"In the North American film market, there are a total of four films released in November, which have a considerable box office. Entering the Christmas schedule in December, there are currently 17 movies that we know of are making big promotions. Among the upcoming films to be released in December, Paramount's "Mother and Daughter Love", Time Warner's "Hot Hands" and Columbia Pictures' "Christine Glamour" are the most noteworthy ......"

The distribution department of Dragon Tiger Film Company was enthusiastically discussing the distribution of "Titanic" at this time.

In the original agreement, Wang Zijun alone took the box office share of "Titanic" 38. And Dragon Tiger Film Company, which has invested 20 million US dollars, must plan well if it wants to get more profits.

The first is to bargain with the theater business, this kind of blockbuster with an unprecedented investment of 200 million US dollars, plus Wang Zijun is the director, the theater company will generally make concessions. If the share between theaters and theaters can be talked about 50%, then Dragon Tiger Film Company can get 12% of the box office, if it can be talked about even lower...... In addition to getting more box office shares, what Dragon Tiger Films has to do is to come up with a feasible distribution plan to keep the film in theaters for as long as possible in order to earn more box office.

Wang Zijun didn't go to the meeting with the distribution department, he had already returned to Taipei at this time, just in time to rush back to celebrate Zhao Yazhi's birthday.

Because he wanted to shoot "Titanic", he not only missed Lin Fengjiao's 30-year-old birthday, but even his own 30-year-old birthday.

Unknowingly, Wang Zijun has been in this era for 12 years, and he has also reached the age of thirty.

"Titanic" can get a global box office of $1.8 billion in parallel space, in addition to being a good film in itself, another reason is that there are no high-grossing films competing with it in the same period. So much so that "Titanic" has not been screened for several months, and the audience has no good movies to watch, so they can only go into the theater again and again to watch "Titanic".

As for whether Wang Zijun's "Titanic" can get a super high box office, Wang Zijun is most worried about coming out halfway to compete with him for a strong film.

After Wang Zijun did a good job in the later stage of the movie, he studied the upcoming film in December in detail, and the results made him very happy. Except for "Mother-Daughter Love", which is slightly better, the other movies are not too competitive and not enough to be the opponent of "Titanic".

In other words, looking at the entire Christmas schedule, there is no film that can compete with "Titanic" at all.

Since so much money has been spent, Wang Zijun and Dragon Tiger Film Company are no longer polite, directly cut out the film, and paid for advertising on major TV stations.

At the same time, Madonna, who has become the idol of thousands of young Americans, also called on her fans to go into the theater to watch "Titanic" in her TV show.

Seeing that Christmas is approaching, the films with high hopes of major companies have been released one after another, and a fierce competition for the box office has begun.

The American film industry has changed in recent years, MGM has long since declined, and Time Warner has fallen into a debt crisis this year, and their film market share has declined rapidly. In contrast, Universal and Columbia Pictures have grown rapidly, leaving MGM and Time Warner behind.

But the emaciated camel is bigger than the horse, and Wang Zijun and Bruce Lee's Dragon and Tiger Film Company, although it is growing rapidly, is still below MGM.

The Christmas schedule can almost be regarded as a fierce battlefield in the American film market.

However, this year, several giants have targeted Wang Zijun as their biggest box office competitor, with a film budget of 200 million US dollars.

Ridicule is ridicule, Dragon Tiger Film Company may not be able to recover the box office, but it will definitely pose a threat to other films released at the same time.

However, they didn't have a chance to join forces to suppress "Titanic", and those theater operators had already regarded "Titanic" as a gold mountain after watching the test screening, and even made concessions in terms of sharing, so it was impossible for them to push the money out.

The propaganda machine is running at full capacity, and many of those entertainment newspapers and magazines have become Wang Zijun's free propagandists.

The Los Angeles Reporter kicked off the report in a mocking tone: "Chinese director, do you remember that bet?" ”

This joking title reminds the American people of Wang Zijun, his gambling contract, and the $200 million money-burning blockbuster.

