Chapter 429: Two Fa Ge's Aren't Worth One Liu Tianxian

This movie's premiere only allowed questions about the film itself; questions on other topics were off-limits.

As for Bai Yu, he was just a minor figure—the audience was either there for the movie or for Liu Tianxian, and at most they noticed he was a little good-looking; they weren't familiar with him.

So this premiere ended quickly.

From this point on, "A Bundle of Love" also kicked off a massive promotional campaign.

The theme song "A Little Happiness" was released simultaneously on all major video and music platforms, all to promote the film.

Because the title itself is the theme song of "A Bundle of Love."

The promotion still focused on new media, but added some Big Data functions—for example, if the target was already eighty or ninety years old, pushing it to them was pointless; they wouldn't come watch it.

They were already past the stage of going to the movies.

For instance, those freeloaders who only know how to brag in QQ groups, claiming to be fans of Liu Tianxian's body rather than real fans—pushing ads to them wouldn't get them to come either.

For a time, coverage of "A Bundle of Love" blanketed everything—Bilibili, Weibo, Toutiao, Qzone, Tieba, Tencent News and every other platform had reports about this film.

The reports were, of course, all sensationalist clickbait.

"Film 'A Bundle of Love' China Premiere—Audience Wept On-Site, Deeply Moved!"

"Zhao Xiaodao, Chen Xiao Shed Tears at the Premiere!"

"Beijing Film Academy Professor Cao Baoping Watched 'A Bundle of Love' and Was Shocked Eight Hundred Times."

"300 Million Yuan Budget!"

"Best Actor Zhang Songwen Visits the Set!"

"Director Xue Xiaolu Praises Liu Tianxian as a Good Actress!"

"Even the dogs cried watching it."

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Such news was everywhere online, taking turns, once a day—the audience couldn't tell the difference, and thought the movie really was that good, felt shocked, and so believed it was a masterpiece.

Not only that, smartphones were now even more widespread, with user numbers exceeding 500 million, meaning basically tens of millions of people a day would receive any one of the above pieces of information.

Even in the subway stations, bus stops, outdoor billboards, and elevators of major cities across the country, posters and promotional clips for this film were plastered everywhere offline.

The artistic portraits of Liu Tianxian and Bai Yu were fresh and beautiful—Liu Tianxian was even holding a bouquet, with a sweet smile.

Such portraits were everywhere in every street and alley.

Anywhere you went shopping or went online, you could see the promotion for this film.

It was equivalent to going full throttle online and offline—this could be called a massive investment, completely suppressing the buzz of "The Monkey King" and "From Vegas to Macau" for the time being.

The audience seemed to have forgotten about those two films.

This kind of promotional offensive was more than those two films could bear—a crushing blow in terms of strength.

In terms of strength, these people definitely couldn't compare to Yutu—not only Bona couldn't compare, but even Beijing Culture, Oriental Motion Pictures, and Sun Entertainment together couldn't compare.

The starting point was different to begin with—Fang Hong had never planned to make money; let them try not making money and see?

However, they also increased their promotional spending, but still couldn't withstand the promotional offensive of "A Bundle of Love."

Big shots like Wang Jin and Yu Pangzi had no choice but to come out and hustle again, starting to hype things up to maintain buzz for their films.

So all kinds of reports came out again.

"Wang Jin Scoffs at Evaluating 'A Bundle of Love,' Predicts 'From Vegas to Macau' Will Hit 1.5 Billion at the Box Office."

Of course, these media reports had exaggerated elements—using sensational language to draw attention. Wang Jin knew how to handle people and wouldn't really go trash-talk the Principal or Yutu.

Even if his film didn't make money, he wouldn't offend anyone—he's just a filmmaker; if there's a loss, it's the investors who lose. Even when criticizing, he only criticizes those below his level or at the same level.

For example, actors or other directors—investors and bosses like Fang Hong, he wouldn't say much about; he just wants to make money.

