Chapter 257
The director should listen to opinions and have his own opinions
Ling Suisui thought about it and suddenly asked Yan Siling a question.
"You like director Pei Xuehai's works very much, right?"
"Yes." Yan Siling was a little embarrassed. "Could it be that my work is a little bit like Director Pei's style?"
Given Pei Xuehai's status in the industry, being pointed out as a new director looking like him can be understood as a compliment.
Just like in the entertainment industry, young actresses are vying to market themselves as "Little Ling Suisui". She is not even ready to retire yet, but she already has more than a dozen "successors".
Ling Suisui commented: "How should I put it? It's not like... Director Pei likes to shoot tragedies, and they are tragedies caused by the times and environment, which cannot be overcome or changed by personal strength. His style is more macro, and it is a tragic aesthetic understood from a huge narrative perspective."
"The style of the second half of the story you wrote is obviously moving closer to his. Because you don't have any special ideas for this part, when you can't find a clear direction, his works will influence your thinking, and you will unconsciously imitate his creative style."
Eh, is that so?
As the saying goes, those who are involved are often confused, while those who are not involved can see clearly. Yan Siling didn't realize it when she was creating the work herself, but after Ling Suisui pointed it out, she also found that the style of the second half was rather fragmented. No wonder she felt very uncomfortable when she was conceiving the work, and nothing she thought about was right.
Ling Suisui asked: "Is this your first film work?"
"...Strictly speaking, not really." Yan Siling scratched her head. "I've shot a low-budget feature film with my classmates before, with only two or three scenes. The actors weren't paid, and we hired people from the acting department, who also happened to need extra credits."
Although that work was low-budget, the equipment was cobbled together, and the set was ugly, but with the joint efforts of Yan Siling and her friends, it has won many awards in college student competitions across the country.
Yan Siling seemed a little embarrassed when she mentioned it, but one could still see her pride and love for her work.
Ling Suisui admired her attitude very much. If she looks at Qin Xian with her current perspective, of course there are many flaws and shortcomings, but these are all valuable experiences on her path to growth.
She was really free today, so she watched her directorial debut with Yan Siling.
The name of this movie is "Specialties from Hometown" and the plot is very everyday.
The story begins in flashback. A couple is getting divorced, and the man's relatives all come to mediate. The man thinks the woman is unreasonable. He just ate the specialty sent by her parents' home. Is it necessary to be so angry?
Of course, the specialty was just the straw that broke the camel’s back. Through conversations between the couple and their relatives, as well as flashbacks of their memories, the film reveals a corner of the heroine's daily life as a housewife, along the story line of how the hometown specialties were sent, how they were handled, and how they were eaten by the husband, allowing the audience to feel her pain and struggle in this marriage.
The ending of the film also pays tribute to Ibsen's "A Doll's House", with the camera freezing on the heroine pushing the door and leaving, seeking her own vast world.
The actors' performances are a little immature, but the plot is very smooth and natural. No wonder it swept the student competition. Even though the final effect is a bit rough due to cost constraints, these problems that can be solved by spending money are not a problem in Ling Sui's eyes.
“You are a director who is very good at taking pictures of details.”
Ling Sui-sui said: "The story itself is not very dramatic. The male protagonist has not cheated on his wife and has no bad habits. He is not a scumbag in the secular sense. However, you have filmed his cold violence against the female protagonist through many details. He actively speculates on his boss's thoughts and practices worldly ways, but he does not care about his wife's feelings. If you ask, how can a straight man understand these things? He either cannot do it, or he subconsciously thinks that his wife is not worthy of his attention."
"The wife is not a 'perfect victim' either. She also has her own selfish desires and little calculations. But both husband and wife have their own little plans, and the moral pressure is only on her side. The husband can have flaws, but if she is not a perfect wife, it is her fault."
"Yeah, yeah." Yan Siling nodded vigorously. It turned out that it was more fun to talk about movies with an expert.
When she talks about her work, she becomes talkative. She talked a lot with Ling Suisui, and she became very energetic.
Ling Suisui: "Actually, I support you trying different styles of works, but for the script we are currently discussing, I hope you can return to your comfort zone of using small details to see the big picture and shape the characters."
"Each of your plot points is a detail, but the heroine is not a specific individual, but the embodiment of the female group. Her image is general and vague. This is fine in the first half, but it is particularly obvious in the second half."
Yan Siling suddenly realized that when she was filming "Specialties from Hometown", her original intention was to shoot a story about a housewife, but the film had an idea when it was created. She wanted to use an everyday and ironic way to show the various injustices encountered by women in social life.
The idea is good, but there is a big problem with the character creation. It seems that the deviation in her style in the second half had its roots as early as the beginning.
Yan Siling expressed her gratitude to Ling Suisui and hoped that he would say more. She would try her best to change it according to her ideas.
"That won't do." Ling Suisui said seriously, "I'm not considering myself as the client, but speaking to you from the perspective of a senior sister. My ideas can only be used as a reference, you have to decide for yourself. Besides, if a movie implements my will from beginning to end, then why would I ask you to be the director?"
