Chinese Entertainment: Academic Director

Chapter 363 Request
The closer it gets to the Beijing Olympics, the greater the pressure on Zhang Yimou.

It seems there's still a whole year to prepare and rehearse before August 8th next year, but such a big project, which concerns the country's image, is not going to be easy.

Despite this pressure, he still accepted the position of president of the jury at this year's Venice Film Festival.

There's no way around it; people with higher social status tend to value personal relationships more.

Zhang Yimou won the Venice Golden Lion twice, for "The Story of Qiu Ju" in 92 and "Not One Less" in 99.

Especially the second one, "Not One Less," that film was first submitted to Cannes, but withdrew from the competition due to the national flag, and then went to Venice.

Regardless of Venice's motives, they still gave you the Golden Lion.

This is an immense favor.

Within the film industry, everyone considers Zhang Yimou to be a close associate of Venice.

In addition, when the president of the Venice Film Festival, Marco Müller, was studying in China, he was good friends with Lao Tian, ​​Lao Zhangzi, and others.

Therefore, when Mark Müller extended an invitation to Zhang Yimou, Zhang Yimou really couldn't refuse.

However, Zhang Yimou also explained the situation to Ma Long: he was willing to serve as the president of the Venice Film Festival jury, but because he was busy with the Olympics, he could only give him a little over ten days.

Similar to when Cao Yang served as the president of the jury at the Berlin Film Festival this year, Zhang Yimou will not be able to go to Venice until a few days before the festival opens.

This is of course no problem.

What Lao Ma wants is Zhang Yimou's influence; as long as it increases the Venice Film Festival's visibility, he'll do anything.

Old Ma got his wish, but when the nomination list for the Venice main competition was announced, Old Zhang felt that he had been "tricked".

Take a look at these nominated Chinese-language films.

Lao Tian's "Elegy for the Holy One".

Both Zhang Yimou and Tian Qidong graduated from the Beijing Film Academy in 78; Tian Qidong was in the directing department and Zhang Yimou was in the cinematography department. The two have always had a good relationship.

Lao Tian's graduation project, "The Courtyard," was photographed by Zhang Yimou, Hou Yong, and Lü Le.

Li An's "Lust, Caution".

Zhang Yimou and Li An have maintained contact and are good friends. It was Zhang Yimou who recommended Zhang Ziyi for the role in Li An's "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon".

Jiang Wen's "The Sun Also Rises".

The film "Red Sorghum," which won the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival, starred Jiang Wen, who also acted in Zhang Yimou's "Keep Cool."

There's also Zhuang Yuxin's "Love's Teeth".

As fellow students of the Beijing Film Academy, shouldn't we show some consideration? The Beijing Film Academy is a bit different these days. The graduates who interned with Cao Yang on his films are very united, and Cao Yang has become the face of the Beijing Film Academy.

This led to a united front at the Beijing Film Academy, from the bottom up, and they were able to influence even the "veterans" of the Class of '78.

There's also Li Kangsheng's "Help Me, Cupid".

As fellow Chinese, should we lend a hand?
Zhang Yimou is worried.

The Venice Film Festival's main competition section only has a few awards; it's impossible for them all to be given to Chinese-language films, right?
Besides, although Zhang Yimou is the chairman of the jury, he doesn't really have that much power. Let alone the Golden Lion, he might not even be able to decide on other major awards.

If there is no support from the judging panel, any award will be subject to a long and contentious dispute.

But then there's the most troublesome one.

Zhang Yimou received a call from Li An.

After hanging up the phone, Zhang Yimou almost smashed his phone. If it weren't for the inappropriate occasion—he was discussing details of an Olympic program with someone—he definitely would have sworn.

Rubbing his temples, Zhang Yimou couldn't help but curse Li An in his heart.

Damn it, you dared to film this without having all the copyrights in your hands? You're really something.

What can I do? I don't know that company that holds a portion of the copyright.

Furthermore, aren't you afraid of going too far? You dared to participate in the Venice Film Festival without full copyrights; that's the most troublesome thing.

