It's reasonable for me to be a three-time Golden Horse Award-winning director and an all-around

Chapter 35 Copyright! Honor! Box Office Success! A Triple Celebration!
Upon landing in the capital, Lü Rui breathed a sigh of relief as soon as he stepped out of the airport.

Venice is too humid, the water is heavily polluted, and there's always a strange smell in the air.

In comparison, the smog in the capital seems to be better than the air quality abroad.

But before he could continue enjoying himself, reporters who had been lying in wait nearby surrounded him.

"Director Lü, could you share your feelings about winning this award?"

What are your expectations for the box office performance of "Mystic River"?

"What percentage of the $845 million in copyright revenue did Ruishijie account for?"

To generate buzz for the upcoming release of "Mystic River" next month, Han Sanping publicly disclosed the amount of the copyright transaction, further boosting the film's popularity.

Lu Rui knew exactly what was going on, so he handled the situation with ease.

"Let me keep you in suspense for now... We'll talk about the money and profits later when the box office results are in..."

These few simple words not only piqued the media's curiosity but also generated anticipation for the film.

After returning home, he completely shed the "naive" facade he had put on in front of Harvey, becoming like a slippery eel, keeping the reporters completely bewildered.

After the interview, Lü Rui got into a taxi to return to Beijing Film Academy.

Jiang Wen, Liu Yifei, and Zhang Guorong returned to China after the awards ceremony.

Han Sanping wasn't going the same way as him, so in the end he was the only one left standing at the entrance of the Beijing Film Academy, dragging his suitcase.

His eyelids twitched when he caught sight of the brand-new banner at the top of the gate.

A sudden sense of social death washed over me!
A three-bedroom, one-living room apartment can be instantly transformed under your feet!
Even though he walked quickly into the school, he still couldn't avoid other students along the way.

"Senior, my name is Jiang Yiyan, a freshman from the class of 02. We've met before!"

“Zhou Yang…Zhu Yawen…Luo Jin…”

"Congratulations, Director Lü..."

Lu Rui forced a smile and nodded the whole way, only breathing a sigh of relief after returning to his dormitory.

But by then, news of his return to school had already spread like wildfire.

The school leaders called directly.

"Bring the trophy over so we can see it?"

Xie Xiaojing, who has already been promoted to vice principal, clearly wants to continue to put on a show in front of her colleagues.

Helpless, Lü Rui had no choice but to take the Silver Lion Award to the teaching building.

By the time we finished taking the group photo and got back to the dorm, it was already dark.

Seeing Zhao Peng's expectant gaze, he shrugged and sighed, "The trophy has been confiscated by the leaders. You can check it again next month."

"Alright then." Zhao Peng clicked his tongue and then started talking about recent events, "I heard the principal is retiring, and a new principal will take office next year... Nicholas Tse's case of taking the blame was only sentenced to 14 days, and he announced he was retiring from the entertainment industry. You were right, all bark and no bite..."

The topic eventually turned to the application for the Australian visa.

"This kid is very clever; he's got potential!"

Upon hearing the name, Lü Rui suddenly thought of the movie title "All or Nothing," and after a moment's thought, he replied, "Let him gain some experience with you first."

"Alright!" Zhao Peng chuckled, picked up his phone, and went outside to make a call.

At that moment, Lü Rui's phone vibrated.

He took out his phone and saw a new message from Liu Yifei pop up on the screen: "Senior, hehe, I have some good news for you! I'm going to play Wang Yuyan in the new version of 'Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils' directed by Zhang Jizhong!"

Zhang Jizhong?
Zhang the Bearded Man!

The name instantly triggered a wave of memories in Lü Rui's mind.

Back then, the TV series "The Smiling, Proud Wanderer" made him a fortune, and the subsequent TV series "The Legend of the Condor Heroes" ignited a nationwide viewing frenzy.

Undeniably, this guy has exceptional expertise in adapting Jin Yong's martial arts novels into television dramas.

