Chapter 261 Art Films
To everyone's surprise, the impact of this event, and the length of time it lasted, far exceeded their expectations.
This includes Chen Ziyan and Wen Minglan.
While Lu Yanhe and his team continued recording the program "The Days of Youth," the internet was abuzz with controversy over this matter.
The most vehement reaction to Wen Minglan's response came from Zhou Lina's fans.
The actress Wen Minglan did not name in her response was claimed by Zhou Lina's haters, who used this as a pretext to dig up and spread Zhou Lina's dirty secrets everywhere.
Zhou Lina's fans were not to be trifled with either. As seasoned fans, they quickly organized to fight back against the haters, while also shifting their focus to questioning the veracity of Wen Minglan's claims. Their main points of attack were twofold:
First, let Wen Minglan clarify whether the actress was referring to Zhou Lina or not, instead of leaving everyone to argue in this ambiguous way.
Second, even if the scenes that were moved were given to Zhou Lina, it was the production team's decision. The production team did this because they valued Zhou Lina's popularity and ability to carry a drama. You can criticize the production team if you want, but why criticize Zhou Lina?
Wen Minglan has not been in the entertainment industry for long and is usually very low-key. She is not the type to cause trouble, so many people do not know her.
At the beginning, the battle was almost entirely dominated by Zhou Lina and her fans.
However, the next day, Tomorrow Daily released a video showing the filming location of "Crossroads".
In the video, Wen Minglan holds two sheets of paper, looking aggrieved and angry, and questions the people in front of her, saying, "Why are there still fly pages? Since I joined the crew, I've been shooting fly pages every day. Where is the script I was shown before? Why aren't you filming my scenes according to the script?"
A serious-looking man, around fifty years old, said to Wen Minglan, "Minglan, don't get agitated. This is a temporary adjustment we made based on the filming situation. The script content will be filmed later."
Wen Minglan: "But shouldn't the scene with Lina from last week be mine on today's call sheet? Why was it suddenly moved to her?"
The man said, "It's just a similar scene, don't make a big deal out of it."
“I’ve been on set for a month now, and I’ve been shooting new episodes every day. Am I being too picky?” Wen Minglan’s eyes were red as she glared at them. “Or are you just taking advantage of me because I’m a newcomer and think I’m easy to bully?”
The girl's face was full of grievances, and her eyes looked as sad as those of a wounded little animal.
The scene fell silent for a moment.
"What's going on?" Just then, a somewhat overweight man wearing a t-shirt and cloth shoes walked over.
"director."
"director."
...
A group of people greeted each other.
The fat man glanced at Wen Minglan, frowned with some disdain, and said, "What's wrong? You look like we've all wronged you?"
Wen Minglan stubbornly pursed her lips and remained silent.
The man who had just spoken to Wen Minglan briefly explained to the fat man what had happened.
After hearing this, the fat man suddenly flew into a rage at Wen Minglan: "What's wrong with changing your script? Can't we change your script too? You're making a scene over such a small thing, disrupting the normal filming of the crew. Who do you think you are?"
Wen Minglan was berated by the director in front of everyone for a full five minutes.
After watching the video, Lu Yanhe was stunned. He hadn't expected Wen Minglan to be scolded like that. To be honest, at first, Lu Yanhe thought that no matter what happened, leaving the set during filming was wrong. Couldn't they have talked things out? Now, after watching the video, Lu Yanhe only wanted to apologize to Wen Minglan for his previous thoughts.
Lu Yanhe also thought to himself, no wonder Chen Ziyan said that Wen Minglan's matter was just a small matter compared to his.
The fact that this video was released today must be related to Chen Ziyan.
He had already experienced Ziyan's methods firsthand.
Wen Minglan had been criticized all day yesterday, and her reputation was growing with each criticism. Releasing the video at this time will make those who criticized Wen Minglan realize what she had gone through on set, and they will turn to sympathy. The video provides solid and sufficient information: Wen Minglan endured for a month before finally snapping, but the crew, led by the director, didn't care about her at all, or rather, they didn't even take her seriously. Instead, they blamed her for delaying the filming schedule and scolded her for five minutes in front of everyone.
