This director lacks vision.

Chapter 90: Secure Screenings First (Seeking Initial Subscriptions!)
Jiang Yifeng was fully prepared for the decline in box office revenue for "Lost in Thailand".

On the one hand, it's normal for box office revenue to drop as the holiday ends and it becomes a workday.

On the other hand, after the release of Avatar, the number of screenings of Lost on Journey also decreased.

It dropped from a high of 44% to 27%.

Don't think that 27% is a small percentage of screenings.

Avatar was released in the United States and other countries on December 18, sparking a movie-going frenzy in these places.

This phenomenal film has already been reported by many media outlets in China.

World-renowned director James Cameron has spent ten years crafting this top-tier Hollywood blockbuster with an investment of 5 million US dollars, a truly revolutionary audiovisual feast.

These slogans, coupled with the unparalleled influence of American and Hollywood films at the time, were a powerful combination.

Avatar's market appeal is absolutely unmatched.

Domestic cinemas have high hopes for this film, giving it a full set of screenings, including 42% on the opening day.

In early 2010, there were approximately 700 3D screens in China, accounting for 14% of all screens.

All of these 3D screens were dedicated to Avatar.

In addition, there is also a 2D version of Avatar, which has also been shown in theaters.

Under these circumstances, the fact that theaters still gave "Lost in Thailand" 27% of the screenings already shows that they highly approve of the film's box office performance.

Jiang Yifeng was actually prepared for the powerful arrival of Avatar.

The first step is to secure screenings.

On the morning of January 5th, he took Hu Qian to visit Han Sanping at Huaying Group.

"If I had known that 'Lost in Thailand' would do so well at the box office, I shouldn't have suggested you move up the release date," Han Sanping said politely. "If your movie had been released during the Spring Festival, it would have grossed at least 2 million yuan."

Han Sanping started by making a self-criticism, which, whether sincere or not, gave people a very comfortable feeling.

But Jiang Yifeng was clear-headed and didn't get carried away. He said with a smile, "The decision to move up the release date was the right one. The competition during the Spring Festival season is too fierce, and the initial screenings of 'Lost in Thailand' will definitely be very low."

There aren't enough screenings, so no matter how much I promote it, it's useless.

"It was precisely because Mr. Han suggested moving the release date forward that audiences found a gap during the three-day New Year's holiday amidst the chaos of 'Lost in Thailand,' resulting in an average screening rate exceeding 35%, which enabled the miracle of grossing over 100 million yuan in just three days."

Hearing Jiang Yifeng say this, Han Sanping smiled.

He poured Jiang Yifeng a cup of tea and said, "You are the most composed young man I have ever met."

"Back when 'Crazy Stone' grossed 2500 million, Ning Hao was quite cocky. You haven't changed at all."

Jiang Yifeng said, "That's because Senior Brother Ning Hao is just a director, and his focus is always on the box office."

I have a lot of things to consider.

For example, right now, I'm still thinking about your goals, Mr. Han.

Han Sanping paused for a moment, then asked, "What target?"

"Mr. Han, you said before that you would move up the release date of 'Lost in Thailand' to compete with 'Avatar' and 'The Spy Next Door' so that Zhang Weiping could see that low-budget comedies can also succeed under the pressure of imported blockbusters."

Now that Avatar has finally arrived, we mustn't give up after our mishaps.

Otherwise, it would prove that Zhang Weiping was right.

Our films cannot be content with previous box office successes; they must continue their upward trajectory.

Han Sanping: "..."

Jiang Yifeng waved, and Hu Qian immediately understood, handing a document to Han Sanping.

"This is the data analysis we did, Mr. Han, you can take a look." Jiang Yifeng said unhurriedly, "Avatar's opening day box office was 3500 million, of which 2600 million came from 3D and IMAX screens."

Only 900 million came from 2D screens.

In the 2D screen segment, Avatar had 28% of the screenings, while our film had 27%.

In other words, Avatar earned 900 million yuan with 28% of the screenings, while Lost on Journey earned 1040 million yuan with 27% of the screenings.

In a comprehensive comparison, in terms of 2D screens, Lost on Journey's box office contribution exceeded that of Avatar.

If we also consider that Avatar 2D sells tickets for over 60 yuan, while Lost in Journey sells tickets for 30 yuan, then in terms of the number of viewers, we have twice as many as Avatar 2D, and the occupancy rate is also the same.

Therefore, I believe that the number of screenings for "Lost in Thailand" should not only not be reduced, but should actually be increased to over 30% to be reasonable.

Han Sanping repeatedly looked through the data prepared by Jiang Yifeng.

This data is accurate.

In fact, Avatar received polarized reviews after its release in China. Viewers who saw it in 3D or IMAX were full of praise, amazed by Avatar's groundbreaking audiovisual effects, and thus overlooked the weakness of its core story.

