1979 Golden Age

"... boost the morale of our cultural system... After finishing the affairs in Xiangjiang, I will report back to Beijing as soon as possible..."

At the Clear Water Bay studio, Chen Qi read Ding Qiao's autographed letter, folded it and put it away. He looked up at Li Lianjie who was accompanying him and said, "Let's go, I'll take you to meet the director!"

"Is it the one named Tsui Hark?"

"That's right, he will take over "Tai Chi 3", and you will hang out with him in the second half of the year...well, you will also hang out with him in the future."

"You sold me?" Li Lianjie was surprised.

"What nonsense! His style is very suitable for you, and you are very suitable for him. You two belong to Heavenly Thunder and Earthly Fire. Wang Po met Pan Jinlian. I plan to let you cooperate often."

Li Lien came here not only to study "Tai Chi 3" with Tsui Hark, but also to promote "Tai Chi 2".

Chen Qi opened an office, which has not yet been announced to the public, but Tsui Hark has already taken ownership and gradually moved things here. His stuff is very two-dimensional, like a dead otaku. He has a lot of Japanese comic books and dolls, including a complete set of Hong Kong versions of "Doraemon" and "Astro Boy".

Tsui Hark likes Japanese two-dimensional elements very much and often adds them to his movies.

"Old Xu, I brought it to you!"

"Ajie!"

Tsui Hark's eyes lit up when he saw Li Lianjie and he grabbed his hand. If Brigitte Lin was his muse, Li Lianjie was his male god. He wanted to take the photo so much.

"Go in and have an in-depth discussion with the director!"

Chen Qi pushed Li Lianjie into the room, and walked away like an old madam who forced her into prostitution.

He called Xiao Mo and Xiao Geng and walked downstairs.

Suddenly, I met another man, a man in his early thirties, wearing glasses and polite, and said, "Mr. Chen, are you going out?"

"Go hang out next door. What are you busy with?"

"There is a script for Mr. Fu Qi to read."

"What script?"

""Mint Coffee" tells the story of GG's strong woman."

"Oh, come on!"

Chen Qi nodded and passed by. This person's name was Xian Qiran. He used to work in a TV station. Later he went to study in the UK and wanted to make movies when he came back. The leftist invested in him and made two movies, which were tepid.

This person is an average director, and his masterpieces include "The World of Three", "The Overlord of Western Chu" and so on.

But he has business capabilities.

In 1984, Sammo Hung, James Shum, and Dickson Pan founded Debao Film Company, which became a major force in the mid-to-late 1980s. Xian Qiran moved there and became the company's executive director, planning many masterpieces.

Now that he still belongs to the left, Chen Qi will naturally not let him go.

The biggest feature of Xian Qiran is that he is one of the few directors in Hong Kong who can make white-collar movies, such as "The World of Three", starring Lin Zixiang, Cheng Yuling, Rosamund Kwan, and Vivian Chow. It tells the story of the tug-and-pull between urban men and women, which is very suitable for white-collar workers.

Historically, the left has actually attracted many capable young people, but they have not retained them because of the lack of market. Chen Qi solved the biggest marketing and sales problem, and the situation was different.

now.

Chen Qi left the set and strolled to Shaw Brothers next door. The security guard at the door took a look and saw that the factory official was here, followed by two envoys who rewarded good and punished evil. They quickly let him go and notified Fang Yihua.

Fang Yihua was sitting in the office, fully aware of his purpose. Not long after, his assistant came to report: "Mr. Chen is here!"

"Invite him in!"

She straightened her clothes and waited until Chen Qi entered the door before she stood up and reached out her hand: "Mr. Chen, we meet again!"

"Manager Fang!"

Chen Qi shook hands and sat opposite her. Across a large desk, Fang Yihua started to praise: "You went to France and came back with a lot of money. It caused a sensation in Hong Kong. Shaw also praised him, saying that those people at most have You are a small talent, but you are a great talent, so rare!”

