Truth behind Zhang Yimou's split with producer
- By Zhang Rui & Li Jingrong
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E-mail China.org.cn, March 19, 2015
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Zhang Weiping and Zhang Yimou [Photo/ifeng.com] |
7. Privately sold the copyrights for 'The Flowers of War'
Zhou Xiaofeng confirmed that the conflict between the two Zhangs first became public in the second half of 2010 when the author of "The Flowers of War," Yan Geling, telephoned Zhou to inform her about an unexpected situation.
Both the movie and TV copyrights for "The Flowers of War" had been purchased by Zhang Yimou in order to ensure that the film was released first, but many film companies wanted to synchronously acquire the TV copyrights for the story. Yan talked with Zhang Yimou twice, hoping to repurchase the copyrights for the TV version.
Zhang Yimou promised that he would return the TV copyright to Yan free of charge as soon as the film entered the post-production stage. However, Zhang Weiping sold the TV copyright back to Yan at a high price before that time, earning very generous royalties in the process. When Zhou questioned Zhang Yimou about the sale, she said he "was amazed -- he didn't know the inside story."
8. Caused disputes between brokers
At the end of 2008, Zhang Yimou wanted to set up a brokerage company for his daughter, Zhang Mo. While he was making preparations and registering the company, Zhang Weiping learned about his plans and urged him to give up on the idea, saying that if there were ever a lawsuit, it would be difficult for either Zhang Yimou or his daughter to handle. Zhang Weiping suggested that the company be listed as a subsidiary of the New Pictures film company that the two Zhangs collaborated on.
According to media reports, Zhang Yimou and New Pictures ended their decade-long cooperation in 2012. On March 21, 2012, Pang Liwei, Zhang Yimou's assistant, returned more than 4.7 million yuan earned by the brokerage company to New Pictures. According to Zhang Yimou, he didn't want to "touch anything belonging to Zhang Weiping."
But that was not the end of the dispute. In July 2014, Zhang Yimou filed a lawsuit against New Pictures, claiming he was owed 15 million yuan He alleged that he and New Pictures, a Hong Kong-based company, had agreed to equally share revenues minus the promotional costs of the film "A Simple Noodle Story," but he never received the money, according to a ruling by the Beijing Dongcheng District People's Court. Zhang said he signed the relevant agreement with New Pictures in 2009.
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