Chinese Entertainment

Chapter 52 Investment and Filming

The next morning, Ning Hao followed the address Gu Wei left for him and came to Xingchen Film and Television Company.

"Hello, what can I do for you?"

The front desk staff saw someone coming in and asked with a smile.

"Director Gu and I have an appointment to meet at the company."

Ning Hao said a little nervously

"OK, just a second."

After a while, the front desk staff brought Ning Hao to the office door.

"Dong dong."

"Boss, the people have arrived"

"Come in," Gu Wei shouted directly.

"Please come in."

The front desk staff opened the office door and extended his hand to invite Ning Hao in.

"Director Gu."

Ning Hao shouted nervously.

"Here you go, sit down."

After Gu Wei finished speaking, he walked to the bookshelf, took out the script he had taken time to write a while ago, and handed it to Ning Hao.

"You read the script first."

"Nightclub," Ning Hao said softly after taking the script.

In the office, Gu Wei turned on the computer and browsed the domestic news.

...

Director Chen Kaige is currently facing an interview with the media and revealed that his next movie will be a big-budget commercial film, with an estimated investment cost exceeding that of "Hero".

It’s here after all, Gu Wei feels a little emotional.

Director Feng Xiaogang's latest film, "Cell Phone," has now begun filming and is expected to be released at the end of the year.

In the crew of "Kung Fu", director Zhou Xingchi fell out with Hong Jinbao and was accused by the media of being a drama tyrant. Later, the crew invited Yuan Heping to be the martial arts director, and the two worked happily together.
...

The story of the script was very simple, and Ning Hao finished reading it in less than half an hour.

"How do you feel about the script?"

"Very good, the story is logical and everything basically happens in a convenience store, which makes sense."

Ning Hao took a sip of water and spoke slowly.

Gu Wei glanced at him and thought, “Yes, the content of the script has been revised by him and is more complete.”

"Are you interested in taking it?"

"Director Gu, I'm just a sophomore and I just made my first movie two years ago. Why did you choose me to direct?"

Ning Hao expressed the doubts in his mind.

Of course, Gu Wei would not say that he later became a billion-dollar box office director. He only said that he had seen his movie "Wednesday Thursday" and felt it was good.

"Director Gu, I'm only a sophomore and don't have enough experience..."

"When I first entered college, I filmed the movie "Tuya's Wedding", which won the Golden Bear Award at the Berlin Film Festival that year. If you lack experience, you can ask the school teachers for help."

Gu Wei was just bragging about himself, but what he said was also the truth.

"Okay, I'll take it. Thank you Director Gu for giving me this opportunity."

Ning Hao was also unwilling to miss this opportunity, especially for a student like him. The benefits of being able to direct a movie for Director Gu's company were self-evident.

"Well, take the script first, and we'll sign the contract directly later."

Seeing that Ning Hao agreed, Gu Wei nodded with satisfaction.

Afterwards, Ning Hao signed the contract with Xingchen Film and Television. Gu Wei did not pay him a director's fee, but the contract included a share of the box office profits, in order to allow him to devote himself to making the film.

...

After signing the contract, Ning Hao returned directly to school with the script.

When he got to school and told his teacher about it, the teacher also supported him.

In response to his questions about filming equipment and assisting personnel, he simply waved his hand and patted his chest to agree.

In just half a day, the news that sophomore student Ning Hao would direct the script of Gu Wei's director company spread throughout the school.

Suddenly, many freshmen and sophomores contacted Ning Hao to see if there was any chance for them to get involved.

Even some students who were working in other film crews were contacting him.

Before the filming started, Ning Hao's name became known throughout the school.

Upon hearing the news, Xie Xiaojing, director of the directing department, nodded with satisfaction and expressed his strong support.

There is no reason not to support the students of my own school who are making a movie based on a script written by Gu Wei.

On the other side, after Ning Hao left, Gu Wei took out a copy of the same script and gave it to Wang Chen, asking him to submit it to the relevant department for review.

As for the filming location and casting, Gu Wei left it to Ning Hao to decide. He did not intend to interfere and was only responsible for providing financial support.

...

The next morning, Gu Wei received a call from China Film Corporation.

"I heard your company submitted a movie script. What's the situation?"

"Director Han, I can't hide anything from you. This is indeed the case. I just submitted it to you yesterday."

"Who will direct? How much will the investment be?"

"Director Han, this is a low-budget movie, with an investment of only 200 million yuan. I found a student from Beijing Film Academy to direct it."

"Hey, I thought..."

Hearing this, Han Sanping immediately lost interest. The two then talked about the introduction of "Taken". China Film Group has already confirmed that the film will be released in China by early October at the latest.

"I've read the script, and it should be fine if it passes the review. I'll push for it to be completed on time."

"Thank you, Mr. Han."

Just as I hung up watching Han Sanping's movie, my cell phone rang again. I looked at the number and saw it was from Liu Yifei.

"Hey, Senior."

"Sissi, what's going on?"

Liu Yifei said a lot, the general meaning of which was to ask him about the casting of the movie.

Gu Wei did not make any promise to her, he only asked her to go to Ning Hao for an audition, and the decision was not in his hands.

On the other side, Liu Yifei had just hung up the phone when Zhu Yawen, Zhou Yang and others around her started chattering.

"Xixi, what did Director Gu say?"

"Xixi, have you decided on the role?"...

"Everyone stop arguing and listen to what Xixi has to say," Zhou Yang shouted beside her. Her personality is a bit like a boy, impetuous.

