Entertainment: I am the peak

Chapter 597 Booting up

New technologies bring new risks, and it seems impossible to replicate the success of "Life of Pi" with "Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk".

"Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk" grossed 2400 million yuan on its opening day in China, far less than "Doctor Strange" which grossed 3750 million yuan a week after its release.

Feedback from the first audience members also indicates that the market is not yet accepting of 120 frames per second.

"It's too real, so real it makes me want to vomit."

"The screen is very bright, it doesn't feel like watching a movie."

"It's like watching a reality show."

Since "Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk" heavily promoted its 120fps format before its release, audience reviews will naturally focus on that aspect.

On Monday, Almond Pictures, an animation film company under Autumn Pictures, announced on its official Weibo account that the hit Japanese animated film "Your Name." will be jointly imported by Almond Pictures and China Film Group Corporation (CFGC). Even imported films need to obtain quotas from CFGC or CFGC. The film has already passed censorship and is scheduled for release on December 2nd.

This news only caused a slight stir in the anime and manga community; mainstream audiences didn't even know who Makoto Shinkai was.

Due to its unique import mechanism, many large companies are unwilling to engage in the import of films. They prefer to produce their own films or invest in overseas revenue-sharing blockbusters, which are more autonomous, controllable, and profitable. Autumn Pictures has also abandoned the import film business.

Logically speaking, Almond Pictures, backed by a powerful company, wouldn't be involved in small-scale business like importing films. However, in just two years since its founding, Almond has only produced two works, "Monkey King: Hero Is Back" and "Big Fish & Begonia." Both films did perform well at the box office, but received mixed reviews, failing to truly establish Almond Animation's brand.

Almond needs films to establish its brand, so it's not surprising that it's eyeing Japanese animated films.

To be honest, imported films are really expensive these days. For an animated film like "Your Name," Toho actually asked for 2700 million yuan, but Almond Films eventually negotiated a deal for 1900 million yuan.

Almond Pictures wanted Huaxia Film Distribution to guarantee the distribution of "Your Name," a small amount of 3 million yuan, but Huaxia Film Distribution refused.

Guaranteeing 3 million yuan for a Japanese animated film that has already been pirated in China? Are you crazy?

Huaxia doesn't have any faith in "Your Name." They just want to earn a distribution agency fee. You're responsible for the risks of having Almond import it.

"Your Name." wasn't even a pebble; it didn't make much of a splash.

This week, everyone went to see "I Am Not Madame Bovary".

This November is arguably the most crowded in history, even more exciting than the Lunar New Year film season, with a major blockbuster every week.

"I Am Not Madame Bovary" was released amidst great anticipation, and on the day of its release, Feng Xiaogang unleashed his magic.

She posted an article on Weibo titled "A Letter from Pan Jinlian to Mr. Wang Jianlin". The article, written in Pan Jinlian's voice, first praised the Wanda Group for its "grand vision, broad perspective, and magnanimous mind" in its global industrial chain layout, and then exaggerated that Mr. Wang's "buying Hollywood is just around the corner".

Then they started to make sarcastic remarks about Wanda Cinemas "banning" "I Am Not Madame Bovary" and not giving it screenings, attributing the reason to Huayi Brothers poaching Wanda's "little wall skin", namely Ye Ning.

"From your perspective of grand vision and broad perspective, a 10.9% allocation of screenings reflects your group's limited capacity. Such limited capacity reflects a narrow-mindedness, and such a narrow-mindedness cannot achieve Chairman Wang's grand vision."

The entire thousand-word essay can be summed up in four words: sarcastic and cryptic!

Old Wang won't respond, but Little Wang will.

Xiao Wang also posted in the afternoon, saying that Feng Xiaogang's sarcastic remarks were "disgusting" and that Feng Xiaogang's post was inciting online crowds and public opinion.

