Chapter 98 Fan Jiuyi wants a role

Chapter 98 Fan Jiuyi wants a role

Chapter 98 Fan Jiuyi Wants a Role

"It all started when a reporter interviewed Lu Chuan and asked him how he felt about the fact that 2046 earned 3000 million yuan at the box office, while Hoh Xil only earned 608 million yuan.

Then Lu Chuan's face turned black.

Then he started to complain about the discriminatory scheduling of the cinemas. When New Police Story and 2046 were released, there were a lot of screenings, but when it was his turn for Kekexili, there were very few screenings. A cinema had 8 halls, but only one hall showed Kekexili, and there were only two or three screenings a day.

"But what does this have to do with me?"

"Don't interrupt me, just listen to me..."

Zhang Chen: How dare you talk to your boss, the youngest best director and a big director whose debut film grossed 6000 million, like this?
Okay, go on.
"The problem comes from an interview you gave before. You once predicted that the box office of Kekexili would not be too high. Now it has come true. Then he thinks you did it on purpose, and maybe you used some shady means behind the scenes..."

Zhang Chen felt that this was truly ridiculous.

This Lu Chuan might be suffering from paranoia.

What shady means did I use behind my back?

"That's what he said?"

"Not really. It's definitely not said explicitly, but this is what it means." This is also what Dong Jianqiang felt disgusted about on the other end of the phone.

If Lu Chuan really dared to say that, he would send a lawyer's letter, but the other party just implied something, so there was nothing he could do.

There's really nothing you can do about being sarcastic. You can't just stop people from speaking.

"Okay, ignore him for now. I'll talk about everything after I get back."

"Okay, when will you be back?"

"In two days."

After the official signing, he will need to discuss the specific crew preparations with Pitt. Zhang Chen plans to arrange all these before returning to China.

Next, he has to prepare for the release of "The Shallows". Compared with Hollywood, China is his base.

The preparation of the crew, including the selection of actors, was left to Pitt, who understood Hollywood better than himself.

The two sides have already agreed that as soon as "The Shallows" is released, Zhang Chen will immediately return to Hollywood to start filming "Eden Lake".

Don’t think that filming in Hollywood is slow, it’s the same.

Even a big production with a budget of over 6 million yuan can be shot quickly. Generally, it can be completed within three months. However, the time for preparatory work and post-production will be longer, which may take 8- months.

It is impossible for a film like Wong Kar-wai to shoot endlessly, taking a year or even several years.

This is a producer-centered system, not a director-centered system. If you dare to do this, the producer will dare to replace you. Do you really think you can't continue to work if this movie is gone?
But that certainly won’t happen with “Eden Lake”. It’s a small production with a single setting and fixed actors, so it should be shot quickly.

Two days later, Zhang Chen returned to China and Dong Jianqiang personally drove to the airport to pick him up.

"Ha, why don't you buy a car? You can't be that poor, right?"

After picking up Zhang Chen, Dong Jianqiang drove back to the company and teased him while doing so.

See, this is the disadvantage of poaching people. They have no respect for the boss and even dare to make jokes of this magnitude.

"There's nothing I like. Cars nowadays are so ugly."

This is not bragging. Zhang Chen has memories of future generations, and looking at today's cars is really like looking at antiques. He really cannot accept that aesthetic.

Take the now highly praised Tiger Head Benz for example, Zhang Chen looked simply horrible.

I don’t know which tiger it is, but it’s been praised to the sky.

"Oh, you have high standards."

When he returned to the company, Zhang Chen found that there was an extra receptionist and four or five more people in an office. When they saw Zhang Chen who suddenly came in, they all stood up and greeted him.

Zhang Chen replied and then looked at Dong Jianqiang.

The latter shrugged and said, "Those are the screenwriters recruited according to your request. They are not famous, but each of them has his own skills. Didn't you say you have some ideas? You can give them to them and see how good they are."

Zhang Chen nodded, the company finally looked like a company.

When I arrived at my office, I found that all the furniture had been changed.

An office desk, boss chair and large sofa were all arranged.

There is also a display cabinet on the side, which contains two Saturn Award trophies.

It looks quite decent, but there are only two trophies in the cabinet now, making it look empty.

"It seems like I have to work harder in the future and win more awards, otherwise this will be too embarrassing."

"Haha, it's normal to feel stressed. You just got off the plane, do you want to take a break?"

"No, I've slept all the way and I'm in good spirits now."

"By the way, how's the matter with Lu Chuan going?"

"It's been quiet these past two days. Actually, it was a reporter from NetEase Entertainment who was causing trouble."

Dong Jianqiang took two bottles of water, threw one to Zhang Chen, unscrewed the bottle and took a sip.

"I found the full video of your interview. You praised "Kekexili" at the beginning, but when asked later, you said that due to the format, the box office might not be too high.

This statement is very pertinent and has no malicious intent, but NetEase only intercepted the second half and gave it to Lu Chuan, provoking her in person, which is why Lu Chuan got mad. "

It turned out to be the case.

He was still wondering, even if the box office of "Kekexili" was not good, what did it have to do with him? How could he be connected to it?

It turned out that it was the reporters from NetEase who were causing trouble, just like the malicious editing in later generations.

NetEase seems to have this style, doing all kinds of things.

"Speaking of 'Kekexili', I actually quite like it. Don't you think the Western style with Gobi desert sand is beautiful? If it is made into an action movie, it should be pretty good."

That’s right, what Zhang Chen thought of was “The West Wind Blows Hard”.

This is a work written and directed by Gao Qunshu.

After the ban on the case, Gao Qunshu could no longer shoot the crime-related dramas that he was best at, so he began to explore the field of film.

