In the blink of an eye, Tao Yushu had left Xiangjiang for half a month.
For more than a week before staying in the United States, she had been busy with the release of the co-production film "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles".
Later, Jiahe relied on this movie to dominate the American film market. Lin Chaoyang naturally would not let her miss this cash cow.
Because of Lin Chaoyang's presence, Tao Yushu took less detours.
Later Jiahe's "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" was co-produced with Fox, with an initial investment of US$12 million, and later a lot more investment.
As a result, after the film was finally shot, Fox was not confident in the quality of the film and did not dare to release it.
In the end, Zou Wenhuai had no choice but to find New Line, an independent film company with average strength, and was able to distribute the film.
This time, Tao Yushu first obtained the copyright of "The Turtles" and then went directly to New Line, investing the same amount of US$12 million.
There is no problem of overspending or the dilemma of being unable to issue,
In fact, New Line was not optimistic about "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" at the beginning. This movie can be said to have the necessary elements of all blockbuster movies.
"Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" is adapted from a comic produced by Phantom Studio in 1980. This comic is a typical non-mainstream work in the American comic industry.
After all, who among the good guys would take the turtle as the protagonist?
The plot is dark and sadistic, and the early style is full of imitation and reference. These are all problems with the original "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" comics.
It wasn't until 1986 that the famous American comic book publisher Dark Horse Comics became the agent for the toys of "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" and produced a large number of figures for the market.
Only then did they succeed in making these turtles somewhat famous in the United States.
Later, the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" animation was launched and achieved a certain response, but it was always far behind the popular comic IPs.
The movie "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" is said to be a live-action version, but in fact it is played by real people wearing puppet headsets. The animation is not animation, and the real people are not real people. In addition, Lin's Pictures is a non-local producer.
The mass base is poor, the shooting format is offbeat, the producer has no strength, and several factors come together. It is normal that New Line is not optimistic about this movie.
Even during the preview stage before the movie was released, many theaters were not optimistic about the movie.
I feel that the style of this movie is bizarre, the plot is childish, and the plot is heart-wrenching. Not to mention excellent, it can hardly even be considered qualified.
But this does not prevent New Line from being willing to release "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles", and it almost went to great lengths for this movie.
There is no other reason. For so many years, New Line, as an independent production company, has always been a small company in Hollywood and has little experience in releasing big-budget movies.
"Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" is certainly not a big production, but the key is that Lin's Pictures was willing to give up profits and spent US$2 million in marketing expenses.
It has almost assumed most of the risks, and the issuance fees paid by New Line are nothing in comparison.
Under such circumstances, on the first Friday of March 1990, Lam Pictures' version of "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" was released in more than 1,500 theaters across the United States.
This scale of opening is already the limit that New Line Cinema can strive for.
In the three days of its first weekend, "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" generated an astonishing $34.15 million in the United States.
This result greatly exceeded the expectations of New Line Cinema and the theater chain, and it can even be said that their jaws dropped.
The current American film market is not like that of later generations. A local box office of 80 to 90 million can already make it into the top ten at the annual box office.
Last year, the tenth place on the U.S. box office list was "Spring and Rain" with a box office of 95 million US dollars. This shows that "The Turtles" has a box office of 34 million in the first three days of the weekend.
After the box office results were released, New Line and the theater chain tried their best and couldn't figure out how such a comic book movie that was full of blockbusters could achieve such an astonishing box office.
But these are not important to them. The movie is a hit, and it is too late for them as a distributor and theater to be happy.
The U.S. movie market has always been deserted in March, but "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" gained momentum after its release, giving people the feeling of dominating the market.
After its first week of screenings, "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" grossed $58.41 million at the box office.
When the box office figures came out, Tao Yushu, who had been staying in the United States, finally let go of the heavy burden.
For "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles", from copyright to production to distribution, Lam Pictures spent as much as 20 million US dollars, which is 160 million Hong Kong dollars.
