Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 919 Sufficient Sincerity
Chen Fan and Liao Yiyuan left the lounge and, guided by staff, took their seats amidst the curious gazes of everyone present.

Both of them were seated in the first row of the audience section below. The seats on the stage were for leaders from the Federation of Literary and Art Circles and the Film Association.

Although one of them was one of the leaders of Hong Kong's left-wing film movement and the other was a famous film director, neither of them held a position in the Hong Kong Film Association, so they naturally had no chance to sit on the stage.

Chen Fan sat down as if no one else was around, then smiled and greeted the people next to him.

As long as I don't see you watching me, it's completely unnoticed.

Since the meeting had already begun, everyone simply nodded and smiled, then sat up straight and looked at the leader on the stage.

Chen Fan, on the other hand, was paying attention to how today's film award ceremonies differed from those of later generations.

I must say, it really is quite unique.

A banner hung above the stage, reading "The 3rd Hundred Flowers Awards Ceremony," indeed concise and clear.

Two bright lights shone on each side, and soon beads of sweat appeared on the foreheads of the leaders, clearly indicating that they were quite hot. Perhaps this is the price of being "shiny".

Two tall microphones were placed next to the stage, and a young man wearing a white shirt with his sleeves rolled up to his elbows was reading his script.

Looking at everyone's casual attire, shirts, long-sleeved jackets, and military uniforms are all considered formal, while those wearing Zhongshan suits are almost all leaders.

Ordinary people were very casual... Except for those who were shirtless or wearing T-shirts, they wore all kinds of casual clothes. Most people wore earth-blue work clothes, which was one of the most common blue-gray-black colors of that era. Many filmmakers also wore this kind of clothes, and the men almost all rolled up their sleeves, looking ready to start production at any time.

Unlike in later generations, when everyone is dressed up and dressed in a suit and tie when it comes to award ceremonies.

This made Director Chen, who was wearing a shirt, trousers, and leather shoes, feel somewhat ashamed and wondered if he should roll up his trouser legs to get closer to the masses.

But looking at the shiny leather shoes on his feet, he silently gave up.

Of course, besides Director Chen and Liao Yiyuan from Hong Kong, there were also some well-dressed people, but they were mainly women, or more accurately, young actresses.

The word "young" must be emphasized here because the middle-aged and older actresses were dressed very simply.

Young people, on the other hand, were different. Actresses like Chen Chong, Liu Xiaoqing, and Wu Haiyan wore beautiful dresses or T-shirts and stared intently at the trophies on the stage, their eyes shining as if they wanted to take the trophies home immediately.

The next moment, their eyes met again, their gazes instantly softening from hard to gentle, and they nodded to each other, exuding harmony and friendliness.

In the middle of the audience seats sat two rows of elementary school students, whom Chen Fan guessed were the students who would be presenting flowers later.

Otherwise, why would we need to hire elementary school students?

In short, both on and off the stage, the atmosphere was full of the spirit of the times.

Director Chen shifted to a more comfortable position, wondering how much longer he would have to endure the leader's speech.

Suddenly, the male comrade who was acting as the host announced loudly, "Please welcome Zhou Yang, Chairman of the Federation of Literary and Art Circles and Deputy Minister of the Publicity Department, to present the awards to the winners."

Chen Fan's eyes widened instantly, staring blankly at the stage. The awards ceremony was about to begin?
There wasn't even any artistic performance or anything?
The next second, a familiar, unknown background music started playing, and then the host began calling for people.
"The winners of the Best Feature Film award at the 3rd Hundred Flowers Awards are: *Yunhu Lian*, *Ji Hongchang*, *Little Flower*, and *Shanghai Spy Shadow*. Please welcome Director Huang of *Yunhu Lian* to the stage to accept the award."

Chen Fan's eyes widened, his lips slightly parted. What? "The Ferryman" didn't win an award?

Oh no, it's that "Tears" didn't win an award?

Then the other two films won awards?
This year's audience is fantastic!

Director Huang, sitting in the crowd at the Shanghai Film Studio, straightened his clothes, walked onto the stage with a big smile, and accepted the trophy and certificate from Zhou Yang.

The certificate was shiny and clearly had a protective coating.

Dozens of photographers immediately swarmed around, snapping photos incessantly.

After receiving the award, Director Huang walked off the stage with the trophy in his arms, smiling broadly the whole way.

Before he could even sit down, the next award recipient had already walked onto the stage and received the trophy and certificate from the presenter.

One person presented the award, and several others helped hand over the items. The award recipients went up on stage one after another, and the surrounding area was crowded with people in a noisy manner. Although it was not as grand as the award ceremonies of later generations, and even looked like a makeshift troupe, the atmosphere was still quite good.

