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

Chapter 362 His Livestream!

July 06.

It has brought countless expectations to movie fans.

They excitedly entered the movie theater, ready to welcome the arrival of the "Chinese blockbuster" era...

then……

He staggered away in grief and indignation.

While countless movie fans were stunned and cursing those so-called "blockbusters," August had quietly slipped by.

People had hoped the new moon would bring a turn for the better, at least a few barely watchable movies would appear...

But the reality is——

The entire Chinese film industry is rotten to the core.

From tokusatsu films to suspense films, then to art films, and finally to romance films, emerging directors take turns appearing on stage, making grand pronouncements in media interviews.

However, what's shocking is that these directors can't even tell a complete story, making one wonder if they're even mentally sound.

As if overnight, the Chinese film market suddenly collapsed...

Countless new directors have emerged like mushrooms after rain, and Zhou Yang's influence can be seen in each of them...

But it was the worst part...

this moment!
Some people suddenly began to miss the era of Zhou Yang—

Although the movies produced by [Xuan Shi Entertainment] are also criticized as "bad movies," at least they have a fixed audience and are watchable.

At least Zhou Yang's movie tickets were sold at half price or even given away for free, while these bad movies are now priced at over 30 yuan, playing the capital-driven price reduction trick.

In early August, newly opened shopping malls across the country launched bundled marketing campaigns offering discounts with ticket purchases to stimulate consumption.

Viewers need to purchase designated movie tickets to unlock a 5% discount on all items in the online store.

Initially, the promotion led to a slight increase in box office revenue, but it quickly sparked backlash from netizens: "You only get a discount if you watch a bad movie? Do you think consumers are stupid?" A large number of complaints appeared on social media platforms, and the mall's foot traffic plummeted by nearly 25%.

Seeing that things were not going well, the business owners hurriedly canceled the bundling on August 10 and instead issued discount coupons directly.

Although visitor numbers have temporarily stabilized, the box office performance of films with questionable quality collapsed instantly after the marketing gimmicks were lost.

The daily box office plummeted from tens of millions to millions, and the empty screening room was filled only with awkward acting on the screen and the audience's unanimous cursing.

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

Wanda Properties.

Wang Jiansen had actually been working on a complex combining cinemas, real estate, and shopping malls since 03.

Unfortunately, the first attempt did not meet expectations, and with them busy expanding their real estate business, they ultimately chose to halt the project.

This stagnation allowed Zhou Yang to reap the benefits.

……

8 month 15 day.

Wang Jiansen calmly looked at the operating profit of [Wanda Mall] for the past month.

Leveraging its prime location and superior products, [Wanda Mall] boasts a very impressive monthly operating profit, even surpassing [Xuanshi Mall], located in the most central area of ​​Zhouyang and Yanjing, by nearly 20%...

Six months ago, after seeing Zhou Yang's [Xuanshi Mall] model gradually take off around the world, Wang Jiansen sent people to talk to Zhou Yang about cooperation.

They went there with good intentions, bringing both prime locations and capital...

"Unfortunately, Zhou Yang's side was too stubborn in terms of cooperation conditions - not only did they insist on maintaining control, but they also demanded that each house be fully completed before it could be sold."

As a global real estate leader on par with Hengten Realty, Wanda Realty is well aware that the Chinese real estate industry is currently in a period of rapid development.

According to conventional business logic, if all the houses were built before being sold, competitors would have already completed the development of three or four new projects through pre-sales, and prime locations would have been snapped up long ago.

This "sale of completed properties" model clearly goes against the industry's prevailing strategy of selling properties off-plan.

Ultimately, the collaboration fell through. They then turned their attention to China's three major cinema chains, seeking cooperation through capital injection and equity acquisition.

This strategy proved effective very quickly...

Their branded real estate projects were launched quickly, and their market presence was quite impressive.

Of course, if the quality of these films during the "Domestic Film Protection Month" were better...

They will achieve traffic conversion and profit growth more efficiently.

"Zhou Yang's team seems to be gradually falling into a state of paranoia. Their online store only sells low- to mid-range products, and they are mostly domestic brands..."

"In essence, most of these brands lack strong capital support, and some are even small family-run workshops. Although some brands have gained some popularity under Zhou Yang's crazy film marketing and support, the actual profits are very meager. Sales of 100 million yuan often only bring in less than 5 yuan in net profit."

"In addition, these people's stupid method of using existing properties to market their properties means the real estate market can only pick up the scraps..."

How long can this situation last?

Beside him, the analyst quietly uttered these words.

After listening, Wang Jiansen nodded slightly, neither mocking nor belittling him, but simply sighed, "He is a formidable opponent."

"Yes, it's a pity that some of the capital in the Chinese film industry has gone mad..." "They were forced into this situation, eager to create the next Zhou Yang to suppress his momentum. If this year's 'Domestic Film Protection Month' could release a few truly good films, coupled with large-scale marketing by capital, they might actually be able to cultivate a few. Unfortunately, they've gone in the wrong direction. Zhou Yang has already reaped all the benefits of the times, and trying to emulate him now is clearly not going to work. Ultimately, films still depend on quality. Marketing is important, but you can't rely solely on marketing..."