If it fails, it will definitely be a heavy blow to Lam Films.
Although it is not a stretch, it may be difficult to make big strides in development in a short period of time.
Now that the first week's box office has been released, Lin's Film Company's 20 million investment has been repaid and even made a profit. The subsequent box office will be a net profit.
Based on the box office performance of "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles", Lin's Pictures will really make a lot of money this time, just like Lin Chaoyang said.
When the box office figures came out, Tao Yushu was so excited that he immediately called Lin Chaoyang in Xiangjiang.
"It's done! Chaoyang, it's done!"
Tao Yushu's voice on the phone was full of joy and excitement, and Lin Chaoyang couldn't help but feel happy for her.
"Thanks a lot!"
Tao Yushu said happily: "What's so hard about it? The first big thing when I came to the United States has been accomplished. Now let's move on to the next one."
There was a bit of ambition in her voice, and it was obvious that the success of "The Turtles" gave her great confidence.
"No one can say for sure about awards, so don't put too much pressure on yourself."
"I know."
Tao Yushu promised, but the ambition in his heart grew like weeds.
The box office has been great, and if we win more awards, then Lam Films can really dominate Asia in the future.
Yes, Ms. Tao has now ignored the tiny place of Xiangjiang and is looking to Asia.
After hanging up the phone, Tao Yumo asked Lin Chaoyang curiously: "Brother-in-law, what's going on? I heard that my sister seems very happy."
"It's nothing. The movie I invested in the United States did well at the box office."
"Oh." Tao Yumo nodded and asked, "How much is the box office?"
"Nearly 60 million."
"Oh, six thousand——" the voice paused, and her eyes rounded up, "Take the young master? Six thousand————·Ten thousand?"
Before Lin Chaoyang could answer, she asked again: "Hong Kong dollars?"
"Dollar."
Hearing these two words, Tao Yumo's expression was shocked and a little dull. After a while, he said: "Sixty million dollars?
Didn’t my sister say it would be released this month? It’s only been a few days.”
"One week."
Tao Yumo is already a little numb. Figures like "one week of release" and "60 million box office" are too niche.
In the past two days, she was still feeling complacent about the good results of the game "Swordsman" after its release. Suddenly, when she heard the news, all the joy in her heart disappeared, leaving only shock. She felt like a passerby.
After finally getting over the shock, Tao Yumo couldn't help but ask Lin Chaoyang: "Brother-in-law, how much money can this film company make?"
"Who can say for sure?"
"You can probably take a guess."
"Well, this kind of comic book movie started in the United States, and most of the revenue is almost generated in the United States.
After excluding costs, it is estimated that the box office profit in the United States should be more than 30 million US dollars. Whether it is a share of the release in other places or a buyout, it will be similar to that in the United States.
The follow-up video earnings of this type of movie are usually pretty good, ideally maybe $100 million.
The other thing is derivative development, and no one can say for sure about this kind of thing.”
Listening to Lin Chaoyang settling the accounts, Tao Yumo felt dazed.
She has always known that her sister and brother-in-law are rich, but their assets and cash flow are different. The one-time cash income generated by "The Turtles" is enough to put many tens of billions of listed companies to shame.
She secretly made a calculation in her mind. A set of "The Swordsman" game sells for 200 Hong Kong dollars. One hundred million US dollars is converted into 800 million Hong Kong dollars. It needs to sell 4 million units, and this does not include the cost. After the cost,
If so, it would have to be at least 10 million units.
Alas, when will I be able to create a game that sells tens of millions of copies?
Tao Yumo couldn't help but daydream.
A few days later, Lin Chaoyang received a call from Xie Jin from Shanghai, saying that he wanted to invite Tao Yushu to Shanghai.
At the end of this month, Fu Qinghua, president of the Bay Island Production Association, led a delegation to visit the Shanghai Film Studio. This delegation was composed of more than 20 film and television production company owners, directors and screenwriters in the Bay Island. It was a large delegation.