As Lu Yanhe predicted, the online opinion about Wen Minglan changed instantly after the video was released.
Public opinion turned against her, and the entire production team, including Zhou Lina, were the ones who were criticized.
Columnist and entertainment news commentator Mao Yu directly attacked the production team of "The Crossroads": Originally, I thought it was because Wen Minglan, a young girl, was ignorant of the rules and caused damage to the production team. I didn't expect that it was the production team that broke the rules, bullied the young girl, and even turned around and blamed her. Bah! Dirty stuff!
Mao Yu's attitude can be said to represent the attitude of most media professionals.
The director in the video went too far. His behavior was so egregious that many young women felt a sense of empathy when talking about their own workplaces and how they had been humiliated in a similar way by their superiors.
After half a day of fermentation, the public outcry against "Sanchakou" reached its peak by evening.
This show has begun to be boycotted by many people.
-
The recording site of "The Days of Youth".
Lu Yanhe noticed that everyone seemed a little distracted. They wanted to discuss the matter, but no one spoke up because of the cameras.
However, the public opinion storm stirred up by this incident is no longer just a small event in the entertainment industry.
The focus of public attention has even shifted to workplace bullying.
Finally, Song Linxin was the first to lose her temper.
She said, "Can we turn off our phones for a while? I'm about to burst!"
She didn't explicitly say what it was about, but everyone knew what she meant.
They've been discussing this in the group chat the whole time.
With the matter escalating to such a great extent, no one in the entertainment industry is ignoring it.
Everyone looked at each other in bewilderment.
Peng Zhixing said, "How about we discuss this matter openly and frankly?"
"Isn't this a bad idea?" Liu Zhiyin was the first to object. "We don't know the details of the matter, and we only know what we heard online. It's fine to discuss it in private, but discussing it on this show could easily lead to uncontrollable consequences and hurt others with just a careless word."
Lu Yanhe nodded and said, "Many of you are actors and will be acting in various film crews in the future, so this matter is somewhat sensitive."
Song Linxin nodded and said, "That's why I said I requested to stop filming for an hour with the production team."
Peng Zhixing: "How could the director agree to this?"
At this moment, Li Zhenzhen came out.
She sat down with everyone and said, "What are your concerns about not discussing this on this show? Are you afraid of saying the wrong thing, or afraid of offending someone?"
Li Zhibai: "Of course we all have concerns. It's obvious. If there weren't cameras around, we would have started talking about it already."
“This matter has a significant impact, and more and more people are getting involved in the discussion,” Li Zhenzhen said. “I would like to discuss with everyone whether we can sit down and have a small forum to discuss this matter. I don’t plan to include this segment in the main program, but rather make it into a special feature, which will be released tomorrow. After it’s recorded, everyone can edit the video with us. If any of you feel that it’s not suitable for broadcast after you’ve finished speaking, then we can remove it.”
"Huh?" Lu Yanhe looked at Li Zhenzhen in surprise, not expecting her to suddenly come up with such an idea.
Li Zhenzhen said, "I think this is a rare opportunity. We just happened to encounter this situation, and we are all young artists. If we can sit down and discuss this matter, we can provide everyone with a richer perspective. We don't need to make affirmative or negative opinions, but simply express what everyone is thinking about this matter."
Looking at Li Zhenzhen's serious expression, Lu Yanhe thought to himself, "Okay, the idealistic and humanistic Li Zhenzhen is here again."
Is it possible to film a special like this?
Lu Yanhe was actually persuaded by Li Zhenzhen.
“Let’s all raise our hands to vote,” Peng Zhixing said. “Or, if you don’t want to participate in this part at all, just leave. I think Sister Zhenzhen is right. If we don’t discuss its right and wrong, but just express what we are thinking about in this matter, I think I still have something to say.”
