After all of them were reborn, who would still be an actor?

Chapter 787 Movie Fever, King of Traffic!
Moonlight streamed through the window into the dimly lit living room.

Li Mingyang lay on the sofa, staring at the ceiling, while Jing Tian sat beside him, her hands supporting her chin, feeling very upset.

After a long silence, Jing Tian asked, "Don't you want the Oriental Movie Metropolis anymore?"

Li Mingyang didn't really want to answer this question.

After a while, Jing Tian suddenly said, "You want the Oriental Movie Metropolis, but you don't want to be led by the nose by others?"

"No."

"what is that?"

Li Mingyang shook his head, straightened up, and looked at Jing Tian. "It's a bit complicated here. I'll tell you after I've figured it out."

“I can sort out the complicated relationships on FBTV, so tell me about them. I won’t let you be alone; we’ll face it together.”

"Actually, there's nothing to face. What I'm most worried about right now is how to get through the Lunar New Year film season."

Jing Tian looked at him with a puzzled expression and said, "When you had nothing, you were brave and daring, and you wouldn't listen to anyone. You were so stubborn that even ten oxen couldn't pull you back. Now that you're a Palme d'Or winner and a great director, no one dares to do anything to you. Why are you running away?"

"Escaping may be shameful, but it can be useful."

Jing Tian pouted, unhappy. "I used to always advise you not to offend people or go against them, because you were always challenging other people's bottom line. One wrong move and you lose the whole game. Now they need you to do that, and they're giving you so many benefits. Why don't you do it? If you get the management rights of Oriental Movie Metropolis, you can become the number one entertainment capital in China and South Korea. Haven't you ever thought about building your own entertainment empire?"

"Wow, an entertainment empire? I don't have such ambitions..."

"Is it a lack of ambition, or a lack of courage?" Jing Tian pressed.

Li Mingyang scratched his head. "I guess so... My ambitions aren't actually that big. I'm quite satisfied with my current life and achievements... I feel like I've reached my peak. Even if I win an Oscar, it'll just be a record of my achievements, and it won't change anything much."

Jing Tian rested her chin on her hands and quietly watched Li Mingyang show off. After Li Mingyang finished showing off, she said, "Since that's the case, then just sign the contract. Anyway, they only want to use your name, not you as a person."

Li Mingyang was taken aback, his pupils contracted slightly, he hadn't expected Jing Tian to hit the nail on the head.

"Am I wrong?" Jing Tian stared at Li Mingyang, glaring defiantly.

“That’s right.” Li Mingyang turned his head to look at the floor and added, “Absolutely right.”

“Uncle Wang is different from Jack Ma… He shares the same ideals as you. You both have a deep love for your homeland, you both dream of Hollywood, and you are both willing to give your all for your dreams.”

"..."

"What, you don't believe it?"

"We are not on the same path."

“But he sees you as a fellow traveler!” Jing Tian said, then suddenly lowered her head, ashamed. “You always felt lonely, so I told my mom, and then she told my dad, and then the whole family knew… Uncle Wang and my dad talked to me specifically. Wanda’s goal is the Hollywood Big Six. You want an Oscar? Wanda can help you. But the condition is that you have to connect the Oriental Movie Metropolis with the Korean Wave now, and with Hollywood in the future…”

"Old Wang told you a lot!"

"I admit I was a bit too talkative, but the result is good. Uncle Wang admires you and even wants to hand over the Oriental Movie Metropolis to you. He really intends to give it to you, but he's worried you might run away halfway through, so he can only take half. The other half will be your equity incentive. It's a lucky break, and instead of praising me, you're making sarcastic remarks. Humph!"

Li Mingyang was stunned.

Sweetie's loose tongue attracted the attention of Wanda, a super-big player in the industry!
Originally, Lao Wang was just admiring her, but after what Tian Tian did, Lao Wang took it seriously and wanted to collaborate with her!
They even planned to give him the entire Oriental Movie Metropolis!
What's Lao Wang after? Fame and fortune!

Oriental Movie Metropolis can serve as a landmark for cultural tourism, and it can also attract Korean and Hollywood influences, forming a new cultural hub!
And Oriental Film Studio is located in Dalian!
Dalian Wanda!

Even later, Lao Wang transferred all of Wanda's Qingdao cultural tourism projects, including Qingdao Oriental Movie Metropolis, to Sunac.

