Chapter 377: China Film Group dug a global hole, Zhou Qing Films again attracted doubts and controve

Chapter 377: China Film Group dug a global hole, Zhou Qing Films again attracted doubts and controve

"But Director Zhou, there's not much time left, so we have to hurry up."

After the basic intention was reached, La Peikang smiled and reminded Zhou Qing.

It sounds simple to introduce Hollywood movies, but there are actually very complicated procedures involved.

Negotiations and consultations with relevant Hollywood film producers, relevant reviews by the Film Bureau, determination of publicity and promotion strategies, etc.

Generally speaking, it takes one to several months to produce results.

It is not uncommon for it to take half a year or even a year to go through all the procedures.

Of course, that's just the general situation. Zhou Qing's "The Revenant" is naturally different.

Its main controller, Crown Pictures, is actually Zhou Qing’s own company.

As long as Zhou Qing says a word, the other party will cooperate with China Film and complete the process as quickly as possible.

The same is true for China Film Group.

Zhou Qing has helped La Peikang get through all the procedures, and I believe the rest of the process will also be quick.

Although there are only two or three months left before the expected release date, it is still completely in time.

This is the difference between having connections and not having connections.

“The post-production of The Revenant is still a few days away, and the finished film will definitely be released in November, but the process can be started now.”

"I have already notified Crown Pictures, and all the necessary materials are ready."

Zhou Qing told La Peikang the relevant situation truthfully.

Upon hearing this, La Peikang nodded and smiled: "Director Zhou came prepared."

Then he assured Zhou Qing that he would immediately arrange for someone from China Film Group to contact Crown Pictures.

They reached an agreement on this matter very happily, and both parties began to drink tea and chat happily.

Bursts of laughter and joy could be heard from the office from time to time, and the atmosphere was very good.

"By the way, Director Zhou, after The Revenant, do you have any plans for new films?"

After chatting for a while, La Peikang picked up the teacup again and glanced at Zhou Qing seemingly unintentionally.

"Let's wait until The Revenant is released. I haven't thought about it that much yet."

Zhou Qing was not trying to trick La Peikang, but was telling the truth.

Even after "The Revenant" is released, Zhou Qing still plans to take some time off.

"That's perfect. I have a movie project here, and I think you, Director Zhou, are the most qualified to direct it in the entire Chinese entertainment industry."

La Peikang put down the teacup in his hand, and the smile on his face became brighter.

Zhou Qing could also clearly feel that there was a hint of pride hidden in La Peikang's smile!

To be honest, Zhou Qing's curiosity was really aroused by La Peikang.

What kind of film project could make La Peikang talk so much?

And I am the only one qualified to direct. My goodness, isn’t this tone a bit too high?
"Boss La's skill in keeping people in suspense is comparable to Boss Han's."

Zhou Qing smiled and responded calmly, "But Mr. La, I have never accepted any external film until now."

The implication is obvious. Even if you, La Peikang, want to invite me to direct, I may not agree.

This is not Zhou Qing being pretentious or putting on airs.

There is no director of his caliber who doesn't protect his reputation.

If La Peikang's film project is really reliable, there is no problem for Zhou Qing to direct it.

But if La Peikang was like Han Sanping, digging a hole without knowing it, would Zhou Qing still jump into it on his own initiative?
Of course not.

"Then Director Zhou, why don't you take a look at the movie I mentioned and see if it's worth it for you to make an exception."

It can be said that La Peikang's voice is full of strong self-confidence.

Of course he knew that Zhou Qing had made so many movies since his debut, all of which he wrote, directed and produced himself.

It's not just in Chinese entertainment, it's the same even in Hollywood.

There are no exceptions.

But even so, La Peikang is very confident about the movie in his hands.

Because this movie is really too important, it is definitely a top super project in the entire history of Chinese entertainment.

"Boss, I'm all ears."

Zhou Qing straightened his body and pretended to listen attentively.

"Like your last film, Life of Pi, the film I'm telling you about now is also a co-production."

"The main controller is Legend, one of the eight major Hollywood studios. They offered a budget of 1.35 million US dollars, and they will invest more if the budget is not enough."

Zhou Qing couldn't help but raise his eyebrows.

1.35 million US dollars, this is a huge amount of money.

Not to mention it being a co-production, even if it were a Hollywood movie, it would be a big production.

You have to know that even though "Life of Pi" has so many special effects, the production cost was only 1 million US dollars.

