Generation Z Artists

Chapter 344 Preparing a Surprise

When Fang Xinghe returned to his home in Beijing, various groups of people immediately came to his door, blocking the Ziyu Villa like the North Second Ring Road.

The manager of Peacock Garden Restaurant was overjoyed; it was packed every day… Is it fashionable to call someone a manager in Beijing? No way, calling someone the boss isn’t prestigious enough!
How many people actually want to visit Ziwei Xingjun (the God of the Purple Star) at the end of the year?
The education authorities from more than 20 provinces, from deputy provincial governors to department heads, then to the liaisons below them, and finally to the directors of the Beijing offices, make up about a hundred groups... not individuals, but groups.

All the directors, screenwriters, and actors in the film industry with whom you can establish connections.

Directors of multiple satellite stations.

The heads of all partners in China, as well as representatives of merchants who have not yet partnered but wish to do so.

There are various departments cooperating with us in the capital.

Teachers, friends, and colleagues from the broader cultural sphere...

In short, with the year-end approaching, the place was bustling with visitors, and even though Fang Xinghe was handling all the receptions, he was still incredibly busy.

He ignored all the Taiwanese officials and leaders who wanted to discuss "The Return of the Condor Heroes," leaving them out of the conversation.

What's wrong? Before I get down to business, I want to get together with some friends. Anyone have a problem with that?

Everyone has a problem with it, but nobody dares to say anything.

The party lasted for many days.

Zhang Yimou, Gong Li, Chen Daoming, Feng Yuanzheng, Zhao Xiaoding... the film and television industry is a group.

Yu Hua, Ye Xin, Sister Yi, Wang Yali... the cultural circles are one group.

Director Xie, Director Ye, Wang Hongwei... the instructors from Beijing Film Academy are in one group.

Na Ying, Wang Fei, Zhao Lin... the musicians they've collaborated with are also a group.

Sissi, Cecilia Cheung, Janine Chang, Jun Ji-hyun, Son Ye-jin, Yui Aragaki... another group of actors have been used.

Over meals and conversations, Fang regained his awareness of various aspects of life in China, and felt that the past year had been full of dramatic changes and was particularly interesting.

……

The most serious event in the Chinese entertainment industry in 2004 was the "expulsion of Hong Kong artists".

Fang Xinghe only signed his name and didn't get involved, but the natural development of the situation drained the Hong Kong entertainment circle of most of its resources.

The trigger was Zhang Xie assaulting Wang Bozhao, which resulted in the mainland completely refusing to use Hong Kong and Taiwan artists.

Refusing to use is not the same as banning; it essentially means we're not including you in the game anymore.

Originally, they didn't have the courage to do so, but Fang Xinghe's "Hero," made with an all-Chinese cast, is still the best film in history, so what is there to be afraid of?

Their confidence led to their assertive approach to the matter.

More people signed the petition, more media outlets responded, more members of the public supported it, and more companies worked hard to tap into their internal potential...

As a result, many mainland artists have received opportunities they never had in their previous lives.

With a large number of newcomers such as Hu Ge, Yan Kuan, Yin Xiaotian, and Zhu Yawen joining the cast, existing male stars like Chen Kun, Xiao Ming, Lu Yi, and Hu Bing have become even more sought after.

For Fang Xinghe, the biggest benefit came from Xie Tingfeng's scandal.

Originally, his popularity and traffic had been declining after his breakup with the princess. It was thanks to President Yang's tireless support and efforts that he managed to organize several "big projects".

However, the domestic film industry has been completely dominated by Fang Xinghe for the past two years. With "Hero" and "Young You", the hype lasted from the end of 02 to the beginning of 04. The Chinese people, whose expectations were raised, really did not have the extra energy to care about his few bad films.

So...the results were just so-so.

After struggling until 04, he finally became more pragmatic in all aspects, no longer fixated on movies, and turned to TV series. After finishing "Chinese Paladin", he took on "The Little Fish and the Flower Without Flaws", which resulted in the assault incident.

Zhang has basically retired from the entertainment industry, and Xie Biwang has lost the mainland market, which has created a large space for him to rise to prominence, leading to the rise of photographers and Daniel Wu, among others.