(Awards are being presented)
As Director Huang walked back with the trophy in his arms, he kept smiling and nodding to the people who had congratulated him, expressing his gratitude. He soon arrived at his seat.

But he didn't stop; instead, he continued walking until he stood in front of Chen Fan.

Chen Fan immediately stood up, extended his hand, and smiled, "Director Huang, congratulations!"

Director Huang grabbed his hand and said with slight excitement, "I want to thank you for writing such a good article, which is why I have this honor."

Chen Fan quickly said, "You shouldn't be thanking me; there's a distance between us. This script was adapted by Old Xia, so you should thank him."

Director Huang laughed and said, "Of course, of course."

As she spoke, she turned and looked around, "Hey, where's Old Xia? I can't see him."

Chen Fan pointed to the lounge at the back, "He's not feeling well, he's resting in there."

Director Huang's expression changed slightly, but he quickly regained his composure and laughed, "Then I'll go find him later."

After exchanging a few more polite words, he turned and went back.

Chen Fan had just sat down when Wu Haiyan came to his door again, holding the trophy. "Writer Chen, thank you for writing such a good article. It was thanks to you that I was able to play this role."

Furthermore, I would like to thank you for your recommendation. I have been cast as the female lead in Director Xie's new film, "Where the Flowers Bloom." I will definitely work hard to play this role well and live up to your expectations.

Chen Fan shook hands with her in a daze, and after watching her leave, he couldn't help but scratch his head.

There can be several Best Feature Film awards, but only one Best Actress award. Wu Haiyan won the award, but what about Chen Chong?
In the blink of an eye, all the trophies on the stage had already been awarded.

Moreover, all the awards were presented by the same person.

Chen Fan couldn't help but shake his head inwardly, but on the surface he remained calm and didn't utter a single word.

It's not up to him to comment on this "one of the four men," and he'll be retiring to the second line in a few years. Let's wait and see.

Slightly different from the history I remember, this year's Best Feature Film award went from three to four films, and "Tears" was squeezed out of the competition. The Best Actress award went to Wu Haiyan, while the Best Actor award remained the same, still Li Rentang from "Tears". The Best Supporting Actor award also went to Liu Xiaoqing from "Look at This Family".

Director Chen received no awards.

However, the film adaptation of Chen's novel garnered significant rewards, winning two Best Feature Films, one Best Actress, one Best Screenplay, and one Best Music, making him the biggest winner among the "outsiders." The awards ceremony concluded successfully after a little over half an hour.

It seems that this meeting was really just about handing out awards.

After the meeting, even more people came over to greet Director Chen and try to build a relationship with him. Some wanted the script, some wanted the adaptation rights, some invited Director Chen to work on films at their own film studios, and so on.

Director Chen resorted to delaying tactics, responding to everything with "we'll talk about it later."

Then, surrounded by Director Wu of Jiangying Studio, young actor, martial arts master, and bodyguard Yang Chenfeng and Gu Haoyang, they successfully escaped the crowd's entanglement and left the CPPCC Auditorium.

Yes, they came too. Chen Fan only found out when he ran into them at the meeting today.

Even though they've escaped the encirclement, they can't leave yet.

After the awards were presented, the other "people from all walks of life" left one after another, while the people from the film industry stayed behind and held a tea party in another location with some of the invited guests, including several foreign friends.

To avoid being disturbed, Chen Fan pulled Liao Yiyuan and Factory Director Wu together to find a corner to sit in. Each of them held a cup of tea and a cigarette, watching their comrades perform on stage and quietly discussing the purchase of the movie "Monk Comes Down the Mountain".

Liao Yiyuan, smoking a cigarette, said softly to Director Wu, "Originally, film exports were handled by the relevant departments of China Film Group, while the film studio only focused on film shooting and production. However, this time, with special approval from Elder Xia and Director Liao, I was allowed to talk directly to your film studio."

He flicked his cigarette ash, and after checking that no one else was around, he turned around and whispered, "Judging from what Mr. Liao said, direct communication with film studios may become the norm in the future."

Chen Fan blinked. "Are you dissatisfied with China Film Group?"

Liao Yiyuan shrugged. "In the past twenty years, China Film Group only earned a little over 300,000 US dollars in foreign exchange from exports. This time, you're offering a guaranteed 300,000 US dollars. Anyone would have some reservations."

He paused for a moment, then added, "However, right now, both Liao Gong and Xia Lao only have these ideas in their minds. They want to see how the play 'The Taoist Priest Comes Down the Mountain' will perform after it's released."

If the response is lukewarm, the pace and scope of relaxation may be smaller; if the response is strong,..."

He shook his head as he spoke, a rather meaningful smile on his face, "The pace of reform may be quite significant."

Chen Fan raised an eyebrow, glanced at Director Wu, and said softly, "Very big? Does that mean film studios are allowed to export independently?"

