Huayu: From charlatan to great entertainer

Chapter 233 The Birth of the Master and the Hits
(PS. The previous chapter has been released)

July 2004, 7, Chedun Film and Television City in Shanghai.

It seems that a large film crew came to Minguo Street recently. They communicated directly with the management committee and contracted an entire street to start setting up the set.

However, the extras, passers-by, and merchants who came and went have not seen the crew open for business for a whole month.

Today, the auntie who was selling breakfast at the door finally saw some people. Dozens of stagehands wearing strange talisman uniforms were coming in and out, and they also lifted the dust covers of some large props.

I don't know which fan screamed, but all the tourists, passers-by and movie fans were surprised to find many familiar big-name faces appearing in the crew.

"Ah!!! Zhang Manyu!"

"Ah!!! Liu Yifei!"

"Fuck, washing machine."

Today is the day when the crew of "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" starts filming.

Boss Lu came down the stairs with the assistant director and the head of the stage management team. They had just inspected the most important nursing home scene in the movie.

Zhang Manyu was conscientiously poring over the script while greeting Lu Kuan: "Director Lu, your crew doesn't worship gods, right?"

Liu Yifei, who was visiting the set, smiled and said, "He is a young Taoist priest himself, he has already taken care of it."

"Sister Manyu, look at the clothes these stagehands are wearing. The talismans on them are designed by him."

Lu Kuan crushed the cigarette butt and said, "Worshiping the gods is so expensive, and we have to buy piglets. Let's save some money and feed everyone."

Zhang Manyu was quite curious about his identity as a Taoist priest: "Sister Mei occasionally talks about you in the circle. Are you really that amazing, Director?"

"Can you let me take a look at it if you're okay?"

Boss Lu joked, "I'll charge Sister Mei a minimum of 300 million for each screening. How about I deduct it from your salary as the Cannes Film Queen?"

Zhang Manyu smacked her lips and joked to Liu Yifei, who was visiting the set today, "No wonder he runs such a big company. He must be able to make money, right?"

Lu Kuan suddenly remembered something and called out to Concubine Liu Yi: "You have to do me a favor."

The little girl said proudly: "You don't know how to say please?"

"This is not only my business, it's yours too."

"what?"

Boss Lu said with a smile, "Don't you have seven or eight official websites and tens of thousands of followers? Help me find 800 volunteers from all over the country to serve as poll watchers."

"Vote monitor?"

"When 'Alien Land' opens in two weeks, I'll go to all the major cinemas to monitor and prevent anyone from stealing the box office."

Concubine Liu Yi didn't know what stealing box office revenue meant and could only understand it literally, but that didn't stop her from confronting Grandet.

"You have to pay me, or else forget it. Why should I, your fans, work for you for free?"

"Film is an art form, why talk about money?"

"Besides, aren't they your fans? Anyone who steals your box office is targeting you. They should be very motivated if they don't pay!"

Concubine Liu Yi was furious: "No, I don't agree."

"Then let's do this. Each volunteer will be given a ticket according to the show they attended, and we'll invite them to watch a movie."

Xiao Liu nodded: "That's more like it. So what exactly does it mean to steal box office revenue?"

"literal meaning."

Lu Kuan glanced at his watch and wanted to send her off quickly so he could get back to work: "Hurry up and get Yang Siwei to do this. We need to find everyone within a week."

"If you don't tell me, I'll hire him myself!"

Boss Lu glanced at her a few times and reluctantly explained, "There are two types of box office theft."

"For example, Director Jia's film 'The World' is also about to be released. He offers theaters a 43% rebate plus a screening subsidy, while ours is 41%. So theaters will give tickets for 'The World' to audiences watching 'Alien Land'."

"This makes no difference to the audience, but apparently the box office revenue for 'Alien Land' is lower, but the theaters get more money."

Liu Yifei nodded: "Then our box office figures will be less."

"Another method is even more direct. The cinema showed 'Alien Land' 30 times, but only billed China Film Group for 15, thus embezzling half of the money."

At present, there are still many cinema systems in second- and third-tier cities in China that are not connected to the Internet, so it is not too difficult to make some adjustments. If the audience has any opinions, the worst that can be done is to give them some popcorn and Coke.

When the Internet era came, in addition to a large number of online ticket bookings, all offline ticketing data was entered into the system and transmitted in real time, which to a certain extent eliminated box office theft.

