Chapter 521: Barbie becomes Oscar favorite, Wicked wins copyright
"Barbie is confirmed to participate in the 95th Academy Awards. Can Director Zhou win the Oscar again?"
"After The Martian, Director Zhou once again launched a charge towards an Oscar, and Barbie is once again in the running for an Oscar."
"Another ambitious work by Director Zhou Qing, Barbie is aiming for next year's Oscars."
……
Mattel acted quickly and immediately started the early public relations preparations for "Barbie".
Of course, Sony, the old coin, did not stand idly by, but joined in.
Although Mattel is a well-known giant enterprise, it is not in the entertainment industry after all.
Without the guidance of an experienced driver, you will definitely not be able to play it.
Although Sony got a free ride from Mattel, it also wanted "Barbie" to be a success.
So apart from not spending any money, you can say that you are working and putting in some effort.
On the domestic side, Jiao Hongfen also cooperated with Hollywood to start the early stage warm-up of "Barbie".
This can be regarded as an advance preparation for the release of "Barbie".
You know what, the effect is actually quite good.
Just by releasing the news that "Barbie" was competing for an Oscar, the circle suddenly became lively.
"As for the Oscar race, it still depends on Director Zhou."
"Who says it's not true? Except for Director Zhou, no one can fight."
"Barbie will definitely win a few more Oscars."
"If Director Zhou goes for an Oscar, I think it's a sure win."
“Is Huayu going to have another Oscar-winning movie?”
Mainstream public opinion is generally very optimistic about "Barbie"'s Oscar bid.
Who can blame Zhou Qing for his resume in winning an Oscar? It's really too impressive.
Counting on my fingers, Zhou Qing has actually won the Oscar quite a few times, even as early as when he was filming "Painted Skin".
As for Painted Skin, it really just became a runner-up and gained nothing.
But the subsequent "Life of Pi" and "The Revenant" both successfully won major awards.
Even though "The Martian" didn't win the grand prize, it still received as many as 7 nominations.
Putting aside other things, just looking at the Oscar campaign, Zhou Qing is unprecedented and unrivaled.
Under such circumstances, how could "Barbie" not arouse expectations when it once again makes a high-profile bid for an Oscar?
"Qingzi, do you think Barbie can really win an Oscar?"
Zhu Yawen, the second male lead, is also quite enthusiastic about this matter.
However, unlike others, Zhu Yawen, who personally participated in the filming, knew what kind of movie "Barbie" was.
So it is even more clear that this movie’s potential for winning an Oscar is not that huge.
"It's not a problem to win some small prizes, but forget about the big prizes."
Zhou Qing did not hide anything and told Zhu Yawen the truth.
Originally Zhou Qing thought Zhu Yawen might be disappointed, but he found that he still underestimated the enthusiasm of domestic filmmakers for the Oscars.
"Really Aoko? Can Barbie really win an award?"
Zhu Yawen's eyes immediately lit up and he was extremely excited.
"Don't get too excited. Even if you win a prize, it's only a small one. The possibility of winning the big prize is very small."
Zhou Qing repeatedly emphasized for Zhu Yawen.
"It doesn't matter whether the prize is big or small, as long as you can win the prize."
Zhu Yawen didn't care at all.
Does Qingzi really think that people in the Chinese entertainment film industry are like him and don’t care about the small Oscar award?
Big mistakes.
These days, winning an Oscar, even a small one, is something worth bragging about.
So Zhu Yawen made a decision happily.
Fly to Hollywood to participate in the Oscar PR activities for "Barbie".
As the second male lead, he plays a very important role and is obliged to cooperate with all subsequent publicity and promotion work for the film.
What's more important?
When the time comes, we should send out more press releases about Zhu Yawen’s public relations Oscars in China and take some related photos to brag about it.
Doesn’t that mean Zhu Yawen has made it into Hollywood?
You have to know that Zhu Yawen has reached the top in Chinese entertainment now, and it is still quite difficult for him to go further.
There aren't many opportunities like this that can be hyped up.
So even if "Barbie" doesn't win any award in the end, it will be of great benefit to Zhu Yawen.
Zhou Qing naturally would not refuse.
