I'm just trying to ride the wave of popularity!

Chapter 340 His scythe reaps everything!
The world seems to have changed.

It's becoming increasingly superficial, so superficial that even veteran filmmakers like Liang Xiaogang find it somewhat incomprehensible.

After the Venice International Film Festival, Liang Xiaogang quietly returned to China...

During this period, there were no criticisms, and he refused to give any media interviews, simply locking himself in his villa...

He often fell into a state of indescribable loneliness...

Whether it was the failure of "The Last Supper" at the Venice Film Festival or the overseas failure of "Chrysanthemum Terrace," they were like heavy blows that shattered his faith in the art of film.

This blow is unprecedented.

Between 2003 and 2005, the Chinese film industry was undergoing a dramatic transformation.

In the past, meticulously crafted dramas were ignored, while low-budget comedies filled with vulgar jokes became all the rage.

The market today is even more absurd...

Of the films released in September, apart from "Golden Wedding" directed by An Xiaoshi, which is a decent work, the rest were all poorly made bad films.

These movies have melodramatic plots and exaggerated performances, yet they manage to rake in astonishing box office revenue. This distorted market ecosystem is suffocating for filmmakers who uphold artistic integrity.

however……

Early morning on December 9th.

In the study of the villa.

The assistant silently pushed open the door.

"Director Liang, the data is in... 'Golden Wedding' has been in theaters for 8 days, with a 9.3 rating, but its total box office is only 60 million RMB, with an occupancy rate of around 60%. On the other hand, 'The Domineering CEO Falls in Love with Me' and 'Dear Classmate,' both films with a rating of only 5.8, have both grossed over 100 million RMB in 8 days, with the highest single-day occupancy rate even reaching 70%... 'Childhood Sweethearts' is even more exaggerated, with a 5.2 rating on Douban, but thanks to the 'student special ticket price of 15 RMB including a Coke' promotion, its total box office has already reached 120 million RMB..."

She turned to the next page, her voice trembling slightly: "The most outrageous one is 'Summer of First Love.' The plot is extremely cliché, but because the lead actor, Zhang Weilong, has been doing promotional tours and interacting with fans during this period, the box office has exploded. Fans booked out entire theaters and spent 30 million yuan, and the total box office is now 73 million yuan. Theaters are still increasing the number of screenings... Breaking 100 million yuan is probably only a matter of time..."

Liang Xiaogang stared at the data, and at the end of the report, a line of small red text read: "The marketing department predicts that 'Golden Wedding' will be difficult to break 1 million yuan at the box office, while the total box office of the other five 'bad movies' is expected to exceed 8 million yuan!"

Liang Xiaogang put down the report and looked out the window.

Fallen leaves drifted down outside the window, carrying a strong sense of autumn.

In a daze, he seemed to see Zhou Yang standing atop the torrent of data, wielding a scythe to shred the aesthetic sensibilities of the Chinese audience, while even anger from these old guys like himself seemed out of place.

Just then, the phone rang.

"That guy has completely turned the movie business into a business!"

"He's a businessman through and through!"

"A movie crammed with dozens of commercials; it's like they're shoving ads right into the audience's eyes!"

"Old Liang, we need to report this to our superiors. We can't let this troublemaker ruin the film industry any longer!"

"Let's write a joint letter directly to the top leaders of the relevant departments this time..."

"..."

On the other end of the phone came the hysterical roar of Chen Kai, one of China's three great directors.

Since the disastrous failure of "Extreme", he has been subjected to a lot of abuse and ridicule on the Internet, and he lives in anger and resentment every day.

Over the past year, he has continuously cursed reporters, attacked movie fans, and lashed out at all those who questioned him, even threatening audiences to "wait five more years, time will tell" to judge the film.
This time, he seems to have joined forces with other film critics, intending to curb this trend of "bad movies"...

Not long after I finished the call with Chen Kai.

A joint letter appeared in Liang Xiaogang's computer email.

Faced with the aggressive approach of Zhou Yang, Chen Kai, together with film critics and traditional directors, ultimately placed their last hope on the relevant departments.

In the joint letter, he advocated submitting a joint letter to the Film Bureau, with three core demands: first, to strictly control the proportion of product placement in films and limit the duration of commercial advertisements to within 5% of the total film length;

Second, establish a "Film Artistic Value Review Committee" to eliminate policy support for overly entertaining works;

Third, we will promote a "director credit rating system" to include directors whose box office performance and reputation are out of sync in a key supervision list.

He specifically emphasized the need to ban works like "The Overbearing President" that "insult the bottom line of the industry," and even cited the failure of "Chrysanthemum Terrace" in the letter, claiming that "if capital is allowed to trample on art, Chinese films will be completely reduced to a dumping ground for garbage movies!"

……

Looking at these joint letters...

Liang Xiaogang, however, did not react with the same agitation he had shown when he blacklisted Zhou Yang; instead, he sighed.

"You guys go ahead, I won't go..."

At this moment...

He's lost all his ambition!

....................................

September 29, on the eve of National Day.

However, long queues formed outside the various flagship stores in Yanjing's [Xuanshi Mall].

