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Soon, the information about "Terror Animal City" was sent to Mr. Ling's inbox.
At first glance, the na lit up Mr. Ling's eyes.
It was evident that this was a horror movie. The current state of horror movies was dismal, but adding 'animals' as a selling point made the situation different. Having worked in the industry for many years, Mr. Ling's experience told him that this film might just have sothing interesting to offer!
Opening the email and seeing the specific details, Mr. Ling's expression changed slightly, his eyebrows knit in disappointnt that he couldn't hide.
Investor: Taoyuan Entertainnt;
Producer: Suming;
Total Investnt Amount: Ten million Huaxia currency;
Bearing with it, he continued to look further down.
Director: Guo Zijian
Leading Actors: Nangong Huang, Zhao Chengcheng...
After looking through all the information about the film, Mr. Ling's slight 'appreciation' for the film had completely vanished, leaving him with virtually no expectations.
Had it not been for the fact that the producer was Long Wu, Mr. Ling would have almost categorized this film with those of the dostic low-budget variety. These kinds of films often share several similarities: small investnts, actresses with big chests from the fourth tier who earn more at social engagents than they do in film fees, and directors who believe they are talented yet at best are only suited for shooting short online films.
Such films fill theaters every year, but most are just token releases to give face to certain industry insiders; they screen for a day or two and then are pulled, earning maybe a few hundred thousand or even just over a hundred thousand nationwide, just a symbolic gesture, with nobody really expecting to make money from them.
Mr. Ling picked up the phone and called his assistant in.
"What do you think of this film?" Mr. Ling asked the assistant.
The assistant was also swamped with work due to several blockbusters scheduled for release one after another. Hearing Mr. Ling's question, he shook his head and revealed a helpless smile, "Just giving Mr. Xiang a bit of face, at first I thought he was planning to promote his son, but after looking at the film's information, I realized this film is simply aningless. The genre is the least popular—horror, without a famous director, without any stars, and the investnt is only ten million..."
Mr. Ling interrupted the assistant's analysis and cut straight to the point, "I don't see it doing well either. Have you seen the sample reel?"
"No, they haven't provided a sample reel. They said it's still being shot, and as soon as it's finished, they'll go straight into post-production and then imdiate release," the assistant scoffed, "That's so unprofessional."
"They won't even show a sample reel, what are they thinking?" Mr. Ling was stunned. You expect theaters to screen films, you have to let the theaters see how the films are first, even if there's no big investnt or famous director. If the theater professionals think the film has potential for business, they would still give it so consideration.
Having worked in the industry for so many years, he rarely encountered a movie without a sample reel. Without exception, these films all shared the sa reasons: either the investors themselves had no hope of making money, just spending to woo the leading actress, or it was a rushed, small production, hoping to make a quick appearance and move on.
In any case, whatever the reason, it was a bad film.
"It's said that the biggest highlight of this film is that it is entirely shot with real animals, with no animation or special effects," the assistant continued.
"With that little investnt, where would they get animation or special effects. All real animals... hmph, it's probably sothing like a faux docuntary, a zoo maybe, what else can be fild? It's definitely about animal protection."
Mr. Ling shook his head, having completely given up any expectations for the film, he asked, "You didn't commit to a set filming rate or number of screenings with Mr. Xiang, did you?"
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"No, of course, these decisions are for you, Mr. Ling, to make. How would I dare presu to overstep?" the assistant said with a smile.
After hearing what the assistant had said, Mr. Ling felt reassured, and after a mont of thought, he said, "Alright then, arrange it so that this film will be released in the second week of the sumr season."
"The sumr slot, the second week?" The assistant was slightly taken aback. The first week was the pri ti, with several big-budget productions set for release.
"I know, and with this, I'm pretty much giving Mr. Xiang the respect he deserves. If his film isn't good, then he can't bla . As for the screening arrangent, let's tentatively set it for one week, and the screening rate should not exceed 3%. As for the timings, put them in the early and late shows," Mr. Ling said.
A 3% screening rate sounds low, but compared to many dostic small films, Mr. Ling was really giving Long Wu face.
That year, "Intruder," directed by Huaxia's famous fifth-generation director Wang Xiaoshuai, gained extrely high international acclaim. The industry had always considered it Wang Xiaoshuai's best work. However, when it was released, the national theaters only gave it a 1.5% screening rate, and most of those showings were before 11 a.m. or after 10 p.m.
And Suming's "Terror Animal City," whether in terms of the director or the investnt, didn't have nearly the industry prestige of "Intruder."
"Alright, I'll take care of it," the assistant nodded. "Mr. Ling, the cinemas have all been calling to inquire whether the screening rates for the other films being released at the sa ti have been finalized."
"I'm aware. I'll send it to you this afternoon," Mr. Ling said.
With the minor episode out of the way, Mr. Ling closed the information on "Terror Animal City" and opened the internal system to finalize the screening arrangents for the other films.
Setting aside "Animal City," which was bound to be unprofitable, the lineup for other films set to be released in the second week of sumr was star-studded, comprised of major blockbusters, and Mr. Ling found himself suddenly in high spirits.
"Monk Cos Down the Mountain," directed by Cheng Kaige, and featuring big stars like Wang Baoqiang, Aaron Kwok, Zhang Zhen, Fan Wei, and Lin Zhiling, with an investnt of 400 million!
The screening rate was set at 16.9%.
"Sins of Redemption," a Hollywood-imported blockbuster, appeared to be of average quality at present, but considering the generally decent box office performance of imported films, it was allocated a screening rate of 10%;
"Tiny Tis 4," this was of utmost importance during the sumr season. Adapted from a novel, "Tiny Tis" has a broad fan base. The box office success of the first three installnts was trendous, especially since "Tiny Tis" targets primarily a young audience. With it being sumr now, the timing was perfect.
After much deliberation, Mr. Ling gave a staggering screening rate of 60%!
"I Am Sobody," the new work by director Er Dongsheng, an art film plus pseudo-docuntary, was unlikely to sell big, but movies recording the struggles of ordinary people do have a certain market; it was given an 8% screening rate;
"Zhang Zhen Tells Stories"... Well, it was also an industry insider's film, invested in by Li Bingbing and Ren Quan, a small production horror film, out of respect for relationships, it too got an 8% screening rate;
After finishing, Mr. Ling stretched lazily and glanced at the films set to be released in the third and fourth weeks, roughly browsing through them.
A youth film "Flowers of War," a big animated production "Monster Hunt"; an animated film imported by the BBC, "Shaun the Sheep," "Pancake Man" the big movie... It was indeed a fierce battle for the sumr season, with every film company bringing out their best, any of which could bring in a phenonal box office.
There was one film, though, that Mr. Ling was unsure about: "The Return of the Great Saint."
This was a dostic animated film, which had been in the works for 8 years and in production for 3 years. At one point, funding was cut off completely, and it was only through the crew's own fundraising efforts that they were able to finish the film.
Mr. Ling's opinion was similar to the general consensus in the industry: the film was a sentintal endeavor in dostic animation, and it definitely had to be released, but due to the lack of funds for advertising, nobody in the industry was optimistic about its box office potential. Mr. Ling finally decided to test the waters by allocating a 6% screening rate.
Glancing once more at "Terror Animal City," Mr. Ling thought to himself why on earth they insisted on releasing it during the sumr season. If it was launched during the off-season, maybe it could even make a profit of a million or so. But in the sumr's fierce combat, this film was simply cannon fodder.
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