A widower's entertainment

Xinghua Hutong, Beijing.

Lin Zhaomei's passing the entrance exam for the Directing Department of Yanjing Film Academy with the highest score in her major was undoubtedly a great joy for the Siheyuan family. After all, as long as her college entrance exam score was high enough, Lin Zhaomei would be able to go to university.

It can now be said that Lin Zhaomei has already taken one step into the gates of the Yenching Film Academy.

After all, compared to academic exams, the real challenge is the professional exams, and the competition for that one exam alone is fierce.

This is why Lin Youcheng felt that it was truly remarkable that his daughter was able to achieve the top score in her major. After all, so many candidates failed the exam and only passed after several attempts. Now, Lin Zhaomei was able to pass the exam this time, and with such a good score. How could he, as her father, not feel proud and honored?

Feeling immensely proud and honored, Lin Youcai's family was naturally also filled with joy. Last year, Lin Zhaoqing took the college entrance examination, and this year it was Lin Zhaoan who took it. Unexpectedly, Lin Zhaomei was also going to take the college entrance examination. Lin Youcai, as her uncle, was naturally very happy for Lin Zhaomei and told her directly that he was waiting to give her a red envelope for getting into university.

However, while happy, Lin Zhaoan naturally felt pressure. After all, if his cousin Lin Zhaomei got into university and they took the college entrance exam together, it would be very embarrassing for him as the older brother to fail.

Of course, even so, Lin Zhaoan was still very happy for Lin Zhaomei.

Lin Zhaomei passed the art exam, and not only were her family happy for her, but her good friend Gao Yuanyuan also said with admiration, "Zhaomei, you are really amazing."

Gao Yuanyuan genuinely felt that Lin Zhaomei was incredibly courageous to take the college entrance exam in her second year of high school, especially since she was currently ranked first in the exam. This was truly remarkable. After Gao Yuanyuan told her parents about it, they also thought it was amazing.

"It's nothing, I was just lucky."

Lin Zhaomei genuinely didn't care much about being number one in her major. Not to mention that she hadn't even officially entered the film academy's directing department yet, and even if she had, she didn't know what the future would hold. After all, the film academy's directing department only admits twelve or thirteen students each year, which is a very small number. It's truly a case of thousands of troops crossing a single-plank bridge. Moreover, even so, not everyone who enters the film academy's directing department becomes a real director.

Of course, Lin Zhaomei also had another thought in her mind. She wondered whether her ranking first in her major was due to her own ability or the influence of her father, Lin Youcheng.

Lin Zhaomei naturally knew very well that her father was Lin Youcheng, which had a great influence on her. Back when she was at the film academy, a teacher had greeted her and mentioned her father, Lin Youcheng.

Like that sentence—her father is Lin Youcheng, she is Lin Youcheng's daughter... and so on.

In fact, Lin Zhaomei had also thought that if she worked in the film industry and became a film director, she would likely live in her father's name, since her father was a well-known figure not only in the domestic film industry but also in the international film industry.

It could even be said that her father, Lin Youcheng, is the top screenwriter in China.

As for her first-place score in the art exam, compared to that first place, it really means nothing.

However, even so, Lin Zhaomei still wanted to be a director because she really loved movies and hoped to make good films on her own, no longer relying on her father's reputation.

"Zhaomei, I really envy you. You've already decided to become a director, while I haven't figured out what I want to do yet."

Gao Yuanyuan looked at Lin Zhaomei and she really thought Lin Zhaomei was amazing. She had planned to become a director and make movies a long time ago, which was really rare.

Lin Zhaomei smiled and said, "I haven't decided yet. Just think about it now. You're so beautiful, you should become an actress in the future, and I'll film you."

"actor?"

Gao Yuanyuan blinked, seemingly genuinely thinking about the profession Lin Zhaomei had mentioned, and also wondering if she was truly very beautiful.

Just as Gao Yuanyuan and Lin Zhaomei were chatting, Lin Zhaoman knocked on the door and came in.

"Sis, these are freshly washed fruits, please have some."

