Chapter 751
"The Youth" Pre-sale: Can Art Films Be Box Office Success?
When I woke up again, it was already the next day.
The three months of filming felt like a dream, and now that it's over, Chen Yu feels a bit down.
An actor must eventually detach himself from the role. Even though his past and present lives had instilled in Chen Yu a good habit of self-regulation, he still felt quite uncomfortable when filming suddenly ended.
Even though... he had long been used to this kind of life.
Squeak~~
The door to the room was pushed open from the outside, and when Chen Yu looked over, he noticed that Liu Yifei was tilting her head and looking at his location.
"You're awake? I deliberately didn't wake you..."
"Auntie has already prepared breakfast!"
This looks exactly like a young, pampered wife after marriage.
"what--"
Chen Yu yawned and stretched.
After filming "Black Coal, Thin Ice" was completed, he and Liu Yifei had a rare period of rest.
Although there are still many things to deal with, it's not like I have to leave early and return late every day.
After confirming the schedule with China Film Group, Chen Yu informed Yang Lu that they could proceed with the next steps.
Yang Lu and Wang Shuo have already started promoting the film, as it is director Chen Yu's debut work, and many people are actually looking forward to it.
Marketing trailers and other promotional materials should naturally be prepared well in advance.
Several promotional videos, in particular, have become very popular online.
To be honest, "Better Days" is already well-known, and now it only needs a little promotion to achieve the best results.
After all, winning the Venice Golden Lion Award and helping Liu Yifei win the Best Actress award, such strength is certainly not to be underestimated.
only--
Popularity is one thing, but the final box office is another.
Chen Yu had many things to worry about, which made Yang Lu and Wang Shuo extremely cautious in handling this matter.
"After breakfast, you can go to the company to take a look."
The two were walking downstairs. Ever since Liu Yifei proposed to Chen Yu, Shen Xiaoqin had been eager for them to get married right away.
As for Liu Xiaoli, she now turns a blind eye. In the past, she would warn the two not to get too close, but now she doesn't care anymore.
Even for breakfast, Shen Xiaoqin never forgets to make sure it's colorful, fragrant, and delicious.
Chen Yu had a somewhat "difficult" time in Harbin, although Diao Yinan tried her best to provide the best service for the two of them.
However, no matter how luxurious the place, it can never compare to one's own doghouse.
The two men sat down at the table, and Chen Qingxiang, who was reading a newspaper, suddenly looked over.
“Xiao Yu, I don’t see you’re very busy these days.”
"When will we settle things? Grandpa is still waiting to hold his great-grandson."
The same grandparental affection, the same rhetoric.
"Is this something you can say to my face?"
Liu Yifei, who was eating breakfast nearby, had a slightly flushed face and was just gulping down her porridge like a quail.
Chen Yu laughed so hard he could barely stand it. He could only chat casually with his grandfather, trying his best to avoid embarrassing his future little wife.
***
2007 9 Month 24 Day.
Cinemas across the country have successively opened pre-sale channels for "Better Days," generating buzz for half a month in advance and opening tickets for a week, which is enough to demonstrate everyone's anticipation for this movie.
News and updates about "Better Days" have been flooding in.
Some of them don't even require spending money or making any announcements.
Major news outlets rushed to report on it, as everyone was eagerly anticipating the results of winning the Venice Film Festival award.
At the same time, in the general manager's office of Huayi Brothers.
Wang Zhonglei was browsing through recent news. "Better Days" has been all the rage lately, and all the news was a pre-release hype.
"Greed knows no bounds; he's still just a greenhorn."
"You don't really think art films have any future in the Chinese film industry, do you?"
Wang Zhonglei rubbed his temples, a disdainful expression on his face.
The reason for this is that Yu Xin had already completely overwhelmed Hua Yi, leaving them with no choice but to wallow in self-pity.
"Xiao Lei, don't be angry!"
A sound came from his side. Wang Zhongjun shook his head. His younger brother had indeed developed some mental issues due to being suppressed by Yu Xin over the past two years.
