Director of Photography Department of Huayu

Chapter 634 The news was deliberately released at the wrong time.

On a film set in Lujiazui, Shanghai.

Wu Chen had just finished filming a scene and was sitting behind the monitor, discussing the lighting and shadow details of the scene with Park Song-il in a low voice.

The vibration of a cell phone broke the focus on set.
Chen Tianqiao.

Upon seeing the caller ID, Wu Chen took his phone and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window.

Behind her were Liu Yifei touching up her makeup and crew preparing for the next scene, while outside the window stretched the Shanghai skyline, a symbol of capital and efficiency.
"Mr. Wu, you came to Shanghai to film without even calling to let me know. As the host, I should at least treat you to a meal." Chen Tianqiao's signature, penetrating laughter came from the other end of the phone.

"It's not a big deal. He comes at least eight or ten times a year. If he doesn't come, then Chairman Chen will be at dinner parties every day." Wu Chen replied with a smile.

Despite saying that, Chen Tianqiao still insisted on treating Wu Chen to a simple meal to show his hospitality.

Seeing that he couldn't persuade them, and knowing that the other party must have something important to discuss, Wu Chen agreed.

He found a break in filming, walked over to Liu Yifei who was resting, and asked in a low voice:
"Would you like to go out for dinner with me tonight?"

"Oh? Shanda invited you?" Upon hearing this, Liu Yifei immediately shook her head, a playful smile appearing on her face. "I don't like those kinds of occasions where we talk about serious matters. Hehe, you go ahead, I'm going to the City God Temple with Changchang and the others for snacks tonight."

Wu Chen nodded and didn't insist.

He knew that Liu Yifei really didn't like participating in these purely business-related dinners.

That evening, Wu Chen appeared at the "Mr & Mrs Bund" restaurant on the top floor of No. 18 Bund.

This restaurant is helmed by a renowned French chef and features modern yet elegant decor. Huge floor-to-ceiling windows offer panoramic views of the dazzling nightscape along both sides of the Huangpu River.
Of course, the most important thing is top-notch privacy.
When Wu Chen arrived, Chen Tianqiao and Hou Xiaoqiang, CEO of Shanda Literature, were already waiting in the reserved private room. Wu Wenhui did not come with him.

"Mr. Wu, your new movie has been generating a lot of buzz these days. I can hear the employees talking about it all over the company."

Hou Xiaoqiang warmly invited Wu Chen to sit down, a genuine smile on his face. "Now it'll be hard not to go see it. When it's released, I'll definitely bring my family to support it."

"Not at all, Mr. Hou, you're too kind." Wu Chen waved his hand.

He knew that there was obviously some exaggeration in what he said.

The launch press conference for a movie wouldn't normally generate such a huge buzz within an internet company; at most, it would just be a private discussion among familiar colleagues or couples.

The three enjoyed a fine French meal while chatting about interesting anecdotes in the industry.

After a few rounds of drinks, Chen Tianqiao finally got to the point.

"Mr. Wu, Shanda Literature is going to submit its IPO application next month. You should have seen the latest progress report, right?"

Representatives from Goldman Sachs and Bank of America Merrill Lynch will be coming in a couple of days. Is it inconvenient for you to attend with them, but would you like to meet with them instead?

"Oh, look at my memory." Wu Chen patted his head, his face showing just the right amount of apology. "I've been too busy lately, just focused on filming, and I almost forgot about it."

He wasn't lying; he was genuinely too busy to notice Shanda Literature's IPO plans.

“Well then, Chairman Chen,” Wu Chen pondered for a moment, “I won’t attend the investment bank meeting.”

There's also some news right now regarding the online streaming rights for "Scarlet Heart".
Then tomorrow, Starry Night Pictures will officially announce that we will be launching a new collaborative project with Shanda Literature to jointly develop a film adaptation of "Ghost Blows Out the Light."

This was a collaboration agreed upon when the shares were acquired. Bringing it up now is both fulfilling a promise and a business decision, so there's no reason to shirk it.

In any case, it takes a long preparation period from the start of a project to its completion.
We'll talk about the rest later!

"Thank you so much, Chairman Wu!"

Upon hearing this, Hou Xiaoqiang's face immediately lit up with undisguised joy.

Given Starry Night Pictures' current influence in the film market, this news will undoubtedly become a hot topic of discussion across the internet once it is revealed.

This is undoubtedly a shot in the arm for Shanda Literature, which is about to go public, and will greatly boost the confidence of the capital market.

However, the difficulties are also very real.

