Chapter 486: Super High Movie Profit Share

Chapter 486: Chapter 486: Super High Movie Profit Share

The movie’s popularity spread by word of mouth, drawing more and more people into theaters.

Moreover, the film was even picked up for distribution in Hong Kong, Macau, and other Southeast Asian countries.

During World War II, these countries had also been invaded by Japan and had their treasures plundered. They shared a similar hatred, which gave the film a built-in audience.

The film became another phenomenon, the first since *Shaolin Temple*.

It received not only rave reviews from the public but also coverage from news outlets.

With the movie being so popular, Han Xiaorui figured it definitely wouldn’t lose money.

However, the revenue cycle was quite long, and she didn’t have the energy to monitor it constantly, so she soon put it out of her mind.

She simply had too much work to do to afford spending excess energy on things that were already in the past.

The film’s impact was enormous. Many who watched it were not only moved but also came away remembering the name Jinshan Bay.

Thanks to the movie, the tourist and commercial districts of Jinshan Bay began to welcome more visitors, becoming increasingly bustling.

More people meant more spending. This created more jobs, and residents’ incomes rose significantly.

The people of Jinshan Bay weren’t the only ones who were pleased. Spurred on by Jinshan Bay’s success, the district government saw rapid economic development. Attracting new business and investment also became much smoother than in other areas.

Three months later, just before the New Year, Shencheng Film Studio paid Han Xiaorui her dividends.

Previously, Han Xiaorui had invested six million for a forty percent stake.

Shencheng Film Studio had provided the manpower and handled all other aspects of production, taking the remaining sixty percent stake.

Originally, Han Xiaorui had only invested in the film because she wanted more people to know about this thrilling and precious story of heroism.

’If it made money, great.’

’If not, that was fine too.’

Accountant Liu burst into Han Xiaorui’s office, forgetting even to knock. "President Han, the money from the film studio came through! Guess how much!"

Han Xiaorui blinked. "Two million?"

Accountant Liu waved that away, shaking his head repeatedly. "President Han, you’re seriously underestimating this movie. It’s so good! It’s no worse than *Shaolin Temple* was a few years back. It’s still playing in theaters even now! How could it only be two million? Guess again! Go higher!"

Hearing this, Han Xiaorui decided not to spoil Accountant Liu’s fun. She thought for a moment. "Twenty million?"

At that, Accountant Liu shook his head. "Not quite that much. You just jumped up by a factor of ten! That’s a bit high, don’t you think?"

Han Xiaorui smiled. "Then ten million, surely?"

Accountant Liu answered smugly, "Twelve million! And this is just the first round of dividends. I heard it’s already been translated into Cantonese and other Southeast Asian languages for overseas release. But the payment cycle for that is longer, so who knows when we’ll see that money."

Han Xiaorui blinked. "An investment of six million, and we doubled it in a year. That’s a great deal!"

Accountant Liu shook his head. "It just goes to show our film was well-made, the public loved it, and the government gave it a major push. That’s why it was such a great deal; a lot of films don’t turn a profit. When it comes to investing in movies, we can do it if there’s a good script. But if there’s no solid script, then we should forget it and invest cautiously."

Han Xiaorui nodded. "Yes, I understand. Don’t worry, I’m not the type to throw money around carelessly."

’Hearing this, Accountant Liu didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Her boss was the very definition of someone who threw money around carelessly.’

’But it was precisely because of Han Xiaorui’s boldness and incredibly sharp instincts that nearly every investment she made was profitable.’

’And if one didn’t turn a profit, it wasn’t because of poor execution, but because it was a charitable endeavor.’

Han Xiaorui hadn’t expected to produce another film anytime soon, but then a moving story came along that she felt compelled to turn into a movie.

One day, Han Xiaorui went to the police dog base as usual and found Director Wang in low spirits.

Han Xiaorui asked with curiosity, "Director Wang, are you feeling unwell today? You don’t seem like yourself."

Director Wang shook his head. "I’m not sick. I just got a call from Yun Province. One of our police dogs was on a mission to rescue a hostage... and a vicious drug trafficker hacked off half its head."

"We have agreements with these units that they must report any incidents involving our police dogs. I received the official report and photos today. Seeing what happened to our dog... it’s just heartbreaking."

Han Xiaorui froze, her heart aching with sympathy. "Let me see."

Director Wang handed the folder to Han Xiaorui. "Here."

Han Xiaorui opened the file. A solid black police dog lay on the ground, half of its head cleanly sheared off, taking an eye and an ear with it.

It survived after receiving medical treatment, but its physical functions had degenerated.

From the file, Han Xiaorui learned that the police dog’s name was Lightning.

He was large and majestic, and when he ran, he was as fast as his name suggested.

This police dog, Lightning, was one of the first batch of twenty dogs Han Xiaorui had trained at her own home.

He was one of the first to be assigned to a mission in Yun Province!

The next five pages were filled with a list of Lightning’s missions and the commendations he had received.

Han Xiaorui’s eyes grew red.

"Director Wang, Lightning is a hero," Han Xiaorui said, her voice heavy.

Director Wang nodded. "He is."

Han Xiaorui looked at Director Wang. "Send someone to bring Lightning here. Even though he was saved, his functions have degenerated. He can’t go on missions anymore. Let’s bring him home."

"If we can help him recover, that would be for the best. If not, I want him to live out his retirement here with us. I made a promise to all of them when I trained them."

Director Wang thought for a moment, then nodded. "Alright. I’ll make the arrangements."

"Wait for my word. I want more people to know Lightning’s story," Han Xiaorui said with a nod. She could use the profits from the movie for the police dogs’ retirement and care.

"Mr. Han, I’ll wait for your notice," Director Wang agreed.

After leaving the police dog base, Han Xiaorui went straight to the Shencheng Film Studio.

She had called ahead; the screenwriter, Zhang Yong, was in.

The previous film, *Anti-Japanese Treasure Hunter*, had been Zhang Yong’s artistic adaptation of historical materials, resulting in a film that was both entertaining and educational.

Han Xiaorui was confident that if she entrusted this new script to Zhang Yong, he would be able to write an excellent screenplay.

When Zhang Yong learned Han Xiaorui was coming, he personally went to the entrance to greet her.

Zhang Yong was only twenty-four and had just graduated from university the previous year. At the time, not many people had been optimistic about *Anti-Japanese Treasure Hunter*.

Back then, martial arts and romance films were popular, while war films about the resistance were not.

But Zhang Yong was young. He not only had a strong foundation as a writer but was also able to get his hands on foreign films, including those from Hong Kong and Taiwan.

He absorbed the strengths of domestic cinema and combined them with the characteristics of films from Hong Kong, Taiwan, and other countries, enriching his characters’ personalities without straying from historical fact.

Some were comical, some were goofy, and others were serious old traditionalists. Nearly every character who appeared had a memorable, defining trait.