This could easily become a scandal for the Venice Film Festival, and as the president of the jury, my reputation would certainly be damaged as well.

Oh, what should I do?
Should we reveal this to the film festival officials now?
Whatever, whatever. I'll just pretend I don't know anything about it. Anyway, even if it gets exposed, we'll see when it gets exposed.

If it happens before the film festival, it has absolutely nothing to do with me.

If after the awards ceremony... damn it, as long as "Lust, Caution" doesn't receive an award, it's still none of my business!
Let’s take a look first and then talk.

Zhang Yimou, suppressing his headache, walked towards his office, where he still had to discuss the details of the Olympic program with someone.

Cao Yang has been paying special attention to two things these past few days: one is whether there will be any big "scoops" at the Venice Film Festival; the other is the wishing event for "The Fault in Our Stars".

There's been no news from Venice yet. Cao Yang estimates that the best time for Lao Ma to take action would be mid-to-late August, a few days before the film festival opens, to attract more attention.

The second thing is that Tom Rothman didn't let the seriously ill children or teenagers say they were dissatisfied with the fulfilled wish; instead, he deliberately changed it to a very complicated one.

This wish isn't difficult to fulfill, but it does take time—travel, as everyone knows, is the most time-consuming and also the most reasonable wish to extend one's time.

So, it took five days to fulfill this wish.

In this way, after fulfilling the last person's wish, the release date of "The Fault in Our Stars" will be Friday, August 10th.

Of the movies released in North America that day, there weren't many that posed a threat. The biggest threat was Jackie Chan's "Rush Hour 3".

What a coincidence! Jackie Chan's most iconic Hollywood film, "Rush Hour," which is also the third sequel, will be released on August 10th.

Rush Hour is a very successful film. The first two films had relatively low budgets, and together they grossed nearly $6 million worldwide.

Because of the success of the first two films, Rush Hour 3 has been difficult to produce.

The reason is actually quite simple. In Hollywood, for any successful sequel, the lead actor's salary is not just doubled. They often demand a share of the profits from the producers, trying to "steal" a slice of the pie from them.

So, after Rush Hour 2 grossed $3.5 million worldwide in 2001, the producers wanted to make a sequel as soon as possible, and the two lead actors also wanted to make a sequel as soon as possible.

With all three parties eager to capitalize on the momentum and quickly launch a sequel... however, the sequel has been stalled.

The main reason is still the same old problem: they couldn't agree on the compensation.

From 01 to 06, Jackie Chan basically had no roles to play in Hollywood, and the other lead actor, Chris Tucker, also basically faded into obscurity, having no roles to play for several years.

It was under these circumstances that a deal was finally reached for "Rush Hour 3".

Even under these circumstances, Jackie Chan was still not satisfied with the $2000 million offer from the producers, and finally negotiated a $15 million salary plus 1500% of the box office revenue.

Another Black lead actor, Chris Tucker, was even more outrageous. Even though he was a nobody, the producers offered him a $3000 million salary, but he wasn't satisfied. In the end, he managed to negotiate $20 million plus a 2000% cut of the profits.

This increased the production cost of "Rush Hour 3" to $1.4 million.

If a third installment had been made after Rush Hour 2 was released in 01, it would have had a very high chance of becoming a huge hit.

However, times have changed, and six years have passed. Even though Rush Hour has a loyal fan base worldwide, no one can be sure how the film will perform.

However, given that it was a blockbuster movie and is a sequel, it naturally has a fan base, and many organizations still predict that it will gross around $4 million worldwide.

The premiere of "Rush Hour 3" was held relatively early, on July 30th at the Hollywood Chinese Theatre.

Because Cao Yang was in Los Angeles, Cheng Long sent him an invitation.

Although Rush Hour 3 will be released on the same day as The Fault in Our Stars, creating a real competitive relationship.

However, neither Jackie Chan nor anyone else would likely consider the two films to be in competition.

After all, one is an A-list blockbuster with an investment of $1.4 million, while the other is an art film with an investment of only ten million. No matter how you look at it, they are not in the same league.