However, seeing the immense popularity of "Better Days" right now, the two of them couldn't help but feel a little uneasy.
Furthermore, since Chen Yu rose to fame, his company, Yu Xin Film Industry, has also benefited from this rise.
In just a few years, Huayi Brothers was overtaken by Yu Xin, a rising star.
They were naturally unwilling to accept this.
Having dominated the scene for years, it would be upsetting for anyone to be crushed by a mere brat.
"He's just a recent college graduate. The higher you praise him, the harder he'll fall."
"I'd like to see how he plans to salvage the situation."
Almost everyone's attention is focused on the pre-sale of "Better Days".
After all, Chen Yu dared to bring up art films, so he must have been prepared for them to be rejected.
They were just waiting to see Chen Yu make a fool of himself.
As for this time—
Although there are some criticisms about the market for art films, several domestic cinemas have opened pre-sale channels in recognition of Chen Yu's reputation.
Chen Yu was actually browsing news on his phone.
Today is the first day of pre-sales, and we won't know the national pre-sale situation until tonight.
It would be a lie to say you are not worried.
As his debut film as a writer, director, and actor, Chen Yu has high expectations for it.
This not only elevates the event to a higher level, but its impact on Liu Yifei is also undeniable.
Chen Yu's directorial debut, *Better Days*, begins pre-sales; can art-house films dominate the market?
Long queues form across the country to buy tickets; the box office appeal of "Better Days" should not be underestimated!
"Liu Yifei's Best Actress Film is Coming Soon, and Pre-sales are Now Open..."
Most of the news reports online were about "Better Days," and after scrolling through them for a while, Chen Yu calmed down.
The scenes of people queuing to buy tickets at many cinemas cannot be faked. Newspapers and media have reported on them extensively. In addition, the company has won several awards in the past, which will inevitably arouse the curiosity of the audience.
"I see a long line of people buying tickets!"
Liu Yifei wrapped her arms around Chen Yu's neck and pressed herself against him from behind.
"good!"
Chen Yu nodded: "We can't really see anything right now. A lot of it is just spontaneous behavior from fans. We'll have to wait a few more days to see how strong the pre-sales really are!"
He gave Liu Yifei a truthful response, and the latter naturally noticed that Chen Yu seemed to care a little.
She knew that Chen Yu valued this film very much. Unlike his previous works, this one represented Chen Yu himself.
Despite the current lack of optimism surrounding art films, Chen Yu remains resolute in his decision.
"The pre-sale box office results will be out tonight, I believe in you!"
After hearing Liu Yifei's words, Chen Yu let out a heavy sigh and turned around to hug the person behind him.
It has to be said that the power of a lover is always the strongest, so much so that Liu Yifei's mere presence by his side was enough to make him feel relaxed.
As evening approached, the two, having eaten and drunk their fill, sat on the swing in the yard, enjoying a rare moment of tranquility and relaxation.
I was too tired recently and didn't even have time to rest.
The sudden relaxation brought a sense of comfort and well-being to both of them.
Jingle Bell--
Chen Yu's phone rang, breaking the silence of the night. Only after it rang did Chen Yu pick up the phone.
"Old Yu".
His heart was pounding uncontrollably. He knew perfectly well the significance of the call; it was undoubtedly to inform him of today's results.
Chen Yu cleared his throat, and Yu Dong's excited voice immediately came from the other end.
"Brother Yu."
"The first-day pre-sale box office figures for 'Better Days' are out."
"1307 million!"
Chen Yu: "..."
His heart skipped a beat, and he turned to look at Liu Yifei beside him, who was also waiting nervously.
1307 million!
When the number was revealed, Chen Yu was genuinely momentarily stunned.
Even with the support of fans, this number is still quite alarming.
For an art film like "Better Days," this is hardly a good result.
It's worth noting that "Departures" only achieved 3100 million yuan in pre-sales over three days, so this is clearly a better result than "Departures".
"Hahaha, awesome!"
"Brother Yu is truly invincible!"
Yu Dong laughed out loud on the other end of the phone. He had to admit that Chen Yu always managed to do things that others couldn't.