Both the above and the Shanghai Film Studio attach great importance to this visit. To put it bluntly, this is no longer a film-level matter, but a WJ-level matter. The reason why Xie Jin is so enthusiastic is because he has considered that since the last time he found Ding Daming, China Film
There was no reply for a long time, and he had given up hope. He wondered if he could get some investment from Wandao Film Company.
"Yushu is not at home now, he is in the United States." Lin Chaoyang told Xie Jin the news.
"Is it about participating in the Oscars for "Parasite"?"
"Parasite" won the Palme d'Or at Cannes last year and is competing for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film this year. This is no secret to the film circles on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.
"Yeah." Lin Chaoyang didn't explain much.
Xie Jin asked: "When can she come back? Can she come back after Oscar?"
"It will probably be delayed for a few days. Regardless of whether it wins an award or not, the movie still has to be released in the United States."
"The delegation will arrive in Shanghai on the 31st, and the communication time will be three days. You should communicate with her and see if you can make it in time."
"good."
After hanging up the phone with Xie Jin, Lin Chaoyang contacted Tao Yushu in the United States and explained the situation to her. Tao Yushu had a very positive attitude.
Wan Dao has always been one of the important ticket warehouses for Hong Kong movies, and there is nothing wrong with meeting and chatting with these film company bosses, directors, and screenwriters.
As for the entry of Lawan Island Film Company, Tao Yushu was very cautious, thinking that even if their funds were to be used, Lin would have to take the lead. "Of course, we will talk about it later when you return to China."
Lin Chaoyang responded, and the two chatted for a few more words before hanging up the phone.
Time flashed to March 27. In the morning, Lin Chaoyang sent his two children to school, returned home, made a cup of tea and continued writing a novel.
There was no call from Tao Yushu at noon. He knew that he would definitely not be able to contact Tao Yushu at this time.
Waiting until the evening, Tao Yumo came back from school after picking up his two children and asked: "Brother-in-law, the Oscars have been awarded, right? My sister didn't call."
"The awards should be finished."
This year's Academy Awards will be held at Chandler Hall in Los Angeles, California on March 26, US time. There is a 16-hour time difference between Hong Kong and California. Logically, there should be news at noon today.
Tao Yushu didn't call, so there was only one possibility: "Parasite" failed to win the Olympics.
The lack of calls is in line with Tao Yushu's strong character. I guess he should be feeling uncomfortable right now!
Considering the time difference, Lin Chaoyang didn't rush to call her.
After dinner, the news on Jade Channel mentioned the just-concluded Academy Awards. As expected, "Parasite" failed miserably, and the Best Foreign Language Film award went to "Cinema Paradiso".
Before the Academy Awards, many media in Hong Kong were predicting the prospects of "Parasite" to win the Oscars, and they were generally optimistic.
After all, it has won the Palme d'Or in Cannes and performed well in the Oscar frontline, so the probability of winning the award should be very high.
Now that the results have come out, both the media and the film industry have felt a pang of regret. This may be the closest Xiangjiang Film gets to the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.
It wasn't until midnight that Lin Chaoyang made the call.
"Hello!"
When the call was connected, Tao Yushu's voice was cold and slightly depressed.
"Are you in a bad mood?" Lin Chaoyang asked her in a brisk tone.
There was no word on the other end of the phone. Lin Chaoyang coaxed: "Haven't you heard of the law of conservation of luck? "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" just hit the box office.
If "Parasite" wins another Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, God will be jealous of you!"
Tao Yushu snorted, "You know how to talk nonsense!"
"Okay, then I will give you a serious analysis." Lin Chaoyang said.
Tao Yushu immediately became serious, "Say."
"Actually, the award evaluation has a lot to do with the social atmosphere at the time, the organizer's philosophy, and the artistic trend of thought.