At the time of the opening, Lao Wang still took the lead, and together with Sunac and Qingdao, they invested a total of 50 billion yuan to establish a special fund for the development of the film and television industry, providing subsidies of 20% to 40% of the production costs for film and television works shot in Oriental Movie Metropolis.

Wanda invested over a billion yuan in this!

Even as the company collapsed and its cash flow was in trouble, more than a billion yuan was still poured in!
Without the ban on Korean entertainment, Li Mingyang hesitated at the Oriental Movie Metropolis, which would be disrespectful to himself.

Li Mingyang can't withstand the boomerang-like impact of the ban on Korean entertainment!

The ban on Korean entertainment involves many issues, and many influential figures have fallen from grace after its implementation.
People! We must have a sense of awe!
……

12 month 20 day.

Your Name and I Am Somebody were released at the same time!

"I Am Somebody" made a domineering entrance from the start, and despite having the same 20% screen share as "Your Name," its box office soared at an astonishing speed.

This was predictable, as can be seen from the pre-sale figures; Your Name only had 10 million yuan in pre-sales.

And the first-day pre-sales of "I Am Just a Passerby" reached 50 million!

Director Derek Yee was moved by the "extras" in Hengdian World Studios, which led to his film "I Am Somebody," which depicts the lives of these extras.

This film is an ensemble piece.

This movie was very powerful and brought many viewers to tears.

So down to earth.

Life is truly difficult for ordinary people. They struggle to make a living, and when their stories are made into movies, they are incredibly moving.

When Derek Yee depicted the lower classes, he used a lot of blank space and did not give everyone a result.

It started, but ended without a result.

This is a major taboo in commercial films.

This movie was very popular at the time. The famous Hong Kong director used his reputation to let the audience see the joys and sorrows of being a struggling actor in Hengdian, making it a social topic.

Public opinion has been generated, and the publicity has been in place.

However, the box office performance was not ideal.

This movie is a bit rushed and a bit boring.

This is so realistic; "I Am Just a Passerby" presents the true Hengdian world.

There are many metaphors.

This movie is asking the question: can dreams really put food on the table?

However, Derek Yee did not provide the audience with an answer until the very end of the film, leaving it to the audience to ponder.

How exactly should we film the lives of people at the bottom of society?
This film was a box office failure, but it was a success in terms of its underlying narrative logic and structure!
Xu Zheng's life story of going against the tide was poorly made, exploiting the plight of the underprivileged! It's illogical and devoid of any empathy!
The audience isn't stupid.

As a Hong Kong director, Derek Yee's ability to create a film like "I Am Somebody" demonstrates the immense effort he put in, a feat few could achieve.

Once a person reaches a certain level, they have already separated themselves from the group.

The ability to empathize is lost, as is the ability to discover.

I am just a passerby. The director is Derek Yee, and the screenwriters include Derek Yee and Li Mingyang.

Using his own past life as a struggling actor in Hengdian World Studios as the core, and employing Derek Yee's narrative structure and Hong Kong filming techniques, Li Mingyang produced "I Am Somebody," which is essentially a different story from the original.

The original question was: Life is unpredictable, can dreams put food on the table?

Li Mingyang answered the original version with his own story.

Life is unpredictable...

but!
The dream is always there!
The hype surrounding "I Am Somebody" is the hottest among all the movies produced by Bouquet!
It broke the box office record for art-house films on its opening day, raking in 6835 million yuan and taking the top spot!

The second place went to "Men's Diary," which premiered on the 19th, with 3520 million views.

The third place is Left Ear, with 2390 million.

Fourth place goes to the animated version of Your Name, with 1890 million views.

The fifth place is Old Boys: The Dragon Crossing the River, with 350 million views.

Entering its fourth weekend, "Old Boys: The Way of the Dragon" has essentially withdrawn from the Lunar New Year film season, with total box office predictions from Maoyan and Taopiaopiao at less than 4 million yuan.

The Left Ear was the biggest surprise. As expected of a trending genre film, it's a melodramatic and cheesy youth movie!

Despite initial skepticism, this film displayed remarkable resilience, raking in nearly 9000 million yuan in its opening weekend. Subsequently, director Guo Fan went on a killing spree, seeing the success of the scandal involving Yang Yang and Chen Duling, he also brought in the second male lead, Ou Hao, and Ma Feifei, adding them to the ranks of those involved in creating scandals.