"The senior said that the roles in the movie have not been decided yet, but he is not responsible. He told us that if we have ideas, we can go to Director Ning Hao for an audition."

"Is Director Gu irresponsible?"

"Really? Then let's go find Director Ning Hao and see if there is any chance."

The students in the class were talking at once.

Han Sanping did not fool Gu Wei, and the script passed the review within a week.

On the same day, news came out that Xingchen Film and Television Company was about to start filming a new movie, including the creation of the script and its general content, which were revealed to the media by insiders.

Reporters who got the news began to report it, and people in the circle also started to pay attention.

However, as detailed information was released, everyone lost their enthusiasm. The investment cost was low and the director was still a student, so it was difficult to arouse their interest.

"They are really getting carried away. They invested 200 million yuan and hired a student to make a movie. They have so much money but nowhere to spend it."

In Huayi’s office, Wang Zhonglei complained upon hearing the news.

No one from other film and television companies in the industry was optimistic about it either. They just said a few words about it and didn’t take it seriously.

“Is ‘Nightclub’ the nightclub I was thinking of?”

"The student Ning Hao, who is the director, said he had never heard of this person."

"I feel like there aren't many famous directors from the Beijing Film Academy's Directing Department, but there are quite a few directors from other departments."

"The director upstairs, Gu Wei, is from the directing department."

Netizens on the Internet saw the movie information and started commenting.

...

September 9th, in the conference room of the Photography Department of Beijing Film Academy.

Movies that famous actors and artists in the circle don’t like are really different for students at Beijing Film Academy.

Look, the area outside the conference room is crowded with students coming for interviews, and there are quite a few people watching.

"Next one, Wang Luodan."

At the door, students were calling out the audition candidates one by one according to the list.

"Hello, Director. I am Wang Luodan, 01, Acting Department, Beijing Film Academy."

In the conference room, Ning Hao sat at the table, with two acting teachers next to him, whom he specially invited to serve as judges.

"Hello, just pretend you are a waiter and perform a scene."

Hearing this, Wang Luodan took a deep breath and started to perform.

Watching her performance, Ning Hao nodded. Although it was not perfect, it also had its merits.

Then he took a look at the scores given by the acting teachers and had an idea of ​​what was going on.

"Great, leave me your contact information and I'll notify you when there's a result."

"Okay, director."

Wang Luodan left his number and left the meeting room.

"Next, Zhu Yawen."

……

This movie doesn't require many characters, and the main scenes were shot in a convenience store.

After a few days of auditions, most of the roles were confirmed.

Wang Dongfang got the role of "Tire" in the movie, and he was the one who starred in the original time and space.

The role of "Tang Xiaolian" was played by Wang Luodan. She was just a sophomore in college, had long hair, and looked very pure.

As for the "robber" in the movie, Ning Hao personally invited teacher Zhang Jiayi to make a cameo appearance. He also graduated from the Beijing Film Academy and is not yet famous.

Ning Hao also invited several teachers from the acting department to play other roles.

The protagonist "He Sanshui" has not been decided yet. Ning Hao has studied the script. The role of He Sanshui is the funny part of the movie, and the character is between "smart" and "funny".

Finally, Gu Wei recommended someone to Ning Hao, that was actor Xu Zheng, who graduated from the Shanghai Theatre Academy and came into the audience's attention in 2000 with the TV series "The Legend of the White Snake".

Ning Hao got Xu Zheng's phone number through the school teacher and called him directly.

"Hello, is this Teacher Xu Zheng?"

"Yes, I am. Who are you?"

"I'm Ning Hao from the Beijing Film Academy's Photography Department. I'm currently preparing for a movie, and there's a role that I think is very suitable for you."

Ning Hao was very polite.

"Can I see the script first?"

"No problem, Mr. Xu Zheng, just tell me the QQ number and I'll send it directly to your email."

QQ Mail is a product launched by Tencent last year. It is an email product that provides users with safe, stable, fast and convenient email services.

Ning Hao hung up the phone and breathed a sigh of relief. Now he could only wait for the other party's reply.

...

On the other side, Xu Zheng was a little confused after ending the call.

"Ning Hao, I haven't heard of it."

Suddenly, Xu Zhengmeng was startled, found a computer and checked the latest entertainment reports.

After a while, I saw a detailed report on the movie "Night Club".

Afterwards, he logged into QQ again and opened his mailbox. Sure enough, he saw the script "Nightclub" sent by the other party. Yes, this time it matches, Xu Zheng thought silently.

Facing the computer screen, Xu Zheng slowly read the script of "Nightclub", thought for a while, picked up his phone and made a call.

"Hello, Director Ning Hao, I've read the script, it's a very good idea."

"So what do you mean, Mr. Xu?"

"I would like to ask, when and where was the filming of the movie? How long did it take to shoot?"

"The crew has completed the casting and is expected to start filming at the end of the month. The filming will take a month and the location will be near the Beijing Film Academy in the capital."

Ning Hao explained the general situation.

Xu Zheng did not agree on the spot, but said he would consider it. Whether he accepted the offer or not, he would give Ning Hao a reply in the next two days.

...

Xu Zheng didn't keep Ning Hao waiting for long. He replied to him the next day, saying that he was willing to take on the role. He didn't ask for much in salary, which was much lower than the market price.

The reason why Xu Zheng was willing to take on the role was simple. According to online reports, the script was provided by director Gu Wei, and he wanted to get to know this great Hollywood director in this way.

(End of this chapter)