"Although it is a co-production, this one is different from other co-productions. This one tells a Chinese story."

"I know what you're thinking, Director Zhou. Can foreign directors tell Chinese stories well? The original "Forbidden Kingdom" turned out to be a mess."

"But what if I tell you that the director of this co-production is not a Hollywood director, but a Chinese director?"

"Legendary Pictures has agreed that China Film Group will nominate a capable and talented director in China to direct the film."

"After much thought, I think you, Director Zhou, are the most qualified to direct this film."

Facing Zhou Qing's gaze, La Peikang began to talk with great enthusiasm.

Zhou Qing finally understood why La Peikang was so confident and why he was so complacent.

Judging from the current introduction, the film project the other party mentioned is really extremely explosive.

A top-notch co-production with a budget of US$1.35 million, directed by a Chinese director, is a king bomb for any director.

At the same time, it is also an enormous challenge!

The collision and balance of Chinese and American cultures, a huge production costing up to 800 to 900 million RMB, is really not something that an ordinary director can handle.

What Lapezin had said so confidently before about his "qualifications" was really not an exaggeration.

A film of this level is indeed not something that just any director is qualified to direct.

It has to be the top director of Huayu Entertainment!
To put it bluntly, it has to be a great director of the level of Zhou, Zhang, Chen and Feng.

Even for big directors like Zhou, Zhang, Chen and Feng, not everyone can be one.

Feng Xiaogang must be ruled out first.

The other party is incapable of making any other films except Feng's comedies, and directing a Sino-US co-production would be a joke.

Poet Chen's words actually lack some substance.

The movie “The Promise” has already proved that the other party is simply not cut out for making commercial films.

Especially big productions, which are definitely not something that poet Chen can handle.

Only Zhou Qing and Zhang Guoshi are truly qualified.

And between these two top directors, who is more qualified?
It is undoubtedly Zhou Qing.

Although Zhang Guoshi is awesome, he has long been surpassed by Zhou Qing. Currently, Zhou Qing is recognized as the number one director in Chinese entertainment.

What's more, Zhou Qing also has experience in directing co-productions.

"Life of Pi" not only swept the Oscars but also sold well all over the world, making it a model of co-production!

Considering all these circumstances, who else should La Peikang choose to direct the film if not Zhou Qing? Zhou Qing was La Peikang's first choice!
It’s just a pity that what La Peikang didn’t know was that Zhou Qing had no intention of directing this co-production that he attached great importance to.

There is no other reason. As a reborn person, Zhou Qing has already guessed which co-production film La Peikang was talking about.

In all likelihood, it is one of the stains on Zhang Yimou's career, "The Great Wall".

"Boss La, thank you for your respect and trust, but can I take a look at the script first?"

Although he had made a judgment and guess, Zhou Qing did not show anything for the time being. He just calmly made this request to La Peikang.

This is a completely reasonable request and La Peikang would naturally not refuse it.

He immediately instructed his secretary to get the corresponding script.

Zhou Qing greeted La Peikang and then quickly read the script.

He immediately couldn't help but smile bitterly in his heart.

Yes, it really is “The Great Wall”!

This is also a big pitfall.

The most expensive co-production in history, directed by Zhang Yimou, starring Hollywood star Matt Damon, and starring a host of stars including Andy Lau and Zhang Hanyu.

To be frank, the lineup can no longer be described as luxurious, it is simply cheating.

No matter who looks at it, it must be a blockbuster movie that will sweep across the entire Chinese entertainment industry like a piece of cake.

But what about in practice?
The total box office of "The Great Wall" in mainland China was only 11.73 billion.

If you look at this data alone, it's actually okay, but if you take into account the super cast of "The Great Wall", the box office is undoubtedly disappointing.

In particular, the global box office of 3.35 million US dollars did not meet the expectations of the film company, and even failed to recoup the cost.

Yes, The Great Wall ended up losing money.

But compared to the unsatisfactory box office results, the bad reputation of "The Great Wall" is fatal.

The rating of "The Great Wall" on a certain platform is only a pitiful 4.9 points, less than 5 points!

There are also a lot of negative reviews on the Internet, with a Rotten Tomatoes rating of only 35% and an IMDB rating of only 5.9!

Although Chinese and foreign audiences have different tastes, they have achieved a rare unity on "The Great Wall".

Everyone agrees that "The Great Wall" is a terrible movie.