"Titanic" has not yet been released, and it is already highly anticipated, and some underground organizations have even opened bets on the North American box office, European and American box office and global box office of this unprecedented blockbuster production.

……………… Quake Herris is an ordinary American middle school student and a hardcore video game fan.

He became a loyal Ataro player since he was eight years old, playing Atari video games, and later after Paradise Games introduced a console with replaceable game cards.

The game that Quake is playing now is called "Red Shadow Warrior" (commonly known as "Water Contra"), which is a new game released by Paradise Games in December, and it is said to be a Christmas gift for the majority of players.

As soon as the game was launched, Quake snapped it up and went home, and after less than a minute of playing, he was hooked on the game. For a whole week, he spent most of his free time sitting in front of the TV, and he didn't even have time to care about his little girlfriend who had been dating for a year.

Quaker's mother, Charlotte, opened the door and saw that her son was still playing games, and shook her head, "Quake, it's time for you to eat, stop playing games." ”

"Okay, right away." Quake pressed the pause button and moved his body to the dining room.

A talk show was playing on the TV in the dining room, and Quake's father, Adams, was smirking at the TV with a fork in his hand.

“…… Oh, and speaking of this year's Christmas movies, that's amazing! The white talk show host on TV made a funny face and said in an exaggerated tone, "I heard that movie cost $200 million, but that's not the most important thing." I'm interested in that gamble, if this "Titanic" doesn't reach $1 billion at the global box office, the king of China says he will no longer set foot on American soil, which is good news for American directors. But I would have liked to see the reporter dude, running around the airport ten times, and that scene must have been interesting. I'm going to donate a movie ticket for this......"

The talk show host was still gushing and complaining, and Quake's dad couldn't help but laugh: "Damn the Chinese guy, it looks like he's going back to Asia this time, if he keeps his word." ”

"No, Zachary is a man who always works miracles, maybe he can really make a billion box office." Quake is a big fan of Wang, not for movies and songs, but just for video games.

"That's impossible." Adams calculated for his son, "The global box office is 1 billion, if the North American box office is counted as 600 million, based on 10 weeks of release, then the average weekly box office is at least 60 million US dollars." Even if it is released for 20 weeks, it must average $30 million per week. How is this possible? The film market in the United States is not so prosperous. ”

Adams is a photographer who used to work in Raiden Films, and after Raiden Hua went out of business, he went to a TV station, and he is considered a film professional, and he can't reach a box office of 1 billion no matter how he calculates "Titanic".

"So, the flowery Chinese director is doomed?" Charlotte asked her husband.

"Of course, he's going to lose." "But a lot of him doesn't care if he wins or loses, and the so-called bets are just a means for him to promote his films." You know, the Easterners often lie, they don't keep their promises. ”

Quake listened to his father's evaluation of Orientals, and disagreed, he had a classmate who was Chinese, although the two did not have a deep friendship, but their impression was not bad.

"An epic blockbuster built with $200 million, a huge gamble by a Chinese director. What are you waiting for? Take your significant other's hand and experience the most touching love in history. "Titanic", the most anticipated movie ...... this Christmas"

The talk show on TV has run out, and a movie commercial appears without warning.

The picture was originally a classic picture of the hero and heroine standing on the bow of the boat and the heroine flying with her arms outstretched. Then the huge hull gradually sank, and the passengers fell into the water one by one, and even a person could be seen screaming and falling from a height of at least twenty or thirty meters.

The images that appear in the ad are all fleeting, but the three members of Quake's family are attracted to the flower.

"Oh, God! Is this a $200 million movie? As a former cinematographer, Adams stood up in shock, and he naturally understood how difficult it was to shoot those few flashing shots.

"Jingle Bell ......"

