Volume 4 Crazy Growth 2017 Chapter 858 The Time Is Ripe
"Hello, hello. I'll just call you Dongsheng. Although this is the first time we meet, I've heard a lot about you. I can't help but sigh, it's great to be young..."
The old man was very easy-going. He shook hands and talked with Zhou Dongsheng very enthusiastically. Then he looked at Zhou Dongsheng's hesitant expression and seemed to remember something. He slapped his head and said.
"Look at my memory. I really can't accept my age. My memory is not good when I get older. Anyway, I am the producer of this movie. My name is Lai Peikang..."
At first glance, the name sounds familiar, but I couldn't remember it for a while. After all, strictly speaking, Zhou Dongsheng can only be considered half an insider.
However, Zhou Dongsheng still had some understanding of the word "producer". Besides, he was able to train Director Guo and Director Wu to obey him. Who was this old man?
Zhou Dongsheng naturally knew what was going on.
"Then I will... call you Mr. Kang, it sounds more friendly..." Zhou Dongsheng originally wanted to call him Mr. Lai, but his quick reaction immediately realized the ambiguity of this title and changed his words immediately.
As for basic skills like hitting the snake with a stick, they are naturally no problem for Zhou Dongsheng, after all, he is too familiar with them.
Although it has been a while since I used it, I still cannot forget this traditional craft. It is just that I have not used it properly, so I am a little rusty...
"Okay, okay, I've been wanting to get to know a young man like you for a long time. Although there's a big age difference between us, I think we have a lot in common when it comes to movies..."
Old Kang said with a smile, exuding a bookish air, as if he were a scholar studying something.
But to a certain extent, this is true. After all, understanding the world is knowledge, and understanding human nature is writing.
"That's great. It's precisely because I have a passion for movies that I decided to get involved in this field after I had some financial resources. I didn't expect that I would hit it off with Director Wu..."
Zhou Dongsheng said this in a high-sounding manner, and Master Wu beside him also chimed in at the right time: "That's true. Although Dongsheng was only a guest star, he was still very serious during the filming and suffered a lot..."
"In this respect, it is indeed different from those who have connections." Master Wu made a harmless joke to liven up the atmosphere.
Zhou Dongsheng said unhappily, "Thank you so much, you are really good at praising people!"
Amidst the jokes, the atmosphere became much more harmonious , and after Mr. Kang pointed out his identity as a "producer", Directors Wu and Guo understood what he meant and tacitly did not mention his identity again.
Afterwards, the group of four walked inside chatting and laughing. As the undisputed protagonists of this celebration banquet, they naturally became the focus of the whole venue, and countless people saluted in their direction.
But without exception, no one chose to take the initiative to come forward and disturb them. Needless to say, why they had such a good sense of proportion.
Afterwards, the group came to the main table and sat down. Although this celebration banquet invited many people from the scene to participate due to courtesy, especially a movie, which involves many companies in both the front and back of the stage, from production to distribution.
In addition, these companies have different ideas, and everyone wants to bring one or two people with them to seize this rare opportunity and lay the foundation for future cooperation.
Although it is true that the entertainment industry is a place of fame and fortune, it also faces the situation of too many people and too little meat. No matter how many projects there are every year, there will not be enough to go around.
Among these many projects, whether it is a TV series or a movie, only a few can actually make money, and even fewer can achieve a winner-takes-all success like "Wolf Warrior 2".
Therefore, if you want to make money in this world of fame and fortune, you must naturally seize any opportunity...
And these people at the main table are undoubtedly "opportunities" themselves.
However, even at the same celebration banquet, some distances are still out of reach.
As soon as the group sat down, Master Wu was the first to apologize, "I'm sorry, please chat with Dongsheng first, I'll go and entertain the guests..."
"It's okay, just go and do your own thing. I'm here today mainly to deal with young people..." Mr. Kang didn't care and waved his hand.
Then he turned around and chatted with Zhou Dongsheng with great interest, "To be honest, when I was working on the movie "Wolf Warrior 2", I thought it might be a bit stimulating to the market, but it was somewhat unexpected to achieve such a result..."
"But, Dongsheng, you seem to be very confident ..." said Mr. Kang happily.
Zhou Dongsheng's expression did not change after hearing this, as if he did not hear any hidden meaning. Instead, he continued to talk: "Although I don't have any special abilities, I have always been very confident in my judgment of people..."
"Investment, in the final analysis, is all about investing in people. After all, projects are dead, but talents are alive. Only talents can determine the success or failure of a project. Director Wu once gambled everything he had on the filming of Wolf Warrior..."
"This alone is enough to give investors confidence. In fact, with the success of the previous film, Director Wu has no shortage of investment for his second film. It was only after my repeated requests that Director Wu reluctantly gave me the opportunity to participate..."
"For this, I gave my screen debut!"
Zhou Dongsheng's well-reasoned and well-founded arguments are undoubtedly very convincing, and he speaks directly from his heart.
"To have achieved such remarkable achievements at such a young age, he is indeed no ordinary person. His ability to identify people and make good use of them is truly second to none..."
Mr. Kang was generous with his words of praise. It may not be difficult to know people, but the key is obviously in using them, just like the unity of knowledge and action. Knowing is one thing, but taking action is another.
"Xiao Wu has a previous achievement to refer to, but what about Xiao Guo? Dongsheng, your investment in this movie is much greater than that in Wolf Warrior 2. 200 million is not a small amount..."
Mr. Kang changed the subject, seemingly intending to test Zhou Dongsheng.
This also made Zhou Dongsheng somewhat confused about Kang Lao's intention. It couldn't be that he went to so much trouble just to entertain him, right?
Then maybe there is a deeper meaning in this that you can't imagine. Since you can't think of it, just don't think about it. Don't worry about it. Just say what you think.
