The Birth of the Best Director

Chapter 209 Chen Kaige has learned a lot!
……

After Xin Yukun left.

Dilraba and Zhang Tianai sat silently on the sofa, without saying a word.

Xin Yukun's words just now seemed incomprehensible at first glance, but after thinking about them carefully, they were truly thought-provoking.

Yes.

Some people are simply not meant to be too close.

The other person is like a hearth fire; they can give you warmth, but if you're not careful, they can burn you to the bone.

"Sister Xiao Ai, from now on, please double my workload."

"While I'm still popular these next few years, we must make as much money as possible. Enough to ensure we're set for life."

Brother Kun has his own plans for the future.

Dilraba felt that she also needed to plan ahead.

Sometimes, even a mountain can collapse in an instant.

Despite her powerful background, who knows what the future holds?
She needs to earn more money... If Lu Zhiyuan and she can no longer make it in the entertainment industry, at least they'll have enough savings.

She can support Lu Zhiyuan for a lifetime.

Lu Zhiyuan can paint, climb mountains, travel, and see the whole world.

However, we must never be poor.

She hoped that Lu Zhiyuan would always be like the wind, free and unrestrained.

He couldn't let worldly things taint his pure artistic spirit.

"Reba, don't worry, I know what to do."

What Brother Kun said just now was quite frightening.

But after thinking about it carefully, Zhang Tianai realized that the logic was indeed correct.

……

It's opposite the Summer Palace.

There is a courtyard house that covers an area of ​​1200 square meters and has a building area of ​​500 square meters.

Super big.

It's like a small castle.

This is Chen Kaige's childhood home.

He was born into wealth and never experienced poverty; he was a typical young master.

"is it here?"

When Lu Zhiyuan arrived at the door by car, he looked around and quickly noticed a little boy who looked to be about 10 years old waiting at the door.

After Lu Zhiyuan got out of the car, the little boy quickly came up to greet him: "Uncle Yuan, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Arthur."

“Dad said that if you, Uncle Yuan, bring a gift, you can take it back and not take it off the car.”

Arthur?

Chen Kaige's son?

Lu Zhiyuan looked at this young master Chen with a face full of doubt: "It's so cold outside. You waited for me at the door for such a small thing? You could have just asked your father or mother to make a simple phone call to let me know."

This morning, Chen Kaige suddenly invited Lu Zhiyuan to have tea together. The tea location was a courtyard house opposite the Summer Palace.

Lu Zhiyuan thought there was some kind of unique teahouse or something here.

Upon arrival, he realized that this was a residential area.

Moreover, the driver clearly told him that Chen Kaige's old house was right here.

Of course, Chen Kaige owns many houses and doesn't necessarily live here all the time.

On his first visit, Lu Zhiyuan felt embarrassed to come empty-handed, so he casually brought over a few health supplements from the basement of his house.

At Chen Kaige's age, it's about time he started taking health supplements.

Since Old Chen's son said it wasn't necessary, Lu Zhiyuan didn't insist.

What treasures doesn't Old Chen have at home?
Although Lu Zhiyuan is slightly more accomplished in film than Chen Kaige, Chen Kaige is undoubtedly the senior when it comes to enjoying life.

"Uncle Yuan, this way please."

"Watch your step, the threshold of the old house is quite high."

Although he was only a little over 10 years old, Arthur had been trained by Chen Kaige to be like a little adult, with his behavior and manners very proper.

It gives you the feeling that Lu Zhiyuan has traveled back to the Qing Dynasty.

"Xiao Lu, it's been a long time. Welcome to my home. I had the place cleaned several times, inside and out, to entertain you."

"Your presence today is truly an honor to my humble abode."

Lu Zhiyuan rarely visited other people's homes, which Chen Kaige was well aware of.

To show his joy and seriousness, he still acted very solemnly, even if it was just drinking a cup of tea.

This feeling gave Lu Zhiyuan a little...

How should I put it? It's just awkward.

Brother, if you do this, will I dare to come again next time?
"Xiao Lu, this way please."

This courtyard house has a sunken courtyard.

The main building is halfway up the ground.

Therefore, at this moment, Chen Kaige was standing at the doorway, which was one meter above the ground, looking down at Lu Zhiyuan.

He acted like an emperor, welcoming foreign guests rather than friends.

"Uncle Yuan, please come inside."

His son, Arthur, acted like a little adult, helping him manage all of this.