Let’s take the West Berlin Film Festival as an example. It’s true that Yimou is talented, but without Hader, he might not have won the Golden Bear so easily, and it might have taken a few more years.
A very important reason why "Parasite" was able to defeat "Cinema Paradiso" at the Cannes Film Festival is that film festival awards often focus on artistic criticism, which is the strength of "Parasite".
As for the Oscars, the business atmosphere is even heavier.
Nowadays, the United States has a prosperous economy, a strong military, and developed culture, and the entire society is singing and dancing. "Parasite", which aims to criticize class divisions and the opposition between rich and poor, is destined to suffer from them.
On the other hand, "Cinema Paradiso" tells the themes of growth, family, and friendship, and is completely in line with the American aesthetics of this period. It is reasonable to win the award."
At this point, Lin Chaoyang paused and then concluded: "So, the failure of "Parasite" is a crime other than war."
"That makes sense." Tao Yushu's tone was a little arrogant, and he was obviously still a little unwilling.
"It's just an award. The three major European universities have won so many awards. Do you still care about this one?" Lin Chaoyang consoled him.
"I haven't taken this before."
Lin Chaoyang laughed and said, "Do you think this is stamp collecting?"
The couple chatted and laughed, and Tao Yushu was in a better mood. She always showed the strong woman side.
Yesterday, when "Parasite" failed to win the award, she also acted calmly and did not show any low mood in front of outsiders.
Only when facing Lin Chaoyang will he reveal his fragile and soft side.
Originally, she planned to wait until "Parasite" won the award and was released before returning to Hong Kong. Now after talking to Lin Chaoyang on the phone, she felt a little homesick, so she simply arranged her work and flew back to Hong Kong.
After being away for more than a month, Tao Yushu felt extremely warm when she returned home and enjoyed family happiness. Unfortunately, this happiness did not last long.
"Where is Yan Yan?" After dinner, Tao Yushu asked Lin Chaoyang after not seeing his daughter for a while.
"I don't know, it seems to be in your cloakroom, right?"
"Yan Yan! Yan Yan!"
Tao Yushu looked at his daughter's name and walked to the cloakroom. Sure enough, he found his daughter's figure in the corner of the cloakroom. She was squatting on the ground and trying hard to put on her shoes.
But she was not wearing her own children's shoes, but Tao Yushu's high heels.
"Those are mom's shoes, they are too big for you."
Tao Yushu just squatted down to support his daughter when he saw her little face and was stunned on the spot.
Yan Yan was seen with a pair of panda eyes, his lips were painted red, like a bloody mouth, and he was looking at her with confused eyes.
"Mom~" Yan Yan called out and asked, "Am I good-looking?"
Don't be angry, don't be angry, there will be no one to take care of you when you get angry!
Tao Yushu recited this silently in his mind and managed to squeeze out a smile.
He took off Yan Yan's shoes and led her to the bathroom to wash her face.
When passing by Lin Chaoyang, he laughed heartlessly when he saw this scene.
After a while, my daughter came out of the bathroom and turned into that cute and well-behaved little angel again.
Lin Chaoyang wanted to hug her, but Tao Yushu looked away.
"Who asked you to wear my shoes?"
"You also learned how to put on makeup? Did your aunt teach you?"
Tao Yushu stayed at home for two days, during which the Hong Kong media's enthusiasm for paying attention to the Academy Awards subsided and began to report on another important event that they had previously ignored.
The films invested by Lam Pictures have become huge hits in the U.S. market!
"The Turtles" has been in theaters in the United States for three weeks, and its cumulative box office has exceeded US$120 million!
The investment of Lin's Pictures in "The Turtles" was very secretive and had never been made public. It was only after the box office hit that Tao Yushu instructed people in the company to report the news to the media, in order to naturally benefit Lin's Pictures.
Industry creates momentum.
In the current Xiangjiang film industry, there is civil strife in Xinyi City, and there is no way to save it. Jiahe's strength is still strong.
