radicalducati Chapter 22: Release and Huge Success
Chapter 22: Release and Huge Success
The film industry is somewhat bewildered.
It's that kind of bewilderment, like "Where the hell did this come from?"
There was absolutely no prior news, no press conference for the start of filming, no press release for the wrap-up, no release date announcement, not even a proper set visit.
Industry insiders searched through nearly half a year's worth of Variety and China Film News, but couldn't find a single news item about this film.
It's like a group of people secretly made a movie, secretly obtained the film license, secretly released it, and then nothing happened.
At least that's what everyone thought before the film's release.
Lu Chuan saw the news at home. He didn't go out that afternoon and stayed on the sofa reading the news. The headline of the entertainment section of the portal website read: "The Eraser is Released Today, Starring Liu Ye and Yan Danchen."
He stared at it for two seconds, then smirked and tossed the phone to the other side of the sofa.
"It's just a new crew, what kind of waves can Liu Ye make?" He muttered to himself, then stood up and went to the kitchen to pour himself a glass of water.
.........
In fact, Liu Yu was more nervous than he had originally thought.
The final production cost of the film was 5.57 million; 250 copies were made, and the copying cost 1.5 million.
Bona Film Group invested 500,000 yuan in publicity and marketing expenses on Yu Dong's side, plus an additional 1.5 million yuan from Liu Yu himself, for a total investment of 9 million yuan.
Liu Yu felt heartbroken every time he calculated this, but Yu Dong said, "You can't catch a wolf without risking your cub. Fewer copies mean fewer screenings, fewer screenings mean less box office revenue. It's a vicious cycle."
.....
The film was officially released on July 11th.
It's 11 p.m. at the night market stalls outside the Beijing Film Academy.
Liu Yu, Wang Chaowen, Liu Xiao, and Xin Hao sat on greasy plastic stools with kebabs, edamame, peanuts, and several bottles of beer in front of them.
Wang Chaowen's mouth was covered in oil, Liu Xiao was shelling edamame, Xin Hao was silently drinking beer, and Liu Yu hadn't eaten a single bite. His chopsticks were on his bowl, and his phone was on the table with the screen facing up.
"Brother, have a bite." Wang Chaowen handed over a skewer of lamb.
I'm not hungry.
"You haven't eaten all day."
I'm not hungry.
Wang Chaowen put the lamb skewers back on the plate and exchanged a glance with Liu Xiao.
Liu Xiao whispered, "Brother's nervous."
Xin Hao said, "Anyone would be nervous in that situation? A nine million investment, I'd be nervous too."
The phone screen lit up; it was just past midnight. It was Yu Dong.
Liu Yu answered the phone, and Yu Dong's voice on the other end was filled with barely suppressed excitement, as if he were jumping around on the other end: "Director Liu! It's out! 503 million! 503 million on the first day!"
The night market stall was quiet for 0.5 seconds.
Then Wang Chaowen was the first to jump up, almost overturning the table: "How much? 503 million?"
The edamame in Liu Xiao's hand flew out, and Xin Hao grinned, a rare sight indeed, like a fool. Several people eating late-night snacks at nearby tables turned to look at them, wondering what was wrong with these college students.
Liu Yu's grip on his phone tightened slightly, but his voice remained calm: "Mr. Yu, are you sure? You didn't miscalculate?"
"I'm sure! I just spoke with China Film Group, and we compared the data. The error is no more than 20,000. 503 million on the first day! Liu Yu, let me tell you, this figure shocked both me and President Li. We had predicted just over two million on the first day, but it's more than doubled!"
After hanging up the phone, Liu Yu sat there, staring at the plate of cold kebabs in front of him, his mind blank.
He envisioned many possibilities, the most optimistic being three million on the first day, which would already be a great success.
Five million? He hadn't even considered it.
"Director Liu! We did it!" Wang Chaowen hugged him tightly, his greasy mouth almost touching his face.
"Stay calm, this is only the first day. It might start strong but then decline."
.....
On July 12th, entertainment news and media were in an uproar.
"A Freshman's Directorial Debut Earns 503 Million Yuan on Opening Day, Setting a New Record for Chinese-Language Romance Films" "A Moment to Remember" Becomes the Biggest Dark Horse of the Summer Season, Crushing All Other Films on Opening Day and the First Blockbuster Since SARS. What Makes "A Moment to Remember" So Special?
These words were the headlines of the entertainment sections of major portal websites. Even the Beijing Evening News, which has never been a fan of domestic romance films, published a commentary in its entertainment section titled "Not sentimental, but moving."
Liu Yu sat in his dormitory, scrolling through the news one article after another, feeling a bit unreal.
Wang Chaowen was lying on his bed, browsing computer forums, and every few seconds he would exclaim "Holy crap!"
Forums, online communities, and online communities are all discussing this movie.
Liu Yu registered a Tianya account, lurked in to read posts, and found that the most popular post was titled "Has anyone cried after watching 'A Moment to Remember'? Come in and tell us the number," with more than 600 replies below.
Some people said, "I cried from beginning to end, and my eyes are still swollen." Others said, "I'm a guy, and I held back my tears while watching, but I cried secretly when I got back to my dorm." Still others said, "I completely broke down in the movie theater during the scene where the female lead forgot the male lead's name."
