The Fleeting Years of Chinese Entertainment

"So, if we calculate it that way, China Film Group will already have to allocate 20% of its budget to publicity and distribution alone, and it might even be more. We can't possibly give you four-fifths of the money, but you only get less than 30% of the share, can we?"

Lin Mo naturally knew that the conditions he proposed were unreasonable. He hadn't originally intended to secure half of the investment share with just six million.

They raise prices on the spot, but then try to negotiate a lower price!

"Well... I'll add another four million to make it ten million. I'll still have fifty percent, but I only have a little over six million now. The rest of the money will have to wait until the box office revenue sharing for 'Parasite' in China comes through. I should still have around three million seven hundred thousand left, which should be enough."

Is this a question of whether you have enough money?

Han Sanping's eyes bulged as he listened. Lin Mo didn't want to give up even the slightest bit of his share!

It's obvious that he didn't have enough money, which is why he turned to China Film Group. Otherwise, this kid probably would have dared to go it alone, at most letting China Film Group get a small share of the publicity.

However, thinking about it this way, it's not impossible. After all, he had read the script. If "Your Name" were made, the box office would definitely be high. After all, this movie wasn't specifically aiming for awards; it was more commercial. So, making a profit was practically a certainty.

The only problem now is... this kid is too stingy.

"Hehe... Xiaolin, how about you give up another 5%? After all, China Film Group is also responsible for the publicity and distribution of your film, so if the percentage is too small, it will really be a bit difficult for me!"

"No, Mr. Han, giving up 50% is my limit. I have a good idea of ​​what the movie will be like and what kind of box office it will get. If it really doesn't work out, I'll have to find another company to cooperate with. I'm sorry, Mr. Han."

Are you threatening me, kid? No… you're definitely threatening me right now!!!

Han Sanping was getting a little anxious. Lin Mo's unyielding attitude was making him feel rather troubled.

After all, with Lin Mo's current fame, he no longer needs to rely on others to help him secure an investment of 20 million.

This clearly means that if you don't agree, Lin Mo can simply find another company; there are plenty of other companies waiting with money waving around.

After much deliberation, Han Sanping ultimately decided to trust his own judgment and believe that the movie "Your Name" would be a box office hit.

"Alright, Xiaolin, you're really decisive, not giving me any face at all. But... I agree. China Film Group will invest 20 million in you, taking half of the share."

Han Sanping compromised, saying, "Then I'll have my men draft the contract later, and we can sign it together."

A week later…

Lin Mo sat in his studio, holding a fountain pen, constantly writing and drawing!

"The staff recruitment for the studio is complete, and the script has been successfully filed. So next... we can officially start preparing to shoot our own movie."

Besides distribution volume and publicity, the key to a film's success is its actors.

However, the leading figures in domestic film and television dramas are still mostly from Hong Kong and Taiwan. Hong Kong has more film actors and Taiwan has more television actors. This is a widely acknowledged fact in the industry, and it's not just talk.

Although Lin Mo wasn't in the entertainment industry in his previous life, he still knew a bit about actors who were currently unknown but would rise to fame in the future.

Moreover, actors in the industry are generally not paid much these days. Even Edison Chen, the "big boss" hailed as the number one new generation star in Hong Kong, only received around 1.5 million HKD for a movie at this time. Nicholas Tse, who was already known as the "Little King of Pop," only received 4 million HKD for a movie.

Therefore, for Lin Mo, there is no actor he cannot afford to hire at the moment.

However, Lin Mo's movie is ultimately a youth romance film, which limits the age of a large number of actors.

Furthermore, Lin Mo doesn't plan to cast stars from Hong Kong or Taiwan, not because they are bad actors, but because mainland actors are more cost-effective!

Unlike their asking prices of millions, mainland actors can now hire a large number of people to act for a few hundred thousand. After all, Lin Mo's money doesn't come easily, so he has to be careful with his spending.

Shu Chang was his first choice for the female lead in this film. After all, she was the right age and had excellent acting skills. It was probably hard to find a more suitable actress in her age group.

As for the male lead... Lin Mo silently ruled out his good friend Zhu Yawen, after all, his appearance was too rugged, and if he were to be chosen, Lin Mo was afraid that the audience would be distracted when the movie was released.

However, the role of the second male lead's senior in the female lead's class can be reserved for him.

Cao Jun would be more suitable; he still looks like a little puppy.

In the movie "Your Name", apart from the male and female leads, the other characters don't have much screen time. Only the female lead's two classmates and the female lead's workplace boss have more screen time.

Therefore, after Lin Mo selected his ideal male and female leads, he also announced the official launch of the film project together with China Film Group.

Movie title: Your Name.

Film investment: 50 million. (Exaggerated)

Male lead in the movie: To be determined.

Movie female lead: To be determined.

Movie……

.........

Shu Chang and Cao Jun are still in the "Lotus Lantern" production team, so Lin Mo didn't send them audition invitations right away. After all, it will be May before they finish filming.

This wrap-up date is suitable for Lin Mo, since it's almost March now. The pre-production team's preparations, the selection of other actors, his own shooting schedule, etc., all require some time, and two months is just right.

By the time he finished his work, Cao Jun and Shu Chang had also finished filming.

But before that... he could sound them out first and see if they were available later.

"Sigh... This is the hard part about not having a foundation. You have to do everything yourself, and there's no one to help you. But it's good, I can take a trip while I'm at it."

Having made his decision, Lin Mo boarded a plane to Hengdian the very next day.

Meanwhile, the news of Lin Mo's new film project naturally caused quite a stir in the entertainment industry.

However, with renowned directors like Feng Xiaogang and Stephen Chow setting such a high bar, Lin Mo, the up-and-coming "little director" next door, still has to take a backseat.

After all, these two top domestic directors were also casting auditions, so those big names didn't have time to bother Lin Mo.