While it may not be as commercially successful as "Invisible Spy," "Better Days" is undoubtedly a leader in the realm of art-house films.
Keep in mind that this is only a pre-sale; there's still a week until the official release.
Even as an art film, it couldn't overcome the popularity of Chen Yu and Liu Yifei. Coupled with the three major awards won a few days ago, "Better Days" deserves its success.
It has to be said that the pre-sale situation of "Better Days" has exceeded many people's expectations, after all, in everyone's perception, art films have no market.
Even Chen Yu was completely unprepared for this situation.
As for the future, pre-sale records will continue to rise.
Furthermore, the National Day holiday is a prime time for promotion and distribution, and Chen Yu believes there will be even greater breakthroughs.
"How about it?"
Chen Yu hung up the phone, and Liu Yifei had already come over.
She was equally eager, after all, it was something they had both been looking forward to.
Liu Yifei naturally hoped to help Chen Yu achieve his wish.
"1307."
Liu Yifei was somewhat surprised after hearing Chen Yu's answer, and her face flushed with joy.
The fact that it achieved this result on its first day alone at least proves the gap between "Better Days" and other art films.
"I feel it's no less successful than 'Departures'!"
"Of course, it should definitely get better and better..."
Chen Yu reached out and patted Liu Yifei's head, feeling much more relaxed.
At his level, the release of any film he makes is watched by countless eyes in the film industry.
Everyone was hoping to see a joke, but they were disappointed several times in a row.
Nowadays, Chen Yu's works are undoubtedly of considerable quality.
The next morning, Chen Yu had just woken up when he received a call from Jiang Wen.
"You're something else, kid! You managed to make over ten million on the opening day of an art film!"
"Your grades are probably going to make a lot of people envious..."
Chen Yu had just woken up, so his voice was still a little hoarse.
He hasn't had anything major to do these past few days. Apart from marketing "Better Days," he's been giving himself and Liu Yifei a proper break.
"I'm surprised too."
"I hope everything goes smoothly from now on, and I can surpass the success of 'Departures'!"
Immediately, a series of "tsk tsk tsk" sounds came from the other end of the phone, but they also admired Chen Yu's influence.
"Your work is clearly much better than 'Departures.' I estimate the last two days will be the peak period..."
Since there are currently no online ticket sales, and tickets are sold directly at the cinema windows, the closer to the release date, the better the tickets will sell.
The first day of pre-sales exceeded expectations because of the star power of Chen Yu and Liu Yifei.
The number was significantly lower on the second day.
However, I thought Jiang Wen was calling because she had something to say, but after congratulating me, she hung up the phone immediately.
Chen Yu was left completely bewildered.
If you casually click on the entertainment news headlines of the past few days, almost all of them are about the pre-sale of "Better Days".
"Reaching over 10 million views on its first day, Chen Yu's appeal is undeniable!"
How far can "The Youth" go, setting aside Chen Yu's influence?
A new version of arthouse films?
There are many such news reports online, with many people predicting that the fact that "Better Days" broke 10 million in sales on its first day was due to Chen Yu's appeal, and that pre-sales would definitely decline in the following days.
To be precise, Chen Yu is also taking a wait-and-see approach to the upcoming pre-sales.
After getting dressed, Chen Yu went downstairs.
He still had things to take care of today; he had previously promised Hao Rong that he would consider the Golden Rooster Awards ceremony.
In order for Liu Yifei to win the Best Actress award again, he should indeed do this.
Although there are still objections to the Golden Rooster Awards, as he himself said, even a steamed bun is still food.
It's certainly good to win an award.
Fortunately, there wasn't a rush.
Wang Shuo and Yang Lu are currently handling location scouting and casting for "The Grand Budapest Hotel," so the task of submitting the film falls to him.
Submitting the film's DCP, application form, and script is not a difficult process.
The next step is to wait for the preliminary selection and evaluation.
It was three days later when Yu Dong contacted Chen Yu again.
