This star’s style is wrong

The production of "Spirited Away" has been basically completed.

Fang Xing has already seen the first cut version and is very satisfied with the overall effect.

The total duration of the first cut is 150 minutes, which is a bit too long for a movie released in theaters.

However, it is normal for the first cut to be a little longer.

Fang Xing hired another team that was good at editing animated films to edit again and requested that the film be cut to about 120 minutes.

Nowadays, theater movies usually have a duration of 90 minutes in order to keep the pace tight.

However, a 120-minute movie is not too long.

For the movie "Spirited Away", it is a relatively suitable length, about 125 minutes including the opening and closing credits.

The two-hour length will not make the audience feel too dragged out, nor is it too tight.

Once the final cut is released, preparations will begin for release.

Fang Xing plans to release it during the long holiday period of October 1, so during the editing period, he needs to find release channels.

In the theatrical film industry, there is a standard process.

Usually, a movie requires three stages from production to release.

Present, produce, distribute.

Ark Culture is the producer of "Spirited Away" and Liang Jing Studio is the producer.

At present, Ark Culture has not obtained a "Film Distribution License" and cannot distribute movies. It needs to find another company with a distribution license to cooperate.

In fact, even if Ark Culture has a film distribution license, it does not have the resources and channels for theaters, publicity, and local promotion, so it still needs to find a film and television company to cooperate in distribution.

The movie theater industry is in deep water.

Ark Culture is far from being able to independently release movies.

Because the work of film distribution is not that simple.

The distributor needs to make copies of the movie, send them to theaters across the country, and apply for keys and schedules.

In addition, you also need to do publicity and buy advertising.

Movie posters and signage in movie theaters in major cities across the country need to be arranged by someone. These are the jobs of the distributor.

Therefore, with the scale of Ark Culture, it is simply impossible to cover so many cities across the country.

In addition, during the movie's release period, people have to be sent to movie theaters across the country to conduct activities, promote, monitor the show, supervise ticketing, etc.

These tasks can only be done by specialized distribution companies, and general production companies cannot do them at all.

Therefore, if "Spirited Away" wants to be released in theaters, it must find a distribution company to cooperate.

The stronger the distribution company is, the more publicity resources the film can obtain. Local promotion and advertising space all need to be fought for by the distribution company.

Of course, the stronger the distribution company, the more movies it will share.

There is no free lunch in the world. If you want to get more distribution resources, you need to pay more money.

Ark Culture already has two hit TV series, but they have not achieved success on the big screen.

Therefore, in the film industry, Ark Culture is actually equivalent to starting from scratch.

Of course, having released "Wulin Gaiden" and "The Beginning" successively, Fang Xing already has some connections in film and television.

At least he won't be blinded by a black eye.

Moreover, many film and television companies have previously taken the initiative to ask Ark Culture if they have any new projects.

"Spirited Away" has actually been produced for more than two years and is not considered a new project, but it is about to be released and requires a distribution company to cooperate.

Therefore, when "Spirited Away" was undergoing final editing, Fang Xing arranged for the company's publicity department to contact film and television companies in the industry to look for possible cooperation.

Ark Culture has made many film and television companies remember its name thanks to its two hit TV series.

Therefore, many film and television companies are willing to get in touch, but when they hear that it is a film project and an animated film, they are not so enthusiastic.

If Fang Xing is filming a TV series this time, there will be many film and television companies vying to cooperate.

However, movies are completely different.

TV series and movies are two very different industries.

It is very difficult for directors, stars, and film and television companies who have prospered in the film industry to enter the film industry, and many of them end up failing.

In the TV industry, as long as a top star is hired to play the male lead and it is filmed, no matter what the plot is, at least there will be no loss and some fans will be willing to pay for it.

After all, the cost of TV series is relatively low, and if you are not in a hurry to catch up on the series, you can watch the entire episode for free.

However, it's different when it comes to the film industry.

Every movie ticket is worth real money.

It doesn’t matter how famous a top star is, how popular they are, or how crazy their fans are, as long as they are in a theatrical movie, they are the bastards who have retreated from the trend, and it is clear at a glance whether they are gay or not.

Therefore, the film industry is much more difficult than the television industry.

There are even many TV dramas that are popular in the world, have blockbuster hits every year, and are the most popular ones in searches every day, but they don’t work well in the film industry.

Therefore, after proving his strength in the television industry, if he wants to enter the big screen, he still has to start from scratch and will not receive much preferential treatment.

Of course, the name Ark Culture is not useless at all.

