Director of Photography Department of Huayu

Chapter 651 A Chaotic Schedule, Faded?

Wu Chen ultimately declined Lu Zheng's invitation.

It was just a press conference for the start of filming of a new movie; there was really no need for him to make the trip in person.

If it's the premiere and he's free, he might go.
In mid-June, just as he finished dealing with these trivial matters, the domestic film market was hit by a sudden "major earthquake."

China Film Group and Huaxia Film Distribution, two major film distribution companies, released announcements at almost the same time:

The release dates of several imported blockbusters, including "Transformers 3" and "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2," originally scheduled for late June and early July, have been temporarily postponed in China.

Han Sanping really went all out this time.

With a stroke of his pen, he postponed the release dates of these two Hollywood blockbusters by nearly a month each.

Originally scheduled to hit theaters at the end of June, ready to bombard the entire summer with deafening metallic clangs, "Transformers 3" has been moved to the end of July.

The highly anticipated finale of "Harry Potter" has been postponed until early August.

It emphasizes a carefree attitude of "I'm in charge of my own territory".

This move instantly triggered a domino effect across the entire summer season for domestic films.

Starring Li Binbin and Jun Ji-hyun, the highly anticipated drama "Snow Flower and the Secret Fan" immediately seized this opportunity, announcing that its release date would be moved up to June 24, aiming to capture a relatively untapped market.

The film "Wu Xia," directed by Chen Kexin and starring Donnie Yen and Takeshi Kaneshiro, also decisively moved its original early August release date to July 4.

Suddenly, the entire domestic summer movie schedule was thrown into chaos.

"How about it?" Han Sanping called quickly, his tone smug. "Should we also release 'Ex Machina' a little earlier?"
I've moved Transformers 3 to the end of the month for you. Even though there's a two-week gap, isn't that still a bit too close?

Wu Chen couldn't help but laugh when he heard this.

"Two weeks is enough, Mr. Han. There are several domestic films coming out in early July, so it'll be quite lively. I think the 15th is a good date, no need to change it."

After careful consideration, Wu Chen decided to maintain the status quo.

"Alright, whatever you want." Han Sanping didn't insist. "As long as you know what you're doing."

"But Chairman Han, aren't you afraid of causing public outrage by drastically changing your schedule like this?" Wu Chen teased with a smile.

"Public outrage? I'm not afraid of anything!" Han Sanping's tone on the other end of the phone was full of nonchalant nonchalance. "Anyway, I'm not going to get promoted."

Han Sanping seems to have a very clear understanding of things.

With the release dates adjusted, the promotional campaigns for all the major films were immediately launched in full swing.

The first to make a strong push was "Snow Flower and the Secret Fan," with Li Binbin and Jun Ji-hyun tirelessly touring major cities for promotional tours.

In addition, the film's subtle "lesbian" theme attracted a lot of attention even before its release.

On the other hand, the horror film "Mysterious Island," starring Yang Mi, took an even more unusual and unconventional approach.

From beginning to end, all of the film's promotional strategies were firmly focused on the female lead, Yang Mi.

The promotional materials consisted almost entirely of photos of her in revealing swimwear, including rather daring bikini looks.
For a domestic film at this time, this is truly groundbreaking.

Wu Chen and Ning Hao are in the studio, discussing revisions to "No Man's Land".

While he was looking up information about western highways on his computer, some rogue software pop-ups "intelligently" appeared.

It must be said that the marketing team behind Far Cry is really good at grabbing attention.

Those pop-up images were chosen from increasingly bizarre angles and were increasingly "slick".

"Director Wu, Xixi, have some tea."

Xing Aina came over with two cups of freshly brewed tea, first handing one to Liu Yifei who was sitting on the sofa, and then preparing to give it to Wu Chen.

Wu Chen glanced at Ning Hao's computer screen.

The latter seemed to be about to close the pop-up window. He suppressed a laugh and casually asked, "Hey, your computer screen looks a bit washed out."

"Nonsense, of course it's white!"

Ning Hao, who was about to close the window, answered Wu Chen's question without thinking.

His movements were therefore a beat slower.

Just then, Xing Aina handed the tea to Wu Chen, and her gaze swept over the screen, clearly seeing a large, scantily clad picture of Yang Mi on Ning Hao's computer screen.

Xing Aina's tiger-like eyes narrowed instantly. "Damn it! Wu Chen, you tricked me!" Ning Hao's lips trembled slightly.

"Don't talk nonsense, it's just reflecting light here," Wu Chen said with an innocent and serious expression.

