Chapter 71

"Boss, the financial report for 'The Oddball Kid' is ready!"

While Wu Cheng was sitting in his office, planning the company's next film production, the deputy financial manager, Ma Xinlian, entered with the financial report in hand and said.

Wu Cheng took the report and casually flipped through it.

It showed that for the local box office of 'The Oddball Kid,' the Shaw cinemas had earned 4.78 million, with East Dragon taking 40%, which was about 1.9 million. The Flying Dragon cinema chain had earned over 5 million, which was the result of an additional 500,000 in promotional expenses.

With a 50-50 split with the Flying Dragon cinema chain, East Dragon had earned over 2 million, and after taxes, the income for East Dragon was over 3 million. The production cost of 'The Oddball Kid' plus the promotional expenses amounted to 2 million. This meant that 'The Oddball Kid' had already earned over 1 million in local box office revenue for East Dragon!

For the out-of-town box office, the distribution rights in Southeast Asia and other regions were given to Shaw. Most of these areas used a buyout method, and East Dragon's post-tax income from this was nearly 5 million.

For Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan, East Dragon used a revenue-sharing model, and the settlement would have to wait until the films were taken off the screens.

After deducting taxes and other expenses, the income from 'The Oddball Kid' was around 6 million.

Given the momentum of 'The Oddball Kid,' the box office in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Southeast Asia was very promising, which was why Wu Cheng had always wanted to share the box office revenue with them.

He had confidence in his films and preferred to use a revenue-sharing model for cooperation.

A one-time buyout, although it would bring in funds faster, would give the distributors a significant advantage, which Wu Cheng was unwilling to see. Money should be made together, and no one should lose too much. Using a buyout method, Wu Cheng felt he was at a disadvantage.

Compared to the 'Five Lucky Stars,' which had a net income of over 10 million, 'The Oddball Kid' might earn a bit less. However, in terms of return on investment, 'The Oddball Kid' was better than 'Five Lucky Stars.'

Wu Cheng estimated that the income from 'The Oddball Kid' would be at least 1 million, and it could even reach over 10 million.

As for the Flying Dragon cinema chain, five of the cinemas belonged to others, so some of the income had to be deducted. For the twelve cinemas they owned, the pre-tax income was over 1.8 million.

Seeing the company's profitability, Wu Cheng said, "Manager Ma, go and tally up the employees' salaries for this month. Since our film has been a big hit, we should give them a bonus, about 10% of their salary. Prepare a financial report and announce it at the staff meeting."

Ma Xinlian smiled and said, "Boss, working with you is really great!"

"Don't flatter me, hard work is the key!"

"Yes, boss!" Ma Xinlian said with a grin.

Seeing her smile, Wu Cheng couldn't help but smile as well.

Waving his hand, he dismissed her and then called Cen Jianxun to come to the company. He then called his secretary, Wang Weixin, and said, "Weixin, check if there are any large villas for sale in Shallow Water Bay."

"Boss, are you buying a villa?" Wang Weixin asked in surprise.

Wu Cheng smiled at her and said, "If you have money, you can buy a house too. Let me tell you a secret, in the next few years, the property prices in Hong Kong will definitely skyrocket. Now is the right time to invest!"

"Boss, are you planning to enter the real estate market?"

Wu Cheng shook his head and said, "Becoming a real estate tycoon is not my goal. Although I know real estate can make money quickly, it involves too many complexities and dealings. That's not the life I want. I just want to buy some houses for myself!"

He paused and then added, "Of course, when we have more money in the future, we can build a film studio so we don't have to rent one every time we shoot a film. It's too troublesome!"

"Boss, what budget do you have in mind?"

"Budget doesn't matter. Just find a large one, even if it's not decorated. Once we find one, I'll check the surroundings and make a decision. We're not short of money!"

Seeing Wu Cheng's satisfied look, Wang Weixin couldn't help but smile. However, this side of Wu Cheng was only seen by those close to him. To outsiders, Wu Cheng was confident and sometimes arrogant, but he never showed this kind of smugness.

In fact, the company was not short of money, at least not if you didn't consider the bank loans.

East Dragon's films were profitable. Since the company's establishment, they had made over 20 million from two films. This profit margin was unmatched by any other film company.

However, considering the 40 million owed to the bank, it was clear that East Dragon wasn't rich.

Of course, Wu Cheng was aware of this, but he didn't take it seriously. The bank loans could be paid off within three years, and the interest wasn't a big deal.

