Director of Photography Department of Huayu

Chapter 388 The Advancing Rays, Schedule
October can be described as a month in which Shanghai Film Group shines.

As the main distributor of "Painted Skin," Shanghai Film Group has done a commendable job in both domestic publicity and distribution coordination and in connecting with channels in Japan and South Korea. The film's box office performance was also impressive, making Shanghai Film Group a source of pride for the company.

"Ah, what a pity."

Ren Zhonglun stood by the office window, looking at the latest box office data, his tone tinged with regret, "If only it could have reached 300 million in mainland China, but after the make-up screenings after the National Day holiday, its popularity was directly halved. The audience's enthusiasm for spending money just vanished."

At this moment, "Painted Skin" has grossed over 2.5 million yuan, but the growth curve has slowed down significantly.

Given the current trend, the chances of applying for an extension of the key are slim, and breaking through the 300 million mark will be quite difficult.

“Chairman Ren, one shouldn’t be too greedy.” On the other end of the phone, Wu Chen joked with a smile, “How can one enjoy a seven-day holiday and also make a fortune without having to work extra shifts?”

“That makes sense.” Ren Zhonglun smiled, then changed the subject, “By the way, Director Wu, I remember that Xingchen has another film, ‘Bad Genius,’ in post-production. Has a distribution company been decided for this film yet?”
Shanghai Film Studio has ample resources during this period at the end of the year, and can provide sufficient support for both the Lunar New Year and New Year's Day film seasons.

Having tasted success with "Painted Skin," Ren Zhonglun naturally set his sights on this new film.

With two directors who have each earned over 100 million yuan each co-directing and Liu Yifei in the lead role, the film boasts a novel subject matter and generates strong buzz, making it a potential box office hit.

"Haha, I promised Enlight Media this before. They've been doing well with their distribution recently, and their growth momentum is very strong."

"Oh, that's true." Ren Zhonglun nodded regretfully upon hearing this, having also witnessed the rapid development of private enterprises like Guangxian.

In the future, state-owned enterprises will not have as much of an advantage in distribution as before. Their only advantage may be the cinema resources they have with them, but other companies are catching up in this area.

At this moment, several film companies preparing for the Lunar New Year release are feeling somewhat nervous.

Because Starry Night Pictures' "Bad Genius" has been off the air for a while, and given that this kind of film with zero special effects is processed quickly in post-production, it is very likely to be released during the Lunar New Year holiday if they work overtime.

"Don't panic, what's there to panic about? I'm the champion of the Lunar New Year film season. If Wu Chen were to direct this, I'd give him some leeway. Who is Ning Hao? Besides, we've already recouped half of our costs through advertising."

Feng Xiaogang sat with his legs crossed in Wang Zhonglei's office, spouting nonsense.

Wang Zhonglei sat behind the table, lit a cigarette with a blank expression, but couldn't help but mutter to himself: "Stubborn to the end."

Huayi Brothers has done its own research. Among the most anticipated films, "Bad Genius" ranks only after "The Martian," followed by Chen Kaige's "Forever Enthralled," and "If You Are the One" comes in fourth.
The movie "Bad Genius" has the support of Wu Chen, Ning Hao, and Liu Yifei.

Of course, Feng Xiaogang's point is valid, because the cost pressure of "If You Are the One" is very low.

Han Sanping was much more worried about this. China Film Group has two films scheduled for release during the Lunar New Year season this year, including the high-budget film "Mei Lanfang," so he specifically asked Wu Chen about it.

"Three movies have already been scheduled for the Lunar New Year film season. Do you plan to release 'Bad Genius' during the Lunar New Year period? If so, everyone needs to coordinate their filming schedules to avoid them all clashing."

It was early autumn afternoon, and the shadows of the mountains in Huairou were slanting downwards. Sunlight, cut into streaks of gold by gaps in the clouds, slanted across the smooth metal shell of the vehicle.
Wu Chen slowly pulled the car over to the side of the road.

He habitually pulled over to answer his phone—even though Liu Yifei wasn't in the passenger seat, he'd gotten used to being nagged about not being able to answer the phone while driving.

"Chairman Han, I was just about to check on Ning Hao's editing progress. It's hard to say, but if it's scheduled for the Lunar New Year season, I'll let you know in advance."
Theoretically, the Lunar New Year film season might not be able to handle the pressure of four films at present.

On the other end of the phone, Han Sanping breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, and at the same time remarked:

“Okay, just let me know in advance. The Lunar New Year film season is much more sustainable now than in the past. A few years ago, two films would have been considered a lot.” He paused, then suddenly asked, “By the way, I heard that the distribution of ‘Bad Genius’ was entirely handled by Enlight Media?”

“Yes!” Wu Chen smiled.

"Okay, then it's fine." Seeing this, Han Sanping didn't know what to say to help Yu Dong.

Since Yu Dong himself couldn't get it, there's nothing that can be done.

Yu Dong was also puzzled at this time, because he had contacted Wu Chen a long time ago, and the other party said he would consider it. However, he could clearly feel that Wu Chen was interested in having Bona and Enlight Media jointly release the film.

Why did it turn yellow later?

"Damn it, it must have been that bastard Wang Changtian who did this."

Yu Dong was cursing in his office. He couldn't think of any other factors, so he could only conclude that Guangmang had persuaded Wu Chen.

This is indeed the case.

On the other side, the brightly lit conference room at the headquarters of Enlight Media was occupied by Wang Changtian, who was sitting in the middle of the conference table, his knuckles lightly tapping the surface.

On the large screen in front of them, several publicity managers took turns reporting on the future publicity and distribution plans for "Bad Genius".

He had promised Wu Chen that Enlight Media had the absolute capability to handle publicity and distribution, which dissuaded Wu Chen from having Bona Film Group assist him.

This battle is crucial to Enlight Media's position among private distribution companies and a key battle for showcasing its marketing and distribution capabilities.

The film's hype, subject matter, and cast have already given it a head start; the rest is just a matter of how far they can expand its reach.

In the conference room, a vice president of publicity stood up and stated:
"Our first phase strategy is to focus on urban youth and college students, highlighting the three major selling points of 'intellectual battle, psychological suspense, and thrilling plot twists'; and to shape the film's high-IQ narrative tone by centering on the theme of 'brain-teasing thrills + youthful adventure'."

"."

Meanwhile, in the Huairou editing room, the lights were soft and yellow, and a mid-section of a clip was playing on the screen.

Liu Yifei plays the female lead, Xiaolin, who quickly sketches patterns and transmits signals in the examination room. The scene is incredibly fast-paced, maintaining the unique sense of urgency of the film.

Ning Hao leaned back in his chair, hands behind his head, and watched a segment with a frown.

Wu Chen was sitting next door at that moment.

"The editing will take a little more time." He turned to Wu Chen and said, "If we work overtime to finish it, we can finish it in December. But to be honest, I didn't expect this film to be so difficult to edit. I feel like if we're a second too slow, we'll lose that tense atmosphere."

"Are you in a hurry? Planning to participate in this year's Lunar New Year film season?"

"Quality is the priority. It's okay to be slower. We won't participate in this year's Lunar New Year film season," Wu Chen shook his head.

(End of this chapter)