Chapter 271

After two days of auditions, the final cast list for *Thieves* was out.

Li Tianwang, Liang Jiahui, Zhang Yi, Wu Jing, Hu Ge, Zhang Hanyu, Clara, Wang Ou, and Hui Yinghong.

As for the other supporting roles, Chen Xi would take care of the arrangements herself.

The team at Shanhe Media, after years of honing their skills and constantly traveling to Hollywood to learn, had brought refined management to its current extreme.

Site surveying, costumes and props, breaking down shooting tasks, planning the shooting schedule, and so on, were already being carried out in an orderly manner at the very beginning of the project.

In other words, the moment Wei Jin selected the actors, this project could start filming immediately; this is the U-shaped structure of Hollywood films.

Holding the contract, Zhang Yi walked out of the office with a light step.

Seeming to remember something, Zhang Yi took out his phone and dialed a number.

"Hey, Datou, I got the role, haha."

Zhang Yi had previously competed with Lei Datou for the male lead in *The Great Robbery* and failed, but unexpectedly, the situation turned around, and he got a role here with Wei Jin; he had to show off a bit. "Then congratulations to you. Although it's not the male lead, President Wei's film is still worth looking forward to."

After a slight bit of humble-bragging about his own lead role, Lei Jiayin complained with some distress:

"With President Wei's speed, you guys are probably going to start filming soon, while I still don't know how long I have to wait over here."

Ning Hao's films were always like this; the pre-production time was particularly long, but the key shooting progress was not fast either.

In fact, this was the true situation for domestic directors; most directors, when filming, liked to pursue that flash of inspiration and would often revise the script or change the shooting plan, so that a two-month shooting task might not be finished in three or four months.

"Nothing to be done about that, it's still more comfortable working with President Wei. Maybe I'll have wrapped up filming before you've even started, and then you'll be the one losing out, haha."

Looking at the text message on her phone, Yang Mi felt a bit disappointed; Wei Jin's films were really not easy to get into.

"Mimi, don't think so much. *Brotherhood of Blades 2* is about to break 200 million, and there are several programs waiting for you to appear on. In my opinion, not being selected is a good thing; the role wasn't big anyway."

As an agent, Ceng Jia earned a commission from the artists, so what she cared about was naturally how much money the artist could make.

"Yeah, that's true."

Yang Mi had a resilient personality and soon figured it out; what was more important now was to solidify her status and increase her popularity.

"Jia Jie, where are we going next?"

"*Happy Camp*."

On the other side, Miss Cai was truly pleasantly surprised that Hu Ge was selected.

Over the years, Tangren had produced quite a few low-budget films, and although they basically all made money, they added almost nothing to Hu Ge's career.

Miss Cai knew in her heart that Hu Ge would eventually have to move to the big screen, but Tangren could not provide the resources to cultivate him.

This meant that the top star of Tangren would likely set up his own business after his contract expired; after all, it was very common for artists in the entertainment industry to open studios nowadays.

In this way, Shanhe Media, with its powerful film production capabilities, became particularly important to Miss Cai.

How to keep Wei Jin maintaining a friendly relationship with Tangren was even more important than Tangren's own television projects.

Thinking of this, Miss Cai prepared to take a trip to the Shanghai Theatre Academy; relying on Liu Shishi alone was still a bit risky.

*Thieves* announced its final cast and production information to the outside world.

"New work from Oscar Director Wei Jin, powerful cast, investment cost of 180 million."

The production cost of this film was actually not high, and although the background spanned Mainland China and Hong Kong, there was no need to go to Hong Kong for location shooting.

For landmark exterior shots, Wei Jin chose to film on location, but the main plot would still be filmed in Mainland China, right around Beijing.

By then, through post-production editing and splicing, combined with special effects, the effect could be fully achieved.

The reason for such a high cost was mainly spent on the actors' salaries and the director's fee; after all, it was a three-party investment, and Wei Jin would not treat himself poorly.

This time, the actors' salaries were only 40 million, but Wei Jin's director and screenwriter fees were as high as 50 million.

Regarding this figure, China Film Group and CJ also highly approved; after all, it calculated to less than 8 million USD, which was already a discounted price for Wei Jin.

The current way of promoting films was different from before; one had to carry out high-profile publicity at the beginning of the project, and release clips from time to time during the filming process to attract attention.

Look, several highly anticipated films were following this operation: location stills for *Hawthorn Tree*, and character posters for *Sacrifice*.

However, this Mou Girl seemed a bit unintelligent, giving people a silly feeling, and even had to be taught how to walk by Zhang Yimou hand-in-hand.

