Chapter 670: A Ten-Billion Plan is Worthless

I will fight the world with one nation.

At this thought, Liu Wan only felt a tremor in her heart.

You say he spoke too grandly, and it does seem a bit grand.

But looking back at the history of our nation's development, haven't some of the grand claims of the past, even those viewed internationally as jokes, now become reality?

Liu Wan has always paid close attention to the film industry, and she knows very well how great the potential of the Huaxia market is!

If there really were such a day...

"Huh, why did I start looking forward to it?" Liu Wan said, between laughter and tears.

According to the initial Promise, the interview was only to last fifteen minutes.

Seeing that there was nothing going on at the film crew's side for the moment, Luo Mo chatted for a few more minutes, stretching the interview duration to 20 minutes.

Then, after some polite pleasantries, he trotted back to the set.

Liu Wan reached out and waved in front of the eyes of the Glasses girl who was acting as the voice-over, saying, "Hey! Stop looking, the person is already out of sight."

"Editor-in-Chief Liu, what are you saying." The girl was still a bit embarrassed.

After fidgeting for a moment, she simply stopped pretending and said directly, "He really is even more handsome in person than on TV."

Liu Wan smiled and said, "Let's go, it's time to head back. We've had a fruitful day; let's hurry and finish all the work, then publish it!"

"You got it," the others said immediately.

As for which of Luo Mo's words to cut and which to keep, Liu Wan would have to make the decision herself.

Walking out of the house, under the blinding sun, Liu Wan looked back at the film crew in the distance.

She could tell that everyone was full of drive.

Because every film's performance had been excellent, and the red envelopes given by Boss Luo were generous enough, the whole team had great cohesion, all pulling in the same direction.

It seemed that in everyone's eyes, as long as they were working with Luo Mo, even if they were shooting the Science Fiction film that was least favored by others, they had unconditional trust in him.

——Follow him, and create miracles together!

Beside Liu Wan, a man who looked to be about thirty years old with a scholarly appearance also glanced at the film crew and couldn't help but exclaim, "What kind of domestic Science Fiction film is worth an investment of 700 million?"

Just watching from the set like this, they really couldn't make much sense of it.

Yes, Luo Mo Studio had previously announced to the public that the new Science Fiction film would have a production budget starting at 500 million.

Luo Mo had just said during the interview that since Nezha had earned so much, he decided to raise the production budget to a floor of 700 million!

It was precisely because of this that they truly couldn't suppress the curiosity in their hearts.

What does a production budget starting at 700 million represent?

It represents that what is being filmed before their eyes is very likely to be the film with the highest production budget in Blue Star Huaxia to date!

In Luo Mo's view, the Science Fiction film he was currently shooting had many regrets on Earth.

And the main reason for these regrets on Earth was—no money!

This film, back then, had almost been difficult to produce.

Luo Mo wanted to make up for these regrets.

"After all, I'm really fucking rich right now!"

………

………

Liu Wan and her team were very efficient and quickly finished organizing the interview content.

Before the official release, they specifically communicated with Luo Mo Studio.

Since the interview subject was Luo Mo, this media outlet with its special nature also showed rare thoughtfulness.

After both sides felt there were no issues, it was published across the entire web.

However, Liu Wan decided on the spot to split the interview content into two parts: 【Part 1】 and 【Part 2】.

The first part mainly discussed things like the investment in the new Science Fiction film.

The second part was content related to Nezha.

Once this content was released, it triggered heated discussions across the entire web and a sensation within the industry!

"Science Fiction film investment raised to a floor of 700 million?"

"Damn, this is really throwing everything into it!"

"Yeah, I've often seen people make grand statements before, but when you look at the production costs, it's only one or two hundred million."

"Luo Mo: Heard Science Fiction burns money? Then let me burn 700 million first!"

"Regardless of whether the film is good or not, at least he has this kind of spirit."

For industry insiders, this couldn't even be called spirit.

This is called insane behavior!

Of course, has Luo Mo done few insane things to date?

However, this investment is indeed too large.

If this were to fail, even with his financial resources, it would be a heavy blow.

Honestly, for filmmakers, what makes Luo Mo seem the craziest is that he always likes to cross genres.

From Monkey King: Hero is Back, to I Am Not Madame Bovary, to the yet-to-be-released Manslaughter...

Now, he's starting to mess with Science Fiction!

