Chapter 774: The Number One Red-Hot Celebrity

Lu Yan He was actually quite curious about what exactly was going on over at Wu Yang's side regarding the Hexi Film Festival.

What direction Wu Yang had ultimately decided to take the Hexi Film Festival in.

However, at this moment, he had to restrain himself and remain completely detached.

In this matter, he had to maintain his position; he was only responsible for bridging the connection at the beginning, but he had to keep himself out of it, because his status did not allow him to play a role that was too deeply involved in this process.

Otherwise, if the Hexi Film Festival were to really come to China to be held, and his presence were too prominent, it would be very easy for others to think that his stance regarding the film festival was biased.

Then, the favorable situation he currently enjoyed, being vied for by all the major top-tier film festivals, would be shattered.

The favor shown to him by Hollywood and the Academy Awards might not necessarily continue either.

No one wants to "nurture a tiger that will eventually cause trouble."

This month, in addition to Lu Yan He entering the second phase of filming for *Godless*, another film of his also started production.

*Flypaper*, for which he wrote the screenplay.

This film had always been handled by Wan Qingqing as the person in charge of Linghe in North America.

This was also the first Hollywood film produced by Linghe.

The level of attention this film received was far higher than the situation during its initial preparation.

The "Lu Yan He Effect" brought about by *Home Alone* and *Buried* caused the value of his screenplays to soar in Hollywood, and also led the films adapted from his scripts to enter the anticipation lists of major media outlets.

No one dared to say that *Flypaper* wouldn't be the next film to achieve big results with a small budget.

In fact, following the box office success of *Home Alone* and *Buried*, Hollywood had already greenlit several similar projects that aimed to achieve big results with small budgets.

It was just that it remained to be seen what kind of results these projects would ultimately achieve.

Lu Yan He's original intention was not to shift his work focus to Hollywood, but in terms of reality, his presence was basically no weaker than those stars whose focus was in Hollywood.

The film crew of *Godless* was already one of the most watched and anticipated projects in Hollywood right now.

Every day, there were many paparazzi staked out outside the set to take pictures.

This also meant that Lu Yan He would be photographed from time to time, and then appear in various tabloids and media, keeping himself "active" in front of everyone.

Lu Yan He was actually not very accustomed to this rhythm.

He wouldn't be photographed this frequently even in China.

China also didn't have paparazzi who specialized in photographing stars' outings (where they could make money just by snapping a few photos of them going out).

However, others told him that Hollywood stars were all like this, without exception.

Lu Yan He was not used to it, but he could only accept it for now.

What surprised Lu Yan He even more was that the filming of the *Godless* crew could be said to be the best-managed crew he had ever participated in.

The reason Lu Yan He felt this way was because the filming efficiency of *Godless* was very high.

Basically, from the time he arrived on set to the time he left every day, there was almost no time wasted just sitting there; there was no need to wait, and it was rare for a scene to be botched due to objective factors and need to be reshot. Previously, when Lu Yan He was filming, he often encountered technical problems such as a prop being out of place, the lens being out of focus, or coordination errors. Every time such a problem occurred, it needed to be reshot.

During the filming of *Godless*, Lu Yan He would even have a half-day or a full-day break after filming for three or four days.

In the past, Lu Yan He wouldn't have even dared to imagine this—that a major supporting actor like him could have time off in the middle of filming.

This kind of crew management model was truly leading in terms of industrial standards.

That is why it is said that one must go to the most top-tier project teams to take a look; there is really a lot to learn.

If the most top-tier crew management model is used to coordinate a crew, costs can actually be significantly reduced. Just like when Feng Xiaogang filmed *Aftershocks*, it could be filmed with a budget of 20 million—

But this was something only a top-tier director team at Feng Xiaogang's level could achieve.

Compressing the filming days of a movie by even one-third could save a lot of costs.

But *Aftershocks* and *Godless* were different. The *Aftershocks* crew was still a small-scale crew, relatively easier to control. For a large production crew like *Godless* with hundreds of people, achieving such orderliness was really not that easy.