In fact, both "The Thief" and "The Drummer" had previously reported that their box office revenue had been stolen. Some movie fans spoke out on blogs, and the cinema gave them tickets for other showtimes to watch these two movies.

Especially this time, the earth-shattering and soul-stirring momentum of "Alien Land" has absolutely dominated the country in terms of screening schedules. It is impossible for the film producers, namely China Film Group and China Film Group, to give theaters a high proportion.

In this situation, theaters are likely to take risks in order to make more money.

Even if it is discovered, it’s no big deal, just fire the temporary worker.

But according to the box office forecast of "Alien Land", it can at least bring nearly one million in gray income to larger theaters during the entire release period, which is very considerable.

In fact, the higher authorities are well aware of such unspoken rules, but there is no way to completely eliminate them.

First, it is difficult to inspect, and second, the higher authorities are also one of the instigators.

Especially the main-theme films that are tributes, which have low profits and few audiences.

If the cinema follows the order to schedule screenings, it will suffer heavy losses.

But what if you don’t follow the instructions? The Industrial and Commercial Administration, Taxation Bureau, and Fire Department will come to your door, and you won’t be eligible for any awards or honors, such as Outstanding Screening Unit.

That means you can enjoy policies, preferential treatment, and even priority access to broadcasting rights for imported films!

There was no choice but to steal, and use the box office revenue from other movies. This way, he could complete the task assigned by his superiors and gain some benefits for himself.

Lu Kuan walked over to Zhao Fei, who was adjusting the camera. "Teacher Zhao, are you feeling comfortable?"

"It's pretty good. It's much more accurate and convenient than a film camera. You can tell how the film turns out."

Boss Lu smiled but said nothing, because he wanted to play the male lead himself, so he specially invited Zhao Fei to shoot the film for him through Tian Zhuangzhuang, Zhang Yimou and others.

Although the latter was aware of his film talent, Zhao Fei himself was, after all, a top photographer who had studied with the master Woody Allen.

At this moment, we are also observing and adjusting each other to see if he is worthy of the name.

Everything will be tested in practice.

The adapted version of "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" begins with Lu Kuan's birth in 1919 and continues until his death in the arms of the elderly Zhang Manyu in the 80s.

In this process, the love-hate entanglement between the male and female protagonists is the clue, the male protagonist's several travels and failed wars drive the plot, and the changes in the motherland and the world pattern spanning 60 years are the background.

It interprets the love, hate, sorrow and joy of ordinary people in the tide of the times.

The original novel is a fantasy romance novel, which has a top reputation both in China and abroad, and is naturally full of story.

What Lu Kuan needs to do is to explore more shots and narrative techniques beyond storytelling, and complete the growth and transformation of his personal directorial career.

The scene we are going to shoot today is about an encounter between the male and female protagonists after Hui Yinghong, the adoptive mother from the welfare home, and Zhang Manyu's family, who have close ties with the embassy in China, immigrated to the United States due to the war in mainland China.

Unrelated personnel were cleared out, and Zhang Manyu put on makeup and dressed up again as a girl. The time background at this time was around 1944.

Because of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, all the people in the nursing home in the Shanghai Concession were taken to Washington by the American ambassador to China who had interests involved.

The heroine Zhang Manyu and the male protagonist's adoptive mother Hui Yinghong in the nursing home also immigrated and came to North America for refuge.

Liu Yifei stood in the waiting area curiously. Yesterday, she was in Shanghai to participate in the "Yang Lan Interview" and came to visit the crew.

She wanted to see how Lu Kuan performed.

The last time I saw Lu Kuan acting was in "The Story of a Noble Family", where he played Ouyang with a small role.

Boss Lu had just finished putting on his makeup and costume, looking like a young American from the 40s. Almost all the foreigners in the film and television city were recruited to act as extras today.

Lu Kuan usually wears either formal suits or casual suits, and rarely wears other styles of clothes. Looking at his appearance, Xiao Liu picked up his mobile phone and quietly took a picture.

When Zhang Manyu finished putting on her makeup and got into place, there were whispers of surprise from the set again, saying she was so versatile.

At the age of 39, she plays herself in her 20s, and there is almost no difference after makeup.

It is worth mentioning that in David Fincher’s later film “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”, the heroine Daisy was played by Kate, who was also 38 years old.

