Entertainment: I am the peak

Chapter 31 is interesting...

Li Qiutang admitted that Brother Dagou was an easy person to get along with, but when they were eating, he mentioned going to their company, which made Li Qiutang feel anxious.

Of course, Li Qiutang was not naive enough to think that Brother Dagou invited him to dinner today just to chat and brag. The two of them didn't know each other at all before.

But it was a bit sudden for Big Dog to bring up this matter.

"Dog brother, have you ponies ever made a movie?"

"No."

"Do you know China Film Group and Shanghai Film Group?"

"do not know."

So you want me to make a movie for you?!

Li Qiutang didn't know how to continue the conversation.

But Big Dog has something to say. He thinks Xiao Ma’s entry into the film industry is a second venture, which is a matter of great risks and great returns.

"I like adventure and excitement. I didn't make a movie before because I thought I wasn't ready. Now I think you can't wait until you are ready to do something. You just have to do it!"

Brother Dagou is really good at talking, and with his gangster spirit, his words are very inflammatory. In promising Li Qiutang the conditions, he even said that no matter what Li Qiutang wants to shoot, Xiao Ma will invest in him and will never interfere with his creation. As the director, he is also the boss of the crew.

"It doesn't matter if we can't shoot a nuclear bomb on the moon now. We can do it step by step one day."

If another new director was forced to drink two bottles of wine by him, he might really take advantage of him, but Li Qiutang remained sober.

There is no doubt about Xiaoma's strength. It is a top-notch company in the domestic entertainment and media industry. However, Xiaoma also has its drawbacks. Xiaoma is a typical family business - Huayi is not. The Wang brothers started the business, but the Wang family members do not work at Huayi - the internal unity basically depends on Big Dog Brother alone. Once Big Dog Brother encounters an accident, the company will be gone.

Li Qiutang remembered that Big Dog seemed to have passed away very young. Li Qiutang was very willing to make friends with Big Dog, and would even agree if Big Dog wanted to invest in his movies. But when it came to signing a contract with Xiao Ma, Li Qiutang was not very willing.

Big Dog even said that if you do a good job, you will be given shares in the company.

Xiaoma's IPO is nowhere in sight, what should I do with your shares?

The next afternoon, Li Qiutang attended an event to appreciate fans of "The Night the Comet Came". The box office of the movie had exceeded the 2000 million mark the day before, and among many movies during the National Day holiday, "Comet" had the best reputation among the audience and in the industry, far surpassing "The Baby Project".

Some theater managers predict that the total box office of "Comet" will be around 3000 million by the end of this month.

"With 'Stone' first and 'Comet' later, this year's domestic films are very encouraging."

"Looking back now, the previous worries were unnecessary. Comet, Baby Project and The Banquet have all heated up the National Day market."

At the fan appreciation meeting, Director Han gave a brief speech, fully affirming the positive significance of "Comet" to the market, and even said that the success of "Comet" and Li Qiutang's success have played an effective motivating role for young directors.

At the scene, Li Qiutang and Han Dong donated 100 million yuan to the Yenching Association for Science and Technology for popular science education on behalf of the crew of "The Night the Comet Came".

After the donation, the host invited Qin Lan to the stage. In front of the crew and the media, Li Qiutang gave her a necklace and explained, "This is made of real meteorite. I gave it to Sister Qin Lan to thank her for her trust in me and our crew."

The pendant is not valuable, the meteorite fragments are very cheap, and the platinum chain is worth a little more.

Since it was a fan appreciation party, there had to be some benefits and programs. Qin Lan went up to dance a kiss-to-cheek dance, and Li Qiutang was teased by the host's little game, and the audience laughed loudly. After the event, before the interview with the reporter began, Qin Lan's agent found Li Qiutang and said, "Director, I..."

Before he could open his mouth, Qin Lan interrupted him: "The reporters are here, let's start working."