However, when it comes to "walking birds"... oh, no, I mean "walking people," his dark history is simply terrifying!
He'll jump on any trending topic; he'll try to squeeze every bit of popularity out of any actor.

When Nicholas Tse was embroiled in the cover-up scandal, he publicly declared that he would strongly invite him to play Duan Yu, but in the end, he decided to cast Lin Zhiying instead.

In early July, Zhong Zhentao announced his bankruptcy and angrily criticized his ex-wife for being wasteful, which sparked heated discussions in the media. He immediately released a press release claiming that he would invite her to play the role of Duan Zhengchun.

Even Jiang Wen, who had just won the Best Actor award at the Venice Film Festival, was offered a high price to play Xiao Feng.

A host of popular celebrities, including Ge You, Zhang Guoli, Zhang Fengyi, and Zhang Guorong, have all become his "tools" for gaining popularity.

As someone who also works in the "wool-pulling" industry, Lü Rui considers himself to be very good at it as well.

Compared to Zhang Dahuzi's shamelessness, he felt like he was nothing compared to him!

"The contract has been signed?"

After pondering for a moment, Lü Rui sent a message back.

This girl is sometimes quick-witted and sometimes silly; don't let her be fooled.

"I signed it this morning, but you have to keep it a secret for me. The director said that no one else can know about it yet, and it can only be announced next month."

Lü Rui: "..."

Sure enough, Zhang Jizhong is about to try and ride the coattails of Mystic River again.

He casually replied "okay," then lay down to adjust to the time difference.

Two days later, on September 13, Lü Rui attended the 8th Huabiao Awards together with Feng Yuanzheng, Mei Ting, and Jiang Wen.

With "Gone Girl", he won the Huabiao Film Director Newcomer Award.

The award was presented by someone I knew. — Li Bingbing!

"Director Lü, I am Li Bingbing. It is an honor to meet you."

"Ah hello."

Lu Rui nodded in response, his gaze lingering on her for a moment.

In early January this year, the Southern Metropolis Daily announced the list of "Four Little Actresses", which included Zhao Yanzi, Zhang Ziyi, Zhou Xun and Xu Jinglei.

As for the "two ices" (ice and ice), they are currently in a period of growth.

Fan Bingbing currently only has the role of "Jin Suo" as her representative role, while Li Bingbing has already made a name for herself with last year's "Young Zhang Sanfeng" and has been hailed by Hong Kong and Taiwan media as "the jade girl among mainland action actresses", officially gaining fame as an "action star".

The leading actresses of each era are like a mirror, reflecting the aesthetic trends and the ecology of the entertainment industry at that time.

Lu Rui found it quite interesting. He never expected that after his rebirth, he would be able to witness the changing times and transformations of the entertainment industry from a new perspective.

It remains to be seen what kind of butterfly effect his "wing flapping" will create.
As soon as the Huabiao Awards event ended, he didn't linger and immediately launched the promotional work for the release of "Mystic River".

Five production companies—China Film Group, Huayi Brothers Media, Bona Film Group, Enlight Media, and Huayi Brothers Media—joined forces to promote the film, helping its popularity continue to soar!
On September 20, the music-themed film "Together with You," directed by Chen Kaige and starring Liu Peiqi, Chen Hong, and Wang Zhiwen, was released ahead of schedule.

Old Chen is showing off again, claiming that the box office will be at least 3000 million!
After ten days of release, the total box office only reached 600 million yuan, with daily box office figures below 50 yuan. It is estimated that the final total box office will be just over 1000 million yuan.

The takeoff (a show-off attempt) failed, and the plane crashed...

However, when interviewed by reporters, he said: "Box office is just a short-term market response. How can true artistic value be measured by numbers?"
"Together" is like a fine vintage wine. Some people may not appreciate its charm now, but time will prove that good works will never be buried! Those who only focus on box office are ultimately too shallow.

This film's exploration of humanity and art is the most precious gift it has left to the Chinese film industry. I believe it will leave a significant mark on film history in the future!

This reply successfully made it to the front page of the entertainment news section.

