Chapter 140 Interview
"Boss, the CBS people are here."
Liu Xiaoli reminded at the office door.
“Here it comes!”
Link put on his suit and walked out of the office. When he reached the door, he suddenly stopped and raised his chin. "Assistant Liu, do you think I'm handsome?"
"You're so conceited! Hurry up and leave!"
Liu Xiaoli rolled her eyes at him and patted his back with a smile.
After the Forbes Rich List and The Hollywood Reporter's annual box office rankings were released, he received interview requests from dozens of media outlets.
The media wanted to ask him how he felt about going from a pauper to a billionaire, and how he felt about going from a small director to the annual box office champion director.
After communication and selection, he temporarily accepted interviews from 13 media organizations.
These include major newspapers and periodicals such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal, as well as television stations such as NBC, ABC, and CBS.
In the past, when he participated in TV interviews, he needed to rush to the TV station for live recording. Now the TV station will focus on him. If he has time, he will go to the TV station recording hall. If he doesn’t have time, he can also arrange for someone to come to Guess the Film Studio to record the program.
The venue for today's recording is in the large conference room of Guess Pictures.
The person who came to interview him was Leslie Stahl, a famous anchor of CBS News.
Ms. Leslie Stahl is a senior journalist and host, 52 years old, who has worked in the media industry for more than 30 years.
The 60 Minutes news program she hosts is one of the most watched news programs in the United States. In addition to inviting domestic and foreign political dignitaries, the program sometimes also invites popular figures in the entertainment industry to the show in order to understand new developments in the entertainment industry.
Out of courtesy, Link arrived at the venue first and greeted Ms. Leslie Starr at the door.
"Ms. Starr, welcome!"
"Mr. Link, you are younger and more handsome in person than in the photo."
Ms. Lesley Starr shook her hand and smiled.
"Mr. Bill Crystal also said this, so I took it seriously."
"Haha, you don't have to believe Mr. Crystal, but you have to believe me. I'm a journalist and I only state the facts."
"I like media that tell the truth, and I respect journalists who speak with facts. Ms. Starr, welcome again."
After a few pleasantries, Link and Ms. Starr went to the sofa area and sat down.
After the on-site director and cameraman adjusted the lighting and camera position, the interview officially began.
“Link, there is an interesting story about you in Utah recently. It is said that after you were listed on the Forbes rich list, a motel in Park City, Utah suddenly became popular. The manager of the motel claimed that billionaire Link had stayed here.
People who live here will have good luck like you, their careers will become more and more successful, and they will become billionaires.
Local media reported that many tourists went to Park City and stayed at that hotel specifically, causing the hotel to become popular and bookings were made until next year. Check to see if this is the hotel you stayed at.
Ms. Starr pulled out a photo and handed it to him.
The photo shows a very ordinary motel, with red walls, yellow door frames, and a sign at the door that says "King's Hotel".
It was the small hotel where he stayed in Park City. He also had a big dream in the hotel. Later, he had a conflict with the service staff when he was trying to return the deposit. It was not a very pleasant experience.
Link smiled as he held the photo. He didn't mind the hotel owner using his name to attract guests, but he just hoped that they would not reveal the fact that he had a dream in bed.
It would be really embarrassing if it got out.
"Yes, I stayed here for a week during the Sundance Film Festival last year. I was very poor at that time, and this hotel was very cheap. I could stay here for $10 a night."
Link shrugged.
"I heard that you went to the Sundance Film Festival again at the beginning of the year. Did you go back to that hotel?"
"No, it has no special meaning to me. I won't go there on purpose to visit."
“Does the Sundance Film Festival have any special meaning to you?”
"Yes, that's the starting point of my career, or you could say it's a fork in the road. If Buried had done well at Sundance last year, my career and life might have been very different."
Link laughed.
“Will it be better than it is now?”
"No. Everything now is the best arrangement."
Link said.
Ms. Starr smiled and said, "Yes, before last year, you could only afford to stay in a $10 motel, but this year you made it onto the Forbes rich list and became a billionaire. This arrangement is indeed the best. Link, from an ordinary person to a billionaire celebrity, your status and position have suddenly improved. What is your biggest feeling?"
"My mentality has improved. In the past, when I saw other people's luxury cars on the street, I would envy them. Now when I drive a high-end car, people will call me a nouveau riche."
"Haha, anything else?"
"A lot. For example, I used to worry about the price increase of hamburger meals, but now I worry about how to control the cost of film production to prevent it from going over budget. When filming, I try to choose places with tax incentives to save costs to the maximum extent.
In the past, I paid more attention to entertainment news, such as Playboy and Sportsweek, but now I also watch 60 Minutes regularly to learn about domestic and international situations.
"Haha, from what you said, I should hope that everyone will become a billionaire, so that my show will have more audiences."
Ms. Starr made a joke and continued, "Link, do these changes you mentioned make you feel a little disconnected from your past life? There have been many cases in the past where people suddenly became rich and became confused. Do you have this feeling?"
"No. What you mean by being lost is losing your goals, and I have too many goals. I have several film projects in preparation, and the company has a lot of things for me to do every day. I also hope that my films will continue to be popular with everyone, get better box office results and recognition from professionals. These are my goals and my motivation to move forward.
In addition, I have many friends whom I met before I became a director. They are all excellent and have great potential. We get together regularly to talk about work and ideals. I am not confused, for sure. "
Link said frankly.
When I first came to the United States, I was sometimes confused and struggled with whether I should return to China to work hard.
After seeing the glamorous world of Hollywood, all that was left in his heart was struggle and greed.
"Link, your movie has already won the annual box office championship, and you are still working hard to do your best. Does this mean that you have greater ambitions in the film industry?"
Ms. Starr asked.
"Of course, my agent told me that Hollywood is an arena and people without ambition cannot survive in Hollywood. We must maintain our ambition and fighting spirit so as not to be eliminated."
"What is your ambition?"
“Does winning the Oscar for Best Director or the annual box office champion count as ambition?”
Link laughed.
“Yes, it’s a big ambition.”
After a few minutes of interviewing, Link and Ms. Starr took a break and the crew restarted the camera and continued recording the show.
By the second part of the interview, Ms. Starr began asking more formal questions.
He was asked whether, as a Chinese director, he encountered more difficulties and obstacles than others after entering the Hollywood circle.
Link takes this issue very seriously. He will not say that people with Chinese faces are prone to discrimination and suppression. This is an internal scandal in the entertainment industry and is not suitable for public discussion.
He would only say that the Hollywood film industry is more diverse and can accommodate more differences and characteristics, and as long as it is a good movie, the audience will accept it.
For example, "Paranormal Activity" became the annual box office champion. This was the result of the audience's votes with their movie tickets, and it is also the best proof of Hollywood's inclusiveness.
Ms. Starr asked him how he felt about the fact that after the huge success of Paranormal Activity, many film critics criticized the poor quality of the film and called him the "second Ed Wood". Some media also said that he was a filmmaker who simply pursued box office rather than film art.
(End of this chapter)
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