It's reasonable for me to be a three-time Golden Horse Award-winning director and an all-around

Chapter 183 Liu Yifei's "Taunting" Skill Awakens! (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

"The epic film 'The Promise,' directed by Chen Kaige and produced with an investment of 3.5 million yuan, officially ended its run today, with box office revenue of 1.75 million yuan."

"Warmest congratulations to Director Chen Kaige for joining the club of directors with box office revenue exceeding 100 million yuan."

"Hollywood imports such as 'King Kong,' 'War Pigeon,' and 'Empire' have been confirmed for release in mainland China."

"Ruishijie has released the casting announcement for 'Dying to Survive.' The male lead is required to be a middle-aged man over 40 years old with a troubled personality... The supporting male characters are Lu Shouyi, a seriously ill patient, and Peng Hao, a sincere person... The supporting female characters are Wang Jiajia, a young wife who works hard for her husband... and Liu Sihui, a bar dancer..."

The female lead, an intern nurse at the oncology hospital (and the male lead's daughter), has been confirmed to be played by Liu Yifei…

...

The film "The Promise" was pulled from theaters immediately after the 15th, without any pause.

The major cinema chains in mainland China immediately allocated their screenings to several imported films, leaving no room for Old Chen.

Inside the China Film Group office at this moment.

Seeing Han Sanping shaking his head and sighing, Lü Rui pretended not to see it and turned his head slightly to the side.

A 3.5 million yuan investment only yielded 1.75 million yuan in box office revenue.
Only media outlets like the Beijing News would congratulate Chen Kaige on becoming a director with a box office of over 100 million yuan.

In contrast, other media outlets would have already started making sarcastic remarks.

In particular, Chen Kaige's previous statement that he would surpass "Taken" but ultimately failed miserably has been repeatedly brought up to ridicule him for overestimating his abilities...

However, Old Chen's foundation is still quite solid.

Besides the praise from Beijing-based media and official media, CCTV even produced a documentary series about him as a director.

The first part discusses the various promotional arrangements before and after the premiere of "The Promise," while the second part reviews his artistic creation and directing experience... It's as if the failure of "The Promise" is actually a success in their eyes.

"The Palme d'Or director is amazing!" Lü Rui thought to himself.

It makes sense when you think about it. Although the movie lost money, building film studios and shooting bases has greatly boosted local employment.

Local authorities are hoping that Chen Kaige can continue making films, and the bigger the investment, the better!
Only Han Sanping was so angry that his liver started to hurt; he had really lost face this time.

If it weren't for the success of "Taken" before him, "The Promise" would have definitely caused him a major setback!
"Ugh!"

Han Sanping sighed, looked up at Lü Rui, and said, "I will do my best to push for the import of 'I Am Legend' into domestic theaters. Please be patient."

In its previous life, "I Am Legend" failed to enter the mainland market due to its overly sensitive subject matter.

However, in this version, written by Lü Rui, the plot of this movie has actually been optimized quite a bit compared to the original.

Especially regarding the ending, there are North American theatrical release versions and director's cut versions.

In the version shown overseas, the protagonist ultimately perishes alongside the Night Demon, leaving the hope of survival to the mother and son.

But there is another version where the protagonist hands over the female Night Demon used for experiments to the Night Demon leader, and escapes with the mother and son to find a shelter.

Furthermore, this version deliberately downplayed the elements of disaster, horror, and suspense.

In technical terms, this version is the "Mainland China Special Edition".

Furthermore, with investment from China Film Group and Shanghai Film Group, Lü Rui believes it is possible to push for its release in the domestic theatrical market.

Han Sanping also agreed with his idea, since the higher the box office of a movie, the more money China Film Group can make.

However, the necessary procedures still need to be followed, and because the subject matter is quite sensitive, it will have to go through several rounds of review.

"Then I'll have to trouble you, Mr. Han."

Having achieved his goal, Lü Rui got up to leave.

But then Han Sanping suddenly called out to him, "By the way, I still have quite a few film buyouts. Do you want your Ruixing Film Company?"

Buying out films without affecting revenue-sharing film quotas is a common cooperation model in the industry.

According to the current unspoken rules, when China Film Group imports popular foreign films, it always has to passively buy a few bad ones first.

Hollywood distribution companies are particularly adept at bundling and selling films, because this allows them to recoup funds while diluting the profits of profitable films, since unprofitable projects do not affect tax payments.

Han Sanping was already used to this, which is why he thought of asking Lü Rui if he needed it.
“Forget it,” Lu Rui shook his head. “Ruixing is currently focusing on low-budget horror films. Even if we buy these films, they can’t be released in China.”

