Huayu: A Commercial Director

Chapter 165 Closing Performance, Raising the Status

Chen Shou didn't think much about Liu Yifei's question. When he arrived at Lao Guo's house in the afternoon, he learned that Lao Guo had already set off for the Beijing Exhibition Center, where the annual closing ceremony was held every year.

The backstage staff had mostly arrived, but more people kept coming over; they were all acquaintances from the industry or friends visiting.

This is a common situation; everyone has a few friends when they come backstage.

When it became popular in 2005, many people came to the backstage. At that time, some veterans were dissatisfied with the status quo behind the scenes.

He felt that crosstalk should not be mixed with so many other things, so he left Deyun Society to develop his career elsewhere.

No one said he was bad; it's just that everyone has different beliefs.

Chen Shouzhe had a good relationship with some of the people who left, and they would stop to chat even if they bumped into each other.

Of course, aside from a few disgusting people, Chen Shouzhe wouldn't give them any face at all.

When Chen Shou arrived backstage, there were already many people, more than two hundred people, going on stage. The entire backstage area was packed. As soon as he appeared, it became much quieter, and everyone was calling him "Senior Brother".

"Where are your master and your father?" Chen Shouzhe caught Guo Qilin just in time. The little fat boy was already losing weight and it was very effective. When he saw Chen Shouzhe coming over, he jumped up and down and called out to his senior brother.

"We're entertaining guests inside; quite a few people have come," Guo Qilin said.

Chen Shouzhe raised his watch and glanced at the time. If the event started around 6:00 or 7:30, some guests had indeed already arrived.

"Let them get busy first. How have you been lately? Is your weight loss going well?" Chen Shouzhe carefully examined his junior brother. Having been disciplined by Lao Guo, he was impeccable in terms of conduct and work. When Chen Shouzhe was at the horse farm, he would often come back to drink and chat with him. No one else dared to do that. Even Meng Hetang, who used to be Master's assistant, had become somewhat distant from him.

Yu Qian has only seven or eight apprentices, the youngest being Guo Lao Er, who is just over one year old and is also here today.

"Great, I've been dieting and I've already lost weight," Guo Qilin said with a smile.

“It will take a few more years to polish it. Let’s see if there are any suitable movies for you. You can also ask around and try to get a suitable movie. If you like it, you can tell me. I still have some influence,” Chen Shou said.

Those around them who heard this felt genuine envy; this was the advantage of having a senior fellow apprentice.

Chen Shouzhe treats Guo Qilin no differently than a younger brother. With an older brother like that, you can do whatever you want in the entertainment industry.

Of course, he was taught from a young age not to do that, because he knew that Chen Shou was just saying it, but he wouldn't actually do it.

There's no such thing as a free lunch. My senior's personality is pretty much the same as his father's.

If he asks for a piece of candy today, tomorrow we'll show him how much effort went into making that candy.

After chatting with a few familiar people for a while, Hai Ge came out and invited him in; the people inside already knew he had arrived.

Chen Shouzhe then entered the rest room. He had already learned from Guo Qilin and the others who the visitors were.

It was just Lao Guo's friends, mainly Feng Xiaogang and his wife, and a few others. They saw Chen Shou still had a smile on his face, but it seemed a bit forced.

Because they are not in the same industry as Lao Guo, who is a crosstalk performer. Because he is a crosstalk performer, he has a grudge against other crosstalk performers. Colleagues are enemies. Of course, in recent years he has liked to sing Peking Opera, which has also offended many people in the Peking Opera community.

Chen Shou is different. He's in the film and television industry, and a big shot at it. Don't be fooled by those who call him "master," "godfather," "grandpa," or "aunt" backstage. If they actually acknowledge him, they'll face a lot of trouble later.

It's like everyone calls each other by their own names; you call me "Grandpa," and I call you "Director Chen."

"Congratulations, Director Chen," Feng Xiaogang said with a smile.

"Congratulations, Director Feng! This is much more profitable than making movies," Chen Shouzhe remarked.

Feng Xiaogang knew what Chen Shouzhe was talking about; everyone in the industry knew about it. He set up a company and sold it to Huayi, making a fortune in one go.

Another director did the same thing. Huayi used this betting method to cross-absorb them, turning them into subsidiaries of the company, thereby boosting the stock price and reaping profits from retail investors.

Just look at Feng Xiaogang's company and you'll know what it has. It can be summed up in three words: Feng Xiaogang.

That's worth a billion.

There's another company that's the same; it doesn't have much either, it just relies on people.

If you win a bet, you make a lot of money; if you lose, you have to work your life away to earn more.

Over the years, he has appeared on various variety shows, desperately trying to boost his company's sales and sell it at a higher price.

"No, no, I can't compare to Director Chen. The investment in one of his films is equivalent to that of several companies. You're the only one in the whole country who can do that," Feng Xiaogang laughed. It would be a lie to say he wasn't envious.

Although he also makes money, he doesn't have Chen Shouzhe's boldness to spend 700 million to make an animated film; only a madman would do that.

According to the 2.5 times return principle, a movie with 700 million yuan in revenue would only make a profit if it grossed 1.8 billion yuan.

How many domestic films have reached 1.8 billion yuan in box office revenue? Almost all of them are related to Chen Shouzhe.

Only he has the confidence to make the movie profitable.

No film company in the country dared to invest 700 million yuan in an animated film. They wouldn't even dare to invest. Chen Shou could only do it all by himself.

There's absolutely nothing wrong with eating alone like this, since no one really dares to join in.

No wonder Chen Shouzhe is called a madman; what else could he be but a madman if he didn't spend 7 million to make an animated film?

The movie is so risky, do you really think you can make money?