Gao Yuanyuan naturally knew Lin Zhaoman. When she saw Lin Zhaoman bringing them fruit, she smiled and thanked him. Then, remembering that Lin Zhaoman was about the same age as her, she couldn't help but ask, "Zhaoman, what do you want to do in the future?"

Lin Zhaoman put down the fruit and was about to leave when she suddenly heard Gao Yuanyuan ask her this question. She was a little surprised, blinked, thought about it carefully, and said, "I want to join the army in the future."

"Join the army?"

Gao Yuanyuan was also surprised that Lin Zhaoman would have such a thought, but she felt that it was quite rare for Lin Zhaoman to be able to answer and express his thoughts about the future. She said, "Really? I didn't expect you to want to join the army and become a member of the People's Liberation Army. That's really amazing."

This was Gao Yuanyuan's true thought, because she hadn't expected Lin Zhaoman to be so clear about her thoughts, even if he was just saying it casually.

Lin Zhaoman smiled and asked in return, "And what about you?"

"I do not know."

Gao Yuanyuan shook her head and said, "I don't know what I'll do in the future." "I already said, you can be an actress!"

While eating fruit, Lin Zhaomei said to Gao Yuanyuan, "When I become a director in the future, I can film you. You're so beautiful, don't you think, Zhaoman?"

Lin Zhaoman did not nod directly, but looked at Gao Yuanyuan and said, "It depends on whether you want to be an actress or not. It depends on your own thoughts."

Gao Yuanyuan paused for a moment, then nodded. She knew that it all depended on her own decision.

An actor?
Gao Yuanyuan couldn't help but think back to when she was buying books in Wangfujing earlier, when an advertising company wanted to hire her to shoot an advertisement, but she didn't agree. However, now she wondered if she could not refuse so directly and if she could really try shooting an advertisement.

Gao Yuanyuan also had this idea in her mind. After all, her good friend Lin Zhaomei became a director in the future, so she could indeed consider becoming an actress. So, should she apply to the acting department of Yanjing Film Academy in the future?
These thoughts also crossed Gao Yuanyuan's mind. She had never thought about these issues before, and had never even considered studying acting.

……

Regardless of the impact Lin Zhaomei's butterfly effect has on Gao Yuanyuan, or what kind of butterfly effect it might have, whether she will still choose not to apply to a professional art school but instead enroll in a regular college like the Labor Relations College to study public relations and secretarial studies, those are all things for later. Right now, the real "butterfly effect" is playing out in the United States.

Although the movie is currently showing in theaters, the hottest and most talked-about topic in Hollywood right now is not the movie, but the Oscars ceremony.

Lin Youcheng still did not accept the invitation to attend the Oscars ceremony. This year's Oscars were obviously not focused on the films "Seaside Town" and "After This Our Exile", but on the film "Forrest Gump".

When the results of the various awards were announced at the Oscars ceremony, the film "After This Our Exile" received numerous awards, while "Seaside Town" did win a Best Cinematography award, which is quite a rare achievement.

The biggest winner of this year's Oscars was undoubtedly "Forrest Gump," which swept six awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor. It was a resounding success. The Best Original Screenplay award was given to "Pulp Fiction."

To be honest, it's quite remarkable that "Seaside Town" won a Best Cinematography award. After all, films like "The Shawshank Redemption" have countless awards. This is something that happens at the Oscars; winning an award is really unpredictable.

Although Lin Youcheng did not win the Best Original Screenplay award again, both of the Oscar-nominated films, "After This Our Exile" and "Seaside City," are related to Lin Youcheng, an Eastern screenwriter. It can be said that many Hollywood media outlets are already feeling sorry for Lin Youcheng.

It's not just a pity that the film "After This Our Exile" wasn't nominated for Best Original Screenplay, but also a pity that Lin Youcheng didn't win the award. In the eyes of media professionals, this is largely because Lin Youcheng, an Eastern screenwriter, had already won the Best Original Screenplay award for "The Truman Show," and winning the award again would be extremely difficult.