"Huh? What do you mean by white?" Liu Yifei, sitting on the sofa, was a little confused when she heard their conversation.

"The screen! I said his screen was too bright!" Wu Chen replied casually.

Ning Hao was immediately displeased and retorted, "Yi Fei, don't listen to his nonsense! He was talking about Yang Mi!"

Liu Yifei isn't stupid, especially with the recent overwhelming "sex appeal" promotion of "Mysterious Island," which is known throughout the industry.

Her beautiful eyes suddenly turned "dangerous," and a sweet smile played on her lips, but her two rows of tiny teeth gleamed with a sharp, white light.

"Hehe." Ning Hao laughed gleefully upon seeing this.

Wu Chen sensed the murderous aura emanating from behind him, immediately cleared his throat, pointed to the script on the table, and said to Ning Hao:
"Ahem! Let's get down to business! This needs to be changed! And this needs to be changed too! I think we should just reshoot this scene!"

"Brother! Brother! It can't be that bad, it really can't be that bad!" Ning Hao was stunned when he heard this. "I just tricked you a little, you didn't have to be so ruthless!"

Of course, this is just a joke.

Afterwards, Wu Chen and Ning Hao seriously discussed the revision plan for "No Man's Land".

“This definitely needs to be changed.” Wu Chen pointed to the ending of the script. “The final ending can’t be that everyone dies and everything is in darkness.”

After all that the protagonist has gone through, he must see hope. For example, he might finally release the falcon back into the sky, or he might see the lights of a police car flashing on the horizon. The audience needs a way out.

"And the killer's motive could be fleshed out even more."

For several days in a row, Wu Chen was helping Ning Hao with the revisions to "No Man's Land".

At this very moment, Chen Kaige, who had been relatively quiet all year, finally made a new move.

As one of the leading figures of the fifth generation of Chinese directors, Chen Kaige's every move naturally attracts much media attention.

He revealed to the media that his new film is about to start filming, and the script is based on an online novel. It is a work with a realistic theme.

Regarding the highly publicized "Nicholas Tse and Cecilia Cheung divorce," Chen Kaige also offered his own distinctive and high-profile commentary:
"A seemingly perfect couple doesn't necessarily end up in a perfect way. That's life."

This response is very much in line with "Chen Kaige's" style.

As soon as the news broke, netizens began to make fun of it.

"It's clear that Director Chen is a cultured person; his words are very insightful. But... can't we at least make movies properly?"

"A seemingly perfect beginning does not necessarily lead to a perfect ending. — That's the essence of Chen Kaige's films."

It has to be said that this generation of netizens is really good at this.

After a series of release date changes and market warm-ups, the explosive promotion of "Ex Machina" has officially begun.

Starry Night Pictures and Wanda Pictures Media were the first to release the film's official trailer.

The trailer opens with a cold, detached voiceover, featuring Huang Xuan's character, a programmer, conducting a "Turing test" on a robot:
"My first question is, what do you think is the difference between you and humans?"

Flashback
A minimalist yet futuristic fully enclosed villa; a sophisticated robotic arm assembling a robot's body; and the robot "Ava," played by Du Juan, opening her eyes for the first time, her gaze as pure as a blank sheet of paper.

The pace suddenly quickened, and the background music became tense and suspenseful.

Huang Xuan and "Ava" talked through a thick glass wall. His gaze changed from initial curiosity to confusion, and then to an inescapable infatuation.

The trailer's high-quality production and suspenseful atmosphere quickly attracted countless long-awaiting movie fans.

"Great, really great! It's consistent with the previous concept poster; it's not a misleading teaser!"

"My expectations are through the roof! It has to be Starry Night Pictures! Unlike other domestic films, one sells lesbianism and the other sells sex appeal, making a mess of things!"

"Senior, what do you think about holding the premiere on July 10th?" Guo Fan suggested after watching the film with Wu Chen in the screening room.

"Number 10?" Wu Chen pondered for a moment, then immediately understood Guo Fan's intention.

"That's good, let's go with the 10th. That way, there will be four days before the official release, which is enough time for the first wave of word-of-mouth to spread, attract some real moviegoers and fans, and lock in the box office for the opening weekend in advance."

He was certainly aware of Guo Fan's intentions in doing so.

Premiering a few days early, relying on word-of-mouth from industry insiders and fans to build a casual audience, is a very smart choice.
After all, Guo Fan is still relatively unknown at the moment.
(End of this chapter)