At least it can allow the issuing company to sit down and discuss the project seriously instead of sweeping the plan directly into the trash.

During this period, Fang Xing took the first cut of "Spirited Away" and personally talked with several film and television distribution companies.

However, the discussion is more general.

Because the distribution company lacks confidence in animated films, and "Spirited Away" does not follow a sophisticated animation style.

Nowadays, animated movies are popular for exquisite character modeling, with the purpose of making the audience think the characters are beautiful at first sight.

However, "Spirited Away" does not have this exquisite style, and it is not so mainstream in the current animated film environment.

Although the plot looks good, the distribution company has no confidence in the film.

Although I am not confident, I am not completely uncooperative.

However, because of my general interest in movies, the conditions for applying are generally relatively low.

According to the guiding opinions of the film industry regulatory authorities, the combined share ratio of producers and distributors cannot be less than 43% of the net box office.

Therefore, for movies released in theaters, 57% will first be divided by theaters and theaters, and the rest will be divided by producers and distributors.

Ark Culture is the producer, and they had already signed a share ratio agreement with Liang Jing Studio when they invested in "Spirited Away".

Therefore, Liangjing Studio is only responsible for producing animations, and Ark Culture is responsible for the rest.

Among the remaining 43% of the account, the exact share between the producer and the distributor depends on how the two parties negotiate.

In addition, there are publicity expenses.

Usually, the publishing fee is paid by the issuer, and the amount will be written in the contract.

How much the distributor is willing to pay for promotion depends on how much they value the film.

So far, Fang Xing has talked with several distribution companies. The conditions offered by these distribution companies are very average. The publicity fees given are very small, but the required account sharing ratio is very high.

In the film industry, this situation is common.

You know, in the film industry, less than one-tenth of the films produced every year are eligible for theatrical release.

Of the ten films, only one has a chance to be released in theaters.

What about the remaining nine movies?

Don’t these movies compete with theaters?

Of course there is competition.

Therefore, the reality is that ten movies compete for a chance to be released in theaters.

In order to get this opportunity, many producers can only take the initiative to lower the conditions and give the distributor a larger share of the share.

Competition in the film industry is so cruel.

The situation of Ark Culture is still good. At least we can discuss the specific accounts and details of the issuance from the beginning.

In other words, even before "Spirited Away" was released, it had already beaten 90% of the movies and had a chance to be released in theaters.

All that needs to be discussed is the split ratio.

However, the account sharing ratios and promotional resources provided by these issuing companies are similar.

After all, distribution companies have a mature set of criteria for judging movies. There are conventions for what kind of movies should be given what kind of accounts and promotional resources.

A company like Ark Culture, which has never proven its strength on the big screen, will find it difficult to obtain good resources simply by relying on its reputation in the television industry.

…

On the contrary, if it is a movie produced by a big director in the film industry, the situation is completely different.

For some films with optimistic box office prospects, such as a Spring Festival film by a certain major director, in order to grab the project and win distribution agency rights, the distributor will take the initiative to bear the distribution costs and even promise to guarantee the box office.

Of course, this kind of situation where the distributor promises a guaranteed box office will only happen to directors and producers who have proven their box office appeal on the big screen.

A company like Ark Culture, which is venturing into the big screen for the first time, is unlikely to be favored by the film and television industry.

…

While looking for distribution channels, Liangjing Studio is also making final modifications and production.

After what happened last time, the people in Liang Jing Studio have lost their hearts.

Some people want money, some people want better works.

Of course, the studio's team was very attentive when it came to the "Spirited Away" project.

Because the final results of this project will determine how much money they can get and how much subsequent investment they can get from film and television companies.

…

News that the Ark Culture animated film "Spirited Away" is looking for distribution cooperation soon spread in the film and television industry.

Some film and television companies and distribution companies also came to us.

However, the issuing company that will come to you on its own initiative is not very strong in itself.

The ability of a distribution company is very important when a movie is released.

Because, after a movie is released, how many films can be arranged and at what time period, a strong distribution company can control the theater's ability to arrange films.

Assume that the scheduling ratio of both movies is 50%.

The film schedule for one of them is mainly concentrated in the morning and noon.

The filming schedule for another film is mainly concentrated in the evening.

Needless to say, if the quality of the movies is not much different, the second part will definitely beat the first part at the box office.

After all, most audiences watch movies after 6 or 7 pm, and for morning shows, one movie ticket may be enough to book the entire venue.

Therefore, the strength of the issuing company is also very important.

