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

Chapter 952 Interview (23)

Cannes has a dedicated networking area for film distributors…

Multiple forums, small cocktail parties, and breakfast meetings provide opportunities for film distributors and producers to network.

However, Shen Yan doesn't need to do that!

I booked a room at the hotel and invited a familiar film distributor over to discuss things…

They offer drinks, afternoon tea, and snacks...

In just three days, the talks were almost complete!

The best-selling film was "White Snake," which sold to 162 countries and regions based on just an 8-minute trailer…

Then came "Northeast Police Story," "Underground Fire," and so on...

"Dynasty Warriors" didn't sell particularly well, only selling the rights to 64 countries and regions...

Understandable!

"Project Gutenberg" is a crime film, a genre that has been produced in various countries and regions around the world...

Liaoyuan Studios bought the North American rights to "White Snake" for $200 million...

They think it's a promising opportunity!
After all, "The Legend of the White Snake" is one of China's four great traditional folk tales...

……

Cannes during the film festival…

Advertisements for Hollywood blockbusters are everywhere!

The exterior of the Carlton Hotel was covered with posters and billboards for three Hollywood blockbusters: Avengers: Infinity War occupied the door frame, Dwayne Johnson's Rampage occupied the windows, and Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom occupied the rooftop billboard.

A few steps further, the 3D poster for Pixar's blockbuster "The Incredibles 2" catches the eye, while huge posters for "Ant-Man and the Wasp," "Hotel Transylvania 2," and "Mission: Impossible 6" also join the fun.

The business atmosphere is indeed very strong!

Can understand.

Without substantial financial support, such a splendid event would be difficult to sustain.

Every year, many sponsors provide products for the film festival.

For example, the jewelry brand Chopard provides the film festival with a 24K gold Palm Award trophy worth 2 euros every year for free, in exchange for the right for female stars to wear the brand's jewelry on the red carpet.

In addition, cosmetics company L'Oréal, food company Nestlé, and Air France, which supports tourism, contribute a total of about 1000 million euros to the film festival each year.

The mayor of Cannes made no secret of this lucrative business, emphasizing the need to link the film festival with economic growth. As a result, we have seen hotels in Cannes achieve 15% of their annual turnover during the two weeks of the film festival.

During the film festival, Shen Yan always brought bodyguards with him when he went out…

Cannes is really unsafe – there are street thieves and pickpockets everywhere.

The security forces in Cannes itself…

Very French!
To put it simply, the Chopard store on the Cannes coast has been robbed countless times!
That's right, it's Chopard, the jewelry company that provides the €2 Palme d'Or trophy in 24K gold to the film festival every year for free…

Even officially sponsored brand stores can be robbed!

In a sense, isn't this also a kind of 'eye field'...?

Even with two bodyguards with him, Shen Yan didn't dare to go shopping casually... especially in the evening, when there were girls everywhere holding up signs saying "Looking for tickets" or "Looking for rooms"...

During the film festival, even a park bench is considered an incredibly luxurious spot.

If you're willing to take in a girl who has nowhere to sleep, you can ride a foreign horse for free!

Of course, Shen Yan wasn't very interested...

Instead of wasting time, why not do a live stream!
……

In the hotel, on the balcony, Shen Yan was chatting idly with a reporter from Maoyan Entertainment…

Okay, it was just an interview.

A reporter asked, "How would you evaluate today's new directors and the current film industry?"

Shen Yan thought for a moment and replied, "Every new director hopes to realize their dream. From the perspective of the industry as a whole, I think the situation is very complicated."

Some companies are starting a business, some are using the project to raise funds, and some are hoping to go public as soon as possible; there are all sorts of reasons.

Some young people want to quickly produce a work to establish their position in the industry. Others bring their films hoping to win awards—it's a mixed bag. There are different situations on various levels and from various perspectives, making it difficult to generalize.

"Nowadays, the production capacity of the film industry is very strong, with 700 films produced every year, which is far more than other countries."

In this situation, it is necessary for professionals from many industries to reach a consensus on whether your work is worth making.

Have you thought it through? Will your work achieve the effect you want? Is the theme you're presenting valuable?
These are all issues we should deeply consider; we cannot pursue dreams simply for the sake of pursuing dreams…

"Respect for investors?"

"Chinese films used to have a relatively good market overseas. But in recent years, although Chinese commercial films have been quite successful domestically, they are basically ignored abroad. If you ask some foreigners, 'Are you familiar with Chinese films?' Most of them will still mention Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Zhang Yimou, and Jia Zhangke. What are your thoughts on the commercial and cultural export of Chinese films overseas?"

Shen Yan shook his head: "Who said that? Now there's one more of me!"
The film rights for the movies I starred in have all been secured in Asia, as well as in many other countries including the United States, Germany, Greece, and Italy.

"So what do you think about cultural export...?"

"My view has always been that 'cultural export is an overflow, not a deliberate pandering!'... Take it slow, even Hollywood didn't achieve its success overnight!"

"You led the team here yourself to sell the copyrights this time? How did it go?"

"Not bad... We've basically achieved our goals!"

The Maoyan representative then asked, "I have a question... When we sell copyrights, do we sell the copyrights directly, or do we use a revenue-sharing agreement?"

Shen Yan thought for a moment and answered seriously: "Generally speaking, foreign film companies buy the distribution rights and copyrights of a country or region... Even if they buy them, not many are actually released in theaters because of distribution fees."

Generally speaking, films that win awards at the three major European film festivals are released in art-house cinemas and are not shown on a large scale.

Blockbusters like "Project Gutenberg," "Underground Fire," and "Northeast Police Story" are shown in mainstream theaters, but only in a small number of theaters.

In North America, for example, these films, like other films, will follow a commercial strategy of limited releases…

"Art-house films like *Burning* are usually released in art-house cinemas, which is a smaller scope. However, well-received films have the opportunity for longer runs. For example, Huo Jianqi's *Postmen in the Mountains* ran for several years in some theaters in Japan and Brazil, and *Burning* was also shown in France and Italy for half a year..."

"Often, those willing to pay for copyrights are either related to television stations or are television stations themselves... Many low-budget art films are bought by television stations after going through several twists and turns."

"How did the rights to Parasite sell?"

Shen Yan smiled and said, "...Parasite will be released worldwide by Fox...it should be Fox's last independent film in the 21st century!"

(End of this chapter)