News about Lin Youcheng, the screenwriter from the East, continues to circulate in the United States. The news hasn't diminished just because Lin Youcheng didn't attend the awards ceremony. After all, from the very beginning, Lin Youcheng has been a very eye-catching presence at the Oscars, truly unique. If Lin Youcheng hadn't missed the awards ceremony, he probably would have stolen the spotlight from many star actors.

Lin Youcheng didn't care that he didn't win an Oscar, since it's all about luck anyway.

The fact that "The Truman Show" had won him a Best Original Screenplay award was already an unexpected surprise, so he naturally didn't think about anything more.

After all, Lin Youcheng also has another drama that he needs to worry about, namely "The Great Song Dynasty Forensic Examiner". Of course, in reality, this drama does not require Lin Youcheng to worry about it too much, since Kong Sheng and Tian Zhuangzhuang are in charge of it. Kong Sheng is also very concerned about his first TV series and knows very well that the opportunity to direct is hard-won, so he will naturally polish the drama well.

In Lin Youcheng's view, with director Junzo Arita in charge, things won't be bad.

Furthermore, although this drama was independently produced by Lin Youcheng's Huayi Film and Television Company, the production cost of the TV series was not a big deal for Lin Youcheng. After all, the copyright fee for a Hollywood movie script could be used to film several TV series in China.

As for recouping the costs of filming TV series, it's naturally the TV stations. Although the production costs of TV series are not low, the returns are also very high. For example, when filming "Water Margin" next year, the best advertising slot for "Water Margin" cost 10,000 yuan per second. Although the current advertising fee is less than 10,000 yuan per second, it is still not bad. Especially for high-rated TV series like "Crossing the Guandong", the advertising fee was close to 10,000 yuan per second.

This is why TV dramas are so popular now, naturally because the returns are also very high, much more so than the film market. Especially now that pirated DV cameras are rampant, the film industry is facing an even harsher winter.

As for Lin Youcheng's TV series, it is still being filmed. CCTV and other local TV stations have expressed interest in buying it. There is no other reason than that they would not miss out on a TV series produced by screenwriter Lin Youcheng. You know, the TV series "Crossing the Guandong" is still being broadcast on other local TV stations with very high ratings. Once you start watching the TV series, the audience will stop and watch every episode attentively. It has really become a popular show to watch while eating, and it has been popular for a long time.

Lin Youcheng has not yet agreed to CCTV's request, as they will discuss it further after the TV series is finished filming.

Lin Youcheng naturally had high hopes for the drama "The Great Song Dynasty Detective". Although it lacked the modern atmosphere of "Crossing the Guandong", "The Great Song Dynasty Detective" was definitely a good drama worth watching repeatedly. In particular, there was no such ancient costume detective drama in this era. If it came out, it would definitely be a pioneering work.

This is similar to how, after the TV series "Crossing the Guandong" aired, other television production centers and film and television production companies naturally wanted to follow suit and learn from it. Even if they didn't go to Guandong, they could go to Southeast Asia or the Western Expedition. Although their storylines might not be as epic or exciting as "Crossing the Guandong," they certainly wanted to learn from it. It's also like how, after the sitcom "I Love My Family," screenwriter Liang Zuo tried directing a sitcom himself, but unfortunately, "Temporary Family" didn't receive the same positive response. Originally planned as 120 episodes, only 40 were made.

In fact, CCTV itself had also considered producing a TV series like "Crossing the Guandong". This was because Lin Youcheng's side was unwilling to film a sequel or prequel to "Crossing the Guandong". Otherwise, CCTV would definitely have taken advantage of the popularity of "Crossing the Guandong" and filmed "Crossing the Guandong 2", and the ratings would definitely not be bad.

However, Lin Youcheng refused, and CCTV obviously had no choice but to consider making a TV series on the same theme.

Lin Youcheng had naturally heard about this, which wasn't surprising. However, he had no intention of following suit. On the contrary, the drama he was going to make, if not groundbreaking, should at least be a classic with far-reaching influence.

If "Crossing the Guandong" is a period drama, then "The Great Song Dynasty Detective" is a historical drama, so it can't be considered groundbreaking. However, this historical detective drama is definitely unprecedented.

Lin Youcheng is currently considering what to write and what to film for his next drama. (End of Chapter)