Zhu Yawen did not hesitate too much. After arranging some matters at hand, he quickly flew to Hollywood to get busy.
In fact, Shu Chang can also perform exactly the same operation.
The effect is even three times more explosive.
Before "Barbie", Shu Chang was almost semi-retired from the entertainment industry. It's not to say that she was completely forgotten, but she was pretty much forgotten.
The result of this comeback was reports about Hollywood and the Oscars.
It's simply the return of the king.
However, compared to Zhu Yawen, Shu Chang is not as ambitious in his career.
But I'm too lazy to do this.
For her, being able to play an important supporting role in a movie of the level of "Barbie" is enough to satisfy her.
So what about Zhou Qing?
Life can be said to have become relatively leisurely.
He had no plans to get involved in the public relations for "Barbie," so there was no need to be as busy as the public relations for "Life of Pi" and "The Revenant," which took months.
Although "Barbie" has also started warming up in China, it is just a warm-up.
It's just a simple hype in the early stage.
The film will not be released until February next year, so it’s too early to start large-scale promotion.
So Zhou Qing now really has plenty of time to spend with his wife and children.
At most, during this period, I found time to write the script for "Wicked".
With Zhou Qing's top-level screenwriting skills, this is not a problem at all.
It can be done easily and effortlessly.
"Director Zhou, you have lived up to your mission and have obtained the adaptation rights for Wicked!"
In January, Director Yang brought Zhou Qing good news.
Zhou Qing couldn't help but secretly breathe a sigh of relief.
He still attaches great importance to the movie "Wicked", and now he can feel relieved.
In fact, Zhou Qing was completely overthinking this matter.
His current fame in Hollywood is greater than he imagined.
I heard that Zhou Qing from Broadway was interested in "Wicked" and wanted to adapt it, so he was quite enthusiastic.
Because anyone who knows a little about it knows that Zhou Qing's works have never failed.
Broadway was very confident in Zhou Qing and was also full of expectations.
So after communication and discussion with the senior management of Broadway, they happily agreed to this matter.
Otherwise, how could Director Yang obtain the adaptation rights of "Wicked" in just two months?
It’s all because of Zhou Qing’s reputation.
"But Director Zhou, I hope you can direct the Broadway show yourself. At the very least, you have to adapt the script."
Director Yang conveyed Broadway's wishes to Zhou Qing. "I will personally adapt the script, but as for directing... we'll see how it goes when the time comes."
Zhou Qing pondered for a moment and gave this answer.
In fact, it is also possible for Zhou Qing to direct "Wicked".
As mentioned before, the box office of "Wicked" was extremely explosive.
Although it is slightly worse than "Barbie", it is also an extremely rare and truly super hit.
If he had filmed "Barbie" and then "Wicked", Zhou Qing's ability as a top commercial director would have become even more unquestionable.
In Hollywood, it is even more prosperous.
However, "Wicked" was not included in Zhou Qing's original career plan.
His only Hollywood film projects in recent years are "Barbie" and "Telekinesis".
If adjustments are made, all plans will have to be changed accordingly.
The good news is that Zhou Qing is the boss himself, and he has the final say on whether to change it or not.
Moreover, the original director, Jon M. Chu, had already achieved great success with "Wicked".
The other party has also worked with Crown Pictures.
It is also very easy to carry out secondary cooperation.
Generally speaking, whether Zhou Qing shoots the film himself or asks someone else to shoot it, "Wicked" can be guaranteed to be a big hit.
Whatever happens is fine.
So Zhou Qing didn't say anything final.
"By the way, is the PR for Barbie going well?"
After a brief discussion about "Wicked", Zhou Qing asked about Oscar.
Counting the time, Sony started to work with Mattel on public relations since November last year.
Now it’s already January, which means that most of the Long March has been completed.
"It went very smoothly. Sony is in charge of the operation, Mattel is willing to spend money, and with your name, Barbie is now very popular during the award season."
"If nothing unexpected happens, I will be able to get a lot of nominations."
Director Yang gave this feedback.
Zhou Qing couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
Whether or not a film wins an award in the end, or what award it wins, is another matter. But as long as the film receives many nominations, it will largely feed back into the box office.
This is a good thing.
"However, based on the current feedback, the artistic quality of Barbie is a little lacking and it may not win any major awards."
