novelraw Chapter 134
Chapter 134
Chapter 134
Zhang Liangying smiled but didn't say anything; she just gave him another slice of bread.
After finishing his meal, Li Jun opened his laptop and looked at the draft contract sent by Yuan Tao.
The terms and conditions were very detailed, totaling forty-seven pages.
He quickly skimmed the key points:
The guaranteed subscription fee is 80 million RMB, and Lionsgate will cover all marketing and distribution costs.
After the box office exceeds 500 million, Li Jun's studio can participate in the revenue sharing, with the percentage increasing in stages, up to a maximum of 15%.
Legendary Pictures retains the rights to develop derivative products, but Li Jun will receive 5% of the licensing revenue from China.
The conditions are better than expected.
He called Yuan Tao: "I've looked at the contract, and there are basically no problems."
However, regarding the revenue sharing, we aim to secure 18% after the box office surpasses 800 million.
7
Lionsgate might not agree.
Yuan Tao said on the other end of the phone.
"They think 800 million is too high."
"Then let's set up a bet."
Li Jun said.
"If they agree to 18%, we can lower the initial guarantee fee or give up some derivative rights."
However, the upper limit for profit sharing must be increased.
Yuan Tao was silent for a few seconds: "You're very confident?"
"have."
Li Jun said.
"Looper is not an ordinary science fiction film; it has a philosophical core and will have a long-tail effect in the Chinese market."
Moreover, our localization solutions are worth the price.
"Okay, I'll go talk to them."
Yuan Tao paused.
"There's one more thing. Do you want to see Nicholas Tse?"
"See you. Please schedule a time for me, sometime this week."
After hanging up the phone, Li Jun leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.
Sunlight streamed in through the window, warmly bathing me.
He suddenly felt tired, not physically, but the kind of tiredness that comes from relaxing after being tense for a long time.
"Take a rest if you're tired."
Zhang Liangying walked over and gently pressed his temple with her fingers.
"You just got back, don't rush to work."
Li Jun grabbed her hand and held it in his palm.
"Nicholas Tse wants to talk about a new film, possibly a collaboration on 'Dreams of Mountains and Rivers'."
Is he suitable?
"have no idea."
Li Jun spoke frankly.
"Nicholas Tse can play tough guys and down-on-his-luck heroes, but the protagonist of my film is a scholar, which requires a more restrained performance."
He needs to prove he can sink down.
Zhang Liangying sat down next to him: "So you went to see him just to see if he could settle down?"
"Um."
Li Jun nodded.
"If he really wants to change his career path, this is an opportunity. But the risks are also high; this kind of art film might flop at the box office."
"Didn't you say you didn't care about box office revenue?"
"I don't care, but the actors do."
Li Jun said.
"Nicholas Tse is a top-tier actor now. Taking on an art film that doesn't do well at the box office will affect his commercial value. He needs to think this through."
Zhang Liangying didn't say anything more, but just leaned quietly on his shoulder.
The two of them sat there, looking out the window at the autumn sky over Beijing.
The sky was very blue, the clouds were very light, and occasionally a pigeon would fly by, its wings barely audible as they cut through the air.
This kind of quiet is rare. In the entertainment industry, quiet is a luxury.
The place where I met Xie Tingfeng was a teahouse deep in a hutong (alleyway).
The teahouse was converted from an old courtyard house. There is an old locust tree in the courtyard, and half of its leaves have turned yellow.
Afternoon sunlight filters through the gaps in the branches and leaves, casting dappled light and shadow on the bluestone slabs.
When Li Jun arrived, Nicholas Tse was already there.
He sat by the window, wearing a simple black shirt, without sunglasses or an assistant.
He was alone, quietly watching the trees in the yard.
"Mr. Xie, thank you for waiting."
Li Jun walked over.
Nicholas Tse looked up and smiled: "Director Li, please sit down. I just arrived too."
The tea master came over to brew tea; it was Lapsang Souchong.
The bright red tea liquor was poured into a white porcelain cup, and its aroma rose with the steam.
"How's Toronto?"
Nicholas Tse asked.
"busy,"
Li Jun said.
"Looper was well received and a global distribution deal was signed."
"Congratulations."
Nicholas Tse picked up his teacup.
"I watched the trailer, and the cinematography is very high-quality."
Villeneuve is a good director.
"Do you know him?"
"We met once in Cannes and chatted briefly."
Nicholas Tse said.
"He was preparing for Blade Runner 2049 at the time and asked if I would be interested in a cameo role. But my schedule didn't allow it."
Li Jun was somewhat surprised.
He had never heard of any connection between Nicholas Tse and Villeneuve.
"And then?"
"That was the last time."
Nicholas Tse smiled.