Li Zhibai shrugged and said, "I don't care. If the director wants to film it, I'll film it. Just remember to give me extra money. Filming a special feature out of the blue isn't written into the contract. Although I'm happy to say it, I'm not happy to work for free."
Li Zhenzhen was both amused and exasperated by Li Zhibai's words.
"OK."
Li Zhenzhen said, "I'll give everyone ten minutes. After ten minutes, I'll ask for your opinions again. Those who are willing to speak, we'll prepare and record directly."
Li Zhenzhen left immediately and returned to her workroom. Her first action was to call the person in charge at Bingyuan Video to discuss the special episode. Her demands were: first, it should be released tomorrow; second, she wanted more money. The person in charge at Bingyuan Video was stunned, then simply said that if she could get the artists involved in creating a special episode like this, they would pay an extra episode at the normal rate. Li Zhenzhen hung up the phone, satisfied.
After she hung up the phone, Chen Biqiu asked, "Didn't you always dislike riding the coattails of others' popularity?"
“This is something that everyone is discussing. It’s not about riding the wave of popularity. It would be abnormal if we didn’t discuss it,” Li Zhenzhen said. “Besides, I’m serious. The artists on our show are all very thoughtful and have big ideas. They all want to talk about this, but they have a lot of concerns. So I’m giving them a push. It’s a win-win situation.”
Chen Biqiu smiled and said, "Regardless of what you think, I must say that the timing was excellent."
Li Zhenzhen made a peace sign.
-
As the Wen Minglan incident escalated, more and more people stood up to speak in her defense. However, the production team of "Sancha Kou" and Zhou Lina remained silent, seemingly determined to let the controversy die down with their silence.
However, this matter was beyond their imagination.
When the popular show "The Days of Youth," which had already aired two episodes, suddenly announced that a special episode would be released in two hours, featuring the guests of "The Days of Youth" sitting together to discuss the matter, it instantly caused the already bubbling pot to burst open.
-
Chen Ziyan asked Lu Yanhe on the phone, "Are you speaking up for Minglan?"
“No, not exactly,” Lu Yanhe said. “We didn’t support either side; we were just discussing our attitudes toward this kind of thing, the relationship between actors and the production crew, the professional bottom line that actors should adhere to, and the rules that the production crew should follow.”
“That’s alright. I was initially reluctant for you to participate in this special program that Li Zhenzhen suddenly organized, because it’s too sensitive. You and Minglan are both artists I manage.” Chen Ziyan sighed. “But Li Zhibai and Yan Liang are both participating, so it would seem abrupt if you didn’t.”
“There will definitely be controversy, but I think Sister Zhenzhen said something very true,” Lu Yanhe said. “For an artist, it’s not that there is no controversy, but that no one knows you and no one remembers you. If you are afraid of controversy and are timid when making a show, then there are too many things to worry about, and you can’t do anything. No matter what you say, you will offend some people. I think what she said makes a lot of sense. Moreover, when we sat down together to discuss whether to participate in the filming of this special, we finally reached a consensus. Now that this has happened, it is no longer just about Wen Minglan and ‘Sanchakou’. Many people in the entertainment industry have spoken out in the past two days, and we also have our own attitude.”
Chen Ziyan: "Speaking out will bring about changes in the environment, but those who enjoy the benefits of these changes may not be the first to speak out. The nail that sticks out gets hammered down, and you should remember that. Don't be rash and speak without thinking. Li Zhibai has the confidence and resources to do so. He has been like this since his debut, speaking without restraint. So even if he says some things he shouldn't have, people are very tolerant of him. But you are different. You are a top student, a student of Zhenhua High School. Your image is too good, which is also a kind of constraint because people are less tolerant of you."
Lu Yanhe hummed in agreement.
The special episode of "The Days of Youth" caused a huge uproar online as expected.
Apart from Song Linxin's agent's firm opposition to her participation in the recording of this special episode, all other guests of "The Days of Youth" participated in the recording.
No one directly said whether they supported Wen Minglan or "Crossroads," they only talked about their own opinions, but the audience would interpret and make connections.
