Who are you calling "little fresh meat"? I'm the king.

Chapter 682 Investment? (13)

That's actually how the original ending was set!
But... it's an animated film, you can't do that, people can't die.

It's considered taboo for children to die in Chinese animation.

Cartoons are mostly for children, so why would you kill off kids?
Therefore, a scene was created where the Monkey King hears the call and turns around, as well as a transition during the end credits.

Shen Yan... suggests referring to the ten reincarnations of Jin Chanzi...

Tang Sanzang, according to the White Bone Demon, is the original body of Jin Chanzi, the embodiment of ten lifetimes of cultivation. Anyone who eats a piece of his flesh will gain longevity and immortality.

As originally planned, Chaos has already made his appearance. His other counterparts in the Classic of Mountains and Seas—Taowu, Qiongqi, and Taotie—will naturally also appear in subsequent films…

Yes, the original plan was to film several movies...

They even have a script idea for a second part—in the second part, the young Tang Sanzang will enter adolescence, become rebellious, and question Sun Wukong's authority…

However, it was never made, and even the project "Monkey King Havoc in Heaven" was never completed; the director went off to work on "Deep Sea"...

An investment of 4 million yuan.

He probably thinks he's awesome...

However, "Monkey King: Hero Is Back" is indeed very important—it boosted the audience's confidence in domestic animation!

After watching the movie, the main creators and Shen Yan came on stage.

The host asked, "What do you all think of this movie?"

"very good!"

"awesome!"

Then Tian Xiaopeng shared his creative insights…

This includes things like why the Monkey King is a horse-faced monkey and the details of the special effects.

Wu Hehu, general manager of Shanghai United Cinemas, stood up from the audience: "We know that the cost of 'Monkey King: Hero Is Back' is 100 million yuan, which means that it needs at least 300 million yuan in box office revenue to break even. Currently, the highest-grossing domestic animation film is 'Boonie Bears: Snow Daze,' which has grossed 2.96 million yuan. I would like to ask Mr. Shen, how do you judge that 'Monkey King: Hero Is Back' can reach 1 billion yuan in box office revenue?"

Shen Yan smiled and said, "Judging a film's box office performance is a market-driven activity. The criteria for judgment are based on the genre's upper limits. However, if a film can generate nationwide attention through word-of-mouth, then that attention is phenomenal... and its box office potential is also phenomenal... 'Monkey King: Hero Is Back' clearly possesses these qualities..."

After a pause, Shen Yan added, "While I'm willing to invest in my ideals, I don't just invest in anything. From a market perspective, we all know Sun Wukong! That saves a lot of money on promotion. Secondly, I looked into the script structure; it's a very typical genre film narrative. Finally… regarding special effects, Director Tian's understanding of animation special effects is very similar to ours… We don't want it to be too flashy, like a game; we want it to be more physical. For example, when a rock hits Wukong, the process of it breaking should be the same as in real life."

"I'm not worried about the box office at all right now. To be honest, what I'm worried about is that if 'Monkey King: Hero Is Back' does too well at the box office, it will lead to some unreasonable hype for domestic animation... The animation industry currently lacks the right attitude towards the market, the audience, and the costs and cycles!"
"Animated films have a very long production cycle... It's different from live-action films. With live-action films, you can basically get a glimpse of the quality from the script, creative team, and cast. Animation requires a very long production cycle, and you don't know what the quality will be like until it's finished... The risk is still very high!"

"So why do you invest?"

"I'm already a professional in the industry, and the Chinese film market is becoming increasingly mature. Animated films are an essential part of a mature film market... In the most mature North American market, animated films consistently account for more than 15% of the market share..."

……

After the premiere of "Monkey King: Hero Is Back" ended, Shen Yan saw off the media and then got into the car with Yang Mi...

In the car, Yang Mi asked curiously, "Do you really think an animated film can gross over a billion?"

"Just bragging a little... anyway, I'm lacking material..."

Shen Yan answered casually, then asked, "When are you leaving?" "I have to wait until tomorrow... I need to finish the promotional work for 'Tiny Times 4'."

"Okay, I'll be leaving now..."

"You're not participating in the later activities?"

“I’m not participating,” Shen Yan shook his head. “The Zhou Chu team is waiting for me, but I have to come to the closing ceremony!”

The Shanghai International Film Festival invited Shen Yan to present awards at the closing ceremony…

Yan Ge couldn't really refuse, so he agreed, since it would only take half a day anyway.
He stopped participating in subsequent forums.

When it comes to boasting, they're definitely missing a trick; they're always talking about the Disney model, building theme parks, or investing billions in entertainment projects...

Shen Yanzhen couldn't possibly make this up!
Sigh, I often feel out of place with a bunch of awesome bastards because I'm too normal.

Yang Mi seemed to remember something: "A couple of days ago, they suggested I make a sequel to 'Finding Mr. Right,' what do you think?"

"Finding Mr. Right 2?"

"Correct!"

Shen Yan hesitated for a moment, then said, "Go find Han Yan... I don't have any better ideas anyway!"

There's a sequel to "Finding Mr. Right" called "Finding Mr. Right 2"...

It's a terrible movie; the logic is completely nonsensical!

The female protagonist turns her life around through gambling—she takes borrowed money and gambles everything at the gambling table.

And it turns out he really did turn his life around through gambling!

Two hundred thousand became one million, and after gambling it all away and paying off the debts, she began a sweet and happy love story with the honest man she had always kept in touch with…

Oh, this movie is clearly sponsored by Macau casinos…

The story is simple: two people living in different parts of the world meet because of a book, become pen pals, write letters to each other, gradually get to know each other, fall in love, and finally meet.

I've seen countless stories like this, but two stand out in my memory. One is Ni Kuang's *Wesley: Pen Pal*, about Bai Su's cousin who develops feelings for an American through correspondence and wants to meet him. However, she discovers he's being controlled by a mysterious organization and his life is in grave danger. Wesley, of course, must stand up for his wife's cousin. Using his exceptional skills, he fights his way through various members of the mysterious organization, successfully rescuing the American. But in the end, he discovers that the American isn't someone from above at all, but rather a computer at an American military base—a computer that has developed feelings and is about to "rebel"...

Another film is "Mary and Max": it tells the story of an Australian girl who accidentally finds an American's address in the Yellow Pages and then corresponds with him for twenty years...

The original film "Finding Mr. Right 2" clearly borrowed from Tom Hanks' "You've Got Mail"...

Why is the title "Finding Mr. Right" included?
For commercial reasons: "Finding Mr. Right" was a huge hit and had high box office returns, so when this duo were to make another romance movie, no matter what it was about, it had to be called "Finding Mr. Right".

Shen Yan had no interest in projects that were purely about making money!
But... I wouldn't refuse, after all, it's a project aimed at making extra money...

“Okay…” Yang Mi nodded, then continued, “I want to join the investors this time!”

"Whatever you want..."

"Can I invest in 'Zhou Chu'?"

(End of this chapter)