As for his wife, Chen Hong, she didn't say a word. She stood next to Chen Kaige, half a step behind, and just smiled and looked at Lu Zhiyuan in a proper and obedient manner.

what's the situation?
The atmosphere at Chen Kaige's house was strange.

"Thank you."

Lu Zhiyuan braced himself and went upstairs.

Chen Kaige has a dedicated tea room, which is decorated with many calligraphy and paintings. At this moment, the tea has been brewed and a faint fragrance is wafting out.

Lu Zhiyuan didn't know what brand of tea it was either; he didn't understand it anyway.

After all, mango milk tea tastes much better than this.

"Rainbow, you take Arthur and leave."

As soon as Chen Kaige opened his mouth, Lu Zhiyuan couldn't help but want to cover his face.

Good guy.

Is this how you talk at home?

Step down... Does this guy think he's the emperor?

"Xiao Lu, what's wrong?"

Lu Zhiyuan's overreaction only made Chen Kaige feel strange.

"Director Chen, you're a man of your word on set, and you're the same way at home." Lu Zhiyuan gave a thumbs up, expressing his genuine admiration.

"What's this?"

Chen Kaige smiled and shook his head, then asked with some doubt, "Could it be that you're not like this at home?"

In Chen Kaige's view, directors like him, who are all-powerful on set and command thousands of troops, are naturally the same at home.

You can't be timid and submissive at home, but then go on a big rampage on set, can you?

This kind of leadership quality is naturally cultivated little by little in daily life.

I live alone.

Lu Zhiyuan's words left Chen Kaige speechless.

Chen Kaige smiled, not taking it to heart, poured Lu Zhiyuan a cup of tea, and continued, "I invited you here today to casually talk about Zhang Yimou's movie 'The Flowers of War'."

Why do you think this movie failed to gain traction in the North American market?

Anyone with eyes can see that Zhang Yimou brought in Christian Bale in order to make a splash in the North American film market.

However, "The Flowers of War" was a complete flop in North America.

Christian Bale, $2000 million per film.

After 22 days in North America, the film's box office revenue has hovered around $30... Vikenhill Entertainment, the company that bought the rights to the film, has suffered a huge loss!
Ten years ago, Heroes grossed $55 million in North America.

Ten years later, Zhang Yimou even specially found a Hollywood big star, but it flopped so badly in North America.
It was really unexpected.

Lu Zhiyuan took the cup of tea, took a small sip, and then said, "Hero is a martial arts action film. North American audiences, even those who are good-for-nothing thugs, will exclaim how exciting it is just to see cool martial arts action."

"Even if people don't understand the plot at all when they go to the movie theater, they'll feel it's worth the ticket price just for the beautiful fight scenes!"

The movie "Hero" is the visual spectacle that Lu Zhiyuan admires most.

Even if you don't understand the plot, just the cinematography, the beautiful fight scenes, and the atmosphere full of Chinese flavor are worth the ticket price.

"The Flowers of War" is quite different.

In the beginning, the Japanese army stormed into the city, and the National Revolutionary Army retreated while defending, and in the end, they all died in battle, sacrificing themselves heroically.

The battle scenes, details, and dilapidated city depicted here deeply impressed Lu Zhiyuan.

It definitely feels like a real war.

It was filled with pain and hatred for the Japanese invaders.

But when the scene shifts and the story focuses on the church, the narrative language of the entire film undergoes a dramatic change.

The grand theme of war was instantly reduced to a small corner of the war, depicting the experiences of the students and the ladies of the Qinhuai River inside the church.

For a film, it's a major no-no to have the background shrink from a large area to a small area.

Just like the movie "Pacific Rim," if the beginning shows Jaeger fighting monsters, and then Lu Zhiyuan's camera cuts to a story about a few students struggling to survive in a slum.

Who would watch this?

Without even thinking, he'd definitely fall flat on his face.

It has to be said that the fact that this movie was able to gross 6 million yuan is enough to prove that Zhang Yimou's reputation as a great director still has a very strong appeal, at least in China!
"Makes sense."

"Go on, tell me about 'The Flowers of War,' why did it flop?"

Clearly, Chen Kaige didn't want to hear about the success of "Hero," but only about why "The Flowers of War" flopped.

Old Chen has always been good to himself. Lu Zhiyuan doesn't mind sharing some characteristics of North American audiences with Chen Kaige.

What if, in this timeline, Chen Kaige sees his own success and also wants to make a push into North America?
He couldn't stop him.

At this moment, Lu Zhiyuan thought for a moment and said, "The sensitive historical subject matter of 'The Flowers of War' is a blind spot for North American audiences."