Almost every word spoken by each person was screenshotted, interpreted in various ways, and spread widely.
The show "The Days of Youth" and artists like Lu Yanhe who expressed their thoughts and opinions have all skyrocketed to the top of trending searches.
Moreover, it stayed on the trending list for two or three days, and even after "The Days of Youth" had finished filming, the trending topic hadn't gone down.
This level of popularity was something no one expected.
What surprised many was the sudden emergence of a trending topic: How long will "The Crossroads" continue to play dead?
"Was this done by Sister Ziyan?" Li Zhi asked.
Lu Yanhe shook his head and said, "I don't know, but it shouldn't be. Sister Ziyan doesn't seem like the kind of person who would openly criticize them."
Based on Chen Ziyan's past practices, she usually takes drastic measures to force the other party to comply. This behavior of directly buying trending topics to question the "Crossroads" production team seems incredibly sharp, but "Crossroads" has already been ridiculed online for days; why would she be afraid of another wave of mockery? Essentially, it's still the same old thing—a lot of noise but little substance, which isn't Chen Ziyan's style.
Li Zhi asked, "What would Sister Ziyan do?"
Lu Yanhe said, "I don't know either. If I could guess what Sister Ziyan would do, I could graduate and wouldn't need a manager anymore."
Li Zhibai: "If you were Wen Minglan, what would you do?"
“Am I Wen Minglan?” Lu Yanhe thought for a moment and said, “I will ask Sister Ziyan to negotiate with the production team. Since we have signed a contract, we have the upper hand. They violated the contract first. Whether we continue filming or stop filming, we can communicate with them through Sister Ziyan. Maybe things won’t escalate to this extent.”
Yan Liang said, "However, after this incident, Wen Minglan's fan base has increased by more than two million. This can be considered a blessing in disguise. Now, most people support her opinion."
Lu Yanhe shook his head and said, "It has two sides. On the one hand, of course, there is what you said, but on the other hand, there is also a bad side. Wen Minglan's willful way of handling things by putting everything on the table will put her on the risk list of many production teams, which will affect her ability to get other roles in the future. That's what Sister Ziyan said."
For an artist, increased fame is certainly a good thing. However, being capricious, throwing a tantrum when wronged, and putting the entire production crew in a difficult position—regardless of right or wrong—will only serve as evidence that an actor is "difficult to work with."
-
As soon as the show was recorded, Lu Yanhe had to go back to school the next day.
Coincidentally, the class the next day was an elective sociology class, and the instructor mentioned the conflict between Wen Minglan and the film crew.
When this matter was mentioned, everyone looked at Lu Yanhe with curiosity.
Lu Yanhe stared at the podium without changing his expression. He had thought it would just be mentioned casually, but unexpectedly, the teacher assigned homework: to write a commentary on this matter.
As soon as get out of class ended, some students came to Lu Yanhe to ask about the details of the incident; they wanted to know things that hadn't been reported.
Lu Yanhe could only feign innocence and say he didn't know.
Everyone was a little annoyed.
Lu Yanhe packed his schoolbag and went to find a place to study.
Halfway there, it suddenly started raining. With no other option, Lu Yanhe had to turn around and go to a nearby teaching building, where he unexpectedly ran into Mao Jiayang.
"Hey, Yan He, what a coincidence, you're here for class?"
"I had just finished class and it started raining while I was walking on the road, so I came in to take shelter," Lu Yanhe said.
Mao Jiayang nodded, walked up to Lu Yanhe, and suddenly lowered his voice, asking softly, "How's it going with that Trojan horse on your computer last time? Have you found the person who planted it on your computer?"
Lu Yanhe nodded and said, "I found it, but I haven't even used the trap you set for me yet. I was caught by someone else because of my carelessness."
Mao Jiayang stared wide-eyed in shock. "Huh? It wasn't caught by that little trap I set for you?"
"Hmm." Lu Yanhe still expressed his gratitude, "But luckily you found it first. That person lied and didn't admit to installing a Trojan on my computer. He only said it was to steal some data from my computer."
