在這個夏季，好萊塢與中國的發展關系正走勢強勁。《鋼鐵俠3》的成功預示這個忙碌一年的剩余時光前景甚好。
The Hollywood-China relationship is off to a strong start this summer. The success of Iron Man 3 bodes well for the rest of this busy time of year.
在我寫這篇文時，《鋼鐵俠3》在中國市場正快速沖破一億美元大關。這部動作電影已然成為全球票房的大熱門，并已加入《愛麗絲夢游仙境》、《玩具總動員3》以及其他影片的行列進入10億全球票房的高等俱樂部。這一成就值得全世界的影院運營商為其慶祝。
As I write this, Iron Man 3 is quickly on its way to hitting $100 million in China. The action film is a huge hit globally. It has joined the ranks of Alice In Wonderland, Toy Story 3 and others in the exclusive $1 billion global gross club. This accomplishment should be celebrated by movie theater operators around the world.
《鋼鐵俠3》最牛的，也許是，其在中國能取得如此出色票房，竟然同期撞上了票房同樣火爆的《致我們終將逝去的青春》。這里透出的一個清晰的信息：中國與美國電影界的強強攜手有助于市場增長。我們完全不需要把它看成一場競賽，這里顯然有足夠多的市場發展空間，而且未來的業務擴展會更多更大。
Perhaps the best part of Iron Man 3’s performance in China is the fact that it was able to succeed at a time when So Young was also doing well at the box office. This sends a clear message that the combined strength of Chinese and American films can help grow the market. We do not need to look at it as a competition. There is clearly enough business to go around, and there will be even more business in the years to come.
當為中國打造電影題材時，好萊塢正在學習什么可行什么不可行。學習并非一蹴而就。《鋼鐵俠3》中國版的植入式廣告反應并不積極。此教訓是，好萊塢不能把中國簡單地當作一個充滿無知客戶的市場，應用在美國觀眾上的標準必須同樣適用于中國觀眾，這樣才會減緩未來的不利反響。植入式廣告是行業的重要組成，因為內容提供商可以借此賺回花在電影上的部分開銷，但這些廣告不可背離電影的第一要務：故事情節。
Hollywood is learning what works and what doesn’t when it comes to creating content for China. It’s not always easy. Reactions to product placement in the Chinese version of Iron Man 3 were not positive. The lesson here is that Hollywood cannot simply treat China as a market full of unaware customers. The same standards that are applied to American audiences must be applied to Chinese audiences. This will reduce any backlash in the future. Product placements are an important part of the industry because they allow content creators to gain back some of the money they spent on the film, but these advertisements cannot distract from the #1 priority: the story.
《鋼鐵俠3》的成功——以及在此之前的《復仇者聯盟》——標志著一個變化的時代。好萊塢比任何時候都更著魔地追求制造全球票房過十億美元的目標。算術很簡單：當你用6個月花費2.5億美元能創下全球10億票房時，為什么還要用6個月花費6千萬美元去拿2億的票房呢？制片商渴望利用人氣角色竭盡所能地一直向十億美元大關沖刺。
The success of Iron Man 3—and The Avengers before it—marks a sign of the changing times. Hollywood is more obsessed than ever with the concept of making films that can reach $1 billion globally. The math is simple: Why spend six months and $60 million on a film that might make $200 million worldwide when you can spend six months and $250 million on a film that might make $1 billion worldwide? Studios are eager to capitalize on popular characters in order to consistently get as close to the $1 billion mark as they possibly can.
中國在（好萊塢的）這個新的渴求中扮演著重要的角色。更多原創電影的中國票房將具備與其北美票房媲美——甚至是超越——的潛力，這一天將很快到來。這意味著好萊塢需要趕快琢磨清楚成功的道道，理解中國市場對其現今商業模式的成功至關重要。《鋼鐵俠3》的票房表明他們已經找到了探求個中奧秘的門徑。
China will play a very large role in this new obsession. The day will soon come when more original films will have the potential to match—or even exceed—their North American haul in China. That means that Hollywood needs to figure out real quick what works and what doesn’t. Understanding the Chinese market is crucial to the success of their current business model. The Iron Man 3 grosses indicate that they are well on their way to figuring things out.