Huayu Entertainment 1995 started with hijacking.

Chapter 365 Xiao Zhou Who Wants to Be a Director

"Okay, okay, thank you, boss, I understand."

After hanging up the phone, Wu Yuchen smiled at Zhang Yimou and said, "Senior Brother Zhang, I just sounded out the situation, and the Organizing Committee is very satisfied with our proposal. Even if we go to the second round, there shouldn't be any major problems."

Based on what Wu Yuchen just learned, the other teams' proposals were all very rough, basically just a collection of ideas with little discussion of implementation. Wu Yuchen and Zhang Yimou's team, however, were far ahead, providing a comprehensive solution that was unparalleled in terms of content creativity, practicality, and foresight.

After all, this was done by Wu Yuchen with a cheat code, recreating the effect presented in the previous life. Of course, it is more reliable than those solutions that only exist in imagination!
Upon hearing this, Zhang Yimou smiled, then breathed a sigh of relief and nodded, saying, "Although we have a significant advantage, I still want to identify and address any shortcomings."

Wu Yuchen smiled and praised, "Senior Brother Zhang, you're quite composed!"

"Hehe, it's best to play it safe when facing the Olympics~"

Wu Yuchen shook his head and didn't say anything more. It wasn't that he opposed Zhang Yimou's actions, but there were some things he hadn't said yet, and he had learned some information during his communication with his superiors.

Even if their team ultimately emerges as the winner, the plan will still need to be discussed and refined again. And the losing teams won't simply be eliminated; instead, a larger Olympic execution team will be formed, using the winning team as a core group.

Logically, Wu Yuchen and Zhang Yimou, as the chief directors, should have the authority to select team members. However, things aren't that simple. Who wouldn't want to participate in the Olympics? Take the People's Army team, for example; even if they weren't selected, several of their key members would definitely join the final team.

There are also other people with seniority or strong connections who want to join the team. Regardless of whether they want to contribute or just want to gain seniority and benefit from the team, can we refuse them?
Therefore, being the chief director of the Olympics is no easy task; one must integrate the strengths from all sides into a cohesive team. Without a certain level of prestige, it's truly difficult to maintain order, which is also one of the factors considered when selecting a candidate.

From this perspective, Wu Yuchen and Zhang Yimou's team are also the best choices. Both Wu Yuchen and Zhang Yimou can win over most people.

Judging from the current situation, Wu Yuchen is quite confident that his team will be selected. However, once they are selected, the actual execution will be more difficult than it is now.

However, Wu Yuchen glanced at Zhang Yimou beside him. This time, the two of them were working together, helping each other to fill in the gaps, which made things much easier for him.

Wu Yuchen smiled and asked Zhang Yimou, "Senior Brother Zhang, didn't you say you wanted to film 'Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles'? When do you plan to start?"

Zhang Yimou thought for a moment and said, "Let's refine the plan a bit more. I've contacted Ken Takakura, and he can come over next month. I plan to finish filming this movie before the end of the year."

As early as last year, Zhang Yimou wanted to make "Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles", but it didn't happen because of Zhang Weiping, and it has been delayed until now.

Wu Yuchen smiled and said, "Okay, if you encounter any difficulties, just contact the company directly, and Miracle Films will help you handle it."

Zhang Yimou smiled and nodded. After this incident, he chose to sign with Miracle Films. All the terms and conditions were clearly stated in the contract, which was much more standardized than when he worked with Zhang Weiping. This made Zhang Yimou feel the professionalism of Miracle Films.

Of course, choosing Miracle Films was based on trust in Wu Yuchen. Zhang Yimou understood that Wu Yuchen's achievements in various aspects meant he wouldn't scheme against him like Zhang Weiping did. Moreover, if Wu Yuchen hadn't stepped in to help him in this Olympic competition, he and his team would have genuinely forfeited.

Zhang Yimou was going to film "Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles," and Wu Yuchen was also busy with his own things, such as the post-production of "The Batman." He had to rush back this time because of some unexpected events, and the "The Batman" team was waiting for him.

It's not that everything revolves solely around the Olympics after the director is selected. In my previous life, after Zhang Yimou was selected as the director, he still directed "Curse of the Golden Flower." Now, with both Wu Yuchen and Zhang Yimou as directors, they can share the workload, so the effort and time required are definitely less than when Zhang Yimou was the sole director in my previous life.

