The Rise of Chinese Entertainment in 2008

Gu Ning smiled happily upon hearing the number.

If it broke 10 million on its opening day, and can maintain that level of performance, it will definitely break 100 million in the end.

Of course, many movies start strong but end weak, but Gu Ning is very confident about this movie.

With the number of viewers on the first day already established, the box office is sure to be good once word-of-mouth spreads.

Gu Ning chatted with Director Chen for a while, then hung up the phone, muttering to herself, "I have to say, using Liu Yifei is definitely cost-effective!"

Many people have a misconception about a movie's box office appeal, thinking that its appeal depends solely on its final box office performance.

In reality, a film's box office appeal is largely determined by its ability to attract audiences to theaters in the days leading up to its release.

There are actually no actors in China who have box office appeal in the strict sense.

Are Jackie Chan and Li Lianjie, who are hailed as international superstars, high-grossing movies?

Wu Jing is generally considered to have box office appeal, but only for his subject matter.

The main purpose of having big names is to attract audiences to the theater; after that, it's all about the quality of the movie.

If a movie is of good quality, its box office will naturally be high after word of mouth spreads.

Therefore, the number of viewers in the first few days is particularly crucial; the more people watch, the faster the word-of-mouth spreads.

The effect of one million viewers is completely different from that of one hundred thousand viewers.

Hiring big-name celebrities or developing intellectual property (IP) all serve the same purpose.

Being able to release a movie can attract a certain number of viewers.

These two points are also the direction of our publicity efforts.

Although Liu Yifei's box office appeal is average, there are still quite a few fans who are willing to spend money to go to the cinema for her.

This is also why the box office of her films, although poor, is not low.

Gu Ning and the people from China Film Group estimated that the box office on the first day should be around seven or eight million.

Don't be fooled by the fact that "Lost in..." grossed over five million yuan on its opening day; that was because it was released during the Spring Festival, when the audience size was on a completely different level.

Why do so many movies want to be released during peak seasons? It's simply because there are more people watching movies.

During peak movie seasons, many viewers go to the movies simply because they have a need to watch a movie, rather than because they are specifically looking for a particular film.

In addition, there weren't many particularly good films at the time.

There's not much to compare between the summer and Spring Festival holidays, and it's already August, with some high school students already back in school.

Given that the release date wasn't a weekend, predicting a first-day box office of seven or eight million is quite reasonable.

While the extra box office revenue cannot be attributed entirely to Liu Yifei, her contribution was certainly significant.

When China Film Group was promoting their film, they also focused on Liu Yifei.

After all, the others are either old or new, and those who are neither old nor new are still TV actors.

The publicity efforts weren't as effective as those for Liu Yifei.

Gu Ning sent a text message to several lead actors, including Liu Yifei, informing them of the box office situation.

They had mentioned during their late-night snack that Gu Ning should let them know once the box office results were released.

Gu Ning thought they had all gone to rest, but shortly after he sent the text message, they all replied to him one after another.

Liu Yifei even called directly, and although she lowered her voice, you could still hear her joy.

"I didn't expect the opening day box office to be so high!"

"Calm down. Your last movie grossed over 300 million! You only made 10 million on the opening day. If you're lucky, you might make over 150 million, but 200 million is basically out of the question."

"..."

Liu Yifei was seething with hatred; was she happy for herself?

She was touched and happy for Gu Ning!

Don't even mention that the box office won't surpass it; even if it did, so what?

She was a supporting actress with very few scenes, so the box office success shouldn't be attributed to her, right?

If Gu Ning knew what Liu Yifei was thinking, she would definitely tell her—"Fine!"

Later generations counted stars based on box office figures, such as male and female actors with billions in box office revenue, as long as they participated in the film or television series.

As for how effective they actually are, that's a matter of opinion.

After chatting with the fairy sister for a while, Gu Ning tossed her phone aside and went to sleep!

Next, we'll have to travel around promoting it.

…………

The next day, when the main creators gathered again, everyone had smiles on their faces and looked excited.

Whether it's the main character or a supporting character.

High box office returns benefit them all.

After hearing the news last night, their fatigue vanished, and they couldn't wait to get up and spread the word.

"Alright, a high opening day box office doesn't necessarily mean a high final box office. Post-opening promotion is very important!" Gu Ning said.

"Don't worry, Director Gu, we understand and will definitely cooperate wholeheartedly with the publicity!"

"Yes, Gu Ning, don't worry!"

"Alright, let's go!"

Gu Ning waved and said, "We're heading to Shanghai today!"

…………

The audience in Shanghai was even more surreal than those in Beijing. During the roadshow, an audience member actually asked Gu Ning if the media reports about his relationship with Shu Chang and Liu Yifei were true.

Gu Ning joked, "I wish it were true, but unfortunately they don't agree."

Running roadshows is tiring; it requires traveling all over the country.

After arriving at a destination by plane, I went straight to the cinema for a roadshow.

I was busy until midnight, then I rested for one night and had to leave early the next morning.

Sometimes they even travel overnight to the next city.

But seeing the daily box office figures filled everyone with enthusiasm.

27 million on October 6.

27 million on October 7.

1469 million on August 8th.

On August 9th, it broke through 15 million, reaching 1607 million.

The reason why the box office was so high on the 8th and 9th is because those two days were the weekend.

…………

The movie "Back to 20" raked in 60 million yuan at the box office in just five days.

The fourth domestic director to achieve a box office of over 100 million yuan is about to be born.

Feng Xiaogang breaks his promise and returns to the Golden Rooster Awards!

……

Monday, August 10th.

Early in the morning, after seeing off Liu Yifei, Gui Yalei, and Wang Deshun, Gu Ning and the others boarded the plane again and headed to Guangzhou.

Gui Yalei and his team were originally scheduled to accompany the roadshow for three days, but due to box office performance, they volunteered to continue the promotional tour.

But they were getting on in years, and after five days they were starting to feel the strain. So, persuaded by Gu Ning, they went along with it and agreed.

Needless to say, Liu Yifei didn't receive a single penny, yet she was constantly involved in promotional activities, which her mother had long been unhappy about.

On the plane, Gu Ning flipped through the newspapers, glancing casually at those praising him and the movie before putting them down.

But he seemed to enjoy reading the news about Feng Xiaogang.

Although the Golden Rooster Awards nominations have not yet been announced, reporters have already uncovered news that Feng Xiaogang's film "Assembly" has been submitted for consideration for the awards.

It's just a normal participation in the Golden Rooster Awards, so it's not news, since there are always too many films submitted for the Golden Rooster Awards.

The nominations haven't been announced yet, so the report isn't very valuable.

But it's different if this person is Feng Kuzi.

Feng Xiaogang can be considered the number one commercial director in China today, and his comedy films are known as Feng-style comedies.

However, he was not formally trained in acting. Although he had gained fame and box office success, he was eager to win awards to prove himself.

Therefore, he signed up for the Golden Rooster Awards every time, but never won anything.