Director of Photography Department of Huayu

Chapter 674 Spring Breeze of Success Copyright
In contrast to Zhang Yimou, Chen Kaige, and others who gave candid interviews, Feng Xiaogang quietly hid this time.

The main reason is that he has noticed that in recent years, whenever there is news related to Wu Chen, nothing good ever comes of it to him.

Either his own films are being compared to others, or he's being bombarded with embarrassing questions from reporters.

"If I can't beat them, I can at least run away!"

Feng Xiaogang stayed put and completely ignored all media interview requests.

Damn it, that Grand Slam thing has nothing to do with him; he doesn't even have a single one of the three major awards.
Just thinking about it gives him a toothache.

They are all top-tier directors in China, so why are they being compared?

Even Jiang Wen has a Cannes Jury Prize in his hand.

Unfortunately, among these people, he was the only one who didn't win any international awards.

The next day, early morning in Venice.

Sunlight filtered through the sheer curtains, casting soft dappled patterns on the floor.

The air still carried the faint, salty scent of last night's sea breeze.

Liu Yifei lay on her side on the soft bed, covered only by a thin silk quilt.

The blanket slipped off, revealing her rounded, fair shoulders and a section of her shapely calves.

She was holding her phone, replying to congratulatory messages from her friends one by one, a smile unconsciously spreading across her face, her joy undisguised.

That languid yet contented look carried a unique charm and allure.

Wu Chen was no exception, receiving one congratulatory call after another.

"You have a good idea! And you're even invited to be the assistant director?" Wu Chen couldn't help but laugh and scold as he heard Jiang Wen's signature teasing voice on the other end of the phone.

"You're not losing out by hiring me!" Jiang Wen said confidently on the phone. "Don't forget, my film 'Devils on the Doorstep' back then, if it weren't for the subject matter, might have gone to Cannes and even won the Palme d'Or!"

"Trying to get revenge for 'Let the Bullets Fly' is wishful thinking."

Zhang Yi's congratulatory phone call came a little late.

He was still on the phone, cheekily offering to be the male lead in Wu Chen's next award-contending film.

"You've got a good eye for choosing! You've already booked roles for award-contending films."

"Hehe, Director Wu, I don't care if it's a commercial film," Zhang Yi said with a shameless laugh on the other end of the phone.

After hanging up the phone, Wu Chen let out a slow sigh.

To be honest, he completely forgot last night that he was only one Cannes Best Director award away from achieving the unprecedented "Grand Slam of Best Directors".

"This is no easy task either," Wu Chen muttered to himself. "Otherwise, Martin Scorsese would have already figured out a way to get it done."

Martin Scorsese certainly didn't want to not complete it.

Over the years, he has made several films that have been vying for awards.

However, how to happen to win the Best Director award right here in Cannes is a big question.

This not only requires a high-quality film, but also depends on the composition of the jury that year, who your competitors are, and even a little bit of luck.

These things can't be forced.

Just as Wu Chen was muttering to himself, Liu Yifei suddenly sat up in bed and abruptly pulled Wu Chen, who was still in a daze, over.

"What are you doing? Murdering your husband?!"

Caught off guard, Wu Chen was almost pulled down onto the bed by her. This woman, who had practiced martial arts, was surprisingly strong, unlike her usual simple and honest appearance.

"Sorry, sorry," Liu Yifei said with a chuckle, revealing her pearly white teeth.

However, she had already quickly picked up the silver lion trophy from the bedside table and handed it to Wu Chen.

Wu Chen was startled by her posture: "Are you going to throw this at me?"

"What are you thinking about!" Liu Yifei gave him a reproachful look. How could she not know that Wu Chen sometimes liked to act silly? "Hurry up! Take a picture! We haven't posted it on Weibo yet!"

So the two of them started figuring out how to take photos in their hotel room.

Finally, Liu Yifei came up with an idea.

She had Wu Chen hold the silver lion trophy and pose as if deep in thought.

Then, she quietly peeked out from behind Wu Chen, made a big "V" sign at the camera.

The photos turned out surprisingly well.

Wu Chen held the trophy, his gaze deep and exuding the air of a master. Liu Yifei, on the other hand, peeked out playfully from behind him, her smile bright and mischievous.

