Entertainment: I am the peak

Chapter 673 Preparations for Joining the Group
There is an inherent conflict between producers and directors. Producers can have an easier time if they have an obedient director, but which director is easy to deal with?

Li Qiutang is a perfect example. He can make money, but he is also notorious for causing trouble for the production companies.

"Mojin: The Lost Legend" went over budget twice by 8000 million yuan, which would have bankrupted most companies; "The Wandering Earth" demanded that the production company raise the budget to 5 million yuan, the highest in Chinese film industry, and did not allow the producer to interfere, letting him spend money however he wanted; "The Lovers" spent nearly 10 months on post-production, and it is still not finished. The post-production budget has long been exhausted, but Li Qiutang does not care and still wants the company to increase investment.

It's her own company and her own money? So what? Li Qiutang can do whatever she wants, and she can have as much money as she wants.

Guo Fan is in the same situation; there is a power struggle between him and Disney.

However, Guo Fan doesn't have as bad a temper as Li Qiutang, and he won't argue with the production company.

This guy plays dirty tricks. He'll find a way to squeeze his own stuff into the production company's framework, negotiate and compromise with all parties, and then achieve his own goals.

For example, in order to maintain his control over "Mulan," he proactively reduced the budget in exchange for Disney's compromise.

A budget of one hundred million US dollars is a super-large production even in China; it's enough for him to build.

Meanwhile, in order to solidify his control over the project, Guo Fan further demanded that "Mulan" be filmed domestically.

Grasslands, deserts, Gobi, snowfields, palaces—which of the locations that Mulan needed isn't in China?

Labor is cheaper in China than abroad. To put it bluntly, in China, Guo Fan can treat people like animals and exploit them to death, and no labor union will jump out to interfere.

There's no need to think that Disney, as a long-established capitalist film studio, takes great care of the cast and crew's treatment. They're happier than anyone else if they can save money.

At the same time, Guo Fan lost the editing rights to "Mulan".

Guo Fan has no right to obtain the final cut rights for the film from Disney.

It's really not Guo Fan and Chen Zhixi's fault for not trying hard enough; it was simply impossible for them to do it.

In Hollywood today, no more than one director has the final cut.

Cameron, Nolan, Quentin Tarantino, Martin Scorsese, Ridley Scott.

These five directors should be the only ones with the right to edit their own films.

Guo Fan and Chen Zhixi are still cooperating and fighting with Disney.

Pacific Rim 2 achieved good results worldwide. Although profitability remains to be seen, it did beat Justice League in North America. Liu Yifei's international popularity has been further enhanced. Disney benefited from this and is naturally happy to see it.

Today marks the first time the "Mulan" team has met with Liu Yifei since the official announcement that she would be the female lead.

What we need to communicate is nothing more than the movement training and the start date.

"You'll be spending the Lunar New Year on set again this year," Guo Fan said. "But we should give you two days off, since we also need to celebrate the New Year ourselves."

"It's okay, I'm used to it." Liu Yifei looked at the schedule in her hand, calculated the time, and realized it was indeed quite tight.

After New Year's Day, Liu Yifei will begin action training. Next year, after Qingming Festival, the crew will start filming on the Gobi Desert in the Western Film City. Liu Yifei will undergo three months of action training, training six days a week for eight hours a day, and will also have to strictly control her diet during this period.

"Except for the snow scenes, which will use special effects, everything else is filmed on location." Guo Fan excitedly told Liu Yifei about their upcoming trip. "Have you ever been to XJ?"

"No."

"The most beautiful grasslands in China are in Xinjiang, and the most beautiful grasslands in Xinjiang are in Yili. We're going to Yili to film the grasslands this time. When I went to scout locations this summer, it was absolutely stunning. You'll definitely love it." (He needs to appease the female lead.)

Upon hearing this, Liu Yifei laughed and said, "We wanted to go to Xinjiang when we were filming 'Mojin: The Lost Legend,' but we gave up because the journey was too far and bumpy. This time, our dream has come true." Liu Yifei looked at her schedule for the "Mulan" film crew and thought it was fine: "Okay, that's settled then. I'll clear out my work this month and join the crew on time after New Year's Day. Is it in Yanjing?"

"Yes, in Yanjing."

"Do I know any action choreographers?" This young lady has been working in the action film industry for many years, and she knows most of the well-known action choreographers in China and the United States.

"The action choreographer is from the US, but he's also Chinese," says a representative of the Chinese teams in the world of film action choreography. "You know Sun Nuo, right?"

"Yes, I know him." Liu Yifei smiled when she heard it was him. "We've been friends for seven or eight years. His wife will be here too, right?" Sun Nuo's wife is also a well-known action director in the industry.

"Yes. Some members of the Donnie Yen Stunt Team will also be involved in some work."

“I know them all,” Liu Yifei said. “This is much easier; at least I don’t have to speak English on the training field.”

That's how things were arranged. Liu Yifei had a month to finish her backlog of work.

The box office success of "Pacific Rim 2" has ensured that Liu Yifei has no shortage of offers.

She finally returned to China, so naturally she wanted to fill her time with lots of work.

"Hello everyone on Weibo, I'm Yifei."

"Pacific Rim 2 has already grossed 21 billion yuan in China. Did you ever imagine it would achieve such great results?"

"I never thought about it. I was thinking around 10 billion, so reaching 20 billion is an unexpected surprise."

After Pacific Rim 2's box office surpassed 20 billion, some netizens called you "King Fei Fei". Do you like this nickname?

Liu Yifei, who hadn't been online for a long time, found the nickname amusing at first, but said, "This achievement is thanks to the entire crew. Actors are just one part of it, and I only did what I was supposed to do. But the nickname is quite cute."

"Netizens say they are so lucky to be able to see Yifei's new movies every year." This year there are even two.

"Hehe, thank you." Liu Yifei knew this was just flattery from her fans.

"The next question is a bit..." The host hesitated, "If Yifei doesn't want to answer, we can skip it." If this question is difficult to answer, why is it on the host's cue cards in the first place?

"It's okay, just say it."

"Yifei and Director Li are both very busy with work and rarely see each other. Do you ever have any conflicts or arguments? How do you usually resolve them?" After reading the question, the host added, "Do you and Director Li sometimes argue?"

"Of course!" Liu Yifei said with a smile.

"You two argue? In the eyes of the audience, you are a model couple in the entertainment industry."

"No couple is without arguments."

"What did you two argue about?"

"We've argued about life and creation." Liu Yifei clearly didn't want to expose too much about her private life and didn't want to go into too much detail. "I also have a bad side, but the audience and fans can't see it. My family knows. Teacher Li also has a bad side, but that's what I see."

"So how did you resolve the argument?"

"Once the argument is over, it's all over. Once you've vented your emotions, give each other a way out and move on quickly. There's nothing you can't get over."

(End of this chapter)