Huayu: Just started as a stagehand, but the director's comeback system

After the Lantern Festival on February 5th, Jiang Huai stayed for another day. Seeing that there were only leftovers at home and it was time to return the rented car, he quickly made an excuse and rushed back to the capital.

"This car is indeed impressive. Why don't you buy one and hang it under the company sign?"

Fu Lulu touched the Porsche she was sitting in, feeling a little reluctant to part with it. It was expensive for a reason. These past few days back in her hometown, every time she drove it out, she didn't have to do anything, and many handsome men would come up to chat her up.

"Yes, I really should buy a car."

I also inquired about this Porsche 911 Carrera 4 from JAC, and the estimated price after all the fees is around 1.6 million yuan.

Moreover, during the Lantern Festival, with the added boost of the holiday, Crazy Stone's box office, fueled by positive word-of-mouth and increased theater screenings, earned 330 million yuan, even ahead of the newly released Moonlight Reunion.

Unless the box office is halved, it will definitely exceed 20 million now, and buying it after the box office revenue is split is not a big problem.

And there's also Baleno; maybe we can get some money from there.

The car return location was right next to the cinema, and since it was Saturday, the cinema was quite busy. Jiang Huai decided to take Fu Lulu to check it out in person.

First, I bought a movie ticket for "A Perfect Match" and went into the theater to watch it. It was a light romantic comedy. Although the main actors were Yang Qianhua and Richie Jen, the plot was so-so and posed no threat to the currently popular "Crazy Stone".

After randomly interviewing several passersby who had just watched the movie "A Perfect Match," Jiang Huai felt more at ease and went on to interview passersby who had just watched "Crazy Stone."

"It's a pretty interesting movie, it just made me want to change my clothes."

"I see you're wearing Baleno too, is there a problem?"

"I just watched it with my friends, and they all said I looked like a country bumpkin."

Jiang Huai had originally chosen to interview a passerby dressed in a Baleno outfit, but now he suddenly felt a little uneasy.

Unconvinced, Jiang Huai took Fu Lulu to stop another passerby who was also wearing Baleno clothing.

This time, the other party's behavior made Jiang Huai even more flustered. The other party directly took off his Baleno jacket, even though it wasn't hot in the movie theater.

Even halfway through the interview, someone walked by and sneered, saying it was a Baleno brand product.

After giving away all the dolls he had bought outside, Jiang Huai sat on a bench in the cinema, rubbing his temples.

The audience generally gave Crazy Stone positive reviews, and many even watched it a second time. However, they felt that the clothes worn by Baleno were not high-end.

Just as I was thinking about how to finalize this collaboration, Huang Bo called me on my phone.

"Brother Long, have you seen the news these past two days?"

No, tell me about it.

Hearing Huang Bo's hurried voice, Jiang Huai's unease intensified.

"Our movie has become a huge hit, and almost every media outlet and newspaper is talking about it."

But some media outlets are saying that Tokunaga, the parent company of Baleno, saw its stock price drop by seven points because of our movie. Now, Hong Kong media are saying you're a brand killer.

Nowadays, most news focuses on Crazy Stone, with discussions about the movie's content and the acting skills of various actors. However, the most popular topics are unrelated to the movie itself.

A small media outlet in Hong Kong has dubbed Jianghuai a "brand killer," a label that has gained public acceptance. There are even rumors that the Tokunaga family is going to send Jianghuai a summons.

"Okay, I understand. We'll talk when we meet."

Jiang Huai hung up the phone and slumped back on the bench, feeling both happy and disappointed. Now that he had thwarted Baleno's attempt to break into the high-end market, the cooperation was probably over.

That's not the most important thing. Anyway, this movie has already made a lot of money, but if other brands sponsor subsequent movies, they might be wary of my name.

Thinking about this, Jiang Huai felt that once "Crazy Stone" finished its run in theaters, he needed to quickly start filming his next movie. He had to get rid of the "brand killer" reputation, otherwise it would hinder his ability to make money in the future.

However, after the film's opening day box office results came out, Jiang Huai sent an email to Tokunaga inviting them to discuss the collaboration after the film's run ended. Hopefully, they won't be angry.

"Hey Ren Tai Ze, He Ren Tai Pen!"

Regarding the currently popular "Crazy Stone," the general manager of the Tokunaga Group in charge of Baleno also took his child to see it. He actually thought the scenes featuring Baleno in the movie were quite good, and he genuinely wanted to meet with Jianghuai regarding their cooperation invitation.

But now, looking at Baleno's online reputation and that collaboration invitation, he felt it was blatant extortion. He didn't sue them because he didn't want Baleno to get too deeply involved in this matter.

Sitting in his office, Qi Yun grew angrier and angrier. He casually used the title of a temporary worker and wrote a long, scathing reply to Jiang Huai, nearly a thousand words long, with no repetition and only a scathing critique of the other party.

It was his boss who told him to handle this sudden incident calmly; otherwise, he would have held a press conference and cried his eyes out.

Meanwhile, Jiang Huai and Huang Bo were at Yihuai Media looking at the email he had sent. They had thought the situation had taken a turn for the better, but in the end, their faces turned as dark as Qi Yun's.

"Brother Long, it's alright if he insults us, as long as we don't sue him."

Huang Bo felt relieved after reading the email. Although his endorsement deal fell through, he was still quite famous, and there would definitely be other endorsements in the future.

As long as the other party doesn't sue, it's fine. Although it's difficult for the other party to win a defamation case in a short period of time, being entangled in such a case could be a fatal blow to a rising star.

Jiang Huai, standing next to Huang Bo, sighed softly. "Let them scold us if they want to."

After eating a piece of cake, Jiang Huai regained some of his energy. He took out the script for "Black Coal, Thin Ice" from his drawer and asked Huang Bo to call Ning Hao and his wife, who had already signed a contract.

Now he's going to start recruiting a photography team, and once Crazy Stone is off the screens, he'll immediately secure investment to start filming Black Coal, Thin Ice.

The purpose of inviting Ning Hao and his wife was to let them spread the word in the industry that they would start filming a new movie next month and that actor auditions would begin next week.

A director who has just finished making a blockbuster movie, even if he has been smeared by those unscrupulous media outlets, will definitely be very popular in the industry.

Jiang Huai believes that he will no longer need to ask others for help in casting actors. In fact, he believes that many people will rush to audition, and some may even bring gifts.

There's also the investment. After discussing with Ning Hao, the investment cost for the movie "Black Coal, Thin Ice" is about ten million. As long as it can get nominated for one of the three major European awards, there is a high chance that the movie will break even after its release. Even if it only wins minor awards, it could still make a small profit through extensive promotion.

Therefore, he plans to invest one million yuan in Jianghuai this time, with a profit share of no less than 20%. He still plans to approach China Film Group to set aside some more for theaters to support the film.