Director of Photography Department of Huayu

Chapter 237 This is a monopoly.
In March, the capital city is still chilly despite the warming weather.

The wind rustled through the treetops of the dormitory building, carrying a touch of early morning coolness that wasn't too biting when it brushed against people.

There were no signs of ice forming around the small puddle downstairs.

Early risers hurried along the stone-paved path to class, the air filled with the aroma of steamed buns from breakfast stalls and the warm, sizzling smell of freshly fried egg pancakes.

The warmth and vibrancy of everyday life emerge from the simplest cracks of this early morning.

However, for senior students, there is no longer a need to rush through classes. The remaining days are spent either worrying about graduation or working on graduation materials.

Xiang Zhuo strolled over, carrying a heavy plastic bag that was stuffed full.

"Come on, come on, it's hot!" Xiang Zhuo called out as he placed breakfast items on the bench, pulling out portions of food: "Chive dumplings, soy milk, corn juice, and fennel buns."

The group leisurely ate their breakfast while chatting.

"By the way, Brother Chen, why haven't you moved into your villa yet? Even if you've renovated it, the ventilation should be finished by now, right?"

Xiang Zhuo looked at Wu Chen with a puzzled expression.

"There are only three months left in our senior year. Let's join after graduation. How about it, guys? Pretty touching, right?"

Wu Chen said with a smile.

Before I knew it, my undergraduate studies were almost over.

A person's life is only about four years long, and even if you go on to graduate school, you can never recapture that feeling.

He still enjoys these past few years.

“So touching!”

"I'm almost crying. Here, Brother Chen, this glass of corn juice is for you."

"Get lost! I clearly saw you drink it!"

"Hahaha"

Sunlight spilled onto the railings outside the dormitory, casting dappled shadows. A few gray sparrows landed on the windowsill, unafraid of people, and just kept flapping their wings.

Suddenly, Xiang Zhuo's phone vibrated.

He glanced down, raised an eyebrow, and said to Wu Chen:

"Brother Chen, the post-production staff said that the sound recording of several scenes from 'Black Peony' was just so-so, and that Senior Sister needs to re-record the audio."

Wu Chen nodded: "Okay, I'll talk to her in a bit."

This was actually expected.

In the later stages of film production, it is common for the lead actors to dub their own voices.

Although voice actors are commonplace in Chinese films and television dramas, in the film industry system, it is standard practice, not an option, for lead actors to personally participate in voice acting.

This is mainly because moviegoers have higher requirements for sound, and once a voice actor is used, the audience can easily feel that "the voice and the performance do not match".

Moreover, at film festivals with high artistic standards, such as the three major film festivals, the judges have a keen aesthetic judgment on "actors' voices," and even if the dubbing is excellent, it is easy to be rejected.

Because no matter how good the dubbing is, it can't compare to the "realistic flow of emotions" of the actor himself.

"Voice acting? I'll pack up and leave right away," Liu Yifei replied hastily.

"No rush, it's just a few scenes, it won't take long, but you can go over there first to get into the mood."

Wu Chen smiled.

The requirements for re-dubbing are actually quite high. Actors need to be in a professional recording studio, watching the playback on the screen, and "repeating" the lines with the same emotions and rhythm to achieve audio-visual synchronization.

The difficulty lies in the fact that the performance must be consistent with the lip movements and emotions, which is a great challenge to the actor's hearing, performance memory and precise control.

"I'll go check on the post-production team this afternoon after I finish my business."

"OK."

A smile played on Liu Yifei's lips. After hanging up the phone, she quickly rummaged through the wardrobe:

"How about I wear that gray-blue long dress? But it doesn't seem to match. Or a trench coat? No, that's too formal. The beige sweater from yesterday would go perfectly with the white skirt!"

In the afternoon, at Huixin Building, Xingchen Film Studio.

In March, the sun was setting in the west, and the pale golden sunlight slanted across the glass curtain wall of the building, casting a soft glow.

A few clumps of small-leaved boxwood swayed gently in the wind in front of the building, while outside the cafe across the street, several paparazzi dressed in a low-key manner sat by the window, idly scanning the passersby.

This area is home to many film and television companies, making it their usual scouting ground when they don't have a specific target.

Occasionally, you can still catch some juicy, private gossip.

At this moment, one of them suddenly narrowed his eyes and whispered, "Hey, look, shouldn't that be Han Sanping?"

"Han Sanping? What's he doing here?" another person reacted quickly.

"Where else could they go? Wu Chen's Starry Sky Pictures is right across the street. Who else besides Wu Chen could make Han Sanping come here in person?"

The third paparazzo leisurely took a sip of mineral water, his voice carrying an air of nonchalance.

The group exchanged knowing glances, clearly not reacting much to the news; it wasn't particularly exciting.

Just then, another black Audi slowly drove into the parking area.

As soon as the car door opened, another familiar figure slowly stepped out.

"Shanghai Film Group is here too?" "Sigh, it would be better if Liu Yifei came. At least her news is worth something. But is Shanghai Film Group here for Xingchen Pictures' latest 'Painted Skin' project? They're obviously here to discuss a project."

"I'll just send a message back, just to go through the motions. It might even be worth a little money."

