Director of Photography Department of Huayu

Chapter 625 They're not really good friends, they're just betting.
The film market in March was like a long-awaited rain after a drought.

Seven days after its release, "Black Swan" officially surpassed the 100 million mark at the box office.

This result acted like a shot in the arm, injecting vitality into the somewhat sluggish March box office and giving all cinema managers a sigh of relief.

Fan Binbin's "Buddha Mountain" wasn't bad either. Despite the shadow of "Black Swan," it still managed to gross over 30 million yuan at the box office, ranking second on the weekly box office chart.

For an art film with a low production cost, this result is enough for the production company to break even and make a small profit.

However, the market's clamor quickly shifted to two historical epic films.

The two films have already begun a fierce promotional battle.

Especially for the star-studded "Warring States", its promotional campaign was as if it were free, going all out.

"The music video for the theme song of 'The Warring States' has been released. S.E.N.S. collaborates with Vincent Fang and Jing Tian to perform the theme song 'Wind'!"

"A new trailer for 'The Warring States' has been released, showing a bloody battle about to erupt, with two beauties, Kyung Jeon and Kim Hee-sun, delivering a powerful performance!"

"To meticulously craft the overwhelming battle scenes in 'The Warring States,' Starry Night Visual Effects provided over 1000 post-production special effects shots, with a production cycle lasting up to six months!"

For this ambitious production, Starlight Pictures has pulled out almost every possible promotional tactic.

Even the special effects have become a major selling point, and of course, that's certainly worth mentioning.

Because Starry Sky Visual Effects charged the other party nearly 20 million yuan for special effects production, and this was only because Wu Chen gave Lu Zheng a partial discount out of consideration for him.

The production team is very good at editing; they crammed almost all the most magnificent and shocking scenes into that short two-minute trailer.

When Wu Chen saw this trailer in his office, he couldn't help but laugh.

However, compared to such extravagance as Starlight Entertainment, most production companies in the industry are far more stingy.

When Ding Yanlai, the person in charge of Starry Sky Visual Effects, called Wu Chen, she seemed rather helpless to complain.

"Mr. Wu, Yang Zi from Juli Films is asking us about the price of special effects again. He asked if we can achieve 'cost-effectiveness' in special effects."

Wu Chen was somewhat stunned upon hearing this: "What do you mean by 'special effects cost-effectiveness'?"

"They want to use two million to create special effects worth twenty million." Ding Yanlai couldn't help but burst out laughing on the other end of the phone.

Wu Chen was both amused and annoyed.

"Next time he asks, just tell him to ask if he owns a special effects company. If he does, we can outsource the special effects to them."

"understand!"

They want top-notch results but are unwilling to spend a lot of money, and they also want to save face.

It has to be said that there are many production companies like this in the industry.

Most of them have an opportunistic mentality, wanting to gain the audience's trust at the lowest cost and then make a fortune.
On the other hand, Starlight is the opposite; they are fully aware of their losses and are known for their wealth and power.

With Xingchen Pictures' script filing and Liu Yifei's frequent invitations, the industry quickly sensed something unusual.

The fact that Starry Night Pictures submitted a new script a couple of days ago couldn't be kept secret from the industry.

In no time, all sorts of news spread like wildfire.

"Have you heard? Wu Chen has a new notebook!"

"What genre is it? Is it going to be another blockbuster?"

"I heard it's an art film, a love story, so it's alright."

"."

The news spread quickly, and Wu Chen's personal phone kept ringing non-stop.

This time, however, he had nothing to discuss and refused decisively.

The first person to call was Han Sanping.

The other party immediately understood, recalling Liu Yifei's previous remarks on "Love is Not Blind".

Wu Chen declined.

"Mr. Han, this film of mine has a strong personal purpose, so I don't plan to accept external investment. Yifei and I are enough."

Upon hearing this, Han Sanping felt a chill run down his spine. But knowing Wu Chen as he did, he immediately understood.

It's for personal purposes, and it's just him and Liu Yifei. Isn't this obviously a "husband-and-wife business"?

