Huayu: Are you even sitting up straight? You're going to be the director?

Chapter 117 Enemies Can Not Necessarily Be Allies
The room was silent.

Tang Wei could hear the ruthless intent in Cao Zhong's words, and she felt an almost suffocating pressure.

Director Cao's words were so harsh that Tang Weiqing understood that her tears had no effect whatsoever.

At this moment, Tang Wei had no idea what to say to Cao Zhong. She turned to look at Jiang Zhiqiang, no longer displaying the same confident and spirited demeanor she had on the Venice red carpet a month ago.
Instead, he looked as wilted as a frostbitten eggplant, his face listless.

"Boss Jiang~"

Tang's voice was trembling with tears.

Jiang Zhiqiang shook his head, turned off the speakerphone, covered the microphone, and looked at Tang Wei.

"You can go out first. I'll have a proper talk with Director Cao later."

Tang was like a walking corpse at this moment, overwhelmed by extreme fear and sorrow.

She could only trust Boss Jiang.

So she just hummed in response, unable to utter a single word, then turned and left the room.

After seeing that Tang Wei had completely left, Jiang Zhiqiang put the phone back to his ear.

"Director Cao, I'm all alone in the room now."

Jiang Zhiqiang said calmly, "I understood what Director Cao meant, so naturally I won't let Tang Wei get in your way."

"Boss Jiang, are you not going to try to persuade me anymore?" Cao Zhong smiled and asked softly.

At this moment, Jiang Zhiqiang truly possessed some of the domineering air he once had when he dominated the Hong Kong and international film industries.

"I guarantee that she will never appear in the Chinese film industry again." Jiang Zhiqiang sighed deeply. "Whether our cooperation succeeds or not, this is my sincerity to Director Cao in addition to that ten million."

He wasn't going to back down now. Regardless of whether he could work with Cao Zhong, Jiang Zhiqiang was well aware that his relationship with Cao Zhong was far more important than that of one of his actors.

He wasn't a cold-hearted person; whether it was preparing Tang for development around the mainland or giving her a severance package, Jiang Zhiqiang was capable of doing both.

But since Cao Zhong had made the call, he had to accept the offer.

Tang Weiben has been effectively blacklisted.

Now, it would be better to use Cao Zhong's words to completely extinguish Tang Wei's hopes.

In a hotel in Nanjing, Cao Zhong paused for a moment, narrowed his eyes, and said softly into the phone:

"Mr. Jiang seems to have forgotten that the ten million was not a gesture of goodwill, but a fine. I accept Tang's sincerity, but it's not enough."

Cao Zhong didn't want to explain anything; he knew Jiang Zhiqiang would understand.

What he wanted to eliminate was not Tang Wei as a person, but the symbol that was Tang Wei.

Jiang Zhiqiang did understand.
He may not have been aware beforehand whether there were truly "hostile forces" secretly manipulating this matter.

But since Cao Zhong believed it to be true, and Tang Wei temporarily accepted this possible logic after listening to Cao Zhong's explanation, then Tang Wei became a figurehead.

This archway represents Cao Zhong's status as a leading director and also his influence.

For Jiang Zhiqiang, how could there be any wonderful business if he went against Cao Zhong's principles?

Since it's already a pawn to be discarded, then discard it.

"I misspoke." Jiang Zhiqiang chuckled twice, his gaze slightly narrowed. He had deliberately tried to test Cao Zhong, but Cao Zhong was clearly more difficult to deal with than he had imagined.

Indeed, if someone were easy to deal with, how could one person single-handedly take down two Golden Lion Award-winning directors?

"Director Cao, tell me why you've come."

Jiang Zhiqiang sat in his office and asked softly.

For some reason, he felt that what he was going to talk to Cao Zhong about might completely change him, and even change Edko Films.

Cao Zhong's words, "Your attitude determines whether you are qualified to earn money you could never have earned before," sounded quite arrogant, but they kept tugging at his heartstrings.

Cao Zhong had no intention of keeping Jiang Zhiqiang hanging any longer and asked, "Mr. Jiang, please tell me about your resources, be comprehensive, especially those in Hollywood."

"That's it, it was right after all!"

Jiang Zhiqiang's breathing became heavy. He had actually guessed it: Cao Zhong was able to produce a film in mainland China that grossed over 400 million yuan, and the mere title of his new film was enough to cause a major uproar and stir up a huge wave of attention in the entertainment industry.

Why would their focus be limited to the mainland?

The only people Jiang Zhiqiang could talk to were Hollywood.

Jiang Zhiqiang was well aware that for Cao Zhong, the resources he had in Hollywood were the only thing he could offer.

