Hong Kong Stubborn - Chapter 138

Entering the Spring Festival in 1998, the start was uneventful.

The “One-stop Transport” starring Ge Xing and the “Who Am I” starring Long Ge are competing with each other. Xinbao Cinemas and Jiahe Cinemas jointly dominate the box office market, while Oriental Cinemas continues to shrink in size and become short. It has been reduced to 9 theaters in half a year.

Brother Xing was still filming for Yongsheng this time. He runs Xinghui Overseas and he has a somewhat Luo Junyan style. He would rather not make a new film a year, and he has to think carefully about the problems he encounters.

“The God of Cookery” only sold more than 30 million Hong Kong dollars at the box office in other cities. This is also one of the reasons Xingge stopped, especially in Taiwan only sold a poor 5.9 million Taiwan dollars. The cost of Xingge’s own filming is not low. If the market in other cities is not selling well, the film can only maintain a breakeven situation.

But fortunately, the crisis hits. In order to keep Xiangjiang large and small production companies alive, the cinema chains in other cities have adjusted their box office share to 55%, and the distribution companies’ box office share ratios for distribution to other cities have also been reduced. It’s 10%.

Xinghui Overseas can still get more than 10 million Hong Kong dollars, but Snow Knight can only get more than 3 million Hong Kong dollars for the issuance. The issuance link is squeezed by the upstream and downstream, and the income is shrinking further.

So don’t care about Luo Junyan’s popularity in Xiangjiang, if he comes back to film, there will still be people asking him at a high price. He is the only local actor who can compete with Long Ge in the Asian market, especially in the Japanese and Korean markets. Luo Junyan is unreasonably popular. You really can’t do anything about the audience.

Galaxy Image finally grasped the pulse of the market, and the films it produced became profitable. “The Dark Flower” painted in January, this film starring Tony Leung and Qingyun Liu has a unique style and sold 9.56 million Hong Kong dollars at the box office.

Du Qifeng knew this would happen, even if he borrowed money, he would make up the support fund. The second wave of the financial turmoil has already started, and there is no movie investor in the Hong Kong market. Under this situation, the role of the 20 million Hong Kong dollar support fund is incalculable.

Luo Junyan is already studying the script of “Skyscraper”, and he doesn’t need Brother Cong to make a budget. He knows that the investment in this film is at least 50 million Hong Kong dollars. The entire film requires a lot of models and special effects to be produced. If it takes a year to shoot, the production cost of 50 million is definitely a conservative estimate.

After the Spring Festival, Luo Junyan still did not make up his mind to shoot “Skyscrapers”. But he has already faxed the script to Gemini Digital. First, he needs to determine how much money is needed for CG special effects, and he also wants to find someone to cooperate with him.

Years later, both “One-stop Transport” and “Who Am I” were drawn. The final box office of “One-stop Transport” was 27.73 million Hong Kong dollars, and the final box office of “Who Am I” was 38.85 million Hong Kong dollars.

For the comeback, Luo Junyan had to be more cautious, which is likely to be the result of this year’s box office champion. The HK$38.85 million seems to be a lot, but it can only prove that the Hong Kong film market has not stabilized. Luo Junyan dare not really compare himself to Brother Long. There is no guarantee for the box office of his new film.

When Gemini Digital returned the quotation, Bian Sicong’s budget was that the production cost would be 60 million Hong Kong dollars, and this could not invite big-name celebrities to join. Just when Luo Junyan was about to veto the “Skyscraper” project, Cong Ge took the initiative to request a part of the investment in his private name, which he had discussed with Luo Meizi.

Although Bian Sicong did not become an artist, his love for film and television art has not changed in the slightest. As for making money or losing money, Bian Sicong felt that it was not that important. Although he could not inherit any property except for the villa, the loss of 10 million yuan was still acceptable to the couple.

Luo Junyan suddenly felt that he was a bit petty, in addition to real money and silver, in fact, through such a film, you can get more. If “Skyscraper” can be successful, at least the Gemini digital special effects company will reach the top of the Asian film special effects industry, and only the future is the most important.

Luo Junyan excitedly shook Bian Sicong’s hand on the spot, and asked: “Brother-in-law, how much can you and the old sister vote?”

Bian Sicong also made up his mind. He stammered and said: “10 million, I’ll admit it if I lose it all.”

Luo Junyan thought about it and said, “Adding all the promotional expenses, we calculate it based on an investment of HK$7,500. Brother-in-law, you invest 20 million. This year, Snowman Century Entertainment will stop foreign investment. Anyway, the probability of investing in local movies at a loss is increasing. High, it’s better to concentrate on shooting your own film.”

