Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 894 is only three or four thousand.

Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither was a film studio.

However, with filming about to begin, Chen Fan wouldn't just wait idly. Zengjiabu Old Street, which he had long admired, became the first permanent filming location for the film studio.

Without much effort, by relocating the more than one hundred residents of the old street and demolishing or renovating some houses with typical characteristics of the post-1949 era, a "Republic of China Street" was created.

With the necessary conditions met, the film studio finally welcomed its first film crew.

Sunday, April 27th.

After careful preparation, Director Wu of Jiangying Film Studio personally led the team, with Kuang Mingyi serving as the production manager as usual, responsible for overall coordination. The two of them, along with a filming crew of over one hundred people, arrived at Yunhu by ship on this day.

When they arrived at Yunhu, it was morning. The two large ships at Lujiawan had just finished delivering their goods. Chen Fan then premeditatedly requisitioned them and transported all the people, materials, and equipment to Zengjiabu Wharf via the waterway connecting Yunhu and the Yangtze River.

When the ship docked, Director Wu and the others immediately spotted Chen Fan waiting on the pier, along with a group of people standing behind him.

Once the boat had come to a stop and the gangplank had been set up, Director Wu was the first to disembark. Looking at Chen Fan from afar, he said, "This place is nice. The mountains and rivers are beautiful, and the houses have a strong Republican-era feel."

The architectural features of the Republic of China era are not very distinctive. They are mainly based on the architectural styles of the Ming and Qing dynasties, with some Western elements incorporated, such as glass windows, Roman columns, domes, glass skylights, dormer windows, etc.

If the integration is done well, the style will be more prominent, forming an architectural feature that combines Chinese and Western elements.

If the integration is not done well, it will look like Zengjiabu Old Street, where a stained glass window suddenly appears on the white walls and blue tiles, which looks very abrupt.

However, this abruptness perfectly represents the architectural style of residential buildings during the Republic of China period.

Some of these can be seen in the Republican-era scenes in certain old Hong Kong movies.

Because they needed to make room for people and equipment coming ashore, Chen Fan and the others did not go forward to greet them.

As Director Wu and Kuang Mingyi approached, he smiled and said, "This place was just cleared out and still needs some simple repairs."

He pointed towards the old street and said, "Although the characteristics of the Republic of China era are quite obvious, the regional features are still somewhat monotonous. At the other end of the old street, I plan to build a new street that incorporates architectural features from other places."

The second part of "The Taoist Priest Comes Down the Mountain" will be set against the backdrop of the Long March. The red and blue teams will fight in the region from east to west and then to the northwest. The red team is divided into four main teams, which advance in four routes, passing through Jiangxi, Fujian, Guangdong, Hunan, Hubei, Guangxi, Guizhou, Yunnan, Sichuan, Qinghai, Gansu and Shaanxi.

With so many places, Zengjiabu Old Street certainly cannot encompass all the architectural features; it is necessary to expand with several more buildings that have regional characteristics.

However, the film won't depict very large scenes; just a few key moments will suffice to show the changes in space and time. So building three or five more large mansions as a token gesture will be about enough.

Kuang Mingyi waved to Chen Fan as a greeting, and said with a smile, "Whether we expand or not, we'll talk about that later. The problem now is, with so many of us, where will we live? Where will we put our things?"

Chen Fan turned around, pointed to the old street, and laughed, "These dozens of houses were just vacated. Aren't they enough for you?"

You're staying here?

Kuang Mingyi and Factory Director Wu exchanged a glance and were about to speak when Chen Fan made a gesture and turned his gaze to the group of people behind him.

Chen Fan first introduced a middle-aged man in his forties wearing a cadre uniform, saying, "This is Dong Zhengyang, the general manager of the film and television city and the deputy general manager of the newly established Yunhu Tourism Company."

Dong Zhengyang immediately extended his right hand with a broad smile and shook hands with Director Wu and Kuang Mingyi in a friendly manner. "Welcome, welcome. On behalf of Yunhu Film and Television City Company, I would like to express our commitment to do our best to provide comprehensive logistical support for your filming work."

He glanced at the old street, then turned back and said with a smile, "The film studio is newly built, so conditions are a bit harsh. For now, we'll have to make do with you all staying here. However, the guesthouse is under construction and will be completed within a month at the latest, at which time the crew members can move in."

As soon as he finished speaking, Chen Fan laughed and said, "Manager Dong is being a bit modest. Actually, it's not bad to stay here. The houses on this old street have always been inhabited. In order to make room for the film crew and not affect filming, I had all the construction teams build them tenement buildings."