Liao Yiyuan pursed his lips and shook his head. "It's hard to say right now, but one thing is certain: the path for China Film Group to control film exports will definitely be opened up. As for how to do it in the future, we still need to consider it further."

After a two-second pause, Chen Fan looked up, grinned, and said, "These things are too far away from us; it's better to focus on what's in front of us."

He turned to look at Director Wu and said with a smile, "I've talked to Brother Liao. The movie 'Monk Comes Down the Mountain' will be sold in two parts. The Hong Kong part will go to him, and the other overseas parts will go to Qianfan Company."

Qianfan Company offered a guaranteed minimum of $300,000, with additional revenue sharing if overseas screenings were successful. In principle, there was no upper limit.

Upon hearing this, Factory Director Wu was overjoyed. "So tall?"

He quickly took out a cigarette, offered one to Chen Fan, and asked intently, "Won't that make your cousin suffer?"

Chen Fan took the cigarette and smiled at him, "There are supplementary clauses. If the revenue does not meet expectations, or even results in a loss, Jiangying Film Studio will need to provide them with films free of charge until the losses are made up."

Of course, any profits exceeding the amount covering losses and expected gains can be further shared.

Factory Director Wu nodded quickly, "Of course, of course."

Chen Fan glanced at Liao Yiyuan again and smiled, "As for how you two negotiate, I won't interfere."

After saying that, he stood up, pointed ahead, and said, "I'm going to watch the show. You two can talk slowly."

Just then, Chen Chong was playing the piano, and it seemed that he saw Sister Li had also arrived, so he had to go over and say hello.

Factory Director Wu reached out his hand, about to speak, but Liao Yiyuan laughed at him and said, "Factory Director Wu, don't worry. I wouldn't dare to lower the price for Director Chen's work."

Upon hearing this, Director Wu looked at him with a puzzled expression, wondering what he meant by "dare not".
Liao Yiyuan chuckled and, without offering much explanation, directly stated his target price: "Our United Film Company isn't as wealthy as Qianfan Group, and the Hong Kong market is small, so we can't offer such a high price. A minimum guarantee of US$20,000, plus a 3% share of the box office, is that enough sincerity?"

……

With the awards ceremony concluded, Chen Fan's mission was successfully completed.

The next morning, he took a plane back to Jiangnan.

As for Director Wu and his group, they took the train and left that very night.

Upon arriving in the provincial capital, Chen Fan did not immediately rush back to Yunhu to film. Instead, he returned to his home in Wenyi New Village, first called Takahashi Hideo to learn about the situation, and then took out several prepared documents to go to the Provincial Tourism Bureau.

Before he could even leave the house, He Qingsheng blocked his way back.

Seeing that Chen Fan looked like he was about to leave, he looked him up and down and asked, "Where are you rushing off to?"

Chen Fan pointed outside, "I'm going to the Provincial Tourism Bureau to submit a report to them."

He then laughed and pulled over a chair, gesturing to it, "But we have some unpleasant guests, so we can't leave now."

He Qingsheng didn't mind being labeled a rude guest. He plopped down in a chair and couldn't help but click his tongue as he looked at him. "Why weren't you this proactive when you were in the Writers' Association?"

Chen Fan tossed his bag aside, pulled up a chair, sat down, took out a cigarette and tossed it to him, saying irritably, "What are you talking about? How am I not enthusiastic about my work? When the correspondence course in literature was first established, I was so busy that I ate dinner in the cafeteria every day and slept in the guesthouse..."

He Qingsheng was speechless and waved his hand to interrupt him, "You eat in the cafeteria because you're too lazy to cook, and you sleep in the guesthouse because you don't want to stay in the school dormitory. You're just taking advantage of public resources, and you still have the nerve to say it's for work."

Chen Fan tossed a cigarette to his lips, caught it, lit it with a click, and said calmly, "What else could it be but work? Otherwise, would I be eating at wild game restaurants every day?"

"Fine, you're rich, so what?"

He Qingsheng waved his hand, "I have something to ask you. A few days ago, I received a notice from the General Association that everyone in the Yangtze River region should write a film script related to humanities and local customs."

I heard that this was something the headquarters specifically mobilized at your request. Is that true?

Chen Fan nodded. "Yes."

He Qingsheng looked at him curiously, "Why are you doing this? Why not make a proper movie instead of a scenery film?"

Chen Fan exhaled a puff of smoke and pointed to the backpack lying on the chair. "I'm going out now to take care of this matter."

He Qingsheng blinked. "Go to the Tourism Bureau? To handle this? Is the scenic film related to tourism?"

He tilted his head back, his eyes full of strangeness, and said, "You wouldn't be thinking of using scenic videos to attract people to visit Yunhu, would you?"

(End of this chapter)