She played all the scenes of the heroine from 18 to 80, and there was no sense of incongruity.

The assistant director played the role of Lu Kuan in front of the big monitor, and Zhao Fei gestured OK.

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, first scene, first take, first take, begin!"

"Oh my God! Is that you, Li Ming?"

Lu Kuan stood on the steps of the nursing home and looked back at his childhood sweetheart.

He originally wanted to join the Air Force to serve his country, but the corruption of the Kuomintang shattered his faith, so he traveled across the ocean to reunite with his adoptive mother.

Four years had passed since he and Lucy parted in Shanghai in 1941.

"it's me."

Zhang Manyu wore a tight dress and smiled like a flower.

Because of her graceful figure from years of dancing, she covered her mouth in surprise and looked at Lu Kuan in disbelief.

He is younger again, than last time.

Lucy, who had been influenced by Western culture, rushed up to hug him without hesitation.

The road is wide, but I feel a bit embarrassed and at a loss, or...

Are you feeling homesick when facing your former lover?
He held Zhang Manyu's lower back with his left hand, his right hand trembling slightly, and he was unable to touch her jade back.

The camera then shows his facial expression, which perfectly captures the shyness of a beginner.

Concubine Liu Yi watched his performance in disbelief.

Is this a washing machine?
If I didn't know him and understand him, I would definitely think that this was just an innocent young man who was at a loss when facing his sweetheart!

How did he pretend... act that out?
She recalled the details of Boss Lu's actions in her mind. They looked so natural and smooth, as if there was no special performance technique involved.

But why does this happen?

"Are you surprised?"

Li Xuejian had stood next to her at some point and asked in a low voice with a smile.

"Teacher Li, you're here?"

"Did you learn anything from his performance?"

Concubine Liu Yi pondered for a few seconds and shook her head in frustration.

Li Xuejian said in a hoarse voice: "You learned a lot of acting techniques on the set of "Foreign Land", but they are just skills."

"Skill?"

"Art refers to various schools of performance, like what they call Stanislavsky, Brecht, and experientialism."

"Those are all techniques, not the Way."

Li Xuejian said to Lu Kuan and Zhang Manyu, who were still competing against each other in the arena, "If you think more about their states, you will understand what Tao is."

Xiao Liu nodded, not quite understanding. After being polished by "Alien Land", she could be considered to have become an excellent genre film actor.

But on the set, I learned things like Kubrick's gaze, breaking the fourth wall, and various body and muscle exercises.

It can only be a tool, shortcut and carrier to assist the performance.

From being an actor in genre films to an actress-level performance that is also at ease in art films like Zhang Manyu and Gong Li, she still has to continue to practice and gain insights.

"Crack!"

The assistant director picked up the intercom and said, "Director Lu, can you come and watch this scene?"

Zhao Fei also came over.

In the dim morning light, Lu Kuan stood on the stairs, looking back, and his eyes met with his former lover Zhang Manyu...

wrong!

Boss Lu suddenly felt an electric shock!
Although the light just now was weak, it was like a beam of gamma rays that penetrated his body and hit his soul directly!
A strange and crazy idea emerged in his mind.

Countless classic scenes from film history flashed before his eyes in an instant, like a handful of quicksand flowing through his fingers.

His mind was frantically locking and capturing, trying to find the door that would give birth to inspiration.

"Zhao Fei, go there yourself and move the light to the right side of the axis, probably..."

"120 degree!"

Zhao Fei didn't bother to think about his intention, and of course didn't care that he called him by his name. He waved his hand to let the cameraman go away and adjusted the focus and angle himself.

Lu Kuan stood in front of the camera with a frown on his face.

The whole place was silent; even the staff who were drinking water didn't dare to make any noise.

Everyone knew that this was the director's inspiration, and such opportunities were fleeting, so everyone was waiting for his instructions.

"Turn it on and see the effect."

Zhao Fei did as he was told, but with his experience he was a little confused.

This angle is very strange. Combined with the current position of the sun, it is right below the figure and the morning light.

Lu Kuan continued to direct: "Let the sun enter the frame, quickly!"

This time, not only all the crew members were stunned, but also the camera operator and Zhao Fei were stunned.

Anyone who has taken photos with a film camera or a digital camera knows what the effect will be when you point the lens at the sun.
This is called overexposure in photography and is a typical mistake in videography.

