Shao Chengzhang thought for a moment and said, "First of all, getting the Dragon Mark proves that there are no problems with the film. Huaying rejected it, and Zhongxia Distribution's offer was too high, but that doesn't mean there are no other options. Have other distribution companies asked?"
Chen Zhuo shook his head. "Basically, these two companies distribute foreign films like this. Even if others are released, they'll rarely be shown in theaters."
Shao Chengzhang said: "The low screening schedule is due to popular blockbusters. If the release schedule avoids popular movies, the screening schedule will be relatively balanced. Don't be too quick to sigh. We will find the second-tier companies in the market that can distribute and negotiate with them one by one. As for publicity, there are ways to use 1.5 million yuan."
It was obvious that Chen Zhuo was truly devastated, and he seemed listless even when listening to his analysis.
"Let's go." He pulled her up and led her to the study. Shao Chengzhang sat down at his desk and began researching. He looked up all the distribution companies and reviewed their past releases. He found three that had released over 40 films, one of which was even the largest private film and television company in the country.
Shao Chengzhang sent her the names of three companies. "Talk to these three first. If that doesn't work out, move on to smaller distribution companies. You can prioritize Zhixia; they also released a foreign film last year that grossed over 60 million yuan."
"More than 60 million?" Chen Zhuo's eyes widened when he heard it, and he stood up straight, "Which movie?" She expected that she would be thankful if "One Look at Her" could reach a box office of 30 million.
Shao Chengzhang stood up and said, "Let's go eat first, and then we'll look at it together after dinner, so you'll have a better idea." It took him more than an hour just to screen the companies.
Chen Zhuo glanced at the time. It was already past eight o'clock. "Why haven't you eaten yet?"
"Have you eaten?" Shao Chengzhang asked instead of answering. He had clearly wanted to come back and eat with her. Aunt Chen said she had made soup for them. After entering the house, he glanced at the island counter and dining table. The tabletops were spotless, and seeing her state, he guessed she hadn't eaten.
Shen Zhuo shook his head: "I couldn't eat it at that time."
"Then let's eat together, honey, I'm so hungry."
Knowing that he had delayed his meal, Shen Zhuo was too embarrassed to drag him along and went to the restaurant with him. There was fresh steak in the refrigerator, and Shao Chengzhang fried two large pieces directly.
After cutting the steak and serving two bowls of soup, Shen Zhuo ate without putting her phone down. She had to put the publishing aside for now because she still had the publicity issue, which was a real headache.
"I think I was really impulsive. I should have been more cautious at the beginning. I bought the copyright on a whim without considering the consequences at all." Shen Zhuo said suddenly with regret.
"How can it be impulsive? You had already seen the film before buying the rights. This was just your first investment attempt. You hadn't experienced the stages of distribution and promotion, so you felt overwhelmed."
Shen Zhuo lowered his head and poked the steak with a fork, muttering, "But I just didn't think it through. Now a bunch of problems are weighing on my head."
If this were her home turf, she wouldn't mind any problem, no matter how big it was, because she could judge the consequences through her own experience and knew how to solve it. However, this was a new field for her, and everything was unknown. She needed to figure it out bit by bit on her own, and she didn't even know if she could solve it.
"Don't I still have you? If you think about everything, many people won't do it after weighing the pros and cons or just to be safe. If they don't do it, they will never succeed." Shao Chengzhang looked up at her. "But there is a faster solution. Do you want to hear it?"
"What?" Shen Zhuo asked.
"Accept Zhongxia's distribution fees. I'll cover the publicity costs for you. You just need to make sure every step is implemented until the movie is released."
"No." Chen Zhuo refused without thinking. She still owed him three million and didn't want to be in debt anymore. She vowed, "I can handle it myself." For the three million, she had to let the movie be released.
Shao Chengzhang smiled and nodded: "I believe in you and support you. Even if the result is bad, you still have me. I am your biggest trump card, so just do it boldly, don't be afraid."
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