Ma Sichun was initially unwilling, but her aunt Jiang Wenli forced her to cooperate.

Compared to Yang Yang and Chen Duling's fleeting, ambiguous relationship that tormented and entangled fans, this is a different story.

The incident involving Ma and Ou caused quite a stir, with various 'secretly taken' photos of them shopping, eating, and spending the night together...

Ma Feifei is lucky; she has a powerful aunt who genuinely cares for her. To make her niece famous, the aunt showered her with resources, getting her on trending topics, appearing on various shows, and having over a dozen online marketing companies take turns boosting her popularity.

The most important thing in creating a scandal is that neither party involved should admit to it, so that fans and the media can interpret it in various ways, create entanglements, and generate all sorts of expectations.

However, Ma Feifei and Ou Shen are quite different.

The two haven't officially acknowledged their relationship, but their back-and-forth exchanges on Weibo, their real-life interactions, and their public displays of affection are absolutely too sweet for the average person to handle!

Li Mingyang and Guo Fan were stunned, and Jiang Wenli was also shocked!

Because this wasn't her arrangement!
It doesn't matter who arranged it!

The popularity of Ma and Ou's dating rumors is phenomenal. Although neither of them is very famous, the two celebrities publicly announced their relationship on Weibo, which was witnessed by the entire internet!

This is practically a lifelong commitment!

Every word they exchanged was deeply etched online!
What an unforgettable love!

The two of them stirred up a huge scandal, making Yang Yang and Chen Duling's scandal seem like a drizzle compared to it, not worth mentioning!
Guo Fan was too lazy to care anymore and focused his publicity efforts on Ma and Ou. In order to create a scandal, he personally stepped in to officially confirm their relationship and even made up a bunch of sweet interactions between Ma and Ou on set.

While it may seem like pure fabrication, there is actually some basis to it.

Guo Fan reminisced about the filming on set while recalling his past, embellishing and stitching things together.

Guo Fan, who felt the same way, cried during the roadshow, and was moved to tears by the emotion; one can only imagine how others felt.

Who hasn't been young? Whose youth is without regrets?
It was from this point that Guo Fan had an epiphany, simultaneously creating scandals and expressing regret!

After that, the daily box office never fell below 20 million.

Finally, on the 20th, it broke 200 million on its 10th day of release!

The animated version of Your Name didn't even gross 20 million yuan on its opening day.

But this is already the best opening day box office result for a domestic animated film.

Many animated films don't even have a fraction of the credits for "Your Name" from the time they're released until they're taken off the screens.

This result was expected.

The show "Diaosi Men" was produced by Sohu, with Wanda and Sohu as the producers and Wanda and Wuzhou as the distributors.

A very pure-blooded Wanda Group.

The popular comedy film, along with the release of the "Men's Diary" trilogy, quickly rose to the top of the daily charts.

"Diaosi Men" (a popular Chinese TV show), Sohu spent 100 million yuan on ticket subsidies! Dapeng's roadshow was very exciting.

They brought in a host of domestic comedians, including Xiao Yang, Wang Taili, Xiao Shenyang, Zhao Dashan, and Guo Degang, and also brought in Deng Chao, Huang Xiaoming, Yang Mi, Liu Shishi, and others to create hype.

From publicity and distribution to ticket subsidies, premieres, and roadshows, everything was personally planned and arranged by Zhang Chaoyang. The schedule was very tight, traffic was constantly being generated, and trending topics were constantly being bought. All available resources were used.

Zhang Chaoyang's ambition as an internet mogul is now crystal clear!
He didn't give up!

Even though BAT (Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent) has become the biggest investors in the Chinese entertainment industry, he still hasn't given up. He wants to take back all the market share he lost!

And the entry point is film!

The alliance with Wanda was the most important step he took.

I Am Somebody, Your Name, The Loser, and The Left Ear are four movies, representing four different genres.

Popular movies, animated movies, comedies, and teen comedies.

Although none of the four films showed amazing box office performance, they won the market recognition and catered to the viewing needs of most audiences during the Lunar New Year season.

Over the next two days, the daily box office revenue steadily increased.

On Saturday, December 21, the total box office revenue for the day exceeded 150 million.

On Sunday, December 22, the total box office revenue for the day exceeded 180 million.

The Lunar New Year film season has finally arrived as it should be, igniting the audience's enthusiasm for watching movies.

The movie-going frenzy has finally arrived!