"Maybe he thought I wasn't suitable. Hollywood always has stereotypes about Asian actors."
These words were spoken in a very calm tone, but Li Jun detected a hint of resentment in them.
"So you want to change your career path?"
He asked directly.
Nicholas Tse put down his teacup, his fingers gently tracing the rim: "Director Li, I'm forty years old this year. I've been making movies for twenty years, action films, crime films, romance films, I've tried them all."
I've won some awards and gained some fame, but sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and ask myself: What have I left behind?
He paused for a moment: "Shen Mo from 'Bodyguards and Assassins' is my favorite character over the years."
It wasn't because it won me an award, but because it made me realize that acting isn't just about posing and reciting lines; it's about truly becoming another person and experiencing another life.
Li Jun listened quietly.
"After filming that movie, I took a three-month break."
Nicholas Tse continued.
"I turned down all offers for commercial films and stayed at home, reading, listening to music, and spending time with my children."
Let me think about what to film next.
Then I saw the news that you were preparing for a new film, an art film about a painter from the Republican era.
He looked at Li Jun: "I want to give it a try."
"Why this one?" Li Jun asked.
Nicholas Tse said.
"No gunfights, no car chases, no glamorous scenes."
He was a painter who, during the war years, kept only a few brushes and a few sheets of paper.
In this kind of acting, if you don't act well, you'll just look expressionless; if you act well, you'll show your true skill.
Li Jun didn't answer immediately, but just slowly sipped his tea.
The teahouse was quiet, with only the sound of the wind in the courtyard and the faint shouts from the alleyways in the distance.
"The script isn't finished yet."
Li Jun finally spoke.
"I can only show you the outline and brief character biographies."
Moreover, the budget for this film is not high; my director's fee is probably only one-third of your usual salary.
1
Money is not a problem.
Nicholas Tse said.
"I can take a pay cut, or even work for free."
Why?
"Because I want to prove that I am not just Nicholas Tse, not just an actor who can fight and is handsome."
Nicholas Tse's eyes were very serious.
"I want to prove that I can play a quiet, complex, and deep character."
Director Li, can you give me this opportunity?
Li Jun looked at the man in front of him.
He still has a faint scar on his forehead from the movie "Bodyguards and Assassins," and there is an almost stubborn sincerity in his eyes.
"I want to see the script first."
Li Jun said.
"Once the script is finished and you've read it, if you still insist on it, then we can talk again."
"good.
"
Nicholas Tse nodded.
"I'm waiting for you."
The two then chatted about other things.
Nicholas Tse mentioned that he has recently been learning traditional Chinese painting and has hired an old painter to teach him how to use the brush and ink.
He mentioned that his daughter had started learning piano and played better than him;
He mentioned wanting to make a short documentary about Hong Kong's time-honored brands, and to be the producer himself.
As Li Jun listened, he suddenly realized that Xie Tingfeng in front of him was no longer the same man who had smoked and looked exhausted in the Repulse Bay villa a few years ago.
Time changes people, but the direction of that change depends on the person themselves.
It was already evening when I left the teahouse.
Lights came on in the alley, and warm yellow light shone through the windows of each house.
An elderly person sat at the doorway picking vegetables, children chased and played, and the crisp sound of bicycle bells rang out.
Nicholas Tse put on a mask and hat, and shook hands with Li Jun: "Director Li, whether it works out or not, thank you for listening to me today."
"It's my turn to thank you."
Li Jun said.
"Willing to be this serious about a film."
The two parted ways at the entrance of the alley.
Li Jun watched Nicholas Tse's figure disappear into the twilight and suddenly remembered the day "Bodyguards and Assassins" wrapped up filming. Nicholas Tse stood in the rain, soaked to the bone, but his eyes were bright.
Some people are always looking for a way to break through their limitations.
And he might be able to become a fellow traveler on that path.
Zhang Liangying's new album, "Their Voices," is in its final recording stage.
The day Li Jun visited the recording studio, they were recording the last song, called "Paper Boat".
The lyricist and composer is a girl in her twenties named Su Xiao, a newcomer discovered by Zhang Liangying from the independent music scene.
The recording studio was dark, with only the control panel lights on. Zhang Liangying stood in front of the microphone, wearing headphones and with her eyes closed.
On the other side of the glass, Su Xiao stared nervously at the display screen, her palms sweaty.
The prelude is a simple piano piece, a few single notes, like raindrops.
Zhang Liangying spoke softly: "Fold a paper boat and put it into the river of time."
It carries the words it dared not utter in its youth, drifting towards an unknown shore.
The paper will get wet, the writing will become blurry, but the creases remember the direction of every pressure applied.
Li Jun stood at the door of the control room, listening quietly.
This song is unlike any of the Zhang Liangying songs he has heard before.