“That’s true,” Han Sanping nodded, then changed the subject and tentatively asked, “What about 300?”

"Forget about that," Lu Rui shrugged. "That's Warner's copyright. I'm just the production company; I don't have the authority to make decisions."

This statement is true, but it doesn't tell the whole story either.

The main reason is that he needs to use this project for accounting purposes, and adding more production companies would undoubtedly increase the difficulty of accounting.

Rather than creating trouble for ourselves, we should just work with Warner.

"Alright then," Han Sanping sighed with regret.

“There will be other opportunities for cooperation in the future,” Lü Rui comforted him, then added, “I’ll be going now. Oh, by the way, ‘Sunny Sisters’ is expected to be released during the May Day holiday. Could you make arrangements for that?”

Han Sanping's eyes lit up: "Distribution to China Film Group?"

"Let's have China Film Group and Enlight Media work together."

"Okay, no problem, I guarantee you'll be satisfied."

Han Sanping walked around from behind his desk and personally saw Lü Rui out the door.

As the elevator doors slowly closed, he finally couldn't help but mutter a few complaints under his breath: "That Yu Dong is utterly useless, good for nothing! If he hadn't offended Ruishijie back then, a joint distribution by China Film Group and Bona Film Group would have been perfect. Now look what's happened, Enlight Media is getting all the benefits..."

……

After exiting the China Film Group Corporation gate, Lü Rui got into the car and instructed the driver, "Go directly to the airport."

My work in China has temporarily come to an end.

He has handed over the task of collecting actor resumes for "Dying to Survive" to Shen Ao.

So next, it's time to deal with things abroad.

The projects "Paranormal Activity," "300," and "Life of Pi" have all made new progress, and he needs to be present to oversee them.

More importantly, a large sum of money has been deposited into the account.

This time, he absolutely had to get his hands on that Beverly Hills mansion he'd been eyeing for so long!

While he quietly headed to Hollywood, the domestic film industry was bustling with activity once again.

Among the current top directors in China, only Zhang Yimou's "Curse of the Golden Flower" and Lü Rui's "Dying to Survive" have new projects in the works.

Although the former is a big production, the threshold for cooperation with New Vision is extremely high, and many people have no illusions.

Kerui Vision is different.

Everyone knows that Lü Rui usually looks across the entire entertainment industry when casting roles.

Although there was some exchange of benefits involved, compared to "Curse of the Golden Flower," "Dying to Survive" had a much higher chance of being selected.

Therefore, actors who believed they met the requirements sent their resumes immediately.

On Huayi's side, Li Bingbing was full of confidence at this moment.

She is 90% certain that she will get the role of Liu Sihui, a bar dancer in "Dying to Survive," and only needs to wait for the makeup and screen test to finish before she can sign the contract.

She fought hard for this role!
Although she was a supporting actress, Lu Rui was determined to win an award for Best Supporting Actress in an Art Film. She wouldn't trade it for the lead role!

The only thing that bothered her was that the female lead was Liu Yifei.

The thought of being relegated to a supporting role for this little brat made her very unhappy, yet she felt helpless.

On second thought, didn't Fan Bingbing also play a supporting role to Liu Yifei in "Sunny Sisters"?
With the comparison, she immediately felt much more at ease, and even walked with a swagger.

However, as if on cue, she bumped into Fan Bingbing as she came out of the office just after turning the corner.

The two exchanged a glance, and sparks seemed to fly through the air!

"Where are you going, sister?" Fan Bingbing asked, feigning innocence but her tone was tinged with a hint of probing.

"Mind your own business?" Li Bingbing ignored her, but her eyes caught sight of the actor's resume in her hand. After a moment's thought, she frowned and asked, "Are you also going to audition for 'Dying to Survive'?"

“Yes.” Fan Bingbing smiled brightly. “Director Lü specially invited me to the wrap party for ‘Sunny Sisters’.”

"Which role do you want to audition for?" Li Bingbing continued to ask, her tone tinged with wariness.

"Why should I tell you?" Fan Bingbing raised an eyebrow at her.

Li Bingbing's face darkened, and he warned directly, "If it's Liu Sihui, I advise you not to waste your energy..."

"Oh dear," Fan Bingbing exaggeratedly covered her mouth, "What a coincidence, I also have my eye on this role, looks like I'll have to compete fairly with my sister."

"Oh, you don't overestimate your capabilities."

Li Bingbing sneered, ignored her, and left.

