Brother Dao Took the Entertainment Industry by Storm, Fans Beg Me Not to Kill Anymore-Chapter 448: Fashion Design, Touching Down in Cannes

Soon, the designer they were waiting for arrived.

He was a somewhat slender foreign man, wearing a modified short black tailcoat, his hair meticulously styled, and his face adorned with a monocle that was said to only suit the defined facial contours of foreigners. Paired with a prominent aquiline nose, his overall demeanor carried a hint of melancholy, making him look less like a clothing designer.

Liu Rulan stood up with a smile and greeted him, then introduced him to Xiao He: "This is Designer Theodore. He was once the lead brand designer for brands C and L, and now he runs his own studio, usually only handling brand-related work."

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Theodore."

Xiao He immediately stood up obediently to greet him.

Theodore was exceptionally aloof. Faced with their friendly gestures, he didn't even bother with extra words. He just gave a casual, slight nod, barely counting as a greeting, then turned and gestured for his young assistant behind him to go to a side room to bring out the clothes.

Despite Theodore's coldness, Liu Rulan maintained her smile, communicating with him in English about the clothing design they had arranged beforehand, then shamelessly confirmed the details with him again.

Theodore would still respond to her intermittently, but more often, he would critically size up Xiao He from head to toe, then turn and say something to his assistant in French.

Xiao He vaguely heard him telling the assistant to adjust his accessories.

He raised an eyebrow slightly.

Apparently not expecting Xiao He to understand, Theodore didn't bother hiding his conversation with the assistant, so Xiao He listened openly. Afterwards, he actually felt a bit more at ease.

Although Theodore seemed difficult to deal with and his attitude was cold, at least he didn't express any discrimination or prejudice in his words. His language was very polite, and most of his discussion with the assistant was about adjustments to the styling and clothing design after seeing Xiao He in person, clearly showing he was taking it seriously.

Xiao He quite liked this strictly business-like attitude.

So when they left the studio, both Xiao He and Liu Rulan wore satisfied expressions.

The next day, Xiao He and Liu Rulan landed in Cannes with their team.

Cannes is a small city located on the Mediterranean coast in southeastern France. It enjoys a Mediterranean climate with abundant sunshine year-round, lush vegetation, beautiful scenery, and a rich historical and cultural heritage, renowned worldwide for the Cannes Film Festival.

And every time this period arrived, the place was filled with a dazzling, lively atmosphere. It seemed even the palm trees lining the Boulevard de la Croisette brimmed with vitality. Many travelers and pedestrians on the streets were dressed fashionably and elegantly. Even along the roads, festival event logos were hung everywhere. The passing traffic included many expensive luxury cars and supercars, and from time to time, the roar of high-powered exhaust could be heard speeding past from one end of the street.

Upon arriving at the hotel near the event, Xiao He realized this was truly a gathering of elites.

Every ten steps, there was a top-tier director; every five steps, a Hollywood star. At the very least, there were internationally recognized models or singers, enough to dazzle the eyes.

Ning Jiaqi was nearing retirement age. He naturally had his famous works. Although he was now fully focused on box office success, he had been a notable figure in his early years and still maintained some international recognition.

Just standing there for a short while, people continuously came to greet Ning Jiaqi. Xiao He also occasionally overheard people around them discussing him and their production team in foreign languages.

Xiao He observed and found that most of these people also had Asian faces. Their accents made it clear they were from several neighboring countries.

Among them were directors and actors. They didn't put on airs when facing Director Ning; their attitudes were mostly quite respectful. Out of his high regard for Xiao He, Director Ning didn't forget to introduce Xiao He to these people while conversing with them.

Xiao He's film "Law of the Jungle" had some recognition in the Asian region, and his recent "Twelve Mirrors" was also circulating online. Some people had some impression of Xiao He, and their faces showed admiration.

One director from Japan stared at Xiao He for a long time and, before leaving, didn't forget to ask for Xiao He's contact information. Judging by his expression, he seemed quite interested in Xiao He, with intentions of future collaboration.

Although Xiao He wasn't very proficient in Japanese and wasn't particularly keen on starring in Japanese films, he naturally wouldn't refuse such an opportunity to expand his network. He promptly signaled Liu Rulan to hand over a business card.

After giving out the first one, many more were handed out one after another. Whether they were doing it out of respect for Director Ning or were genuinely interested in Xiao He, the results of this simple exchange were clearly quite positive.

The smile never left Liu Rulan's face.

Even the other members of the production team also gained something.

Additionally, several overseas distributors approached Director Ning in advance to discuss the overseas distribution of "No Bait."

This, in fact, was the essence of the Cannes Film Festival: a global film copyright trading market.

Generally speaking, the Cannes Film Festival usually lasts about 12 days. Apart from the most important opening ceremony and the final award ceremony and closing ceremony, most of the time in between is dedicated to the concentrated premieres of participating films and the opening of the film market activities.

In simpler terms, it's like a group of sellers bringing their carefully crafted works to participate in the event here, forming a small trading market. Then, buyers from around the world come here to watch the films, finally selecting the most promising works to purchase and take back to their own countries or regions to make money.

In other words, for domestic films to go to Cannes, the essence is to leverage the festival's popularity to sell the film's overseas "screening rights (copyright)" to distributors. The distributors then connect with local cinema chains and theaters to bring the film to overseas audiences.

And now, these people coming to Director Ning in advance essentially meant they were trying to pick the "big cabbages" before the "market" officially opened, hoping to get lucky and snatch the overseas distribution rights for "No Bait" ahead of time.

At this stage, the "big cabbages," having not yet premiered, are generally cheaper, not commanding high prices. It's similar to a blind box, not knowing the true quality of the film, which has both advantages and disadvantages.

But Director Ning, as a renowned director for many years, and "No Bait" being an officially selected work, at least indicated that the quality of "No Bait" was very reliable.

So, here we are. Several distributors who had long cooperated with Director Ning couldn't help but gather around as soon as they saw him, wanting to chat with him in advance.

Although before the official premiere of "No Bait," Director Ning probably wouldn't finalize a distributor early on... but what if?

Unfortunately, there was no "what if."

These people came excitedly and left disappointed.

Watching their disappointed backs, Director Ning couldn't help but snort coldly: "These capitalists. I'm just waiting for 'No Bait' to make big money. And them? They try to push the profit share down to the absolute minimum."

Was he that short-sighted? 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Then he patted Xiao He and seriously reminded him: "There should be many more partners and producers coming recently. Be careful, don't make promises casually, and don't rush to sign contracts. It's a mixed bag here; be careful not to get scammed."

Xiao He nodded: "I understand. Thank you for the reminder, Director Ning."