I was just thinking about taking the arts exam and you said I've been playing supporting roles

Chapter 370 The most unique screening ever!
The 62nd Berlin International Film Festival opens today!

A Star-Studded Scene! Hollywood Superstars Rush to Walk the Berlin Red Carpet!

The cast and crew of "The Flowers of War" make a grand appearance, with Christian Bale, Chen Jin, and Ni Ni joining forces with Zhang Yimou to ignite the Berlin Film Palace!

The opening film, "Goodbye, Queen," unveils a new emblem for the film festival!

……

In the afternoon, media outlets from around the world began vying to report on the grand occasion of this year's Berlin Film Festival.

Domestically, a lot of news material was also released immediately.

However, unlike other countries where red carpet disturbances at film festivals have been exposed, domestic media have not reported on this incident at all, effectively keeping it quiet.

This is certainly related to the spinelessness of the domestic news industry.

They always avoid such sensitive topics, adhering to the principle that if they don't report it, they won't know; if they do report it, it might incite public outrage; if they don't report it, everything will be fine.

To Chen Jin and others' relief, no one was seriously injured in the red carpet stampede that morning, and death was out of the question; many fans suffered only minor scrapes and falls. They probably didn't want anyone to die and cause a global media frenzy.

Once public opinion takes hold, as Chen Jin said, it's actually a good thing.

This would allow more people to know about the movie "The Flowers of War," which is not entirely in line with their original intention to cause trouble.

Therefore, their move that morning was merely for intimidation.

They threatened the organizers and judges, telling them to boycott "Jinling" or face consequences similar to those who were injured, or even more severe.

"The more these people act like this, the more afraid they are!"

Chen Jin and her group had just come out of the hospital. They visited the injured movie fans, took photos with them, and also made some humanitarian donations. This made several of the injured foreigners even more eager to see the movie "Jinling".

They all wanted to know why these "terrorists" were blocking the film.
And some people have already started researching related to "The Flowers of War".

This was something that even Chen Jin and the others hadn't expected.

By sheer accident, the little life also indirectly caused these hurt viewers to develop a rebellious mentality?

This is only because of minor injuries, so people hate them more; if someone were seriously injured or killed, it wouldn't be so simple.

"I wonder if these guys will still cause trouble at tomorrow's premiere?"

Chen Jin was already somewhat stressed.

Anyone would find it unbearable to be subjected to this kind of thing again and again.

"Dieter just called me. There will be security personnel on duty at the Palais des Festivals tomorrow, and security checks will be conducted at the entrance..."

Zhang Yimou spoke to Chen Jin, who nodded, but inwardly she had some doubts about what Dieter had said.

It wasn't that he didn't trust him, but rather that he didn't believe in the security guard's capabilities.

Germans are known for their meticulousness, but it depends on the context... Even with all the police force combined, oversights can still occur at a film festival with hundreds of thousands of participants.

It's better to have something than nothing. Chen Jin has already hired a security company, and they will send people to sit inside the movie theater tomorrow to act as temporary bodyguards.

Back at the hotel, Chen Jin turned on her computer and looked at news from various countries.

The opening ceremony disturbance did not cause much disruption; these guys were quite well-trained.

They were just trying to scare people; they really didn't want to cause any major incidents like fires or bloodshed on the Berlin red carpet.

Therefore, the local German police did nothing about it and didn't take it seriously at all; no one died or was seriously injured, so everyone was fine.

Unlike many of the injured who were interested in "Jinling", this incident did have a significant impact on the film. First, the distributors gave it the cold shoulder. Given Zhang Yimou's reputation, not to mention Europe, many distributors in the United States would definitely have extended olive branches to him.

Besides, the domestic box office for "Jinling" has already exploded.

There's no reason why foreign film distributors wouldn't pay attention to a film that has already been market-tested; the current lukewarm reception only means one thing: these distributors are all taking a wait-and-see approach, and they're not very optimistic about the future of "Jinling".

It's no longer just about whether it wins or not; it's about not being optimistic about its release in other overseas countries.

This is one of the purposes of a simple life.

In the past life, it was actually quite similar. Many people attended the Berlin screening, but it didn't sell for a high price.

Xiao Zi is still quite prestigious internationally.

After all, two of the six major Hollywood studios are controlled by Japanese conglomerates.

However, Chen Jin wasn't in a hurry; she could simply refuse to sell.

If it doesn't win an award, "Jinling" won't fetch a high price, and he didn't really care about that amount of money; domestically, "Jinling" will gross at least 15 billion yuan, which is already a huge profit.