In fact, he owed the bank more than 40 million, including 5 million from the record company and 2 million from the talent agency, totaling 47 million.

In other words, he had used the record company as collateral to get 5 million to start the record company, and then used the record company as collateral to start the talent agency.

In essence, he was using the bank's money to make money for himself.

To others, this was a very risky move. If the capital chain broke, the entire industry could collapse, and he would have to declare bankruptcy.

However, Wu Cheng saw it differently. The companies he had created were all high-quality and had great potential, so there was no need to worry.

Even without considering other factors, the film company could pay off the 40 million debt in one or two years. The bank might not even want him to pay it off so early!

For this house purchase, Wu Cheng didn't plan to use the company's funds. The company's funds weren't his alone, and he had to consider the opinions of Hong Jinbao and others.

However, he could use his talent agency as collateral, or the bar he co-owned with the Mei family and the Hong Kong Triad, to borrow 300,000 to 500,000, which wasn't a problem.

He could even use the copyright of 'Back to the Ming Dynasty' as collateral.

In this period of Hong Kong, as long as you had something to offer as collateral, borrowing money from the bank was relatively easy, especially with Wu Mingquan's connections.

Therefore, Wu Cheng wasn't worried about money, as long as it wasn't a huge amount.

...

"Boss, what do you need me for?"

Cen Jianxun, with his lion-like hairstyle, asked with a smile.

Wu Cheng gestured for him to sit and said with a smile, "Sit down! We need to continue expanding the Flying Dragon cinema chain. Do you have any other ideas?"

Mentioning the cinema chain, Cen Jianxun became serious and said, "Boss, I've recently contacted two independent cinema chains to join our Flying Dragon chain. As per your instructions, our cinema distribution is relatively reasonable, covering most of Hong Kong. However, in the suburban areas, our distribution is lacking... In other words, we haven't caught up in the rural areas."

"How are the other cinema chains doing in the rural areas?"

Cen Jianxun shook his head and said, "Very few. Most cinemas are concentrated in the city, and if there are any outside the city, they are a small part..."

Wu Cheng nodded and thought for a moment, then said, "My idea is to renovate all twelve of our cinemas within the next month, install new equipment, and replace the old seats. Especially for the Dragon Head Cinema, use the best. Don't worry about the cost; we're not short of money. Our goal is to make our cinema chain the best in Hong Kong. Additionally, we need to lead in the rural areas. The cinemas don't need to be large, just a couple of hundred seats. This might seem like a small income now, but it will be good in the future. Of course, choose the right locations and buy the land as well."

"Boss, I've thought about this, but what about the money?" Cen Jianxun said with a bitter smile, rubbing his fingers. "You can talk, but we have to run around! And according to your plan, the renovation will cost at least 3 to 5 million... The real big expense will be the small cinemas. I estimate it will cost 30 to 50 million."

30 to 50 million would only cover some of the larger towns. However, if it could be done, Wu Cheng wouldn't worry about the Hong Kong cinema market.

At that time, even if Shaw and Golden Harvest teamed up against him, he wouldn't be afraid!

The possibility of Shaw and Golden Harvest teaming up against him wasn't zero. In the previous life, when New Cinema City was on a roll, Shaw and Golden Harvest put aside their differences to suppress New Cinema City, but they ultimately failed.

Now, although East Dragon was still small, it was showing signs of competing with Golden Harvest. If Shaw's boss got angry and teamed up with Golden Harvest, Wu Cheng would have a big problem.

Therefore, he needed to prepare strategically.

As for waiting for Shaw to stop production and take over their cinema chain, that would have to wait until the 1980s, which was still far away for him. Moreover, Shaw's cinema chain didn't have many in the rural areas.

Wu Cheng smiled and said, "Don't worry about the money. Take the finance and legal departments, along with the Flying Dragon cinema chain materials, to the bank for a loan. Borrow as much as you can, and use all the cinema chains as collateral... We can definitely pay off this debt within three years!"

Cen Jianxun's mouth twitched, and he finally said with a bitter smile, "Boss, only you have the guts to do this. If we're not careful, we'll sink! When we acquired those three cinema chains, we already used some of them as collateral."

Wu Cheng patted his shoulder and said with a smile, "With me as the helmsman, you can rest easy! You need to know that our goal is not just the cinema market in Hong Kong, but all of Southeast Asia, and even the world... Young man, look further ahead and work hard! Our goal is the stars and the sea!"

Seeing Wu Cheng's carefree look, Cen Jianxun's mouth twitched again.

...

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