…

Among the many cooperative companies, Penguin Video has the most cooperation.

After all, the first two TV series were exclusively broadcast on Penguin Video.

This relationship will make it easier for both parties to negotiate cooperation.

However, Penguin Video is not responsible for film distribution.

Penguin Pictures is responsible for film distribution. Strictly speaking, it is not the same company as Penguin Video, but they both belong to the same business group.

Li Xueying, vice president of Penguin Video, has also heard about "Spirited Away" seeking theatrical release channels.

However, since Penguin Video was not responsible for the film distribution work, Li Xueying did not have immediate contact with Ark Culture.

Of course, if "Spirited Away" fails to be released in theaters in the end, it is possible to settle for a second best and release it online.

Therefore, as the vice president of Penguin Video, Li Xueying will naturally pay some attention to this project.

This afternoon.

Li Xueying took the lead in inviting Fang Xing, Qiao Yinghong and other Ark Culture executives to introduce the senior executives of Penguin Pictures.

The appointed time arrived.

Fang Xing, Qiao Yinghong and other core members of Ark Culture came to the golf club booked by Li Xueying.

After the meeting, Li Xueying took the initiative to introduce them: "Mr. Fang, Mr. Qiao, come on, let me introduce you first. This is Zhang Changfeng, our president of Penguin Pictures, and Xu Guangyi, general manager of Penguin Group Investment Department."

Fang Xing stepped forward and shook hands with the two groups of Penguin Group executives to get to know each other.

Originally, Fang Xing thought that when he came this time, he was going to meet the senior executives of Penguin Pictures, but he didn't expect that there was also the general manager of the investment department.

Xu Guangyi's title is general manager of the investment department, but his rank is actually at the same level as Zhang Changfeng, the president of Penguin Pictures.

In fact.

This is not the first time Ark Culture has come into contact with Penguin Pictures.

As early as a week ago, Ark Culture's "Spirited Away" project team had been in contact with the distribution team of Penguin Pictures and talked about the "Spirited Away" project.

However, the situation of chatting is similar to that of other publishing companies, and there is nothing special about it.

Of course, the previous contact with the "Spirited Away" project team was only the project manager of the Penguin Pictures Distribution Department.

The project has not yet been handed over to Penguin Pictures executives.

This time, the president of Penguin Pictures mainly extended the invitation, probably because he has new ideas for this project.

Of course, Fang Xing was not so anxious about the "Spirited Away" project.

If there is a good cooperation plan, then cooperate. If there is not, then let it go.

Penguin Pictures President Zhang Changfeng did not talk about the project at the beginning, but first talked about playing golf: "Does Mr. Fang usually play golf?"

Fang Xing turned his head and glanced at the green grass in front of him, and replied, "It wasn't a good fight."

"I don't play well either. The main thing is to stretch my muscles." Zhang Changfeng said with an easy-going smile.

After playing golf for a while, we slowly started talking about the project.

"I heard that Mr. Fang wants to release an animated movie?" Zhang Changfeng took the initiative to talk.

"Yes, your company's distribution manager has already watched the film." Fang Xing replied casually.

"In the film and television industry, there are many distribution companies that want to cooperate with Mr. Fang. Why haven't they decided on a distributor yet?" Zhang Changfeng leaned on his club and turned around to ask.

"The reason is very simple. The conditions have not been agreed upon." Fang Xing did not hide it.

"Oh? What are Mr. Fang's expectations for this film? Total box office." Zhang Changfeng asked.

Fang Xing smiled and replied: "It's hard to answer this. The number is too big. Mr. Zhang thinks I'm joking. If I say it's too small, I'm worried that Mr. Zhang will take it seriously."

"Ha ha……"

Zhang Changfeng smiled heartily and replied: "It doesn't matter. Just tell me and tell it according to your expectations. I have heard of any number."

Fang Xing also put down his cue, looked at him for a while, and replied, "Let's start with one billion."

When Zhang Changfeng heard this number, he did not show surprise on his face.

It is abnormal for people who dare to venture into the big screen to have no dreams in their hearts.

He thought for a while and said: "If your expectations are so high, it will be really difficult for domestic publishing companies to meet your requirements."

Of course Fang Xing understood this.

Because the higher the expected box office, the higher the publicity and distribution expenses that need to be spent.

However, if the publicity and distribution expenses continue to be spent, once the film fails at the box office, it is possible that the publicity and distribution costs will not be recovered.

Especially for such an animated film, no distribution company is willing to take such a high risk and spend so much publicity and distribution costs.