"Yu Pangzi said: 'A small-budget film like A Bundle of Love has production costs of less than ten million, yet they dare to brag about 300 million.'"

Their added promotional costs were 200 million—this was clearly muddying the waters and exposing weaknesses, saying that "A Bundle of Love" didn't actually have that high a production cost, telling everyone not to be fooled.

Not only that, Fa Ge, Jing Tian, and Yuzhou Dan also came out to run promotions everywhere. Jing Tian and Yuzhou Dan didn't say anything excessive—the Principal hadn't provoked them, it was just a competitive relationship.

Jing Tian certainly wouldn't say anything—she was still thinking about treating Fang Hong's illness, only Fang Hong didn't really pay her much attention.

But Fa Ge had a grudge against Fang Hong, and sarcastically said: "Today's films have very poor self-reliance—they all rely on promotion."

As if his own films didn't rely on promotion, but on him alone.

But he also said other things. A reporter asked him: "Didn't you say you'd donate everything? Have you donated?"

Fa Ge's answer was jaw-dropping: "Let's talk about it in forty years. I still need to work hard for my own livelihood right now, and I don't have any spare funds."

Some Wangyi said of him: "Are you planning to wait until you're 108 to start donating? That's way too ridiculous an excuse!"

He should be grateful that right now all the major films are competing and no one's using his shady stuff for publicity.

If Fang Hong had the time, he'd definitely stir up that "naked donation" business of his properly.

But the guy was born with arrogance—these past few years of one bad film after another clearly showed he was just grabbing whatever he could, and didn't care.

The three sides' various promotions blanketed everything, all kinds of shady figures said shocking things, and back-and-forth bickering between them was inevitable.

But their promotional offensive definitely wasn't as fierce as "A Bundle of Love"—that one reached straight into the audience's phones; there was no comparison.

The fame and coverage weren't on the same level. Some people trash-talked "A Bundle of Love"—that was the opponents' usual trick, and the film hadn't even been released yet.

Of course, mainstream media also helped by lending their endorsement and reviewing—for example, media like "Beijing Times" and "The Beijing News" reviewed this film in their papers.

"The Beijing News" Li Duoyu published an article titled: "The Undertone of a Love Romance Is the Theme of Growth."

This article commented: "This is a film about two people, and also a film about one person.

If you view the male and female protagonists as different incarnations of the same person, then 'A Bundle of Love' is actually more of a coming-of-age film than a love story."

Guangming Daily author Zhang Shixun published an article titled: "A Love That Fell Just One Step Short Is Still Beautiful."

This article commented: "This film is like a neatly structured love poem, pouring delightful coincidences, helpless heartache, painful torment, and the relief of reconciliation—all into the details."

The reviews were very high. Experts from media like these are still very persuasive and convincing right now—though they didn't spoil anything.

Recently Liu Tianxian has also been very busy, taking part in all kinds of exclusive interview events and fan meet-ups across the country, also promoting her film everywhere.

Everywhere she went, there were crowds of fans and reporters, and her posters could be seen everywhere.

A reporter asked her: "'From Vegas to Macau' is competing against two other big films this season; some say they'll surpass your movie's box office. What do you have to say about that?"

"We treat it with a calm heart—we don't compete with anyone. We just make our own film well. As for the box office results, we leave it to the audience. Whatever happens, we accept it," Liu Tianxian said beautifully.

She didn't compete, but Fang Hong wished their rivals would die.

"I heard the Principal gave you a lot of help during filming. Is that true?" the reporter asked.

"Yes, she taught me how to portray this character. Whether as producer or director, she was exceptionally dedicated," Liu Tianxian said.

"I heard you once nearly collaborated with Fa Ge, but Da Baobei took your role. Is that true?" the reporter asked.

He was referring to 'The Bronze Bird Terrace'.

"That's not true. We only discussed it, had some interest, but I simply wasn't right for the role—it wasn't meant to be," Liu Tianxian said.

