Entertainment: I am the peak

Chapter 479 Top Team!

At that time, Guo Fan was full of enthusiasm but lacked experience in science fiction and mature teamwork, which is why the early stages were so rough, pushing himself to the brink of despair.

If Li Qiutang were like that, then all these years of his life would have been for nothing.

Li Qiutang's first priority is Chen Zhixi!

Sending Chen Zhixi to Hollywood for over a year wasn't just to let her return to China to work on low-budget films; a production of the scale of "The Wandering Earth" was meant for her.

Chen Zhixi suddenly felt a heavy responsibility on her shoulders, as this was her first time partnering with Li Qiutang.

He could have used the traditional director-commissioned-screenwriter approach for the script of "The Butterfly Lovers," but that approach wouldn't work for "The Wandering Earth."

Li Qiutang asked Chen Zhixi to find a few people for him.

“Go to the US and find Liu Yukun. He’s Liu Cixin’s English translator. We can ask him to review our manuscripts or write the script with us. Just find a way to trick him into coming here!” Li Qiutang didn’t care about anything else. He needed to assemble the script team he wanted. “Go to Tsinghua University and find a young man named Chen Zijun. He’s a 90s kid, in the Qian Xuesen Class. He’s a very good science fiction writer. His idol is Liu Cixin. If you talk to him about this, he’ll definitely agree. He should be doing his PhD now. With Liu Cixin on board, our science fiction team should be able to solve our problems.” Li Qiutang knew that writing novels and writing scripts were two completely different jobs. Then he started looking for a professional screenwriter. “Go to the Beijing Film Academy and find Professor Wang Hongwei. Ask him to be our script consultant. Call Han Jianu over too. She doesn’t have much to do anyway. She can add a female perspective to our screenwriting team. You can come along too.”

“I can’t write screenplays!” Chen Zhixi said.

“Let’s discuss it together. Who gave you permission to write this?” Li Qiutang said, then named three more people, including Zhang Jialu, the screenwriter of “Mojin: The Lost Legend.” He had requested a total of nine people for the script team, which would make ten if he included himself.

Li Qiutang plans to use a brainstorming approach to write the script. Ten people will sit together and discuss, each contributing their ideas as they chat.

Chen Zhixi noted down the information about these people, and then said, "Let's get Mo Jing Tian He involved."

“Sure, you decide.” To produce a blockbuster like this, the special effects team needs to be involved from the creative stage. They need to understand key information such as the script content, the director’s intentions, the budget, and the timeline.

Chen Zhixi watched Li Qiutang work and teased him, "You were reluctant to take on the job at first, but now you're so organized. You must have already decided on these people, just waiting for the right time to film a sci-fi movie and invite them over."

"Tsk, I see through it but don't say it out loud, just know it." At least this screenwriting team is something Li Qiutang wanted from the very beginning.

After finishing the meeting with Chen Zhixi, Li Qiutang instructed Chen Zhixi before leaving: "Read more science fiction novels. Not only should you read 'The Wandering Earth' and Liu Cixin's works, but also those by other authors. Read more and understand what science fiction is all about. Otherwise, you, as the executive producer, will end up being an amateur, which would be incredibly embarrassing."

"I know, I know." Chen Zhixi waved her hand, signaling him to leave.

The buzz surrounding Huang Xiaoming and Yang Ying's breakup dissipated quickly because neither of them responded while they were both on set.

It is widely believed that Yang Ying's resources will plummet after leaving Huang Xiaoming. She is currently filming "Independence Day 2" in the United States. The expected downgrade in resources has not yet begun to appear, and we will know in time.

Xu Shanzheng came to the company again, still to talk about "Lost in Hong Kong".

This time he was really panicked!
Because I'm planning to film a movie called "Lost in India" this fall!
This year, the relevant authorities have a China-India film cooperation and exchange plan, which has approved three film projects. One is being produced by China Film Group itself, namely Huang Xiaoming's "Xuanzang," which has already started filming; another has been handed over to Jackie Chan and Yao Lai, called "Kung Fu Yoga," which is also expected to start filming this year; and the third has been taken over by Qiu Tian, ​​whose project is called "Lost in India," and it has been confirmed that Bao Qiang will be the director, with the original screenwriting team of "Lost in India" returning to assist Bao Qiang.

At the press conference, Bao Qiang kept mentioning the movie "Lost in Thailand," acting like a proper and respectable person.

Bao Qiang also responded to the reason for no longer starring in "Lost in Hong Kong", giving Xu Shanzheng some face: "We had some differences in our creative concepts. "We are still good friends and will continue to work together in the future."

This is the outcome Xu Shanzheng least wanted to see.

The copyright for the "Lost in..." series is in the fall. If he can make "Lost in Hong Kong" in the fall, he can also authorize Bao Qiang to make "Lost in India". If he feels like it someday, he can also make "Lost in America" ​​or "Lost in Russia", which is perfectly legitimate.

But Xu Shanzheng wants to associate the "Lost in..." series with himself, which is why he has been relentlessly bothering Qiu Tian.

He came today with genuine sincerity.

Because Dong Ping is about to acquire a shell company to start his new entrepreneurial venture, he must get his hands on "Lost in Hong Kong" and even the entire "Lost" series during this period in order to maximize his profits later.

Today, Li Qiutang finally agreed to meet him. Accompanying Li Qiutang were Zhang Zhao and a senior executive from Qiutian Pictures in charge of finance and investment.

There was some friendship between them before, but after "Lost in Hong Kong", all that was left was business. It wasn't that Qiu Tian didn't want to talk about friendship with him, but that Xu Shan insisted on putting aside friendship and talking about business coldly.

Without much formality, Li Qiutang offered a price: "8 million in cash to buy out all the copyrights to the 'Lost in...' series and your directing contract with the company. We'll have nothing to do with each other from now on."

This was far beyond Xu Shanzheng's expectations; where would he get 8 million in cash!
“You don’t have it, but Dong Ping does,” Zhang Zhao said. “We know what you’re trying to do. We won’t stop you from getting rich, but what you want isn’t so easy to get. Think it over.”

Guangxian estimated the box office of "Lost in Hong Kong" at 10 billion yuan, and Dong Ping roughly agreed with this figure. However, Dong Ping also valued the "Lost" series and Xu Shanzheng's personal IP at around 20-30 billion yuan.

This number is too tempting; Xu Shanzheng desperately wants this money!
800 million in cash is an astronomical sum, but it can be used to gamble on 2 billion. This bet is worth participating in!

Seeing Xu Shanzheng's troubled expression, Li Qiutang said, "You can't make this decision, let Dong Ping do it."

Xu Shanzheng sensed Li Qiutang's disdain. Li Qiutang's eyes seemed to say, "Although you are the director, lead actor, and selling point of the 'Lost in...' series, you still can't get a seat at the table when it comes to negotiating the copyright of the 'Lost in...' series. You're just a foot soldier. Call your boss over."

Xu Shanzheng thought for a while and said, "I'll go back first and come back in a few days. We can discuss the details then." This trip wasn't without its gains; at least Li Qiutang agreed to sell, but the price was too high for him to decide.

Li Qiutang naturally agreed and wished him great success at the box office and abundant wealth.

Xu Shanzheng felt uneasy no matter how he listened, but when he thought about the benefits he was about to gain and the bright future after cooperating with Dong Ping, he felt that it was worth enduring Li Qiutang's disdain.

(End of this chapter)