Chapter 884: It's fine, I'll cover it

Actually, because *Flypaper* achieved success, Wan Qingqing is now also a producer who receives quite a bit of attention in Hollywood.

Besides *Flypaper*, for *The Notebook* and *Men in Black*, which are about to be released this June, Wan Qingqing is the producer on the Linghe side and participated in part of the film's work.

Her current position is Linghe's North American CEO.

Wan Qingqing now mainly does two things: one is to represent Linghe in producing Lu Yan He's projects in Hollywood—such projects generally involve participating in production—and the other is to find good projects in Hollywood.

This makes her current work a bit like a traditional Hollywood producer.

A traditional Hollywood producer must first find a good story, a good script, or rather, an idea, and then go get some initial funding, which allows the producer to find a screenwriter to adapt it into a script.

Many times, this initial funding is paid by the producer themselves.

Once there is a script, they go find a suitable director, discuss the possibility of cooperation, and then slowly build a crew.

In this process, the role played by the producer is not what many people understand.

Because Wan Qingqing did the *Flypaper* project herself—this project was a child she raised single-handedly. She had to manage everything, big or small. Lu Yan He only provided a script and production costs. It can be said that Wan Qingqing successfully raised the *Flypaper* project and finally achieved success at the box office. She was like someone who had gone through a pilgrimage; in the end, she transformed and grew.

In the subsequent *The Notebook* and *Men in Black* in cooperation with Soren, Wan Qingqing was only a representative of the Linghe side. Although she had the title of producer, her ranking was low, and her actual participation in the crew was not high. Despite this, Wan Qingqing had to put her main energy into these projects, even if there were very few things she could decide. For Linghe, *The Notebook* and *Men in Black* were important links in the company's development.

For Wan Qingqing, the past period was a stage where she wanted to show her talents and do a big job but was a bit trapped.

But Wan Qingqing never told Lu Yan He about these things.

She knew these things should be digested by herself.

She also knew that at her age, she had already obtained resources that others could hardly imagine.

Whether it was men or women.

Because of her position and her status in Linghe, even people in Hollywood were speculating whether she was Lu Yan He's woman.

In Hollywood, such gender discrimination is even more serious—of course, it is more invisible, because once it becomes visible, it will be condemned. A young woman who can reach a high position so quickly and possess resources that ordinary people cannot mobilize, and is not a symbolic decoration, must have her abilities, but she must also not rely solely on her own abilities—

Such prejudice that seemingly recognizes her ability is more troublesome to her than the simple and superficial prejudice of "relying on men to get ahead."

Everyone admits you have ability, what else do you want?

In the current public opinion environment, such speculation will not appear in her ears in any linguistic form. However, everyone's eyes, micro-expressions, especially every time she appears in a place, the small actions of whispering to each other, all remind her to some extent how this place views her.

Therefore, Wan Qingqing now believes in one thing more and more, and that is not to care about how others view you, nor to care about how others think you obtained all this. Your actions cannot change any facts in the eyes of others. But as long as you firmly grasp what you have and seriously do what you should do, you will eventually have a place in this world, and your place will not be defeated by those seemingly mean, sharp, or even distorted rumors.

It is also because of this that Wan Qingqing fully understands that this is not an environment where she can do things entirely according to her own ideas. Lu Yan He gave her full trust and resources, and she must also repay Lu Yan He—the best repayment is to help him stand firm in the place where Lu Yan He needs it most.

During this time, Wan Qingqing often met with Lu Yan He.

She also had the opportunity to report to Lu Yan He on several projects she had accumulated and liked before.

Such opportunities to talk about projects on the road, at the dinner table, or even after tea and dinner are always better than reporting while sitting upright in the office.

Lu Yan He listened to several projects Wan Qingqing mentioned and took them in. However, for the projects Wan Qingqing mentioned, Lu Yan He was not particularly moved so far. He found that the projects Wan Qingqing was interested in were almost all replicas of *Flypaper*. In short, they were all similar types of suspense stories with ensemble casts and constant twists.

However, every time Wan Qingqing told him about one of the projects, Lu Yan He could clearly feel her enthusiasm, focus, and a confidence that she could definitely do the project well. Therefore, Lu Yan He never interrupted her, nor did he express his thoughts directly after she finished speaking, but let her study it again and continue the discussion later.

