Huayu: A Commercial Director

Chapter 258 is another foreign language film.

Photos of Chen Shouzhe at the airport went viral.

Ironically, he wasn't photographed, but rather appeared in other people's photos.

A fan who likes to stake out celebrities spotted a popular star at the airport, took some photos, and also managed to photograph Chen Shouzhe.

Chen Shouzhe walked with his assistant, making no attempt to hide anything. It was a cool November day, and Chen Shouzhe was wearing a hoodie as he and his assistant pushed their suitcases.

It seemed there was a lot of commotion over there. Chen Shou glanced back, his eyes indifferent, as if he were watching an animal performance, his face expressionless.

This photo was posted on Weibo by a fan, and unexpectedly, someone recognized Chen Shouzhe in the photo. Chen Shouzhe's back view quickly became a trending topic.

Chen Shouzhe appeared at the airport, on an international flight, accompanied by four assistants and a large number of bags and belongings.

Needless to say, he'll definitely go to the United States, since Chen Shou has a company there that's very profitable.

“He didn’t earn enough money in China, so he went abroad again.” Under the light, Wang Changtian sighed. It seemed that things were about to completely break down.

Even though Enlight Media is doing well now, it has lost its film business, and its stock market has been stagnant and completely stagnant. In addition, other companies are constantly attacking them, causing people to keep selling their shares.

"It seems Chairman Wang did this on purpose; he may have already acquired our shares on the secondary market," said the general manager of Enlight Media.

"The question is, is someone sweeping up our stock? I only see sellers, even shareholders are selling," Wang Changtian countered.

Based on his understanding of Chen Shouzhe, he knew Chen Shouzhe would never do that. What benefit would it bring him? Even if he swept up all the stocks on the secondary market, was it really necessary? How many could he sell? What use would it be if he bought them all? He wouldn't have any say in the matter. Could he possibly acquire 51% of the shares?

He didn't contact the shareholders either; one company like Guanglu wouldn't warrant him using financial means.

"Judging from his appearance, he brought a lot of luggage; he might be going abroad to film a movie," said the general manager of Enlight Media.

“It should be. US dollars are money, and they circulate more widely. I really envy him. By the way, what did Huang Bo say?” Wang Changtian asked.

"Huang Bo would never let us work on Chen Shouzhe's script. Let alone us, he has already said that Shouzhe Pictures is 100% his business. He is just a director and an actor."

"Sigh, Huang Bo has also risen to prominence. The market will only become more and more exclusive in the future. His wings have already grown strong."

Like Wang Changtian, many others guessed that Chen Shouzhe was going abroad to make movies, and they all watched with eager anticipation, hoping that Chen Shouzhe could take them along.

"Have you made contact?" Director La asked Vice Director Wang at the morning meeting today.

"I still can't get through on the phone, but I've sent an email. I don't know if they'll see it," Vice Chairman Wang said helplessly.

Every time Chen Shouzhe goes abroad, China Film Group wants to cooperate on any filming projects, especially co-productions. For state-owned enterprises like China Film Group, successful co-productions are very lucrative, and the benefits to Chen Shouzhe in the future are self-evident.

Since "2012", Chan Shou-cheung has stopped making co-productions. He was betrayed and caused trouble, which made him speak of co-productions with caution ever since.

Even if it's a co-production, it's only with film studios and foreign films; they will never involve other companies.

Facing Mr. La's gaze, Mr. Wang knew that China Film Group had been excluded, though not as thoroughly as Guangming Film Group.

The film *The Lost City* wasn't produced by China Film Group. Huang Bo also inquired with them, and they said China Film Group wasn't involved either. It's likely that *The Wandering Earth 2* won't be produced by China Film Group either. They did inquire with China Film Group about Han Sanping's film, but they said China Film Group didn't dare to invest.

Now, besides joint distribution, China Film Group has no other role. For Chen Shouzhe, the only useful aspect of China Film Group is its cinema chain; it can't offer anything else, and its publicity and distribution are even less effective than Enlight Media's. The declining status of state-owned enterprises has become an inevitable trend. Vice Chairman Wang, seeing that Director La still wanted to get involved in Chen Shouzhe's foreign language films, thought he was delusional.

Other companies were even more helpless, only able to watch the news trending on social media. They hadn't even figured out how to operate in the domestic market, so how could they possibly succeed overseas?

“Looking at me won’t help. I do have a good relationship with him, and we are friends in private, but he will never cooperate with us in business.”

Inside Hua Yi, Ye Ning spread her hands as Wang Zonglei came to his office.

"I told you long ago, instead of wasting time on that, we should promote the movie more. Even if it can't be released during the National Day holiday, at least it can be released during the Lunar New Year holiday, avoiding several other movies. Otherwise, the box office would be even worse," Feng Xiaogang said.

Before, we were crying over the National Day films being pulled from theaters, but now the entire Huayi Brothers is relieved that the films were taken down. The National Day films were too scary.

Being in mid-December would actually make it less competitive, as there are many films scheduled for the Lunar New Year season, especially "Yunnan Insect Valley," which is quite daunting.

"Alright, let's continue promoting the movie according to our plan," Wang Zonglei said reluctantly.

He has repeatedly apologized to Chen Shouzhe through Ye Ning, hoping that Chen Shouzhe can mend their relationship.

He and his brother attended the premiere of "Operation Northern Myanmar" and even managed to chat with Chen Shouzhe for a bit during a break. Chen Shouzhe wouldn't badmouth them in front of so many people, even if there were conflicts. On the surface, things looked good, since there were quite a few media reporters present, and it wouldn't sound good if word got out.

Resolving matters within the circle itself, and making a big fuss about them will only make more people look down on the circle, even if they already do.

It's obvious that Chen Shou is not giving them any chance. Forget about investment, even cooperation is impossible. The only possible cooperation is with the cinema chain.

After all, Huayi also has its own cinema chain. If Chen Shouzhe's movie is released, they can't refuse to screen it, because that costs money.

"Foreign language films are probably going to be competing for awards again," Ye Ning said inexplicably.

Feng Xiaogang, who was smiling broadly, suddenly stopped smiling.

He finally managed to get the Golden Horse Award, but Chen Shou managed to get two Oscars. How can you compare them?
It can't beat the box office, and it can't beat the awards.

Awards represent status within the industry. Chen Shouzhe was often looked down upon and despised because he had never won an award.

After he won the Oscar, no one said that anymore; at most, they just said he hadn't won enough.

But Chen Shou is not even thirty years old, born in 88. Which of the award-winning directors in China is not over fifty or sixty?

What are the points of comparison?
Chen Shouzhe still has plenty of time to compete for awards; the future belongs to Chen Shouzhe.

Awards are not only something actors pursue, but also something directors pursue. If Chen Shouzhe continues to compete for Oscars and wins a few more, he probably won't have many rivals.

Feng Xiaogang is quite capable; his films not only make money but also win awards, though not many, they still do.

He is a very well-rounded director, and there are quite a few people willing to invest in his films, but unfortunately, he is deeply tied to Huayi Brothers.

Film companies are trying to get on board, and actors are also eager to get on board; the allure of foreign films is too great.

(End of this chapter)