413: Chapter 413 Rumors

Lin Chuyan met with Producer Zhang Man in his office shortly after.

She was as stylish as ever, looking very capable.

She took the initiative the moment they met.

"Tell me, aren't you being a bit too badass? 300 million! You've already found the production partners? Can it be released in the Mainland? And North America too?!"

Producer Zhang Man was well aware of Lin Chuyan's current situation.

Other aspects naturally weren't affected, but they were talking about movies, after all.

As a veteran in the industry, she probably knew more about some things than Lin Chuyan, the person directly involved.

Lin Chuyan didn't answer any of her questions, instead smiling and asking, "Sister Man, what would you like to drink?"

The last time they met was at the celebration banquet for the hovering blade. There was no rush; they could catch up first.

"Oh, no need, I already had something before coming. Hurry up and tell me."

If it were back when they first met, Producer Zhang Man would definitely have teased him, but she had no such inclination now.

She sat directly on the sofa, crossed her legs, and waited for Lin Chuyan to speak.

"Don't rush." Lin Chuyan still had someone bring two bottles of water before continuing, "You've always known about me wanting to make a movie, right?"

"I know, but I didn't know you were playing for such high stakes."

How could she not know? Director Deng Yu's remark, "This is hard to judge," had now become a classic meme in the entertainment industry, referring precisely to Lin Chuyan's desire to be a director.

"Mhm, 300 million is an estimate. The actual amount hasn't been calculated yet, which is why I invited you here, Sister Man. Actually, if we filmed in the Mainland, the cost wouldn't be this high..."

Producer Zhang Man: "Huh? What do you mean? Where do you want to film?"

"Hollywood."

Producer Zhang Man: "..."

She was finding it harder and harder to understand Lin Chuyan.

Could this be reliable?

However, if they went there, converted to USD, 300 million really wasn't that much.

Lin Chuyan remained unhurried and began to explain bit by bit—if he wanted to get people on board, he naturally had to show them the real deal.

"Good films naturally attract investors. Aren't you curious who invested, Sister Man?"

"Who?"

"China Film Group."

"For real?!"

As soon as Producer Zhang Man finished speaking, she realized she had spoken out of turn.

He wouldn't possibly lie to her about something like this.

And, this way, it could indeed be released in the Mainland, and the screening slots might not be few either.

Lin Chuyan continued to drop names: "Boss Yang invested too."

"Boss Yang? Which Boss Yang?"

"Which other Boss Yang is there in the industry?"

Producer Zhang Man couldn't understand it: one, then two, all so optimistic about Lin Chuyan, a rookie director?

"Come on, keep talking. I want to see who else there is."

"Lionsgate." Lin Chuyan said inscrutably, "Including myself, there are seven in total. I won't mention the other big shots; they don't want to go public just yet."

As the saying goes, one takes on the habits of one's associates. It was all Wu Yue's fault; Lin Chuyan had learned bad habits too.

In reality, China Film Group, Emperor Group, and Lionsgate were already the three biggest, but when these words reached Producer Zhang Man's ears, they were as shocking as could be—there were even bigger big shots behind them?

No, what kind of massive project was this Lin Chuyan had? How good must the script be? Which big stars were cast? To attract so much capital? The investment for such a huge project was all secured, just waiting for her, Producer Zhang Man, to start work?

Producer Zhang Man didn't speak.

Lin Chuyan didn't speak either.

No rush, let her process it.

"So... who are the leads for this film?"

"I am the male lead."

Producer Zhang Man nodded; this was within her expectations.

"My girlfriend is the female lead."

Producer Zhang Man: "???"

From the moment she entered the office until now, the news just kept getting more explosive.

Like, does Ruan Xingyu know how to act?

Lin Chuyan noticed her doubt and took the initiative to answer: "Don't worry, although she hasn't acted before, the role is very suitable for her. Plus, she has been learning Acting and dancing, and her Acting skills are pretty good now. My senior brother even praised her for having a talent for Acting."

"Badass, Teacher Zhang Wentang teaching her personally. Also, a real couple playing a couple on screen? They are playing a couple, right?"

Lin Chuyan nodded.