Everyone's conventional understanding has always been like this:

【Animation films have no future】.

【Realistic themes don't make money】.

【Suspense themes are Niche】.

As for Science Fiction, don't forget that saying—【Huaxia has no Science Fiction】!

Every single one of them is difficult!

Good grief, you won't play unless it's 【Hell Difficulty】, right?

But what was the result?

Domestic Animation films, which everyone thought were a dead end, are now unprecedentedly prosperous.

Films like "Medicine God" were all considered only suitable for winning awards, not for making money, yet the box office could break 4 billion! The word-of-mouth was ridiculously high!

"Manslaughter" hasn't been released yet, so everything is still unknown. But "Be Famous", which also carries Suspense attributes, can be called a small investment with a big return, earning a fortune!

Those who can't stand Luo Mo naturally wish for his new Science Fiction film to lose everything.

But for those with no grudges or enmity, amidst the shock, a sense of admiration inexplicably sprouted in their hearts.

That's right, must Huaxia really give up on Science Fiction forever?

If we don't give up, then someone has to do it.

He is already so successful; he could have stayed in his comfort zone.

Now, he is recklessly throwing 700 million to scout the path for the entire industry, to hack through thorns and thistles, to be a pioneer.

What attitude should we hold toward such a person?

On Weibo, people like Qian Qingyun and Feng Ji from the 【Four Great Directors】 all left comments under the interview video.

Qian Qingyun: "Director Luo's vision and spirit have always been what I admire most. Regardless of the outcome, I admire him for daring to do this."

Feng Ji: "I chatted with Director Luo before. He said he wants to make a Science Fiction film that belongs exclusively to us Huaxia people, a Science Fiction film with special Huaxia sentiments. I am looking forward to it."

Qian Qingyun's comment was a show of support.

Feng Ji's comment, however, also revealed a bit of information.

Many netizens became even more curious after seeing this.

In the conventional impression, domestic Science Fiction films are either shot as romances or follow a Western-leaning path.

For many people working in Science Fiction, their greatest ambition is to gain Western recognition.

So, Luo Mo doesn't have this intention?

Or is it that he has other ideas?

Just in this situation, Liu Wan released the second half of the interview content.

Originally, everyone thought Luo Mo would just officially thank some audience members and express excitement and joy over the achievements of "Nezha".

But who would have thought that upon seeing the end, this person actually started to feel regret!

And what he regretted was that "Nezha: Birth of the Demon Child" ultimately did not rank in the top ten of the 【Global Animated Film Ranking】 based on the single box office of the Huaxia region!

After expressing his regret, he even started to "comfort" himself, stating that he would continue to work hard!

If it were only the small regret from before, it could still be considered a top-tier humblebrag, a model for us posers.

But with the "continue to work hard" that followed, it proved that he truly has such ambition!

"Is he serious?" everyone thought.

"Does he really want to produce a film that relies purely on Huaxia box office to rank on the Global Box Office Ranking?"

"Holy crap, fighting the world's box office with the box office of one country?"

What shocked everyone the most was that his next film is a Science Fiction film.

The film he is pinning his hopes on wouldn't be this Science Fiction film, would it?

Connecting this to the fact that he dared to invest 700 million in production costs, isn't that obviously aimed at a massive hit?

You have to know, there are still many subsequent expenses, such as promotion and the like.

"Ah, this..." many people were speechless for a moment.

Compared to this, even the 【Hundred Billion Box Office Plan】 of the Review Department seems small-minded and lacks appeal.

And if there are no accidents, these remarks might even be noticed and reported by foreign media!

Many netizens couldn't help but think of that foreign film "Doomsday Apostle" from before.

This film was banned by Huaxia because its content was sensitive.

The production team later even mocked it, saying it was a loss for Huaxia audiences, after all, Huaxia has no excellent Science Fiction films.

It seems like that was when Luo Mo announced to the outside world that he was going to make a Science Fiction film, right?

In Beijing, Director Tian Ou returned to the hotel, drunk.

He had just eaten and drank with two big shots from the Beijing circle.

During the meal, Tian Ou could be said to have pulled out all the stops to please these two.

He even specially brought the third male lead and fourth female lead from his own film to accompany them for drinks.

As for what would happen after the meal broke up, that was none of his business.

——"It's Okay Duck".

——"I Don't Know".

Director Tian, already quite drunk, opened his phone to scroll through Weibo, and infinite envy and jealousy soon appeared in his eyes.