So, as long as they coordinate their work, there shouldn't be any problems if they want to film their own project. The second round of presentations is in January of next year, and they can meet up again about two weeks before the second round to prepare.

Two days later, Wu Yuchen looked at the beaming Cai Yinong and asked with a smile, "President Cai, what's making you so happy?"

Cai Yinong said directly, "Director Wu, your winning the title of chief director of the Olympics is the greatest joy for Miracle Films!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Yuchen couldn't help but smile and shake his head: "This is only the first round, and the results are still undecided."

"Director Wu, although it's only the first round, with you here, there's definitely no problem! Right now, whether it's within the industry or online, many people have already decided that you and Director Zhang will definitely be the chief directors of this Olympics!"

"Just take what you see online with a grain of salt, don't take it seriously."

"It's not just online, everyone's saying the judges praised your proposal to the skies!" Cai Yinong said, sharing what she had heard.

Although the judges who participated in the scoring dared not reveal the specific content, praising someone's work was not against the rules. Therefore, some judges praised Wu Yuchen's team's proposal afterward, and the news spread.

Wu Yuchen waved his hand and said with a smile, "Let's be careful with our words and actions for now, and wait until the results of the second round are out before making any decisions."

Seeing Wu Yuchen's attitude, Cai Yinong could feel his confidence, so she smiled and stopped talking about it, instead reporting on the company's recent achievements.

"Initial D, which just finished its theatrical run, grossed 7100 million yuan at the box office. Jay Chou's appeal is truly amazing!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Yuchen paused for a moment, not because of the box office results, but because he thought of a lot of memes, such as "Akina Mountain racing god", "86 up the mountain, Mercedes up the tree", "Even the fastest AE86 can't catch up with Natsuki sitting in the Mercedes", etc., all of which are from "Initial D".

Wu Yuchen said with a smile, "Jay Chou is very popular right now!"

Cai Yinong immediately chimed in, "Who can argue with that! So many young people are fans of him. Before the movie's release, many in the industry were quite skeptical. He was crossing over to be the male lead, and he wasn't even considered handsome, incomparable to the original Four Heavenly Kings. But unexpectedly, it grossed 7100 million yuan at the box office, ranking in the top ten for the year. His appeal is truly amazing!" Jay Chou is indeed different from the original Four Heavenly Kings. The Four Heavenly Kings were almost all handsome men. Not to mention Andy Lau, Leon Lai, and Aaron Kwok, even the singer Zhang Xueyou, who isn't known for his looks, would definitely be considered handsome among ordinary people. Even so, their forays into film weren't all smooth sailing.

And Jay Chou? His face is somewhat square, you could say he has angular features, and he has small, single-eyelid eyes. Putting him on the street wouldn't really make him stand out; he's quite ordinary. You'd be lucky if someone said he's a refreshing guy. Later on, Jay Chou became increasingly good at dressing up, and he developed more and more charisma. Plus, people found him more and more pleasing to the eye, and with the aura of an idol, naturally many people started calling him handsome.

But Jay Chou, who is "ordinary" in appearance, landed the lead role in his first movie, which grossed over 7000 million yuan in mainland China and 3786 million yuan in Hong Kong. Other Asian countries and regions are also buying the rights. His box office appeal is truly stronger than that of a large number of professional actors and stars. It's undeniable that this is all thanks to his talent! Yes, musical talent!
Just then, Cai Yinong said to Wu Yuchen, "Director Wu, Jay Chou seems to be quite passionate about movies now. He said he wants to direct his own movies as a tribute to you."

Upon hearing this, Wu Yuchen raised an eyebrow, as if to pay his respects.

"He directed it himself as a tribute to me?"

Cai Yinong nodded: "Yes, that's what he said a while ago."

Wu Yuchen chuckled and said, "Interesting~"

He was curious to know how Jay Chou had paid tribute to him.

A little while later, Cai Yinong brought up another matter with Wu Yuchen: "The audition for the daughter role in 'Taken' has also ended..."

