Chinese Entertainment Intelligence King

Chapter 260 Yi An Films Takes Big Steps, Four Actresses and Two Soldiers Alliance?
In Li Xiaolu's mind, as long as she could persuade Huo Siyan, the next step would be to easily win over Yan Li, enjoy her new freedom, and then provoke Li Chen.

However, after actually trying it out, she realized that she had oversimplified the situation.

Yan Li was not like Li Chen, who could be summoned and dismissed at will.

He has a high social status, is busy with work, has a strong sense of justice, and is surrounded by many women. It's not easy for ordinary women to even get close to him, let alone seduce him.

Moreover, Li Xiaolu also realized that she had overestimated Huo Siyan.

I thought she was some kind of favored concubine, but now it seems that Yan Li doesn't take her too seriously. She's more like a tool to him. In reality, Huo Siyan is clinging to Yan Li like a leech.

Li Xiaolu was stunned.

After trying to coax and threaten him for a long time, he ended up with a "pig teammate" who couldn't even get Yan Li to come out.

Huo Siyan was also a little embarrassed. It was like spending a long time researching strategies for a game, thinking she could dominate the game, but her level was not high enough to even enter a dungeon.

However, this is not necessarily a bad thing for Huo Siyan.

She was forced into it. She was willing to help and actually did help, but she wasn't capable enough, so we can't blame her.

Huo Siyan wanted to delay the matter. Li Xiaolu's decision was somewhat impulsive. Once she calmed down and reconciled with Li Chen, the matter might be over.

However, Huo Siyan's attempt to deceive only fueled Li Xiaolu's enthusiasm.

She considers herself to be quite famous and good-looking. She has always had the personality of a little princess and has been pampered and spoiled by everyone. So when she tried to take the initiative to approach someone, it didn't go smoothly, which really aroused her rebellious mentality.

But no matter how much she tried, it was no use. Yan Li was busy and didn't have time to chat, and Qin Lan had also returned.

Qin Lan still has some intimidating power; at least Huo and Li are quite apprehensive in her presence, especially Huo, who is afraid of making a mistake and tries his best to persuade Li Xiaolu to proceed cautiously.

Unable to stop Yan Li, and with Qin Lan in charge, Li Xiaolu had no better options and decided to put aside his thoughts for the time being and look for another opportunity.

Yan Li was unaware that Li Xiaolu had her eye on him.

There's no way around it; too many people are eyeing him, and the system simply can't keep up. Li Xiaolu's relationship with Yan Li is so-so, and he hasn't taken any significant actions, so the chances of triggering the system are low.

Compared to Li Xiaolu, it was the White Soldier who triggered an intelligence report.

She was not valued in Yinghuang and had mediocre resources. When Bai Bing's agent heard that she knew Yan Li, he encouraged her to greet the big boss more often. He said that she should be brave when necessary, and maybe she could gain his appreciation.

Well, they're from the Hong Kong entertainment circle, so they have a very open-minded view on this matter.

Yan Li didn't pay much attention to Bai Bing; he didn't have the time, and besides, there was Wang Ou to deal with.

After the premiere that day, Yan Li focused his attention on the box office of "Love Transfer".

The box office was nearly one million on its opening day, and about 650 million in its first week. The total box office is expected to exceed 1500 million.

This box office performance isn't outstanding, but it's still quite good, especially considering the film's investment.

Because the film involved a lot of product placement and many actresses made cameo appearances, the production costs were kept very low.

At least Yi'an, as one of the investors, didn't spend much money; it only contributed some resources, connections, and favors, and earned profits.

With a box office of over 1500 million, the production and distribution companies each received approximately 500 to 600 million in revenue.

With other miscellaneous income included, 8 million should be no problem, and it might even reach 10 million. Yi'an has a 50% share, which means she will receive 4 to 5 million.

The profits weren't much, but the profit margin was considerable, and most importantly, it proved a new victory for Yi An's investment in films.

Currently, Yi An has invested in and has some control over the release of two films: "Crazy Stone" and "Love Transfer".

The huge success of "Crazy Stone" might be attributed to luck, but the modest success and modest profits of "Love Transfer" cannot be simply attributed to luck as well.

Some film professionals have already recognized that Yi An has unique insights into the selection, evaluation, and overall operation of low-budget film projects.

If they can establish a foothold in the relevant field and consistently produce successful low-budget films, they will definitely become an important pillar for Yi'an Film's development.