Liu Yifei quickly posted the two photos on her Weibo account, along with a caption:
"Thank you everyone for your blessings! We've all received them! I'll keep this trophy for him for now! PS: Someone was trying to look cool while taking the photos, but he was probably secretly overjoyed, wasn't he?" This Weibo post was immediately noticed by netizens.

"Ahhh! Finally, Sisi posted on Weibo! I'll drink this dog food first!"

"Hahahaha! We all know who that person is! Director Wu, stop pretending and come out to take your beating!"

"That pose for the photo is so sweet!"

Meanwhile, Wu Chen himself had already appeared at the copyright trading market of the Venice Film Festival.

As one of the most popular films at this year's film festival, and having won the Best Director award, coupled with Wu Chen's own prestigious reputation, the overseas rights for "The Warmest Thirty Days of My Life" will undoubtedly become the focus of competition among major film companies.

When Wu Chen arrived, Yu Dong and Ann Hui had already been talking with film distributors from various countries for quite some time.

"How was it, Mr. Yu, Director Xu? You've had quite a haul, haven't you?" Wu Chen asked with a smile.

"Not bad, not bad." Yu Dong smiled happily. "Winning the award has indeed made it easier to sell, and the premium is also much higher."

However, he thought to himself, wouldn't "30 Days of Warmth," which won Best Director, sell even better?

As expected, a large number of copyright holders gathered around Wu Chen after he appeared, and took the initiative to inquire about prices.

In fact, in the days following the premiere, Wu Chen had already received many business cards from film distributors and inquiries about prices.

Of course, many of them were old acquaintances.

"Haven't gone on vacation yet?"

Wu Chen looked at Vincent, the copyright manager of the French film company Wild Bunch, and asked with a smile.

“Oh, Wu! I’ve been waiting for this film!” Vincent gave him a warm hug. “You know, we’re the best partners.”

Since everyone is an acquaintance, the greetings between them seem much simpler.

Wu Chen had done business with this French company many times.

The French distribution rights for films like "The Dark Side" and "Black Swan" were given to them.

"$500 million for the French copyright," Wu Chen quoted directly.

“Oh my god! Wu! It’s too expensive!” Vincent exclaimed dramatically. “Reduce it a little, just a tiny bit! If possible, let’s sign the contract right now!”
We all know that the cost of your film wasn't that high.

The two of them then began a back-and-forth "bargaining".

In fact, the transaction of film copyrights is not as complicated or sophisticated as one might imagine.

Ultimately, it's a business.

We are all ordinary people. We sit down and negotiate based on the capacity of our respective markets and our box office forecasts for the film, and finally reach a price that is acceptable to both parties.

Yu Dong, standing to the side, was a little bewildered.

This French film distributor named Vincent, I've been talking to him for quite a while now.

The other party stuck to their price and wouldn't budge.

In the end, he himself took the initiative to compromise, and only then did the other party reluctantly agree.

However, seeing Wu Chen and the other party chatting like old friends, easily and casually negotiating a deal that was far more expensive than "A Simple Life," left him feeling a little uneasy.

Moreover, he discovered that there was more than one "old acquaintance" surrounding Wu Chen.

Top distributors from almost all major film markets in the UK and Germany were there.

Are Wu Chen's films really that valuable overseas?

Yu Dong felt that he had greatly underestimated the status and importance of Wu Chen's name in the eyes of international film distributors.

On Wu Chen's side, although most of the transactions were only agreed upon verbally, once the subsequent contracts were signed, they would be real sums of US dollars.

Currently, the copyrights from the UK and North America are still the most expensive, with the former being more appealing and the latter having a larger market size.

The copyright fees alone amounted to 3000 million US dollars.

Of course, it's also because the film's subject matter and style are universally appealing.
Meanwhile, Kang Jianming, far away in Beijing, was already counting down the days until Wu Chen returned.

"The copyright deal in Venice will be finalized in a week. But Wu Chen shouldn't linger there for too long," Kang Jianming muttered to himself as he paced back and forth in his office.

He felt he had to change his strategy.

Ideally, we should meet Wu Chen in person and talk to him personally.

The chances of success if someone else relays the message are too low.

However, when he looked at the online discussions about the "Best Director Grand Slam," his head started to ache again.
(End of this chapter)