So, working at breakneck speed, with over a dozen construction teams and three to four hundred people working together, the tenement building was finally ready for occupancy a couple of days ago, and the residents quickly moved in.

Nowadays, there are basically no polluting materials used in building houses. Besides bricks, mortar, cement, steel bars, and lime, the main materials are steel bars and lime. Under the current weather conditions, it takes about 20 days for the cement to reach its optimal hardness. Since construction started in early April, the cement and lime have almost dried completely, making it ready for people to live in.

In the north, where the climate is drier and the temperature is lower, it can be even faster.

Upon hearing this, Director Wu couldn't help but laugh and said, "If you have a tenement building to live in, you definitely have to run away quickly."

As soon as he said this, a chorus of soft laughter erupted around him.

The joke about moving into a new house is never out of style.

Kuang Mingyi, however, was somewhat surprised. "A dozen construction teams working on the same project at the same time? Have all the construction teams from Yunhu been brought over?"

Chen Fan laughed and said, "The construction companies in the city all have tasks to complete. If we wait for them, it'll be too late. I found people directly from the communes below."

Now that reform and opening up have begun, some production teams and communes have gathered together skilled people to form collective construction teams, and that's the kind of people I'm looking for.

Don't underestimate them just because they're a collective unit; their skills are no less than those of the foremen in regular construction companies. They work without asking for anything in return, and their efficiency is much higher than that of construction teams in the city. Hiring them means fast and good work.

He was referring to the Lujiawan construction team.

This construction team, which was originally the toilet renovation team of the Sixth Team, rapidly expanded and grew after hiring several retired master craftsmen from the Nanhu Commune construction team, taking advantage of the opportunity to build new villas in Lujiawan.

The workers are mainly able-bodied laborers from Lujiawan, supplemented by relatives and friends from other production teams in Nanhu Commune. The number has now reached seventy or eighty people, exceeding that of the commune's construction team.

Well, I also managed to snag quite a few orders.

Based on them, they were asked to find other collective construction teams they knew or had heard of, and by piecing them together, they formed a ragtag construction team.

Those construction teams certainly didn't have the scale or skill level of the Lujiawan construction team, but they were all composed of skilled bricklayers and carpenters, and there were no mediocre people among them.

Although each of their construction teams has a small number of people, when they are put together, the number is quite large.

The senior engineer was in charge of the technical work, and a group of junior workers were hired. A batch of hoisting equipment was also made from a machinery factory. Building two dormitory buildings didn't take much effort at all.

Moreover, with the Lujiawan construction team as a foundation, and with two supervisors assigned, there's absolutely no need to worry about substandard quality.

As for why we contacted them?
Of course, it's because all the members of the Yunhu Construction Team have been assigned tasks by the administrative office to carry out projects such as factory expansion and market construction.

Yang Kangnian was originally having a headache, wondering where to squeeze a construction team out for the film and television city project.

As it turned out, Chen Fan didn't think much of their team and said he would find someone himself. The members of the collective construction team were all members of the production team. They didn't have the arrogance common among workers of that era. When asked to work overtime, they didn't ask for any conditions whatsoever.

People from reputable construction companies, when involved in major projects, demonstrate a strong sense of ownership and select hardworking and excellent construction workers.

But when it comes to regular tasks, things get a bit complicated.

So when Chen Fan saw that the city's construction projects were short of workers, he simply decided not to use their people and found them all himself.

These people did not disappoint him, completing the task with high quality and quantity, and even making him want to recruit them.

In any case, the construction period of the film and television city will last for many years. Having such a construction team will make things more convenient and reassuring.

But let's not rush this; we'll talk about it when we have the chance.

After introducing Dong Zhengyang, Chen Fan pointed to a stylish woman in a long trench coat next to him, "This is Ma Jiajia, the foreign manager and the main person in charge of the future film and television city. She came from the United States and only arrived here yesterday."

Factory Director Wu and Kuang Mingyi shook hands amicably.

They noticed something unusual about this woman earlier, and now, after hearing her introduction, they suddenly realized that she was from America. No wonder she had such a unique air about her.

Nowadays, many women in China are starting to pay attention to their appearance, getting perms and wearing fashionable clothes, which is quite different from the trend of a few years ago. Otherwise, Director Wu and the others would have guessed at first glance that she came from abroad.

Just like when Chen Fan took Zhou Yali out, everyone who saw her would first ask if she was an overseas Chinese.

After introducing the main person in charge, Dong Zhengyang immediately called over two staff members to help the crew settle in according to the pre-prepared plan.