If you sign up for training, the teacher may teach you this common sense in the first lesson.

"What are you standing there for? Hurry up!"

Lu Kuan's tone was a little unfriendly, and he felt that his time was coming soon.

Zhao Fei had watched all of his films before accepting the invitation. He didn't believe that this director who won the Golden Lion didn't know what overexposure meant!

Cao Yu is also on the set today. He has enrolled in NYU's photography department for further studies and will start school after the summer vacation.

Concubine Liu Yi asked in a low voice: "What does this mean?"

Li Xuejian is proficient in acting, but he does not have a deep understanding of photography and videography. Hui Yinghong, Zhang Manyu and others on the side all cast inquiring glances at the former royal photographer.

Cao Yu was also very excited. He had followed Lu Kuan for a longer time and probably knew his shooting habits.

Such an anxious and helpless natural reaction obviously resulted from some breakthrough inspiration.

"There's a concept in movie lenses called latitude, which is the range of brightness that a film or digital lens can accommodate."

"Generally speaking, if the human eye can see from 0 to 100, a digital lens can only see from 30 to 70 at best."

He pointed to the lens that was now facing the sun: "If you shoot directly facing the sun and the brightness exceeds 70, it will be overexposed."

"If the brightness is insufficient, the images will stick together to form black blocks, which is called dead black."

"Both of these are big taboos in photography, but..."

Cao Yu didn't finish his words, but everyone understood what he meant.

How could a director who won the Golden Lion Award, the Cannes Jury Grand Prix, and the global weekly box office champion not understand overexposure and blackening?

This was clearly intentional, and everyone is waiting to see the results.

Those who know the business fell into deep thought, while those who don’t know the business felt awe-inspiring.

Lu Kuan suddenly laughed silently, which looked so weird from Concubine Liu Yi's perspective.

He wiped his forehead with his right hand, and his face turned red uncontrollably due to excitement.

Lu Kuan turned to look at Zhao Fei and said, "Teacher Zhao, this scene was all shot with overexposure. Please adjust the focal length and optical axis and give me a slightly rough backlit effect."

Zhao Fei, the camera operator, Cao Yu, everyone was stunned.

"this..."

Lu Kuan suddenly began to give gentle guidance, but it sounded more like he was talking to himself.

"Li Ming's life spanned from 1919 to 1989, spanning many eras."

"From life in the concessions in the Magic City, to pilot training in the mountains, to the Japanese occupying almost the entire territory."

"And then there was life in the United States, the founding of the People's Republic of China and the reform and opening up in China, until I finally died in the arms of my lover."

"His appearance is reversed throughout his life, while his mind is gradually maturing. I want to give the audience this impression through the lens!"

He personally walked in front of the camera and emphasized to Zhao Fei with great emotion:
"As a teenager, he was full of curiosity and understanding about the outside world, until he understood the true nature of the world."

"For this scene, I wanted to use a burr-like backlight overexposure, with a hazy and yearning feel, which is a true portrayal of the protagonist's inner world."

"In his youth and middle age, he wanted to fight against the fate of his country's decline but failed, and he missed out on his love again and again, feeling sad and lost."

"For this sequence, I'm going to use a more direct backlight. I'm not going to worry about the dead black areas in the backlight. This is the dilemma the protagonist faces."

"In the old age period, the lens lighting is relatively normal, with a hint of the texture of time, until the protagonist completely reverses his growth and becomes a baby, and dies in the arms of his lover." Boss Lu closed his eyes while talking, and only looked at Zhao Fei confidently after he finished describing the lens design of the three protagonists in different life stages.

"Teacher Zhao, what do you think?"

Zhao Fei looked up at the young director standing against the light. From his perspective, Lu Kuan's current camera position was the overexposure just described.

Zhao Fei is one of the top photographers in the country, so perhaps it wouldn’t be a big problem to remove the “one of” from his title.

He followed the fifth generation that was just starting out in those years and made classics such as "The Horse Thief" and "The Red Lantern", and later there were works such as "The Sun Also Rises" and "Let the Bullets Fly".

He also studied for two years in Hollywood with Woody Allen, who is sure to leave his mark in film history.

Looking at the wide road against the light, a glimmer of hope and expectation suddenly arose in his heart.

Maybe...

China also needs to have its own film masters.