During the conversation, a hint of worry still showed on the faces of Chen Tianqiao and Hou Xiaoqiang.

"I feel that Shanda Literature's IPO was ill-timed."

Chen Tianqiao sighed, "The overall environment for Chinese concept stocks on Wall Street isn't too good right now. Plus, the preliminary roadshow that Xiaoqiang led the team to the US a few days ago encountered some unexpected resistance." Hou Xiaoqiang chimed in, adding:
"Yes, Wall Street investors are generally skeptical of our 'paid reading' business model."

They couldn't understand why so many people in China were willing to pay for online serialized novels. They preferred an advertising-based monetization model.

Upon hearing this, Wu Chen simply listened quietly and offered some perfunctory words of comfort.

He knew very well that this was not a problem that could be solved in a few words.

This is a cognitive barrier rooted in the differences between Eastern and Western cultures and user habits.

Unless he personally intervenes, using Starry Night Pictures' continued and in-depth development of Shanda Literature's IP as a guarantee, and using his own and Starry Night's reputation to endorse Shanda Literature's "IP value," it will be difficult to achieve a similar outcome.

However, in that case, Shanda Literature's valuation logic in the capital market would change from that of an "Internet platform company" to that of Starry Night Pictures' "content supplier," completely altering its nature.

This is neither in line with Chen Tianqiao's expectations nor with Wu Chen's current interests. He cannot possibly tie his own company so deeply to Shanda Literature's IPO.

The next morning, Starry Night Pictures officially announced the news on its official Weibo account:
[Starry Night Pictures will enter into a new strategic partnership with Shanda Literature to officially launch the film adaptation of the phenomenal IP "Ghost Blows Out the Light." Stay tuned!]

Following closely behind, another seemingly unrelated news item quickly ignited the TV drama industry.

[A astronomical copyright price! It is reported that the exclusive online broadcasting rights for the Qing Dynasty time-travel drama "Scarlet Heart", produced by Starry Night Pictures, have attracted a frenzy of bidding from multiple video websites.]

The current price per episode has exceeded one million yuan, potentially setting a new record for online TV drama copyright fees in China!

With a series of major announcements, the industry's attention immediately focused on Starry Night Pictures.

The immense success of "Scarlet Heart" is still fresh in our minds, and now, a new top-tier IP film project is on the horizon.

Anyone in the industry who says they're not tempted would be lying.

"Xingchen has made another move? That's incredibly fast!"

"Ghost Blows Out the Light! How do you make a movie based on that novel?"

"I wonder which director from Xingchen will be directing? Will Wu Chen handle it himself, or will it be Lu Yang or Guo Fan?"

"As for film projects, it's impossible for only Xingchen and Shanda Literature to be involved, right? With such a large market, others should also have a chance to get a piece of the pie."

The industry was abuzz with discussion, while in Huayi Brothers' office, Wang Zhonglei looked at the reports. Although he wanted to get involved, he was mostly puzzled.

"Wu Chen is too greedy. He paid such a high price for the online rights to 'Scarlet Heart,' and I heard he's planning to only sign a short-term contract?"

"Did our company sell all the TV drama copyrights for this year to LeTV?" Wang Zhongjun suddenly asked from the side.

He might not care if it were someone else doing it.

But Wu Chen is different.

Even Mr. Ma from Hangzhou spoke highly of Wu Chen when talking to him, which made him wary.

“It’s sold, brother.” Wang Zhonglei immediately explained, “Didn’t I report to you a while ago? Zhang Zhao personally came to negotiate with LeTV and gave us 50 million yuan, buying out all our TV dramas for the rest of the year.”

This price is already quite high.

Upon hearing this, Wang Zhongjun had no choice but to give up.

After all, the contract has already been signed, and the price is indeed not low.

Copyright fees have increased hundreds of times in recent years; they can't possibly increase any further.
"It's a pity, we probably won't be able to get involved in Xingchen's new movie." Wang Zhonglei sighed. "Xiao Gang's '1942' is still in preparation, it's definitely not going to happen this year, at the earliest it will be next year."

Xingchen has never collaborated with Huayi, and they have absolutely no connection whatsoever.
"Forget about this film. At most, one or two other companies will be added. Don't forget about Shanda Literature's recent activities."

Wang Zhongjun's eyes were even sharper as he pointed to the news about Shanda Literature's upcoming IPO.

Wu Chen released this news at this critical juncture, and his purpose was self-evident.

"Brother, do you mean Wu Chen deliberately released this?"

(End of this chapter)