Bian Sicong didn’t expect that Luo Junyan was still so shameless. He took out 10 million Hong Kong dollars from other people’s pockets, and he was just like a okay person. But for this reason, Luo Meizi was used to her younger brother again, and Bian Sicong could only recognize it.

In this way, the “Skyscraper” project with a total investment of 75 million Hong Kong dollars came back to life. Snowman Century Entertainment invested 55 million Hong Kong dollars plus production, which accounted for 80% of the investment, and Bian Sicong invested 20 million Hong Kong dollars, which accounted for 20% of the investment. This is already a great concession for brother-in-law, otherwise the production could not account for such a small proportion.

Subsequently, the contract value signed by Snowman Century Entertainment and Gemini Digital Special Effects was 45 million Hong Kong dollars. Without modifying the script, the floating ratio of the actual settlement amount cannot exceed 5% of the contract amount.

Gemini digital special effects can make a net profit of more than 12 million Hong Kong dollars with this single order. However, “Skyscraper” is indeed a severe test for Gemini Digital. This work is bound to be a masterpiece of Gemini CG technology.

Bian Sicong went to prepare the crew, props, etc., Luo Junyan gave the actor’s job bag to Huo Wenxi’s Yingxue Royal Entertainment Brokerage Company. And Luo Junyan himself is going to pull advertising sponsorships. That’s right, he doesn’t know how to make money back from the box office investment.

Brother Cheng accompanied Luo Junyan for half a month. During the financial turmoil, advertising sponsors were not easy to find. In the end, I managed to find Motorola mobile phones, Mercedes-Benz cars, it fashion, McDonald’s, the Gaddi French restaurant of the Peninsula Hotel, Romanitica red wine and an international chain of florists agreed to sponsor the placement of advertisements, and they all got back 6.3 million. The Hong Kong dollar sponsorship fee disappointed Luo Junyan.

Brother Cheng really has nothing to say. Isn’t it enough to be able to fool into this? The bosses and their family members are all arranged by you to play the role of soy sauce, and you are still very happy. How much money is saved, you really can’t count it?

“Skyscraper” tells that on Christmas Eve, a special Christmas Eve banquet will be held in an 88-story Gemini skyscraper in the center of Xiangjiang. When the banquet was going on, the president of the real estate company used a helicopter to create a Christmas Eve snow scene, which caused a catastrophic fire.

In the fire, the president of the real estate company, the staff in the skyscraper, the chef, the sunset lover, government officials, pregnant women, the cleaning aunt, the rich girl, Christians, the fire chief, the fire chief and other figures experienced the test of life and death together. And in the process of escaping and when faced with extremely cruel situations, the true faces of various human natures and the injustices of classes revealed.

Luo Junyan plays the leading role, a single father who raises his daughter alone, and is also the captain of the skyscraper property department. His long-awaited heroine is the restaurant manager of the Jidishi restaurant in the skyscraper. She is both beautiful and capable.

The other characters have different roles, but they are all quite brilliant, especially the fire captain who is comparable to the actor’s role.

This time, all roles were recommended by Yingxue Royal Entertainment Agency, and Luo Junyan was the last to determine the candidates. The remuneration paid is in accordance with market standards. If there are particularly suitable artists, the remuneration can be increased as appropriate. In short, the production company and the brokerage company are normal cooperative negotiations and do not engage in internal communication.

The heroine Huo Wenxi recommended is the new-generation Japanese actress Matsu Takako, and the fire chief recommended South Korean actor Xue Jingqiu. If Cheng brother sees Xue Jingqiu, he will definitely not be able to shut his mouth. The role in “Skyscrapers” turned out to be him. acted.

Other actors recommended by Huo Wenxi are from Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Southeast Asia. Luo Junyan didn’t know how Huo Wenxi signed these people, maybe it was a movie contract or the official contract made by Xiangjiang, and he didn’t want to interfere with Huo Wenxi’s decision-making. This girl is much more difficult than Hu Xin, so it’s better not to Take the initiative to provoke.

Language is a problem, but the impact is not great. After these actors auditioned, Luo Junyan was still quite satisfied. This is a bit close to Long Ge’s routine, the big production is international, and it is uncomfortable not to add foreign actors.

In any case, the remuneration of these artists is still reasonable, equivalent to the remuneration of the second-tier downstream stars in Xiangjiang. If the image, acting skills and price are OK, then directly sign the contract.

Among them, the president of the self-righteous real estate company was starred by Liang Jiahui, and Luo Junyan took a fancy to his performance in “Black Gold”. Brother Jiahui gave Luo Junyan a lot of face, and the remuneration was charged according to the guest role, which was the favor he helped out of the underworld control in the first place.

