Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Before the start of the NBA Philadelphia 76ers game, a blonde little girl was singing the national anthem loudly in the center of the court.
Her tender voice, singing the impassioned lyrics, evoked an inexplicable sense of emotion.
"What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming?"
"Whose broad stripes and bright stars, Through the perilous fight?"
For most Chinese people, this song, "The Star-Spangled Banner," is unfamiliar, but the spirit of bravely advancing through cannon fire is unexpectedly, yet coincidentally, shared.
Having successfully completed her singing task, Taylor Swift descended from the stage, her gaze immediately drawn to a commercial on the large screen in the center of the venue.
This was an embedded commercial.
Viewers watching the live broadcast of the game could see this commercial on television, and it was also played simultaneously at the game venue.
The commercial was promoting a currently showing, little-known Chinese film, whose name seemed to be "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon"?
Taylor Swift generally wasn't interested in commercials, but this one was simply too novel.
This damned yet mysterious Eastern element was completely to Taylor Swift's liking.
By a stream in a valley filled with red maple leaves, a handsome Eastern youth stood tall and proud.
"Clang!"
With a clear metallic sound, the sharp sword was unsheathed, and a set of sword dance began.
Thrust, parry, slice, chop, sweep, block…
The sword moves, accompanied by agile footwork, were displayed one by one in the hands of the white-robed youth, graceful like flowing clouds and water.
The sword's edge gleamed with a cold light, inspiring awe, yet the youth's beautiful sword dance made one involuntarily drawn to it.
Beauty in deadly danger is the most captivating.
The camera cut to a close-up of the youth's face; his handsome features, with sword-like brows and starry eyes full of heroic spirit, would surely be the dream lover of countless young girls, but why was his expression so lost, and what was he struggling with?
His sword dance grew faster and faster, his moves becoming increasingly sharp, as if he possessed the momentum to devour the world.
I have a sword that can cut down all injustices in the world!
But at this peak moment, the youth suddenly stood still and threw the sword forward.
The precious sword, like a cyan jade, traced a beautiful arc in the air before plunging into the pond, leaving no trace…
The white-robed youth stood with his hands behind his back, his expression unseen, only his back remaining, appearing so lonely and forlorn.
At this moment, two lines of text appeared on the screen.
"This sword of mine can cut through all things in the world, yet it cannot sever the obsession in my heart."
"Only by letting go can one gain."
Immediately following, the screen displayed the film title "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" and its release information.
The white-robed youth in the commercial was Lin Yuan.
This sword dance promotional commercial was planned and choreographed by Lin Yuan, and then filmed by Director Ang Lee.
Upon receiving the task to increase the box office of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," Lin Yuan initially didn't know where to start.
As a newcomer to the film industry with no resources, he couldn't offer much help even if he wanted to.
However, when he recalled the film "Hero," inspiration immediately struck.
"Hero" would be released in North America two years later, ultimately grossing over 54 million US dollars at the box office.
This was the second-highest box office performance for a Chinese film in North America, surpassed only by "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon."
The success of "Hero" proved that Director Zhang Yimou's visual aesthetic, before it became tiresome, had immense destructive power in the North American market.
Therefore, Lin Yuan planned this commercial in that style.
The promotional video featured breathtaking scenery, with the red of maple leaves and the deep green of the valley establishing two extremely strong primary visual tones.
Lin Yuan, in a white robe, integrated into it with his sword dance, creating a harmonious beauty of man and nature.
However, the biggest highlight of the film was still focused on Lin Yuan's sword dance.
After all, it was a gift from the system, equivalent to the culmination of over thirty years of dedicated practice by a genius.
Therefore, in terms of swordsmanship alone, Lin Yuan's Master-level Swordsmanship was already peerless in the world, unrivaled by anyone.
This set of sword dance was graceful and agile, possessing a sense of unrestrained freedom that roamed between heaven and earth.
Yet, at the same time, it was not merely a superficial display; the sharp sword light constantly demonstrated that this was a true combat sword technique.