Grandpa Zhang, with his gray hair, clutched his movie ticket for "Golden Wedding" and stood on tiptoe, peering through the banner that read "Exchange Tickets for Eggs." Inside the mall, screams frequently erupted from the screening room of "Summer of First Love." This lighthearted youth comedy, set against the backdrop of the seaside, tells the story of a student's innocent romance, their separation due to reality, and their eventual reunion with a smooth pace. It particularly resonates with middle-aged female viewers, who are often seen leaving the theater with red eyes after the screening.

The couples' theater next door was showing "Childhood Sweethearts," and even the soundproof walls couldn't block out the sobbing coming from inside.

This film, imbued with the melancholic spirit of youth literature, delicately portrays the journey of childhood sweethearts from innocence to going their separate ways, and finally to a bittersweet reunion. Its sentimental plot particularly appeals to young audiences who appreciate art-house films, and film reviews are filled with nostalgia and memories of their own childhoods…

……

Liu Jiasheng stood beside the mall's monitoring room, watching the scene on the split-screen display...

Starting with children, young men and women, middle-aged men and women, and then to those over sixty years old...

Viewers of different ages, like streams precisely diverted, flocked to the "emotional gate" that Zhou Yang had tailored for them.

then.

Consuming based on emotions!
Starting from September 20th, [Xuanshi Mall] began to lay the groundwork for a series of events, with all its stores launching movie co-branded products: the children's area was packed with excited children, who stared longingly at the "Wuhun" series props, tugging at their parents' clothes and refusing to leave;

Middle-aged people, holding tickets to the movie "Golden Wedding", scrambled to buy a set of retro couple outfits for 30 yuan at the "Nostalgic Wedding Fair".
The household goods section was bustling with people, as customers eagerly bought the same items that appeared in the movies.
Most of these products are domestic brands, and they are all from their own factories and stores, or even without distributors, so the prices are not expensive and the price-performance ratio is extremely high...

……

"This isn't a movie theater, it's a giant shopping mall!" Liu Jiasheng's gaze was somewhat complicated. He suddenly noticed that even his seventy-year-old father had bought the "Golden Wedding" co-branded reading glasses and was currently carrying a basket of eggs, beaming from ear to ear. He said that this mall was much more bustling than the one that had just opened in their hometown, and coming here was definitely the right decision...

Liu Jiasheng sighed, unsure of what to say for a moment...

Just then, his wife Zhang Ying walked over carrying a large bag of household items, but her eyes were drawn to the real estate promotion next to the mall.

The sales staff were enthusiastically touting the properties here, promising a bustling shopping mall, detailed future development plans, and the numerous commercial districts and office buildings to be built, as well as the many businesses under [Xuan Shi Entertainment] that would relocate here…

His wife's eyes lit up when she heard this, and she couldn't take her eyes off the promotional poster!

"Honey, let's buy a house!"

"But……"

"The development potential here is enormous! The promotional activities have just started... Look how lively it is over there! These are all completed properties. Although it's out of the way now, with the large shopping mall of [Xuan Shi Entertainment] located here, its future potential is absolutely astonishing..."

"..."

Liu Jiasheng instinctively took the property brochure, then froze...

The developers here have all changed their names to new ones that include the tag of "Xuan Shi Entertainment," a partner company.

His heart skipped a beat, and he turned to look at the sales office not far away, where it was already crowded with young people holding brochures and rushing to buy properties.

"Honey, aren't you connected to [Xuan Shi Entertainment]? You shouldn't need to enter a lottery to buy a house, right?" His wife tugged at his arm, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

Looking at his wife's excited expression, Liu Jiasheng nodded subconsciously.

But inwardly, he cursed!
Damn it!
From children to the elderly, from young girls to housewives, from food and clothing to housing and transportation, Zhou Yang seems to have every aspect of people's lives under his control!

Why don't I just pack myself up and send myself to you!
He added a harsh sentence in his mind.

Just then, his phone rang...

"Hello……"

"Hello, are you General Manager Liu from [Jiasheng Culture Media]?"

"Hello, are you..."

"I'm Yang Bo from [Movie House]. We've met before..."

"Oh? Hello, Mr. Yang!"

"We hope to invest in your cultural media company. In the future, we can not only cooperate in the field of film criticism, but also expand more channel resources. If you agree, we will make your media our first priority for support. By the way, Mr. Zhou specifically asked me to convey that he is very grateful for your continued support... You have been a witness to our success since 'Sun Wukong vs. Superman 2'... Don't worry, even after we invest, you can write whatever film reviews you want. You know Mr. Zhou; sometimes he even criticizes his own films... We will give you absolute creative freedom..."

"???"

After receiving the call, film critic Liu Jiasheng was completely stunned!

Next!

I took a deep breath!

Fuck!
These bastards, they not only killed my wife, parents, and sister-in-law, but they also...
just now!

Even I want to stab him?

Just as I was in a daze...

The other party offered a price that shocked Liu Jiasheng!

then……

Liu Jiasheng's mind went completely blank!
then……

Fuck!
Let's pack it up then!

(End of this chapter)