Li Mingyang felt much more at ease. The most difficult month for the Lunar New Year film season is December, when there are too few good films.

There are over sixty films released in January, many of which are blockbuster movies.

Mingyang Entertainment, 9th floor.

"Damn it, what kind of idiots are they! With such a good situation, no one is even considering moving up the rankings," Li Mingyang muttered as he hung up the phone.

"Everyone in the industry knows that December is yours, and January is Alibaba's. To offend Alibaba for this small advantage in scheduling, I reckon only you would do something like that," Jiang Wen said, puffing on his cigar.

Li Mingyang pulled out his tie, threw it on the table, and lit a cigarette for himself.

A little over an hour ago, he received leaders from the General Administration at Cyber ​​Flower Fruit Mountain, and they talked about the Three-Body Problem.

Apart from that, no one answered any of his off-topic remarks.

He's not interested in The Three-Body Problem right now; he just wants to know if One-Punch Man will pass censorship, and when.

“Brother, this isn’t like you at all. The Lunar New Year film season is so hot, everyone’s busy promoting their movies, but you’re holed up in Mingyang, doing absolutely nothing.” Jiang Wen said mysteriously, “Tell me honestly, are you scared out of your wits, or are you plotting something?”

"A conspiracy?" Li Mingyang shrugged and said with a wry smile, "What secrets do I have? I've already revealed everything."

Jiang Wen didn't believe him. "I think you're waiting for an opportunity."

"There aren't that many twists and turns. I've invested over a billion yuan of real money. It will take everyone's efforts and unity to get out safely."

"Rely on everyone's efforts? That's pure nonsense! If you pin your hopes on that bunch of bastards, you'll lose miserably!" Jiang Wen, with a cigar in his hand, pointed at Li Mingyang and said in a deep voice, "The only one who can help you take over and get out safely is Alima, but you refuse to give in."

“I’ve been hiding here, not caring about anything, isn’t this low-key enough to be considered submission?” Li Mingyang retorted.

Jiang Wen waved his hand, "Brother, you're still too young. You don't understand what I mean. Your low profile makes you look like you're being suppressed. You need to participate in more events, stand on more platforms, and smile more in front of the media."

“It’s not even January yet.” Li Mingyang rolled his eyes.

Jiang Wen placed the cigar on the ashtray, clenched his fists, and said, "I'll say it again, you seem to be acting like you're being forced. At the premiere of the animated version of Your Name, you shifted all the credit to others, absolved yourself of all responsibility, and even taught others how to praise this animated film."

"You can't do that!"

"You can't be afraid!"

“You have to raise your fist, whether you fight or not, you have to raise your fist, that’s the image of you that everyone has! That’s your stereotype! Everyone is used to this image of you, and you suddenly change your approach, especially at this crucial moment.”

"Many people will be unlucky!"

Li Mingyang wiped his face speechlessly.

I didn't kill Boren, but Boren died because of me.

This multi-billion-dollar Lunar New Year film season is itself a conflict between power and capital.

He was timid and hesitant during this Spring Festival film season, hiding in Hengdian, and his Weibo account seemed to be blocked...

This is completely abnormal!
This... of course it's capital's fault! It's all capital's fault!
Ali Ma must be having a tough time right now.

Otherwise, Brother Cheap wouldn't have come with the Mountain Eagle.

Li Mingyang slid his chair to the window, turned sideways and pointed to the Cyber ​​Flower and Fruit Mountain outside. "Bouquet is a company with thousands of employees, I'm not just doing this for fun."

"A company with thousands of employees naturally has a management team. As the person in charge, you need to focus on the outside! Anyone can manage the internal affairs; anyone can be a manager! But those people outside only recognize you!"

"Wow, you're acting as a lobbyist for Alibaba so enthusiastically, what benefits did he give you?" Li Mingyang grinned.

“We’re all in the same boat now, and I’m saying all this for you!” Jiang Wen said.

"Then tell me, what should I do now?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Wen thought there was a chance, so he immediately picked up a cigar and started smoking while offering advice.

The long-winded and rambling speech, in essence, aimed to get Li Mingyang to take action.

If the Lunar New Year film season generates billions in revenue, that will be the biggest political achievement, even more important than the cooperation between China and South Korea!

No one will target him this time.

They have the manpower and the money; they're just waiting for the king of traffic to appear!
And this king of traffic is none other than him!
(End of this chapter)