Mao Jiayang suddenly realized, nodded, and said, "Okay, as long as the person has been caught."
He waved his hand and said, "I have class later, I'm going upstairs first."
"Bye-Bye."
Lu Yanhe found a classroom that was not in use, went in, sat down, and took out his laptop from his bag.
I originally intended to write a review of the sociology course first, but after creating a new document, I couldn't concentrate for a long time.
Chen Mo was the one who planted the Trojan on his computer, but he was completely unaware of what happened afterward, leaving the entire process to Chen Ziyan.
Lu Yanhe couldn't help but wonder, who exactly was instructing Chen Mo to do this?
Does He Zhonghui know?
He sent messages to He Zhong, but He Zhong didn't reply. Lu Yanhe didn't send any more messages. He didn't necessarily need to find out anything from He Zhong. Even Chen Ziyan couldn't do it, so he didn't think he could. It was just that this feeling of sitting and waiting for a message made him very uncomfortable, as if he were "sitting and waiting for death."
The phone vibrated twice.
Miao Yue sent him a message asking if he was free at noon.
Lu Yanhe replied: At school, what happened?
Miao Yue said: I need to meet a producer and would like you to accompany me. He wants to buy the film adaptation rights to one of my novels, but I have no prior experience in this area and I'm afraid of being scammed.
Lu Yanhe immediately replied with a "good".
Miao Yue was both his classmate and the author of "Jump Up." Therefore, both morally and logically, he had to accept Miao Yue's request after she made it to him.
He added: "However, I don't know much about this either. What about your editor?"
Miao Yue said: I am not signed with any company, and my editor is not responsible for these matters.
Unlike authors like Liu Jiazhen and Mingyin, who signed cooperation agreements directly with Jiangyin Publishing House, Miao Yue, although she has published two books, only signed book contracts, not personal contracts.
Miao Yue only signed a contract with the publisher for physical publication at the time; the other copyrights remained in her own hands.
Lu Yanhe thought for a moment and said, "We have a senior student, Xu Mingyue, who is currently interning at Jiangyin Publishing House. She should know more about this area than we do. Why don't we invite her to join us?"
Miao Yue: I don't know her. Can you help me invite her?
Lu Yanhe: Let me ask.
To everyone's surprise, Xu Mingyue readily agreed.
Xu Mingyue asked: Has Miao Yue not signed with a publishing company yet?
Lu Yanhe said yes.
Lu Yanhe guessed that Xu Mingyue might be considering signing Miao Yue to Jiangyin Publishing House.
However, Xu Mingyue is only an intern now, so she shouldn't have such authority. She should ask Xu Xiaoyin, who is mentoring her, for help.
The rain stopped around 11:30.
Lu Yanhe met them at the east gate of the school.
Miao Yue called a ride-hailing service to take them to the restaurant.
"Senior, Yan He, thank you for your help today," Miao Yue said.
Xu Mingyue said, "What's the trouble? We're all classmates from the same college, so of course I'll help if I can. But Miao Yue, I heard your mother is a writer. Won't she help you with this?"
Miao Yue shook her head and said, "My mother has always written traditional literature. She knows quite a few people in the field of physical publishing and literary criticism, but when it comes to film and television adaptations, she knows less than I do."
Xu Mingyue asked, "What's the producer's name? Which company does he work for?"
“Liu Bige, from Longyan Film and Television,” Miao Yue said. “My novel has been published for three years, and he suddenly contacted me to ask if I still had the film and television rights.”
“Being able to sell the copyright is a good thing,” Xu Mingyue said. “It can boost your book’s sales and increase your popularity, and you can also earn an adaptation fee.”
Miao Yue nodded and said, "Yes, I really want to sell them too, but no one has ever approached me, and they're not very popular. I've only sold 15,000 copies in total."
"What's the name? What's the subject matter?"
“Late Spring” is actually just a story about a few high school freshmen who met in a summer tutoring class and what happened to them. “There is no dramatic plot, just some everyday stories, which are entirely based on the people I met in the tutoring class back then.” Miao Yue said.