In the entertainment industry, Yan Siling is still a newcomer. Most of her value lies in her own talent and ideas. If her ability to direct films is measured only from an industrial perspective, there are many candidates who are cheaper than her.
Yan Siling blinked: "But I heard... Senior Sister really hopes that the director will listen to your opinions on the script..."
Ling Suisui smiled seriously and said, "Yes, I think the director should listen to opinions, but also have his own ideas. He should respect my views, but also be loyal to the original intention of creation, so that he can control the overall situation. Otherwise, why do you think they are saying bad things about me behind my back?"
Yan Siling: …
She didn't know that you were saying bad things, but she felt that Ling Sui was indeed difficult to deal with. Who knows how you measure the degree! No wonder when directors came to the Film Academy to give lectures, they all had strange expressions on their faces when they mentioned Ling Suisui!
"I have the confidence now." Ling Suisui smiled, "When you become a big director, you can also openly ask actors to be obedient and have their own ideas about the roles, and not be led by others. The supply and demand relationship in the market is like this. If you stand at a high position, many people will actively cater to you."
These words really touched Yan Siling's heart. It turns out that human nature is double-standard.
After chatting with Ling Suisui, she was now full of inspiration and wanted to rush back to the apartment, but Ling Suisui stopped her and asked her if she wanted to pack up the leftovers on the table and take them away.
Yan Siling was very happy. She could just heat these up in the microwave and eat them tonight, thus saving money for dinner.
"Thank you, Senior Sister." She thanked him shyly, "I was embarrassed to say that just now."
"Why are you embarrassed with me?"
Ling Suisui smiled and said, "It is a virtue to cherish food. I will bring it even if you don't."
When Yan Siling took the bag, her impression of Ling Suisui jumped back and forth between a jewel-covered star, a demanding actress, and a gentle and simple senior sister, and gradually took shape.
After she left, Ling Suisui also paid the bill and left.
In the car, she said to Feng Yang: "You continue to pay attention to her progress and prepare for the project. If my salary is settled in the form of dividends, the cost should not be too high. For other roles, find some cheap and easy-to-use actors."
This movie is obviously not a commercial film. If it is invested and controlled by Harvest Media, the cost will be compressed to the extreme. From what Ling Sui said, her expectations for the film's revenue tend to be conservative.
Although Feng Yang has no pressure about "finding cheap actors" - cheap means he will still pay. However, with Ling Suisui's current status, even if she asked the actors to pay for joining the crew, there would still be many people willing to come forward, and they might even bid for a price.
This is not an exaggeration, but a realistic statement. You know, after "The Legend of Sword and Fairy" was shortlisted for the main competition at Cannes and won the Best Actress trophy, many "old actors" who had previously rejected Director Pei and felt it was a bit embarrassing to play a supporting role for Ling Sui were now regretting it.
Feng Yang asked Ling Suisui: "Are you optimistic about this work?"
"Generally, it depends on how she changes in the future." Ling Suisui said truthfully, "I am more optimistic about her as a person."
In the entertainment industry, adding icing on the cake means little; the friendship of helping others in times of need is the most precious. Investing in potential stocks now is certainly more appealing than waiting until others have achieved success before showing goodwill.
Moreover, the film market needs more female directors so that there will be more shining heroines.
**
In mid-June, Ling Suisui appeared at the Magnolia Awards Ceremony.
Her schedule is very low-key, but her fans are too enthusiastic. Although Ling Suisui, who is on a long vacation, posts vlogs every month, this amount of material is not enough to watch, so whenever she appears, there will be a huge crowd of onlookers.
After Ling Sui finished cooking on the red carpet, she had to face "fans in the circle" when she entered the backstage.
Although the sincerity of these people may be questionable, anyone who sees this grand scene of everyone rushing to support the star will have a more concrete understanding of the word "Vanity Fair".
By the time Ling Sui struggled through the crowd and found her seat, she had lost count of how many people she had shaken hands with or taken photos with. She even suspected that even the ants passing by in the backstage were old fans who had liked her for several years.
Song Lingshan next to her laughed and teased her: "You are worthy of being the Cannes Film Queen. Let me also get some of your starlight."
Ling Sui held her forehead helplessly, she was really...
Since she returned to China, her emotions towards these four words have changed from pride to a sense of trepidation.
Fortunately, people around her still address her as Teacher Ling instead of Movie Queen Ling, otherwise she would be so embarrassed that she wouldn't want to see anyone.
After Song Lingshan joked with her, the topic quickly turned to the latest gossip in the circle.
She covered her mouth with her hand and said, "Do you still remember Mo Ziqing? I looked for you many times in Xiangjiang before, and then I looked for the one with the antenna."
"Her actress talent show has undergone a major change. They said they were going to remove the male contestants and make it an all-female competition. In the end, they weren't going to form a crew, but rather select a single female lead."
"I heard that she boasted to the antenna team that she wanted to create the next top superstar actress, and all the standards are up to you!"
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