Of course, everyone knows that "The Fault in Our Stars" has received a lot of attention and is very popular, but it's obvious to anyone with eyes that it's aiming for the Oscars.

The premiere of "The Fault in Our Stars" was not on the same day as "Rush Hour 3," but on the day the last wish was fulfilled.

After receiving Cheng Long's invitation, Cao Yang considered it for a moment and then went.

At the premiere of "Rush Hour 3," director Brett Ratner, stars Chris Tucker and Jackie Chan, along with Zhang Jingchu, Japanese actor Hiroyuki Sanada, and Japanese actress Yuki Kudo, all made a grand appearance. Jackie Chan appeared on the red carpet in a white silk martial arts outfit. His fans are mostly young people, largely attracted by his kung fu skills.

When Cao Yang arrived, he saw Cheng Long on stage greeting and thanking thousands of fans, then walking down the street and high-fiving each fan, eliciting wild screams from the audience.

Besides Asian audiences, most of the moviegoers were young Americans.

Upon seeing Cao Yang, Jackie Chan addressed the fans in the audience, saying, "Let's welcome Cao Yang, the most influential director in Hollywood, the most popular director, who has made countless classic films!"

His fans clearly recognized Cao Yang; almost no young person these days doesn't know Cao Yang.

"Cao, I love all your movies, especially Inception, it's so cool!"

A young man shouted.

Only after he spoke did the group of young people realize what was happening, and they started shouting in a chaotic manner. It was so noisy that it was impossible to hear what they were saying.

Cheng Long had clearly lost control of the situation.

He smiled wryly and pressed down with his hand, gesturing many times, but still couldn't get it to work.

In the end, he could only make an apologetic gesture and walk towards Cao Yang, who was not far away.

"It's clear that these young people in America really like your kung fu movies."

As Cao Yang walked, he spoke to Cheng Long.

Jackie Chan smiled and shook his head, "I'm getting old, I can't fight anymore. That's the biggest limitation of kung fu stars. When you get old and can't fight anymore, your former fans will not hesitate to switch to another kung fu star who can fight."

As they talked, the two arrived at the theater lobby.

Cheng Long was originally planning to introduce Cao Yang to everyone, but unexpectedly, Bob Shea, the founder of New Line Cinema who came to the premiere today, was immediately impressed and greeted Cao Yang first.

"Hey Cao, it's great to meet you. Thank you for coming to the premiere."

The rights to "Rush Hour" are held by New Line Cinema, and New Line Cinema has always been the investor in the film.

As the founder of New Line Cinema, Bob Shea had high expectations for Rush Hour 3, so he also attended the premiere.

Bob Shea has been under a lot of pressure these past two years.

In 1993, New Line was acquired by television giant Turner and subsequently merged into Time Warner.

However, New Line president Bob Shea still enjoys autonomy over the company's operations, so the company's operations, film production, and marketing have remained independent for a long time.

A few years ago, thanks to the huge success of The Lord of the Rings trilogy, Bob Shay's New Line Cinema was doing very well. At that time, he even dared to slam his fist on the table with Warner Bros. CEO Barry Mayer.

Just so tough.

There's a saying that goes, "When things reach their peak, they begin to decline."

Since The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, New Line Cinema has not produced a single blockbuster film in the years since, and it's considered good if they don't lose money each year.

Especially in the last two years, the new line has started to lose money.

This angered Warner – giving you the right to operate independently is fine if you make money, but if you lose money, what's the point of independence?

Warner is already discussing fully integrating New Line into the Warner system.

Bob Shea certainly doesn't want New Line to be completely merged into Warner, otherwise he would definitely be kicked out and leave New Line, which he founded 40 years ago.

Therefore, Bob Shea's biggest idea right now is for the company to quickly produce a blockbuster to shut down Warner's plans.

After meeting Cao Yang today, he immediately had another idea: if he could cooperate with Cao Yang, whether it was to produce a blockbuster movie or an award-winning movie, it would be able to temporarily stabilize Warner Bros.

"Hey Bob, long time no see."