However, Sammo Hung, whom they relied on in the early years, could no longer keep up with the trend of the times. Cheng Long was the only one left, and he was gradually unable to cope with the aggressive foundation of Lam Pictures.
Now that the news of Lin's Pictures' overseas investment explosion has come, it is undoubtedly bad news for these two old rivals.
But this incident is good news for ordinary people in Xiangjiang.
Hong Kong's film companies can not only show off their prestige locally and compete in markets such as the Bay Islands and Southeast Asia, but they can also occupy a place in a powerful film country like the United States.
Many people in Xiangjiang inevitably felt a burst of pride when they saw this news.
Amid the media enthusiasm, some entertainment media focused on the sales of Lam Pictures' works, while some financial media focused on the performance of Lam Pictures.
For example, the Hong Kong Economic Journal predicted in their news report that Lam Pictures' revenue this year may exceed HK$1.6 billion, 75% of which comes from overseas markets.
The Hong Kong Economic Journal said that "The Turtles" is certainly the key to Lam Pictures' revenue surge this year, but its active expansion of overseas markets in the past two years also contributed a lot.
They specifically mentioned in the article Dalu Pictures, an overseas subsidiary established by Lam Pictures in Japan.
In less than a year and a half since its establishment, Dalu Pictures, in addition to being responsible for the distribution of Lam Pictures films in Japan, has also participated in the investment and production of 6 Japanese local films, and has gained a lot.
In the article, the Hong Kong Economic Journal also talked about the listing opportunities of Lam Pictures.
The Hong Kong Economic Journal believes that Hong Kong films are at their peak at this time, and Lam Pictures should strive to be listed within two years.
Finally, the Hong Kong Economic Journal also emphasized:
The proportion of traditional foreign markets such as Bay Island and Southeast Asia in Lam's Pictures' revenue is constantly decreasing, which is conducive to Lam's Pictures' better transformation into a company that spans the upstream and downstream of the film industry, with international vision and influence.
The giant of the film industry.
The "Hong Kong Economic Journal" report caused a lot of discussion in Hong Kong. In the eyes of many wealthy businessmen, the film business is unlikely to be on the table.
One reason is that the Chinese have despised the art of drama since ancient times, and the other reason is that the plates are too small.
In the 1980s, the scale of the Hong Kong film market continued to expand, but it was only HK$1 billion. Counting the overseas market, the total was only HK$3 to 4 billion, which was less than one-twentieth of the market value of Cheung Kong Holdings.
Cheung Kong Holdings is just one of many real estate companies in Hong Kong.
But this year, Lam Pictures gave everyone a big surprise, with revenue exceeding HK$1.5 billion, which is enough to support a listed company with a market value of several billion in the Hang Seng Index market.
So much so that Liang Botao of Peregrine called Tao Yushu the day after seeing the report. The first thing he asked was: "Mrs. Lin, are you interested in listing Lam Pictures?"
At this time, Tao Yushu had just landed in Shanghai. Listening to Liang Botao's words, she did not express her position. She just said: "We will talk when I get back."
Hearing this, Liang Botao couldn't help but feel happy. He didn't refuse because he had an idea.
"Okay, then I'll wait for you to return to Xiangjiang."
After Tao Yushu arrived in Shanghai, he stayed at the Peace Hotel, where the Wandao Film Delegation who arrived in the mainland the day before yesterday also stayed.
After hanging up the phone, she said sorry to Xie Jin and Yu Benzheng standing aside, and then continued the topic.
Xie Jin lamented: "'Parasite' is indeed a pity. This may be the closest a Chinese film gets to an Oscar."
The fact that "Parasite" is competing for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is not only being watched in Hong Kong, but also in the mainland media and film industry.
Two days ago, when reporters from New H News Agency reported the results of the Oscar awards back to China, the domestic film industry couldn't help but sigh.