"No wonder you suddenly thought of making an art film." Han Sanping laughed on the phone, immediately giving up the idea of ​​investing, and said instead, "Alright, then I won't join in this fun."

Let me know in advance when filming starts. If you're in Beijing, I'll come and support you.

"It's hard to say yet." Wu Chen smiled. "I'd like to expedite it, but it depends on how far the filing process has progressed."

"We can't just start filming without a permit, or it would become an underground film."

The two chatted for a few more minutes, and Wu Chen then brought up another matter:

"By the way, Chairman Han, it's been two years since then, and next year will be the third. I'm thinking, shouldn't we start pushing Ning Hao's 'No Man's Land' forward?"

"You mean this?" Han Sanping pondered for a moment on the other end of the phone. "The timing should be about right. Here's what you should do: you should also talk to Lao Ren later. I reckon he'll call you later too."

It must be said that Han Sanping's understanding of Ren Zhonglun is incredibly insightful.

He had just hung up the phone when Ren Zhonglun called right afterward.

"Chairman Ren, Chairman Han really knows you well. I just finished talking to him, and you called right away." Wu Chen's teasing voice came through the receiver.

Ren Zhonglun's heart skipped a beat, realizing something was wrong.

Han Sanping, that "Mountain Eagle," is too quick! Could it be that he's already scrambled up all the shares of Wu Chen's new film?

Fortunately, he breathed a sigh of relief after hearing what Wu Chen said next.

so far so good!
As long as no one gets a share, we'll still be good friends.

Wu Chen then told Ren Zhonglun about the "No Man's Land" project.

“No Man’s Land,” Ren Zhonglun pondered for a moment, thinking carefully.

"It's certainly possible to push it a bit. But my thought is that there's no need to rush."

If we start pushing it now, it'll likely require some modifications by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television. After those modifications are complete, we can postpone it until next year, giving it a buffer period that will make things easier for all parties involved.

It must be said that Ren Zhonglun's considerations were very thorough.

News of Wu Chen's new film quickly spread throughout the industry. Basically, all the major production companies that were familiar with Wu Chen called to inquire about investing in the new film, with Zhong Lifang of Xiao Ma Ben Teng being particularly enthusiastic.

However, it's clear that Wu Chen is unlikely to release any portion of this film.

After being politely declined, Wu Chen casually asked, "By the way, Mr. Zhong, I heard that Xiaoma Benteng is currently conducting a financing betting agreement?"

"Yes." On the other end of the phone, Zhong Lifang's voice also revealed a do-or-die determination. "We just signed agreements with several institutions led by CCB International yesterday."

To get listed on the stock exchange, there's no other way. Little Horse Pictures doesn't have the financial strength of Director Wu's Starry Night Pictures, so this is the only method we can try.

She remains confident about the future of Little Horse Galloping.

After all, the film and television industry is booming, and Xiaoma Benteng has gradually formed a pattern of walking on two legs in film and television, especially the TV series business, which has always been the company's pillar.

In her view, although the 7.5 million yuan bet is quite stressful, the odds of winning are very high.

It's such a pity!
If she could get a share of Wu Chen's new work, the bet would go more smoothly, but since Wu Chen said it was a personal work, she had no choice but to give up.

After listening, Wu Chen didn't say anything more.

Betting is a classic double-edged sword.

Countless once-glorious companies have fallen at this hurdle;
But at the same time, a steady stream of people rushed in.

For no other reason than that when a company is in a phase of rapid development, what it needs most is a large amount of capital, and the source of money is never without a price.

After rumors of Wu Chen's upcoming new work had been circulating widely in the industry, the media, though a little late, also broke the news shortly afterward.

"It has been reported that Wu Chen's new film has been approved! Following the super A-list blockbuster 'Interstellar,' he is returning to an art-house romance!"

"Rumor has it that Xingchen Pictures is preparing a new film, and Liu Yifei may once again serve as a producer."

The title of Wu Chen's new film, "The Warmest Thirty Days of My Life," has been revealed.

(End of this chapter)