Are you in a relationship?
"No," Miao Yue said. "Who dared to date back then?"
"That's not exactly a popular subject for adaptation right now," Xu Mingyue asked. "You should be able to find information about this book online, right?"
Miao Yue nodded, "Yes."
Xu Mingyue immediately used her mobile phone to search online.
The publisher's description of the book at the time was "A fleeting summer, a group of confused teenagers."
? ? ?
Xu Mingyue was stunned when she saw this line of text.
Are there really publishers who write such perfunctory copy? No wonder this kind of book won't sell!
Upon closer inspection of the publishing houses, none of them were reputable publishers; Xu Mingyue had never even heard of them.
Xu Mingyue almost asked Miao Yue directly why she chose to publish her book with such a publishing house—luckily, she managed to hold back and not say anything she shouldn't have.
Since she hasn't read the original text, Xu Mingyue can't say for sure what the prospects are for the adaptation of this book.
However, according to Miao Yue, this novel is not the kind with a strong plot, and it is generally not favored for adaptation.
However, we're just having a chat today; we don't need to make any decisions, so there's not much pressure.
-
When they arrived, Liu Bige was already there. He had booked the restaurant. When Lu Yanhe came in with Miao Yue, Liu Bige was obviously taken aback when he saw Lu Yanhe.
Liu Bige was unaware that Lu Yanhe would be coming today; it was somewhat unexpected.
As soon as Miao Yue entered, she explained, "Producer Liu, I brought two of my classmates with me. Is that alright?"
This question was merely to alleviate Liu Bige's surprise and confusion.
Miao Yue didn't tell him beforehand so that Liu Bige wouldn't have any room to refuse.
Liu Bige smiled and waved his hand, saying, "It's alright, please sit down."
He smiled and nodded, saying, "I remember now, you also studied at Zhenhua, you were classmates."
He said this to Lu Yanhe.
"Hello," Lu Yanhe greeted politely.
Liu Bige got up and took the kettle to pour water for the three of them.
The group was flattered and hurriedly said, "We'll do it ourselves," but Liu Bige insisted on pouring water for them before putting down the kettle.
"You're welcome."
At that moment, the waiter knocked on the door and came in to serve the food.
Liu Bige said, “Let’s eat and chat. A friend brought me to this restaurant. She’s still in school, just like you guys. She always says that the food I eat isn’t what you young people like to eat.”
"You're only... around thirty years old, right?" Miao Yue asked hesitantly.
Liu Bige looks to be around thirty years old, with a youthful appearance. If it weren't for his mature aura, wearing a shirt and trousers and sporting a younger hairstyle, you could easily mistake him for a college student.
He nodded and said, "Thirty-two."
"I can't believe it," Xu Mingyue said. "Isn't the entertainment industry supposed to be a very stressful place? You seem to be doing the opposite."
Liu Bige smiled and said, "That's probably because I'm relatively free, not busy enough, and not under enough pressure."
"How could that be?" Xu Mingyue was at a loss for words.
But Liu Bige has already taken over, saying, "However, I did just return from overseas not long ago; I used to stay in France."
"Um?"
“I studied film in France and worked as an assistant there after graduation,” Liu Bige said. “I returned to China last year and joined Longyan Film Industry, but I didn’t do any real work. I was looking for projects for a long time, and then a friend recommended your novel to me.”
Miao Yue looked embarrassed and said, "I wrote 'Late Spring' when I was in my second year of high school, so it's not very mature."
Liu Bige said, "It's very well written, I like it very much, so I contacted you to talk about the film adaptation."
Miao Yue nodded.
"Have you considered adapting it into a movie?" Liu Bige asked Miao Yue.
Miao Yue: "Of course I've thought about it, but no one has actually approached me. The publisher of this novel recommended it to some film and television companies, but because the main plot isn't very clear and it's mostly about daily life, no company wanted to adapt it."