Finally, he implicitly admitted that Wan Da was suppressing Huayi Brothers Films: "Let's stick to the facts. Huayi is allowed to poach our senior executives who have non-compete agreements, but we are not allowed to have any displeasure?" He also said that cinemas would not turn down money if they had it, and if the film did well at the box office, Wan Da would definitely increase the number of screenings according to procedure. "As a director, wouldn't it be better to let your work speak for itself?"

Once Xiao Wang responded, the matter was brought to the forefront, and discussions within the industry began.

Some people sided with Wan Da, feeling that Feng Xiaogang, a grown man, dressing up as a woman online and using the vulgar behavior of Jinlian to seek fame and fortune, was definitely a terrible teammate.

The film's title claims it's not about Pan Jinlian, yet the director posted a statement in the voice of Pan Jinlian, creating a contradiction.

Some people support Feng Xiaogang, believing that market order should not be linked to personal grudges. Making a film is not easy, but it is easy to take action, and the harm should not extend to the film.

The day after the dispute, the crew of "I Am Not Madame Bovary" was promoting the film in Shanghai. Feng Xiaogang specifically responded to the incident, saying that the two companies had a conflict and that the conflict was being retaliated against him, and that he felt wronged.

It was also revealed that Wang Zhongjun had personally visited Old Wang to apologize, "but Old Wang refused to give him any face."

It has to be said that Feng Xiaogang's mouth can be really annoying at times; how could he say such things in public?

Even if it's true, I can't say it!
The dispute between Wanda and Huayi has sparked industry discussions about "monopoly." Wanda's film production and distribution capabilities have caught up in the past two years, ranking among the top five in China. Its cinema scale has always been the strongest in the country. Coupled with its powerful overseas channels, it is not wrong to say that Wanda is a "giant monopoly."

Autumn's production capabilities are widely recognized as the strongest in China, and its overseas distribution channels are comparable to Wanda's, but its cinema chains are no match for Wanda's. What can Autumn's dozen or so cinemas offer to compete with Wanda?
However, with Wan Da leading the pack, no one can say that Autumn, which has held the top spot in domestic box office for three consecutive years, has a monopoly.

Li Qiutang didn't have time to comment on who was right and who was wrong in this matter. He was currently in a residential area in Changping, preparing for the opening ceremony of his new play, "The Butterfly Lovers".

The three main actors in the play, Qin Hao who plays Liang Jiangong, Liu Yifei who plays Zhu Xiaoyan, and Xi Meijuan who plays Aunt Sun, Zhu Xiaoyan's mother, along with other important actors, were all present.

“This is my second time working with Ms. Xi Meijuan,” Li Qiutang said in an interview. “The first time was in ‘The Invisible Guest,’ and we worked together very well. The second time was a natural thing. When we were writing the script, Ms. Xi Meijuan was the image in our minds. When the production team was preparing, we told Ms. Xi Meijuan about it, and she agreed on the spot without hesitation. She didn’t ask about the salary or the schedule. We are very grateful to her.”

Meanwhile, the media on the other side were interviewing the male and female protagonists.

"You two collaborated twice in less than six months. Did you both expect that?"

Both of them said they hadn't expected it. Qin Hao, being cheeky, said, "Being able to work with Teacher Liu Yifei so many times, it seems I'm doing pretty well."

Liu Yifei said, "Don't call me teacher."

The reporter asked Qin Hao, "What do you think was the reason the director chose you?"

Liu Yifei chimed in, "Brother Hao's acting is excellent."

But Qin Hao said, "It's probably because it's cheap."

Liu Yifei was overjoyed. She really wanted to ask, "Are all Northeasterners this funny?"

When talking about her first foray into art-house films, Liu Yifei expressed her nervousness, but also praised Qin Hao, saying he was a god of art-house films. With such a great co-star, she wasn't too worried.

"This is also the first time that Director Qiu Tang has directed an art film. It is a wonderful story that you two, husband and wife, have worked together this time."

"A good story?" Liu Yifei asked the reporter rhetorically. "This is our first time filming. If we mess it up, it will become a joke."

The reporters are practically dying; how can anyone talk about their new film like that?

(End of this chapter)