"I'll go keep an eye on the other side; there might be more gossip there."

The group whispered among themselves and soon dispersed, each busy taking photos to save their memories.

Inside the Starry Night Pictures conference room, however, the scene was quite different.

Once the glass door closed, everyone began to chat and laugh.

"Director Wu, this is a great place!" Ren Zhonglun smiled, stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, and looked around.

Han Sanping sat on the left, looking relaxed, and poured tea with a casual air. "Old Ren, sit down first, have some tea. We can look into this later after we've finished discussing things."

Upon hearing this, Ren Zhonglun knew that the other party had ill intentions. Damn it, so they really only want to take advantage of me, huh?

"I've looked at the overall investment budget, and I'm wondering if 60 million is enough. Things are different now; money doesn't last long. Look at the initial budget for 'Black Peony' and the final cut; the difference in funding is quite significant."

Upon hearing Han Sanping's words, Yang Hongtao, who had come all the way from Ning Ying, tensed up slightly.

Because Ning Ying has already lent out 15 million, if the budget continues to increase, the share of this money will become smaller and smaller.

"Heh, so this bastard wasn't just eyeing me after all." Ren Zhonglun thought to himself, but still agreed verbally, since Han Sanping's suggestion was a good thing for Shanghai Film Studio.

Since Shanghai Film Studio has money, if they exploit Ningbo Film Studio a bit more, the space freed up will be enough for everyone to share.

Now it was Yang Hongtao's turn to be embarrassed, as his troubles about not having enough money were now fully exposed.

“We’re relatively frugal when it comes to filming, unlike some other directors,” Wu Chen smiled. “However, we can prepare an extra five million, just like with ‘Black Peony,’ as a precaution. Having more funds is fine too.”

"Phew!" Yang Hongtao breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Wu Chen with gratitude.

Fortunately, they didn't add tens of millions more, otherwise Ning Ying's 15 million would have only resulted in a tiny, fragmented share.

Seeing that Wu Chen had already said that, Han Sanping didn't press the matter further.

After all, Ningying Film Studio is in such a bad state, so we should at least leave some benefits for them.

Wu Chen then spoke up, "So, Ning Ying's funding is settled at 15 million. Xingchen will take 40% of the share, investing 26 million. Chairman Han, Chairman Ren, please take a look at the rest."

Before Ren Zhonglun could speak, Han Sanping interrupted and answered:
China Film Group's 20 Million Yuan

Wu Chen was about to take a sip of water to moisten his throat when he almost spat it out.

Yang Hongtao almost choked.

No one expected Han Sanping to report such an outrageous figure. If it weren't for the extra five million, Han Sanping's figure alone would have brought the total to over sixty million for all three companies. In that case, there would be no point in even mentioning Shanghai Film Group.

Ren Zhonglun was stunned for a moment, his mind racing. According to Han Sanping's investment share, wouldn't Shanghai Film Group only have four million left?

Damn it, four million? That's like giving money to a beggar.

Are you trying to make fun of me because I'm Japanese?

Ren Zhonglun was speechless and said bluntly, "Old Han, you've gone too far. Of the remaining 24 million, you've taken 20 million for yourself."

"Hehe, I miscalculated. I thought it was seventy million. I miscalculated. How about this, we'll reduce it by five million, and China Film Group will invest sixteen million. That should be reasonable, right?"

"."

Ren Zhonglun almost couldn't help but curse. "Is this how they calculate it—a progressive reduction?" he thought, taking a deep breath. "Shanghai Film Group, twelve million. No less than that."

Han Sanping narrowed his eyes slightly.

Bullshit, ten million or two million? I never intended to split it with you.

Wu Chen was considering whether to say something publicly, but the two seemed to want to compete. Wu Chen and Yang Hongtao smiled and left the scene for the time being.

Not long after the door closed, Yang Hongtao was about to exchange pleasantries and express his gratitude to Wu Chen when he heard the cold snorts of the two people inside.

This is a monopoly.

Clearly, this was Ren Zhonglun's sarcastic remark about Han Sanping.

"Heh, so be it, a monopoly."

Han Sanping was clearly like a dead pig that doesn't fear boiling water; after all, China Film Group has a monopoly, so what?

"Haha, Director Wu, don't take offense. In the past, when we held meetings in our state-owned factories, this was just a small affair. Everyone would argue a bit and then it would be fine. Back then, when we got into arguments, we didn't hold back at all. But we really didn't have much money back then. We would have been laughing in our dreams if we could get a few hundred thousand yuan to make a movie."

Yang Hongtao also heard the sounds inside, and smiled, seemingly unsurprised.

Wu Chen smiled and nodded.

After a long while, the two finally reached an agreement, and when facing Wu Chen and Yang Hongtao, they still had smiles on their faces.

"It's settled. Old Ren will take a small loss; Shanghai Film will give a token ten million, and China Film will distribute fourteen million through a joint venture between the two."

"Hmm!" Ren Zhonglun didn't seem annoyed and nodded.

Wu Chen guessed that Ren Zhonglun had already planned how to negotiate when he came, and it was clear that the expected result had been achieved.

"Okay, then it's a pleasure to cooperate!"

"Happy cooperation!"

Everyone was very satisfied with the result.

(End of this chapter)