After all, when people go to the cinema, they want to see effects that can't be seen on a computer screen, and to witness breathtaking special effects.

Therefore, Avatar 3D and IMAX tickets are extremely difficult to obtain, and scalpers have inflated their prices several times over, yet people are still willing to buy them.

However, the 2D version of Avatar had much worse visual effects and lacked that wow factor, so the audience would focus on the story itself.

Then I discovered that the script for Avatar was mediocre. It was supposed to be an anti-colonial film dedicated to Native Americans, but it was actually just White Lord's condescending benevolence.

The core of the story and its logic are both weak.

Viewers who watched the 2D version found that the movie was far from being as amazing as it had been hyped up, which naturally led to a sense of disappointment and poor reviews.

Moreover, the ticket price for Avatar 2D has been driven up by 3D and IMAX, costing 60 yuan or more per ticket, which is really expensive.

For many viewers, it's better to wait and try to snag a 3D ticket than to spend 60 yuan on a 2D ticket.

This is the chance for people to get lost on their journey.

Jiang Yifeng's goals are clear: Avatar will dominate 3D and IMAX with high ticket prices and high box office; Lost on Journey will dominate 2D screens with low ticket prices and hilarious comedy to differentiate itself from the competition.

But theaters don't see it that way.

Many cinemas might get carried away and, seeing how hard it is to get tickets for Avatar and how popular it is, allocate 2D screen time to Avatar.

Therefore, Jiang Yifeng needed to communicate with Han Sanping as soon as possible.

Seeing Han Sanping deep in thought, Jiang Yifeng continued, "Even if 'A Simple Noodle Story' competes with '2012,' its screen share is still around 30%."

The same standard should apply to "Lost in Thailand".

Only with this screening schedule can we prove Zhang Weiping wrong and achieve our initial goals.

Han Sanping didn't immediately agree to Jiang Yifeng's request, but instead said, "Jackie Chan's 'The Spy Next Door' will be released on January 15th."

Jiang Yifeng said, "When Three Guns, The Treasure Hunter, and Bodyguards and Assassins are all taken off the screens, the extra screenings will go to Agent Neighbor."

Han Sanping took a sip of tea and said with a smile, "It seems you had planned this all along."

The change of gear in "Lost in Thailand" was my request, and of course I can't just abandon the person who helped me.

However, it's impossible to increase screenings for "Lost in Thailand" when its box office is declining.

Okay, I can try to get theaters to stop reducing the number of screenings of "Lost in Thailand" within 3 days. After 3 days, we'll see how it performs at the box office.

If someone gets completely discouraged and gives up on their journey, there's nothing I can do.

Even if I swallow my pride and negotiate with the theaters, they still need to make money.

Jiang Yifeng nodded and said confidently, "If the box office of 'Lost in Thailand' remains strong, then I request that the number of screenings be increased appropriately."

I will continue to monitor the market performance of Avatar 2D. If it doesn't perform well, the number of screenings should be reduced.

All of these films are distributed by Huaying Films, so fairness is the key.

Moreover, "Lost in Thailand" is a domestic film, so it deserves preferential treatment and protection.

As an imported film, Avatar was also distributed by China Film Group, which involved many stakeholders.

Han Sanping sighed and said with feigned helplessness, "Don't worry, I will not only be fair, but I will also take care of people who are in trouble on the road."

If Avatar 2D doesn't perform well at the box office, its screenings should be reduced accordingly, and it should be pulled from theaters sooner rather than later.

Han Sanping's words were not unfounded; in his previous life, the 2D version of Avatar performed poorly at the box office after about 20 days of release.

In addition, after Avatar's box office exceeded 5 million yuan, the Film Bureau held a meeting on the protection of domestic films and pulled the 2D version of Avatar from theaters ahead of schedule.

The art film "Confucius" was subsequently released, securing the screening slots and achieving a box office success of 9900 million yuan.

Having achieved his goal, Jiang Yifeng flattered him, saying, "President Han is wise. In fact, the 2D version of Avatar is a double-edged sword, and we should use it with caution."

Han Sanping nodded and said, "I know that. Viewers who have seen the 2D version may not watch the 3D version. The audience reviews are not high, which will affect the reputation."

Showing too many 2D versions can also harm the 3D versions.

However, there are still too few 3D screens in China right now, so Avatar's screening schedule can't be too low; I also need to consider the impact.

"Understand, understand."

Jiang Yifeng chatted with Han Sanping for a while longer, then left behind a box of straw and departed with Hu Qian.

The screening schedule for "Lost in Thailand" has stabilized for now; the first step is done.

Upon returning to the company, Jiang Yifeng began implementing the second step of his plan—differentiating himself through price wars and advertising.

(End of this chapter)