Huayu: A Commercial Director

Chapter 95 Negotiation and Pressure

Is Chen Shou only thinking of himself and the entire film and television industry?
He's not that arrogant. If he had that kind of power ten years ago, he would definitely have represented the entire film and television industry.

It's not his turn yet. The leading private companies are listed companies like Huayi Brothers, Enlight Media, and Bona Film Group, while the leading state-owned enterprises are companies like China Film Group and Shanghai Film Group.

However, these people couldn't achieve this even when they joined forces to exert pressure in the past two years, so how could Chen Shouzhe possibly do it all by himself?

Chen Shou's only goal is to profit himself; he doesn't care about anyone else. Why didn't those people think of him when they were enjoying the benefits?

It's impossible for everyone to expect him to step forward now; the film market has already grown too big.

With all sorts of traitors around, unless you can truly unite to fight against the cinemas, the current cinema market doesn't need your few companies at all.

They would rather lose money than back down. If it's just one person, and they're important to them, then they'd be willing to talk.

Shouzhe Film Studio has expanded from a single-story building to a three-story building.

In the reception room on the third floor, the long table was already set up, with Chen Shouzhe, Tao Le, and Zhong Lifan on the other side.

Fifteen cinema chains have arrived, the top twenty of which account for 80% of the domestic film market. They represent the entire domestic cinema chain market.

"Thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules to visit my company." Chen Shou shook hands with each of them.

"Director Chen is really coming in strong this time," the head of Dadi Cinemas said with a smile.

"There's nothing I can do, you have to understand. Making movies these days is tough. It's a huge gamble. You know how much pressure I'm under with a 400 million investment in a film," Chen Shou said with a wry smile.

The theater owners laughed but didn't reply. They understood Chen Shou's difficulties, but the theaters also had their own problems. They and the production company were originally complementary, but they were also enemies, since they were also in it for the money.

Although it's contradictory, I can understand it.

It's about the relationship between manufacturers and sales. How can manufacturers not be envious when the sales take the lion's share?
The products they painstakingly produce end up profiting from others, while they still bear enormous investment pressure.

Therefore, many manufacturers secure sales channels before deciding to start production.

The 400 million yuan film is currently the largest investment film in China. The theaters are well aware of this, but they are unwilling to back down. After all, if they back down, what will happen if others do the same?
They also made real investments, buying land with real money, building cinemas in shopping malls, and incurring huge expenses for equipment, personnel management, and so on.

"sit down."

Chen Shouzhe gestured, and everyone took their seats. Wanda, as the largest cinema chain in China, was sitting opposite Chen Shouzhe.

"Everyone, my invitation to you all represents only myself and Shouzhe Pictures. It has nothing to do with the entire film and television industry. I don't have the abilities of Zhang Dapao or Guoshi, so you don't need to worry," Chen Shouzhe said with a smile.

The theater managers smiled when they heard Zhang Dapao's name. Back then, they had been pressured so much that they had no choice but to compromise in the end.

However, the market is different now. They can ignore those production companies, since they are really rich. The real estate market is booming right now, and many cinema chains are linked to real estate.

They were still giving Chen Shouzhe face, after all, his movies were really profitable. If Chen Shouzhe chose to fight to the death, what about the other companies? They couldn't just produce their own films, could they? The government would kill them.

So they still came, to save face for Chen, hoping that both sides could cooperate well.

"What exactly are Director Chen's demands?" Ye Ning asked.

People from other cinema chains curled their lip, thinking to themselves, "You're all in cahoots, why are you asking such a pointless question?"

However, they did not know that Chen Shouzhe had not even contacted Wanda privately; he had simply notified them to come over.

Therefore, Ye Ning did not know what Chen Shouzhe's specific demands were, and if Chen Shouzhe made exorbitant demands, they would naturally not agree.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we've been working together since Charlotte. I've been in the industry for four years now, and I've directed and produced quite a few films. Ask yourselves honestly, have any of my films ever made you lose money?" Chen Shou said.

The theater chains in front of them nodded in agreement. In fact, they hoped the film market would be even more booming. Why did they give so many screenings to foreign blockbusters? It was because those movies were profitable. But when it came to making the most money, it was Chen Shouzhe who always made them very rich.

"So I hope the theaters won't compare me to those production companies. I'm much better than them, and my movies can make everyone here much more money," Chen Shou said.

"Director Chen, your films are indeed excellent, but you can't guarantee that every film you make will achieve high box office returns," said a representative from China Cinema Circuit.

"That's why I called everyone here. I want to increase the revenue share for films produced by Shouzhe Pictures, so it's not the same as other companies," Chen Shouzhe said.

Since everyone guessed the answer, they were no exception.

Actually, the major cinema chains had already discussed this beforehand. They realized they couldn't treat Chen Shouzhe the same way they treated other directors. Their productions couldn't be guaranteed, but Chen Shouzhe had never lost money. Moreover, with such large investments, the greater the returns, the more they would earn. They were already prepared, but they still needed to discuss the specific amount of improvement.