Some people even said behind Chen Shouzhe's back that he was blinded by his own success and actually spent 7 million yuan to make an animated film. Wouldn't it have been better to use that money to buy villas? He could have bought several in the capital.

"If nobody else is doing it, then I'll have to do it, just like when Director Feng created the Lunar New Year film season, someone had to do it too." Chen Shou flattered Feng Xiaogang, making him grin from ear to ear. There were other actors backstage, all quite nice, and we chatted for a bit.

Following Luan Yunping's notification, preparations are underway, and the opening ceremony will be held promptly at 7:30.

They walked onto the stage and walked the runway while the audience was still entering.

People from backstage also found their seats. Some people even bought scalped tickets to get in. It's said that front-row tickets cost 30,000 yuan, and tickets that allow you to face the actors directly cost 50,000 yuan.

As the gongs and drums sounded, the actors walked in pairs first, and then the pairs walked together later.

Who am I going with next?

Chen Shouzhe stood at the entrance, with Guo and Yu standing next to him, watching the actors go on stage.

"You can go with Uncle Hou later," Luan Yunping said.

No one could be a suitable partner for Chen Shouzhe. He had no other choice, and his partner had already left long ago. He didn't dare to come back to see Chen Shouzhe afterward, and the two hadn't been in contact for five or six years.

Pairing him with a disciple wouldn't work. No one among the current disciples can compare to Chen Shouzhe. Even the most popular Yue Yunpeng can't compare to Chen Shouzhe. Besides, he already has a partner, Sun Daxiang, so he can't leave with him.

After thinking it over, I realized I could only look among the older generation, specifically those from families with a long history in crosstalk. He's the host tonight, so it would be a good opportunity for the two of us to meet.

As they were talking, they reached the back corner.

Currently, there are only two pairs of performers in the entire Deyun Society: Guo Yu and Yue Yue. Only those who can take their fellow apprentices out to dinner in the Grand Theater are considered true stars.

Even Guo Qilin doesn't yet have the ability to hold his own solo concert.

Whether or not a performance can become a star depends on whether a special performance can be held, and a large-scale one at that.

Currently, only two pairs are acceptable; the rest are really not good enough to carry the show, not even Gao Luan.

"Don't leave yet."

Seeing that Yue Yunpeng and Sun Yue were about to leave, Chen Shou hurriedly stopped them.

The two men were clearly taken aback, looking at Chen Shouzhe with confusion.

"What's wrong, senior brother?" Yue Yunpeng asked, puzzled.

"You guys go third from the back, I'll be behind Qilin and the others," Chen Shouzhe said.

"You're the grand finale!" Yue Yunpeng said nervously.

"Who said that? Teacher Gao Feng is the last one, and you're third to last." Chen Shou waved his hand and looked at Hou Zhen, who was wearing a mandarin jacket: "Uncle Hou, let's go first."

"No problem." Hou Zhen nodded with a smile.

Yue Yunpeng immediately tensed up. Was he going out behind Chen Shou? He immediately looked at Guo and Yu, who were both smiling.

"It's alright, just listen to your senior brother," Yu Qian said with a smile.

"This……"

Before Yue Yunpeng could say anything, Chen Shou straightened his long gown and walked out from backstage with Hou Zhen.

When Chen Shou stepped out from behind Guo Qilin, everyone in the audience was stunned.

The people on stage then realized what was happening and began clapping and applauding.

Chen Shou hadn't worn a traditional Chinese robe in a long time. He was dressed in a black robe and had even tidied his hair and beard. Many people's eyes lit up when they saw him. He walked to the front of the stage, bowed, and then walked to both sides, standing next to Guo Qilin.

"Chen is guarding the fourth position from the bottom?"

Seeing Yue Yunpeng and Sun Yue come out from behind, followed by Gao Feng and Luan Yunping, and then Guo Yu and his wife, many people who knew the rules must have had strange expressions on their faces.

Unexpectedly, Chen Shouzhe was the fourth to last to appear, raising the profile of his junior brother.

"Today is the closing day of Deyun Society, which means our work in 2015 has come to an end. Almost all the actors from Deyun Society are here today, even our biggest star is here. So, I won't be the only one opening today. Son, come here." Old Guo called out to the back.

Guo Qilin knew he wasn't being called, so he gestured for Chen Shouzhe to go up. They had rehearsed beforehand, so Chen Shouzhe knew the procedure and went up.

"Everyone is familiar with him. He is Teacher Yu's apprentice, my godson, and the most famous director in China, Chen Shouzhe. He used to perform crosstalk, but his partner left, and he also lost his partner. Since he graduated from the directing department, I remember when he had just graduated, some of his fellow apprentices asked him backstage when he was going to make a movie, and he said he wanted to."

I felt that the child should be encouraged, so I asked him to give me the script. Later, he asked his fellow students what kind of script to write, whether it was an award-winning script or a money-making script. After discussing it, they decided to make money first, so he went down that path and the movie kept making money, even bringing us both along with him. I am very satisfied with this godson, just like my own son.

I'm back on this stage today, it's been a long time since I performed crosstalk. I'll be doing a short act later, do you remember the opening song?

"I've almost forgotten," Chen Shou said with a smile.

"Then let's go make a movie," Lao Guo said.

Chen Shou hurriedly pulled him aside and said, "Wait, wait, you'd better not make a movie."

"Nobody's watching," Yu Qian added, eliciting laughter from the audience.

"You two, master and apprentice, are teaming up against me, aren't you? Are you trying to get revenge for your master today?" Old Guo said helplessly.

"No, no, let's sing instead," Chen Shouzhe quickly waved his hand.

(End of this chapter)