Chapter 679: Short Supply

Inside the spacious hotel suite, Mountain Eagle sat on the sofa, gently rubbing his throbbing forehead. After the premiere ended last night, China Film Group had hosted a special reception in their capacity as distributor. He had inevitably knocked back a few too many drinks with his counterparts from across the Pacific Ocean. But age caught up with everyone; despite his seasoned tolerance for alcohol, he still felt unwell when he woke up the next day.

Approaching retirement age, his chances of climbing any higher were virtually nonexistent. Mountain Eagle knew this very well. In his few remaining years, what he wanted most was to push China Film Group onto the global stage, escaping the awkward reality of only being able to throw their weight around in the domestic market.

Since he worked in this industry, he naturally wanted to leave a significant legacy of his own.

He also wanted future industry insiders to give a thumbs-up whenever his name was mentioned.

Hollywood was undoubtedly the best partner for China Film Group to open up the overseas market. But he knew the terrifying exclusivity of the North American film market. He harbored no illusions about Chinese films easily breaking into North America and reaping hundreds of millions of dollars at the box office.

That was merely a fantasy; it held no benefit for the country's film industry.

Therefore, cooperating with Hollywood companies was the wisest choice at present—such as this collaboration with Warner Brothers and Duke Rosenberg.

Through this collaboration, China Film Group hadn't just injected its capital into Hollywood; they had also successfully placed two Chinese actors in a mainstream Hollywood commercial blockbuster. Even though they only had a few seconds of screen time as random extras, it was a solid start.

Although he was getting older and had little desire left to climb the corporate ladder, Mountain Eagle still possessed some ambition. He wanted to see the Chinese film industry rise.

"Borrow someone else's hen to lay your own eggs..."

He tapped his right index finger against his forehead and murmured to himself, "This has already proven to be an effective method."

Of course, whether China Film Group's step toward internationalization would succeed ultimately depended on the box office for Transformers.

As an industry leader, Mountain Eagle knew very well that the film industry's rise wouldn't rely on awards from international film festivals like Cannes, Berlin, and Venice. Then again, was there a lack of internationally awarded Chinese films in recent years? Had they helped the industry as a whole?

And what were those so-called award-winning films anyway? They merely exposed the country's undeveloped aspects to amuse a bunch of foreigners!

"Are they even Chinese directors if they shoot films exposing our own shortcomings as a joke for foreigners?"

Sometimes, Mountain Eagle really wanted to ask those people that directly, which was why he was one of those who strongly supported banning such films from screening.

In his view, if the regulators had any brains at all, they would never allow such films a public release.

Such movies brought absolutely no benefit to the development of the Chinese film industry. Even if publicly released, they wouldn't attract much of an audience. For this industry to develop, it needed capital and a market. If a film couldn't even guarantee a basic box office return, how could it ever attract the attention of investors?

The film industry had been marketized decades ago; it had become a commodity. Ultimately, it had to rely on market performance to do the talking.

Sitting on the sofa, Mountain Eagle waited patiently. He knew that the domestic market was just taking its first steps, and statistical tallying wouldn't be as rapid as in North America.

About half an hour later, a sharp knock sounded at the door, and Mountain Eagle's assistant walked in.

"Boss, the latest statistics are in."

The assistant strode over and handed a document to Mountain Eagle. Mountain Eagle only had to sweep his gaze over it for his eyes to light up.

"As expected of Duke Rosenberg's movie!"

Even he had to smile when faced with a figure that shattered the Chinese market's box office records.

He wasn't without his detractors within the group. Many had deliberately badmouthed China Film Group's investment in Transformers, but this box office figure was enough to shut those idiots up.

According to the cinema chains' estimates, the midnight box office for Transformers would be no less than 4 million RMB at the absolute minimum, surpassing the 3.56 million of last year's The Dark Knight to set a new domestic midnight box office record.

And another important point: the overall attendance rate for the midnight screenings exceeded seventy percent!

And this was in the domestic market, not North America.

Mountain Eagle understood very well that, as an emerging film market, domestic audiences hadn't yet formed the habit of attending midnight premieres. Not many people actually went to them, and they certainly wouldn't match certain North American films where midnight revenues could account for a quarter or even a third of the opening day box office.

Putting down the document, Mountain Eagle asked the assistant, who had remained standing to the side, "How is today's release looking?"

The assistant adjusted his glasses, rallied his spirits, and reported earnestly, "According to the latest news, all major cinemas in Shanghai have given Transformers a screen share of over ninety percent starting today. This morning, 3D screenings of Transformers at Yonghua Cinema, Studio City Cinema, UME Xintiandi Cinema, Century Cinema Shanghai, and Wanyu Cinema have all declared full houses. At Peace Cinema and International Cinema, which have the Shanghai IMAX 3D versions, tickets are even harder to come by."

