Chapter 515: Zuoshandiao Makes a Move: Speed and Passion

Following "Back to 1942," the extended key for "Chinese Zodiac" that Huayi applied for from the Film Bureau was rejected once again.

This news hit Huayi like a bolt from the blue, catching them off guard.

Although Huayi has a large foundation and extensive business, this year can be described as a run of bad luck.

Starting from the two "Tai Chi" films, all the way to the highly anticipated "Back to 1942," every single one suffered a bloody loss, with the book value of box office losses alone reaching over 300 million.

If one were to add in the evaporation of stock market value, it would be at least several billion.

Now, just as it looked like "Chinese Zodiac" was about to make a big profit, the application for the extended key was rejected.

The reason given was also damnably legitimate: in the same time period, in principle, only one film can receive an extended key.

"To hell with 'only one,' where is the document? Where is this regulation? Are they trying to fool a ghost? Zhang Dapao really didn't call it wrong; Zuoshandiao, that Han Sanping is indeed Zuoshandiao."

In the office, Wang Zhongjun looked like a tiger ready to devour someone, a bloodthirsty light flashing in his eyes as he kept hurling insults.

Wang Zhonglei's expression was also extremely ugly; this was not the first time, damn it.

For "Back to 1942," one could still use the excuse of poor box office prospects, but "Chinese Zodiac" had already reached nearly 600 million at the box office—could he, Han Sanping, not see that? "Zhonglei, prepare the materials; we are going to file a complaint. I don't believe the General Administration would just let that Zuoshandiao run wild like this!"

"Brother."

Wang Zhonglei always felt it wouldn't be that easy and wanted to persuade his brother, but he saw Wang Zhongjun roar, "Go!"

"Alright, alright."

Compared to the impotent rage of Huayi Brothers, many production and distribution companies in the circle were gloating.

"Back then, Huayi betrayed the distribution alliance and acted like a turncoat; now they're getting their retribution, aren't they?"

"Isn't that right? Using Han Dong as a gun and still thinking they could easily fool him? Are they dreaming? Do they think Zuoshandiao is a little chick? Hahaha."

"But speaking of which, is it true that there can only be one extension in the same period?"

"Don't know, but it seems there has never been such a precedent. Since Han Dong made a move, he naturally wouldn't leave any handles behind; Huayi can only accept their fate."

"."

In the eyes of the vast majority of peers in the circle, Han Sanping's move this time was very satisfying; Huayi completely deserved it.

Especially Qin Hong from Stellar Mega, who even specifically posted a snide Weibo: "Those who follow the Dao have many helpers; those who lose the Dao have few. The ancients did not deceive me!"

The old Wang from Enlight Media and Yu Pangzi from Bona, both also in the Big Five distribution alliance, liked this post and shared it widely.

For a time, the internet instantly became lively; media and netizens frequently took action, and various clickbait news and mockery emerged like bamboo shoots after a spring rain.

However, actors in the circle could not participate in the grievances between such large companies; apart from the artists under Stellar Mega, everyone else maintained restraint.

Having appreciated the violent move of Zuoshandiao, Wei Jin took Ceng Li to attend the premiere of "The Grandmaster."

The scale of this event was not small, and many industry insiders came to show their support.

On one hand, it was due to the influence of the production company Yindu Institution and the distributor Bona.

The former, as the review body for co-productions, basically held the pulse of Hong Kong filmmakers, while the latter, as a veteran production and distribution company listed on the Nasdaq in North America, possessed strength that could not be underestimated.

On the other hand, it was also the reputation that Wong Kar-wai had built over the years since his debut.

Come to think of it, Wong Kar-wai is even a bit younger than Li An, but his career path has been much smoother than the latter's.

Starting out as a mediocre graphic designer with a background in science and engineering, he switched to the film industry at 26, and his first film as a director at 30, "As Tears Go By," earned a nomination for Best Director at the Hong Kong Film Awards, marking his emergence.

Subsequently, Wong Kar-wai seemed to have opened a cheat code, rising steadily all the way.

In 1990, he directed the drama "Days of Being Wild," winning both Best Director at the Hong Kong Film Awards and Best Director at the Golden Horse Awards in succession.

In 1994, he directed the drama "Chungking Express," winning the Best Director award at the Hong Kong Film Awards once again.

One must know that the era in which he was active was precisely the heyday of Hong Kong cinema; being able to win Best Director at the Hong Kong Film Awards consecutively, Wong Kar-wai's strength was absolutely not to be underestimated.

After that, Wong Kar-wai began to campaign at overseas film festivals.

The drama "Happy Together," directed in 1997, won the Best Director award at the 50th Cannes Film Festival, making him the first Chinese director in Cannes history to win this award.

