Huayu Entertainment: You have been directing for three generations, are you comparing your qualifica

[This chapter has just been released]

"Under the Hawthorn Tree" grossed 1050 million yuan on its opening day, breaking the record for the highest opening day gross for a domestic art film.

At its current pace, it should be able to surpass the box office record held by "Mei Lanfang".

With such impressive results, Zhang Dapao couldn't stay silent any longer, shouting the slogan of guaranteeing 2 million and aiming for 3 million, laying the foundation for a new box office record for domestic art films.

The industry is watching this like a clown performance, not to mention that "Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame" is taking away box office revenue during the same period.

The movie can only sell tickets for 15 days.

When "Nanjing Photo Studio" is released during the National Day holiday, it is foreseeable that the box office will be completely drained, and it will be good if it can make a living from the leftovers.

Huayi Brothers is collaborating with Tsui Hark on "Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame." Given that the latter's films have flopped in recent years, we are also paying close attention to the box office performance of Bernard, who recently partnered with Tsui Hark.

The first day's revenue was 1870 million, which is Xu Ke's best result to date.

This relieved Huayi and Berna, as the so-called "new style" (3D filming) martial arts film was finally a success.

China Film Group has scheduled the premiere of "The Photo Studio" for the 30th, with Han Sanping handling all the coordination.

"Xiao Le, is there any special guest you'd like to invite this time?"

Han Sanping asked a question, recalling that the last invitation list had left a deep impression on him; it was full of actresses and celebrities.

"No, you can take care of it."

Tian Xiaole isn't Tang Yan; she's just a child with a competitive nature. There's no one worth specially inviting.

When it comes to casting actors, there are some that have really given China Film Group a run for its money.

Hidetoshi Nishijima, the Japanese actor who plays Hideo Ito, politely declined the offer.

"Uncle Han, don't you think they'd dare to come?"

Tian Xiaole joked, "If he really comes, we'll have to send people to protect him 24 hours a day, lest he get beaten to death."

"Haha, I had completely forgotten about that."

Han Sanping realized that due to the special nature of this film, the Japanese actors in it would likely have difficulty going abroad when it was released.

Finally, a reminder: this event was held in the CPPCC Auditorium.

This place is practically becoming a regular venue for Xiaole Pictures' events.

Tian Xiaole held a movie premiere here, and the film was a huge box office success. People in the industry who believed in metaphysics started to follow suit.

This is the preferred venue for press conferences and premieres of large-scale projects.

After hanging up the phone, Han Sanping pondered the list of invitees and looked at his secretary, instructing her:
"In addition to the actors already invited, take the list that Xiaole Pictures sent last time and send out supplementary invitations to those who were missed."

"Okay, Mr. Han."

Based on his decades of experience, Han Sanping was certain that some of these people had some kind of complicated relationship with Tian Xiaole.

The film market is bustling with activity.

It's rare to see several top directors competing against each other these days.

Thanks to its good reputation, Zhang Yimou's appeal in art films, including "Under the Hawthorn Tree," has resulted in box office performance that rivals that of typical commercial films.

They earned 4500 million in the first week.

On the other side of "Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame," press releases are being issued one after another.

With its strong cast, including Liu Dehua, Li Binbin, and Liu Jialin, Tsui Hark has achieved considerable success in the martial arts film genre.

"By placing 'Nanjing Photo Studio' during the National Day holiday, Tian Xiaole caused 'Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame' to lose at least 1 million yuan in box office revenue."

Looking at the movie's data, Wang Zhonglei saw that the box office had reached 1.01 million yuan in its first week, and if it continued to be shown until the National Day holiday, it could potentially reach 3 million yuan or even more.

As for now, we can only try to get as much box office revenue as possible within the next two weeks.

How could the Wang brothers not be angry?
Compared to the box office losses, what's most infuriating is that this film failed to boost Huayi Brothers' stock price.

"It's too late to say all this now. I hope that the box office of [Nanjing Photo Studio] will break records, which will also be good for Huayi's stock price."

"Well, I hope Tian Xiaole won't disappoint."

···
Donnie Yen's solo film, "Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen," was released on the 22nd.

Also released on the same day was "Reign of Assassins," produced by John Woo, which was released a week earlier.

The next day, these two Hong Kong films, which were "highly anticipated," became a contest of who suffered the most.

[Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen] had an investment cost of 1.2 million yuan, but only grossed 1030 million yuan at the box office on its opening day.

On the same day, "Reign of Assassins" fared even worse, with an investment of 1.4 million yuan but a box office of only 550 million yuan.

Judging from the word-of-mouth of the two films, there is no possibility that their box office revenue will decline in the future.

Tian Xiaole, with the mindset of a bystander, read some online posts, most of which were people criticizing the quality of the movie.

"I am extremely disappointed with Hong Kong films. Apart from rehashing old ideas and making remakes, there is no innovation at all."

"The death of Hong Kong films is a given fact, making them pale in comparison to the flourishing mainland Chinese film industry."