Director Yang considered the wording carefully and added his remarks cautiously.
Little did they know that as a reborn person, how could Zhou Qing not know this?
Even if we put aside the advantage of the reborn people's foresight, Zhou Qing could see it based on the director's professional vision alone.
Otherwise, why didn't he want to do public relations in the first place?
"It's good enough to win some small prizes."
Zhou Qing smiled.
It's all free, so why should we be dissatisfied?
No matter whether it is a big prize or a small prize, they are all given away for free by Mattel friends, so we don’t mind!
"Director Zhou."
The publicity and promotion team of China Film Group also started meeting with Zhou Qing.
There is still more than a month until the release of "Barbie", and it is time for the movie to start intensive promotion.
Of course, this is not just the case with Chinese entertainment, it is the same all over the world.
For a world-renowned director like Zhou Qing, whose films are Hollywood blockbusters, they will definitely be released simultaneously around the world.
Crown Pictures and Sony are already prepared.
Together with China Film Group, we carried out corresponding publicity around the world.
"Legendary director Zhou Qing's latest masterpiece Barbie is released simultaneously around the world, and many Hollywood stars have responded."
"The movie Barbie has landed around the world, and Sony said it is the best movie of the year, bar none."
“Following Life of Pi and The Revenant, director Zhou Qing’s masterpiece Barbie has once again taken the world by storm.”
I have to say that the effect is very good.
Be it Hollywood, Chinese entertainment, or Japan, the promotion of "Barbie" has begun in full swing.
You know what, the situation where many countries work together is quite spectacular.
With all these factors combined, the publicity effect of "Barbie" is very good.
After the Oscar nominations were announced on January 1, the popularity of "Barbie" reached a peak.
Without any other reason, "Barbie" has once again become a hot favorite for an Oscar.
Received as many as 8 nominations!
This is different from the original time and space, when "Barbie" only had some minor nominations, and the most important nomination was only the Best Supporting Actor and Actress.
At this moment, the nomination situation for "Barbie" is much better.
It received 8 nominations in the mainland for Best Director and Best Actor.
The other six nominations are all insignificant, or in other words, they are small awards that Zhou Qing doesn't even care about, so there is no need to mention them.
But Best Director and Best Actor are the real big awards.
This is a nomination that "Barbie" did not receive in the original time and space.
However, Zhou Qing's directing skills are better than the original director, and the quality of "Barbie" is indeed higher than the original film.
In addition, Zhou Qing himself is much more famous than the original director.
Therefore, it is not surprising that such a change occurred.
But this is only for Zhou Qing, the reborn person. For others, Director Zhou is so awesome.
Even though the status of the Oscars is not as high as before, it is still an unclimbable mountain for Chinese entertainment.
The Film Bureau selects some films to compete for Oscars every year, without fail.
But all of them fell into oblivion, without causing any waves.
What happened to Director Zhou Qing?
Every time I go, it’s accurate. There has never been any failure.
Whether or not they can win an award in the end is another matter, but their nominations have always been extremely strong.
This time, "Barbie" is no different, winning 8 nominations in one fell swoop!
Is this a lot of nominations?
A lot already.
Even if it is placed among all the Oscars, it would be ranked among the top.
A genuine and well-deserved favorite to win the award.
"Director Zhou Qing's new film "Barbie" received 96 nominations at the 8th Academy Awards!"
"In the 96th Academy Awards season, Oppenheimer led the way with 13 nominations, and Barbie won 8 nominations."
"After The Martian, Director Zhou once again made it to the Oscars, with Barbie receiving eight nominations."
China Film Group Corporation certainly couldn't miss this opportunity, and it started hyping it up as soon as it saw the hot spot.
In fact, even without the efforts of China Film Group, other related media have also carried out corresponding reports.
"Barbie" has suddenly become the most popular movie in the Chinese New Year period, without a doubt.
The producers were all very satisfied with this, especially Jiao Hongfen, who couldn't suppress the smile on his face.
It seemed that "Barbie" was about to become the most successful film during his tenure.
Jiao Hongfen can be said to be full of lofty ambitions now.
Just waiting for the day when "Barbie" is released. (End of this chapter)