He knew about the casting for the daughter in "Taken," and it was he who had asked Wu Baige to go back to China for the auditions. He hadn't really paid much attention to the casting for such a small role. Besides, he had been busy with the Olympics for a while, so how could he have spared the energy for this? Therefore, he left the matter entirely to Wu Baige and Miracle Films.

"Who did you choose in the end?" Wu Yuchen asked.

“Liu Qianqian. Her age is just right, and she has several years of living and growing up experience in the United States. Whether it is language or showing local customs, she is more suitable.”

Hearing Cai Yinong's explanation, Wu Yuchen wasn't surprised. Putting aside the reasons Cai Yinong mentioned, just considering that Liu Qianqian is currently the leading actress of the post-85 generation at Miracle Film and Television, Cai Yinong would definitely help her.

After listening, Wu Yuchen smiled and said, "Not bad, she's suitable."

Little did he know that this insignificant role he didn't care about had Liu Qianqian and her mother Liu Xiaoli celebrating, while also leaving Liu Mi, Jing Tian, ​​and several other girls who hadn't been selected feeling dejected. After all, this was a collaboration between three major Chinese filmmakers—Wu Yuchen, Cheng Long, and Wu Baige—and it was a chance to break into Hollywood!

Then, Cai Yinong mentioned something else: "Director Wu, many foreign film companies are now trying to buy the rights to 'Departures,' especially Japan, which has already offered $1000 million."

A $1000 million copyright fee is not low, especially considering this isn't a commercially successful film with strong market appeal; it's merely an art film. The reason for such a high price is because the director is Wu Yuchen.

After thinking for a moment, Wu Yuchen said to Cai Yinong, "12 million. If they are willing to buy, we'll sell it to them. If not, we'll wait until after the Oscars next March to sell it."

The film "Departures" is also vying for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film next year, and Wu Yuchen is confident about winning the award.

Moreover, his asking price of $1200 million was quite reasonable. In his previous life, this film grossed over 38 billion yen in Japan, which is approximately $3300 million according to the exchange rate. Now, with Wu Yuchen's fame, it might even be higher, and the Japanese film distributors will definitely make a profit.

Wu Yuchen didn't plan to wait until after the Oscars next year to release the film because of several considerations. One was the time factor and the issue of piracy. Since "Departures" has already been released in China, pirated copies have naturally already leaked out.

As a film about Eastern culture, "Departures" is very attractive to Japan and South Korea, which are also East Asian countries. However, the Oscars will not be announced for another five months, and during that long period, the local areas will be affected by piracy. Even if it wins an Oscar, the film distributors may not be willing to pay a higher price.

Actually, if the goal was to maximize profits, Wu Yuchen shouldn't have released the film in China this year, but rather delayed it for another six months or so until after the Oscars next year. However, since it won the Palme d'Or at Cannes, and with so many eager fans in China, Wu Yuchen didn't consider the potential impact. He was willing to sacrifice some profits to make the fans happy!

Cai Yinong understood Wu Yuchen's meaning: "Director Wu, I will explain the Oscar application for our 'Departures' clearly, and I believe they will be willing to offer a higher price!"

Wu Yuchen smiled and nodded, then chatted with Cai Yinong for a while longer. After she left, he took out his phone, found a number, and made a call. Once the call connected, he said with a smile:

"Hey Jaylen, congratulations on your movie's huge success!"

"Thank you, Director Wu! I'm far inferior to you!" Jay Chou said modestly.

Wu Yuchen laughed and said, "Hehe, everyone has their own expertise. I'm a professional filmmaker, while you're a professional musician. You've achieved such great results after just one foray into this field; I can't compare! Have you released a new album recently?"

"Yes, my new album, 'November's Chopin,' will be released in November. Director Wu, if you'd like to hear it, I'll bring it over~"

Wu Yuchen didn't mince words: "Okay, I actually have quite a few friends who like listening to your songs~"

“Then I’ll get you a few sets of my autographed albums!” Xiao Zhou was quick-witted now, no longer the dull fool Wu Zongxian had described.

The two chatted for a while, and Wu Yuchen brought up something he was curious about: "Jaylen, I heard you also want to be a director?"

"Yes, Director Wu, I have a movie that I want to make. Actually, I've had this idea for a long time. I had it seven or eight years ago when I watched your movie 'Frequency'!"

(End of this chapter)