Even after deducting the 2 million yuan for marketing and promotion, there are still over 1 million yuan in costs, leaving over 3 million yuan in revenue.

CETC Holdings has plenty of money now. With "So Young" grossing over 17 billion yuan, it has earned over 6 million yuan!

Having invested in two rounds of funding for Xiaomi and Dida, as well as in China Film Group Corporation, a unicorn company that produces two films with annual box office revenue exceeding 15 billion yuan, the company should still have around 10 billion yuan in cash on hand in a few months.

This is after deducting investments in films like "Killer Dragon" and "Lost in Thailand".

It's safe to say that the two movies, "Nanjing" and "So Young," really made a fortune.

And this is under the most conservative scenario. If "Jinling" exceeds the box office forecast, the money in the account may be even more.

If "Jinling" can still make some money overseas, Chen Jin's overseas company will officially begin operations.

Currently, China Electronics Technology Group Corporation's overseas subsidiaries have only sold a few films, such as "Love is Not Blind" and "So Young," as well as the copyright revenue from several of Zhang Yimou's films, such as "Hero" and "House of Flying Daggers." The company currently has a cash balance of over 20 million US dollars.

And there are even more movies that CETC hasn't released yet.

Besides "Killer Dragon", there are 5 other films already in production.

"Li Xianji", "Silent Witness", "American Dreams in China", "Lost in Thailand" and "Love is Not Blind 3"; four films are about to start filming: "Black Coal, Thin Ice", "The Wandering Earth", "The Criminal Lu Yanshi" and "Grandma's Grandson"!
There are also films like "The Neighborhood," "Train to Busan," and "Fleet of Time"... all in the script development stage!
A total of 13 films!
Barring any unforeseen circumstances, all of the films except "The Wandering Earth" should be released within the next two years.

By then, Huayi will probably have to back down, so the rise of CETC has undoubtedly taken away the profits of many people.

Nobody wants such an opponent to grow stronger, so a head-on clash is inevitable.

The battle for release dates is essentially a direct confrontation between film companies.

Chen Jin pioneered the Double Eleven and Spring Festival film seasons, taking a unique approach that allowed his competitors to break through before they could even react. However, without such operational strategies, he will inevitably have to compete with other film companies for market share, which will truly determine whether a film company can become the top player.

At present, China Electronics Technology Group Corporation (CETC) can only be described as a dark horse of China Film Group Corporation. To establish its position in the industry, it needs to fight its way up like Huayi Brothers did back then.

If you haven't competed with other companies, even if your box office is high, you'll only attract resentment; if you have, you'll rise to the top by stepping on their corpses.

***
The next day, February 10, 2012.

The Flowers of War premiered at the Berlin Film Festival.

Zhang Yimou, dressed in a Zhongshan suit, was already waiting at the entrance of the cinema. He was there when Chen Jin, Ni Ni, and Bale arrived.

"Director Zhang, are you worried that no one will come?"

Chen Jin was dressed quite casually and stood next to Zhang Yimou, chatting and laughing with him.

"No, come early, there's nothing else to do anyway!"

Zhang Yimou didn't seem very nervous, after all, he's experienced a lot in his life.

But Chen Jin could sense that the film "Jinling" was very different in his eyes.

He was very unsure.

Even though it sold so well at the domestic box office!

These past few days, the events of his daily life, the public opinion, and his own pride have caused him to remain anxious and insecure even at nearly 70 years old.

Deep down, he hoped the film would win an award at Berlin, and ideally, he would be able to buy the distribution rights so that the Japanese public would know about it; but reality slapped him hard in the face.

It can only be said that, setting aside the film aspect, Zhang Yimou's understanding of human nature is too superficial.

He never imagined that the Japanese would be so shameless.

Now, with the premiere approaching, Zhang Yimou's biggest worry is that no one will come to see the film.

It's not that there's no audience, it's just... the judges.

It's worth noting that many judges attend film festival competitions to support their films, especially those they favor, to get feedback. Of course, some don't attend, which is perfectly normal.

However, given Zhang Yimou's international standing, even if the judges don't like him, they will still give him face.

But now, that's not necessarily the case.

The judges obviously had to take Xiao Rizi's repeated threats into account.

It's perfectly normal for them not to come; it's not a necessity. But if they do come, that would definitely be the greatest form of support.

The fact that the jury was able to attend the premiere of "Jinling" under such circumstances speaks volumes about their attitude.

So, don't underestimate this seemingly simple premiere; its implications are worth pondering.

This is also why Zhang Yimou arrived so early.

He had already extended the invitation anyway. In previous film festivals, he wouldn't have needed to make such a fuss. Who would dare not give face to Zhang Yimou's films? They would definitely support them.