His subsequent film, "In the Mood for Love," won multiple major awards at overseas film festivals, received a nomination for the Cannes Palme d'Or, and even represented the Hong Kong region to compete for that year's Oscar.

Although it ultimately lost, this film received critical acclaim from numerous global media outlets and was revered as a classic masterpiece by many art-house enthusiasts.

At this point, Wong Kar-wai became a famous director known across the mainland, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.

However, while Wong Kar-wai has the ability, his efficiency is too low; he is too capricious when filming, often having flashes of inspiration that lead to the crew having to scrap everything and start over, making producers both love and hate him.

Back when filming "Ashes of Time," it took nearly three years, filming and deleting, deleting and filming, with the script changed over and over, torturing Leslie Cheung, Brigitte Lin, Liang Jiahui, and others until they were unrecognizable.

Finally, under pressure from the producers, he dragged in his good friend and partner Jeffrey Lau and spent less than a month filming a sister piece, "The Eagle Shooting Heroes," to fulfill his obligation.

It's ridiculous to say, but "Ashes of Time," which took three years to polish, only made it into the Main Competition Section at Venice and flopped at the box office to an unrecognizable degree.

On the contrary, that hastily launched slapstick comedy "The Eagle Shooting Heroes" was a box office hit and even became a classic for a time.

This includes "The Grandmaster" as well; from project initiation to filming, and then to release, it took nearly 4 years again.

Just now, when reporters were interviewing, that Song Hye-kyo from South Korea was smiling on stage as she revealed that in order to make her finish her scenes, Wong Kar-wai actually confiscated her passport.

For this move, Wei Jin was also impressed.

However, Wei Jin had to admit that this film was indeed shot well; from a technical perspective, the visuals, blocking, color, and artistic conception were all commendable.

Compared to the popular action-packed "Ip Man" series, Wong Kar-wai's film had more prominent ensemble scenes.

The addition of the characters' internal monologues made the supporting roles exceptionally three-dimensional; Zhang Jin's Ma San and Gong Er were both extremely eye-catching.

Especially the character Gong Er played by Zhang Ziyi, cold and lonely, yet stubborn and resilient.

This role should be the most brilliant highlight of Zhang Ziyi's acting career over the years.

But the problems with this film were also significant; Wong Kar-wai's style has always been overly focused on tone, and the characters' lines were excessively pretentious.

Furthermore, for the sake of aesthetic beauty, the entire film frequently used slow motion and close-ups, with medium and long shots being few and far between, selling Wong Kar-wai's inner fatalism under the guise of an action film.

The art-house flavor was so thick that the main storyline was not even clearly explained.

This type of film is very selective of its audience; those who like it will probably like it very much, and those who don't will feel it is too pretentious.

Wei Jin estimated that the final results would not be too good. After the premiere ended, Wei Jin did not linger, and after saying goodbye to Ceng Li, he set off for North America with Chen Xi and two staff members.

This time, they were going to North America to film a new movie, and as Wei Jin's designated producer, Chen Xi naturally had to be there.

Because Hunter is now the head of Summit Entertainment, and there are still some matters to handle during the awards season, it is impossible for him to be in charge of the film crew as he was before.

However, Chen Xi has been resting since mid-November, so she does not mind heading to North America to film at all.

The plane landed in the evening, but the airport was still bustling with people; after all, the awards season had arrived, and Los Angeles was entering its busiest time.

"It's a bit cold out here."

Wei Jin wrapped his coat tighter around himself and muttered.

"Yeah, there's been a big temperature drop in Los Angeles these past two days. I saw in the reports that the temperature is almost hitting 0 degrees in the mornings and evenings."

Chen Xi also tightened her clothes and chimed in.

Wei Jin nodded. After all, it is January; although Los Angeles is like spring all year round, it still has to follow the laws of nature.

"Let's go, they are probably waiting outside."

Just as he walked out of the airport, Wei Jin saw a round, chubby man wearing a high-end suit, with three luxury cars parked beside him and several staff members in tow.

"Boss, I've missed you so much."

Hunter, looking like a sycophant, walked over with a wide grin and opened his arms, wanting to hug Wei Jin.

"Hunter, how long has it been since we last saw each other? Do you think I believe that?"

Wei Jin pushed Hunter away with some disgust; it had only been a little over a month, but he felt like Hunter had gotten fatter again.

"Boss, isn't there a saying that a day apart feels like three autumns? Chen, is that how you say it?"

Hunter spoke in broken Chinese and asked Chen Xi to evaluate it. The latter laughed directly, covering her mouth and giggling: "Hunter, your pronunciation is accurate enough, but it's not very appropriate to use it between you and the boss, haha."

