Back to 17, My Brother is the Cult Leader

The host picked up the microphone, and all the lights in the venue were turned on.

The press conference proceeded according to schedule—first, a leader from China Film Group spoke, followed by a speech from the head of Huayi Brothers.

When Huayi Brothers' Vice President Wang stood in front of the microphone, he said nothing more than things like "a powerful alliance to create a new benchmark for Chinese-language films," but halfway through his sentence, he suddenly changed the subject and a meaningful smile appeared on his face.

"Today, at the press conference for 'Big Shot', Huayi Brothers has another piece of good news to share with everyone here."

We are very honored to have invited Ms. Wang Jinghua, one of the top agents in mainland China, to officially join Huayi Brothers as the president of Taihe Culture Brokerage Company.

Starting today, Ms. Wang Jinghua will be fully responsible for Huayi Brothers' artist management business.

The reporters' flashbulbs went off in a flurry of activity.

Wang Jinghua stood up from her seat, bowed slightly, and smiled, displaying neither servility nor arrogance.

Fang Yuan sat in the main creative area, his expression unchanged.

He looked at the stage lights and tapped his fingers lightly twice on his knee.

Huayi Brothers' intention in announcing Wang Jinghua's joining the company at this particular event was crystal clear—at the press conference for "Big Shot's Funeral," Fang Yuan, the screenwriter, was pushing Wang Jinghua forward in front of all the media to show everyone: Look, Fang Yuan's people are now Huayi Brothers' people.

Hao Wei stood in the media area on the side, arms crossed, lips pressed into a thin line.

She glanced at Fang Yuan's profile, but Fang Yuan didn't respond at all, as if the person on stage was speaking a name he didn't recognize at all.

Vice President Wang continued: "Joining Ms. Wang Jinghua in joining Huayi Brothers is the outstanding young actor Huang Xiaoming, who is present today."

We believe that Xiaoming will have broader prospects for development on Huayi Brothers' platform.

Huang Xiaoming stood up and bowed slightly, his smile polite and reserved.

The reporters snapped another series of photos.

Fang Yuan noticed that when Huang Xiaoming bowed, he subconsciously tilted his head slightly towards the main creative area, but quickly turned back.

After Huayi Brothers' segment ended, the microphone was handed over to Columbia Pictures.

Barbara Robinson, Vice President of Columbia Pictures Asia, stood up, greeted him in accented Mandarin, and then turned to Fang Yuan, her tone noticeably more serious.

Before discussing "Big Shot's Funeral," I'd like to say that Columbia Pictures had a very pleasant collaboration with Mr. Fang Yuan.

Phone Booth achieved better-than-expected box office results worldwide, and Mr. Fang Yuan's script infused the film with an irreplaceable soul.

More importantly, Mr. Fang Yuan is a top Hollywood screenwriter and an Oscar-winning screenwriter; it is an honor for us to work with him.

After he finished speaking, the atmosphere in the room subtly changed.

The smiles on the faces of several Huayi Brothers executives froze for a moment, but they quickly recovered.

President Han didn't react much. He sat in his chair with his legs crossed, tapping his hands on his knees. It was impossible to tell what he was thinking.

Donald Sutherland, a Columbia Pictures contracted actor standing next to Barbara, also stood up.

This gray-haired veteran actor was invited by Columbia Pictures to make a cameo appearance in "Big Shot's Funeral".

After standing up, he didn't shake hands with Feng Xiaogang first. Instead, he walked straight to Fang Yuan, extended his hand, and said in English, "Mr. Fang, I am your reader. I have read several of your books, and they are truly remarkable."

Fang Yuan stood up, shook his hand, and replied in English:

"Thank you, Mr. Sutherland. It's an honor to have you in this film."

Several photos of the two shaking hands were captured by reporters in the front row.

Fang Yuan noticed that Vice President Wang of Huayi Brothers didn't look too good, so he took a big gulp of tea.

After the main proceedings of the press conference concluded, the group interview session with the media commenced.

Feng Xiaogang was surrounded by reporters in the center, with the microphone almost poking his chin.

He was in a very high mood, and his voice was louder than usual.

"Big Shot's Funeral is the most ambitious film I've ever made."

I've known Fang Yuan for so many years, and the movies we've collaborated on have all done very well at the box office. This time, "Big Shot's Funeral" will only do even better.

"With Ge You, Rosamund Kwan, and Ying Da in the cast, I have nothing to be modest about."

When a reporter asked him about his box office expectations, he held up one hand and flipped it over: "Starting at 80 million, the goal is to break 100 million. I'm confident of that."

The reporters stirred, and another round of camera shutters went off.

Feng Xiaogang stood confidently in the crowd, speaking as if the Lunar New Year film season was already his for the taking.

The Huayi executives in the audience applauded.

Wang Jinghua stood not far away, exchanging pleasantries with several reporters. Huang Xiaoming followed beside her, occasionally glancing down at his phone, but did not initiate any communication with Fang Yuan's group.

Fang Yuan stood at the edge of the group interview area for a while, and no one noticed him.

Or rather, the reporters' focus was entirely on Feng Xiaogang and Wang Jinghua, making the screenwriter standing to the side seem inconspicuous.

He turned and walked toward the side door.

Hao Wei followed, and the two walked through the corridor outside the banquet hall and pushed open a glass door leading to the terrace.

A cold wind blew in his face, and Hao Wei shivered, but he still followed them outside.

There were only the two of them on the terrace. Below them, the traffic flowed along Chang'an Avenue, its taillights casting red streaks in the night.

Hao Wei took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, pulled one out, and handed it to Fang Yuan.

Fang Yuan took it, lit it, and took a puff. The smoke was quickly dispersed by the wind.

"I don't have high hopes for this film, given how it's been made," Fang Yuan suddenly said.

Hao Wei glanced at him.

Fang Yuan rarely comments on other people's work in public, so these words from him today carry significant weight.

Why?

"The core plot points are the fake funeral and the mental hospital; the satire and metaphors are too dense, and the narrative doesn't quite manage to contain them. It's a bit overdone."

Fang Yuan flicked his cigarette ash, his tone flat, as if he were analyzing a math problem.

"There are some problems with my script, and I need to reflect on it carefully."

But Feng Xiaogang's problem is even bigger—he got too cocky and made some major changes to the script.

He thought adding Ge You, Rosamund Kwan, and a mental hospital would easily make the audience laugh, but it wasn't that simple.

He paused, as if considering his words.

"The structure couldn't hold up. A fake funeral setting couldn't sustain a two-hour narrative; some parts were too abrupt and too long, completely disrupting the comedic rhythm."

Audiences go to the cinema to celebrate the New Year, not to attend classes.

Hao Wei remained silent, trusting Fang Yuan's judgment.

His intuition about scripts and finished films is something few in this industry can question.

Fang Yuan paused for a few seconds, then said, "The box office won't be too bad; Feng Xiaogang has that kind of appeal. But making money won't be easy."

"Let's go back to the editing room." Fang Yuan tugged at his coat collar. "Ning Hao's team is waiting for me to go over the dubbing again."

Hao Wei followed, the file folder tucked under his arm, and suddenly asked, "President Fang, did you anticipate what would happen with Sister Hua today?"

"Let's go our separate ways, there's nothing to think about. She'll be the president of Huayi Brothers, and we'll do our projects. We have a long life ahead of us."