Zhang Manyu smiled gently. He saw a hint of Wang Jiawei in Lu Kuan.

The two of them are in the same emotional state in the movie, both so focused and eager.

Xiao Liu stared at him in a daze, his face beaming with joy as if he were crazy, imagining the movie scenes he described and thinking about the beautiful, extremely romantic and tear-jerking ending of the character.

I couldn't help but be stunned for a moment.

After the filming in the evening, Lu Kuan couldn't wait to watch the day's clips over and over again, and kept writing and drawing on the storyboard.

It is true that overexposure and dead black are taboos, but they are not unheard of or unseen.

Quentin's "Sin City" often uses overexposure to highlight the outlines of key characters and objects, creating a strong visual impact and mysterious atmosphere.

For example, in some fighting scenes, the strong white light focuses on the protagonist's swinging fist or shining blade, instantly focusing the audience's attention.

In David Fincher's "Seven", the director used overexposure to enhance the tragedy and tension of the crime scene.

For example, when the victim's body is discovered, the picture is instantly overexposed and more glaring, giving the audience a strong visual and psychological impact.

It’s just that the above case is just a coloring of details somewhere in the movie.

Lu Kuan combines the character psychology and the changes of times in the entire film with this seemingly taboo camera technique.

In Zhao Fei's opinion, this is no less creative and ideaable than that of masters like Woody Allen!
As Quentin Tarantino told Park Chan-wook at the premiere of "A Foreign Land" in Cannes, Lu Kuan's most outstanding characteristic as a director is his ability to constantly improve and innovate.

You have to know that film language has been developed for more than a hundred years, and basically all techniques and fields have been explored by our predecessors.

A skilled hand only makes a craftsman, but creativity makes one a master.

At 2004 p.m. on July 7, 20, the mainland premiere of "Foreign Land" was held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

A blockbuster should be treated like a blockbuster.

Unlike low-budget films like "The Drummer" and "Thief", "Alien Land", which has already won the global weekly box office championship, is more qualified than anyone else to premiere on this occasion.

Today, basically the entire mainland entertainment industry has gathered here.

Lu Kuan and Wenjie represent the new forces in the private film and television industry, while Yinghuang, Hua Guoxing and Mei Yanfang represent the forces of Hong Kong entertainment.

There is also the official power represented by Han Shanping, who is always the most effective.

Even the stars including Huayi's two Bings can be said to be "a gathering of the best".

Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Cruise and others were being interviewed. Even though they were experienced, they were still surprised by the madness of domestic media and fans.

Boss Lu greeted the guests with a smile. Dong Shuangqiang walked over with a man in a suit and tie, who looked to be about thirty-five or thirty-six years old.

"Director Lu, I'm late."

"Let me introduce you to Mr. Zhou, the CEO of Morgan Stanley's investment banking department, Zhou Jun."

Zhou Jun, dressed in Huntsman haute couture, behaved very appropriately. One could tell at a glance that he came from a family of wealthy politicians and businessmen.

Lu Kuan knew that no matter how hard he tried to avoid it, he couldn't avoid it, so he just held out his hand calmly: "Nice to meet you, Mr. Zhou, welcome."

Zhou Jun seemed even more enthusiastic and proactive than him, clasping his hands behind his back: "No, I came here uninvited."

"Please forgive my intrusion. Before I came here, I told my secretary that several of the listed companies we work with, with over 30,000 people, would book a theater to watch 'Alien Land' and show their support to Director Lu!"

Lu Kuan said calmly, "Thank you very much. I appreciate your kindness, Mr. Zhou. Have fun today."

Zhou Jun's face changed slightly as he watched him leave with a smile, but he returned to normal in just a moment. His Qi-cultivation skills alone were several levels higher than those of the local tyrant Liu Zeyu.

"Boss, Director Lu is a very trustworthy person. He doesn't want his friends to suffer at all."

Dong Shuangqiang smiled apologetically, pondering the underlying meaning of his words.

But making friends means forcing myself to act as a matchmaker, which is such a tough job and I can't please either side.

Wang Dajun observed for a long time before he had the chance to bring his brother over to say hello.

"Mr. Zhou, Mr. Zhou?"

Zhou Jun turned around and immediately put on a warm and appropriate smile: "Mr. Wang, long time no see, long time no see."

In fact, the two had only met once.