There are no high notes or fancy techniques, no complicated arrangements, just simple melodies and clean sounds, like whispering in your ear.
But it is precisely this simplicity that touches people's hearts.
After recording one take, Zhang Liangying walked out of the recording studio.
Upon seeing Li Jun, she smiled and asked, "When did you arrive?"
"Just arrived."
Li Jun said.
"This song is very good."
"Written by Su Xiao."
Zhang Liangying pulled the shy girl over.
"She is very talented, she just lacks opportunities."
Su Xiao blushed: "It was Sister Liangying who gave me the opportunity."
"You seized the opportunity yourself."
Zhang Liangying patted her shoulder.
"Go take a break, we'll record another take later."
After Su Xiao left, Zhang Liangying and Li Jun sat on the sofa in the control room.
"All ten songs on the album were written by female songwriters."
Zhang Liangying said.
The youngest is nineteen years old, and the oldest is sixty-two.
The styles are diverse, including folk, electronic, jazz, and even an experimental sound poem.
Has the publisher been decided?
"It's settled, but not with a traditional record company."
Zhang Liangying's eyes lit up.
"I'm collaborating with a women's entrepreneurship platform; they do community marketing, and we do content."
The album will not be available on streaming platforms; it will be released in limited quantities only through their channels, and will be accompanied by a series of dialogues and salons with female artists.
Li Jun was somewhat surprised: "Not targeting the mass market?"
"I'm not leaving."
Zhang Liangying shook her head.
"This album is not a product, it's a manifesto."
I want more people to hear women's voices, not just love songs, not just light and sweet ones, but real, diverse voices.
A powerful expression.
She paused for a moment, then said, "It might not sell many copies, but I think it's worth it."
Li Jun looked at her.
In the dim light of the recording studio, her profile was soft, but there was a determined light in her eyes.
"What do you need me to do?"
he asks.
"Come to the first salon."
Zhang Liangying said.
"As a viewer, and also as my family."
"it is good."
Zhang Liangying leaned on his shoulder and whispered, "Xiao Jun, sometimes I feel like we're doing the same thing."
Through film, and through music, we are both searching for those overlooked voices and recording those easily forgotten stories.
Li Jun put his arm around her shoulder: "So we're the same kind of people."
"Um.
""
Zhang Liangying smiled.
"Like attracts like."
After the break, Zhang Liangying returned to the recording studio to record the final take of "Paper Boat".
This time, she sang softer and gentler, but every word seemed to fall on her heart: "The paper boat will eventually sink, but the hands that folded the paper will remember how to turn the flat into three-dimensional and the blank into possibility."
These hands can fold another, and another, until the river becomes the sea, and silence becomes a song.
As Li Jun listened, he suddenly remembered a line from his script.
Lin Shen told his students amidst the flames of war: "Art is not decoration, it is resistance."
Use beauty to resist ugliness, use order to resist chaos, use memory to resist forgetting.
Zhang Liangying's songs and her movies are both expressions of this kind of resistance.
It's just a different form.
In October, Beijing enters its most beautiful season of the year.
The red leaves of Fragrant Hills, the withered lotus flowers of the Summer Palace, and the aroma of roasted chestnuts wafting through the alleyways.
But Li Jun didn't have much time to appreciate these things; his schedule was packed.
The distribution contract for Looper in China has finally been signed.
Final Terms:
The guaranteed distribution fee is 75 million, and the revenue sharing is tiered. If the box office exceeds 500 million, Li Jun's studio can receive 12%; if it exceeds 1 billion, they can receive 18%.
Lionsgate accepted the bet because they internally predicted that the film's box office in China would likely exceed 800 million yuan.
The day after signing the contract, Li Jun began assembling the preparatory team for "Dreams of Mountains and Rivers".
The art director was Mr. Li, the old art director who traveled all over the country to find old fabrics for "Bodyguards and Assassins".
Master Li is 63 years old this year. He had originally planned to retire, but after hearing Li Jun's story outline, he slapped his thigh and said, "I have to take this role! Republican-era art is my specialty!"
The director of photography was Zhao Xiaodong, an academic in his early forties who had shot several niche art films. His calm and restrained camera language perfectly matched the temperament of "Dreams of Mountains and Rivers".
The screenwriter was still Teacher Zhou, but this time Li Jun wrote the first draft of the script himself, and Teacher Zhou was responsible for polishing and refining the dialogue.
The most difficult part was casting the actors.
Apart from Nicholas Tse expressing interest, all other roles are currently vacant.
Li Jun wanted to cast Zhang Ziyi as the painter's wife, a woman who guarded her home and her husband's ideals amidst the chaos of war.
However, Zhang Ziyi's agent said that she has taken on a Hollywood film role and will be unavailable for the entire next year.
pity.