"Has the success of Pacific Rim not made Hong Kong filmmakers realize that the old methods no longer work and can only sell tickets based on nostalgia?"

"The decline of Hong Kong films can be attributed to the lack of ambition among Hong Kong filmmakers."

To be honest, there are quite a few movie fans who have a good impression of Hong Kong films and are biased towards them, criticizing them with a tone of disappointment and frustration.

After three days in its opening week, the already low box office of the two films plummeted, with daily box office revenue dropping to around 500 million.

The film industry is watching the spectacle with interest, while some of the lead actors are getting restless.

When Donnie Yen attended an event and was asked about the film's box office performance, he completely lost his temper.

He bluntly stated that the film's poor quality wasn't his fault, but rather the team's poor film selection and the director's unsuitability for this type of subject matter...

To avoid being labeled a box office poison, Donnie Yen dared to say anything and immediately severed ties with the director's team.

It's obvious that director Liu Weiqiang is only suitable for making police and gangster films.

Because "Young and Dangerous" and "Infernal Affairs" are his representative works.

Mainland filmmakers are happy to watch the spectacle, but they wouldn't dare use such irresponsible actors.

With the release of "Nanjing Photo Studio" drawing ever closer, the film market is on edge.

The online and offline promotions have already been launched extensively.

Promoting other films at this time would be futile.

Before the film premiere, Han Sanping suggested releasing a trailer first, and Tian Xiaole agreed to this suggestion.

I held it down before because I was afraid of being scared by the real scene.

Now we're just waiting for the release. It's good to let the audience prepare themselves mentally beforehand so they can accept such a large scale of content.

Film companies from Mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, including 4 state-owned enterprises and 13 private enterprises, were announced simultaneously, covering major online and offline promotional channels.

The trailer opens with Nanjing engulfed in flames, being bombed by Japanese aircraft.

Corpses littered both sides of the street, and puddles on the ground were stained with blood.

Tian Xiaole's shooting technique involved first raising the camera to shoot a distant view, showcasing the bombing scene and the corpses that could be seen everywhere.

The low-angle shot highlights the billowing smoke and dust from the explosion, creating a visually oppressive effect and objectively presenting the scale and cruelty of the Japanese army's atrocities.

The scene then shifts to a color montage technique, showing the river water changing from green to blue, with countless murdered corpses submerged in the water.

Color represents "an act of violence in progress," while black represents "frozen evidence of guilt."

Through intuitive visuals, the audience is immersed in the weight of history.

The 60-second trailer, dominated by a gray and black color scheme, depicts the devastated and desolate Nanjing, with its severed limbs and corpses strewn everywhere, creating an atmosphere of oppression and despair.

Finally, there was a line of bright red text.

"Based on real footage of Japanese atrocities committed in Nanjing!" The trailer exploded like a depth charge across mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.

Suffocation, oppression, and despair are all evident in the brutality of the Japanese army.

Public anger surged immediately.

Some netizens called for a boycott of Japanese brands, starting with themselves, and countless people responded instantly.

Tian Xiaole never expected that a 60-second trailer would have such a huge impact.

He forgot his own influence and the support of numerous film companies.

Basically, apart from more remote rural areas, people with internet access and newspaper reading habits learned about the release date of "The Photo Studio" from various online and print media reports.

Even office workers with limited social lives learn about the movie's release while on buses, subways, shopping malls, and other public transportation.

The large-scale propaganda campaign made the island nation's consulate uneasy, and it barked and protested, uttering slanderous and other despicable words.

To Tian Xiaole's surprise, there were indeed so-called intellectuals, economists, and Weibo influencers who, under the guise of rationality and objectivity, expressed their rebuttal and resistance.

"This is hate education, and it severely distorts the values ​​of teenagers. I wouldn't watch this movie even for 10,000 yuan..."

“Between 1978 and 2010, island nations provided China with trillions of yen in aid. Such a huge ‘favor’ was met with… an ingratitude from the Chinese people…”

"The content is too gory and disturbing; I definitely won't let my child watch it, and I will file a complaint against this movie..."

···
"Alright, I'll leave it to you to handle for now. I can refrain from making any comments for the time being."

Han Sanping is really interesting. Afraid that Tian Xiaole would just explode with his theories and wipe out everyone, he asked him in a pleading tone not to make a sound (to avoid causing trouble).

Official media outlets will refute these shameless views that "generalize from limited evidence."

Tian Xiaole agreed, and if he couldn't directly address the fake man's weaknesses, he would unleash a berserk attack.

As for now, Huang Jixin has banned the "Crow King Says" account, leaving no one with such biased views alive.

In the afternoon, the daily newspaper published a rebuttal.

"————【Photo Studio】Let the audience remember the national heroes. Only by facing history squarely can we prevent the tragedy from repeating itself. This is to comfort the compatriots who died and to be responsible for the future."

