Huayu: Hard fight against Zhang Weiping at the beginning

Chapter 336: Isn't it a bit low
Cube Company and Star Entertainment are two companies, and Zhang Chen has no intention of merging them.

His base is in the country, so Xingchen Entertainment is responsible for the domestic market.

As for Cube Company, Zhang Chen positions it as a cash cow.

He plans to have Cube Company make more cult films, the kind with low costs and high returns, which are the real way to make money.

At that time, the US dollars earned here were brought back to China to develop the film and television industry. This was the hard truth.

Diane didn't know about Zhang Chen's ideas, but she agreed with the approach of cultivating book fans, which was what Warner did.

"So what's our first play?"

They have just taken over Cube Company and must achieve some results to stabilize people's hearts.

"Among the scripts I gave you the other day, there's one called 'Hold Your Breath'. Do this one."

"Don't Breathe" is a low-budget movie from 2016 that tells the story of three thieves who break into the home of a blind veteran.

The three of them thought that a blind man would be easy to deal with, but they didn't know that the blind veteran was the devil. From the moment they entered, they were like sheep entering a wolf's den.

The veteran had a superior sense of smell and hearing, as well as extremely agile movements, and he quickly discovered the whereabouts of the three uninvited guests. Under his gun, the three thieves were like turtles in a jar, with nowhere to escape.

The most important thing is that the cost of this film is low.

The entire story takes place inside a house and could have been shot entirely in a studio.

Moreover, cult films are full of blood, violence and tense atmosphere, and do not require the actors to be famous, and it does not matter if they are all amateurs.

Zhang Chen initially estimated that the film could be completed with US$300 million, and if it was compressed a bit, US$200 million was not impossible.

After all, Saw only made $150 million.

And it can also take advantage of the momentum. Both "Don't Breathe" and "A Quiet Place" involve the element of keeping quiet, so the box office will definitely be good, starting at at least 3000 million US dollars.

This is just the movie box office. DVD copyright, TV copyright, and Internet copyright are the big ones.

It's really a profitable business.

Otherwise, why would so many small companies in the United States be so keen on making cult films?

The next day, Zhang Chen showed up in his company and showed his face.

He promised that the original treatment would remain unchanged and that there would be no layoffs. He also announced his first film project after taking over, which made everyone feel that having a new boss was not that bad.

All the original senior executives retained their positions. Zhang Chen talked to them one by one and gave them appropriate salary increases.

During a company's turbulent period, staff stability is very important.

After they finished talking, Zhang Chen said to Dai An, "I will be returning to China tomorrow. I have a few things to tell you before I leave."

Diane pretended to listen attentively.

“You can ask about a person named E.J. James, who should be a housewife and has some writing experience.

This person is a fan of Twilight. You find her, we pay her to customize a work for her, and let her write a Twilight adaptation in her own style. "

That’s right, Zhang Chen is planning to make a “Fifty Shades of Grey” series.

It is universally recognized that erotic and horror movies are the genres that can create the most box office miracles in the world. Cube is already preparing to make horror movies, and of course it can also make erotic movies if there are suitable ones.

Walk on two legs!

The original "Fifty Shades" series is also a trilogy, and it makes as much money as "Twilight."

Aunt EJ James used to write erotic fiction. After seeing "Twilight", she fell in love with it and started writing stories in the same style.

It's just that she was used to writing erotic novels, so naturally she turned the pure love version of "Twilight" with Mary Sue + love triangle into an adult erotic novel.

But what does this have to do with Zhang Chen?

The cube is a cash cow, a cow that just produces a steady supply of milk.

"We do this? Isn't it a bit..."

In the United States, doing this kind of thing is not considered respectable. Diane thought it was a bit low, but Zhang Chen immediately corrected her wrong view.

"Tell me, which of this money is dirty and which is clean?"

"I understand, boss. I'll do it right away."

Dai An secretly reminded herself not to get carried away as she had not yet secured the position of general manager.

Seeing that Dai An no longer resisted, Zhang Chen talked about the second thing.

"There's a comic called The Walking Dead. We'll try to get the rights to adapt it into a TV show. It may not be easy, but we'll try..."

"The Walking Dead" is a work of Image Comics. Zhang Chen remembers that it seemed to have started serialization in 2003.

There must be a lot of people eyeing this thing, so the possibility of getting it is not great, but you have to try it anyway.

……

The next day, Zhang Chen and his filming team returned to China.

On the plane, the two talked about endorsements.

"After A Quiet Place, you should be able to get the endorsement of Pepsi in Asia."

Sister Jiuyi has no shortage of endorsements now. After "The Shallows", she endorsed a large number of high-end luxury brands for women, but Pepsi is different.

Pepsi's endorsement strategy is very powerful. They only look for first-tier big brands to endorse them because of Pepsi's strong influence. Gradually, it has become possible to become a spokesperson for Pepsi to prove that you are a first-tier big brand.

They had considered Fan Xiaopang before, but had not made a decision yet. It should be because his influence was not enough.

Zhang Chen is confident that after "A Quiet Place" is released, Fan Xiaopang will definitely be able to reach a higher level, and Pepsi may then look for her.

"I accept your good wishes~"

Fan Binbin always believed what Zhang Chen said, because he never lied, for example, if he said an hour, it would be an hour.