After all, a person of integrity has nothing to fear from his own shadow, and an honest person does not need to speak in secret.
Listening to what Mr. Kang said, Guo Fan on the side couldn't help but prick up his ears, and was curious about what answer Zhou Dongsheng would give.
Although he was full of gratitude towards Zhou Dongsheng, the financial sponsor, it did not hinder Director Guo's curiosity.
Zhou Dongsheng showed his signature bright smile. In this result-oriented world, as long as the result is right, no matter how bizarre the process is, it is irrelevant...
Otherwise, history is written by the victors?
For Zhou Dongsheng, who already knew the result, it was enough to just add a reasonable process, just as the victor writes history.
"There's no particular reason. Maybe Director Guo is just as stubborn as Director Wu, or maybe someone has to do something. Domestic science fiction films are really an unattainable mountain..."
"But no matter what, someone has to climb. Putting all that aside, there is one most important reason in my opinion, and that is the time has come."
Zhou Dongsheng spoke softly, but his words revealed a resounding certainty that shocked Elder Kang.
"Oh? What do you mean?" Then he put on an interested expression, waiting for Zhou Dongsheng's next words.
"For our generation of young people who were born under the red flag and grew up in the spring breeze, perhaps the greatest fortune is to witness this turbulent period and the country's growing strength step by step..."
"It is precisely because of this background that the cultural highland of film has sufficient support. After all, although art is higher than life, it is ultimately derived from life."
"Just like the movie Wolf Warriors 2 itself, the reason why it can be so appealing is that the story itself is very convincing, and there are enough facts in reality to support it, which can make the audience believe it..."
"If we go back a few years, I think this movie would definitely not resonate so strongly, and it would not make the audience so happy..."
"On a stage like film, where the soft power of cultural output is competed, it is ultimately based on a subject with sufficient hard power to be persuasive enough."
"But obviously, we are still a little lacking in persuasiveness in objective facts, otherwise there wouldn't be so many doubting voices, unlike on the other side of the ocean, where everyone was convinced when First Blood was filmed decades ago..."
Zhou Dongsheng spoke eloquently and casually, and Mr. Kang listened with great interest, nodding from time to time. These views were naturally not uncommon to them.
But there is undoubtedly something new about hearing it from a young person.
"We have to eat our meals one bite at a time and take our roads one step at a time. We have only just made our own Wolf Warrior and have just caught up with the level of others 30 years ago. However, the enthusiastic feedback from the market is enough to show that the audience has been eager for this for a long time..."
"The time has come, and the market has become active. It is not difficult to predict that the film market will usher in an unprecedented blowout period in the future. Whether it is box office or works, they will start to be released in large quantities. This is a carnival for Chinese films..."
"But if we want to truly have the right to speak, it's obviously not enough to just rely on learning from the barbarians to defeat them. We have to come up with our own things, and in terms of the carriers of cultural output..."
"Science fiction is the only field that is under great competition. It is not surprising that we can make 'First Blood', but if we can make 'Star Wars', it will be really exciting..."
"Just as Liu Cixin is the first Asian writer to break the Western monopoly in the field of science fiction, I think it's time for us to make some efforts in the field of film..."
"I see hope in Director Guo, and I am willing to pay for it. After all, hope is so precious!"
Zhou Dongsheng opened up and talked freely, speaking out what was on his mind without hesitation.
The pleasure of expressing one's true feelings made Zhou Dongsheng feel refreshed. As a "veteran", this was indeed his inner voice and emotion.
Especially when considering the future and the height Zhou Dongsheng is at now, he has more ideas in mind, so he takes this opportunity to speak his mind out.
"Good, good, good! It's really amazing!" Old Kang said three good words in a row. The way he looked at Zhou Dongsheng changed, and he couldn't help but look up to this young man.
"Young people like you are our hope," Mr. Kang said earnestly, and then changed the subject.
"It seems that we will have many opportunities to cooperate in the future. As a producer, I have a lot of film projects on my hands and I am in need of start-up capital. I came to the right place today and found an investor..."
Mr. Kang said this in a playful tone, as if he had caught a sucker.
However, Zhou Dongsheng was not stupid. He realized something in a flash. If Mr. Kang's identity was as he thought, then there would be no shortage of funds.
There are definitely a lot of people who are willing to give money, and you may not even be able to get a number in line.
Precisely because of this, obviously not everyone can pay this money. There may be some considerations involved, such as stance.
Isn’t this a disguised way of “keeping the wealth within the family”?
Zhou Dongsheng suddenly understood what was going on here, and couldn't help but chuckle, "Of course, I hit it off with Mr. Kang today, and we had a great conversation. If you want to talk about the cooperation, Mr. Kang, please let me know. I won't say no."
"But... if you could let me pick one, that would be great. After all, you know that I have some confidence in my own vision..."
Looking at Zhou Dongsheng's bargaining face, Mr. Kang couldn't help but laugh, "Okay, how about asking you to be a special consultant? From now on, all these movies will be screened by you first..."
"That's not impossible. If there is a job offer, I can consider going ashore to rest for a while. It's tiring to splash around in the sea for so long..."
Zhou Dongsheng said as a matter of course, the end of the universe is indeed the system!
This kind of behavior of taking advantage of others made the smile on Kang's face even more intense. Only then did he feel that Zhou Dongsheng in front of him looked a little more like a young man, not so old-fashioned.
I have to say, once you like this person, you will like everything about him.
"Okay, but I'm afraid that I dare to give it but you don't dare to accept it. After all, we have strict requirements on personal work style..." Mr. Kang joked cheerfully.
Zhou Dongsheng was choked up and couldn't help but say angrily: "Ahem, well... I need to think about it again..."