"First of all, they will not have any sympathy for the Sino-Japanese War."

"Most people in North America know nothing about the history of East Asia. A large number of them even believe that Japan was a Chinese colony during World War II."

"In their understanding, the war between our two countries is most likely a rebellion by Japan, a colony, against China, the suzerain state... Fundamentally, they cannot comprehend the generations-long hatred between our two countries."

what?
How do ordinary Americans understand the relationship between China and Japan?

They actually thought Japan was a Chinese colony? The war between Japan and China was a war of colony revolting against its mother country.
That's what they actually think?
After hearing Lu Zhiyuan's explanation, Chen Kaige was completely dumbfounded.

Given his level of education, it's hard to imagine that an ordinary American would have such a perception.

This was completely unexpected for him.

No wonder Zhang Yimou's movie flopped.

It would be strange if they didn't fail miserably.

"So, Director Chen, if you're also interested in the North American market... shoot an action movie, use what you're good at, make the visuals more dazzling, and you might be able to carve out a niche in that market."

"In North America, martial arts action films have always had a loyal audience."

"Although the box office won't be too high, tens of millions of US dollars isn't too difficult. With good luck, it might even reach 1 million US dollars."

"Don't talk about humanities and history, they don't understand that. As long as the visuals are exciting enough and the fight scenes are cool enough, there will be audiences willing to pay."

"American action movies are all about brute force and muscle-flexing; they have no aesthetic appeal whatsoever. They even criticize that themselves."

"Furthermore, even if the box office results are poor for various reasons, the DVD home entertainment segment will definitely be able to recoup the costs."

"Home entertainment is where the real money is made. I remember the DVD rights to 'Real Steel' sold for about $2 million."

"In addition, there are also some television streaming rights, which bring in tens of millions of US dollars every year."

"In short, making a profit from martial arts action films shouldn't be difficult; it's much more reliable than making historical films."

Lu Zhiyuan was quite sincere with Chen Kaige and didn't deceive him, telling him some of the data he knew.

So that he can learn from it.

After all, Old Chen had never cheated him and had always treated him well.

When the Directors Guild has any awards or recognition programs, Lao Chen always writes his name on them.

Besides, before any domestic awards are selected, Lao Chen would always let Lu Zhiyuan know... to ask if he needed it.
Chen Kaige mainly believes that Lu Zhiyuan probably looks down on these trashy domestic awards.

After all, Lu Zhiyuan had never hired anyone to lobby for these awards.

Despite failing to win the award year after year, Lu Zhiyuan himself has never expressed any dissatisfaction.

Chen Kaige could understand Lu Zhiyuan's mindset.

They won the Palme d'Or.

They are nominated for Oscars every year.

For Lu Zhiyuan, these minor domestic awards are like a PhD student who has won a major science and technology award—would he care about elementary school students' Olympiad competitions?
"DVD copyrights can actually sell for 2 million US dollars? That much?"

Chen Kaige knew from the beginning that Lu Zhiyuan's movies would be very profitable.

But he never expected it to be so profitable!

With a box office of nearly $10 billion, Real Steel didn't actually make much money after deducting costs. Based on the global average of 40% studio payback, a $10 billion box office would only net the studio about $4 million.

Lu Zhiyuan's film, including production and marketing costs, will require at least 3 million US dollars.

Upon closer inspection, the returns are not high.

However, everyone treats Lu Zhiyuan as a god of wealth, so there must be some other secrets... As a famous director, Chen Kaige certainly knows that in Hollywood, copyright is the most important source of income.

He estimated that it should be tens of millions of US dollars.
In addition, there's the copyright for derivative products like dolls.

One movie, "Real Steel," should be enough to earn Starlight Entertainment about $1 million.

However, Chen Kaige never expected that Lu Zhiyuan's copyright income would be so high!

It was several times higher than he had imagined!
"Xiao Lu, if I may ask, how many shares do you own in Starlight Brilliant?"

“I don’t have any other thoughts. I just feel that it’s not worth it for you to make so much money for them.”

You have to think about yourself.

"These capitalists, or those who are red. When you're making money for them, they'll naturally be all smiles."

"But look at Ah Mou... He's worked with Zhang Weiping for so many years, and after the movie flopped, how ugly was the whole affair?"

“Look at me… I’ve seen through all of this long ago, and I know what kind of people they are. So, I never give them a chance to hurt me.”

"If a movie flops and the box office falls short, that's something for the investors to worry about. As a director, I never lose money."