Seeing his boss nod in satisfaction, the assistant continued, "Nationally, although it only premiered at midnight last night, the screening numbers for Transformers are extremely gratifying."

Recalling the report he had reviewed before coming in, he said, "According to several northern cinema chains, the midnight premieres of Transformers were completely sold out, and even the 3:00 AM showtimes reached an attendance rate of over sixty percent. In the southern regions, taking the IMAX Cinema at Hangzhou Wanda as an example, advance ticket sales for the film have already hit 1.5 million RMB—which is absolutely unprecedented. Many cinema chain managers have stated that the moviegoing craze brought by Transformers will continue to heat up, and they expect attendance to peak this coming weekend."

Even though yesterday, June 1st, wasn't a holiday, it was a Sunday. Mountain Eagle had originally thought that even if Transformers played to packed houses, it would have to wait until this coming weekend. He never expected it to show such a scorching trend on a Monday.

"Have our people push things forward..." Mountain Eagle instructed. "If the film puts on a record-breaking performance, I want to ensure it gets a theatrical extension key."

"Understood." The assistant nodded.

In fact, the assistant was being somewhat conservative. The hype after the film's official release went far beyond that.

Shijingshan Wanda Cinemas, located in the western district of Capital City, was the first cinema in Asia to feature digital IMAX, making it a top choice for fans wanting to watch Transformers. By around four o'clock yesterday afternoon, tickets for all versions of Transformers had already sold out.

By 7:30 AM today, before the cinema had even opened for business, moviegoers were already knocking on the doors, demanding to buy tickets in advance. Shijingshan Wanda Cinemas scheduled six screenings of Transformers for its IMAX hall every day, yet IMAX tickets remained incredibly hard to get.

On a popular movie forum, someone offered a 200 RMB premium for a ticket to that night's IMAX 3D screening of Transformers, but received no response. Someone else offered to sell a regular 3D ticket for that night at a 20 RMB markup, and was able to unload it within five minutes.

Some movie fans even complained that buying tickets for Transformers now felt just like buying train tickets during the Spring Festival travel rush.

Furthermore, all cinemas in Capital City canceled their half-price Tuesday discount policies for the 3D version of Transformers.

In June, whether in the south or the north, the weather was already extremely hot, but the audience's enthusiasm completely outstripped the soaring temperatures.

The midnight premiere at the Capital City central branch of the China Film Cinema Line, a joint venture between Warner and China Film Group, achieved a one hundred percent attendance rate. Even the 3:00 AM screening had an attendance rate of sixty-five percent.

At Xidan New Capital Cinema, only a single-digit number of viewers who had booked tickets for the midnight show chose to forfeit their seats. By today's morning shows, attendance hit eighty percent. Full houses started appearing from the afternoon shows onward, while tickets for the evening shows had sold out three days ago.

As for the Broadway Cinema Chain, the attendance rate for the midnight screenings at several of their theaters was only sixty percent, but starting from this afternoon, attendance began approaching full capacity.

Advance sales for Transformers at the Dongguan IMAX Cinema—touted as the largest in Asia by area—even reached 3.2 million RMB.

"With Transformers coming from Planet Cybertron, there's no need to watch any movies from Earth anymore," a local industry insider quipped.

In terms of cinema screen shares, Transformers held an overwhelming advantage. In the Shanghai region, a total of 66 cinemas screened Transformers for 3,244 showtimes—exceeding the total showtimes of all other films combined. The second-ranked film had fewer than 300 showtimes, not even a tenth of what Transformers had.

The frenzied audiences, the ultra-high screen share, and a sufficient number of screens all guaranteed the opening day box office for Transformers in China.

Due to the time difference, Transformers was actually released earlier than in North America, making Chinese audiences some of the very first in the world to witness the film.

By Tuesday, all cinemas had canceled their customary Tuesday discounts for the 3D and IMAX 3D versions of Transformers. The film's box office from the day before and the swarms of moviegoers had given theater operators plenty of confidence.

According to preliminary estimates, the box office for the midnight premiere of Transformers, combined with Monday's full-day earnings, had exceeded 35 million RMB. Driven by Transformers, the total domestic box office on Monday also reached an all-time peak of over 37 million RMB.

At the same time, thanks to the push from various promotional efforts and the herd mentality of the crowds, the audience's "thirst" for the 3D version of Transformers was exceptionally strong. Many movie fans left their homes bright and early just to line up and buy tickets.

In this hot season, there were even massive crowds reminiscent of the Spring Festival travel rush, except they had shifted from bus stations, airports, and train stations to the cinemas.

To welcome the arrival of Transformers and allow more domestic audiences to enjoy the visual feast brought by 3D, many cinemas had been actively adding digital 3D equipment over the past few months. By the eve of the film's release, the number of 3D screens nationwide had increased to around 700, and there were nearly 20 IMAX Cinemas.

But in the face of the surging tide of audiences, they were completely in short supply.