After filming *Wolf Warrior 2*, Wu Jing had said that for the same movie, because of the difference in industrial standards, the cost of him filming a movie was several times that of Hollywood filming a movie; it was very wasteful. But this waste could not be avoided because he didn't know how to avoid it.

This was also why, when Guo Fan was filming *The Wandering Earth 2*, he specifically hired a few university students to do record-keeping on set, just so that when a crowd of people was fighting a chaotic battle, someone could do comprehensive record-keeping, learn lessons, summarize experiences, and provide rich first-hand information for further optimizing crew management later on.

Lu Yan He actually really wanted to delve deep into the management of the *Godless* crew and learn how they operated.

These were all experiences accumulated and optimized by the company Green Valley over decades of film production work.

Originally, Lu Yan He wanted to visit the *Flypaper* set, but the filming location of *Flypaper* was not in the same place as *Godless*.

However, from the preparation and operation process of this project, Wan Qingqing's ability to handle things could be seen.

This project frequently had problems, and almost every day there were new problems to solve, but Wan Qingqing basically never asked for help from the Linghe headquarters; she solved them all with her own ability.

However, when manpower was very insufficient, Wan Qingqing also spoke directly to the company and called Song Jiang over to help.

The two of them started a film project from scratch, and it was a project that was getting bigger and receiving more and more attention; the pressure on them could be imagined.

Chen Ziyan said to Lu Yan He: "After Wan Qingqing finishes this *Flypaper* project, she will truly be able to stand on her own two feet."

Lu Yan He said: "Actually, she has already started to stand on her own two feet now."

Chen Ziyan nodded.

"After the *Flypaper* project is finished and released, she will definitely be targeted by other film companies." Chen Ziyan asked, "Have you thought about her arrangements afterwards?"

Lu Yan He said: "She is actually already the person in charge of Linghe in the North American region. After the *Flypaper* project is finished, we will officially give her this position and a 50% salary increase. What do you think?"

"A 50% salary increase?" Chen Ziyan was a bit surprised. "Her previous salary was already not low. Shouldn't we wait for the box office of *Flypaper* to come out before giving it?"

"If we wait for the box office of *Flypaper* to come out before giving it, wouldn't other companies have already made their move to poach her?"

"That is certainly true, but even so, we are still the most competitive." Chen Ziyan said, "The contract she signed with Linghe already has a one-year non-compete agreement after she becomes a regular employee. Under normal circumstances, if Linghe can provide her with a platform and a high salary, she will not choose to leave."

"First, in my heart, the box office of *Flypaper* will not be bad no matter what; second, compared to giving it late, I prefer giving it early. Giving it late is being wise after the event; giving it early is having a discerning eye for talent." Lu Yan He said, "Third, Linghe has so many projects that need to cooperate with Hollywood companies in North America, and she has fully proven that she has such ability, so what is there to wait for? Anyway, she is already in charge of North America, isn't she?"

Chen Ziyan said: "No, what I mean is, if you give her such a high salary increase before the box office of *Flypaper* achieves success, what if *Flypaper* becomes a box office hit later? Won't you do anything to show appreciation? You have to know one thing: in ancient times, some great generals were eventually rewarded by the emperor to the point where there was nothing left to reward. You should also leave some room for yourself."

Lu Yan He thought about it, and Chen Ziyan made sense.

"Sister Ziyan, then what do you think is more appropriate for us to do after *Flypaper* finishes filming?"

Chen Ziyan said: "A little less, first increase it by 20%, promotion and salary increase; generally, this number is more appropriate. After *Flypaper* is released, if it achieves good results, at that time, you can give her another increase based on the box office results, company revenue, etc., for example, 10% or 20%, but it shouldn't be too much. The reason it shouldn't be too much is that you can't let her have the illusion that she can get a salary increase every time a film succeeds, otherwise it will make things very difficult later on. For films she produces, when the first one succeeds, use a salary increase as a reward. For subsequent projects, follow market practice; she can prioritize getting an incentive-based priority investment share as a producer. At the same time, based on the production process and box office performance of each film, reward her from Linghe in the form of a year-end bonus."

Lu Yan He nodded.

He said: "Understood, let's do it this way."