The phone rang suddenly, Charlotte picked up the phone and said a few words, and then said to her son, "Quake, looking for you." ”

Quake took the phone and listened to his girlfriend Mary say excitedly, "Quake, do you have time for Christmas?" ”

"Yes, how do you want to celebrate?" Quake asked, according to his idea, to let his girlfriend come to the house to play "Red Shadow Warrior" together.

"Let's go watch "Titanic" together, I heard that the love in it is particularly touching." Mary said.

"Okay, watch the movie, you have the final say." Quake Road.

Quake put down the phone and went back to the house to continue playing games, and Charlotte smiled and said to her husband, "Honey, maybe going to the movies at Christmas is a good choice." ”

Adams remembered the movie advertisement just now, and said faintly: "Yes, go see "Titanic". ”

………………………… Wang Zijun did not arrange the premiere this time, and after nearly seven months of filming, he was too tired to do so. As soon as the production was completed, I hid back in the gentle countryside of Taipei, ready to rest for a while.

The release of "Titanic" was set on Christmas Eve in 1983.

After Quake and his little girlfriend went out, Charlotte also took her husband's hand and got into the car together.

Crowds of celebratory people could be seen everywhere on the streets, and Charlotte and Adams drove to the cinema without hurrying.

After waiting in line for nearly ten minutes, Adams finally arrived at the front: "Two "Titanic" at seven o'clock, thank you!" ”

Crowding into the screening room, Charlotte heard someone next to her complain: "Did all the people in Los Angeles come to see the movie today?" It's nice to be able to fill half of the seats on a regular basis. ”

Another viewer replied with a smile: "It seems that the Chinese director has a good appeal." I heard that Madonna has been helping promote this movie on TV every day for half a month. ”

The lady was surprised, "Madonna? Oh, that bad girl who tempts young people to take drugs, skip class, and don't listen to their parents? Maybe I shouldn't have come to see this movie, because that Madonna's aesthetic has always been terrible. ”

As soon as these words came out, a young man immediately shouted: "Fake, old woman, you are not allowed to insult Madonna!" ”

Entering the screening hall all the way, before Charlotte and her husband were seated, Quake in the front row was pleasantly surprised: "What a coincidence, you are actually here." ”

"It's a coincidence." Charlotte looks at her son's girlfriend.

As a photographer, Adams subconsciously went to see the situation in the screening room at this time. The film has not yet been released, the screening hall is already full, and if other movie theaters are like this, then Wang Zijun's film is likely to exceed $20 million at the box office in the first week, because there are too many canvases for the release of "Titanic".

It was nearly seven o'clock, the screening room was quiet, a light was shining on the canvas, and the movie finally began.

It started with a yellowed old movie scene, the Titanic was about to set sail, and the passengers on the deck kept waving and laughing to the dock, bringing the audience back to another era at once.

…………………… Here in Taipei, it's early in the morning.

In the Caoshan villa in Datun Mountain, Wang Zijun teased his youngest son Wang Xi, looked at his watch and said, "It's almost started over there." ”

"You, still thinking about your movie? I left our sisters behind for more than half a year, and I didn't know that I had ever come back. Lin Fengjiao instructed the servants to clean up the table, and after listening to Wang Zijun's self-talk, she couldn't help but count the words.

"Don't take it as an example!" Wang Zijun said, "After filming this "Titanic", I will not go to Hollywood to make movies in the future." ”

"Seriously?" Zhao Yazhi asked.

"Of course it's true, I don't feel at ease to leave a few of you beauties at home." Wang Zijun said with a smile, and was about to take Zhao Yazhi into his arms, but he saw Lin Yi, Wang Feiyu and Wang Shiya, the three little guys, running over with their schoolbags on their backs, so they had to stop their affectionate actions, so as not to cause a bad impact on their children.

"Daddy, I'm going to school!" The three little ones said in unison.

Wang Zijun kissed the foreheads of the three children before touching their heads and saying, "Pay attention to safety, so that you can listen to the teacher." ”

"Got it!" The three little ones ran out together.