"By the way, I heard that there are brands that want you to be their spokesperson, but why have I never seen you accept it~" This is not an era of skyrocketing film pay. For celebrities, the pay for filming a movie is actually small money. The real big money comes from endorsements, commercial activities and the like.

Therefore, celebrities are keen on endorsements, and they are not afraid to stab others in the back in order to grab endorsements.

Zhang Chen said dismissively: "There are too many restrictions on endorsements. If you accept Pepsi, you can no longer drink Coca-Cola. If you accept Ericsson, you can no longer use Siemens. It is also easy to be blamed. Once the endorsed food has problems, consumers will not look for the manufacturer, but only for the celebrity who endorsed it..."

Fat Fan didn’t know where Zhang Chen got so many emotions from, but he was very envious of Zhang Chen’s open-mindedness.

Zhang Chen is a director and the owner of a film and television company, so he has the confidence.

If you say you don’t want to accept the endorsement, then don’t accept it, and no one can do anything about it.

But celebrities can’t do that.

Celebrities may look glamorous, but in fact, there are too many people who can manipulate them.

Big brands, cinema chains, fashion industry leaders, film purchasing managers...

That's why she wants to keep moving up and become the biggest star.

The bigger your status, the fewer people can control you.

……

More than ten hours later, the plane landed at the Capital Airport.

A company car came to pick us up.

Zhang Chen said goodbye to everyone and went straight to the villa in Zijin Garden.

The old couple still live there.

The transfer procedures for the villa have been completed long ago, and it is now completely owned by the Zhang family.

In order to avoid being discovered by someone with ulterior motives, the household head was registered under the name of Zhang's father.

When Zhang Chen walked in, Deng Jie was making dumplings with Zhang's mother.

"Zhang Chen is back~"

"Yes, Aunt Deng, we have finally finished the work over there."

"You came back at the right time. Your mother just said that she would make some dumplings for you and freeze them. You can eat them whenever you want when you come back..."

Zhang Chen looked at his mother. Although her eyes were full of joy, she was still mumbling, "Why didn't you tell me you were coming back so I could prepare it earlier? Look, there's nothing at home now. If you want to eat dumplings, you'll have to wait a while..."

"It's okay. Are you afraid of waiting to eat dumplings? I have nothing to do, so I'll make them with you guys~"

Zhang's mother smiled and opened his hand: "Go, don't make trouble here. If you have nothing to do, go upstairs and take a shower. By the time you're done, we'll have almost finished wrapping up here..."

Mother always wants to do everything for her son.

"Okay then. I'll go take a shower first and eat the ready-made food later. Thank you and Aunt Deng for your hard work..."

"If it's not hard, what's the hard part?"

Zhang Chen had just been on a plane all day and was exhausted, so he obediently went upstairs to take a shower.

When he came down, the first pot of dumplings was already cooking and would be ready in a few minutes.

"Are you hungry?"

Deng Jie was the one cooking the dumplings. He was fetching water for the third time and couldn't help but make a joke when he saw Zhang Chen swallowing his saliva.

"Yeah, I haven't been able to eat at home for two months. I miss you~"

If your parents are not around, you will get used to it after a while.

But when it suddenly comes to you and you taste the flavor you haven’t tasted for a long time, you will miss it very much if you don’t eat it for a while.

"Where's Uncle Guoli?"

The hot dumplings came out of the pot, and Zhang Chen helped to serve them while chatting.

"Didn't you make that movie 'Search'? It's already started filming. He's the director. He should be on the set right now."

Zhang Chen didn't expect Zhang Guoli to move so quickly.

It has been less than two months since the decision was made, and the film has already started shooting. Zhang Guoli probably wants to strike while the iron is hot and reap the benefits of human flesh search.

“So delicious~”

Zhang Chen didn't wait for everyone to sit at the table. He pinched one and put it in his mouth. It was so hot that he grimaced but he couldn't bear to spit it out. He swallowed it hard and felt a little heartburn.

When it comes to eating dumplings, everyone in the Zhang family has their own preference.

Zhang's father likes the ones that are fresh out of the pot and still hot because they taste the best. However, he is scolded by Zhang's mother every day, telling her to be careful of esophageal cancer.

Zhang Chen, however, prefers to wait a little longer until the skin becomes a little harder before eating it.

Moreover, both of them have big appetites, so it is no problem for them to eat dozens of dumplings each.

The Zhang family’s dumplings always have their fillings prepared by Zhang’s mother, usually with pork, leeks and cabbage.

The leeks add flavor and the cabbage has a good texture, so it tastes delicious. Add the homemade chili sauce made by Zhang's mother, and it's even more delicious.

This is the taste of home~
Almost every northerner thinks that the dumplings at home are the most delicious and the braised noodles made by their mother are the most delicious.

This is a taste deeply rooted in memory, and I will never forget it~
……

While Zhang Chen was eating dumplings, news about his return had already appeared on major websites, and the photo showed him and Fan Binbin pushing suitcases.

There are reporters guarding the airport 24 hours a day, and Zhang Chen and his friends were photographed as soon as they got off the plane.

But the most popular post was another one, titled: [Zhang Chen, please give us your opinion on whether The Promise is a bad movie or not? ]

(End of this chapter)