*Sacrifice* was even more impressive; not only did Chen Shiren bring his whole family, but he also spent a huge sum of 120 million to build a city directly.

In this regard, Wei Jin could only admire him; Chen Shiren seemed to have a special hobby for infrastructure. Back then, *The Emperor and the Assassin* cost a fortune to build a city, and subsequent films like *The Promise* and *Forever Enthralled* all had large-scale construction costs; he was truly a madman of infrastructure.

In view of this, Han Sanping suggested that *Thieves* should also hold a press conference for the start of filming; it was an investment of over 100 million after all, and Wei Jin was an Oscar Director, so he couldn't be inferior to Zhang Yimou and Chen Shiren in terms of prestige.

Wei Jin pondered for a while and agreed that this made sense; this film had a large cast and was a commercial film, so it needed momentum.

On May 7th, the Marvel blockbuster *Iron Man 2*, created with an investment of 200 million USD, officially landed in the country.

The performance was quite violent, raking in 60 million at the box office in the first three days of the opening weekend.

Inevitably, the screenings for *Brotherhood of Blades 2* were squeezed, and the upward momentum of its box office was suppressed.

As of May 9th, *Brotherhood of Blades 2* had been released for 11 days, with a cumulative domestic box office of 210 million.

Under the power of *Iron Man 2* and *Brotherhood of Blades 2*, the films released in the same period had almost no room for survival.

For example, *Three Smiles: Scholar and Beauty*, helmed by Xiao Hei Pang Zi, directly became cannon fodder.

After the first day of release, the media didn't even have the heart to publish the first-day box office data, only vaguely saying that the first-day box office was less than 600,000.

The film had been released for 3 days, with a cumulative box office of less than 2 million; it could basically be determined that it had lost everything.

This result did not exceed Wei Jin's expectations; one could figure it out with their toes—who the hell wants to watch a Tang Bohu who is black, fat, short, and ugly? If the box office wasn't ideal, it could be blamed on the screening schedule, but the online reputation was also a mess, which explained the quality of the film; many netizens were mocking it.

Moke Xin: "Can any Tom, Dick, or Harry make movies now? The Northeast folk song-and-dance duet dancers are here, the crosstalk performers are here, all damn trash films."

Ximen Chuixue__: "I suggest raising the threshold for the director profession; how about taking a test for a license?"

Yu Yu Coming Home Qu Xi: "Seconded +1."

The audience's aesthetic was improving; even Zhang Yimou would be mocked for making a bad film, let alone Xiao Hei Pang Zi who crossed over? This also made many people clearly realize that although the domestic box office market had expanded, the film industry was still a high-risk industry, and not everyone could come in and pick up money.

However, the netizens' suggestion actually made Wei Jin feel a bit moved, and he pondered suggesting it to the authorities.

If a doctor treats the pain in a patient's body, then a director brings spiritual satisfaction to the audience; why should they be allowed to work without a license? Perhaps because of the confirmation of the South Korean actors, CJ was very satisfied with this cooperation; not only was the investment capital in place ahead of schedule, but they also increased the copyright price of *Brotherhood of Blades 2* to 6 million USD.

Wei Jin was very satisfied with this price; one must know that even for the first film he directed himself, the price at that time was only 5 million USD.

News also arrived from Toho in Japan, expressing their willingness to import *Brotherhood of Blades 2* for 3 million USD, which Wei Jin naturally accepted with a smile. The production cost of this film was no more than 60 million, and even that was heavily inflated; he had already made a huge profit from the licensing fee alone. — Han Sanping's efficiency was high, and the launch press conference for *The Thieves* was scheduled at the Great Hall of China Film Group.

With a production budget of 180 million, a powerful cast, and Wei Jin writing and directing it himself, every element was news material that the media chased after, so this press conference was truly People Mountain People Sea.

A large number of media reporters, industry peers, and celebrity artists gathered in one hall.

When Wei Jin appeared at the scene, there were already quite a lot of guests.

"How long is the estimated shooting time this time?"

Taking advantage of the time before the press conference began, Han Sanping and Wei Jin chatted.

"About a month and a half."

"No wonder everyone calls you a Fast Gunner; this efficiency is truly too high."

The performance of *Brotherhood of Blades 2* had brought glory to Han Sanping's face, and his mood had been significantly better during this period.

"Han Dong, you shouldn't say things like that; be careful, or I'll sue you for slander."

After this retort, Wei Jin began to explain.

"In reality, the crew had already begun preparations while I was discussing the investment shares with you. After a month, all the necessary preparatory work was already in place, so the actual shooting time doesn't need to be very long."