"I don't deserve it. I just stand tall and see far. There are gaps in my chest and things in my belly!"

He was modest and said: "Today there is a small thing and a big thing. As we all know, the stubborn problem of the left is that there are too few theaters, and Shaw Brothers has poor box office and low morale. Having 16 theaters is a waste of resources. We want to rent The next few..."

"Absolutely impossible!"

Before he could finish speaking, Fang Yihua flatly refused: "Shaw Brothers Theater is our lifeline. We will not give it to others, not even rent it!"

"Everyone knows the situation of Shaw Brothers. It's useless to just talk. Hong Kong box office records have been set one after another, but you don't even have a movie that breaks 10 million. The big studio system will eventually be finished. Hollywood has proven this a long time ago. .

And the most difficult thing is that you know that the big studio system is going to end, but you can't save it because it's hard to come back.

I admire you for guarding Shaw Brothers for Boss Shaw, but you should have made plans early, put more effort into TVB, and joined TVB's board of directors. That is the truth! "

"You can't say anything about this matter, so there's no need to waste your efforts!"

Fang Yihua looked like he was constipated, and was very helpless towards Chen Qi. Everyone was hiding it and expressing it tactfully, but this guy always said it openly, which was very embarrassing.

However, she is really not qualified to make the decision.

Why are the Shaw Brothers called brothers? This was a partnership between Run Run Shaw and his third brother, Shao Renmei. Run Run Shaw was responsible for the production and Shao Renmei was responsible for the distribution, that is, the theater chain.

In 1985, Debao Company was the Debao company mentioned above.

They took over Shaw Brothers Cinemas.

Because at that time, Shao Renmei passed away, and his children and grandchildren had no intention of entering the industry. This was the main reason why Shaw Brothers sold the theater chain.

By the way: Many materials and novels say that Shaw Brothers reduced production that year, but in fact it did not. In the early 1980s, it still maintained an annual production of more than 30 films. Even in 1985, when it sold its cinemas, it still made 20 films...

The death of Shaw Renmei was the important factor. If he were alive, Shaw Brothers would eventually close, but it could still last for a few years.

Chen Qi tried to probe, and seeing Fang Yihua's firm attitude, he stopped pestering. If Shaw's cinemas didn't work, there was still the Golden Princess. Just destroy Xinyicheng.

"Okay, in that case, let's not talk about this. I have another small matter. I borrowed an actor, Zhong Chuhong, to shoot "Ghost" before, and now I want her."

"Why should I let my actors go to the left? The atmosphere is tense now, and the rightists are looking for trouble with us, and you will bear it?" Fang Yihua said unhappily.

"When the film is released, won't the rightists still cause trouble for you? Come here now, we can still build a platform between us, just say that we paid a penalty to poach people, and the rightists can't say anything!"

"You want to pay a penalty?"

When it comes to money, Fang Yihua's eyes light up.

"No! I'll talk!"

That's it!

Fang Yihua wanted to beat him up, and said angrily: "You don't want to pay anything, and you want me as an actor for nothing?"

"I poached Tsui Hark and Shi Nansheng, and Xinyicheng was seriously injured. Isn't it good for you? How can you say it's for nothing?"

"No, no, you must pay some penalty, otherwise I would rather the rightists come to cause trouble!"

Fang Yihua's personality cannot tolerate being taken advantage of for free. This is her life belief, even if it's a little less.

Fortunately, Zhong Chuhong is a rising star and her price is not expensive. Chen Qi bargained and bought her for 300,000 Hong Kong dollars. He is not from the Great Wall Company, but Fu Qi and Shi Hui generally support what he does.

When Fang Yihua borrowed people, she didn't intend to keep them, and she didn't know how popular Chung Chuhong would be in the future.

The two sides reached an agreement, and Chen Qi finally said: "Also, I want to continue to run Xinyicheng, you have to cooperate this time, don't you understand? You are taking advantage of others' misfortune!"