Chapter Forty: Copyright? Venice?

“How much are they offering for the copyright?” Chen Ling asked, thinking that if it wasn’t much, he wouldn’t bother going in person—he could just sign an authorization letter and let China Film handle it.

“Around seven million,” Han Sanping replied, leaning back in his chair with a look of playful expectation, as if waiting to see how Chen Ling would react.

Chen Ling didn’t give it much thought. It would be exhausting to constantly guess at other people’s intentions.

“Oh, that’s not much,” Chen Ling nodded. The film had done well at the domestic box office, but he himself was virtually unknown overseas. At the Venice Film Festival, where acclaimed directors and masterpieces gathered, he was a complete nobody. It was only natural that the copyright wouldn’t fetch a high price. If it were someone like Zhang Yimou, even a mediocre film would sell for more just because of the vast difference in reputation and influence.

Of the seven million, he’d only get a bit over two million himself. For that amount, wasting several days for a trip to Europe didn’t seem worth it. Of course, it would be a good chance to see Venice, but with auditions for the new film about to begin, he decided he’d better keep his focus. There would be other opportunities to bring his work to Venice—perhaps, with luck, even win an award someday.

“Seven million US dollars,” Han Sanping added, seeing Chen Ling’s nonchalance and deliberately emphasizing the figure, knowing full well Chen Ling was underestimating it.

Chen Ling nearly spat out his tea. Seven million US dollars for his film’s copyright? That was entirely beyond his expectations.

“The film copyright is a big deal. As the film’s creator, it wouldn’t be right if I didn’t go personally,” he said, swallowing his earlier reluctance. Seven million dollars was over fifty million yuan; his forty percent share would be more than twenty million, enough to cover the entire investment in his film.

He could also take this opportunity to broaden his horizons in Venice. After all, it was only a few days—no big deal. He was actually a bit eager to see such a prestigious event.

“Go on, then. It’s good to see the world early—only by recognizing the gap can you strive to catch up.” Han Sanping’s intentions were clear; he wanted Chen Ling to go to Venice. It was, after all, one of Europe’s three major film festivals, the pinnacle of world cinema, teeming with top filmmakers and their works. There was much to be gained from observing and exchanging ideas there.

As one of the young directors China Film planned to support heavily, Han Sanping had high hopes for Chen Ling.

“Before you came, President Lu told me that his side won’t send anyone. The copyright transaction will be handled entirely by China Film and you.” It seemed China Film had already discussed the copyright deal with Starlight Brilliance. Lu Zheng’s business empire dwarfed the copyright money, so of course he wasn’t interested in making the trip.

Wang Changtian, sitting nearby, looked on with envy. “Love Is Not Blind” had already been a massive box office hit, and now the copyright income was pure profit—no need to split it with theaters, just taxes to pay. To say he wasn’t envious would be a lie.

At this stage, Enlight Media was nowhere near what it would later become. Its annual net profit still didn’t match what “Love Is Not Blind” had earned, and the company didn’t have any noteworthy directors in production. That was why they were so eager to be close to Chen Ling these days. It wasn’t about recruiting him—he had his own company—but building a good relationship early could only be beneficial.

Han Sanping nodded after listening to Ye Ning. “Alright, no problem.”

This year, Chinese films fared poorly at the Venice Film Festival—only Xu Ke’s “Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame” made it into the main competition, a film entirely financed and controlled by Huayi.

Few in the industry were unaware of the longstanding rivalry between Han and Huayi, and this year’s entry was a commercial film with little chance of winning. It was no wonder Han Sanping didn’t lead a delegation to Venice this year—traditionally, he would always take the lead at Europe’s top three festivals, both to support Chinese entries and to broker copyright deals. As the world’s largest film copyright market, the combined value of deals at those festivals had been breaking records year after year, and China Film’s dominance in film import and export had made it a constant presence at these events.

This was Han Sanping’s first absence from Europe’s major festivals since becoming chairman of China Film.

“There will be people from China Film to receive you there—all your meals and accommodations are covered. The festival’s closing ceremony is just a few days away, so if you’re going, go soon.” With that, Han Sanping handed Chen Ling two business cards. One was for the deputy director leading China Film’s delegation in Venice, and the other belonged to Director Cao, whose contact details Chen Ling recognized.

“Alright, I have to attend the premiere of ‘Under the Hawthorn Tree’ tomorrow, so the earliest I can leave is the day after,” Chen Ling replied, putting away the cards.

He had agreed to attend Zhang Yimou’s film premiere with Dou Xiao long ago, and unless something unexpected happened, he wouldn’t break his promise to a friend.

Countless scripts and films were submitted daily to the Film Bureau for approval. Once approved, the details were published on the Bureau’s official website.

When Chen Ling and the three production companies signed their contracts, the media had already picked up on information about his new film.

...

“Chen Ling’s new film ‘Breakup Buddies’ has passed script review.”

“Judging from the title, it appears to be a road comedy.”

“After the script was approved, Chen Ling visited China Film personally, along with Wanda and Enlight Media—likely to formalize the contracts.”

The media, it seemed, missed nothing.

Seeing this, Chen Ling Films’ official Weibo also released the movie’s first official announcement.

Film Title: Breakup Buddies

Producers: Chen Ling Films, China Film, Wanda, Enlight Media

Director: Chen Ling

Producer: Chen Zhixi

Starring: Chen Ling, Xu Zheng, Liu Yifei

Of all the fans, Liu Yifei’s were the most thrilled by this announcement. Apart from the producer, whom they hadn’t heard of, everything else looked promising.

“I knew it—they were meeting for a project, not dating.”

“Is it a double male lead? How much screen time will Liu Yifei actually get?”

“Who is the producer? Never heard of them.”

“Tell us more! When does filming start? When will it be released?”

While fans rejoiced, entertainment companies immediately realized that with this lineup, there was no chance to get in on producing or distributing the film. The only angle left was to fight for roles.

Neither Wanda, China Film, nor Chen Ling Films had a talent management business. As for Enlight’s? That was practically a joke—were they expecting their TV hosts to star in a movie? Absurd.

With the script now public, the next step was to study it and strategize about which roles to target.

Of course, the best supporting roles would only attract second-tier actors. Top stars wouldn’t be interested in such parts unless they wanted to transition from television to film.

As for how to secure a role—how many castings are actually about acting ability? Most of the time, it’s all about favors and backroom deals. Fairness is a joke in this industry.