Text | Huang Luzhi
01 Before the Yin-Yang contract, Feng Xiaogang, who was very arrogant, had also been humble. The filmmaker of his generation, Chen Kaige, was born in a family. His father, Chen Huaaiai, was the first generation of filmmakers in New China. Although Zhang Yimou became famous late, he was also born in a serious academic class. Only Feng Xiaogang started in the art troupe. Those who mix in the Beijing literary circle are divided into two schools, one is the students of the big courtyard, and the other is the Hutong string. The pupils of the courtyard include Zheng Xiaolong, Jiang Wen, Ye Jing, Ma Weidu, Wang Shuo, Wang Zhongjun, Wang Zhonglei, etc. Among them, Wang Shuo is the core of the well-deserved core. You must know that the "Desire" written by him back then is a mere empty street. As a result, Feng Xiaogang, a Hutong Chuanzi, was a little inferior when he was with the Dayuan children. However, if inferiority falls into inferiority, the circle still has to be mixed. The person who brought Feng Xiaogang into the Beijing circle was Zheng Xiaolong.
From left: Ge You, Feng Xiaogang, Wang Shuo, Zheng Xiaolong. In 1990, the TV series "Desire" was broadcast, which brought the director Zheng Xiaolong and screenwriter Wang Shuo to the fire. At that time, Feng Xiaogang was still struggling in the love drama "Good Man and Woman" Art design. Otherwise, Feng Xiaogang, a chicken thief, could climb up the pole. According to Zheng Xiaolong's recollection, Feng Xiaogang often invited him to dinner, communicated with him, talked about his ideals, work, and everything. There was no such thing as giving gifts back then. Feng Xiaogang used these to "bribish" him and let him lead the movie. Zheng Xiaolong taught Feng Xiaogang screenwriting and filming. Feng Xiaogang's understanding is not bad. In 1991, the two co-screenwriters "Encountered Passion" was nominated for the Best Screenplay Award at the 11th Chinese Film Golden Rooster Awards. In the same year, he joined with Wang Shuo and Ma Weidu. The screenwriter of "The Story of the Editorial Department" can be considered familiar in the Beijing circle. The eldest brother Wang Shuo accepted this "friend" on the surface, but looked down on him from the bottom of his heart, thinking that this person was too smooth and unreliable.
Feng Xiaogang and Wang Shuo In "Party A and Party B", Wang Shuo describes a "puffer expert" who is good at flattering. The prototype is Feng Xiaogang in life. When it comes to "Playing is Heartbeat", Wang Shuo's teasing is even more vicious, "and TV An artist of the Art Center with the same name "looks like a Vietnamese criminal". Faced with Wang Shuo's ridicule, Feng Xiaogang knew it well, but still tacitly took it all. He didn't even mind appearing in these movies in his true colors. There is no way, who can not be aggrieved in these movies. Then again, although Feng Xiaogang is always pressed, Wang Shuo is Feng Xiaogang's nobleman. Feng's early works have a strong shadow of Wang Shuo. Both of them like to respond to people in their works. This is something later. After 02 entered Beijing, what Feng Xiaogang needs to do most is to maintain the relationship. In addition to asking Zheng Xiaolong for dinner every other time, when Feng Xiaogang first met Wang Zhongjun and Wang Zhonglei, he also left a good impression on the brothers that they took the initiative to pay for their meals. In 1994, Feng Xiaogang and Wang Shuo co-founded the Good Dream Company, but the development was not smooth. The movie was either banned or not reviewed, and several works were interrupted. When I thought that the company was going to close down, "Party A and Party B" unexpectedly became popular. It not only opened the precedent for Chinese New Year film, but also solved the urgent need of the company with 36 million box office.
The movie "Party A and Party B" made money, but Wang Shuo said, don’t rush to divide the money. Pointing to this little money can’t support the old. It’s better to use the company’s public relations first. After all, the company has to be bigger. Relying on the big boss to spend money, other resources also have to find powerful people to talk about it, so they began to draw relations around, Wang Zhongjun is the key to draw the target. At that time, Wang Zhongjun was working as a graduate student in the United States and earned 100,000 US dollars. After returning to China, he founded the Huayi Brothers Advertising Company. He soon received a large job worth several hundred million yuan from the Bank of China and renovated 15,000 outlets across the country. After finishing the job, we received big orders from the State Power, Sinopec, and Agricultural Bank of China. In just a few years, Huayi Brothers Advertising became one of the top ten advertising companies in the country. In 1998, Wang Zhongjun ran into an acquaintance on the road. By chance, he participated in the sitcom "Psychology Clinic" filmed by Yingda. After the successful test, Huayi Advertising earned the first pot of gold in the film and television industry.
