mijobooks Chapter 35, Third Entrepreneurial Goal
Chapter 35, Third Entrepreneurial Goal
Enjoying hot pot and a few drinks.
"Qingshan, everyone's saying you made 200 million yuan from two movies, is that true or false?" Gu Mingde asked curiously.
Gu Qingshan retorted irritably, "How could that be? You think all the box office revenue belongs to the production company? You're dreaming!"
"About a third of the box office revenue goes to the production company," Gu Qingshan said. "And I have no money or connections. People invest in me to make movies, and I only earn a little bit of hard-earned money. The two movies only earned about five million in total, and that's only because people gave me red envelopes (bribes). Otherwise, I wouldn't have made any."
Gu Qingshan didn't tell his family the truth, lest they get carried away.
Gu Qingshan knew his parents all too well.
He dared to say he earned 30 to 40 million, and his parents dared to tell others that he earned 100 to 200 million.
Gu Qingshan said, "Don't believe those reports, those reporters are just talking nonsense."
"Then we won't build our house. You can use the money to make a movie and get a bigger share. Anyway, we have enough room in our house," Chen Yue said.
Gu Qingyu added, "Mom and Dad are right. Your career is just starting out, so it's best to invest your money. The house is still habitable."
Their house is a single-story building with a living room, a kitchen, and three bedrooms. The kitchen is also where they eat.
They've been living in this house for thirteen years now.
"You think you can just invest money in a movie whenever you want? It depends on your connections and resources. If you don't have connections, you can't invest even if you want to," Gu Qingshan said. "Our house is habitable, but it has a lot of problems."
His house is a stone house, and it leaks in some places when it rains.
His parents were reluctant to demolish and rebuild, but Gu Qingshan would not think that way.
He not only wants to build it, but he also wants to build it well.
As the ancients said, "To return home in wealth and honor is like wearing fine clothes at night!"
He donated two million to the snow disaster relief efforts, and he certainly wouldn't be stingy when building a house at home.
The first thing I do when I get home is measure the length and width of my land.
"But now, we can't get the permits to build a house!" Gu Mingde said, frowning. "We only have three and a half acres of land, and even renovating our old house is a problem."
Obtaining a property ownership certificate is a major challenge.
His family's bungalow was built directly, so they couldn't get a property certificate.
Since the house was built, Gu Mingde has made at least ten trips, but it's still impossible to get it done.
Gu Qingshan smiled and said, "Leave this to me."
What a joke! The land belongs to them. He's a well-known director, after all. Can't he handle something as small as this?
......
The next day, Gu Qingshan went to the village committee, brought two packs of soft liquor, two jin of tea, and two bottles of Moutai, and easily stamped them with the village committee's official seal.
Afterwards, Gu Qingshan went to the town. Upon hearing that Gu Qingshan was there, the town mayor and the town party secretary immediately went to see him in person.
Gu Qingshan isn't the richest man in town, but he's definitely the most well-known now.
Director, perhaps one day Gu Qingshan will become a great director, and that might even reach the Emperor's ears.
The town mayor simply had the head of the land office bring the official seal over and sign and stamp it directly.
In the afternoon, Gu Qingshan went to a design institute to commission them to design a house.
Gu Qingshan didn't plan on the currently popular small Western-style houses or Chinese-style villas, but rather the Song style, which he felt was the ideal residence for Chinese people.
Either don't build it, or if you do build it, build it well.
It won't be out of style for another twenty years!
......
It was late at night.
Gu Qingshan lay on the bed, a thoughtful expression on his face.
"Love is Not Blind" is nearing its end and will likely continue to be shown until mid-to-late March, where it is expected to earn at least tens of millions more at the box office.
He also has to consider his next film.
"Our current resources are limited, so we can't afford the hassle of big-budget productions. We need to stick to low-budget films, preferably with a production cost of under ten million." Gu Qingshan stroked his chin, his mind constantly searching for low-budget, high-grossing movies.
Movies like "Nightclub" and "Love is Not Blind" are the most suitable for him.
As for artistic merit, he's not the kind of director who only pursues art and doesn't consider box office success.
He has to be responsible for himself and for his company's employees.
Gu Qingshan suddenly thought of a movie, a typical low-investment, high-return movie.
Lost on Journey!
The production cost of "Lost in Thailand" was not high. Xu Zheng had not yet become a "box office gold standard," and Wang Baoqiang mainly worked on TV dramas, so the actors' salaries were not too high. The production mainly involved location shooting without special effects, and the scenes were mostly real-life locations such as train stations, airplane cabins, long-distance buses, and small hotels.
Gu Qingshan remembers that the production cost of "Lost in Thailand" was between 600 and 700 million yuan at the time, but with a discount, it would have been around 400 to 500 million yuan.
The final box office of "Lost in Thailand" reached 4650 million!
Frankly speaking, *Lost in Thailand* is a very good movie. It pioneered a successful localized model of "road movie + comedy" and closely linked the story to a uniquely Chinese social phenomenon—the Spring Festival travel rush. This gives the film a strong sense of realism and emotional resonance, allowing a wide audience to feel a strong sense of identification.
The film's script is excellent, wrapping warmth, satire, and social commentary beneath a comedic exterior. The plot is tight, the humor is natural and tasteful, and the emotions are genuine without being sentimental.
"Let's go with 'Lost in Thailand'!" Gu Qingshan decided on his next film.
Gu Qingshan entered the simulation space, and as he reviewed the content, an LCD screen appeared in the simulation space, quickly playing back what he had reviewed.
"Lost in Thailand, 85% complete? Simulated repair time, 3 hours?" Gu Qingshan looked at the LCD screen.
It seems I still have a deep impression of "Lost in Thailand," as my completeness is as high as 85%.
"As for the actors, it's still Xu Zheng and Wang Baoqiang!" Gu Qingshan made his decision.
First of all, neither of them is currently paid a high salary, so Gu Qingshan can afford to hire them.
Furthermore, the chemistry between Xu Zheng and Wang Baoqiang is key to the film's success. One is an elite, anxious individual, while the other is honest and optimistic; the contrast between their personalities and the resulting dramatic conflicts are highly engaging.
Unfortunately, their style is hard to find anywhere else in the country.
Take Wang Baoqiang's unique temperament, for example. He is the only one of his kind in the country. There is no one else like him in this field.
Besides, Wang Baoqiang is a man who can withstand scrutiny; neither his agent nor the woman he sleeps with can find any substantial blemishes on his record.
Even Gu Qingshan would feel respect for such a person.
"As for the actresses..." Gu Qingshan pondered for a moment. The main characters in this movie are Xu Zheng and Wang Baoqiang. As for the other female characters, they don't have many scenes and are not important.
If Jing Tian wants to act, then he can act; if he doesn't want to act, then he won't.
There are several roles available, so choosing one is quite easy.
Soon, Gu Qingshan had a list of actors and even a list of behind-the-scenes crew members in his mind.
In just three hours, "Lost in Thailand" was repaired.
Gu Qingshan began analyzing frame by frame. Having filmed two movies, Gu Qingshan was no novice; he knew which ones could be filmed better.
Moreover, he can make improvements using the simulation space.