"Director Chen, how much of a promotion do you want?" asked the head of Dadi Cinemas.

“Add five more points,” Chen Shou said.

"impossible!!!"

To everyone's surprise, the first person to object was Ye Ning from Wanda.

“Director Chen, five percent is impossible. Your current share is the highest in China, at 43%. Five percent would be 48%, which is higher than Hollywood,” Ye Ning said.

“Hollywood’s revenue sharing isn’t always the same amount as ours. They have a tiered system. Do you dare to have a tiered system?” Chen Shou said solemnly. “Besides, my 43% also includes distribution costs. I only get a little over thirty percent. The pressure to break even is too great.”

"Director Chen, they've been developing for so many years, while we've only been at the beginning. You're asking for 5% all at once, isn't that a bit too ambitious?" someone else chimed in, realizing what was happening.

"Yes, 5%. The cinemas' investments are real; they spend money every day."

"I understand how you feel, Director Chen. We had already agreed before we came that we could give you a share of the profits, but only one percentage point, and only for the films you directed. It wouldn't apply to other films you invested in."

"We understand the producers, and we hope the producers can also understand us cinemas. No one can guarantee a movie will be a big hit, right? Increasing our share of the box office revenue means that if the movie doesn't perform well, we'll lose even more. Rent, utilities, and labor costs are all real expenses."

“We agreed to give Director Chen a discount because you are one of the few commercially successful directors in China, and our cooperation has always been very pleasant. But you can’t ask for such an exorbitant amount. 5% is absolutely not acceptable.”

Chen Shouzhe knew the theaters wouldn't back down easily, but he didn't expect them to be so tough. However, he also knew he couldn't back down. A 400 million investment would only break even with 1 billion in box office revenue, which was too difficult.

"Everyone, the investment in 'The Martian' is 400 million, while I've already invested over a billion in this sci-fi movie." Chen Shou looked up at all of them, his eyes bloodshot, his voice like a low growl of a beast issuing a warning.

When they heard Chen Shouzhe mention over a billion, they all gasped, inwardly cursing him as a madman, believing only a madman would spend so much money.

They also knew that Chen Shouzhe had invested in a special effects company. If this failed, Chen Shouzhe's special effects company would also go bankrupt. If it were them, they would also go crazy and do the same.

“Director Chen, you have your difficulties, and we have ours. 5% is too high, 1% at most.” Ye Ning was also determined. They only invested in the movie, not in Little Dream, so he didn’t care how much Chen Shouzhe had actually invested.

“1% is too little, and I hope that the films I invest in can also enjoy it,” Chen Shouzhe said.

“Then there’s nothing to discuss. Director Chen, this isn’t negotiation. If that’s the case, our cinema chain really doesn’t lack movies right now,” said the person in charge of Dadi Cinemas.

“Then I will terminate the cooperation between Columbia and the mainland. Compared with the domestic market, you rely more on foreign blockbusters.” Chen Shouzhe pulled out his trump card.

"Director Chen, you can't do this."

The faces of the theater owners present changed. If it were just Chen Shouzhe, they could put pressure on him. But if he brought in giants like Columbia and Warner, it would be difficult for them. For example, the cost of the movies that are about to be released is very high for the theaters. They can't rely on the second half of the year, otherwise they will lose money in the first half. What are they going to do?
"Please sit down, there might be another way," Chen Shou said, taking a deep breath.

"any solution?"

"A bet!"

The people from the theater chain were taken aback for a moment, while Tao Le and Zhong Lifan remained expressionless; they already knew.

"On gambling?"

"How does the betting work?"

"It's a pure box office bet, not a guaranteed minimum bet. If the box office reaches a certain amount, then the share of the box office revenue will be increased. If it doesn't reach that amount, then I'll get the minimum guaranteed share," Chen Shouzhe said.

"A bet based purely on box office revenue..."

"If it's a guaranteed minimum return, I'm afraid someone might tamper with it. It's better to arrange a revenue-sharing system with progressively increasing box office revenue. For example, if my movie grosses over 10 billion, I get 46%. If it reaches 20 billion, I get 50%. Even with such high box office revenue, the theater chains won't lose money. The higher the box office, the better for both of us. I won't lose that much either. If the movie is really bad, then I deserve to lose money. I'll suffer the consequences of my own actions. The theater chains won't lose money no matter what. After all, the pie has already grown big. The pie you take in is much bigger than the pie you get."

They knew what Chen Shou was talking about; they had tried it before, and quite a few people had failed because they couldn't do it. Moreover, in order to secure screenings, they even reduced their original box office share by 43%, and some even reduced it to the thirties. In the end, the theaters didn't lose money, but the production company almost went bankrupt.

Just because others can't do it doesn't mean Chen Shouzhe can't. Most of the highest-grossing films in China are related to him.

"Director Chen, we need to discuss this."

"Please go ahead." Chen Shou led his men out, leaving the theater staff inside to discuss the matter.

(End of this chapter)