Fan Bingbing watched her departing figure and muttered under her breath, "Ha, old woman, so slutty, and she wants to be a dancer? You should have been a dancer in a bar." With that, she turned and left gracefully, preparing to personally deliver her resume to Ruishijie.

Actually, she had just lied to Li Bingbing. She was auditioning for another supporting role, "Wang Jiajia," which is the role of the "young wife."

Liu Sihui is supposed to be a single mother over 30, a role she wouldn't play herself, which is perfect for Li Bingbing, that old hag.

In comparison, the role of Wang Jiajia suits her better.

As for playing a supporting role to Liu Yifei... well, I've already done it once in "Sunny Sisters," so doing it again won't hurt.

Of course, the main reason is that she doesn't have any suitable new projects.

The company is currently urging her to renew her contract, but she doesn't want to, and the two sides are at an impasse.

However, what she didn't know was that while she was watching "Dying to Survive," Huo Siyan had already used her social skills to snatch a project that should have been hers.

Inside the hotel's private room, warm yellow light illuminated the table full of food and drinks.

Huo Siyan stood up with her wine glass in hand, her smile dazzlingly bright: "President Fang, Director Li, I'd like to propose a toast to you both. Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to play the role of 'Liu Pingguo'."

Fang Li, who was sitting opposite her, put down his chopsticks, smiled and clinked glasses with her: "Ms. Huo, you're too kind. Filming is all about fate, and it's a good thing that we can work together."

Li Yu also raised her glass, but her eyes held a scrutinizing look.

She wasn't very familiar with Huo Siyan, only knowing that she was the "Seventh Princess" in "Happy Seven Fairies," and didn't pay much attention to her other roles.

Wang Zhonglei, who was standing nearby, spoke up at the right moment: "Director Li, President Fang, don't underestimate Huo Siyan just because she's young. She's very hardworking and has great potential. She'll definitely shine in her role as 'Liu Pingguo' this time."

He specifically recommended this role to Huo Siyan.

Li Yu wants to make "Apple" and compete for awards at film festivals, which requires financial support. As the investor, he naturally has to give Li Yu face.

Actually, he originally wanted to recommend Fan Bingbing, but the woman kept refusing to renew her contract with the company.

In addition, Huo Siyan was very "sensible" and would whisper sweet nothings in his ear from time to time, so he simply gave her the opportunity.

Li Yu nodded, and without beating around the bush, put down her wine glass and asked Huo Siyan directly, "Ms. Huo, I need to make this clear to you, the character 'Liu Pingguo' may have some nude scenes, are you sure you can accept that?"

Without the slightest hesitation, Huo Siyan nodded immediately: "Director Li, don't worry, I can accept it!"

For a good role and a good work, it's worth going all out once.

Besides, she already had a plan in mind.

She recently heard from other people in the company that Fan Bingbing, Li Bingbing, and Zhou Xun were having a fierce rivalry.

Among them, Fan Bingbing's contract is about to expire but has not been renewed, so she will most likely leave.

This means that as long as Fan Bingbing leaves, she can take her place.

If we then use Apple Daily to win an award, it won't be "Four Dan and Two Bing" anymore, but "Four Dan, One Bing, and One Yan"!
Thinking of this, her smile deepened.

Seeing this, Li Yu smiled with satisfaction: "Good, that's the spirit we need. We'll go over the details of the script again and try to start filming as soon as possible."

Wang Zhonglei echoed, "Huayi will fully cooperate; there's no need to worry about funding or publicity."

Huo Siyan quickly offered another toast, her tone becoming increasingly respectful: "Then I'll trouble you. I will definitely perform well and live up to everyone's trust and support!"

She had heard that Li Yu was going to cast Tong Dawei and Liang Jiahui in the role this time.

Being able to act alongside these two is a huge benefit to her career advancement!
Of course, she wouldn't miss out on "Dying to Survive" either; she had already submitted her resume, and having more options was definitely a good thing.

……

"Director Li, please don't call me anymore. I have no interest in learning about the background story of 'Lust, Caution,' and I certainly won't act in it..."

I think a normal director wouldn't harass young actresses repeatedly. What do you think? Or are you deliberately trying to expose your shameless behavior? If it happens again, be prepared to make headlines.

Li An: "..."

After hanging up the phone, Liu Yifei looked at the unfamiliar phone number on the screen, curled her lip, and looked at it with disdain.

She already has Lü Rui's "Dying to Survive" in hand, how could she possibly take on "Lust, Caution"? She's not stupid.

On the contrary, Li An seemed to be bewitched, calling her from several different phone numbers, like a persistent leech, which was extremely annoying.

