Chapter 767 Deviation
Li Zhi nodded a hundred times.
"I have that idea."
"That's good." Lin Suyang nodded. "It just means that there might be competition between you two in the future."
“Our cooperation definitely outweighs the competition,” Li Zhibai said. “Such a big market, such a big pie—Yan He always says this. He is never worried about others doing well; in fact, he hopes that as many people as possible will do well.”
"Because this will expand the market, right?" Lin Suyang smiled and shook his head. "But this is because our domestic market is in a growth phase. One day, this ceiling will appear."
“That certainly won’t be a case of one company monopolizing the world,” Li Zhibai said. “Instead of worrying about future competition, we should worry about what will happen if we don’t have the strength to help each other and are suppressed by others.”
Lin Suyang gave Li Zhibai a thumbs up.
"Your idea is brilliant."
Li Zhibai: "We are the kind of friends who would never want to put each other down to prove ourselves. We are the kind of friends who hope to elevate each other to a higher level."
Lin Suyang: "Sometimes, your relationship is truly enviable."
Li Zhibai said, "I feel the same way."
Li Zhibai's face beamed with pride.
-
The film "Godless" was mainly filmed indoors in the United States—more precisely, in a studio with green screen scenes.
After filming this part, we'll move on to other locations.
Therefore, this was the first time Lu Yanhe had encountered a film crew that required him to "enter and exit three times".
He wasn't the main character, and the scenes weren't told from his perspective. Therefore, his filming had to be arranged according to the production team's schedule.
However, Lu Yanhe thought this was a good thing.
The director of "Godless" is Ignaz Bell.
This is the director who once made the special effects blockbuster "Ghost Ship Logs"—which grossed $560 million worldwide, a very impressive achievement.
However, because this director often went over budget when making films, although the box office results were mostly excellent, allowing the studio to make a lot of money in the end, new projects always did not go smoothly.
Hollywood film studios don't really trust him.
The last time he made a movie was five years ago.
Midoriya doesn't know where he came up with this talented director who doesn't treat budgets like budgets but has a large fan base.
However, the fact that Midoriya chose this director shows that they genuinely wanted to make a good film.
After all, Ignaz Bell has no other flaws besides his tendency to overspend on filming.
His directorial works are mostly critically acclaimed. The only difference is between niche and mainstream critical reception.
Lu Yanhe had video chatted with Ignaz Bell several times before.
This was the first time we met during this trip to the United States.
Ignaz Bell is a short man, even somewhat described as "short and chubby".
He wore round glasses and had an "endearing" appearance.
Unlike many film directors, he started as a television screenwriter and has been working in the American film and television industry since he was very young.
Later, step by step, we arrived at where we are today.
Logically speaking, a director who has grown up in such an industry should be very good at controlling budgets, but he is not.
He always has a reason to spend more money than the budget suggests.
But this "unruly" director is actually a middle-aged man who is overly enthusiastic and like a helpful neighbor.
"Lu, I watched 'The Mist,' which you starred in. I'm a fan of yours!"
Without saying a word, Lu Yanhe grabbed him and gave him a hug.
"Director, if I had known they had invited you to direct 'Godless' when I signed the contract, I would have signed it much more readily."
Ignaz Bell: "After watching The Mist, I really wanted to work with you, so when they told me that you were involved in Godless, it strengthened my resolve to direct Godless."
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Some directors do not respect actors, believing that actors are merely tools of the director and accessories to the film.
Some directors, however, regard actors as "gods" because they equate actors with the characters in their films and invest all their emotions in them.
Most directors fall somewhere in between.
Ignaz Bell treats actors he approves of as the latter type, but treats actors he doesn't approve of as poorly as directors do the former.
This is what Darren Wilson told him.
Lu Yanhe didn't know what impression or opinion Ignaz Bell had of him. However, he did gain a general understanding of Ignaz Bell from Darren Wilson's evaluation.
Although Ignaz Bell has always been a director of blockbusters, he also seems to be an auteur director.
Just like blockbuster directors, there are also auteur directors.
Many people roughly believe that auteur directors must belong to the field of art films.
In fact, whether it's Peter Jackson directing "The Lord of the Rings" or the more famous James Cameron, their blockbusters are bigger than ordinary blockbusters, but they all bear a distinct personal mark.
There is a significant difference between blockbusters and traditional commercial films.
Then, Lu Yanhe realized that he had also become one of those who agreed with the idea that "you are talented and you make sense".
After realizing that Ignaz Bell was this type of director, Lu Yanhe felt happy, even fortunate.
This feeling is the same as when he was on the set of "Burning Fire" and discovered that Wan Renhai was not just a director who could make commercial blockbusters and special effects blockbusters.
An actor like Lu Yanhe is definitely not the kind of actor who just hopes that the movie will do well at the box office.
Many people think this is nonsense—does any actor not want both box office success and critical acclaim?
However, some actors have a different attitude towards box office performance. They believe that this is a must, and other things are just icing on the cake if they are there, but it doesn't matter if they are not, even if it is a bad movie. For example, Wang Baoqiang's directorial debut was undoubtedly a success if judged solely by box office. However, he dared to accept the Golden Broom Award, dared to apologize, and dared to admit that he had made a mistake despite the box office success, and that he would work hard to improve in the future.
Therefore, despite the terrible reputation of Wang Baoqiang's first directorial work, which was almost so bad that he was accused of "making money," his second film, "Octagonal Cage," was still believed by audiences and became a box office hit.
Often, details truly determine success or failure.
Whether an actor truly cares about their reputation, the quality of their films, and the audience is often evident, and this must be conveyed to the audience. Otherwise, their work will be too sophisticated for the masses, and even the best wine needs advertising.