As Jiang Zhiqiang's mind raced, he considered many things. He dared not exaggerate; his exaggeration would be meaningless to Cao Zhong. Cao Zhong could figure him out in just a few phone calls, and even now, he didn't know how much Cao Zhong actually knew.
In business, the most important thing is integrity!
Jiang Zhiqiang discussed their film production and distribution capabilities in Hong Kong, as well as the Broadway cinemas they have built in Hong Kong and mainland China.

Then, he emphasized in a solemn voice:
"We are a cinema distribution partner of Sony Pictures, Sony Pictures and Universal Pictures in Hong Kong and mainland China, and we also have some overlapping projects with co-productions. We even handle most of the distribution business of Universal Pictures films in mainland China."

We just signed a new cooperation agreement, which runs from this year until 2018.

For our film "The Cat and the Insect," we used Columbia Pictures as our Hollywood distributor, which allowed us to build a strong network of connections.
Whether it's Ang Wang or Zhang Yimou, I'm their driving force overseas. So Director Cao can rest assured about my connections. As long as it's business in Hollywood, I, Jiang Zhiqiang, can handle it all.

When the conversation turned to Jiang Zhiqiang's profession, his entire demeanor changed.

Cao Zhong, as if struck by a thought, asked in a low voice, "I remember, Focus Features is also under Universal Pictures, right? Is your new contract signing unrelated to 'Ailing'?"

This question immediately changed Jiang Zhiqiang's expression. He had been somewhat skeptical of Cao Zhong's previous statement, but now he believed it to be almost entirely true.

It seems that, without his own full awareness, he had already been ensnared by certain Hollywood companies.

"No way? It's just that the contract expired, just the previous contract expired." Jiang Zhiqiang was clearly shaken.

"Don't be nervous, Mr. Jiang, I'm just guessing." Cao Zhong didn't delve deeper into the topic, but continued, "You help Hollywood distribute films in mainland China and Hong Kong, and you get a small distribution fee, but are you doing alright?"

"Has Mr. Jiang never thought of investing in and producing some movies in Hollywood, and making some money from the Americans, instead of just eating the scraps?"

Cao Zhong's voice was deep and seductive.

When Jiang Zhiqiang heard Cao Zhong's words, his body stiffened slightly. He had assumed that Cao Zhong was planning to make some movies and distribute them in Hollywood. Since he had already hurt the three major European film festivals, he thought he might try selling the rights to some random film festivals in the United States.

Unexpectedly, Cao Zhong's idea was even more extreme.

They were actually planning to directly invest in and even produce some movies for distribution in the US? Jiang Zhiqiang was stunned.

The person opposite him was just a young man of no more than 20 years old, and what he said was even more fantastical than what Zhang Yimou and Wang An said.

At this moment, Jiang Zhiqiang didn't even know if his promise to Cao Zhong about abandoning Tang Wei was right or wrong.

Jiang Zhiqiang scoffed and sighed:
"Director Cao... is still too young."
You may not understand many things; the cultural differences between China and the US are too great, and cross-border management is too complex.
Even if you wanted Edko Films to establish a foothold for cooperation in Hollywood, by setting up a North American subsidiary or brand, it probably wouldn't be very effective.

Zhang Yimou's reputation wouldn't earn him much money overseas, let alone Director Cao's..."

Jiang Zhiqiang didn't want to be so blunt, but he still inadvertently revealed his true feelings.
After he finished speaking, he touched his nose awkwardly and quickly stopped talking.

"What if I could make a movie that would be a hit in Hollywood?"

Cao Zhong didn't seem to mind Jiang Zhiqiang's words, but instead spoke softly, his tone full of confidence.
"Just because Zhang Yimou can't do it doesn't mean I can't."

Moreover, I'm just using you as a window to set up a small development team or subsidiary; it won't cost much.
If you'd like to participate, I can give you a share.

If you don't trust me and don't want to participate, for me, I'm just using your connections and your name, but I can give you a cut of the distribution fees. You can then connect with a mature distribution system and hand it over to your group of partners.

You don't need to contribute a single penny of any other investment money, and whether it will be successful or not will be clear from the film itself.
I will still give you a chance in future films.

I think Mr. Jiang won't need to consider this cooperation model for too long.

"Director Cao, you're very confident." Jiang Zhiqiang hesitated slightly, but Cao Zhong's tone was calm, yet his confidence was strong.

If what Cao Zhong said is true, and Edko Films was merely acting as a go-between, then it certainly wouldn't do him any harm.

Is Director Cao planning to direct it himself?

Jiang Zhiqiang was tempted. Even if he lost money, it wouldn't be a loss for him. It was just building a window in Hollywood. How much could it cost?

He only needs a few phone calls to build his network.

"I won't go to Hollywood to make the movie, but I will provide the whole content: screenwriter, storyboard, key points. After all the content is registered, all I need is for you to find people for me in Hollywood: director, producer, actors, and a whole host of other staff."

I will make the decisions regarding who will direct and how the film will be shot, with Edko Films constantly monitoring the progress. I will also be responsible for the final cut.
Subsequently, it was released with the help of Mr. Jiang's resources.