It's just a formality for the premiere, but you can also make connections with someone like Zhang Yimou, who might become a judge or chairman in the future.

The judging panel also consists of people from this industry, so of course they will also have their own works submitted.

This is a matter of personal relationships, and it's rare for a judging panel to disrespect a master.

But now, even Zhang Yimou isn't so sure.

The value of befriending him may be less than the risk of attending this premiere.

This premiere can be seen as a prelude to whether a film will win an award or not.

If no one comes, then this year's Berlin Jinling competition will just be like this, destined to make no waves; if there are jury members participating, then the more the better, and the closer we will be to winning an award.

Zhang Yimou understood this logic, which is why he personally waited for people here.

……

Time passes minute by minute.

Normally, audiences should start entering the theater half an hour before the movie starts.

But as the time was almost up, no one came in.

Zhang Yimou rubbed his hands together and shook his head helplessly; as a regular at the three major film festivals, he was well aware of what this meant.

The disturbances caused by the minor incidents did affect the audience attendance at the premiere.

"Brother Jin~~"

A sudden shout made Chen Jin and the others look up.

"Coming?"

Chen Jin smiled.

On her first day as a translator, Xiao Yang waved to Chen Jin. Behind her were many compatriots queuing to enter and find their seats; among them were foreigners of other skin colors.

"They're all Liu Zi, and also some friends we invited!"

"Come on!"

Xiao Yang and Chen Jin were there cheering him on, and Zhang Yimou was honestly quite moved; it was true, it was his first time attending an overseas film festival, and so many international students were there, and more importantly, they had even brought people along.

There were dozens of people, which was nothing compared to the 3000+ seats in the cinema, but... this was only the first batch.

There are more people behind!

This was a movie-watching event initiated by Xiao Yang and her fellow international students.

Almost all Chinese students studying in Berlin and surrounding cities came.

"So, Director Zhang, every loss... is a gain!"

"These mundane things may scare others, but they can't scare our compatriots. In fact... they make us more united!"

A film with a unique meaning, it's definitely worth watching for international students.

When God closes a window, another window will be opened.

Soon, more and more people began to enter the theater; even the moviegoers who were injured yesterday called many of their friends.

The hall, which seats 3000 people, is almost half full.

Looking around, most of the people were yellow-skinned and had black eyes, and Zhang Yimou was indeed quite excited.

Even if this film is only shown to our compatriots in Berlin, it would be worth it.

They will spread the word spontaneously and promote it at film festivals; the power of compatriots is also a power, and it is the most vocal force.

However, Chen Jin didn't think so.

These people were all invited by Xiao Yang at his request; although she originally intended to come and watch the movie as well.

But it was Chen Jin's idea to gather so many international students.

He just didn't tell Zhang Yimou, so it was a surprise for him.

"do not care!"

"If the jury doesn't come, then we'll—"

"Director Yi Mou!"

Dieter Kosslick, the president of the Berlin Film Festival, dressed in formal attire, appeared at the entrance of the theater with members of the organizing committee.

In a short time, even more viewers came in.

"Haha, Dieter!"

Zhang Yimou quickly stepped forward and hugged the other person.

The chairman of the organizing committee takes sides, which is more important than any publicity.

This is a show of support in person.

Of course, it was he who had been constantly inviting Zhang Yimou to participate, so such a strong stance of taking sides is not surprising.

This will make filmmakers even more favorable.

Chen Jin was not surprised.

What truly surprised him was the group of people standing behind Dieter Kosslick.

The jury was chaired by Mike Lee, and included members Hafati, Gyllenhaal, and eight other judges, including the chair.

Moreover, there are also a host of Hollywood stars.

Angelina Jolie, Steven Spielberg (a longtime friend of Zhang Yimou), Robert Pattinson, Uma Thurman, Meryl Streep... almost all the Hollywood stars who walked the red carpet at yesterday's opening ceremony were present.

Many people greeted Bell, and Bell smiled at Chen Jin, and the two gave each other a high five.

This was a favor Chen Jin asked Bell to do.

With his influence, he can still win over these people.

The only unexpected thing was that the entire judging panel came.

Soon, five minutes before the screening of "Jinling", the entire Berlin Film Palace was already packed with people.

The jury, Hollywood, film critics, audiences, international students... everything makes the film "Jinling" exceptionally unique today!

Two minutes passed quickly.

pat!

The dazzling lights of the cinema suddenly went out at that moment, and the opening credits of "The Flowers of War" appeared on the big screen!

"Jinling" has finally premiered in Berlin!
(End of this chapter)