To reiterate, regardless of how much or how little money is made, the ability to make money in commercial films is what matters, and stable profitability is extremely beneficial to the entire company.

In addition, the success of the two low-budget films has also brought about some changes for Yi An.

That is, many screenwriters and directors feel that Yi An prefers low-budget projects and has a foundation for successfully operating projects, so they are willing to come to Yi An to cooperate.

After some internal research, Yi An found that several of the scripts and projects were indeed quite interesting.

A project called "Perfect Imperfection" was organized by Li Xiang, a former top female host on Hunan TV, and directed by her alleged boyfriend, Wang Yuelun.

Li Xiang has been in the industry for many years and has a wide network of connections. She also has a lot of resources at Hunan TV, but she is not good enough in terms of movies.

As mentioned before, the film industry has high barriers to entry because it involves many channels and resources.

If you don't have the strength, just throwing money at it won't work, or rather, it's extremely cost-effective.

Unless it's just about promoting someone for the sake of promoting them and you don't care about spending money, if you want to make a fortune in the film market, you'll mostly have to find a film company with money and resources to cooperate with.

Li Xiang's first choice was actually Bona Film Group, while Yi An was also considered a high-quality partner due to her outstanding performance in operating low-budget films and the rapid development of her distribution business.

There's a movie called "Contract Lover," which is just a script. It's about paying money to rent a girlfriend to take home and then the fake relationship turns into a real one.

This approach isn't new, but it's still quite popular on various forums these days, with many related short articles and posts.

To put it bluntly, people who can't find a partner or are dissatisfied with their current partner fantasize about meeting their "true love" by chance.

Things like living together with someone, renting a girlfriend/boyfriend, online dating through chatting or gaming, and the sudden appearance of beautiful women or handsome men like in the movie "Love Transfer" have a certain market among today's young people.

Yi An Film and Television Department thought this script had potential and could be used to promote people.

However, the original script went a bit astray, adopting the mold of a contractual relationship, but actually telling a story about the clash between traditional and modern ideas.

Yi An plans to get the script published, focusing on the selling point of a contractual relationship, with a love story as the main theme and some comedic elements. She can find a few good-quality related short stories to stitch together, making it more in line with the popular ideas of modern young people.

There is also a film called "Peach Blossom Luck" which is told from a female perspective on marriage and relationships.

The director is Ma Liwen, a female director who won the Golden Rooster Award for Best Director for "We Two" and launched the career of a Golden Rooster Best Actress and a Tokyo Best Actress.

Yi An invested in this film not only because she felt it had commercial potential, but also because she had high hopes for director Ma Liwen and considered using the film to promote actresses and win awards.

To put it bluntly, it's about promoting Fan Xiaopang.

If Fan Bingbing has any free time after finishing filming "Red Cliff" and "Painted Skin" this year, his third film will most likely be "Peach Blossom Luck".

...

The budgets for the three films, "Perfect Couple," "Contract Lover," and "Love in the Buff," were not particularly high.

In particular, "Perfect Couple" was considered an investment, and the production team of "Peach Blossom Luck" was mainly led by the director, with Yi An primarily responsible for distribution.

Only "Contract Lover" can be considered Yi An's main work.

So, despite the fact that it's three movies, Yi An's actual investment amount wasn't that much, not to mention that she was able to attract other investments.

In addition to the three films mentioned above, "Love Transfer 2" is also planned to be launched, and it will still be a collaboration with China Film Group.

The negotiations for "The Equation of Love and Death" went quite smoothly. They couldn't win over the female lead, but they could push Deng Chao to the top. Cao Baoping had a good impression of Deng.

Including the previously invested films "The Sun Also Rises" and "Protégé", as well as the key project "Painted Skin", this makes a total of eight films.

Even among the many film companies in mainland China, this is considered a respectable output.

Of course, some of these films were invested in a long time ago, while others are still in the research and preparation stage.

So it seems like a lot, but in reality, the time span is two or three years. When spread out, it's only three or four films a year, or two or three films. Moreover, Yi An actually controls less than half of the projects.

Yan Li personally felt that the steps taken were a bit bigger than he had originally expected, but still within an acceptable range.

Unfortunately, as mentioned before, Yan Li initially wanted to establish himself in theatrical releases, focusing on distribution and producing mainly low- to medium-budget films in a steady and pragmatic manner. However, things didn't go as planned when he actually started.

The company's rapid growth has caused it to stumble when it takes too small a step; the cinema chain and distribution also require certain proprietary business support.