Chen Ziyan: "Compared to a fixed income, for someone like Wan Qingqing who will become a regional leader helping Linghe conquer the world in the future, it is more suitable to motivate her with a fluctuating income. Moreover, you have to support and praise her, but you can't give too much at once, otherwise it will easily create a large gap between before and after, and it will also affect the relationship between you and her; this is a major taboo."

Lu Yan He felt that Chen Ziyan was truly teaching him and guiding him step by step.

"Okay, understood."

"Lu, you are once again bringing a work to challenge this year's awards season. Why are you so prolific?"

During a break in the filming of *Godless*, when Lu Yan He was resting, he had a phone call with the director of *Source Code*, Rian Johnson. Originally, they were talking about *Source Code*, but as they talked, they ended up talking about *Raise the Red Lantern*.

Lu Yan He asked: "Have you seen this movie?"

"Not yet, I've been too busy lately." Rian Johnson said, "There are some problems with the post-production of *Doomsday*. When I was urgently called back to follow up on the post-production a while ago, even the preparation for *Source Code* was halted."

Lu Yan He: "Ah? Is the problem big?"

Rian Johnson said: "A big bug was discovered during editing. We are hesitating about how to remedy it. I am trying to get the studio to agree to a reshoot."

Lu Yan He: "A reshoot? That pressure is quite high, isn't it? It's hard to coordinate the actors' schedules, right?"

Rian Johnson said: "Yes, but other parts of this film were shot well. If we don't reshoot to save this bug, it would be a bit of a pity."

"If the studio doesn't agree to a reshoot, are there any other ways to remedy it?"

"If we can't reshoot, I can only use voice-over narration to do some technical processing." Rian Johnson said, "We can't just leave a very obvious bug for people to pick at after it's released."

Lu Yan He nodded.

That is indeed the case.

"About how much money would a reshoot cost?"

"About 5 million or so, and it would take 4 days to shoot."

"Oh!" Lu Yan He thought to himself, that's really not a small amount.

"Mainly because the salary that needs to be paid for the reshoot of the lead actor is very high." Rian Johnson sighed.

Like those big-name stars in Hollywood, they usually write the salary for reshoots into the contracts they sign with film companies.

After all, for them, they are paid by the day.

A professional and perfect agent system also ensures that their clients do not suffer any losses.

Lu Yan He thought about it afterwards; whether the studio would agree to a reshoot actually depends on the studio's confidence in the film *Doomsday*.

If the confidence is sufficient, then they will definitely agree to a reshoot. An additional investment of 5 million dollars is completely negligible compared to a box office of hundreds of millions of dollars.

But if the confidence is insufficient, and they think that based on the material currently shot, the film will flop, they will not be willing to invest new costs and will want to cut their losses in time, then they will not agree to a reshoot.

Lu Yan He was still very concerned about the film *Doomsday*.

First, after all the intricate changes in the middle, he still had his name as a producer on this film.

Second, the three lead actors of this film all have a deep relationship with him. The *Fast & Furious 2* of the lead actor made his second Hollywood film still a global box office hit, especially the significant increase in the proportion of Asian audiences, which led to some of the box office success being attributed to Lu Yan He, which played a crucial role in Lu Yan He further establishing himself in Hollywood and stabilizing his salary. Not to mention Jiang Jun and Jiang Yuqian.

Someone was right; Lu Yan He truly hoped to be able to push some actors to enter the international vision with him. A single tree cannot make a forest; it is almost impossible for one person to change the balance of the whole world, only by accumulating sand into a tower and accumulating over time. Jiang Jun is because of the success of *Squid Game*, which made him have global popularity; when *Squid Game*'s male lead is mentioned, many people know him. And Jiang Yuqian is not only that, but also very hard-working in taking the international route; in these few years, although she has been exhausted, in the eyes of outsiders, she has been doing very well.

If *Doomsday* achieves commercial success, it will be of huge help to the future of both of them in taking on English-language films, especially Hollywood films.

So, after thinking about it, Lu Yan He decided to call Zebby Doyle to see if there was anything he could do.

Zebby Doyle answered the phone immediately.