This commercial was perfectly filmed, and it's believed that no other action actor besides Lin Yuan could have completed it.
What kind of impact would Director Zhang Yimou feel upon seeing this promotional video?
He would surely sigh internally, marveling that someone's ideas resonated so perfectly with his own, and were executed so brilliantly.
This was also another goal of Lin Yuan's: to use this commercial to showcase himself to Director Zhang Yimou and gain an advantage in the casting for "Hero" in the future.
Today was the first time this film's promotional video was presented to the audience. What was the effect?
The answer was: astonishing!
When this commercial, less than 30 seconds long, finished playing, all the audience members present, including Taylor Swift, were reluctant to look away, still staring blankly at the screen.
After a while, the audience members, having come back to their senses, began to discuss animatedly:
"Oh my god? What did I see? Amazing Eastern Kung Fu!"
"I swear, this is the most beautiful film I've ever seen in my life!"
"This commercial is too short, isn't it? It's nowhere near enough to watch, couldn't they have made it longer?"
"Damn it, I didn't see it clearly just now, can you play it again?"
If Lin Yuan were present, he would surely apologize and say, "I'm sorry, our promotion and distribution budget is severely insufficient, and we only purchased time for one broadcast."
But not long after, the commercial was actually played again on the big screen, and it was played twice in a row!
It turned out that after the previous commercial aired, the television station's phones were immediately overwhelmed by a massive influx of calls.
A large number of viewers called to inquire about the film's information and to request that the station play it again.
Without paying for the commercial, would the TV station promote it for free?
The answer is: if there's a benefit, yes.
The TV station wasn't stupid; so many viewers calling indicated that this commercial wasn't just piggybacking on the program's ratings, but rather, it could help the program increase its ratings.
So, why not a win-win?
Thus, the TV station freely broadcast the "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" commercial two more times.
Taylor Swift at the scene watched it two more times intently, wishing she had a camera to record the footage.
"This big brother is so handsome! I declare myself his fan. If I get a chance to meet him, I'll definitely ask him for an autograph!"
"I want to go to the cinema to watch this movie. I wonder where I can see it? Should I call the cinema and ask?"
After watching the promotional video, not a few people shared the same thoughts as little Taylor Swift.
They all called their local cinemas to inquire if "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" was scheduled.
As the first domino was pushed, a chain reaction began.
Word of mouth spread, cinemas began scheduling screenings, attendance was explosive, further boosting word of mouth, and scheduling continued to increase…
By the second week of the film's release, over 500 cinemas in North America were showing "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," and the screening rate had reached 20%, and it was still rising.
This far exceeded the original performance of 31 cinemas showing it in the second week.
…
At this moment, Lin Yuan, who had just returned to his home in New York, received a call from Director Ang Lee.
"You're really something, kid! Just one promotional video completely boosted the film's popularity. Do you know how many cinemas are contacting me, hoping to increase screenings?"
"It's all because you directed the film so well, what little help I provided is nothing?"
"Don't be modest, I know how dismal it was before. I've seen all your contributions, and I'll give you a big red envelope when the box office revenue is settled after a while."
After hanging up the phone, Lin Yuan could only smile helplessly.
Lin Yuan felt undeserving of Director Ang Lee's gratitude.
Because he knew that even if he did nothing, "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" would still carve out a path to success through its own excellent quality.
But now, by some strange coincidence, Director Ang Lee had attributed most of the credit to him.
The crucial thing was that Lin Yuan couldn't explain; he couldn't very well say he was a reborn person, could he?
Before he could think further, golden system text suddenly appeared before Lin Yuan's eyes:
[Host has completed the mission. "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" North American box office is expected to increase by 40 million US dollars.]
Originally, the North American box office for "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" was 128 million US dollars, ranking 12th on the annual box office chart.
Now, due to the effect of Lin Yuan's promotional video, the projected box office has increased to 168 million US dollars.
This achievement is enough to push "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" into the top ten of the annual box office chart, securing an excellent 7th place!
For the first time, Lin Yuan felt as if history was being created in his hands.
[Host gains 2 attribute points as a reward.]