An industrial chain, an industrial chain, once formed, is indispensable. In order for it to operate smoothly, some weak links must be added.

Therefore, given the circumstances, Yan Li cannot be too conservative; he must spend money when necessary.

Fortunately, Yi'an's film business is currently going smoothly, with TV series, advertising and other businesses providing a steady stream of funding, giving Yan Li the capital to "run wild".

Taking big steps carries risks, but also has advantages.

Seize a certain market opportunity, establish industry influence earlier, and obtain relevant support and resources.

To put it more bluntly, the government supports the mainland film and television industry. The bigger and better the industry develops, the more attention and importance the government will pay to it.

While Huayi Brothers and Bona Film Group were able to break through the encirclement due to various reasons and advantages, the contributions of China Film Group and higher-level organizations were absolutely indispensable.

Yi An caught up with the rapid rise of the mainland market and the key moment when various film and television companies were expanding their territories. It would be great if she could get a share of the pie.

There are only so many positions available. Yan Li and Yi An have already taken one, so other companies can only watch enviously.

This can be seen from a meeting held by the Film Bureau during the first month of the lunar calendar.

Besides state-owned film companies like China Film Group, Shanghai Film Group, and August First Film Studio, only six private film companies from mainland China participated.

Huayi Brothers, Bona Film Group, Stellar Media, New Pictures, as well as Orange Sky Entertainment and Yi An Entertainment.

The first few companies are all familiar faces, while Yi'an and Chengtian are "newcomers".

Yi An needs no introduction. Last year's performance was outstanding, and this year's moves are impressive, with multiple strategic deployments. She is a highly promising stock with great potential.

Orange Sky Entertainment doesn't actually have a great track record in film, and its investment projects are limited, but it has too much money. It spent over 100 million yuan on "Red Cliff," which made it famous overnight.

These six companies cannot be said to be the strongest mainland film and television companies. There are also companies such as Taihe, Huayi, Century Hero, and Enlight Media, which are all quite powerful.

However, these six companies are genuinely engaged in the film industry, have achieved certain results, and have close ties with China Film Group and the Film Bureau, making them highly representative.

Yes, that's what they call "one of our own".

This wasn't the first time Yan Li had attended a meeting of the Film Bureau.

Most of the topics were rehashing old arguments, such as stimulating the market and enhancing the film and television culture capabilities of mainland China. But there were some new developments, such as some resource coordination and trend warnings.

The former goes without saying, but the latter is also very important.

In the film and entertainment industry, if you can't keep up with the trends and don't understand the boundaries, what can and can't be filmed, you'll be doomed without even knowing how.

In addition, the Film Bureau will also issue some suggestions, which can also be called tasks.

For example, if you feel that a certain theme is struggling to develop, or if you have works that reflect mainstream values ​​and social trends, we hope that companies can try more and take on more responsibility.

After the meeting, everyone went home, but in reality, they all found places to meet alone in twos and threes.

Fatty Yu pulled Yan Li to invite Third Master Han, who agreed, but also called Boss Wu from Orange Sky over.

With the filming of "Red Cliff" about to begin, Boss Wu, who has contributed greatly to the project, is now Han Sanye's new favorite, so much so that even his old subordinate, Fatty Yu, is a little jealous.

Yan Li was alright. He didn't get along with Boss Wu, but he didn't show it out of respect for Master Han.

Master Han actually wanted to matchmake Yan Li and Boss Wu, but neither of them were very interested, so he had to give up.

During the meal, the movie "Red Cliff" was, of course, an unavoidable topic.

China Film Group is the controlling party, Orange Sky Entertainment is the producer, Bona Film Group is both the producer and distributor, and Yi An Entertainment is likely to be the distributor as well.

After all, blockbusters like this require extensive on-the-ground promotion and strict anti-piracy measures, which is precisely Yi An's forte. Master Han had already spoken to Yan Li about this beforehand.

Yan Li certainly wouldn't let go of this opportunity to train his distribution team and make a small profit; he was just waiting for the production team to start filming before signing the contract.

Orange Sky Entertainment, the financial backer of the production company, benefited greatly from the casting of the main cast for "Red Cliff," as it turned down artists including Hu Jun, Tong Dawei, and You Yongzhi.

Rumors suggest that the rise of Go Kaneshiro and another Japanese actor is related to Orange Sky Entertainment and the Japanese capital and market behind it.

Besides Orange Sky Entertainment, another big winner in the casting of "Red Cliff" was director Wu Baige.

