Chapter 33

Fang Hong hung up the phone, feeling pleased—he'd once again talked that girl into bed, no, into the boat!

Actually, he didn't think much of Liu Tianxian's acting.

No choice—this is the only way!

Who'd use Liu Tianxian when you can use Bai Baihe? That girl's acting is genuinely natural; she's superb at these girl-centric films.

Let me put it this way—among the new generation of leading actresses, there's virtually no equal!

Fang Hong held her in high regard, but everything has a "but," so he wouldn't say more.

He called Chen Zhixi again to tell her that "Love Notice" was moving up its release date.

"Then we move up too—by two days!" Chen Zhixi said.

"Don't do that—where does that leave Liu Tianxian? Wang Laoer won't say anything, but he'll definitely resent her."

Fang Hong still had some conscience; besides, moving up the date wasn't easy—it required coordination with China Film Group and disrupted the entire promotional rhythm.

For example, if you've been promoting August 12 as the release date, audiences naturally assume that's when it'll come out—suddenly moving it up makes them think something's wrong.

All your early promotional efforts will be severely weakened!

He added: "Besides, moving up is too crude—if you move up two days, he moves up three, then why not just release it today?"

Chen Zhixi thought that made sense and asked: "So what's your suggestion?"

"Still go for fine-tuning—let's hold the premiere one day early to let word-of-mouth spread faster!" Fang Hong said.

"Aren't you afraid it'll blow up too soon and people will accuse you of plagiarism?" Chen Zhixi worried about this.

With a normal release, you could still bluff for two days—invite media reporters and critics to watch the film, and the plagiarism scandal would explode quickly.

People aren't blind—even if you change everything, the core story hasn't changed; they'll still make the connection.

"I'm not afraid—let them rant. Black is still red, as long as the movie's good. Audiences won't care; only those moralists will." Fang Hong spoke casually.

Many films have earned high box office returns precisely through controversy.

Besides, "Love Notice" is such a trashy film it never even held a premiere—it's not worth showing off.

Still, Fang Hong had some pride—he continued: "When it releases, I'll change the screenwriter and director's names. They don't even know who I am."

Criticize the work, but don't attack me!

As long as the original creator disagrees, you can use a pseudonym—that's protection of the right to attribution.

Chen Zhixi laughed; she'd thought this guy was completely indifferent to reputation, but apparently he still cared!

"Fine, I have no objections!"

As long as the film's quality is decent, controversy is good—it saves a lot of promotion.

Audiences get curious and go watch; they think it's pretty good, but the "moralists" call it garbage—there's your controversy.

Hosting a premiere won't cost much—just ask China Film Group for a larger theater and invite media reporters and critics to watch.

No red envelopes, no banquets—let them scold all they want!

Plus, you can charge admission—if not enough people buy tickets, hire some extras to fill the theater.

That way, you won't look awkward!

"For safety's sake, you should still invite Liu Tianxian—otherwise it won't generate enough buzz," Chen Zhixi suggested.

That girl is a walking traffic magnet!

If she doesn't show up, you won't attract free media coverage—no red envelopes, yet still free buzz? Where's that kind of luck?

"Alright, I'll talk to her!" Fang Hong agreed.

They chatted a bit, finalized their strategy, then hung up.

At that moment, Fang Hong was in a café, having made the call from the restroom.

He washed his hands, combed his stylish hair in the mirror, then stepped out.

"Sorry to keep you waiting—I had too many things to handle," Fang Hong smiled.

"No problem, we didn't have anything urgent," Wang Ran said.

Sitting beside him was his girlfriend, Bao Jinjin; the three were discussing the script for "33 Days of Breakup."

Bao Jinjin pulled out a notebook from her handbag and handed it over: "Take a look—any changes needed?"

Fang Hong took it and flipped through it casually.

Actually, this script was just a danmei fantasy—every male character was a villain.

The ex-boyfriend who cheated, the nouveau riche who married a tacky woman, the old man who had an affair in his youth, even the slightly decent boss only cared about work and ignored his family.

But that didn't matter—it was made for women anyway, and women were the biggest consumer group in this era.

The fantasy lay in giving the female lead a backup man—a man with enough masculinity: male tone, male dominance, male wisdom, male reliability, male protection of women.

And yet he also possessed feminine-level attentiveness.

Such a backup man combined the best traits of both genders—he was the perfect backup.

With this ideal male backup, the female lead only needed to act like a princess—throw tantrums, act cute, no matter how harsh or domineering, she'd still get happiness.

So this was a classic contemporary female fantasy film—its high box office potential had clear reasons.

It tapped into the universal emotion of heartbreak, and perfectly captured contemporary women's psychology—it was undeniably a market-sensing film.

As for how well the film was shot? That didn't matter!

As long as there's a topic, there's buzz; as long as there's buzz, there's box office; as long as there's box office, there's money; as long as there's money, you soar!

The original version was shot very crudely, radiating the feel of a TV drama.

Let me put it this way—this wasn't the director's film; it was the screenwriter's film. The director merely retold the novel.

"Great script—Senior Bao is truly talented."

Fang Hong's flattery came like free candy—he made Bao Jinjin blush and Wang Ran quite pleased.

He added: "But could you help me tweak the character designs?"

"What?!"

Bao Jinjin didn't understand—was he about to rewrite her script?

"Don't get me wrong, I'm not rewriting the script!"

Fang Hong soothed her a bit, then went on: "The female lead's character isn't supposed to be mean and high and mighty, right? Let's exaggerate that point a bit more. Also exaggerate how she treats her boyfriend like he isn't even a person."

Liu Tianxian is too beautiful—she isn't suited to play this role. So if we exaggerate the character's human flaws, the breakup becomes a lot more reasonable.

Bao Jinjin thought it over. "That works!"

This doesn't really affect the plot. The female lead was already pretty much this kind of personality to begin with—just amped up.

Nothing else needs changing. If he can succeed just by retelling the novel, then Fang Hong won't bother wasting the effort.

Who has the time to keep changing the story back and forth? He's not that idle!

"Those Years" carries a strong Baodao flavor—he only adapted it because he preserved the story's core. This one doesn't need that!

As long as the production is a bit more polished, and it's filmed like a movie, that'll be enough. Simple and easy!

"I really envy Senior Wang—being able to find a talented girl like you, both gentle and understanding." Fang Hong set down the script.

Bao Jinjin exchanged a glance with her boyfriend, shyly took a sip of coffee, and said: "You're not bad either, junior brother. You'll definitely find a wonderful girl."

"Sigh!" Fang Hong let out a deep breath and shook his head dejectedly: "Count me out. The distance between her and me is worlds apart!"

Seeing him like this, Bao Jinjin's maternal instincts overflowed, and she asked: "Who is she?"

"Let's not talk about it. The more I say, the more it'll make me cry." Fang Hong's expression was desolate.

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(End of chapter)