And because photographers were seen as the last hope for the Hong Kong entertainment circle, his ego inflated, and he became increasingly promiscuous.

The door incident was an accident, but the photographer's drifting was not.

If Nicholas Tse maintains his top-tier status and completely suppresses those who come after him, who among the new generation in Hong Kong's entertainment circle can be arrogant? They'll all have to keep their tails between their legs.

Unfortunately, every action has its consequences.

At the fan level, the photographer couldn't keep up with the large number of fans, so many fans had to reluctantly side with the "Full Sky Star" (a fan group).

These mature fans quickly become the core group, and many wealthy and beautiful women from big cities have given up on themselves and reconciled with their former rivals (the Starry Night Sisters), becoming die-hard fans from the start.

The early fandoms in China were unlike any other place in the world.

It possesses strong regional characteristics, strong urbanization, strong social hierarchy, strong loyalty, and strong primary characteristics.

China is a developing country, and the development speed varies greatly across regions. Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen are the first tier of cities, while the Yangtze River Delta and the Pearl River Delta are highly advanced at the regional level.

Therefore, almost all of the high-value fans of mainland celebrities are concentrated in the aforementioned regions.

Fang Xinghe's prestige in the three northeastern provinces is unmatched. Millions of middle school students are willing to fight for him, and mentioning Brother Fang means "my boss's boss."

But when it comes to conversion and monetization... sorry, I'll just have to sit back and wait.

The Northeast is really poor.

Shanghai residents: We don't just talk about idols, we spend money!

Cantonese-speaking region: Although Fong Sing-ho is very good, we prefer Fung-jai, who speaks the same language.

Therefore, from the perspective of geographical coverage, Fang Xinghe has not achieved dominance in the developed areas of the south, Xie Tingfeng's base in the Pearl River Delta is quite stable, and the girls in Shanghai only follow foreign stars.

Early female fans in China were loyal and naive, rarely wavering between different groups, and once they formed a circle, it was difficult for them to betray their allies.

From the perspective of die-hard fans, Fang Xinghe was ahead of everyone, but he could never unify the country.

Lu Yi's remaining supporters are still strong to this day. Those who have been using Baidu Tieba should know that Xiao Tong's Tieba was still active until 2014.

HOT's fandom is slowly fading away, but it will soon be awakened by TVXQ.

The F4's decline was rapid, but in early 05, it was still a force to be reckoned with.

As long as nothing goes wrong, a core fanbase can stick with a fanbase for a long time; this is the loyalty of early fandoms in China.

It's not that you're right just because you're strong; it's that I am because I love.

But Nicholas Tse got into trouble, so his situation is different.

What's even more special is...

In his early years, when Nicholas Tse was being heavily criticized by the old-fashioned crowd, Fang Xinghe stood up for him.

All of Feng's fans remember the article "Culture War" that appeared out of nowhere amidst a storm of bloodshed, and then stirred up an even bigger storm of bloodshed.

He praised our Fengzai for doing a great job!
A complex feeling of affection is deeply buried in the hearts of all the fans of the forward.

So when Nicholas Tse and the princess started dating, his former fans quietly joined the "Stars of the Sky" fandom.

When Nicholas Tse and Princess Diana broke up, his former fans quietly joined the "Starry Sky" fandom.

When Nicholas Tse bullied mainlanders, his fanbase completely collapsed, and his former fans quietly joined the "Stars of the Sky" (a group of supporters)...

In conclusion, we have loved the eagle, so we can no longer love the pheasant; we can only follow the Kunpeng!
So when Fang Xinghe belatedly opened his fan panel, he suddenly discovered that in less than half a year, he had gained more than 100,000 loyal and enthusiastic fans in the Pearl River Delta.

In fact, the number of fans is not large, but the sales of all his works in the Pearl River Delta are skyrocketing.

It's obvious that a large number of newcomers are frantically adding to his early material.

Moreover, the spending potential of this group of fans has not been fully realized. You have to wait a few years until they are about to go to college before you can see what happens.

Forget about the "Born to Be Wild" photobook; they're buying LV and Cartier cars like crazy.