Sister Army went to various places in Asia to make field trips to choose a location for the theater. The two daughters could only be taken care of by the older sister. This time filming “Skyscrapers” is a long and arduous job. Luo Junyan specially invited Du Qifeng to serve as the executive director. He does not need to be present all the time, but he needs to be on top when it is critical.

On March 16, the crew of the comeback “Skyscraper” held a **** worship ceremony. After two and a half years, Luo Junyan finally stood in front of the camera again.

Luo Junyan concentrates on shooting, and is indifferent to outside matters. No one from the news reporters bothered him at this time. There are more explosive news worth following and reporting. For example, Jiahe boss Zou Wenhuai invested hundreds of millions of Hong Kong dollars in the property market, and news of various celebrities bankrupted due to investment is endless.

The Asian financial crisis has intensified. After a sharp rebound in the rescue, the Hong Kong stock market fell below 9,000 points in January. The downward pressure has become increasingly obvious. The financial markets of other Asian countries are even more bloody.

The overall economic situation in Asia in 1998 was much more severe than in 1997, and the storm has spread from the financial sector to other fields. The Hong Kong real estate market has completely entered the rhythm of a collapse, and other Asian countries are similar, and Southeast Asian countries are even worse, sinking deeper and deeper in the mire vortex.

The only thing Luo Junyan asked the old lady to do before the shooting started was to help sell the yacht. One was because the style and function were a bit old, and the other was because the economic situation had become like this, and unnecessary luxury consumables could be dumped. Just throw it out.

In fact, the more important reason is that the two daughters ran to the yacht pretending to be the sun. Luo Junyan is most disgusted with girls with princess disease. He can’t control other girls in their 20s. He has to educate his daughter strictly from an early age. The Luo family will never be a **** wealthy, nor does it need to train pretending celebrities.

As a result, Luo Junyan’s selling yachts at this time also became a headline in the newspaper.

The media have speculated that Luo Junyan suffered heavy losses after the Nanhua Daily battle. There may be other investments that have been locked up and need to sell yachts for turnover. Some even speculated that Luo Junyan is not far from bankruptcy. Luo Junyan really suffered a heavy loss. The yacht was only sold for 4.5 million Hong Kong dollars. This is still early for him, otherwise no one will bid after the year.

This financial turmoil is not entirely beneficial to Luo Junyan. The global land price declines, and the land tax that needs to be paid every year will drop sharply. He always counts only tax expenditures, not devaluation losses, because the three private properties certainly cannot be sold out. Even if the price rises to the sky, he will not take up a cent advantage. This is also Kuang Meiyun has always sneered at him. s reason.

In early April, the “King of Killers” produced by Yongsheng was released, and the box office at the time of the painting was 10.29 million Hong Kong dollars. This is Jet Li’s last film before leaving Hong Kong for the United States. His early achievements of 10 million may make Jet Li take away a trace of regret.

Immediately, the listed company Jiahe Entertainment was reported to be debt-ridden news.

Brother Cheng mentioned it to Luo Junyan. He is focusing on making a new film, and this kind of thing will definitely not take care of him. Moreover, Jiahe has shot so many street-smashing films in recent years, and Longge films have been a hit, but the production costs are sky-high, and the company’s losses are normal.

Especially when Ho Guanchang, the No. 2 player of Jiahe, passed away last year, Jiahe’s stall was even more difficult to clean up. He Guanchang is the same role as Brother Cong, and it is very important to Jiahe. Zou Wenhuai is no longer as brave as he used to be, and now it is even more difficult to support.

It was not accidental that the negative news of Jiahe came out. In the subsequent bidding for the land of the Tseung Kwan O Film and Television Base in Kowloon, Shaw Brothers and China Star and other six entertainment companies drove Jiahe out of the game. Such a huge loss is beyond the reach of Jiahe, which is a failure in the strategic layout.

Jiahe originally rented the land in Tseung Kwan O and invested a huge amount of money to build its own studio. As a result, the land was taken back by the government. After many years, Shaw finally avenged his revenge. This shows how much Six Uncles hate Zou Wenhuai.

Luo Junyan has developed a defensive heart against these savvy wealthy men. A simple exposure of public opinion may bite a big piece of meat from you. He is really good at calculating. There are no friends and enemies in the market. Luo Junyan always feels that Yongsheng and Jiahe are close to each other as a family, but when they are behind the knife, they are not soft at all.

On the contrary, Luo Junyan has strengthened his determination to support his wife’s construction of ASC theaters, which are the throat link in the chain of the film industry and must be in his own hands.

No one is reliable in the shopping mall. If you are lame, you will not be able to run fast.