The Xinhua News Agency published an article stating: "—Post-war aid is an apology and a historical responsibility of the aggressors, and must never be used as an excuse to whitewash war crimes, much less use 'favors' to diminish the weight of the lives of our compatriots who perished..."

The Beijing Daily published an article stating: "No one can deny the historical fact of Nanjing, and we cannot tolerate historical nihilists spreading misinformation..."

In addition to official media, a large number of netizens also joined in to refute and criticize.

"Those who say the film is hate education simply don't understand the weight of reason. The trailer already shows a lot of restraint in depicting violence."

"Island nations have been distorting history and brainwashing their people. When we try to restore the truth, they accuse us of hate education. This is a blatant double standard!"

“I will take my child to see it, so that he knows how hard-won peace is. It’s better than letting him live in ignorance of history.”

Tian Xiaole read many posts and found that the vast majority of people were clear-headed and expressed their support for the film.

He also worried that if the filming was too gory, the audience wouldn't be able to handle it.

These kinds of movies are difficult to make.

Filming something too realistic and gory would put too much psychological pressure on viewers, thus defeating Tian Xiaole's original intention in spreading the message.

If the film is overly embellished, it will definitely be criticized. How could such a major historical event be so "beautiful"?

Tian Xiaole struck a balance between these two approaches, achieving the greatest possible restoration of the truth while also presenting a bloody scene that was acceptable to the audience.

Zhang Dapao is good at riding the wave of popularity; he announced Zhang Yimou's new film plans.

"The 'Thirteen Beauties of Jinling,' which has been in preparation for two years, is expected to begin filming at the end of the year. The actresses for the thirteen beauties will be selected through a nationwide audition."

There had been rumors about this movie before, but audiences were left waiting for "A Simple Noodle Story".

Tian Xiaole photographed the Nanjing Photo Studio, and only now is the project being launched, which seems a bit like following the trend.

Zhang Yimou doesn't care about this. He's been eyeing this story for a long time, but he was previously blocked by Zhang Dazui because of the huge investment.

The role in this movie is highly sought after by actors in the industry.

There's a high chance I'll get to play thirteen important female roles.

···
"Brother Le, what do you think about me going to audition?"

Hearing the sound, Tian Xiaole turned around and saw Tang Yan wearing a cheongsam, her hands on her waist, smoothing her body and performing an awkward court etiquette.

"This is a war drama, not a Qing Dynasty drama. You don't even know what you're filming, so why are you auditioning?"

Tian Xiaole said irritably.

However, on the other hand, Tang Yan's well-fitting cheongsam accentuated her graceful figure, making her curves look stunning.

Especially with the high slit design, which goes all the way up to the upper thigh, this is hardly a proper cheongsam.

Seeing the light in Tian Xiaole's eyes, Tang Yan smiled sweetly; the little surprise she had prepared hadn't been in vain.

Da da da…

Wearing high heels, she swayed her slender waist and plopped down in Tian Xiaole's lap, wrapping her arms around his neck.

With big, watery eyes and slightly parted red lips, she said, "Brother Le, let me be your date at the premiere."

Good heavens, so this is what all this fuss was about?
"You're not even part of the production team, why are you walking the red carpet with me?" Tian Xiaole refused, not swayed by good looks.

"I'm just worried that you don't have a female companion."

Tang Yan said guiltily that after tasting the sweetness last time, she wanted to appear alone with Tian Xiaole more often in public.

"You're worrying unnecessarily. I'll be with the creators."

Tian Xiaole pinched Tang Yan's chin and looked down at her: "I remember you practiced ballet, and I want to see it now."

"You can't move freely in a cheongsam."

"What I want is a cheongsam."

"..."

"Hey, Brother Le, this is custom-made, it's not that easy to tear."

"I do not believe."

Tear ~

The sound of fabric being torn.
····
The cast of actors in "Nanjing Photo Studio" is quite impressive.

The one who attracted the most media attention was the newcomer actor Zhu Yilong.

This recent graduate from the Beijing Film Academy will become famous overnight.

"Don't be nervous. You'll encounter this kind of situation often in the future. Just be as suitable as you can."

Huang Bo patted Zhu Yilong on the shoulder and comforted him with a smile.

"Yi Long needs to adapt to the media spotlight as soon as possible. Once the movie is released, she may be photographed at any time, so her image cannot be messed up."

As Huang Xiaoming spoke, he straightened his well-fitting suit.

After being teased by the two seniors, Zhu Yilong was no longer so nervous.

I had only ever seen this scene on TV before; I never imagined I would one day be the main character.

During this time, I received constant encouragement from the school, warm greetings from classmates, and envy from my best friend; it felt like a dream.

Guests walked the red carpet continuously, creating an unprecedented spectacle.

The impressive lineup of producers alone caused a sensation at the scene.

Under Han Sanping's leadership, the scale and quality of the guests were undoubtedly top-notch.

Furthermore, given the film's special subject matter, everyone invited attended. (End of Chapter)