Lin Qingxia was also carrying her bag and was about to go out to work at this time, but when she passed by Wang Zijun's side, he stopped her and said, "Don't go to work today, stay at home and accompany me." ”

"There are so many sisters in the family, it's not enough to accompany you!" Lin Qingxia chirped, but what she thought of was Wang Zijun's absurdity a few days ago. As soon as Wang Zijun, who had been absent for more than half a year, came back, he dragged a few of them to play all day, causing Lin Qingxia to stay at home for a few days and not go to work.

After Lin Qingxia left, Audrey Hepburn came out of the bathroom lazily, her hair was scattered over her shoulders, she came over and picked up the chubby Wang Xi, and said with a smile: "The little guy is heavy again." ”

Zhao Yazhi looked at her son who was being held by Audrey Hepburn, and smiled happily: "It's going to run all over the ground, why isn't it heavy." In two years, it's time to go to school. ”

After Lin Fengjiao arranged the maids' work today, she came over and said, "When Xiaoyi and them have winter vacation, let's go out on a trip together as a family." Staying at home all day, I'm suffocating. ”

"Where do you want to go?" Wang Zijun asked.

Zhao Yazhi proposed: "Let's go to the Maldives, I didn't want to leave last time." I also want to see what the island that Zijun gave me is built. ”

"Go there again, somewhere new." Lin Fengjiao said.

Wang Zijun looked at Audrey Hepburn and said, "Audrey, you have been to many places, you can come to counsel." ”

"Think about it......" Audrey Hepburn put down Wang Xi and rubbed her forehead to compare which tourist destinations are better.

"Jingle Bell ......"

The phone rang, and it didn't take long for the maid to shout: "Sir, Miss Chen from Jiayi TV is looking for you." ”

"Thank you!" Wang Zijun walked over and nodded at the maid, picked up the phone and said, "Chen Xi?" What's the matter. ”

"Chairman, Director Cen just returned from visiting relatives in the mainland yesterday, and the board of directors on the 2nd of next month will not be rescheduled. In addition, Manager Liang asked if you had time to participate in Jiashi's Taiwan celebration, and Taili had to plan the party in advance. Chen Xi said.

"I won't go to Taiqing, and I will attend the board of directors on time." Wang Zijun hung up the phone after speaking.

The 2nd of next month will be held in Taili's annual regular board of directors, but Wang Zijun has already spoken with He Zuozhi on the phone before, and this time he went to discuss the holding of the "Miss Asia" beauty pageant.

He Zuozhi is obviously very excited about holding an international surname beauty pageant, but he is a little forward-looking, afraid that if it is messed up, it will drag down the TV station.

This is the sorrow of working with old men, because when people are old, although they think comprehensively and act steadily, they always suffer from gains and losses, and they do not have the courage of young people.

Whether it is He Zuozhi or Cen Weixiu, these two people dared to fight when they were young, but they became like this when they were old.

In the past few years, Jiashi has made drastic reforms, and the two old gentlemen are very much in favor of it, because Jiashi is poor and white, and it will not work if it is not reformed. But now that Jiashi has gained a firm foothold, He Zuozhi and Cen Weixiu have begun to be conservative, and even Liang Shuyi, the general manager, has been affected.

Wang Zijun also wants to tell them more, if it really can't work, he will make a Miss Asia pageant by himself, and then hand over the right to hold the Hong Kong constituency to Jiashi.

"Jingle Bell ......" just hung up the phone when the bell rang again.

This time, it was Tsui Hark who called: "Mr. Wang, I have already changed the script of "New Shu Mountain Swordsman", do you want me to send it to you first?" ”

"No, I'll be in Hong Kong in a few days." Wang Zijun said.

The verbal appointment between Tsui Hark and Zou Wenhuai has already been canceled, and Wang Zijun promised to give Tsui Hark an investment of 50 million Hong Kong dollars, and the only requirement is to hope that Tsui Hark will change the script and make the first and second episodes.

(To be continued)