"This Hollywood production model of yours is indeed highly efficient, but it's a pity that domestic crews are unwilling to learn it."

Han Sanping felt some regret, but he also knew this was a phenomenon that was hard to change. After all, the domestic industry was director-centric; if they really followed the Hollywood production model, the director's room for creative expression would be very small, which was something most directors could not accept.

"Take it slow. If we cultivate more young directors, their concepts will eventually turn around."

After chatting for a bit, the press conference began.

Wei Jin went on stage to give a brief introduction to the script and later answered many questions from reporters, but he didn't expect that there were still reporters who wanted to dig for big news.

"Director Wei, may I ask why a South Korean investor was included in this collaboration?"

Regarding the introduction of South Korean capital this time, Wei Jin had long known it might cause dissatisfaction among industry peers.

"Perhaps everyone here doesn't know, but Shanhe Media also owns subsidiaries in South Korea and has very close cooperation with SM Entertainment and CJ Entertainment.

The South Korean film *Haeundae* was co-produced by several parties, including *The Heirs*, which was popular throughout South Korea and was also co-produced by us, so introducing South Korean capital is not abrupt. Are you satisfied with this answer?"

Looking at the somewhat dazed reporters off-stage, Wei Jin continued to add.

"This collaboration is also to explore a brand-new model for co-produced films and to prepare for the comprehensive export of Huaxia Culture." — Cocktail party time.

"Director Wei, I'd like to toast you."

Wang Ou was very excited to be able to get a film role from Wei Jin this time, and she drank the wine in her glass in one gulp.

Perhaps because she drank too quickly, a flush appeared on Wang Ou's face, and her eyes carried a hint of seduction.

"I wonder if Director Wei has time tonight to teach this film newcomer about acting?"

Good fellow, was she planning to find him for a "moonlight script" session?

However, how could Wei Jin pass up meat delivered to his door? This woman had a tall and well-proportioned figure; although she wasn't busty, paired with a pair of long legs, she was absolutely a perfect frame.

"Hmm, it's rare that you have the heart. Films and television dramas are indeed quite different; I should have a good exchange with you."

After giving Zhu Wei's phone number to Wang Ou, Wei Jin paid her no more mind.

This woman also knew her place quite well; after finishing the toast, she left gracefully without pestering him.

"Old Wei, I have to thank you for this time."

Out of the blue, Young Master Zhou popped out from somewhere, giving Wei Jin a start.

There was no helping it; Young Master Zhou had a petite figure, and Wei Jin couldn't see her without looking down.

"Hey, without my recommendation, this role would likely still have been yours."

Wei Jin did not claim credit; it was Zhou Xun's role to begin with, so this time it counted as him "shearing her sheep."

"That's different."

Although Zhou Xun was confident in herself, being able to secure such a major production was undoubtedly Wei Jin's merit.

"By the way, about the Studio..."

"I say, why are you in such a rush? Are you rushing to be exploited by me?"

"Yeah, it's a pity you don't look highly upon me, otherwise I'd even want to warm your bed, just like that actress from just now."

"Ahem, don't talk nonsense; she is just pursuing progress."

"Tsk tsk, scumbag." — After the banquet ended, Zhu Wei drove his boss and the actress who was "pursuing progress" to the Golden House.

Regarding his boss's philandering, Zhu Wei didn't feel there was any problem; it was just a matter of mutual consent, and his boss never did anything against someone else's will.

On the other side, as soon as she entered the room, Wang Ou was already prepared for the audition.

Wei Jin could see that this woman's determination to pursue progress was great; her attire and grooming were very much in line with the requirements of this scene.

"Hmm, the basics are good, but the layers of performance are not rich enough; it could be a bit more profound."

Wei Jin appreciated the performance and, starting from his own feelings, provided guidance to the actress.

"Not bad, that's much better. You must know that only a profound interpretation can bring ultimate shock to the audience."

"."

Wang Ou performed with increasing effort; she could only express her gratitude to the director in this way.

Wei Jin nodded with great satisfaction; this woman had good intuition and could be groomed a bit.

"Hmm, very good. The audition is about enough; next, it's time for the actual shoot. This is a long take, so you need to be mentally prepared."

Upon hearing this, Wang Ou followed the script's requirements to move into position; she had already rehearsed this shot in her mind many times, and her movements were very standard and on point.

"Director, I am ready."

Wei Jin nodded; it seemed the actress was indeed ready, and it was time to start filming.

"*The Temptation of the Female Star*, Scene 1, Take 1, action."

With the adjustment of the camera angle, Wei Jin, with the progress-pursuing Wang Ou, officially began filming. Today's second update (End of chapter)