Over the years, due to the influence of public opinion, the status of the Academy Awards in China has surpassed the three major international film festivals in Europe. Everyone will put on a filter when mentioning this award.
"It's a pity. But it's the icing on the cake after all. As a film company, we can't expect to die from one movie.
Being able to consistently produce high-quality, high-level movies is the way to win.”
Yu Pinzheng praised: "Mr. Tao's words are golden words."
Then he talked about his contacts with the Bay Island Film Delegation in the past two days.
As early as January this year, the Bay Island film industry initiated the establishment of the first cross-strait cultural exchange group, the China Cross-Strait Film and Art Association. The founder was Qiu Fusheng, the boss of University Company and Era International.
Hou Hsiao-hsien's world-famous "City of Sadness" was invested by this person.
After the establishment of the China Cross-Strait Film and Art Association, it acted as a vanguard for cultural exchanges and planned this visit of the Bay Island film delegation.
Qiu Fusheng was extremely ambitious for Hong Kong and the mainland film market. Later, after he successfully bet on Hou Hsiao-hsien, he set his sights on Zhang Yimou.
It also successfully invested in Zhang Yimou's two works, "Raise the Red Lantern" and "Alive", which provided considerable help to Zhang Yimou's early career development.
Now Zhang Yimou is involved with Lin's Pictures, but Qiu Fusheng's ambitions for Hong Kong and the mainland film market have not changed.
Yesterday, Yu Pinzheng revealed the information about "Red Cliff War" to him, and he immediately showed strong interest.
Qiu Fusheng's university company was one of Lin's collaborators in Wandao. They all knew each other somewhat, and Tao Yushu had no objections to his wanting to participate in "Red Cliff War".
"If the two sides of the Taiwan Strait are jointly invested and produced, it will be a good start, and it can also be regarded as an important achievement in cross-Strait cultural exchanges.
"Tao Yushu said.
Yu Pinzheng pressed his fingers hard on the coffee table, his expression a little excited, "That's right, we think so too."
Tao Yushu advocated contacting China Film Group again, but this time she did not contact Ding Daming again, but directly contacted Comrade Ai, the head of the Radio, Film and Television Department.
Comrade Ai was born in Shuimu University and was transferred to the Radio, Film and Television Department a few years ago. Tao Yushu found connections and easily contacted him.
After listening to Tao Yushu's explanation of the situation, Comrade Ai paid great attention to it, but because it involved issues involving the two sides of the Taiwan Strait and three places, he did not dare to specialize in it. He went to the particularly powerful Mr. Liao to report the situation, and successfully gained support.
Comrade Ai told Tao Yushu the news, and then said that he had a heavy workload and handed the matter over to Comrade Tian, ​​the newly appointed deputy of the Radio, Film and Television Department.
After such communication, the "Red Cliff War" project was officially approved.
The director of the film is confirmed to be Xie Jin, with a total investment of 30 million yuan, jointly invested by Lin's Pictures, Xiangjiang Times Pictures, China Film Co-Production Company, and Shanghai Superstar Pictures.
Among them, Lin's Pictures invested 18 million yuan, Xiangjiang Times Pictures invested 5 million yuan, China Film Co-Production Company invested 5 million yuan, and Shanghai Superstar Pictures invested 2 million yuan.
Xiangjiang Times Pictures is Qiu Fusheng's Times International. Nowadays, the Bay Island does not allow cross-strait co-production of movies, so he can only participate in investment in this way.
Shanghai Superstar Pictures is a subsidiary of Shanghai Film Studio. The nominal general manager is Chi Xidao, the executive deputy director of Shanghai Film and Television, but in fact it is Xie Jin who has the final say.
Superstar Pictures has independent financial accounting and is responsible for its own profits and losses. It is the first domestic film industry entity with relatively independent production rights. It is also a bold attempt by Xie Jin to market the film.
The total investment of "Red Cliff War" was 30 million yuan, setting a new record in Chinese film history.
Chapter completed!