Liu Bige nodded and said, "It's definitely not a good story for a commercial film."
“Then—” Miao Yue looked puzzled.
Xu Mingyue knew that Miao Yue was hesitant at this moment. Perhaps there were some things that she couldn't ask, or perhaps she didn't know what Liu Bige meant. During this time, Xu Mingyue had seen many people and things with Xu Xiaoyin, and considered herself the most experienced among them. So she picked up the conversation and said, "Producer Liu, what kind of movie do you want to adapt this novel into?"
"I haven't decided yet," Liu Bige said calmly, "but I certainly can't expect to make money from theatrical release."
"Since there's no way to make money from it, why do you want to develop it into a movie?" Xu Mingyue asked, somewhat puzzled.
"I'm just saying that it can't expect to make money in theaters. In my observation, there's almost no fertile ground for this type of film to survive in domestic theaters right now," Liu Bige said. "It can only be made into a low-budget art film and take this route. As for why I wanted to develop it into a movie, I've already explained the reason: I like this novel, and I just happened to be looking for a project to work on, so I set my sights on it."
Low-budget art films?
Before they came, none of the three of them had ever thought of this possibility.
Liu Bige said, "Anyway, we're just having a chat today, so there's no need to rush to make a decision now. I also need to state the conditions I can offer: exclusive film shooting rights for five years, with a licensing fee of 150,000 yuan. These are the conditions I can offer. Of course, in the end, the contract will be signed by Longyan Film Industry, and the exclusive film shooting rights will also belong to Longyan."
Miao Yue looked surprised.
"150,000 yuan?"
"This price is significantly lower than the market price," Xu Mingyue said directly.
“Indeed, I know that IP is popular now, and the copyright price is usually over a million, but as I just said, those are all adaptations of commercial themes, which are not very applicable to the situation of ‘Late Spring’,” Liu Bige said. “Miao Yue, if you are willing to authorize me, I will find a screenwriter to adapt it into a script, find a director, and build a filming crew.”
Miao Yue hesitated and wavered.
Of course, it's not possible to make a decision right now.
Lu Yanhe then asked, "Producer Liu, may I ask you a question?"
"Excuse me."
"If you were to adapt 'Late Spring' into a film, what would your goals be for it?" Lu Yanhe asked. "I know it's an art film, and it can't be made for profit. If it were about making money, you wouldn't be making art films. But besides that, what are your expectations for this film?"
Liu Bige smiled and said, "Of course I hope it can win awards at top international film festivals. However, such verbal expectations are meaningless. We need to see how it turns out. If it turns out well, I will try to contact my former colleagues in France. Maybe we can go through international film festivals."
Liu Bige gave Lu Yanhe a very peculiar feeling.
He was very elegant and polite in his every move, but there was a hint of nonchalance in his words, as if it didn't matter if he didn't get Miao Yue's authorization in the end.
Perhaps for him, "Late Spring" was just one of many options. He would do it if he got the authorization, and he wouldn't do it if he didn't.
Liu Bige suddenly looked at Lu Yanhe and asked, "Would you consider acting in art films?"
"An art film? You mean 'Late Spring'?" Lu Yanhe asked instinctively.
“I’m not referring to just this one film, I’m just chatting casually,” Liu Bige said. “I’ve seen your name frequently online lately, you’re very popular, but it seems there’s a thick barrier between popular actors and art films these days, it’s rare to see a popular actor act in an art film.”
Lu Yanhe pondered for a moment and said, "If it's a script I like, I'll act in it."
"Aren't you worried that the poor box office performance of art films will have a negative impact on you?" Liu Bige suddenly asked pointedly. After asking, he explained, "After I returned to China, I participated in several projects, which were mostly art films. I noticed an interesting phenomenon: as long as the director has not produced any representative works, even if the actors like the script when reading it, they will eventually refuse. When asked why, of course, there are all sorts of reasons, but in reality, they are all worried about the film's poor box office performance and being labeled as a box office poison. Generally, only actors who are not very famous will be willing to take on the role."
