Chapter 762 How Can You Look Down on Me?
After spending more than an hour on the set, I went straight off work and returned home.
Today, Lin Weimin and his wife did not eat at home. They left the steamed buns to the nanny, and went out to have a romantic dinner, and then went to the cinema to watch a movie, enjoying their own world.
At the beginning of this year, the most popular movie was "Rumble in the Bronx" starring Jackie Chan. This movie was one of the 10 imported blockbusters introduced by China Film Corporation.
The movie was released in mainland China on the first day of the Lunar New Year. It has been released for nearly a month and the box office has exceeded 90 million yuan. It also made 32.34 million US dollars in the United States.
Before "Rumble in the Bronx", the influence of Jackie Chan and his action movies was mainly limited to East Asia.
"Rumble in the Bronx" is a symbol of Jackie Chan's films going international. It not only established his superstar status in the international film scene, but also was a milestone that allowed him to enter the mainstream Hollywood film market.
After watching the movie, the couple came out of the theater. Tao Huimin kept talking about the plot of the movie, but Lin Weimin's attention was on the promotional poster at the entrance of the theater.
The promotional poster was made when the movie was released and has been displayed for a long time. Jackie Chan's image occupies most of the poster, which is normal as he is the absolute protagonist of the movie.
But what Lin Weimin was really concerned about was not Cheng Long, but a term on the poster.
"New Year's film".
The term "New Year's film" was first introduced to Chinese people through Jackie Chan's movies.
Starting from "Rumble in the Bronx", Jackie Chan's action movies have been released on the first day of the Chinese New Year for four consecutive years.
In the earlier Chinese film market, cinemas were originally scheduled to be closed from the first to the third day of the Lunar New Year. However, "Rumble in the Bronx" chose the first day of the Lunar New Year and entered the mainland market as a "New Year's film", turning what was supposed to be a relaxing holiday day into one of the busiest days of the year for cinemas in major cities.
People in later generations knew that Feng Xiaogang's films created the "Lunar New Year Box Office" and he was called the "King of Lunar New Year Box Office," but in fact, Feng Xiaogang just took a few more steps along Cheng Long's path.
The next day at work, Tong Zhonggui came to bring Lin Weimin the script of "Party A and Party B".
"Party A and Party B" is adapted from Wang Shuo's novel "You Are Not a Common Man". This guy dragged his feet and took almost three months to finish writing it, which is totally unworthy of the high salary Lin Weimin gave him.
"What do you think of the script?" Lin Weimin did not read the script, but asked Tong Zhonggui first.
Tong Zhonggui thought about it carefully before saying, "I've read the original novel, and the script is basically faithful to the novel. But...how should I put it, it's more humorous than cinematic. However, this seems to be a consistent feature of Wang Shuo's works."
Lin Weimin nodded after listening to him. Although his words were simple, they hit the point home.
"How's the contact with Yanying Studio going?"
"They are planning to shoot several projects directed by young directors. You should have read the scripts..."
"We have limited funds. Which movie do you think is more suitable for us to invest in?"
Tong Zhonggui knew that this was another test from Teacher Lin. He pondered and said, "I prefer "Winner" and "Red Suit". The director of "Winner" is Huo Jianqi, who used to be an art designer. I have talked to him and he is a director with a lot of ideas. The director of "Red Suit" is Li Shaohong, who has made two movies before and both received good responses..."
"Are you inclined to invest in their films?" Lin Weimin asked.
Tong Zhonggui hesitated for a moment, then nodded solemnly, "Yes."
"Okay, then vote for them both." Lin Weimin said happily.
Although he was mentally prepared, Tong Zhonggui was still moved by Lin Weimin's trust in him, "Teacher Lin..."
"I agree with you. Let's just pick the two of them. Two movies, 1.2 million should be enough, right?"
Tong Zhonggui said quickly: "No. The investment in these two movies is not large. We only invest 40%, so 800,000 is enough."
Lin Weimin nodded. "Okay, that's settled. You can coordinate the details with Yanying Studio."
"OK."
After Tong Zhonggui left, Lin Weimin flipped through the script of "Party A and Party B". It was no different from what he remembered. After reading it once, he put the script down and called Tong Zhonggui, asking him to take the script away when he had time.
After hanging up the phone, Lin Weimin began to think about the development of Wenhua Film and Television again.
As a film and television company mainly engaged in film investment, Wenhua Film and Television is currently unable to produce films independently and can only rely on qualified production studios. With Teng Jinxian's relationship at Yanying Studio, he is obviously an excellent partner, which is also the foundation for the development of Wenhua Film and Television in the next few years.
In terms of film investment, the top priority this year is of course "Party A and Party B". The script has just been written, and filming will start after April at the latest. The shooting and production will take at least five to six months.
It's a good idea to try to release it at the end of the year. It's a satirical comedy movie, and it's just right to release it at the end of the year.
Cheng Long's action movies pioneered the concept of "New Year's films" in China, but the real New Year's film season only gradually took shape starting with Feng Xiaogang and "Party A and Party B".
This long period, which stretches from November of a year to February of the following year, has also become an important engine for Chinese films.
"Party A and Party B" will be released at the end of this year. Whether Wenhua Films can achieve a great success depends on this movie.
As for Huo Jianqi's "Winner" and Li Shaohong's "Red Suit", Lin Weimin had some impression of these two films. They were well made and paid back, so there was no problem in making a small profit for Guowen Publishing House.
One positive and one strange, a two-pronged approach, this is probably the tone of Wenhua Film and Television's development this year.
Another day, Hai Yan came to give Lin Weimin the actor information of "Season of Flowers and Rain". The thick information proved the recent work intensity of Wencheng Film and Television.
"Are you tired recently?" Lin Weimin asked with concern.
"It's OK. Selecting actors requires a lot of communication."