The place arranged for Director Wu and Kuang Mingyi was right next to the dock. It was a two-story villa with living quarters upstairs and offices downstairs.

To make it easier for them to work, no other people have been arranged to stay here.

Dong Zhengyang and Ma Jiajia both had a lot of work to do. After greeting them and taking them to their residence, they arranged to have dinner together that evening as a welcome dinner for them before taking their leave.

Once only Chen Fan remained in the room, Factory Director Wu and Kuang Mingyi relaxed.

Kuang Mingyi first went to pick up the kettle, "Hey, they even prepared hot water."

Chen Fan sat down on a chair to the side, crossed his legs, and said with a smile, "This is only for today. From now on, you'll have to fetch your own water."

After saying that, he pointed to the house across the street, "That's reserved for communal use. The kitchen and boiler are there. The film studio has arranged for people to work there. They can provide hot water and meals all day long. If you need anything, just let them know in advance and they will prepare it. You can just pay the bill when you're done."

He paused for a moment, then turned back to the man and said with a smile, “Old Dong has arranged for two people to provide services specifically for you. They are the same two from earlier. They have taken their people to settle in now. You can meet with them later, and they will give you a service list. All the services they can provide are on the list.”

Director Wu put his bag aside, not in a hurry to unpack, walked over and sat down next to him, took out a cigarette, offered it to him, and asked with a smile, "Need actors? Can you provide some?"

Chen Fan took the cigarette and laughed, "We definitely don't have any professional actors, but we can definitely have extras."

Currently, all professional actors are in various performing arts troupes or film studios. However, in Chen Fan's plan, when the time is right, he will establish an actors' guild like Hengdian, which will then be able to provide professional actors.

Kuang Mingyi then came over, took the cigarette offered by Director Wu, and looked at Chen Fan, saying, "To be honest, you saw it yourself just now. I brought all the actors from the factory, and even quite a few staff members from other departments. With them here, we can handle most of the scenes ourselves. But..."

He lit a cigarette on the lighter Chen Fan offered, took a puff, and continued, "But, as you know, there are a few large scenes in there. We'll need at least several hundred extras to play soldiers from both the Red and Blue armies. If possible, the more the better. Can this problem be solved?"

Chen Fan nodded without hesitation, "Of course."

He then said, "The more people you count, the better. Give me a specific number, and then..."

At this point, he suddenly froze, turned to look at Director Wu, then at Kuang Mingyi, and pointed to his own nose, saying, "Am I the director?"

Kuang Mingyi immediately grinned and said, "Oh right, right, you are the director, I didn't say you weren't. But you asked me to be the production manager and assistant director, which are also my job. I just wanted to get this sorted out first, so that we don't run out of people when we start filming."

Chen Fan flicked off his cigarette ash and calmly waved his hand, "Don't worry about that, I've already made arrangements."

Kuang Mingyi walked around to sit on his other side, glanced at Director Wu, then stared intently at him and asked curiously, "How many people are there?"

Chen Fan smiled and said, "How many people do you want?"

"Well,……"

Kuang Mingyi stroked his chin, looked at Director Wu, turned his face, and said with a smile, "When I was in my previous unit, I also filmed two large-scale war scenes. There were more than a thousand people involved in the filming. It was really exciting."

Then, looking at Chen Fan, he asked, "Can there be more than a thousand people?"

Chen Fan clicked his tongue. "Too small, too small."

Kuang Mingyi, "What's small?"

“The pattern is small.”

Chen Fan, puffing on his cigarette, said with a disdainful look, "Is a thousand or so a lot? It's not even a full-strength regiment. The grand scenes I wrote about were main force pursuit battles, with a division fighting a blocking attack..."

Upon hearing this, Kuang Mingyi's eyes widened instantly. "A division? You've prepared ten thousand men?"

Not to mention him, even Factory Director Wu was stunned, staring blankly at Chen Fan.

Arrange for 10,000 people to act as extras?
This is an incredibly extravagant gesture!

They were just Jiangxi Film Studio, a small, previously unknown provincial film studio. They had never even considered making a film, let alone a large-scale production involving tens of thousands of people.

It's not that there aren't any movies with such large-scale scenes in China; on the contrary, there are quite a few.

Putting aside other things, when filming "The Great Battle", 13 active-duty personnel were mobilized, along with 15 extras, bringing the total number of mobilizations to 330 million.

That was a real spectacle!
But the levels are not equal.

What kind of organization is that? What kind of project is it?
What is this "us"?
Just as the two were filled with excitement, Chen Fan said calmly, "No, it's only three or four thousand."

(End of this chapter)