Cao Yang was a little uncomfortable with Bob Shea's enthusiasm. "You're an old white man, you have this white guy vibe all over you, and instead of shaking hands, you just hugged me. What do you mean by that?"
Are we that close?
"Cao, what are your plans for the future? How about we schedule a time to discuss cooperation? Don't worry, Xinxian will definitely offer you a price higher than the market rate."

Bob Shay didn't care whether it was abrupt or not. To be honest, if he hadn't run into Cao Yang today, he really wouldn't have had the chance to talk about cooperation.

Cao Yang glanced at Bob-Shay with some surprise. Was he being so direct?
"Excuse me, Bob, I already have plans for the next movie, which will be another collaboration with Warner Bros."

Cao Yang's refusal was essentially an indirect rejection.

Bob Shea frowned, looking somewhat disappointed.

However, as the founder of Newline, Bob Shea had a knack for leading the company for forty years without being swept away by the tides of the market.

"Cao, there are many ways to collaborate. You can collaborate with Fox Searchlight on 'Juno,' or with Columbia Pictures on 'The Fault in Our Stars.' I believe you can also collaborate with New Line Cinema on other films in the same way."

Bob Shay changed his approach: since Cao Yang couldn't direct, he could collaborate as a producer and screenwriter.

"Bob, I don't have any plans right now. How about we talk about it after 'The Fault in Our Stars' is released?"

Cao Yang said with a smile.

Bob Shea was somewhat helpless, but cooperation isn't something that can be forced; it depends on sincerity.

He believed that his sincerity would surely move Cao Yang if given the opportunity.

"Director Cao, it's been a long time."

After everyone else had greeted Cao Yang, Zhang Jingchu came over and bent down to shake his hand.

She was wearing a gold strapless dress today, and her hair was also styled in a gold updo with a gold hair accessory. It looked... indescribable.

I don't know what she was thinking. Wouldn't it be better to go for a pure and innocent image?
"long time no see."

Cao Yang smiled and shook hands with her, without saying much.

"Director Cao, there's something I'd like to ask you."

When the premiere event ended, Cheng Long came to Cao Yang's side and led him to a secluded place.

"Director Cao, to be honest, I put a lot of effort into 'Rush Hour 3,' and I want more people to see this movie."

Jackie Chan said with a serious expression, "However, the film is stuck in the censorship process in China and cannot pass the review. Could you please help me?"

Today's premiere was just an event; no movie was shown, and Cao Yang couldn't recall the plot of "Rush Hour 3" for the moment.

"What's the point?"

"The insider at the Film Bureau said it was an insult to China. Honestly, if it were really an insult to China, I wouldn't make it even if you paid me more. It's a matter of principle."

Cheng Long said with absolute certainty.

"I don't know the content of the movie. I'll talk about it after I've seen it."

Cao Yang didn't say much. The words "insulting China" are very heavy. If Cheng Long had known that it was insulting to China and still accepted the role, he wouldn't have been made a role model and given so many titles later.

However, it depends on the specific circumstances. Sometimes it's not just the common methods that constitute "insulting China." Sometimes, unintentional content, if it has a negative impact, can also be considered "insulting China."

"Okay, I'll get a copy of the videotape from the company. When are you free to show it to you?"

Cheng Long quickly pressed his advantage, fearing that Cao Yang was just giving him a perfunctory answer.

Whether he can make a comeback in Hollywood and expand his influence in China depends on this "Rush Hour 3". But if it cannot be released in China, then what influence can he talk about?

Simply claiming how much a company has sold at the international box office is actually quite unrealistic.

Only by achieving significant sales success domestically can a product gain sufficient influence.

"Alright, there's no time like the present, let's do it tonight."

Cao Yang thought for a moment, then asked, "Where can I see it? At the New Line Company or at your home?"

He then added with a smile, "If you're not worried about the source material being leaked, I don't mind watching it at my house. I have the complete equipment there, and it would be a good opportunity for us fellow villagers to get together."

"Haha, it's okay, let's get together tonight."

Cheng Long laughed and said that Cao Yang's words were exactly what he wanted to hear.

(End of this chapter)