EFB Chapter 68 Sugar Beneath Films
Chapter 68 Sugar Beneath Films
Back in 2011, the TV series "Xuan-Yuan Sword: Scar of Sky," starring Jiang Jinfu, was expected to be a hit, but it turned out to be Tangren's first failure in this genre.
Because it failed to continue the success of the "Chinese Paladin" series, Tangren has never been able to produce a hit like "Scarlet Heart" again.
Now that Jiang Jinfu has terminated the contract, in addition to bringing legal pressure to himself, even Tangren is deeply mired in an economic crisis. It can only be said that both sides suffer losses.
Furthermore, as a long-established film and television company, Sugarman Films is too slow in terms of capital operations.
In 2015, Lao Cai introduced external shareholders to raise 3 million yuan.
This has resulted in Tangren's current valuation being less than half that of industry upstarts such as Jiaxing Media, Xinli Film & Television, and Daylight Entertainment.
Looking back at the peers of Sugarman back then, companies like Tangde Film & Television, Huanrui Century, and Ciwen Media have already been listed on the A-share market.
Since early December, news broke that Sister Sisi's contract with Tangren had expired and would not be renewed. Coupled with the news that Brother Hu was going abroad for further studies, this accelerated the decline of Tangren Films.
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On the other side, after Hou Hongliang finished communicating with Han Ziming and Gong Yu, he immediately picked up his phone and made a WeChat video call to Brother Hu.
At this time, Hu Ge and Cai Yinong were resting in a five-star hotel in Yanjing.
Because Hu Jintao is going to participate in the Spring Festival Gala and needs to go to Beijing for rehearsals, the two are preparing to discuss Hu Jintao's plans to go to the United States for further studies next year.
Cai Yinong is also very troubled.
Their top female artist just terminated her contract.
Choose to take care of multiple elderly people.
I didn't expect Brother Hu to stir up trouble again.
She could only patiently discuss it with Brother Hu.
Hopefully, he won't be too willful.
After all, Tangren Films doesn't have many stars to support the company's development right now; only Nezha and Chen Yao have some recognition.
But Naza has a boyfriend.
Unable to reach the top tier;
Chen Yao's personality is too laid-back and unfit for great responsibilities.
Cai Yinong even sensed that Sugar Films was facing a crisis, which was the culmination of her many years of hard work.
Hu Ge frowned deeply. Cai Yinong had just advised him to give up his plans for further studies, and he was about to refuse.
Just then, Hou Hongliang called via WeChat video, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.
Because normally we make phone calls.
How to put it...
People in the industry generally don't make videos.
Unlike ordinary people, celebrities are extremely protective of their privacy, and unexpected things can easily happen when they are making videos.
However, Hou Hongliang, who directed several of Hu Ge's previous TV series, has a good relationship with him.
Brother Hu clicked to connect via WeChat video, and said with a smile, "President Hou, it's been a long time since we last contacted each other. What's up?"
Hou Hongliang looked at Brother Hu on the other end of the video, blinked, and smiled, directly throwing out a question that Brother Hu was quite concerned about.
"Brother Hu, are you really going to pursue further studies?"
Brother Hu immediately understood that Hou Hongliang had something to discuss with him and most likely didn't want him to study abroad. He smiled wryly and said:
"Mr. Hou, you're not here to persuade me too, are you? Sister K was just trying to persuade me as well. Don't you guys think I should go for my studies?"
Upon hearing this, Hou Hongliang
It seemed like a very coincidental coincidence.
"So Ms. Cai is here too. I'll say hello to her and also mention that I was looking for you."
After Hu Ge informed Cai Yinong, he placed his phone on the coffee table, and the two appeared together in the video.
Hou Hongliang greeted him with a smile.
"Mr. Cai, it's been a long time."
Cai Yinong responded with a smile, and asked curiously, "Mr. Hou, hello, what brings you here via video call?"
Hou Hongliang took this collaboration very seriously and, without beating around the bush, said directly, "It's not about favors; I have an important project here, and I'd like to invite Brother Hu to play the male lead."
Just as Brother Hu was about to refuse,
Cai Yinong's eyes lit up, as if she saw a glimmer of hope, and she quickly asked, "Thank you for your concern, Mr. Hou. What project is it?"
Hou Hongliang explained:
"I and Qiyiguo have prepared a 2 million yuan costume drama project. The female lead has been confirmed to be Zhao Yingbao, a post-85s actress who has become very popular in the past two years."
The male lead was originally planned to be played by Feng Shaofeng, and a contract was almost signed, but the investor rejected it and specifically invited Hu Ge to play the role.
However, this is a female-centric drama, with only 10 episodes in total. The original salary wasn't much, but I felt that inviting Hu Ge was too low, so I asked the investors to increase it to 3000 million.
Well, that's the art of speaking.
Hou Hongliang is implying that someone offered you a role, but you felt the pay was too low, so they negotiated a higher one for you, and you should consider it.
When Hu Ge heard about the 3000 million yuan salary, he paused slightly. However, since he was already quite wealthy and had decided to study abroad, he was preparing to refuse.
At this point, Cai Yinong asked, "President Hou, given Lao Hu's current market value, this fee is very reasonable. I'd like to ask, how much is Zhao Yingbao's fee?"
Hou Hongliang answered truthfully: "We have cooperated many times, and I will not hide anything from you, it is 6000 million."
Cai Yinong was immediately displeased.
"That won't do. If we want Brother Hu to star, he has to be the lead actor, and his salary has to be either the same or he has to give us a share of the film and television production. Otherwise, we won't even consider it."
Hou Hongliang was speechless.
"They can be paid the same, but he acted in the entire series, while Hu Ge only acted in less than 10 episodes. How can their salaries be the same? You should know that if Hu Ge went out to study, his salary would basically be reduced by 70-80%."
Then, he said to Brother Hu:
"Old Hu, I understand that you want to switch to directing. However, studying abroad has limited benefits. It would be better to do something like Baoqiang and directly engage in film creation, or buy a script and find someone to film it with.
Moreover, this project has great potential, comparable to "The Journey of Flower". Although you have no shortage of excellent works, this role can help Tangren Film and Television.
Once the project is finished, I believe Mr. Cai will no longer hinder you from making other plans.
Then he said to Cai Yinong.
"Sister K, let's be frank. Keeping Lao Hu is the most important thing. Besides, the investor has extensive resources in the film industry and plans to invest in multiple films next year."
"Your Sugar Bean Films aren't looking to get into the film industry. Building good relationships first is the right thing to do; this is a rare opportunity."
After hearing this, Brother Hu hesitated. He had always wanted to switch to making art films, but resources were scarce. If there were film resources available, it would definitely be worth considering.
"Mr. Hou, could you please send me the script to take a look?"
Hou Hongliang immediately used his phone to shrink the video call interface and sent the script over.
Hu Ge received the script quickly. He opened WeChat on his laptop and began to review it.
Cai Yinong then realized that she had been blinded by greed and forgotten her purpose in meeting Brother Hu, almost ruining everything, but she still held onto hope.
"Is it really impossible to discuss this further?"
Hou Hongliang was exasperated; why was he still so difficult to deal with?
No wonder sugar candy has declined; people can't even distinguish between big and small matters.
However, in order to complete this task, he had no choice but to increase the workload, as he couldn't let these small matters affect the project's progress.
You know, when "The Beginning" became a huge hit, Daylight Entertainment gained a lot of fame, and he was even the assistant director. He was really envious.
It's important to understand that Noon Sunshine Productions doesn't just produce projects anymore; they also employ a group of actors. The cast of "The Story of Minglan" was conveniently provided to them for scheduling.