She tossed her phone onto the table, picked up the script again, and began reciting her lines softly once more. Her earlier displeasure was instantly replaced by her focus on the character.

On the other end of the phone, Li An's expression was unpredictable.

After a long silence, he reluctantly picked up his pen and forcefully crossed out Liu Yifei's name in the list of invitees following "Wang Jiazhi" in the character list.

He made that phone call with his last hope, but not only did he fail, he was also ridiculed.

I felt incredibly frustrated, yet there was nothing I could do.

"Ugh!"

He sighed and picked up his phone to call Jiang Zhiqiang: "Make arrangements, I need to hold a casting press conference."

Jiang Zhiqiang immediately knew what was going on: "They didn't agree?"

"Well, rejected."

"Ha, she's really stubborn. Even if that kind of clueless actress is chosen, she'll still cause trouble. I told you long ago, you should come to Hong Kong to choose..."

“I’ve contacted Shu Qi, but she won’t agree either,” Li An interrupted him.

Shu Qi was his second choice after Liu Yifei, but unfortunately, she was also unwilling to take off her clothes.

"How about Zhang Jingchu? She's been quite active here lately. If all else fails, there's Zhou Xun. She's trying to get closer to the Hong Kong entertainment circle. If you like her, I'll talk to her."

The term "Hong Kong entertainment circle" refers not only to local Hong Kong actors, but also to those who have been working in the Hong Kong entertainment circle for many years and whose stance leans towards the Hong Kong entertainment circle.

For example, Li Lianjie, although his ancestral home is Shenyang, has long been recognized as a Hong Kong actor in the Hong Kong entertainment industry.

Many Hong Kong artists are cheering for his new film, "Fearless".

Later, he even took the initiative to change his nationality, becoming a foreign actor and completely severing ties with mainland China.

Zhang Jingchu and Zhou Xun are precisely the people that the Hong Kong entertainment industry has been trying to win over recently.

However, there are still differences between the two.

Zhang Jingchu was forced into this situation because she couldn't make a living in mainland China anymore. She was forced out of the mainland by the "Anti-Three-Party Alliance" formed by the wives of directors.

As for Zhou Xun, she is actively getting closer to the Hong Kong film circle, hoping to use its film resources to further her career in mainland China.

Li An was very irritable at the moment and casually said, "Let's prepare for the press conference first. I want to do a wide casting call to find someone more suitable."

His requirements for Wang Jiazhi were very clear: she had to be exceptionally intelligent, have a classical and elegant temperament, possess a stunning figure, and, more importantly, have acting skills; she had to be both beautiful and talented.

Zhou Xun and Zhang Jingchu...

Let's wait until after the audition to make a decision.

After hanging up the phone, Li pushed open the hotel door and walked straight downstairs.

The Golden Globe Awards ceremony is about to begin.

His backers promised him they would help him win big prizes and continue to promote him, and he didn't refuse...

……

"The 63rd Golden Globe Awards were held yesterday at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. Lee won four awards for 'Brokeback Mountain,' including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Screenplay."

"It is a pity that although the Chinese-language films 'The Promise' and 'Kung Fu Hustle' were nominated for Best Foreign Language Film, they did not win any awards."

"The results of the inaugural Hong Kong Golden Plum Awards are in! 'The Promise' has been voted the worst film of the year, and Cecilia Cheung and Hiroyuki Sanada won the worst on-screen duo award..."

Inside Ruixing Film Studio's office, Lü Rui looked at the news online and couldn't help but chuckle to himself.

At this moment, he could almost imagine how angry Chen Kaige was!

Losing the Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film and being named the "Worst Film" was undoubtedly a double blow to him, who values ​​his reputation!
As for "Brokeback Mountain" winning awards, Lü Rui felt it was quite normal.

With the upcoming US elections drawing ever closer, some regimes need to win the support of specific groups, and the subject matter of "Brokeback Mountain" fits perfectly, making its award a natural consequence.

Moreover, Hollywood has always been synonymous with "openness" and a core area of ​​focus for the regime.

He even suspected that certain groups were pushing Li An back to China to film "Lust, Caution"...

Just as I was pondering this, a knocking sound suddenly rang out on the door.

"Enter!"

As soon as Lü Rui finished speaking, Jason Brom and Peter Griffin walked in one after the other, both with bright smiles on their faces.

"Here you go, sit down."

Lu Rui stood up to greet him, unable to hide his joy.

Next, it was time to talk about the results. He couldn't wait to know exactly how much money he had earned last year.
(End of this chapter)