Lu Yanhe had no idea what kind of movie "Godless" would become.
This is the first time Lu Yanhe has made a film with the world's top film company and top-notch resources.
This kind of film also means that it must be aiming at multiple goals.
It needs to do well at the box office, receive high praise, and ideally, become a classic in film history.
Lu Yanhe had no idea what kind of mark this film series would leave on his acting career.
However, he was well aware that even though he was a supporting character in this film, he was undoubtedly a leading supporting character, comparable to heavyweight supporting characters like Professor Snape and Headmaster Dumbledore in the Harry Potter series. Even Sirius Black's role in Harry Potter didn't carry the same weight as Lu Yanhe's role in *Godless*. The character Green Valley gave Lu Yanhe was one that ran throughout the entire series and had a significant impact on the main storyline.
Lu Yanhe wouldn't be so arrogant as to think that this film series is just "icing on the cake" in his acting career, even though he has already won so many awards and has so many representative works.
Just like Professor McGonagall in "Harry Potter," the actress who played this role, Maggie Smith, is a renowned actress. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in the highly acclaimed art film "Dead Rain," not to mention her other nominations. After "Harry Potter," she starred in the equally influential "Downton Abbey." However, for this actress, in the public's mind, the first thing that comes to mind when they think of her is Professor McGonagall.
Lu Yanhe was very clear about what a blockbuster film series that could truly enter film history meant for an actor.
Because he was so aware of this, he didn't let his guard down at all.
It was precisely because he understood this that he was so disappointed with the North American release of "Burning Fire".
In Lu Yanhe's mind, the quality of "Burning Fire" is comparable to those top blockbusters.
Is it the movie itself that's bad?
Lu Yanhe has always believed that what it lacks is a top-tier global distribution.
A few hundred theaters were all it took to handle the North American distribution of this film.
Of course, no one said anything.
That's just how Chinese-language films are.
There are already hundreds of cinemas.
You've made millions of dollars at the box office, aren't you satisfied?
This is America, not your China.
But Lu Yanhe felt regret. It was actually possible to give it a try. Perhaps, he wasn't saying it was certain, but if the distribution conditions were better and the publicity and promotion were more effective, maybe "Burning Fire" could have achieved the same success in North America as "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" and "Hero" in another timeline.
Are these two films really so high in quality that they can break all boundaries?
No, it was these two films that gained the confidence of North American distributors, possessing the best distribution conditions ever for Chinese-language films in North America. Furthermore, their content and quality justified these distribution conditions, making the most of them.
-
Lu Yanhe studied the role he was going to play in "Godless" very seriously.
Then, I went to try on the makeup.
Lu Yanhe spent three days just trying out the makeup.
He almost had to ask China for help again.
The stylist Lucy Bates, who worked on "Godless," did a very unsuitable job for Lu Yanhe.
However, unlike the time with "The Mist," Lucy Bates didn't even have to wait for Lu Yanhe to speak before she took the initiative to say, "After putting on this look, it deviated a bit from my idea, so I need to adjust it."
Lu Yanhe nodded, and he also expressed his true thoughts.
"Is it necessary to put eyeliner on me?"
His character seems somewhat sinister.
Lucy Bates said, "You can try wiping it off. I did your eyeliner because the character you're playing is a wanderer, and I wanted him to look more... like a wandering poet, more down-to-earth."
Actually, Lucy Bates' description wasn't very accurate, but Lu Yanhe understood her meaning in an instant.
Lu Yanhe said, "You actually got your inspiration from the Gypsy style and wanted to incorporate that element into my design."
Lucy Bates' eyes lit up as she looked at Lu Yanhe in surprise.
"That's right."
Lu Yanhe said, "But my current appearance makes me look more like an ordinary vagrant, weary from a long journey, as if I have just arrived at my destination with a cart full of goods. It gives me a sense of hardship, rather than the image of a vagrant with a mysterious origin who is somewhat out of place with his surroundings."
"Furthermore, I am Chinese, and my appearance is very different from that of Gypsies. So when their elements appear extensively on me, we all subconsciously feel a sense of incongruity the moment we see it," Lu Yanhe stated his opinion.
Lucy Bates nodded.
Lu Yanhe seemed to remember something and said, "Wait for me a moment."
He immediately called Chen Siqi.
"Siqi, didn't 'Jump Up' do an episode on traditional Chinese supernatural tales before? You did a lot of research back then, could you send me a copy?"
Chen Siqi immediately agreed.
After receiving the materials, Lu Yanhe pulled Lucy Bates aside to look at the pictures in the materials on the tablet.
“These are images from traditional Chinese folklore, including gods, demons, monsters, as well as traditional Taoist priests, Buddhist monks, and other related figures,” Lu Yanhe said. “You can refer to these elements.”
Upon seeing this, Lucy Bates immediately remarked, "This information really should have been found sooner."
Lu Yanhe said, "It's alright. There's still time before the film officially starts shooting. We can make some adjustments quickly, and we should have enough time."
“Hopefully there’s still time,” Lucy Bates said. “Let’s see if we can find a way to adjust the overall feel of the look by modifying some elements.”
Lu Yanhe nodded.
"Actually, I really like the looks you designed for me, but there are a few elements that look a bit strange on me," Lu Yanhe said with a smile. "For example, my eyeliner and black eyeshadow. Maybe it's because I've never tried this look before, and I still don't feel comfortable with myself."
Lucy Bates nodded.
Fortunately, apart from his look, the looks of the other main actors did not deviate significantly from the original design after the actors put them on.
So Lucy Bates and her team got to work.
(End of this chapter)
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