Da Jun was a little excited, because this person was not someone he could easily meet. He would only meet him once at the beginning of the year when he went to pay New Year's greetings to his old leader.

In particular, his professional background and family background were of great benefit to Huayi, which later aspired to go public.

"Brother, what are you doing?"

Xiaolei walked over with a flushed face, followed by Jang Nara. This was also her first time participating in a mainland event after signing the contract.

In fact, Jang Nara is already quite famous in mainland China, but she still wants to take advantage of such a grand occasion.

It would also leave a good impression on Boss Lu, whom she has admired for a long time.

Wang Dajun turned around with a serious expression: "Xiao Lei, come over and say hello to Mr. Zhou, hurry up."

Wang Xiaolei glanced at the tall man next to his brother, then walked over respectfully: "Mr. Zhou, I'm Xiaolei. We met before the New Year."

"Okay, okay, you two are brothers fighting tigers together. I've heard of Huayi, it's very good."

He saw Jang Nara behind Wang Xiaolei again.

"Who is this?"

Because Zhou Jun has a strong interest in Lu Kuan and Wenjie, he has recently made up for his unfamiliarity with the domestic entertainment industry, and there is no such delicate and beautiful girl in his mind.

Wang Xiaolei was stunned by his aura and did not dare to introduce his own artist. Only then did he take Zhang Nara's arm.

"The company just signed a Korean artist, the very young and outstanding Ms. Jang Nara."

"Nora, this is Mr. Zhou from Morgan Stanley, a top international investment bank. Say hello."

Jang Nara has been filming with her father since she was a child, so she is quite familiar with such scenes. She introduced herself in fairly fluent Chinese.

Zhou Jun replied with a smile, exchanged a few words with the two brothers, and took Dong Shuangqiang to his seat.

The Wang brothers watched him walk away and found a corner to talk.

“Brother, Lu Kuan and him?”

"They probably aren't familiar with each other. I saw neither of them smiling when they were talking just now."

Wang Xiaolei felt somewhat relieved: "If these two were to join forces, it would be incredible."

"The system of the questioning world is about to be established. If we give him sufficient funds, it will be like a tiger with wings."

He hadn't mentioned the family power behind Zhou Jun yet. Some names were not suitable to be mentioned in public. In short, his brother knew much more about them than he did.

Wang Dajun frowned and thought for a few seconds: "Let's see, we can't let them join us."

He turned around and caught a glimpse of Jang Nara standing prettily not far away.

"Xiao Lei, when the show is over, you take Nara and Bingbing with me to see Mr. Zhou off and show your face in front of others."

"Yeah, no problem bro."

Wang Dajun nodded. He was not too worried because his brother was well-equipped to handle these welcoming and seeing-off tasks.

However, for someone like Zhou Jun, with a family background and a wife who comes from a prominent family, whether he should give this beauty as a gift is another matter.

Don't offend Mrs. Zhou again, or you will be in trouble.

Boss Lu does not have a strong background. His only reliance now is the interest system that connects all parties. You are in me and I am in you.

Huayi started out in advertising, a business that requires a lot of resources and connections.

Is it possible for someone without any background to get the standardization and regularization project for Bank of China's more than 15000 branches across the country?
People like Zhou Jun, who are so eager to avoid them, are the soil for the nourishment and reproduction of Hua Yi's official Liao capital.

The premiere began soon. The host came on stage to give a brief introduction and then prompted the staff to push up an ice sculpture of unprecedented scale.

The reason why it is said to be unprecedented is that the number is so fucking long and looks extremely exaggerated.

Reporters, fans and guests took photos one after another, and it is foreseeable that the blog will be flooded with photos again in the evening.

This is naturally a publicity stunt by the "ambitious" Boss Lu. The numbers on the ice sculpture are the total global box office as of the date.

"As of today, 'Alien Land' has grossed $3.98 million worldwide! Congratulations to the comedy crew and investors!"

The host's brief announcement left everyone speechless for a moment.

The ones from the Wenjie department were ecstatic, the ones from the Huayi department were solemn, and there were also those like Zhou Jun who had smiles on their faces but were deep in their thoughts.

Lu Kuan, along with Liu Yifei, Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Cruise, as well as Lao Han from China Film Group and Lao Li from Eagle King, smashed an ice sculpture that was seven or eight meters long, and the audience burst into applause!
Domestic entertainment: I learned something, a course worth 10 yuan of pretentious teaching and advertising gimmick hype.