Wang Zhonglei and Wang Zhongjun In the late 1990s, mainland film and television were still in depression. After realizing that the market was deserted, Wang Zhongjun stepped into the film and television market. The first person he thought of was Feng Xiaogang. With several hits such as "Beijing People in New York" and "Party A and Party B", Feng Xiaogang gradually gained a firm foothold in the mainland film and television circles. Coupled with the revolutionary friendship established by Feng Xiaogang's love to entertain guests in his early years, the three of them later became involved. So good to wear the same pants. After catching up with the two brothers Wang Zhongjun, Feng Xiaogang's career took the fast lane. In 1999, Huayi Brothers invested in "Endless". In the film, Feng Xiaogang used exaggerated methods to reflect the lives of ordinary people. After the release, the box office of the movie reached 33 million, ranking second in the box office list in China in 2000. Feng Xiaogang proved himself time and time again in New Year's comedy, and relied on the deep bond with Huayi Brothers to open up his own business territory. 03 Here, Feng Xiaogang can steadily lean on the big tree of Huayi, and has to rely on a hobby of his own. When Wang Zhongjun was a child, he was determined to be admitted to the Central Academy of Fine Arts, but he unexpectedly failed the ranking and went to the United States by mistake. Even so, Wang Zhongjun still confidently called himself an "amateur painter", and he drew a sketch for Li Yong on the spot. In his mansion, you can see famous paintings collected from all over the world. Wang Zhongjun, who has a dream of being a painter, and Feng Xiaogang, who had been engaged in art design, naturally have many topics in common. In addition, Feng Xiaogang is a person who loves to treat guests and has a little talent. Who can reject such a person? Of course, there is another important reason why Feng Xiaogang wants to bind Huayi, that is, he and Wang Shuo have completely broken off. Feng Xiaogang has a nickname called "Feng Pants", it is said that he used to run behind Wang Shuo in Beijing in his early years, just like Wang Shuo's trouser legs. However, when "Party A and Party B" was released, the long list of cast and crew members of the film was stunned that Wang Shuo's name could not be found, and rumors about the two falling out were raging. Later, Ye Jing, who was still familiar with the past, came out and said that Feng Xiaogang was very concerned about the movie and expected it to turn over. In order to thank the big brother, Feng Xiaogang sent the production director Chen Guoqiang to send Wang Shuo 50,000 yuan in manuscript fees. He did not expect to be thrown out by Wang Shuo. It was not because of the lack of money, but because he was tired of his behavior.
Wang Shuo and Feng Xiaogang Feng Xiaogang are all hutongs. They are not in the same way as Wang Shuo in a big courtyard. It is only a matter of time before they fall out. In addition, at that time, Wang Shuo became a representative of ruffian literature and was severely suppressed by the cultural circle. He was at a low point in his life. Even if Feng pants knelt and licked him, it would be a ghost. However, there are always exceptions to everything, and Feng Xiaogang soon slapped his face again. Feng Xiaogang had to find Wang Shuo again when he was planning to shoot "Sigh" with the Wang brothers, because the script was based on Wang Shuo's "Living an Unbearable Life". Even if he borrowed 10 courage to give Feng Xiaogang, he would not dare not. Adapted with Wang Shuo's consent. Wang Shuo didn't want him anymore. Feng Xiaogang had no choice but to find Ye Jing to make peace. Ye Jing was a boy in the big courtyard. Wang Shuo sold him his face and signed an adaptation contract, but he still found an opportunity to disgust Feng Xiaogang. At the dinner, Feng Xiaogang cried out: Why does Lord Shuo not give me face? Such a big boss is so sincere that he pays for the script of Lord Shuo without blinking.
Wang Shuo said in a weird way:
Hey, such a big boss does not lack these tens of thousands of dollars.