The setting of "The Wind Rises" is actually quite good. The actors are all good except Charlie Young, and for domestic genre films, it is actually an exploration. Unfortunately, it failed.

The biggest problem with this movie is the rhythm. There is no ups and downs before ups. It feels like it's just fighting all the time, which makes it less amazing.

The most outstanding part is Wu Zhenyu as the villain. At the beginning, he was laughing and chatting with the herdsmen, eating and chatting with them, but then he turned around and killed the whole family. This opening was quite amazing and established the character immediately. "Come on, with the box office of "Kekexili", I guess no one will dare to touch this style and subject matter in the next few years."

Dong Jianqiang is not optimistic, but there is nothing he can do. It is too difficult to attract investment for making movies nowadays.

If you don’t make money from one movie, no one will invest in your next one.

Of course, this does not apply to poet Chen.

"It's actually quite a pity for 'Kekexili'..." Zhang Chen still sighed.

"You do not know?"

"what?"

"People outside are saying that Kekexili is suspected of plagiarism."

"Liu Yujun's "Me and the Tibetan Antelope"?"

"So you know."

Of course Zhang Chen knew it, and it was confirmed in later generations.

"Kekexili" is suspected of plagiarizing Liu Yujun's documentary "I Love Tibetan Antelope" in more than 20 places. After a closer look, you will find that the most beautiful scenes in "Kekexili" are almost all from "I Love Tibetan Antelope".

"Lu Chuan's character is indeed..."

Zhang Chen sighed, "But that's not what I'm talking about..."

"What's that like?"

"I mean his subject matter is very positive and proactive. If my guess is correct, the authorities will definitely give him great praise."

"The low box office was predictable, but it did bring poaching to the fore. Without Hoh Xil, many people might not have known about it, or the mountain rangers who voluntarily sacrificed their lives to protect the Tibetan antelope."

"If you look at it from this perspective, it's really a pity."

"Movies have multiple attributes. Entertainment is one, education is another, and exposing reality is another."

"You don't want to make a movie like this, do you?" Looking at Zhang Chen's expression, Dong Jianqiang felt something was wrong.

Zhang Chen shook his head: "I actually thought of a similar topic, about fighting against human trafficking and finding lost children, but now is not the time."

He sighed and said, "Wait for a while, when I am successful, it will be time for me to do something for the society."

As a reborn person, Zhang Chen did not think about changing the world, but he was willing to flap his butterfly wings slightly to make some good things happen earlier or make bad things happen inevitably.

"Okay, let's not talk about this anymore. Tell me about what you gained in Hollywood."

Dong Jianqiang quickly changed the subject, saying that directors are monsters and their way of thinking is different from that of ordinary people.

He was really afraid that if he continued the conversation he would reveal Zhang Chen's artistic attributes and whether he was really determined to make such a realistic film.

"New Line took a fancy to one of my scripts and decided to cooperate to produce a horror film."

"A horror movie? Can it be shown in China?"

Zhang Chen shook his head. "That's impossible. The story of Eden Lake is too dark. It will definitely not pass the review in China."

Dong Jianqiang still didn't give up: "Is it possible to modify it..."

"That's not the story, and it's probably going to be a box office failure in North America."

"Forget it, you still have to take care of the North American box office first. As long as you gain fame, you can plan for the rest later."

"Also, I got the lead actress for the new film."

"Are you planning to use a Chinese actress?"

"Yes, even if we hire a white actress, we won't be able to hire a big name, and horror movies don't need big names, so why not use our own people?"

"You're quite aware. I'm afraid you'll be very busy these days. I guess the news will come back soon, and your phone will be ringing off the hook."

"Haha~"

As the two were talking, Zhang Chen's cell phone rang. Seeing the name on the caller ID, Zhang Chen looked at Dong Jianqiang in disbelief.

"You won't come true."

As the call was connected, the familiar voice of Miss Fan came from the other end.

"Have you returned to China?"

"Are you a spy? Where did you get the information?"

Zhang Chen did not inform anyone except Dong Jianqiang when he returned this time, and no one knew where Fan got the news.

The other end smiled and said, "Of course I have my own sources of information. Have you eaten Western food in the United States these past two days?"

"Western food?"

Then Zhang Chen understood and a smile that all men understand appeared on his face.

"No, I'm still hungry~"

"Well, tonight, let's have a buffet in room 304 of Shangri-La, and enjoy as much as you want..."

After hanging up the phone, Dong Jianqiang laughed beside him: "Look, it's here, isn't it?"

"Not sure yet. Even if it is, I can't give it to him just because I have to discuss it. This is an important role and it affects my performance in North America. Everything depends on the quality of the film."

"So do you have a choice?"

"I want to find an actress who is already famous internationally~"

"Gong Li, Zhang Ziyi, and Zhang Manyu are the only three Chinese who can be proud of their achievements in the international arena..."

"Forget about Zhang Manyu. She doesn't seem to cooperate with mainland directors. Even in Hong Kong, the only one who can invite her now is Wong Kar-wai."

"Choose between Gong Li and Zhang Ziyi? Actually, you can consider Zeng Li. The Dark Invasion has good box office there. Zeng Li is already a familiar face, and it is a horror movie of the same genre, so she should have a lot of fans."

Dong Jianqiang gave a suggestion. After "The Dark Invasion" was released in China, Zeng Li had her own fans. Although Juno was a supporting role, the role was very charming. Presumably it should be the same in North America.

"That's a good suggestion, but she's currently filming The Dark Knight Rises, and she's the lead character. So her schedule definitely won't match up."

"Think again."

(End of this chapter)