Chapter 1736 - 842: Adventurous Spirit (Part 3)

Chapter 1736: Chapter 842: Adventurous Spirit (Part 3)

"We’re not holding it, the cost of a film premiere is too high, and this isn’t a commercial film. We’d prefer to spend our budget wisely on promotion."

"Is it on presale now?"

"Presale has started, and the results are pretty good, considered high for an art film. But that’s mainly due to Old Song’s supportive fans. The film itself hasn’t really spread among casual viewers," Wu Chengbao said. "We still need to try to expand promotion to make more people aware of this movie."

"Hmm, what are your plans?" Zhou Yun asked.

Wu Chengbao said, "’Cigarette’ is likely targeted toward those interested in literature and culture, so we’re planning to visit various universities."

"But university students might not be interested in this movie. Also, young people generally know Song Chi, and anyone who follows him will be aware that his film is coming out," Zhou Yun said.

"That’s true, but we’re still aiming to boost first-day box office and increase awareness. We’re confident in the quality of this film, so we’re hoping it will maintain screenings in the first week, allowing word-of-mouth to gradually grow and eventually boost the box office."

Zhou Yun asked, "What’s your box office expectation for this film?"

"Based on a regular estimate, it should be around 60 to 80 million," Wu Chengbao said matter-of-factly, "but we’re hoping it will surpass 100 million. However, the style and subject matter are not very appealing to audiences, so we’re just doing our best."

"Can 60 million in box office cover the costs?"

"Yes, the film’s cost is controlled very low. Old Song is only taking a share, not a salary, and the production cost is still under 8 million. Of course, with promotion costs, it will reach about 15 million," Wu Chengbao said. "In recent years, there hasn’t been such a low-budget film hitting theaters, not even many online films have a higher cost. But Old Song wanted to make this script into a film, so we could only support him, aiming just to break even."

Zhou Yun understood Wu Chengbao’s meaning.

Actually, normally, if this film wasn’t starring Song Chi, the box office could hardly reach even a million. This is the reality of art films in the market.

Zhou Yun sighed.

Making art films in China is truly difficult.

Actually, art films worldwide struggle to find investments, but in many places, art films have a mature pathway from production to release and subsequent sales. They might earn less but have a stable path to follow.

However, in China, the outcome of an art film really depends on luck.

Each year, a few art films do get attention and have decent box office performance, or they play well on video platforms. Yet, those are unpredictable. There’s no direct correlation between good reviews and good box office results — not that it doesn’t happen, but rarely, generally as exceptions.

This is why Zhou Yun and Song Chi are using their influence to support domestic art films.

After Wu Chengbao left, Zhou Yun continued reading the script.

Yet, thoughts about what Wu Chengbao mentioned lingered in her mind.

Zhou Yun was considering, even though she talked about supporting art films, she’s shot very few in the past two years.

"Life" counts as one, "Falling Leaves" counts as one, then "Age" counts as one, and nothing else since.

Actually, "Age" wasn’t really pursued for its script or as an art film.

Zhou Yun thought, maybe she could carve out some time each year to support a new director and make an art film.

As long as the script is good, there’s nothing unmanageable.

She could also do like Song Chi, only take a share and not a salary, not minding the box office figures but leveraging her influence to draw more people into theaters to watch art films.

Thinking about the eight scripts on her hand, there really wasn’t a small-budget art film.

She messaged Zhou Lan: Ask them to find some art films suitable for me.

Zhou Lan: Trying for an award?

Zhou Yun: No, I just don’t want to give up. The scripts you send are too straightforwardly good. Nothing gutsy or risky anymore.

Zhou Lan: ...

Zhou Yun: I’m serious. I’m not saying the scripts you help me choose aren’t good, they’re great. I just want something a bit different.

Zhou Lan: Are you not satisfied with all eight scripts?

Zhou Yun: That’s not what I mean! I want something different besides these eight!

Zhou Lan: I’ll look, but don’t blame me if I don’t remind you, you said you’ll control your pace and don’t want seamless scheduling. Consider that you have a few more projects lined up.

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