Leung Chiu-wai was actually doing alright. After Chow Yun-fat dropped out of the show, there weren't many actors who could replace him, and Leung was one of them. Plus, with his relationship with Ng, he was able to rise to the top smoothly.

But Chang Chen and Chi Ling's roles were purely due to Wu Baige's strong support, especially Hsiao Chiao, who had quite a few people vying for the role.

After investing in Orange Sky Entertainment, they wanted to promote Chen Hao, the company's top female artist, or other Orange Sky female artists to the top, but they failed to do so.

There was also Tong Dawei, who was rumored to be cast as Sun Quan, but Wu Baige insisted on protecting Zhang Zhen, and in the end, he was given an original soldier role.

So when it comes to casting, Mr. Wu, the boss of Orange Sky Entertainment, is both satisfied and dissatisfied. In his opinion, apart from Liang and Jin, all the other actors should be from Orange Sky Entertainment.

On this point, Yan Li surprisingly shared the same attitude as him.

At present, there are few actors in the mainland film industry who can carry the box office, so it is understandable that they rely on big-name male stars from Hong Kong and Taiwan. However, for this reason, we cannot give up the hard-won position of mainland female artists.

The pairing of top male stars from Hong Kong and Taiwan with popular actresses from mainland China aligns with market demands and the interests of all parties, making it acceptable to everyone.

As a result, Hong Kong and Taiwan continued to push actresses into positions of power, taking the meat but not the bones or the broth, their behavior was truly disgusting.

"Let's not talk about movies invested by Hong Kong and Taiwan themselves. For co-productions, we have to follow the rules. In the end, they are the ones who are here to make a living in the mainland."

Yan Li's tone was somewhat aggressive, Han Sanye remained silent, Yu Pangzi fiddled with his teacup, and Boss Wu, who didn't get along with him, nodded.

"Mr. Yan is right."

Master Han advised, "Hong Kong and Taiwan are also Chinese, and they are all part of the Chinese film industry. Don't make such a distinction."

Fatty Yu, standing next to him, nodded and said, "Harmony brings wealth."

Han Sanye is the head of China Film Group. Although he is inclined towards the mainland, there are many things he cannot say or participate in.

Yu Pangzi is close to the Hong Kong entertainment circle and mainly focuses on distribution, so he doesn't care much about these things.

While Yan Li and Boss Wu's indignation was certainly influenced by some emotions and stances, their actions were also driven by self-interest.

Yan Li and Shuang Bing are close friends and also work in artist management. Boss Wu has a large number of artists under his management. They must be eager for Hong Kong and Taiwan artists to leave so that all the resources can go to their own people.

"Third Master and Brother Yu are just too kind to others. We treat them like family, but do they treat us like family?"

"I think the rise of the film market should be a comprehensive rise. It's unhealthy to use our money and our films to promote their people, only to be controlled by their big names in return."

"To be honest, I consciously used an all-mainland cast for this film, 'Painted Skin'."

"If successful, it will prove that our popular actors in mainland China can also carry a successful commercial film. This will definitely be a milestone moment."

"..."

Yan Li's words were half true and half false. It's true that they used a mainland team, but it wasn't as high-end as some people think.

With enough dual-soldier synergy, it doesn't matter who the other supporting characters are, as long as they have some fame.

Regardless of his original intentions, it doesn't stop Yan Liqi from being high-profile, showing his face to superiors, and winning people's hearts.

These bigwigs may not feel it deeply, but mainland actors are deeply resentful of Hong Kong and Taiwanese actors occupying a preferential ecological niche in the industry.

Yan Li wasn't afraid that these words would offend some big names and celebrities from Hong Kong and Taiwan, because he hadn't really intended to get deeply involved with those big names.

Those who can cooperate will continue to cooperate; those who cannot cooperate simply have no affinity.

On the contrary, those mainland movie stars, who may not seem big names now, are developing rapidly and have great potential. They will be the pillars and backbone of the film industry in the future.

Yan Li's advocacy for their interests and even his exploration of the market will, in the long run, greatly benefit his future reputation in the industry.

Indeed, the relationship between the four women and the two soldiers is complicated, and there are various forces behind them.

Otherwise, Yan Lidu would have been willing to team up with Shuangbing and Sidan, and then connect with a group of popular mainland actresses to overwhelm Hong Kong and Taiwan actresses, seize high-quality film and television resources, and even launch a counterattack against the Hong Kong entertainment circle to a certain extent, acting in Hong Kong films and dramas.