"Taking 700 million to make a film."

"What a big move!"

The total investment amount he raised for his "Car King 3" was only 280 million.

This included promotion expenses.

Moreover, this was the total investment announced to the public; in reality, it was nowhere near that much.

Ever since Luo Mo became the country's first 【Hundred Billion Box Office Director】, much of Tian Ou's negative emotions had dissipated, leaving only the final one—jealousy!

Honestly, after watching Luo Mo's interview, he was very puzzled.

Tian Ou's own *Car King* series is actually typical of the Western film model at its core.

Its story structure is very Western.

It is just a pity that even so, it is not well-received overseas.

In Tian Ou's view, Science Fiction is inherently the field at which the West excels most.

"You say you want to film a Huaxia-style Science Fiction work, containing the special sentiments of the Huaxia people... I really can't imagine it," Tian Ou thought to himself.

He even felt that Luo Mo was just giving the audience a preventative vaccination.

Telling the audience that this Science Fiction film of ours isn't actually very Science Fiction, it's just been placed into the Science Fiction category.

Tian Ou shook his head, deciding not to think about Luo Mo's new film and to focus on his own *Car King 3* instead.

He opened the Weibo Hot Search list to see how the promotional effect of the Hot Search he bought for the film was.

But as soon as he opened the Weibo Hot Search, he saw the number one entry was: 【Luo Mo's New Film Trailer】.

Behind this entry followed a red 【Explosive】 tag.

As for the Hot Search he bought for *Car King 3*, it was completely overshadowed and no one was paying any attention to it at all.

"Is this person fated to clash with me?" Such a ridiculous thought actually sprouted in Tian Ou's mind.

Even so, in his drunken state, his fingers still wouldn't listen to him, and he couldn't help but click on the number one Hot Search to see Luo Mo's new film trailer.

To be precise, up until now, everyone didn't even know the name of this film yet.

Tian Ou clicked on the video posted by Luo Mo Studio; at the beginning, while the screen was still completely dark, a male voice came through.

"【Initially, no one cared about this disaster.】"

The screen lit up, and the voice continued.

"【It was just a wildfire, a drought, the extinction of a species, the disappearance of a city】"

The image of a volcanic eruption appeared, with rolling magma surging down the mountain and smoke filling half the sky.

Immediately following that was the image of a dried-up river.

And the rotting carcasses of animals.

And also...

A city turned into ruins.

"【Until this disaster became closely related to everyone.】"

The screen went dark.

Tian Ou looked at this short concept trailer and was instantly stunned.

"That's it?"

"What's next?"

"So what exactly is the disaster?"

None of this was explained in the concept trailer.

But Tian Ou personally felt that the copy was indeed not bad.

The words were straightforward, yet very much in line with the current state of humanity.

Natural disasters happen frequently.

Species go extinct one after another.

In this society that prides itself on being civilized, the flames of war have never ceased either.

Humanity seems not to care much about any of this, as if they are just minor matters.

Tian Ou thought: "So, is it actually a doomsday theme?"

"Is the content being filmed about the end of the world?" Tian Ou felt that was most likely the case.

This actually made him feel relieved, thinking there was nothing unusual about it.

The end of the world is one of the most common themes in Science Fiction films.

Such content cannot be said to be very novel.

It is also quite difficult to do something creative with it.

Tian Ou looked at the screen; by now, the video had finished playing, so it was frozen on the final frame.

In this frame, there were only four large white characters.

Presumably, these four characters were the title of the film.

——*The Wandering Earth*.

"Earth? Isn't that the pseudonym Luo Mo used before?" Tian Ou thought.

Later, 【Earth】 slowly became the semi-fictional world for many of Luo Mo's works.

Like all the dramas in 【Mist Theater】, the story background is always a certain city on Earth, not Blue Star.

"What is he trying to do!?" Tian Ou vaguely felt that Luo Mo's ambition might exceed the scope of his imagination!

"And the film is called *The Wandering Earth*? Wandering, and Earth?"

"What exactly is this film going to be about?"

(PS: It's the end of the month, asking for monthly tickets.

Thanks to Alliance Leader 【Yesi】 for the third 100,000 Qidian coin donation, Gratitude~

Also thanks to Alliance Leader 【Nieni】 for the second 100,000 Qidian coin donation, Gratitude~)

(End of this chapter)