Especially the male lead Matt Damon, who turned down "Manchester by the Sea" because of his role in "The Great Wall" and was ridiculed for a long time.

So how could Zhou Qing possibly take on a film like this?

If I really accepted it, my reputation would be ruined.

As for Zhou Qing's feeling after quickly reading the script just now, in one word, it's terrible.

Such a bad script cannot be saved by Zhang Yimou, and neither can Zhou Qing.

"Boss La, if I'm guessing correctly, Legend shouldn't allow you to change the script at will, right?"

After Zhou Qing pondered for a while, he spoke to La Peikang in a tactful and roundabout way.

La Peikang clearly understood what Zhou Qing meant: "Director Zhou is not satisfied with the script?"

"Maybe my standards are too high, which is why I only shoot my own scripts."

Zhou Qing smiled and made his attitude clear.

La Peikang couldn't help but look regretful.

In his opinion, Zhou Qing is indeed the best candidate to direct "The Great Wall".

This person's ability, rank, resume, relationship with China Film Group, etc., are all impeccable.

But La Peikang never expected that Zhou Qing would refuse in the end.

such a pity.

However, since Zhou Qing refused, La Peikang could only settle for the second best and prepare to talk to Master Zhang.

……

"Zhou Qing Pictures is launching its first animated feature film, Journey to the West: Hero is Back, scheduled for the Lunar New Year holiday."

"The animated film "Journey to the West: Hero is Back" has fully started its roadshow. The film is exclusively produced by Zhou Qing Pictures."

"Zhou Qing Pictures enters the animation film industry and launches "Journey to the West: Hero is Back"."

With the efforts of China Film Group and Fiber Optic, the popularity of "The Monkey King: Hero is Back" was quickly hyped up.

Just as Zhou Qing expected, it attracted great attention from the entire circle.

First of all, China Film Group and Fiber Optic have indeed been working hard and have arranged all the necessary publicity and promotion.

Secondly, of course, it is the effect brought by the golden signboard of Zhou Qing Pictures.

Especially since "The Return of the Great Sage" is the first animated feature film launched by Zhou Qing Pictures, it is even more eye-catching.

"Director Zhou has actually started making an animated movie?"

"Director Zhou, are you getting carried away? Not everyone can handle animation."

"Although it's an animated film, since it's produced by Director Zhou, I will definitely support it."

"'Anything produced by Director Zhou must be a masterpiece', I believe in Director Zhou!"

Naturally there was controversy, and netizens split into two factions and kept arguing.

Some people think that animated movies are a slump, and the entire Chinese entertainment industry has no outstanding cases.

Although all the films released by Zhou Qing Pictures so far are guaranteed to be of good quality, we still need to be cautious in our expectations.

After all, Zhou Qing Pictures had never produced an animated feature film before.

Some even think that Zhou Qing is too proud and arrogant to even attempt an animated film.

The main attitude of this group of people is questioning.

It is even more questionable than when Zhou Qing produced the science fiction film "Source Code".

But at the same time, there are also many people who support Zhou Qing.

Although the animated movie is indeed a bit disappointing, but since it is directed by Zhou, we can still look forward to it.

You know, Director Zhou has never let anyone down!

However, whether it is doubted or supported, it is an indisputable fact that the popularity of "The Return of the Great Sage" has been hyped up.

The current "The Return of the Great Sage" is top-notch in the entire Chinese entertainment industry in terms of exposure and so on.

Under such circumstances, Zhou Qing believes that the box office of "The Return of the Great Sage" will definitely be much better than in the original time and space.

This film will definitely become one of Zhou Qing Pictures' representative works.

"It's done, it's finally done!"

The final bit of post-production work on The Revenant has also been completed.

Zhou Qing reviewed the finished film and nodded with satisfaction.

It is true that I only shot it for more than two months, but judging from the overall effect, it is not worse than the original film, and is even three points better.

This is Zhou Qing’s ability as a full-level director!

"Xiao Liu!"

Zhou Qing didn't waste any time and asked his assistant to book a flight to Hollywood.

Although the public relations for "The Revenant" will not be held until December, Zhou Qing needs to invite the producer to watch the film first.

Of course, this is just a by-product. With his current strength, he believes that the co-producers will not be able to find any faults.

The most important thing is that Zhou Qing needs to arrange the release of "The Revenant" in advance. (End of this chapter)