The big boss mentioned here is Huayi’s Wang brothers. This movie is the first work that Feng Xiaogang signed with Huayi. Therefore, Wang Shuo pinched Feng Xiaogang to death. This is revenge for that day. When sees this, everyone should also understand that Wang Shuo is a non-staff of Huayi Brothers. Without Wang Shuo there would be no Feng Xiaogang, and without Feng Xiaogang there would be no Huayi Brothers. 04 In front of the big brother Wang Shuo, Feng Xiaogang will always be a small follower, and it will be easy to get aggrieved over time. After writing and filming with Wang Shuo for the past few years, Feng Xiaogang didn't learn, and learned some of the skills of Yingren. He thought he was very artistic, but he almost killed Huayi because of a movie that offended people. In 2003, Feng Xiaogang made a movie called "Mobile". The hero of the movie was modeled after Cui Yongyuan. It is said that Liu Zhenyun and Feng Xiaogang wanted to invite Cui Yongyuan to play themselves at first, but Cui Yongyuan refused, thinking that they would be a host and join in the fun, then they asked Ge You and Fan Bingbing to play. The
movie "Mobile" was originally not acted, and business was not righteous, but the plot in the movie was that the male host had an ambiguous relationship with others, and was then forced to resign and let others take the place. This caused a lot of harm to Cui Yongyuan. Later, Liu Zhenyun asked him to apologize three times, but Feng Xiaogang did not have one. It is estimated that Wang Shuo was used to disgusting. Feng Xiaogang did not take this matter to heart. In addition, he became famous in those years with "A World Without Thieves", "If You Are the One", "Assembly Number" and "Tangshan Earthquake". Remember you Choi Young Won? Feng Xiaogang became well-rounded, and Huayi Brothers also soared. In 2009, Huayi went public. As the veteran of the company, Feng Xiaogang got a lot of shares and saw stocks.Soaring, he was so happy to be gloomy at the scene. But also, who would have thought that the hutong skewers used to lift shoes for the big yard students can have such high achievements today. Feng Xiaogang, who was "brought in captivity," successively produced a series of works with good box office and reputation such as "1942", "Private Order", "Old Paoer", etc., and became the "Golden Sign" of Huayi Brothers. . The
movie "Private Order" is as high-profile as Feng Xiaogang, as well as amateur painter Wang Zhongjun. In 2014, Sotheby's, New York, Wang Zhongjun spent about 377 million yuan to photograph the highly anticipated Van Gogh oil painting Daisy and Poppy. "This is the highest bid price for Chinese collectors to bid for Western art overseas. In 2015, Wang Zhongjun paid about 185 million yuan to photograph Picasso's oil painting "Portrait of a Woman with a Hair Bun" created in 1948. Talking about why I bought this painting, Wang Zhongjun said:
I fell in love with this painting from the beginning, and then I fell in love with the story behind it. The Godwin family is a legend in the film industry. In this work, I can not only appreciate the talent of the painter Pablo Picasso, but also the originality of Mr. Samuel Godwin.
has the right, you have the money, you have the final say, after I don’t know his wife’s beauty, Liu Qiangdong, ordinary family Ma Huateng, regrets creating Ali Jack horse, there is another Wang Zhongjun who wants to buy it. 05 In 2016, Feng Xiaogang won the Best Director Award at the 53rd Taiwan Film Golden Horse Awards for his comedy movie "I am not Pan Jinlian". At the premiere, Feng Xiaogang repeatedly praised Fan Bingbing's big chest, and was so angry that Li Chen grinds stones overnight. Think about it, Feng Xiaogang is Fan Bingbing's noble person. "Mobile" helped Bingbing win the popular film Hundred Flowers Award, and "I'm Not Pan Jinlian" won the best actress of the San Sebastian Film Festival. What happened to her breasts! The more beautiful Feng Xiaogang and Fan Bingbing became, the more uncomfortable Cui Yongyuan was in front of the TV. Shell them, it is inevitable that they will be stingy. I still remember Chen Guzi's rotten sesame seeds more than a decade ago. Do nothing, still holding a breath in my heart.
Cui Yongyuan and Feng Xiaogang both say that when people are most proud, they are often not far from frustration. In 2018, Cui Yongyuan received the news that Feng Xiaogang was going to shoot "Mobile Phone 2", and he was touched by the bottom line, this time he couldn't bear it. Cui Yongyuan first found Liu Zhenyun. Liu Zhenyun was a soft persimmon. He was angry when I saw Lao Cui and apologized if he didn't say anything. This time I also agreed. The name of our movie is not "Phone 2", but it is called "Circle of Friends". Cui Yongyuan, who wanted to give up, saw their movie poster again in a few days. The name was "Mobile 2". As the heroine, Fan Bingbing was still taking photos on Weibo, saying "Wu Yue is very happy."
Fan Bingbing's Weibo screenshot. Cui is not calm at all. Not only did he get out of Fan Bingbing's Yin and Yang contract, he also brought out the big tiger behind him. In the beginning, everyone didn't take it seriously, after all, Cui was used to "telling the truth", who knows what he is going to do this time. Fan Bingbing's studio issued a statement ordering him to delete it today, and Feng Xiaogang also published "Ten Questions about Cui Yongyuan" to fight back. It was originally a matter of changing the movie's name and apologizing, but seeing Feng Xiaogang being so arrogant, Lao Cui is going to be the end, and at the camera interviewing him, he smiled indifferently:
How do they understand the law? , Whoever will keep you confidential, I did not sign a contract with you, I have no obligation to keep you confidential.