Lu Yanhe: "I haven't played a leading role yet, and I haven't considered these aspects. But for me, I'm not really that famous. It's all superficial. People pay attention to me, but that doesn't necessarily mean they like me. I don't have that much pressure."
Liu Bige nodded. "Many actors have said the same thing to me when they talked to me, but in the end, they still refused when it came time to make a decision."
His expression suddenly became somewhat listless.
"This is the most confusing thing for me: why can't we just tell the truth directly?"
“It’s not necessarily that they’re lying to you. It’s just that the market is huge and there are many choices. When they tell you they’re willing to act, they’re telling the truth. But when it comes to making a decision, they may have other options, or they may not be able to make a decision themselves, and their company and agents may not agree to take the role,” Lu Yanhe said. “If you think I’m being hypocritical, if you have a suitable script for me and want to contact me, just send me the script, and then you’ll know whether I’m telling the truth or not.”
Liu Bige glanced at Lu Yanhe with slight surprise; this was an answer he hadn't expected.
-
After talking with Liu Bige, on the way back, Xu Mingyue said with some concern, "Why do I feel that Liu Bige is a bit unreliable? I have dealt with many producers and other people in film and television companies. Although people are all different, none of them are as... carefree as him."
"Perhaps it has something to do with him coming back from France," Miao Yue chuckled.
"What do you think?" Xu Mingyue asked Miao Yue. "His asking price of 150,000 yuan is indeed not high, but it is acceptable for an art film. We can't say that he is deliberately offering a low price."
Miao Yue said, "I need to go back and think about it carefully. As for the money... well, if he doesn't buy it, no one else will, so I'm not going to consider it anymore."
"So what are you mainly considering now?" Xu Mingyue asked.
"I want to find out what kind of person Liu Bige is first," Miao Yue said. "I'm afraid of encountering a swindler, and I'm also afraid of being scammed. If not, this is an opportunity. I still want to adapt my book into a movie."
Xu Mingyue nodded and said, "I'll also try to find out for you through my connections at the publishing house."
She looked at Lu Yanhe, who was sitting in the passenger seat. He turned his head to look out the window, seemingly lost in thought.
"Yan He, what are you thinking about?" Xu Mingyue asked.
Lu Yanhe snapped out of his reverie and said, "I'm thinking about what he just told me about art films."
What if he really did send you the script?
“Then let’s look at the script,” Lu Yanhe said with a smile. “But as you all know, I have a lot of classes to attend. Between acting and studying, I will definitely prioritize studying in the next few years. My agent has said that he will try to find me more supporting roles in the future and will not consider leading roles for now. I really can’t spare that much time to film.”
"If it's just making a movie, it shouldn't take too much filming time, right?" Xu Mingyue asked.
"No, even the shortest time will take one or two months," Lu Yanhe said.
At this moment, Liu Bige, whom he had just added as a friend, suddenly sent him a message: Liu Bige, Longyan Film Industry.
Lu Yanhe's notes.
At this moment, Chen Ziyan sent a message: "The Golden Era released stills today. You need to cooperate with the crew and post your stills on social media."
This was followed by a promotional still produced by the production team.
The moment Lu Yanhe walked in through the front door of the classroom, his facial features exuded a refined and elegant youthful charm. Golden sunlight shone behind him, and his eyes were bright, like the rising sun, like a gentle breeze, like the first morning when snow melts in spring.
Next to the character is a row of vertical characters: Lu Yanhe plays Yao Yu'an.
Lu Yanhe clicked on the large image with surprise and exclaimed inwardly.
He replied: Okay!
He then asked: "Should we send it now?"
Chen Ziyan said: We'll send them all at 8 PM tonight. You can set a timer.
Lu Yanhe immediately set it up.
Chen Ziyan: The quality of the stills is very good.
Lu Yanhe: Nodding frantically.
Chen Ziyan: The feeling you give off in the stills is very different from how you usually appear. The director really knows how to capture some of your details, like your eyes, which are quite impressive.
(End of this chapter)
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