"Then where is it appropriate to use? Between you and the boss?"

"0.0"

Chen Xi turned bright red and gave Hunter a huffy glare.

Unfortunately, although the two had a brief collaboration on *Pacific Rim*, Hunter ultimately could not get her meaning and was just winking at a blind person.

"Alright, stop joking around, let's get in the car."

As soon as they got in the car, Hunter began to report on work.

"Boss, *The Hunger Games: Catching Fire* has finished filming. Post-production has just begun, and it is expected to be completed around March. As for the release date, we haven't considered it yet."

"Hmm, no rush on that, we can take our time to choose."

Wei Jin holds high expectations for this series, so he needs to be cautious about the release date.

"Also, the *Annabelle* project has been discussed with James, and he plans to start it next month."

Horror films are the signature that built Summit Entertainment, so Hunter and Wei Jin had previously agreed to aim for one per year to maintain their influence in this field.

As a sister film to *The Conjuring*, *Annabelle* was prioritized by Hunter, and James Wan, as a master of horror in North America, has always had a very pleasant collaboration with Summit Entertainment, so he is naturally the only choice for director.

It was just that Wei Jin was curious why James Wan was in such a hurry. Regarding this, Hunter gave an explanation: "Boss, Universal plans to start *Fast & Furious 7*, but the original director, Justin Lin, does not agree to be so rushed. Universal is already in contact with James, and the possibility of a change in directors is very high."

Wei Jin understood as soon as he heard this. Although James Wan already had several box-office hits in North America, the status of a horror film director in the industry is truly a bit low and hard to be considered high-brow.

This time, having finally had the opportunity to cooperate with the Big Six on the big-selling *Fast & Furious* series, it is no problem to reserve the schedule regardless of whether he succeeds or not.

In Wei Jin's impression, it was indeed after *Fast & Furious 7* that James Wan gradually shifted his directing direction and became a big-name director, subsequently directing the two-part *Aquaman*.

As for that Chinese-American director from Taiwan, Justin Lin, because he withdrew from *Fast & Furious 7*, his subsequent development was not very good, and years later he ran back to direct *Fast & Furious 9*.

However, Wei Jin couldn't be bothered with these issues. He had no objection to James Wan wanting to start work as soon as possible, so he nodded and said:

"Alright, let's go according to James's request."

"Okay, Boss. Also, the preparation status for the new film..."

"Xiao Jin, you're here."

Just as Wei Jin got out of the car, he saw Da Meiyuan and Huang Mengying greeting him from the garden, so he walked up quickly and took Da Meiyuan's hand to feel her temperature.

"Yuan Yuanjie, why aren't you staying inside? It's cooled down at night; what if you catch a cold? Meng Ying, why didn't you persuade Yuan Yuanjie?"

"Boss, I..."

"Alright, it's not Xiao Ying's fault. I figured you were arriving soon, so I came out to wait. Always being cooped up in the house isn't good for the baby either."

Listening to Wei Jin's reproachful yet caring words, Gao Yuanyuan smiled, patted his large hand gently, and then looked at Chen Xi, who was still a bit stunned, and greeted her with a smile: "Chen Xi, long time no see."

"Yeah, Yuan Yuanjie, it really has been a long time."

Chen Xi looked at the round-bellied Da Meiyuan, and a thousand grass-mud horses ran through her heart.

She never expected that Da Meiyuan hadn't appeared for so long because she had run to North America to nurture her pregnancy. No wonder she couldn't be seen when *Lost in Thailand* was released; the boss really knows how to play.

Wei Jin had no time to care about Chen Xi's thoughts. After greeting everyone and entering the house, before he could say much, he was pulled back to the room by Da Meiyuan.

As soon as they entered the room, Da Meiyuan kissed him directly, as if to express her longing over the past month.

Feeling the beauty's intentions, Wei Jin responded enthusiastically. While tasting her alluring red lips, his hands also firmly grasped the "big oranges."

After a woman becomes pregnant, hormone secretion is quite vigorous; in layman's terms, her desires will be stronger than usual.

With all debuffs stacked, Da Meiyuan soon couldn't resist. She bit her red lip, gave a charming, coquettish whine, and said, "Xiao Jin, I want..."

Looking at the mist rising in the eyes of the beauty in his arms, Wei Jin's mouth curled up slightly. He gently laid the beauty on her side on the bed, then removed the restraints and leaned in.

"Yuan Yuanjie, let's add some oil first."

Looking at the familiar friend before her and smelling that intoxicating scent, Da Meiyuan did not hesitate at all, parted her sandalwood lips slightly, and pressed them onto him.

"Oh~~~"

(End of chapter)