Given the current market environment, the fading popularity of older generation actresses from Hong Kong and Taiwan, and the lack of strength among the new and middle-aged generations, this is an opportunity to achieve.

Unfortunately, Si Dan might not believe Yan Li, and Yan Li is indeed not worthy of their trust.

He went to so much trouble; if he didn't take the opportunity to promote his own people, wouldn't his efforts have been wasted?

If it were only for the benefit of all mainland Chinese actresses, Yan Li wouldn't be that noble, nor would he have that much free time...

...

However, despite saying that, Yan Li really kept this in mind.

When promoting "The Legend of Xue Rengui", Yan Li pulled Li Bingbing and Li Xue into a room to discuss the feasibility of colluding to seize resources.

Li Bingbing and his sister were pulled into Yan Li's room. Li Bingbing was initially nervous and even prepared to risk his life to save his sister.

Unexpectedly, Yan Li was talking about something important.

After calming down, Li Bingbing hesitated and asked, "You mean, we should join forces to seize resources from Hong Kong and Taiwan? Is that feasible?"

"Why not? You two, and get Zhou Gongzi and the others involved. Let's join forces and kick the people from Hong Kong and Taiwan out of the game first, and then we'll see who's the real deal."

"..."

Yan Li shared his thoughts, saying that ideally, the four Dan Shuang Bing and others should form an alliance, cooperate with each other, kick people out first, and then distribute resources reasonably according to needs.

But that's too idealistic; the Four Dan Double Soldiers simply can't do that.

So just keep the first step: kick out the Hong Kong and Taiwan stars, and then everyone can show their skills and see who is the most capable.

No matter how much they fight, the competition stays within the group, and with a few people having a semi-monopoly, the odds are much higher than facing direct competition from all sides.

While Li Bingbing hesitated, Li Xue, as his agent, felt that there was indeed some room for maneuver.

If the "Four Dan and Two Bing" (a group of four top actresses and two top female artists) were to form an alliance and exclude one of them, then those Hong Kong and Taiwanese female artists would not be able to compete with them.

Furthermore, if they can maintain a tacit understanding, the four actresses and two soldiers can control high-quality resources as much as possible, further consolidate their advantages, and completely prevent the younger actresses from catching up.

Of course, given the intense competition among the four actresses and two men, Li Xue is not optimistic about long-term stable cooperation among them.

Even if it's just about joining forces on some key projects to eliminate competitors and increase one's chances of advancement, it's still a good thing.

Li Xue thought Yan Li's suggestion was good, but would the others agree? They were practically begging for it.

"Your sister and Bingbing fight every time they meet, but they also cooperate when they should, right?"

"It's not about asking you to cease hostilities and make peace, but about reaching a consensus on certain aspects. Cooperation is mutually beneficial, and who would turn down tangible benefits?"

"With two soldiers working together and recruiting one or two more, as long as they can taste the benefits, the others will come on their own, unless she also wants to be the one who is ostracized."

Yan Li was well-versed in the ways of competition; once he started, it was hard to avoid getting caught up in the fray.

Li Bingbing was still not optimistic. She and Fan Xiaopang still had ties, and the deep-seated hatred between the four actresses and the two soldiers was difficult to resolve.

"Just give it a try."

Yan Li shrugged. It was just a plan anyway. If it succeeded, great; if not, there was no loss.

Li Xue supported Yan Li and began to study the plan with high spirits. The two soldiers were a given, but if they needed to recruit a third person, the best candidate would be Zhou Gongzi, who was also at Huayi Brothers.

This further intensified the internal struggles within Huayi Brothers.

However, Zhou Gongzi's acting style and the two soldiers, especially her sister, are subtly different. Moreover, the two sides have been fighting for so long and are quite familiar with each other, so the team can share resources.

Li Bingbing glanced at her sister, who was full of plans, then quietly approached Yan Li and asked in a low voice.

"Tell me honestly, are you up to something?"

She strongly suspected that Yan Li had finished with the two soldiers and was now eyeing the four women.

Yan Li rolled her eyes: "What are you talking about? I'm all this suffering for you two, otherwise why would I bother with this?"

He personally trained the two soldiers, and they're practically locked in a fierce battle. Add the four Dan (another character in the story), and they'll be causing chaos every day. He'll never have the chance to enjoy that...

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

P.S.: The queue was quite long today, so I'm 2000 words short. I'll add it later after I've written down the details.
(End of this chapter)