The pre-sales of "Better Days" exceeded many people's expectations, including Chen Yu himself.
Everyone thought that the box office would drop on the second day of pre-sales, but unexpectedly, it kept setting new records every day.
The first day might have been fan behavior, but what about the second and third days?
Many young people flocked to the cinema, having bought tickets in advance; it's safe to say that Chen Yu's film is incredibly captivating for young audiences.
Bullying, awards, and these two lead actors—almost the entire high school and college student population across the country is eagerly anticipating the release of this film.
"Just surpassed 8500 million, setting a new pre-sale record in just five days!"
Yu Dong was so emotional that even he had to admire Chen Yu wholeheartedly.
For an art film to achieve such high pre-sales within five days is something that would have been completely unthinkable in the past.
Apart from Chen Yu and Liu Yifei, the rest of the cast are all newcomers, so their strong pre-sale box office success is entirely due to their own abilities.
“Brother Yu, 85 million, I think it’s very likely to break the 100 million pre-sale record.”
Upon hearing this, Chen Yu's expression held a hint of longing.
It's worth noting that "Invisible Spy" is a commercial film, and its box office of 8281 million yuan in three days has already shaken the entire industry.
Liu Yifei looked at Chen Yu's expression, trying to read a signal from his eyes.
The call continued until both parties hung up.
Chen Yu then looked up at Liu Yifei.
"85 million, breaking 100 million shouldn't be a problem..."
Liu Yifei's red lips parted slightly, and her little expression made Chen Yu both amused and exasperated.
8500?
It has to be said that the pre-sale box office in just five days has already exceeded their expectations.
After all, no one expected that art films could achieve such pre-sale results, even surpassing many commercial films.
It's worth noting that when the first day's results were announced, no one was optimistic about the film "Better Days".
At one point, it was even thought that the fact that the company broke 10 million on the first day was simply due to Chen Yu's fame.
Fortunately, this movie continues the explosive success of its predecessor.
"great!"
"I want to tell Tangtang this good news."
Liu Yifei took out her phone and dialed a number.
Since returning from the Venice Film Festival, Tang Yan has taken a break. In the past few days, she has traveled to several major cities to promote "Better Days".
I received a call from Liu Yifei today, and I'm quite excited right now.
The pre-sale results for "Better Days" were announced online a few days ago, and for them, this result is already considered outstanding.
It is the result of their joint efforts.
"Tangtang, our movie just surpassed 85 million, maybe it'll break 100 million next!"
Liu Yifei dared not speak too definitively.
Although they already knew that "Better Days" was quite good, the outcome was still uncertain, so they couldn't celebrate halfway through.
"Really!"
Luo Jin was sitting next to Tang Yan, and he was puzzled when he saw his girlfriend's surprised look.
"It's broken 8500 million?"
"It's only been a few days, and they've already achieved such great results."
Tang Yan's words made Luo Jin look over, his expression also showing a hint of shock.
It would be a lie to say they weren't pleasantly surprised, after all, this was their debut work, and to achieve such great results under Chen Yu's leadership.
"Get ready, we need to do some promotional tours for the premiere!"
Tang Yan's confidence was ignited, and she was naturally very satisfied with her current achievements.
Even after they hung up the phone, their joy had not faded.
Pre-sales certainly won't surpass those of "Invisible Spy," but Chen Yu is already quite satisfied with the current results.
Even art films and documentaries are still documents.
Winning both awards and box office success sets a precedent for many films around the world.
In fact, there have been news reports about Chen Yu, Liu Yifei, and the movie "Better Days" every day for the past few days.
One after another, people called Chen Yu to share the good news.
Perhaps only Chen Yu could turn the impossible into the possible.
Not to mention the other directors, whose eyes were all somewhat red.
The combined box office revenue of some people's entire film arsenal may not even match Chen Yu's pre-sale figures.
This makes him the second person, after Zhang Yimou, to prove with his own strength and influence that art films still have a huge market in China!
And this was only Chen Yu's directorial debut; who is Zhang Yimou?
This is a veteran in the industry. (End of Chapter)