What followed was the same interview.

Leonardo made a fool of himself by singing a Chinese song a cappella. His poor accent made the audience laugh. Everyone loved to see a famous foreigner speak Chinese.

The atmosphere was unusually good until the last question was asked to Lu Kuan.

"Director Lu, what are your expectations for the domestic box office?"

Boss Lu was nearly blinded by the flash of light, but he still said calmly, "Maybe I should be more conservative, so I don't get scolded."

"But from my personal perspective, I hope the box office will be no less than 3.6 million yuan."

The audience was full of professional film journalists, who quickly responded, "Is it aiming to break the box office record of 'Titanic'?"

Boss Lu laughed and said, "When I first met Leonardo, I told him that you have a love-hate relationship with Chinese directors."

"The hatred is because the 3.59 million box office record of 'Titanic' has been hanging over our heads for too long."

Facing the noisy discussions and concerned gazes from the audience, Boss Lu raised the microphone with a serious expression.

"We returned from a roadshow in Japan and South Korea half a month ago."

"In 1998, Hollywood's 'Titanic' took the world by storm, becoming the all-time box office champion in China, Japan, and South Korea."

"But after six or seven years of development, South Korea's 'Taegukgi: The Legend' broke the seal this year, and Japan's 'Spirited Away' replaced 'Titanic' two years ago."

"We are a big country with a population of 13 billion, but now we can only be called a small film country."

"Even though 'Alien Land' is a perfect work in my opinion, it is still very difficult to break the record of 3.59 million. But I still want to give it a try, even if I fail, it doesn't matter."

"I believe that all domestic directors, regardless of generation, whether they are directors of art films or commercial films, are determined to break through this barrier of fate. If it doesn't work this time, try next time. If it doesn't work ten times, try twenty times."

Boss Lu's voice suddenly became passionate: "I believe that as long as we have the spirit of Yugong moving mountains, rewriting this record is not far away. I ask all fans to support us. Thank you!"

Following the astronomical figure of 3.59 million is the 2002 "Hero" with 2.5 million, which is more than million less.

In later generations, the first film to break this record was the "unfair" "Founding of a Republic", but the record was broken by "2012" not long after it was broken.

Then came the well-known "Avatar", which swept the world film scene like "Titanic" did back then.

The audience applauded loudly. Even if they despised the young director's impropriety in all aspects, no domestic director could match him in terms of film artistic attainments, sensitivity to commercial films, and appeal.

Han Shanping, Li Shoucheng, Liu Yifei and others knew that he had arranged insiders to monitor the polls, and only then did they understand his deeper intentions.

From the carefully arranged premiere time, the two-month advertising bombardment starting from Cannes in May, to the non-stop hype on the Internet media.

This includes strict crackdowns on piracy and pre-emptive measures to prevent box office theft. From the very beginning, it was an all-out and violent charge!

At this moment, in such an iconic place as the Great Hall of the People, such a deafening oath seems a bit ridiculous and cute.

There is still a dream, what if it comes true?

After the premiere, film critics, media reporters and audience members started tapping the screen crazily.

About the 8-meter-long ice sculpture, about the splendor of "Foreign Land", and about Lukuan's ambition.

Just like blockbusters like "Titanic" and "Avatar" that swept the world, "Alien" naturally received rave reviews in mainland China.

In particular, the film cleverly embeds Chinese cultural elements, which are not forced in like some co-productions or Hollywood films.

Instead, it truly serves the plot and the theme.

Of course, conservative film critics such as Zhu Dake and Huang Shixian still did not let Lu Laoban go.

The more lively the scene, the more their different voices stand out.

[Zhu Dake]: It is a work of craftsmanship that flatters special effects and capital. Compared with the previous films "The Drummer" and "The Thief", it is even inferior. It can only be said that it echoes the spirit of entertainment to death in commercial films that he himself advocates. It is a sadness of the times.

What surprised the audience most was that Section Chief Jia also jumped out and criticized the fact that "Alien Land" had a screening schedule of more than 90%.

In his blog, he said that "Alien Land" is the favorite son of the Film Bureau and has monopolized the film market for a whole month. This is the darkest moment for the order of domestic films!
Chief Jia actually just wanted to take advantage of the popularity and hype. After the criticism, the screening schedule of his "The World" has obviously increased. Although it is not much, it is a token of appreciation from the theaters!