However, at the dinner table where Wan Qingqing was also present, Lu Yan He would occasionally mention how he decided to film a movie.

"For example, *Corpse Phase*, for example, *Summer Night Villa Horror*, actually I just read the script and then figured out that the company's reason for wanting to film it had a very clear purpose: the cost is low, it can be used to train the team, and the subject matter is relatively novel, with room for development in promotion and marketing. They have very clear judgments on these projects, so I think, indeed, this is a good training opportunity, especially for a company like Linghe that doesn't have much independent production experience."

Lu Yan He didn't know whether Wan Qingqing listened to these words and whether she understood them.

He didn't doubt Wan Qingqing's ability; he was just worried that when a person is fanatically wanting to do something, they often ignore many things because of such impulses.

If Wan Qingqing just told him that she wanted to do a project similar to *Flypaper*, it would be easier for her to operate, which could help her further consolidate what she had accumulated in film production, Lu Yan He would nod and agree without saying a word. But it won't work now, because Wan Qingqing is describing these projects to Lu Yan He as projects that "will definitely achieve greater success than *Flypaper*."

Will it?

Maybe.

However, that must also be just a coincidence.

Wan Qingqing's understanding of the film industry is too "executive." Even though she made *Flypaper* from scratch.

Lu Yan He always felt that if Wan Qingqing didn't change these ideas, it was more likely that failure would greet her.

"What about *The Fault in Our Stars*?" One day, Lu Yan He suddenly mentioned this script he brought back from Soren.

Wan Qingqing was stunned.

Lu Yan He could tell from her reaction that she didn't really put her heart into promoting the script of *The Fault in Our Stars*.

Lu Yan He said: "The overseas box office of *Love is Not Blind* is good. The romantic comedy starring Li Zhibai and Jiang Yuqian can also sell tens of millions of dollars at the box office overseas, which shows that romantic movies starring Asian faces can also be bought by audiences. I think this should bring good prospects for producing *The Fault in Our Stars*, right?"

Wan Qingqing hesitated for a moment and said: "But I'm actually worried about the box office of this movie. Its risk is too great. The main box office of *Love is Not Blind* is in the country. Even if the overseas box office is not good, it can still be profitable. But if the box office of *The Fault in Our Stars* is not good, such an English movie may not necessarily achieve a good box office in the country."

This reason... is a bit lame.

Lu Yan He didn't expose it either.

He said: "Do you particularly want to do the projects you mentioned before?"

Wan Qingqing nodded and said: "Yes, I have confidence."

Lu Yan He said: "How about this, you pick one with a production budget that can be controlled within 20 million US dollars, and you do it."

Wan Qingqing was stunned.

"Ah?"

"What? Think it's too low?" Lu Yan He asked.

"No." Wan Qingqing shook her head quickly, but she looked unbelievable, as if she were dreaming. "Mr. Lu, you, you just agreed to me like this?"

Lu Yan He said: "In Hollywood, there is often such a tradition: if you have successfully made a movie, then whatever you want to do next, everyone will give you the green light. To be honest, for the projects you mentioned, they don't make me feel moved. Of course, I don't think they have no production value. I just think you have too much hope for them. The success of *Flypaper* has allowed you to accumulate successful experience and confidence. You think you can replicate such success, or even surpass such success, because you have more experience. You just need to find a similar subject matter and story, right?"

Wan Qingqing hesitated for a while and didn't speak.

Lu Yan He: "But you have to know, the type of *Flypaper* has never been a box-office type in Hollywood. It might be popular in streaming media and the DVD market, but in theaters, the box office ceiling is not high, and the probability of becoming a dark horse is also low. Compared to a work that tries to replicate the success of *Flypaper*, what I care about and cherish more is your experience in independently operating such a project, using such experience to produce movies that are truly likely to move audiences and achieve box office success. To me, it is far better than making a replica. But you want to do it, I understand this mood, and I also understand that some things, if you don't do them yourself, you will never get an answer. So, 20 million US dollars, you do it. If you succeed, it means my judgment was wrong. If you fail, it doesn't matter, I'll cover it." ===== CHAPTER 885 =====