Very good, very good, Fengfeng fell down, Fang Ge ate his fill~~~
……

The second major event of 2004 was, of course, the recently concluded Olympic Games.

Many people are calling for Fang Xinghe to go on stage.

Fang Ge didn't go.

Why bother fulfilling their expectations?

Sports confidence cannot be established by one or two short-range gold medals, but by Su Bingtian's passion and his fighting spirit of wanting to prove himself for people of Asian descent.

Fang Xinghe's appearance on the court, easily outrunning the Black man with his talent, was ultimately meaningless and only provided temporary entertainment for this year's audience.

Without a process of arduous struggle and trials filled with blood, sweat, and tears, one cannot develop a correct understanding.

Su Shen did a great job in this regard. Those post-00s track and field kids took solid new steps under his encouragement. Fang Xinghe thought this was good, so he really had no intention of stealing Liu Xiang's thunder. "Are you participating in the 08 Olympics?"

Many friends are curious about this and ask about it during casual conversations.

"Not necessarily." Fang Xinghe shook his head. "If I have to participate, the most I'll do is lead a team in a basketball game..."

"Oh, that's wonderful!"

Everyone was quite happy, and their confidence soared.

"The three major men's ball sports, you'd definitely lead your team to their first gold medal if you played!"

Who were we playing against in the 08 Olympics?

The little snake is carrying young LeBron... I'm really good at defending LeBron!
Fang Xinghe remained optimistic, but he knew that this was only a result for Yao Ming and Yi Jianlian, not for Chinese basketball.

I really don't want to indulge the Basketball Association's temper, but let's wait and see...

"What about the Olympic opening ceremony? Should we try to compete for that?"

As soon as Zhao Xiaoding finished asking the question, Mou Zi immediately perked up his ears.

He was heavily criticized for his brief appearance at the closing ceremony, and the criticism continues to this day.

Fang Xinghe chuckled and glanced at Mou Zi, who had a bitter face, then shook his head: "Don't compete. I'll fully support our uncle and give him advice to fill in the gaps. No one else can help him!"

"Hey, we don't know for sure what's going on."

Mou Zi waved his hand with a broad smile: "After we get there, your superiors might assign you to participate in such an important project. Where would you go?"

That's true... Anyway, let's discuss it again.

Then we talked about other things. Zhang Yimou had just finished "Turandot" and was preparing for "Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles".

"The script has been completely ruined again?"

Fang Xinghe made a sarcastic remark, which drew laughter from the audience.

Gong Li spoke up for Zhang Yimou, saying, "Actually, the script this time is quite good; it's very profound."

"I won't look at it." Fang Xinghe waved his hand, refusing the notebook, and asked curiously, "Does it have to be Ken Takakura? He's already past his prime in both China and Japan."

"Hey, what does my use of his image and acting skills have to do with whether he's past his prime or not?"

Mou Zi was quite stubborn, so Fang Xinghe didn't try to persuade him and instead stabbed him.

"The settlement for 'Hero' has already been completed. How much money did Wei Ping give you?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the room fell silent.

Mou Zi was a little embarrassed: "They're all at the company, preparing for the next project, and I don't really need the money..."

Fang Xinghe ignored his attempt to save face and said bluntly, "If you're embarrassed, I'll talk to him for you."

Mou Zi is too honest. As the saying goes, a gentleman can be deceived by reason, but Brother Fang can't stand it and wants to reach out and shove him away.

Once he's not short of money, he won't have to take on those bad movies just to support his children.

It's a pity... no one can stop you from falling into the pitfalls of life.

"No, no, no!" Mouzi hurriedly stopped him. "Let's talk slowly, don't make it seem like something's wrong."

"Tch!" Gong Li curled her lip, looking utterly disappointed.

Chen Daoming helped change the subject, asking Fang Xinghe, "Fang, how come you only donated 50 yuan during the disaster last month? Now a lot of people are criticizing you..."

He was talking about the Indonesian tsunami, and how people across the country were donating money. Fang Xinghe ignored it, but Wang Chali donated 50 RMB in his name.

Then domestic media and Indonesian media started making strange claims.