Li Qiutang was confused. What did she want to say to him?
The interview was also finished. While Qin Lan was in the bathroom, Qin Lan's agent wanted to talk to Li Qiutang about the pay. Before he could even take a step, he was stopped by a producer from China Film. When Qin Lan came over, he called the two together and said, "Thank you very much, Teacher Qin Lan, for your selfless help to our crew."

"No, no," Qin Lan waved his hand and smiled, "Qiu Tang and I are from the same hometown and are good friends, so it should be the case."

The producer took out a check and said, "Teacher Qin Lan will not accept the film remuneration, but this fee must be accepted."

The agent took a look and saw 200 million. He was overjoyed.

There was no way Qin Lan was willing to accept it, but China Film insisted that she take it: "This is not a salary, it is the crew's recognition of your work, you can understand it as your work performance." It might be easier to accept if she said it another way.

Seeing Qin Lan hesitate, the agent quickly put the check away and said with a smile, "Then we would like to thank the crew."

"Okay, you guys sit down. I have something else to do, so I'll leave first." The producer of China Film Group left.

Qin Lan still felt uncomfortable taking the money, but his agent disagreed: "I didn't ask him for it. He gave it to us himself. Why shouldn't we take it?" 200 million was already far beyond Qin Lan's worth.

Li Qiutang did offer to give the 200 million. If "The Night the Comet Came" was really a student assignment, he would not have given the remuneration if it was not released. But "The Comet" was released, and he was still very grateful for Qin Lan's free help. However, he did not want to disappoint Qin Lan in terms of material matters. You took all the benefits, but the actors did not even get to enjoy the benefits. They can refuse it, but you cannot refuse to give it. This money was paid by Li Qiutang personally and was not included in the cost of "The Comet".

None of the top four actresses or top two ice queens can afford a 200 million yuan salary now, but Li Qiutang would rather pay more than be criticized.

Li Qiutang was listening to Director Han, who said clearly: "Comet has indeed walked into a gray area. It is not unreasonable for Qingying Studio to ask for this. At most, we will give you the director's fee and investment income according to the market price. You will not get a penny of the copyright fee of more than 600 million US dollars that you sold in Toronto. But don't worry, your teacher Tian and I will help you get this done. The copyright is yours, and the money is yours too. Just focus on filming.

"Don't complain about the academy or Qingying Studio. They are just minor incidents and not worth holding a grudge against."

"I'm not that petty." Li Qiutang smiled generously.

Director Han was very busy and was about to leave after saying this: "I have to go on a business trip tomorrow, so I'm leaving first. The movie is very good, keep shooting, the future depends on you." After saying that, he patted Li Qiutang's arm and left.

After the National Day holiday, relevant institutions issued statistical data. During the seven-day holiday, "Baby Project" took over 4000 million in box office revenue, making it the biggest winner in the holiday market. The runner-up was "Night Banquet", which had been released for more than half a month and still earned more than 2000 million. The third place was "The Night the Comet Came", which, despite being surrounded by "Baby Project" and "Night Banquet", achieved a good result of 1800 million. The total box office was on par with "Stone", with an estimated box office of 3000 million.

But unfortunately, the National Day market still did not break 100 million.

The promotion of several National Day movies has basically stopped at this time, and there are occasional reports circulating on the Internet.

At the "Comet" fan appreciation party, the meteorite necklace given by Li Qiutang to Qin Lan was quite popular. It was not because of anything else, but because in the past month, there were rumors that Qin Lan and Huang Xiaoming had broken up.

The news has not been confirmed by the parties involved.

However, as the news spread, it was inevitable that it would be distorted. Qin Lan and Xiao Ming broke up, and Li Qiutang gave Qin Lan a necklace, saying that it represented the crew, but who knew if there was any affair involved.

People and things cannot withstand digging. Reporters soon learned that Li Qiutang and Qin Lan had known each other for several years and were from the same hometown. During the preparation period of "The Night the Comet Came", Li Qiutang directly contacted Qin Lan and did not communicate with other actresses.

This is where things get interesting...

(End of this chapter)