"Furthermore, I will never be tied to a company."

Chen Kaige could sense Lu Zhiyuan's sincerity towards him.

Therefore, he was completely open with Lu Zhiyuan, sharing his many years of undefeated experience as a director with him.

Zhang Yimou has fallen.

He probably won't be able to stand up for a while.

In the entire country, he and Lu Zhiyuan are currently the most awesome.

If the two of them can join forces, avoid internal strife, or support each other and form an alliance... no one can challenge their position in the short term.

Most importantly, Lu Zhiyuan is not interested in historical topics.

He is not his competitor.

Chen Kaige's biggest pet peeve is Feng Xiaogang, who instead of making a proper Beijing-style comedy, decided to make a film called "1942".

Isn't this overstepping boundaries and trying to challenge his territory?

That buck-toothed brat, watch him fall flat on his face!

"Director Chen, thank you for your guidance."

Lu Zhiyuan thanked them, then added, "Please also thank New Classics Media for their high regard for me. If there's an opportunity, we can collaborate."

Huh? This.

Chen Kaige immediately looked at Lu Zhiyuan with new respect.

That kid is too smart!

If my son Arthur were half as smart as him, I would die happy.

Chen Kaige originally thought he had concealed it very well.

Who knew that after a few words, he thought he hadn't revealed any flaws, but in Lu Zhiyuan's eyes, he was full of them.

The movie he just filmed, "Caught in the Web," was invested in by New Classics Media.

He still has several film contracts with New Classics Media.

"Your words are enough. I haven't let my friend down."

Since he couldn't hide it any longer, Chen Kaige simply admitted it openly.

"Their intention is that as long as you're willing to go, they'll give you shares for free and put you on the board of directors directly. You can make any kind of movie you want without any restrictions."

After explaining, Chen Kaige couldn't help but add, "Of course, just listen to what capitalists say and don't take it too seriously. We're directors, we're the ones who create resources."

"I'll say it again: don't tie yourself to any company."

Be flexible with your bottom line and be quick-witted.

If you sense anything is wrong, run immediately.

These are the words Chen Kaige did not say.

But he believed that Lu Zhiyuan would understand what he meant.

"By the way, Xiao Lu, it seems that Gao Yuanyuan went to an auction house and bought a very expensive oil painting when she was filming 'Caught in the Web'."

"I'm telling you this so you won't be caught off guard."

Chen Kaige initially thought that Gao Yuanyuan was Lu Zhiyuan's mistress, but after listening to Chen Hong's description, it was clear that Gao Yuanyuan was still in the process of pursuing him.

So far, they have not succeeded in taking power.

This relationship is rather intriguing.

Chen Kaige is a respectable person, but he has also done some unsavory things...

In Chen Kaige's memory, Lu Zhiyuan was more respectable than him, and he didn't want Lu Zhiyuan to repeat the same mistake.

Back then, he was really embarrassed.

In addition, at the beginning of the year, Zhang Yimou was also in a very awkward situation because of the news of his third child.

Now that Zhang Yimou's film has flopped, the media isn't letting him off the hook and continues to release more information.

An embarrassing scandal involving Zhang Yimou and a female actress on set has been exposed.

This is utterly disgraceful and makes a complete fool of oneself.

Last year, Feng Xiaogang was photographed going home with a beautiful female host and spending eight hours together, which drew a lot of criticism from netizens.

These three directors all have their own embarrassing stories.

Lu Zhiyuan has no messy affairs, has high artistic achievements, and makes great commercial films... In Chen Kaige's heart, he actually wants to live like Lu Zhiyuan.

To put it in trendy terms, he is Lu Zhiyuan's number one fan!

I don't want anything to happen to my idol.

"Director Chen, thank you for informing me."

Lu Zhiyuan thought to himself, "I've been caught completely off guard."

However, Chen Kaige probably didn't expect Gao Yuanyuan to act so quickly.

"Xiao Lu, dinner should be almost ready. Since you've come all this way, let's have a simple meal together."

The two chatted happily.

Chen Kaige was pleased that Lu Zhiyuan was able to accept his opinion.

In addition, Lu Zhiyuan also gave him a lot of valuable advice... If he wants to break into the North American market, he might be able to learn from it.

With a top expert guiding him, he remained calm.

However, he plans to hone his skills in the country first and film a few action movies.

I've heard that Xu Haofeng writes pretty good martial arts novels; maybe we could collaborate with him.

(End of this chapter)