"How much I donate is none of their business to criticize me," Fang sneered. "Xingwang donated 1000 million to the local Chinese community association. What, isn't that money?"

Fang Xinghe originally wanted to publicly discriminate against others, but the impact was too bad, so Wang Chali stopped him.

Even so, the local people had a lot of complaints about him.

Hmm, Southeast Asian market -1.

However, he didn't care. To this day, only the Thai, Malaysian, and Singapore markets in Southeast Asia are still somewhat helpful to him. He wouldn't feel bad about throwing away the others.

Feng Yuanzheng clicked his tongue in surprise: "You must have quite a few fans over there, right? You're not planning to keep them?"

"It's no use."

Despite Southeast Asia contributing over 1.5 million new followers and 1000 million core followers, their absence wouldn't really make a difference.

“70% of my total income comes from Japan and South Korea, and less than 4% comes from Southeast Asia. It’s not worth worrying about.”

The words were quite cold, but no one seemed to have any objections.

Fang Xinghe's spending spree in the country has made him completely immune to any related accusations.

"Let's talk about that play about the poet, how's it going?"

Everyone can't help but laugh when this is mentioned.

"It'll be on soon." Zhang Yimou turned to look at Gong Li. "Did they send you a premiere invitation?"

"Hmm." Gong Li nodded, then frowned. "It seems to be April 1st."

In an instant, everyone turned to look at Fang Xinghe.

Fang Ge chuckled: "Wow, you specially scheduled the premiere for my birthday? What's this, a birthday present for me?"

Chen Daoming shook his head and sighed: "Director Chen is indeed a bit... childish."

No one believed it was a coincidence. Fang Xinghe releases a book every year on his birthday. Who in the industry doesn't know his birthday?
If you know the truth but still insist on trying to climb up the ladder, aren't you obviously acting with malice?
Feng Yuanzheng doesn't talk much, but every question he asks is crucial. He asked, "What are your plans? Will you release another book this year?"

Fang Xinghe thought about it carefully—it's the end of January now, and there are still two months until April 1st. It seems like there's no time to do anything else.
But he did not make a decision immediately.

"Let's see. My new book is very important. It's not worth using it to attack him."

Everyone was astonished.

Good heavens, this is the first blockbuster by a top-three director in China, doesn't he deserve to be compared to one of your books?
It was wild enough, but the style was just right, so everyone skipped the topic and kept their expectations to themselves.

As we chatted, the topic turned to "Kung Fu Hustle".

"Stephen Chow is still amazing. Only he can keep up with you and Zhang Yimou."

Before "Kung Fu Hustle" had even finished its run in theaters, it had already grossed 2.03 million yuan at the domestic box office, much higher than the figures Fang Xinghe remembered from his previous life.

The same applies to Zhang Yimou's "House of Flying Daggers" and Xiao Gangpao's "A World Without Thieves," both of which saw box office growth of approximately 15% or more compared to their predecessors.

Others are unaware of the data from the previous life; they only believe that Chinese cinema is on the rise.

Fang Xinghe smiled without saying a word, but what he was thinking was—the data is generally rising, I've brought a lot of new viewers to China, leading to widespread optimism in the industry, but…

If "The Promise" is still the same as its predecessor, the enthusiasm for watching it will probably be dampened again...

So, should we go take a look?

Fang Xinghe hesitated for a moment, then forgot about it.

As a result... a few days later, the poet himself turned hostile and sent the premiere invitation to Galaxy Pictures.

"This is intolerable! What is he trying to do?!"

Wang Chali was furious and slammed his fist on the table in a thick Northeastern accent.

Fang Xinghe's gaze was deep and his lips curled slightly as he stopped Wang Charlie's outburst.

"He wants us to go, so let's go and see."

"But……"

"There are no 'buts'. The era of blockbusters is inevitable, but not everyone is qualified to make blockbusters. It's time to give China Film Group a wake-up call..."

Fang Xinghe slammed the invitation in front of Wang Charlie.

"Keep it, and make arrangements in advance. We'll celebrate his birthday on April 1st!"

With that settled, Fang Xinghe began making intensive preparations... for a huge surprise.

(End of this chapter)