Nobody knows movies better than me

Chapter 52 Popular Figures

Zhang Jun, who comes from the future, has experienced an era where a single movie could easily gross billions at the box office, so he naturally wouldn't think that "Little Miss Sunshine" had a box office of over 40 million.

But he doesn't think so, though others might not think so.

A graduate of Tsinghua University, at the age of 22, directed his first feature film and achieved this box office success.

If it weren't for the stark reality before your eyes, people would think you're out of your mind if you told them.

But the reality is that Zhang Jun's age and achievements speak for themselves, leaving them no choice but to believe him.

Thus, a simple idea based on facts was born: Zhang Jun's future prospects are limitless.

For actors who lack roles, especially good ones, someone like Zhang Jun is much more appealing than those famous directors; his shows immediately become popular.

It's fair to say that, aside from Hong Kong and Taiwanese stars who might be difficult to invite, mainland actor Zhang Jun can now invite whomever he wants.

Ultimately, there are very few directors these days who can make commercial films and achieve success; there are only a handful. This highlights Zhang Jun's rarity.

His recent film, "Little Miss Sunshine," has even become a teaching material for film analysis by the directing department of Beijing Film Academy, because Zhang Jun's film is a rare road movie in Chinese cinema.

Moreover, once filmed, it became a model of a road movie.

Of course, the proud directing department of Beijing Film Academy prioritizes criticism over learning.

Many film distributors from Japan, South Korea, and Southeast Asia have approached Guanzhi Pictures, wanting to purchase the copyrights, which will be another source of revenue for the company.

Guanzhi Pictures also took this film to the Berlin Film Festival, where it was nominated for the main competition.

Although we are now in an era where commercial films are gradually rising in popularity, Chinese filmmakers still have a strong interest in winning awards abroad.

Otherwise, so many great directors wouldn't have invested in period epics, because "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" won the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar.

Although Zhang Jun personally doesn't care much about awards, Guanzhi Pictures still wants to fight for honors for its star director.

Since neither the Venice Film Festival nor the Cannes Film Festival allows films that have already been screened in their home countries to participate, the Berlin Film Festival becomes the best option.

After being nominated for the main competition, the film attracted the attention of European film distributors, and the sales rights alone brought in more than two million US dollars, which was another source of income.

When the news came back, Zhang Jun was very surprised. Although he came from the future, he had limited knowledge of the three major European film festivals.

After all, by his time, Chinese filmmakers had long lost interest in the so-called three major European film awards.

In his stereotype, only movies that deliberately smear Chinese people, tell stories of national inferiority, and depict brutal systems are favored.

Zhang Jun was indeed overthinking it. These elements are indeed key factors in award selection.

But film distributors don't just look at awards; they also consider whether a film is exciting and of good quality before deciding whether to buy the rights.

The movie "Little Miss Sunshine" was heavily modified by Zhang Jun, making it not only more suitable for Chinese audiences but also in line with the aesthetics of Western audiences.

Road movies are a popular genre there, so it's normal for them to sell the rights.

In addition to the revenue from sales to Japanese, Korean, and Southeast Asian film distributors, the copyright revenue alone reached more than 3000 million RMB.

The key point is that this part doesn't need to be shared with the theaters; it belongs to the production company's revenue.

The film has already generated substantial profits through box office revenue, and the copyright income is pure profit.

However, this part has little to do with Zhang Jun, since he is the director and screenwriter and has already received his share.

To share in these profits, one must become an investor.

Ye Bingcheng naturally knew how important Zhang Jun was to Guanzhi Film Industry. His top priority was to keep Zhang Jun and prevent him from being lured away by greater profits.

So he took it upon himself to personally pay out another million yuan in bonus to Zhang Jun.

Including previous bonuses and film remuneration, Zhang Jun's total income from "Little Miss Sunshine" was 315 million yuan, of which 3 million yuan was tax-free.

Because this part was a gift from Ye Bingcheng in his private capacity, no transaction was involved.

I have to say, it's great to work for such a generous person; they've thought of everything for you.

For a moment, Zhang Jun felt a surge of righteous indignation, a willingness to die for a true friend. So he wrote a lengthy report of over ten thousand words on the development trends of the cinema industry and showed it to Ye Bingcheng.

Running a cinema chain is not easy; there are many pitfalls to be found. Zhang Jun tried his best to write down everything he knew clearly.

How things develop from here depends on Ye Bingcheng's own abilities and the strength of Chengxin Real Estate Group.

After understanding Zhang Jun's current scarcity and popularity, it's easier to understand Wang Jinghua's thoughts. In fact, Wang Jinghua wasn't the only one wanting to poach him; many companies were.

The two CEOs of Huayi Brothers, Wang and Xiao, had long been eyeing him and planned to bring him in to counterbalance the increasingly arrogant Feng Xiaogang.

Little Wang even came up with a wicked and unethical idea, but this plan was blocked by Fan Bingbing.

Fan Pangbing received the instructions from Xiao Wang and immediately told Zhang Jun, asking him what to do.

Zhang Jun was neither flustered nor angry when he learned about this; he felt that this was quite in line with the style of Little Wang.

Zhang Jun's advice to Fan Bingbing was: "Take advantage of the storm that is about to break away from Huayi Brothers, you should also set up your own business, develop on your own, and open your own studio."

Fan Bingbing was taken aback: "Will this work?"

"There's no such thing as 'can't' or 'can't'; you have to take control of your own destiny."

Zhang Jun affirmed, "You have the ability and ambition, why not try developing your own business? What if Young Master Wang makes some more embarrassing requests?"

That's true.

Fan Bingbing recalled that when she first debuted, she had to attend various parties and sell smiles. Now she's used to it and doesn't talk about it, but in her younger, more innocent days, she secretly cried a lot.

But she also understands that if she wants to make it in the entertainment industry, there are some things she has to do and some people she can't afford to offend.

Fan Bingbing hesitated for a moment, wondering whether she should listen to Zhang Jun. After all, these days, it's still quite rare for celebrities to have their own personal studios.

Zhang Jun was aware of Fan Bingbing's hesitation, and he said, "This is a major issue concerning your future career. You can think about it carefully."

Anyway, there shouldn't be any major problems for the time being. Fan Bingbing's hesitation is because she can't bear to part with Huayi Brothers' resources.

But in a few years she will realize that Huayi Brothers' resources are nothing compared to the ever-growing domestic entertainment market.

Filming in Shanghai went very smoothly. After Wang Xueqi left, Fan Wei joined the crew.

Fan Wei, who had worked with Zhang Jun on "Little Miss Sunshine," was familiar with Zhang Jun's professionalism and style, and thus quickly integrated into the crew.

However, the one whose relationship has progressed the most is actually the female lead, Gao Yuanyuan.

Previously, Fan Bingbing had been blocking Zhang Jun, preventing Gao Yuanyuan from getting any opportunities. She originally had no romantic feelings for Zhang Jun and just wanted to focus on filming.

But Fan Bingbing's tense and alarmed demeanor made Gao Yuanyuan very unhappy.

I'm the leading lady, and you're just a supporting character to me. What are you so arrogant about in front of me?

Gao Yuanyuan also knew that Fan Bingbing's arrogance stemmed from her unusual relationship with Zhang Jun, so she had no choice but to suppress her dissatisfaction.

At the same time, she would also think to herself, what would happen if it were her?

Then she suddenly realized that the future looked bright, and Gao Yuanyuan became enthusiastic after Fan Bingbing finished filming.