Finally, he also added that I don't accept any apologies now. There is still a drawer in my contract. Put it slowly and fight a protracted battle. What anxious! Everyone knows about the next thing. Old Cui became a justice fighter and brought out a large tax evasion case in the entertainment industry. Fan Bingbing was fined 800 million yuan and his career was completely shut down. Feng Xiaogang, Liu Zhenyun and others hid behind the women. , Dare not put one fart. This is not over yet, thinking that if people sit at home, the pot will not come from the sky? There was something wrong with Feng Xiaogang, and it was difficult for Huayi to stand alone. On the day of exposure, Huayi’s stock price plummeted and the entire cultural media sector was miserable. As the so-called Lao Cui shot, the stock market trembled three times. 06 Although Feng Xiaogang has been deflated, he still has the status of the arena, and the prize he deserves is not lost. Last year, he was shortlisted for the 34th Hundred Flowers Awards for Best Director with "Fang Hua". He was so overwhelmed that he forced the actress Miao Miao to dance at home, and he was scolded by netizens on hot searches. This is the netizen's fault. Feng Xiaogang is not a gentleman at first, let the actress dance a dance, there is no need to go online. In contrast, Fan Bingbing is much more miserable. He was used as a gunman by several big men in Huayi and paid 800 million yuan in taxes.It plummeted and lost her boyfriend. Huayi Brothers is even more on the street. Huayi, which has always been focusing on goodwill in the secondary market, has overturned its share price. Its stock price has fallen again and again. The net loss last year was 1.008 billion. In the first quarter of this year, it lost another 92.92 million. Seeing the company's downturn, Wang Zhongjun can no longer literary and art. In August this year, he admitted at the Yabuli China Entrepreneurs Forum that he had sold a batch of artworks in exchange for some funds to solve the company's liquidity problem. Hedong for thirty years, Hexi for thirty years, Wang Zhongjun, who spent a lot of money at Sotheby's a few years ago, did not think that he would have a day of auctioning famous paintings?
Many people, Wang Zhonglei, Wang Zhongjun and Feng Xiaogang blamed Huayi’s financial crisis on last year’s turmoil, but in my opinion, Cui Yongyuan can only call Porcelain a success. Even if there were no scandals, Huayi was already in decline. First of all, Huayi's plate is not big enough. In 2000, Huayi recruited Wang Jinghua, the mainland's first agent, into its subordinates. Wang Jinghua brought its artists Li Bingbing, Ren Quan, and Tong Dawei into Huayi. It was very successful for a while, but this "selling contract" method cannot be eliminated. The loss of personnel. In 2005, Wang Jinghua ran away from Huayi and moved to Orange Sky Entertainment. He took away all the Chen Daoming, Carina Lau and others that he had brought, and became Huayi’s opponents. In 2007, Fan Bingbing's contract expired, and she gave up on rumors. The 200 million contract was a precedent for the artist solo to create a studio. After a major exchange of blood, Huayi's artists can play fewer and fewer artists. It has no glory in its heyday, but fortunately it is listed. With the money for cutting leeks, it is enough for Wang Zhongjun to buy paintings and Wang Zhonglei to be ambiguous with female stars. . In 2015, Huayi Brothers purchased Dongyang Meila Media with a registered capital of 5 million Feng Xiaogang for 1 billion, which completely locked Feng Xiaogang. The second biggest problem of Huayi is that the ability to resist risks is too low. has undergone great changes in the movie market in the Mainland in the past two years. The IP used to be Hong饽饽, but the current IP is a box office poison. The old path of big director + acting school + traffic star will not work, even if there are 100 Feng Xiaogang, it will not save the market downturn. Huayi is still the Huayi, and the world is no longer the same. The rise of film and television companies such as Dongyang Noon, Tangde Film and Television, and Beijing Dengfeng completely broke the previous situation of Huayi as a dominance. When Huayi realized this, The direction of the tide is irreversible.
Feng Xiaogang's internal and external troubles, Huayi's film business has frequently turned on red lights. The blockbuster drama "Mobile Phone 2" was shelved, and the sworn work "Yabai", which returned to the main film industry, suffered a gear shift and was released indefinitely. Today's "Little Wish", which is released today, has several major starring roles. Dispute. In the face of many crises, Huayi can only bet on the boss’s discount on paintings and Feng Xiaogang’s "Only Yun Knows". No one knows whether it will succeed or not. Feng Xiaogang wrote in his autobiography "I Dedicated My Youth to You" that in order to win the chance for the film to be reviewed, he invited people to dinner and flattered like this during the dinner: "Who are you, you are standing on the Tiananmen Gate, take a look Beijing City said that there are too many lights here and it’s a bit dazzling, so the lights here will be turned off immediately.” Thirty years ago, Hutong Chuanzi sharpened his head and squeezed into the circle of the big yard children, and finally squeezed in. I found that I still had to nod and bow my head, flattering, how ironic I wanted to come. is the life of Feng Xiaogang, who was despised and rejected.