"If you got a chance to collaborate with him, would you?" the reporter asked.

"It depends—I can't say for sure," Liu Tianxian didn't want to say more about it.

There would be no chance for collaboration anymore; she and Fang Hong had already clashed so fiercely that she would surely stand by her man.

As usual, Liu Tianxian answered every question without a single slip.

Under this atmosphere, Lunar New Year's Eve drew nearer, and Tu Piaopiao launched its presale mode with two discounted ticket prices: one at 9.9 yuan, the other at 19.9 yuan.

The 9.9-yuan tickets were generally for new users—those watching a movie or registering for the first time—to attract new customers.

The 19.9-yuan tickets were for returning users—not exactly price gouging, since they were still cheaper than those offering only 5 or 10 yuan discounts; now, a regular ticket costs 30 to 40 yuan.

'From Vegas to Macau' was priced around 34 yuan; 'The Monkey King: Hero Is Back' was more expensive, around 42 yuan.

In other words, Tu Piaopiao had reignited the 9.9-yuan price war—how could films in the same slot survive?

Not only that, they had rented out cinemas nationwide in major first-tier cities, pouring tens of millions daily into them.

These rented cinemas could also recoup part of the cost and were included in the presale scope.

That meant you could enter these presale cinemas with 9.9 or 19.9 yuan tickets—it wasn't possible to lock them away; renting them was precisely to sell tickets themselves.

Meituan also displayed a prominent homepage banner for 'From Vegas to Macau' on its app; its user base exceeded 200 million and it had integrated with Tu Piaopiao.

That meant users could purchase tickets directly through Meituan, via a primary channel.

WeChat and QQ also had entry points redirecting to Tu Piaopiao, but they were tertiary entries, not primary ones; they had their own ticketing platforms.

Bilibili and Toutiao ads could also directly redirect to Tu Piaopiao.

Under this multi-tiered access system and intense propaganda campaign, 'From Vegas to Macau' reached 120 million yuan in presales, becoming the first film nationwide to surpass 100 million yuan in presales.

The number of presold tickets exceeded two million—truly terrifying.

Presales were also available offline, not just online.

In short, Tu Piaopiao had prepared thoroughly; now they waited to see the market's reaction.

"'From Vegas to Macau': Tu Piaopiao Sets 100-Million-Yuan Presale Record? Producer Teams Up with Flashlight Company to Inject Promotional Stimulant!"

"'From Vegas to Macau' Box Office Breaks 100 Million Yuan; Online Presale Tickets Surpass 2 Million!"

These headlines appeared across major news outlets and self-media platforms.

Such massive scale and promotional intensity were welcomed by official circles, because it pulled even non-moviegoers into theaters.

But it put immense pressure on competitors and investors alike; the Principal was truly terrifyingly powerful.

They weren't Huayi—they lacked Huayi's strength.

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Sina Entertainment reported:

"According to official data from the Special Investment Office, 'From Vegas to Macau' shattered the Chinese-language film record for opening-day box office with 170 million yuan and captured 80% of the box office share with a 40% screening rate."

It surpassed 'From Vegas to Macau's' 13.05 million and 'The Monkey King: Hero Is Back's' 64.4 million!"

According to Ma Jing, Senior Marketing Manager at Lumière Pictures: "The initial screening rates already reflect the overall trend for the Spring Festival holiday period; fluctuations will be minimal. Due to strong early word-of-mouth and ticket-snatching results, 'From Vegas to Macau' will maintain a screening rate of around 50%."

Netizen @IStillLackYourLifetimeUnderstanding said: "After watching 'From Vegas to Macau,' the entire audience applauded—it was truly wonderful. Beginning means ending; the most stable relationship is still no relationship."

Netizen @Afterglow said: "The restaurant breakup scene was heartbreakingly beautiful. We've seen the best of love, so we know what it means when love is gone."

Self-media headline: Two Fa Ges, Not Equal to One Liu Tianxian!

(End of Chapter)