Super Zoo

When it was said that all employees would be dismissed, Hou Longtao was only a little surprised, not too surprised.

Hou Longtao had seen with his own eyes the working attitude of the cinema employees. Although the move to fire them all seemed drastic, it was unexpected and reasonable after all.

It is completely incomprehensible to be an art theater and show all art films.

Making technical films is thankless, and showing art films is equally unprofitable. Even Wong Kar-Wai's early films won numerous awards in Hong Kong and Taiwan, and they were definitely poison at the box office.

After people have money, they often pursue some so-called ideal feelings, even if they pay money. However, Hou Longtao felt that Su Ming didn't have enough money to spend tens of millions for feelings.

Moreover, the so-called art film is not just an economic issue.

It is difficult to distinguish between art films and commercial films.

There are no clear standards for what is an art film and what is a commercial film. It cannot be said that if the picture is more montaged, the dialogue is less, and the character acting is pretentious or more realistic, it must be an art film, and as long as it meets the market requirements, it must be a commercial film.

From the perspective of its origin, when the film was first born, it had nothing to do with art.

The earliest movie was called "Carousel", which was a kind of circus and street performance. It connected many pictures together for the purpose of watching the excitement. Contemporary movies must be related to art. To a certain extent, it is actually a deviation. It captures the essence of the movie, "Watch the fun and be happy".

The threshold for movies is very low. People who read books must be literate after all. An illiterate person who cannot read or write can go to the cinema to watch movies as long as he is not deaf or blind. The audience threshold also determines that movies are unlikely to become a high-end art. Even in Europe and the United States, the most popular and top-grossing movies are commercial films such as Star Wars.

The lack of clear divisions is one aspect, but it is not the most important thing. People are not machines. They do not need clear instructions for everything. They can completely rely on their own supervisory thinking to judge whether a movie is a commercial film or an art film.

Even if you don't make money and show all art films, you will definitely not be able to support a cinema. The number of art films is too small, and the speed of filming cannot keep up with the speed of screening. It won't be long before the cinema will be faced with the embarrassment of running out of films to show. situation.

This year, there are hundreds of films on the TV market, but the pure art films can be counted on one hand.

"You misunderstood."

Su Ming laughed, "What I mean is that 'not based on commercial standards' determines the screening and arrangement of films. It does not mean that only art films and no commercial films will be shown."

Hou Longtao thought for a while and asked, "How to say it specifically?"

"The so-called business standards nowadays are nothing more than a few: Is there big investment and big scenes, such as Legend of the Gods? Is there a big director, such as those in China who rely on the glory of one or two films and then make them? Is it a bad movie? Does it have a popular star joining it, or has a certain fan base, such as a big movie of a certain show?

Investment, director, fans, the three major elements, plus publicity, this is the current business standard.

But in fact, these factors do not determine the quality of a movie. Sometimes they can mislead the audience. Producers spend their attention and money on these factors that do not directly determine the movie itself, and often ignore it. content of the movie. What I mean is, put aside the interference of all external factors, don’t even consider economic issues, start directly from the movie itself, and choose movies that truly ‘tell good stories’.

The key is two words: good-looking.

As for whether it is a so-called literary film or a commercial film, it is also not within the scope of consideration. As long as it looks good, even commercial films with the most vulgar plots can be shown. If they don't look good, no matter how big-name or sentimental, artistic films are not shown. "

Before movie theaters purchase film sources for release, the distributor will invite them to internal viewings and let the theaters inspect the movies in advance. What Su Ming wants Hou Longtao to do is to work in this area. Based on his feelings, choose 'good-looking' movie of.

Of course, this is just one of Hou Longtao's jobs. Hou Longtao is in charge, and Xin Linli from the film and television company will probably also be involved.

"Even..." Su Ming paused and said, "You can even show some old movies with good reputations. This kind of movies has proven to be accepted by the audience. At the same time, due to time constraints, the copyright is very cheap, and it doesn't cost much to get it. Bought for screening.”

"This is a good idea. In the past, most of the people who came to watch movies in my private theater would choose to watch classic old movies, a kind of nostalgic feeling. In terms of price, it is more expensive than going to the cinema, but it is not possible in most cinemas. Showing old movies.”

Hou Longtao nodded, hesitated for a moment, and said: "Old Su, there is something I don't quite understand."

"Well, you tell me." Su Ming said.

Hou Longtao sorted out his words and said slowly: "Since you are running a cinema, if I guess correctly, your purpose is to serve economic benefits, right?"

"It's not all about economic benefits, there are some other considerations, but what you said is not wrong. The money in the theater is never wasted. Monkey, I can tell you for sure that I am not spending money to buy feelings." Su Ming smiled. : "If it's because I like to watch good movies and old movies, I might as well buy the most luxurious home theater equipment and watch it alone at home. Why buy a cinema?"

"Well, if that's the case, why do you have to go in such a big circle and be new and different?" Hou Longtao said: "I admit that there are mostly bad movies on the market now, and there are more and more, and they are getting worse. But in recent years, The total domestic box office is rising steadily, which shows that even bad movies are very profitable. As long as they follow the trend and show them, the theaters will be financially secure. Now, is it too risky to think about whether it is good or not? Of course, it’s for financial gain. If you don’t follow the trend, how can you compete with the big theater chains?”

Su Ming smiled: "Monkey, Changhe Cinema has been following the trend of screening, so has it made any money? Has it competed with the big cinema chains?"

Hou Longtao was stunned. It was true. The movies shown in Changhe Cinema were no different from those of major theaters such as Wanda and Jackie Chan. But the fact was before his eyes that he was in a complete loss. Not to mention competition, even survival is difficult.

"Does this have something to do with its service? Well, the equipment also has a lot to do with it. Changhe's equipment is too outdated and cannot meet the viewing effect of blockbusters." Hou Longtao said.

Su Ming nodded: "That's right. We can change the personnel, and we can also change the equipment. But there is a difference between changing and changing..." He pondered for a moment, and said: "Changing people will remove the staleness and bad habits of the theater. For us, it doesn’t actually cost a few extra dollars, but it is a small investment that can be done at one time; what about replacing the equipment?”

Su Ming counted on his fingers: "Wanda, Jackie Chan, Poly, China Film... there are seven or eight major theater chains in Yangchuan City. Behind each theater chain, there are billions of big funds to support it. Let's go and fight with them." Competing with whose equipment is better? Whose venue is more gorgeous? Impossible. Even if I invest the entire Taoyuan Group's funds in the cinema, I can't compare. At most, I will just follow others. I have invested a lot of money in equipment, but the effect is not as good as other major theater chains. Should I raise the ticket price, or not raise the price?”