Film critics almost unanimously gave it a thumbs up.
These aren't the kind of positive reviews that are just paid praise; they're heartfelt recommendations filled with surprise and emotion.
A film critic from Xiaoxiang Morning Post wrote: "A 21-year-old college freshman director has achieved a level of restraint that many mature directors cannot. He doesn't resort to sentimentality or tear-jerking tactics; he simply tells a story about forgetting and companionship in a quiet manner. But it is precisely this quietness that makes it stand out among films of the same genre."
A film critic from the Beijing Youth Daily focused on another angle: "What surprised me most was not Liu Yu's directing skills, but his ability to balance commerce and art. This film has enough commercial elements, stars, romance, and sentimental scenes, but it is not vulgar and does not lower the aesthetic threshold in order to please the audience. Many people who have been making films for more than ten years cannot grasp this sense of balance."
Of course, there were also negative reviews.
What truly shocked the industry was not the word-of-mouth, but the demographic profile behind the box office figures.
After the first week's box office results were released, Yu Dong sent Liu Yu a detailed audience survey report.
The report shows that among the viewers of "A Moment to Remember," those aged 18 to 35 accounted for as much as 80%, and female viewers accounted for 68%.
Looking at the report, Liu Yu recalled a truth that had been repeatedly proven in the business world of his previous life: whoever wins over women wins the world.
Female viewers not only have a strong desire to watch movies, but also have a powerful ability to spread the word. After watching a movie, they will post about it online, write reviews, recommend it to friends, and even take their boyfriends to see it two or three times.
If a movie can generate buzz among female viewers, its box office potential is not just 100 million, but 200 million, 300 million, or even higher.
But in the film industry in 2003, not many people realized this.
Everyone is still making male-dominated films, martial arts, action, and war movies, thinking that's what makes a "blockbuster."
The sudden emergence of "A Moment to Remember" was like a bucket of cold water poured on the faces of these people, and also like a slap in the face.
......
Yan Danchen became famous overnight.
Previously, she was positioned in the industry as a "good new actress," but after the release of "A Moment to Remember," her name suddenly became a verb.
Offers to play the lead role in a TV series came flooding in, and her agent's phone was ringing off the hook.
They have period dramas, modern dramas, suspense dramas, romance dramas—all kinds of genres are available, and the asking price jumped from 10,000 to 20,000 per episode to 50,000 to 60,000.
When Yan Danchen called Liu Yu to tell him about this, she sounded somewhat bewildered.
Liu Ye became even more popular. He was already a Golden Horse Award winner and had a certain level of national recognition. "A Moment to Remember" propelled him to another level.
He used to be a "male god of art films with good acting skills," now he is a "deeply affectionate man who breaks the hearts of female audiences across the country."
I get recognized on the street, and I get mobbed when I go to the supermarket. The number of fan letters I receive has increased from a dozen per week to hundreds per day.
Liu Yu himself became famous, not in the celebrity way, but in the industry as someone who is known as "who is this person".
His phone started receiving calls from unknown numbers. Some wanted to invite him to dinner, some wanted to ask him to do projects, some wanted to invest in his next movie, and one fashion magazine even asked him to take photos.
........
On the day the first week's box office results were released, Liu Yu received a text message from Yu Dong in his dormitory.
Three figures: 1826 million.
He turned the phone screen towards Wang Chaowen, who glanced at it, his mouth forming an "O" shape. He then handed the phone to Liu Xiao, who looked at it and passed it to Xin Hao. Xin Hao looked at it, remained silent for three seconds, and then said, "Brother, you've struck it rich."
"It's not that it's been made, it's that it's been successful. 'Makes it' and 'successfully' have two different meanings."
1826 million, three days in the first week.
This figure stunned the entire industry: a romance film with a budget of less than six million, directed by a college freshman, without a star-studded cast (Liu Ye is considered a star but not a top-tier celebrity), and without extensive publicity, grossed eighteen million in its opening week.
Based on this trend, breaking 100 million in total box office revenue is not a dream.
In 2003, only one domestic film grossed over 100 million yuan. The last romance film to break 100 million yuan was several years ago; it was still "The Big Ship".
Yu Dong called Liu Yu that same day, "Add more copies, add another two hundred."
Some in the industry began to use the phrase "the boy who cried wolf" to describe the impact of "A Moment to Remember".
It's not because it's so earth-shattering, but because it proves that the market potential of romance films has been severely underestimated.
Previously, people thought the ceiling for domestic romance films was only 10 or 20 million yuan, but now some people are telling you that the ceiling might be 100 million yuan or even higher.
In the second week, "Eraser" experienced a real breakthrough.
The release date is perfect; there's only one movie in this release window, the earliest being the end of July.
The summer movie season has officially entered its peak, with several films being released at the same time, including either children's films or older films.
Theater managers aren't stupid; they'll show whatever movies have an audience.
After the first week, many cinemas across the country had increased the proportion of screenings of this film to 60% or even 65%. Some cinemas were showing this film all day long, non-stop.
The box office for the second week was 48.25 million.
The total over the two weeks is 66.51 million.