"Badass. If this were released on Valentine's Day..." Producer Zhang Man was already fantasizing.

It felt like the script didn't even matter anymore.

Besides, a script that so many big shots were optimistic about, how bad could it be?

"Whether it's Valentine's Day or not is another matter; we haven't even started filming yet, right? In short, that's the situation."

Producer Zhang Man nodded, then suddenly remembered what Lin Chuyan had said earlier: "What did you say before... Teacher Ruan is learning Acting and dancing? Does this film require dancing?"

"Of course. It's a musical."

"What the f*ck?" The "shocks" Lin Chuyan had brought Producer Zhang Man this evening were a bit over the limit. "A musical? You want to film a musical?!"

Hearing her say "what the f*ck," Lin Chuyan couldn't help but laugh out loud: "A musical, and I still managed to pull in so much investment from big shots. Tell me, is that badass or what?"

"Badass, truly badass!"

Someone actually invested in a musical? Is the script that good?

Lin Chuyan continued: "Like I said before, I have the script, I have the storyboard, and I have all the filming teams—and none of them are from the Mainland. Once you come on board, we can start anytime to get the technical script done. Once the costs are estimated, the big shots can immediately invest the money."

Producer Zhang Man looked at Lin Chuyan, somewhat confused: "Why not use a Mainland team?"

"You know I'm a rookie in this industry. I'm really not familiar with the behind-the-scenes teams in the Mainland film circle. I'm afraid Director Deng Yu might pull something shady on me, stuffing in a few of his people. If something were to happen, like a safety accident... I have to be on guard, hahahaha!"

Producer Zhang Man's expression was very colorful: "Have you guys really escalated to this point?"

"Have you received any news, Sister Man?"

Producer Zhang Man shook her head vigorously: "I'm not his person, how would I know these things."

Just...

"Alright, I do know a little."

Lin Chuyan didn't speak, just listened.

Producer Zhang Man naturally wouldn't talk to Lin Chuyan about such things without reason; after all, she couldn't afford to offend Director Deng Yu either.

But at this moment, she was already tempted by Lin Chuyan's project, so sharing what she knew to build rapport with him was a logical step.

Producer Zhang Man put down her crossed legs: "It's just an inside scoop. I heard that he's collected quite a few accounts and is 'nurturing' them."

"Nurturing accounts? What kind of accounts?"

"Both on Weibo and Douban..." Producer Zhang Man actually wasn't too sure, "New accounts always need to be nurtured a bit so they look real, don't they?"

"That makes sense."

"And there's more." Producer Zhang Man tilted her head, "Nurturing accounts and buying accounts are different. Buying accounts is the most ruthless."

Lin Chuyan didn't have time to care about these things and listened, feeling a bit confused: "I don't get it."

"You can go ask around in your fan groups to see if anyone is buying their accounts. Their accounts only become valuable in one situation..."

Producer Zhang Man had already made it quite clear, so Lin Chuyan didn't press further.

"Thanks, Sister Man."

He noted this down and would naturally have Xia Zhi investigate it thoroughly later.

"You don't seem very worried?"

"How can anyone spend a thousand days guarding against a thief, right? One just has to meet soldiers with soldiers and water with an earth weir."

"That's true."

Since they were going to be good friends and collaborators, Lin Chuyan didn't want her to worry too much: "I know what I'm doing. Just thinking about it, I know Director Deng Yu won't let me off so easily, after all, I offended him pretty hard. But don't worry, he doesn't want to let me off, and I don't plan on letting him off either."

Producer Zhang Man: "... Badass."

She didn't know what else to say. In her view, this conflict between Lin Chuyan and Director Deng Yu was between a young genius who couldn't stand anything that wasn't right, and an old, shameless man who couldn't tolerate any dissenting opinions.

It was unsolvable.

"Hahaha, anyway, I'll have someone look into what you mentioned." Lin Chuyan remained smiling, "This intelligence from you is very useful, Sister Man. Does this count as a pledge of allegiance?"

"It counts! Give me the script, and once I've read it, we'll start working directly on the technical script!"

Producer Zhang Man returned to her capable, career-woman persona, ready to switch into work mode.