Hollywood New Century

The 2008 Beijing Olympic Games opened on time at 8:00 p.m. on August 8, Beijing time.

In the Park Hyatt hotel suite in the Beijing Yintai Center Building, which was just completed this year, Simon stood by the window overlooking Chang'an Avenue, full of thoughts.

"How's it going, the theater plan here?" Simon looked outside and asked Zhou Lixian about China's theater cooperation plan.

"The contact was very smooth, but compared to other Hollywood production companies, the discount we got is not good!" Zhou Lixian has already contacted many theater companies here, and Xinghai Pictures' entry into the theater market is very popular.

"Of course," Simon smiled helplessly and said, "Wanda Warner Studios, which Warner Bros. and Wanda cooperate with, does not need any investment from Warner Bros. The brand effect and management skills are enough. After all, it is a Hollywood giant and has a worldwide presence. The brand effect inside is too great, we Xinghai Entertainment can't do it!"

"However, at present, because of policy issues here, it seems that Hollywood is not very interested in China's mainland theater market, and now we have a blank period to join in, and my United Theater is also an experienced American commercial theater company. The economy is currently in a downturn, so now is still a good time for us to expand into the Chinese cinema market;”

"At least 10 multiplex theaters invested by Xinghai Film Industry will open this year. It is a must to complete the task. In the future, the number of theaters will also increase!"

"There is no need to worry about funding. I will give the full support of the finance department. There is no need to doubt my strength in the Greater China market."

Zhou Lixian nodded, and the words were clear, and then he suggested: "The theater plan is not difficult, but in terms of content production, how much are we participating now?"

"Participating in investing in local comedy, love and other movies can also support a group of local independent directors. After all, we have a distribution network in North America, which is very attractive," Simon thought about creating an Asian film fund or Institutions such as the East Asian Film Fund to open up the market.

"Currently, China's private film companies, Huayi Brothers Media, Poly Bona Group, Enlight Pictures, Paige Taihe, and Orange Sky Entertainment are quite good. "Zhou Lixian pointed to the information on the table, and continued:

"If Xinghai Films' films are released in China, they cannot bypass the two state-run licensed companies, China Film and Huaxia Films. If you want to participate in local film investment, we can strengthen cooperation with these private film companies!"

Simon walked to the table, flipped through the documents, and nodded. It seems that there are no giants such as Alibaba Pictures, Tencent Pictures and Wanda Pictures yet. Huayi Brothers is currently the number one private film company in China.

"Do you have any suggestions?" Simon asked while flipping through the documents.

"Our main purpose is to open up the mainland market. If we invest in local films, we should still focus on influence, from the three aspects of director, actor and script type," Zhou Lixian said, stroking his long hair beside his ears.

"However, we don't know anyone very well about mainland films, so it's important to choose a partner. According to the usual practice of Hollywood film companies, it is better to invest in capable film and television companies!"

"Let's get to know it first, there are good projects you can follow up." Simon is very casual about investing in Chinese-language films, because the cost is not too high. After all, it was only 2008, and there were not many blockbusters in the Chinese mainland market.

Moreover, Simon is not very interested in those famous directors and blockbusters. The main direction is to support new directors and choose projects such as romantic comedies.

By the time Zhou Lixian left, it was already evening. The entertainment industry in the Chinese mainland market was still growing, and it was not big now. No one would have imagined that it would become a big movie market alongside North America in a few years.

Of course, Beijing is hot in August, and during the Olympics, the flow of people in the entire Beijing city is inevitably crowded.

On Wangfujing Street not far from the hotel, Simon and Sarah Bradna were hanging out like a pair of ordinary foreigners.

"I went to the water cube today to watch the swimming competition. The new swimming center is really beautiful. Simon, you should go with me," Sarah Bradner has been outside these days. When watching Olympic games or visiting scenic spots, Simon did accompany her to watch some games before, but later began to deal with business affairs in the hotel.

Although Simon listened to Sarah Bradna talking, he kept thinking about how to open up the mainland.

On the side of the bustling Wangfujing Street, the poster of the Hollywood blockbuster "The Mummy 3: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor" co-produced by China and the United States is very conspicuous. The film was released in North America at the beginning of the month; while in mainland China, due to censorship reasons, the release time was not synchronized. is 9.2.

The posters in China, of course, will use Jet Li as the main propaganda target. With Michelle Yeoh and other Chinese actors, "The Mummy 3: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor" does have a lot of Chinese elements.

The "King of Kung Fu" released in April was also a Sino-US co-production. Jackie Chan and Jet Li earned 170 million yuan at the box office in China and nearly 40 million US dollars at the North American box office.

For these Sino-US co-productions, Simon does not have much affection, and they are basically considered failures. Hollywood productions, plus Chinese actors or filming venues, are neither good nor bad, and nondescript.

If the investment is too large, of course the cost will not be recovered from the Chinese market. Actors who are also influential in the international market are needed, and there are indeed only a few Chinese actors who are influential in the international market.

If you still have to learn from Sony, if you operate a co-production film, you will directly entrust a Chinese film production company to develop the film. "Kung Fu" can be said to be the most successful Chinese film invested by Sony Columbia Pictures.

It was directly handed over to Stephen Chow's Star Films for production, and Sony Columbia sent people to manage the scene without interfering in the content.

"Alas!" Simon, who was a little confused, sighed, and Sarah Bradna on the side wondered,

"What's the matter? Didn't you come here to watch the Olympics? Tomorrow we have our basketball team Germany against China. Are you going?"

"The Chinese team and the German team? Let's go to the fourth round of the group stage. Let's go and see!" Simon knew that the Chinese team won the German team in this game and qualified for the quarter-finals from the death group.

"Ha, I almost forgot, you own an NBA club, the New Jersey Nets!" Sarah Bradner laughed.