Chapter 616 We Are Called Chinese Film

In addition to the four theater chains of Shaw Brothers, Golden Harvest, Golden Princess, and Left Wing, Hong Kong also has a loose Western film theater chain.

Mainly serving Hong Kong's middle class and foreigners.

This theater chain is a spontaneous alliance of many small companies. Each company does not have many theaters, so they just stick together to keep warm.

On weekdays, each company introduces movies by itself, or shows them by itself, or joins several companies to show them together. When encountering a Hollywood blockbuster, they may join forces to introduce and screen it in order to maximize profits.

In short, there are no strict rules and it is very free.

What movies are shown in Hong Kong theaters is not determined by anyone, it is all market behavior. Western film theaters cannot squeeze into the local film market and can only produce Western films. However, they have good relations with overseas film producers, and local film theaters cannot grab Western films, so they are content with each other.

The father of the Jiang brothers has been involved in the introduction of Western films for a long time. There is an Anle Pictures and two Broadway theaters. You read that right, two theaters, and they are small theaters with six to seven hundred seats.

Currently, the Jiang family's business is headed by his eldest brother Jiang Zhiwen. Jiang Zhiqiang is still a follower, but he introduced Hayao Miyazaki's "Castle in the Sky" in 1986 and a series of subsequent cartoons. This is an exclusive track in Hong Kong. All achieved good box office success.

In 1989, he replaced his eldest brother and took over the family business.

It was not until the late 1990s that Hong Kong films declined and Hollywood made a big move.

Jiang Zhiqiang took the lead.

Because he makes Western films and is familiar with Hollywood, he used the relationships accumulated over the years to launch "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon"

"Heroes", "House of Flying Daggers", "The Golden Armor", etc., ushered in the blockbuster era and suddenly became the savior.

Later, Liu Yifei was able to get "Mulan", and it was Jiang Zhiqiang who was the matchmaker.

Inside the hotel.

Jiang Zhiwen held up a film list and said: "We are going to watch 30 films this time, in addition to 4 global films."

"30 movies are not many. It would be great if I could pick up movies like "Raiders of the Lost Ark" and "007"," Jiang Zhiqiang said.

"You street boy!"

Jiang Zhiwen scolded when he opened his mouth: "We are a small business, buy more and put more, earn some hard-earned money, and success depends on luck. You are also 30 years old, you need to be more cautious. Haven't you learned enough lessons from last year?"

Jiang Zhiqiang kept silent. Last year, he made his first independent purchase and introduced an animated film "Garfield Goes to Town".

The result was a loss.

The Hong Kong market is small, and overseas film producers don't pay much attention to it. They sell the film at a price that's close to the price, or distribute it through an agency or split accounts.

For example, last year's "ET" had a box office of 16 million Hong Kong dollars. Regardless of agency or share, Hollywood companies can only get hundreds of thousands of dollars, which is like mosquito meat.

“What does Universal have?”

""The Hero", "The Two Lights", "The Iceman 40,000 Years Old" and "Planet Fighter"!"

Jiang Zhiwen shook his head and sighed: "The name and introduction are not very good, but we have signed an exclusive agency with Universal and must bring them in."

"Actually, local films are popular in Hong Kong. It would be great if we could squeeze in.'

"Do you still need to tell me? It's not like our family has never tried it before, and we are on the street! How can it be so easy for Shaw Brothers, Jiahe, and the Left to monopolize the market?"

Jiang Zhiwen paused and suddenly said: "The Oscars are about to be held. The left-wing film "Life is Beautiful" has been nominated. Mr. Chen must be in Los Angeles. Do we want to meet?"

"What are we meeting for, discussing cooperation?"

"No matter what he talks about, it's okay to get to know each other. Our Western films don't involve Taiwan and have nothing to do with the rightists."

Jiang Zhiwen was very action-oriented. He didn't know which hotel Chen Qi was staying in, so he first contacted the Silver Capital in Hong Kong.

Chen Qi didn't know about this yet and was focused on preparing for the Oscar.

20th Century Fox naturally took active actions. Roberts was originally responsible for overseas affairs. He was familiar with Chen Qi and was transferred as a liaison.

At this moment, the two of them went downstairs together, and Roberts kept complaining: "You guys arrived too late. How could you arrive two days before the Oscars? You should have attended the event a week in advance and accepted various interviews to build up the excitement."

"It would be great if we could come, let's get to the point!"

"There are twenty media outlets downstairs, and "Life Is Beautiful" has attracted a lot of attention. Your biggest competitor for best foreign language film is "Fanny and Alexander," and your biggest competitor for best picture is "Mother and Daughter."

"I haven't even seen it!"

"I know you haven't seen it, but reporters will definitely ask. I know Chinese people like to be modest, except you. Don't be too arrogant when you are interviewed, and you should respect the master——"

Roberts, Barabara, Chen Qi was very surprised: "Don't you Americans look down on European art films?"

"It's an ordinary art film. Even if it reaches Bergman's level, Americans will praise it."

"Just like the nouveau riche who like to buy a few antiques for decoration?"

"That's a great metaphor, that's it!" Roberts said.

"Mother and Daughter" is an American film that tells the story of a middle-class family's family relationship.

That's all, "Fanny and Alexander" is a European art film directed by Ingmar Bergman, whose masterpieces include "The Seventh Seal", "Wild Strawberries", "The Virgin Spring" and so on.

You don't need to know how awesome he is, just know that he is awesome.

There is a saying of the "holy trinity" of modern art films, which refers to three directors: Bergman, Fellini, and Tarkovsky. Its status is equivalent to Sanqing in the art film industry.

"Fanny and Alexander" was also nominated for the best foreign language film. In the probability of winning the award predicted by the outside world, it is the same as "Fanny and Alexander".

"Beautiful Life" goes hand in hand.

"Be respectful! Be respectful!"

Roberts made the final reminder, and Chen Qi smiled and said, "Don't worry, I was very famous in Los Angeles last year. I am an interesting Chinese."

He walked towards the reporters waiting in the lobby on the first floor.

The reporters suddenly became agitated and raised their cameras. One reason was the Oscar bonus, and the other was that Chen Qi's visit last year did leave a deep impression on everyone.

"Why did you arrive so late? Did the government prohibit you from leaving the country?"

There is no need to overestimate the integrity of the Hong Kong media. When facing the American media, the Hong Kong media is as pure as a virgin. The first question was very annoying. Chen Qi glanced at the bearded reporter who asked the question and said, "Sir, can you give me a reason to arrive early?"

"Of course it's a publicity warm-up!"

"But I arrived today, didn't you come to interview me? You can leave now."

The bearded man blushed instantly, and his colleagues didn't pity him, but laughed at him. Another reporter asked: "Have you seen "Fanny and Alexander"?"

"No!"

"Who do you think has a better chance of winning?"

"We'll have to wait until the Oscars are over to find out."

"What do you think of Bergman?"

"He is a recognized master, but he won't be attending the Oscars. I'm here, so I deserve more of your attention.

Let's talk about "Life is Beautiful". I heard that this film was released on a small scale. I hope 20th Century Fox will spend more money and let the audience smash Japanese cars again, or try the feel of Japanese home appliances..."

"Haha!"

The reporters laughed and asked a few more questions. Chen Qi said seriously:

"Of course I hope "Life is Beautiful" can win the award. This is not only a breakthrough for mainland films, but also a breakthrough for Hong Kong and Taiwan films. It's not a good thing to divide us by region. We have a unified name overseas, Chinese films.

I hope "Life is Beautiful" can become the first Chinese-language film to win an Oscar!"

(I feel very uncomfortable today, there is———"·

I owe 8 chapters)