strictlysupreme Chapter 455: Let me learn from Chen Le?
Chapter 455: Let me learn from Chen Le?
Upon hearing this, the reporters continued to ask:
"Mr. Zheng, what aspects of A Chinese Odyssey do you think are worth learning from?"
"Cough cough..."
Zheng Tianming coughed from the remark, "Learn from it?"
What a joke! Zheng Tianming is a well-known director and the head of a film company in China. You want him to learn from the work of a new director?
Especially a greenhorn like Chen Le?!
Zheng Tianming patted his chest in a disheveled manner, his face flushed red, and the veins on his forehead throbbed faintly.
"Learn from... or draw inspiration from?"
Zheng Tianming's voice was hoarse and distorted from coughing; he almost shouted it out.
Realizing he had lost his composure, he quickly lowered his voice, trying to maintain his last shred of dignity.
"My friend, your question is... very interesting."
He chuckled dryly, the sound as harsh as sandpaper rubbing against a table, making anyone who heard it feel uncomfortable.
"I, Zheng Tianming, have been in the film and television industry for so many years. I've made at least eight or ten films, and every single one of them was a big investment, a big production, and had a big cast."
"The accumulated experience, the established industrial processes, and the precise control of the market are all our company's core advantages!"
He became more and more excited as he spoke, waving his hands vigorously.
"A film made with clever tricks, low budget, and cobbled together from various sources accidentally achieved good box office results. This only shows that the market is sometimes... well, more lenient, or just lucky. But does that mean it's worth learning from?"
He looked around at the reporters with a condescending gaze, as if to say, "What do you know?"
"The Legend of Fengxian has an investment of hundreds of millions of yuan, special effects by a top international team, actors who are award-winning actors and actresses, exquisite costumes, props and sets, and a script that has been polished for three years!"
"This is a work that truly represents the level of China's film industry! Its artistic value and the cultural connotation it carries are incomparable to those small-time productions made for a few million dollars."
Zheng Tianming almost screamed himself hoarse in his defense, attempting to overwhelm his opponent with grand terms like "huge investment," "industrial standards," and "cultural connotations."
"But Mr. Zheng,"
One of the young female reporters, who hadn't said much until now, chimed in at the opportune moment.
"According to the data we have, the box office of A Chinese Odyssey is already very close to that of The Legend of the Immortals, and its screening rate and occupancy rate are still steadily increasing, showing great potential."
"On the other hand, Legend of Fengxian, despite its huge initial success, has seen a drop in box office revenue in recent days... which seems to have exceeded expectations? Audience opinions also seem to be... rather polarized?"
Zheng Tianming's face instantly turned from red to white, and then from white to green.
What he least wanted to face was the other party using solid box office performance and audience feedback to slap him in the face! The decline of "The Legend of Fengxian" after a strong start, and the flood of criticisms online about "gorgeous special effects but an empty story" and "a money-grabbing flop," were his biggest pain.
"Data! What can data prove!"
Zheng Tianming slammed his hand on the table, causing the teacups to bounce and spill water.
"Audiences need guidance! They need cultivation! They don't yet know how to appreciate truly profound works! You can't see the far-reaching influence of The Legend of Fengxian right now! It... it sets a benchmark for the future film market!"
His illogical and almost enraged defense left the reporters present speechless.
The air was so awkward it almost froze.
Seeing that Mr. Zheng was on the verge of losing control, the reporter who initially asked the question quickly tried to smooth things over and end the highly charged interview:
"Okay, okay, thank you for your candid sharing today, Mr. Zheng. We understand the differences in your views on the two films. Well... shall we conclude here for today?"
"Okay, that's it."
Zheng Tianming's chest heaved violently as he gasped for breath, nodding haphazardly, wanting nothing more than to get rid of this plague as quickly as possible.
The reporters packed up their equipment, preparing to leave. Just as they reached the door, one reporter seemed to remember something, and as if in casual conversation, turned around and asked:
"By the way, Mr. Zheng, do you know where Director Chen Le is vacationing recently? I heard that after the box office success of 'A Chinese Odyssey,' he took his family to relax by the sea, I think it's some private island? Do you have any information on the exact location? Our agency would like to see if we can arrange a follow-up interview."
A vacation? A private island? Follow-up interview?
These words struck Zheng Tianming's nerves like a final, heavy blow.
You mean...
At this crucial juncture, Chen Le not only didn't promote his work, but instead went on vacation?
His eyes widened, and he froze on the spot as if struck by lightning.
The others seemed to realize that the reporter had said something wrong, and quickly dragged him away.
"Hey... what are you doing! I haven't finished speaking yet!"
Before the reporter could finish speaking, his mouth was covered.
"I'm sorry, he's new here and doesn't know any better. Please don't mind, Mr. Zheng."
The next second, the door was closed, and the sound of Zheng Tianming smashing things came from inside the room.
Zheng Tianming slumped down, feeling utterly powerless; he simply couldn't accept this fact.
How could Chen Le dare to go on vacation at this time?
Isn't he worried that his film will be overtaken?
Zheng Tianming couldn't help but feel a headache when he thought about this. If things continued like this, let alone making a big sale, even breaking even would be a problem for the Legend of Immortal Sealing.
Keep in mind, he invited almost half of the entertainment industry's stars to join him.
The cost itself was already over a billion yuan, not to mention the price of the special effects team...
Thinking about all this, Zheng Tianming felt breathless, as if all his strength had been drained, and he slumped into the chair.
He had made thorough preparations, so why did it turn out like this?
"Trying to climb over me to get ahead? Dream on!"
A sinister glint flashed in Zheng Tianming's eyes. He would never sit idly by and wait for his doom, much less let Chen Le comfortably enjoy the fruits of victory.
He quickly picked up his phone and dialed a trusted confidant's number.
"It's me! Do a few things for me right now,"
"Find online trolls, the kind that flood the internet, and smear 'A Chinese Odyssey' to the core! Call it a parody of a classic, vulgar and pandering, illogical, and whatever else you can say that's offensive! Focus on attacking director Chen Le, saying he's just trying to attract attention and has no substance whatsoever!"
"Also, contact those cinema chains with which we have good relations. No matter what, we must keep the screening schedule of The Legend of Fengxian stable, and we can even... slightly 'adjust' the prime-time screenings of A Chinese Odyssey."
He put down the phone, his chest heaving violently, but a twisted sense of pleasure appeared on his face.
He wants to use public opinion, film scheduling, and reputation all at once to completely crush Chen Le and his A Chinese Odyssey to the bottom!
He wanted to make Chen Le understand that the entertainment industry was not something he could muddy with luck and low costs!