The industry is buzzing with applause!

But just then, Mystic River was released.

On National Day, Lü Rui was not idle; he was still busy with announcements and appearances.

After a long day, he returned to the hotel and immediately lay down on the bed and slept like a log!

The next morning, the phone rang and woke him up.

In a daze, I pressed the answer button and heard Jiang Wen's hearty laughter: "The box office statistics for the first day of 'Mystic River' are out."

611 million, hahaha, that's higher than the total box office of "Together" in its first 10 days! Chen Kaige has finally met his match; serves him right for not casting me as Cheng Dieyi..."

Lü Rui: "..."

He suddenly realized that Jiang Wen's obsession with "Farewell My Concubine" was truly profound!

After chatting for a few minutes, Lü Rui hung up the phone and prepared to go back to sleep.

But then, a series of phone calls completely shattered his plan to go back to sleep.

Han Sanping, Wang Zhonglei, Yu Dong, Dong Ping, Wang Changtian... everyone on the phone was laughing heartily.

The copyright revenue is raking in the profits!

Numerous honors and awards!

Box office results are soaring!
A truly triple celebration!

"We absolutely have to throw a victory celebration banquet! Hahaha!"

These are all political achievements, and Han Sanping couldn't wait to announce them to the world!
"Then I'll wait for your invitation."

Lu Rui replied, suddenly looking forward to the system rewards after the movie's run ended.

Meanwhile, after raking in 600 million yuan at the box office on its opening day, Mystic River, like a wild horse unleashed, embarked on a meteoric rise to the top of the charts!

On its fifth day of release, it broke the box office records of three films: "Chinese Odyssey 5", "The Lion Roars", and "The Legend of the Sacred Stone".

On its sixth day of release, "Windtalkers" was knocked out of theaters!

On its 15th day of release, both Spider-Man 1 and Big Shot's Funeral were knocked out of theaters!

Day 17, Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones lost!

On day 25, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring was defeated!

Day 30, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone lost!

As the film officially came to a close, its total box office revenue reached 6236 million RMB!

Before "Hero" was even released, "Mystic River" officially took the top spot at the 02 box office!
而在这一年内，吕睿还分别拿到了第52届柏林国际电影节最佳导演银熊奖、第59届威尼斯国际电影节最佳导演银狮奖、第9届大学生电影节最佳处女作奖、第8届中国电影华表奖导演新人奖、第25届大众电影百花奖最佳故事片奖！
At the same time, he also helped Jiang Wen win the Best Actor award at the Venice Film Festival!
The only regret is that at the 22nd Golden Rooster Awards, it only won the Best Editing award.

Lu Rui thought he could win a directorial debut award, but he didn't expect to lose to an art film called "Twenty-Five Children and One Father".

After the awards ceremony, Han Sanping and Jiang Wen stood aside and grumbled that the Golden Rooster judges were blind!
But Lü Rui remained calm and didn't seem to care at all.

That's the Golden Rooster Award!
According to some "gentlemen" in later generations, the Golden Rooster Award is even more prestigious than the awards of the three major European film festivals plus the Oscars!
With his current qualifications, how could he possibly be qualified to receive an award here?
"Why don't you just not come again?"

Lü Rui, on the other hand, was quite carefree and instead began to check the system rewards with great interest.

[Ding! Congratulations, host! You have successfully completed five processes for "Mystic River": filming wrap-up, post-production editing, submission to film festivals, and theatrical distribution. A release date has also been set.]

[S-level talent: Screenwriting and adaptation techniques for comedy/romance/youth/family/heartwarming genres, successfully distributed!]

Meanwhile, while Lü Rui was focused on researching the system's rewards, Feng Xiaogang was giving a media interview.

Faced with the pointed question from reporters, "Mystic River surpasses Big Shot at the box office, losing its title as the highest-grossing Chinese film, what are your thoughts?", he quickly organized his words and began to find a defense for himself.

By the way...

He also issued another "challenge" to Lü Rui!
(End of this chapter)