*Buried* exploded with nearly 200 million dollars at the global box office with a production cost of no more than 1.5 million dollars, making the studio earn a lot of money. Now Lu Yan He can be said to be the "number one red-hot celebrity" here at Zebby Doyle's.

Upon learning Lu Yan He's intention, Zebby Doyle said: "We are indeed still considering this matter. The clips of *Doomsday* made so far are still very good, however, this bug is not big, and Rian actually proposed another way to patch it, although the effect is a bit worse, it can save several million."

Lu Yan He understood what Zebby Doyle meant.

He asked: "Do you think that by using another way, although the effect is a bit worse, it does not affect the film as a whole?"

"Yes." Zebby Doyle said, "To be honest, this bug is a setting problem, but Rian hopes to use a plot segment to supplement it, and if this plot segment is supplemented, the duration of this film will be even longer."

Lu Yan He heard this and suddenly realized.

He heard Zebby Doyle's subtext.

This is not just a matter of 5 million dollars in reshoot funding; it also involves the final duration of the film.

For the duration of a film, film companies have very strict requirements.

Unless you are a big director among big directors, you are James Cameron, okay, you have privileges, but under normal circumstances, a film will basically be required to be controlled within 2 hours.

The conflict between film directors and film companies is often reflected in editing, among which the final duration of the film is a major point of contention.

For a film, if you want to achieve greater commercial success, roughly speaking, the longer the duration, the fewer the number of screenings, and more deeply, film companies also have a deep-rooted belief—which actually comes from market feedback over so many years—that for films that are too long, audiences do not have the patience to finish watching them. Generally speaking, the longer the film, the worse the commercial performance.

After Lu Yan He learned that *Doomsday* had such a consideration, he couldn't say much more.

Zebby Doyle asked: "Lu, do you really not intend to write a sequel script for *Buried*?"

"This creative idea was used once and is gone; it cannot be replicated." Lu Yan He said, "Once is fresh, twice is boring."

Zebby Doyle said: "In the case of the previous work being so successful, even if the sequel's word-of-mouth is a bit worse, the box office will definitely not be bad."

Lu Yan He: "I care about my reputation; I don't want to write a script that will make others scold me for rehashing old ideas."

Zebby Doyle asked: "Then are you willing to sell the development rights of the *Buried* sequel to us?"

Lu Yan He: "... Zebby, are you serious? Do you think a sequel can be done? Can it make money?"

"Yes." Zebby Doyle said, "Even if the cost is increased to 10 million, or even 20 million, the box office performance of this film will definitely not be bad."

Lu Yan He could understand it too.

However, he himself was not willing to earn this money.

It was completely just harvesting leeks.

"The hint given at the end of the *Buried* film is actually that the male lead is dead. Are you going to resurrect him in the second part?" Lu Yan He asked.

Zebby Doyle said: "Yes."

"You contacted Li Zhibai? Is Li Zhibai willing to act in the second part?" Lu Yan He asked in surprise.

"Lu, I know he is a good friend of yours, but if we develop a sequel, we need him; he is the only star of *Buried*. I hope you can also help us persuade him to appear in the sequel." Zebby Doyle said, "At least don't stop him."

"Zebby, I definitely won't write the script for the sequel myself. If you want the authorization, it's not impossible, but if my script is authorized to others to develop a sequel, I require the other party to write a general direction for adaptation and creation for me; I cannot accept being magically modified." Lu Yan He said, "I must tell you, this is very troublesome; I am not a person who nods easily. In addition, Li Zhibai is my friend; the success or failure of one or two films is actually more insignificant than dust between me and him. If the script you bring out is indeed good and has a good idea to continue the story, I will not only not stop him, but even persuade him to take it, but if the script is very bad, even if you are unhappy, I will tell him my opinion. The failure of one or two films doesn't matter to the studio, but for a foreign actor like him who has just come to your Hollywood, one failure is enough to ruin his development in Hollywood, as well as all the achievements accumulated for him by the previous work."

Zebby Doyle was silent for a long time on the other end of the phone.

Lu Yan He did not urge him either.

He knew his words were a bit harsh, but he believed in the principle of "saying the ugly words first."

After a long while, Zebby Doyle said "I understand." (End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 775 =====