"Mr. Wang, what's the next step?"

"..."

Wang Jiansen remained silent, his gaze fixed on the Transformers movie.

Just yesterday, he received a call from [Tianyu Media]—

This film, once considered a "game-changer" by investors, has now suffered a market reputation collapse and stock price crash due to the wave of bad films during the "domestic film protection month," forcing it to be released ahead of schedule in an effort to salvage its declining fortunes.

"Keep a close eye on Zhou Yang's movements..."

"it is good!"

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

In mid-August, the Chinese film market remained mired in a quagmire of bad movies.

One bizarre movie after another bombarded the screens, and the online criticism and ridicule never stopped.

During this period, Liang Xiaogang also stood up and criticized these young directors, angrily denouncing them for not being able to tell even a basic story and for being shameless.

However, these remarks drew widespread ridicule, with netizens retorting sarcastically: "Wasn't your own film, 'The Last Supper,' a complete disaster? Don't laugh at your brother, big brother!" This infuriated Liang Xiaogang...

This year's "Domestic Film Protection Month" was a farce, exhausting audiences. Apart from the surge in popularity of film review sections and the massive traffic generated by social media platforms like Weibo and Kuaishou, domestic films gained absolutely nothing.

By the end of the month, bold pronouncements such as "the era of Chinese blockbusters," "Chinese films are about to usher in a spring," and "Chinese films will flourish" gradually disappeared...

In late August, the weather remained unbearably hot and humid.

Just as countless movie fans were losing hope in domestic films, a piece of news quietly rose to the top of the trending searches and quickly attracted attention...

[Tianyu Media] announced that the release date of "Transformers", which was imported with a huge investment, will be moved up to September 15!
This classic IP, which carries the childhood memories of people born in the 80s and 90s around the world, is the first live-action comic book adaptation, and its craziness far exceeds imagination!
In fact, the announcement of the Transformers movie two years ago had already garnered widespread attention.

However, due to the strict secrecy of the production company, little information was released about the subsequent progress. It wasn't until the first half of this year that news vaguely emerged that the film had been completed and was scheduled for release in the latter half of next year, but even the trailer was never released.

At this moment, this long-dormant super IP suddenly exploded across the entire internet—

At a press conference, Deng Baichuan, president of Tianyu Media, excitedly announced: "The global premiere of Transformers will be moved up to September 20th, and China has been granted the first batch of global screening rights!"

This bombshell news was like a depth charge, instantly sweeping across major social media platforms.

Within just three hours, hashtags such as #TransformersLiveAction# and #GlobalPremiereInChina# dominated the top six trending topics on [Kuaibo], with related views soaring to over ten million.

Social media platforms were instantly flooded with concept art of mecha transformations and fan frenzy, and movie ticket pre-sales channels were overwhelmed with traffic...

Tens of thousands of anticipation messages flooded the official Weibo account of Tianyu Media, leaving overseas movie fans in awe!
This marks the first time a Hollywood A-list production has secured early premiere rights in the Chinese market!
At that moment, all viewers realized that this might not only mark a historic shift in the global distribution landscape, but also represent Hollywood's unprecedented emphasis on the Chinese market...

Over the next ten days or so, major media outlets across China seemed to be completely swept up in the Transformers craze.

Television entertainment channels were playing clips of mecha transformations on a loop, while radio hosts excitedly discussed whether the Autobots would revolutionize the superhero genre.

[Kuaibo] At least three of the top ten trending topics every day are related to the movie, with hashtags such as #Megatron'sFirstChinaFilm# and #Optimus Prime'sDubbingControversy# accumulating over 30 million views...

Even serious financial programs have dedicated special sections to analyzing how this Hollywood blockbuster will boost the stock price of Tianyu Media.

9 Month 5 Day!
In the evening, the sun sets.

In the office of [Tianyu Entertainment].

Deng Baichuan looked at the constantly changing public opinion data on the monitoring screen and breathed a slight sigh of relief!

The report handed to me by the secretary showed that the amount of online discussion about a movie had broken historical records, even surpassing the frenzy surrounding the release of "Spider-Man 2"!
"This movie is very likely to break the historical record of 6.2 million at the box office!"

How are movie tickets priced?

"The average price is around 75 yuan, and with bundled sales promotions in shopping malls and cinemas, the actual price can be even lower. Based on data analysis from various sources, this pricing strategy and operation are sound."

"Any news from Zhou Yang's side?"

"No news yet. However, Zhou Yang's online store seems to be cooperating with the Transformers promotion, and they seem quite cooperative this time... but..."

"Just what?"

"However, it seems that the person in charge of Zhou Yang's online store did not apply to us for authorization to sell movie merchandise..."

"..."

Deng Baichuan silently closed his eyes.

At this moment, a feeling of unease welled up in my heart.

……

This feeling of unease lasted until around September 10th...

When pre-sale tickets for "Transformers" started going on sale across the country...

Deng Baichuan suddenly received a message.

Zhou Yang is about to hold a press conference!

This was his first official press conference in 2006...

He was stunned when he heard the news!
Then, his expression changed slightly!
(End of this chapter)