Cao Zhong explained his proposed collaboration model: "Once the script is finished, I can still give Mr. Jiang the opportunity to participate in the project. After all, the success of this film depends on the publicity and distribution you do in Hollywood."

"There are some things you should answer me about, Mr. Jiang, after you've seen the real thing."

Jiang Zhiqiang was taken aback. If Cao Zhong's attitude towards Tang Wei had been aggressive before, his attitude towards cooperation at this moment was incredibly lenient.

He paused for a moment, deep in thought.

Cao Zhong would naturally not go to Hollywood to make movies.

This would be detrimental to his efforts to establish a film industry in the country, and could also jeopardize his personal safety.

But he could keep himself busy. In his previous life, there were so many Hollywood movies that were big hits with small budgets. It would be a waste for Cao Zhong not to take advantage of them.

Given the quality of his projects, coupled with Jiang Zhiqiang's industry reputation and connections, replicating the success of horror film companies like Blumhouse Productions, Twisted Pictures, and Atomic Monster might not be difficult.

Hollywood is Cao Zhong's rival in his ambition to establish a Chinese film industry, promote the development of Chinese films, and seize control of the narrative through box office revenue.
However, they might also become his partners in making money.

If you can make money from Americans, why only target the wallets of your own countrymen?
He wasn't selling his body to the judges, so naturally he didn't need to consider narrative aspects.

Chinese cinema, after all, still needs to get started and develop.

Before the film industry and the economy reach a sufficient level, it will be very difficult to replicate the box office success of "Nanjing Photo Studio".

Therefore, for a film like "My Disqualified Daughter," Cao Zhong only dared to predict a box office of 100 million yuan.

What I fear most is being slapped in the face by reality.

In Hollywood, there is a steady stream of wealth. Cao Zhong has access to those blockbuster scripts and tens of millions in his account, so why should he be afraid to take a gamble?

Just like the old saying goes, if we don't have guns and cannons, the enemy will make them for us.

Since the Americans themselves promote political correctness and intend to keep their people ignorant in their country, Cao Zhong wouldn't mind giving them a hand.
Whether it's a horror film that aims for big returns on a small budget, or a politically correct film that aims for big returns on a small budget, Cao Zhong has plenty.
Even in low-budget films, Cao Zhong can subtly and indirectly influence the perceptions of Hollywood audiences, subtly pushing boundaries.

As long as the issue of Chinese ideology is not touched upon, the West will naturally not be too cautious.

However, some of the outstanding qualities of certain characters, such as intelligence, courage, and a never-give-up attitude, could perhaps be exported to Hong Kong using Chinese actors, leveraging Hong Kong as a bridgehead.

As far as I can remember, all these scripts have been registered. What bad outcome could there be for Cao Zhong?
At worst, he could return to his home country and continue to rule as king.

To achieve this goal, Cao Zhong needs someone like Jiang Zhiqiang to stand in the open while keeping him somewhat hidden...

In Hong Kong,

Jiang Zhiqiang's mind had already begun to shift. Cao Zhong's words weren't harmful, and Jiang Zhiqiang had personally witnessed Cao Zhong's abilities, even suffering a severe slap in the face and losing millions.
Although Jiang Zhiqiang didn't believe Cao Zhong's claim that he would be a sensation in Hollywood, what if he did?
Why not gamble if you have no initial investment and are willing to take a chance?
After quickly making a judgment in his mind, Jiang Zhiqiang said:
"Edko Films will establish a company in Hollywood as soon as possible. What are your requirements, Director Cao?"

"I want you to be in the light, while I remain in the shadows."

Cao Zhong said slowly, "I can cover all the initial investment."

When it comes to investing in the project launch, I'll bring the script along and give you the opportunity to choose. If you want to participate, I can give you a share; if you don't want to participate, I won't force you.

You'll be in Hollywood, responsible for integrating resources and seeking distribution partnerships with Hollywood studios with whom you have a strong foundation of trust. As long as the distribution channels are wide enough, I'm also open to independent distributors.

In short, you must guarantee me screen time and publicity. As for the distribution barriers, use your connections to pave a way for me.

Of the distribution fees, Mr. Jiang would naturally get a cut.

Jiang Zhiqiang said, "I understand, Director Cao. It's a pleasure working with you."

Then he continued,
"Setting up an office or subsidiary is just a matter of money; it won't cost much, so there's no need to trouble Director Cao."

Since Director Cao just said that one soup wasn't enough, then we hope Director Cao will accept this sincere offer.

"Give me a month, and I'll get it done."

"However, I hope Cao Zhong can finalize the project as soon as possible."

“No problem.” Cao Zhong’s lips curled up slightly. “I’m giving Boss Jiang a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I think you’ll see it soon.”

(End of this chapter)