After all, the opponents are still a minority. More audiences have brought better word-of-mouth, and even praised Boss Lu himself like a flower.

"The savior of the Chinese film industry!"

"Zhongxing Director who saved Shenzhou from sinking!"

"God created the world in just six days, and on the seventh day he went to see the movie Lu Kuan!"

Even the official Weibo account of the Film Bureau personally commented: "The mountains and rivers of "Alien Land" are like the wind and moon under the same sky. This excellent film is appreciated by the world. Thank you Director Lu Kuan for bringing us this visual feast!"

This was Boss Lu's favor to Director Tong, and also Old Han's instigation.

Following Boss Lu’s bold statement, box offices and theaters across the country perked up and worked together to fight against piracy and box office theft, and also tried their best to be considerate in scheduling films.

However, this consideration is a bit forced. After all, "Alien" has been a huge hit in terms of box office and reputation around the world, and they can't just sit there and wait for the money to be made.

The power of physique is enormous. The next day, the first-day screening rate of "Alien Land" reached 93%.

It’s more than 90% of “Heroes” two years ago and “Avatar” later!
In addition, the hot money brought into the market by Boss Lu’s butterfly wings in the past two years has led to an increase in the number of screens.

As the saying goes, when you come, heaven and earth will join forces. The first day box office results were released on July 7, and the figure of 22 million swept the hunger!

Previously, although fans and passers-by, media reporters and audiences all admired Boss Lu's ambition to surpass "Titanic".

But when the first day box office figures came out, everyone was surprised to find that it was actually fucking possible to do it!

As a result, the word-of-mouth and advertising effects continued to ferment, and the average screening schedule reached more than 95%!
Even a considerable number of cinemas completely turned to "Alien Land" and simply removed all other movies from the shelves.

一时间洛阳纸贵的故事重现，从40的平均票价炒到50、75、80，甚至在北平的几座高级影院被黄牛炒到了100元以上！
On the second day, it grossed 2025 million, creating the first film in domestic film history to break the 2000 million mark in a single day;
On the third day, it earned 1977 million, setting a record for the fastest domestic box office to break 5000 million.
On the fourth day, 1756 million.

. . .

A week later, Lao Han called Boss Lu from the Chedun Film and Television City set.

"One piece of good news, one piece of bad news."

"Breaking 100 million?"

Han Shanping sneered: "The good news is easy to guess, but I'm sure you already know the bad news."

Boss Lu was a little speechless: "Tell me, HD version or gun version?"

"Gun version."

"Fuck! These bastards are impossible to defend against!"

Even though nearly 1000 poll watchers were deployed across the country to patrol the venues, the leaked version of the document did not even last a week.

The ticket monitor is responsible for counting the number of people who come to the theater before entering the venue, counting the number of people during the movie screening, and also checking to see if anyone is carrying any camera equipment to take secret photos.

But it obviously didn't work.

Han Shanping now obeyed Boss Lu's every word: "Lu Kuan, what should we do now?"

"Honestly, there's no way."

"Movie tickets are being driven too high. On the one hand, this shows that the movie is good and the market is booming, but on the other hand, many viewers will be deterred from watching."

"Plus, cinemas in small cities have simple facilities and poor user experience, so ordinary people don't have much desire to go to the cinema. Gun movies should be resources flowing out of second- and third-tier cities."

The key is that we cannot take the initiative to speak out on this matter, otherwise people who don’t know that there are pirated copies will also wait to watch the pirated copies.

Boss Lu waited for a few days until the "Red Hacker Group" specially set up by Blog.com to help prevent piracy discovered the trend of the spread of gun versions on the Internet, and then launched a series of rat extermination operations.

This includes but is not limited to directly hacking websites and mobilizing influential people in the entertainment industry to make appeals online.

The most active one is Xiao Liu. Following Lu Kuan’s instructions, he launched a reward-based reporting activity on his blog!

Report a pirated website, directly mail it signed T-shirts and "Alien Land" peripherals, and then give the URL to the Red Hacker Group of Blog.com, and it will be killed in one minute.

Two days later, the slowdown in box office figures caused by the emergence of gun version resources was lifted, and the growth rate continued to rise!
(End of this chapter)