After chatting for a while, Lin Weimin started to look through the actors' information.
Similar to the resumes of later generations, the information contained some personal information and was very brief. Most of the actors were around 20 years old, and the youngest were only 16 or 17 years old.
Many of the photos are of daily life, and you can tell at a glance that they are not professional actors. Professional actors usually prepare artistic photos for meeting the crew.
Lin Weimin flipped through a few pages and found a familiar face.
Yo, isn't this a girl with a clean mouth?
"This girl has a good image and temperament."
Lin Weimin only picked out one photo from a pile of information. Haiyan sighed inwardly, Teacher Lin’s requirements are really high!
"She is really pretty, and her temperament is fresh and natural. Can she play the second female lead?"
Teacher Lin personally chose Jiang Qinqin for the leading female role, and the rest were a few supporting actresses.
Lin Weimin said, "Don't worry, just pick them first. There are many young actors needed for "Flower Season and Rainy Season", and they can be listed as candidates first."
Jiang Qinqin and Gao Yuanyuan, only two actresses have been confirmed so far. There are more than a dozen student roles with names in "Season of Youth", and seven or eight of them have important roles. It seems that the actors still have to rely on open auditions.
"The press conference will be held next week."
"We have recently contacted a number of domestic professional troupes, drama schools and other institutions, and are waiting for them to recommend actors. We will try to find a month and a half to screen the whole country and pick out some good talents."
Lin Weimin nodded. Haiyan's ability was beyond doubt and he had his trust.
"I'll leave it to you."
That afternoon, Lin Weimin received a call from Feng Xiaogang.
"Hello, Mr. Lin, do you have time these two days?"
On the phone, Feng Xiaogang's voice was low and furtive.
"What's the matter? Tell me frankly."
"Please come over when you have time. Master Shuo insisted that I use his girlfriend as the heroine, and I don't want to offend him."
"Okay, got it."
After Lin Weimin finished speaking, he hung up the phone and dialed the number of Wenhua Film and Television.
"Xiao Tong, call Feng Xiaogang and the others and ask them to hold a meeting to discuss the casting issue with them."
"Teacher Lin, do you have any instructions?"
"Well... let's use Ge You for the male lead, Liu Bei for the female lead, and for the rest of the actors, let's use actors from the People's Art Theatre if possible."
"Okay, I understand."
Feng Xiaogang secretly made the call without telling Wang Shuo, and a while later he received a call from Tong Zhonggui, who asked them to go to the office of Wenhua Films for a meeting to discuss location scouting and casting.
"Master Shuo, let's go. Wenhua has called a meeting to decide on the actors."
Wang Shuo had just woken up and felt weak all over. "Just go."
"Choose actors!" Feng Xiaogang reminded.
Wang Shuo suddenly realized, "Okay, let me wash my face. I drank too much yesterday, so I won't drink again next time."
As he spoke, he went to pack up for a while, and then he and Feng Xiaogang got into the broken second-hand Daihatsu of the Good Dream Company.
I wandered over to Wenhua Film and Television outside the East Third Ring Road and entered the office. There were two more people in Wenhua Film and Television than before, but it still looked empty.
Tong Zhonggui was already waiting in the conference room. When he saw the two of them coming, he greeted them, exchanged a few pleasantries, and then got down to business.
"Teacher Lin has already read the script and there are basically no problems. The next task is to scout the location..."
Tong Zhonggui first talked with Feng Xiaogang about the shooting location, and after talking about the location scouting, they started talking about casting. Tong Zhonggui had just said two sentences when he was interrupted by Wang Shuo.
"Zhong Gui, we want to use one of our own for the female lead."
"One of our own?"
Tong Zhonggui looked at Feng Xiaogang, then at Wang Shuo, "Which one is ours?"
"There is a very good actress in our company named Xu Cairen. She has a very good image, temperament and acting skills. I wrote the role of Zhou Beiyan based on her," said Wang Shuo.
After he finished speaking, he did not forget to poke Feng Xiaogang, who quickly said, "Ah, ah, yes, that's right!"
Tong Zhonggui showed a bit of embarrassment on his face, "Well...but, Teacher Lin has already decided on the cast list."
Wang Shuo secretly said in his heart, "Oh no! Doesn't this old guy usually not care about casting? Why did he tell him about it in advance?"
"What did he say?"
Tong Zhonggui said truthfully: "The male lead is given to Ge You, and the female lead is given to Liu Bei."
Liu Bei and Wang Shuo are also acquaintances. They have played Shuangshuang in "The Story of the Editorial Department" and Jia Ling in "Getting High".
After hearing this name from Tong Zhonggui, Wang Shuo didn't know how to bring up the issue of changing roles for a moment.
Tong Zhonggui observed his expression and said, "How about you talk to Teacher Lin? You two are so close."
When Wang Shuo heard this, he felt sick as if he had eaten a fly.
He has a good relationship with Lin Weimin, but Tao Huimin has an even better relationship with his wife Shen Xujia. Now both of them are on Shen Xujia's side. Wang Shuo can already imagine all kinds of sarcasm from Lin Weimin when he wants to ask for a role for Xiao Xu.
He would never do anything to please someone else.
"Well, the role of Tang Lijun..."
As soon as Wang Shuo said this, he felt a strong resentment beside him.
Feng Xiaogang looked at Wang Shuo with dissatisfaction. He had already said that the role of Tang Lijun would be given to Xu Fan, and Wang Shuo knew it too.
Mr. Shuo is becoming more and more dishonest now!
"Teacher Wang, that role is too small. It's just a minor role for actors in the People's Art Theater. How can you be interested in it?"
Tong Zhonggui's words left Wang Shuo speechless.
I just don't like it, the key point is you didn't even give me the female lead!
(End of this chapter)
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