Entering the Chinese entertainment industry is like entering a deep sea

Chapter 671: The Third Invitation to the Spring Festival Gala Director

The news that Lao Han was promoted to deputy director of the General Administration spread throughout the circle almost overnight.

Ordinary audiences may not know this, but everyone in the entertainment industry is a sharp-eyed and observant person.

Bernard's Yu Dong knew the news first, but he was a little dumbfounded.

Seeing that Yu Pangpang looked unhappy, Jin Qiaoqiao wondered, "It's a good thing that the old leader is getting promoted, why do you have such an expression!"

Fatty Yu said irritably: “What do you know!”

In recent years, he has become more powerful and more confident.

He was no longer submissive to Han Saping and even dared to make a few comments.

People in the industry say that Han Saping is domineering. Zhang Dapao also criticized Han Saping, saying that he is a mountain eagle.

Even Yu Dong tactfully expressed his opinion to the media: "He is still a bit strong, and he is more domineering in the contract. He has always been like this."

The only reason he dared to say this was because he thought Han Saping would retire by the end of this year.

Yu Dong scratched his head in annoyance. How did Han Saping get promoted? Not only was he promoted, but he was promoted to deputy director of the Film Bureau.

People in the circle have different opinions.

Ren Zhonglun called to congratulate Lao Han immediately.

"Congratulations, Samping."

If it were in the past, Ren Zhonglun would definitely have spent a lot of time to annoy Han Sanping.

But today is not the right day.

People within the system only have superiors and subordinates. In the future, when there are outsiders around or in public, he will have to respectfully call him Director Han.

Han Saping has received no less than ten calls in this short period of time. Lu Chuan, Ning Hao, Xu Jinglei, Xiao Yanzi and others are all very capable.

It’s just that this promotion came too suddenly.

Apart from Ren Zhonglun, who was at the same level and heard some rumors, the only person in the circle who knew about it was probably Li Chen.

"Hey, what are you congratulating me for, Old Ren? There's no need for such empty talk between you and me."

"To be honest with you, I actually wanted to step down, but the leader said that those who are capable should do more work. I said that even if I step down, I can continue to contribute to Chinese films as a director."

Ren Zhonglun listened to Han Saping's goal setting and laughed in his heart and cursed the old man for taking advantage of him.

Everyone among them knew that if it weren't for the sudden emergence of the guy from Rongchen Pictures, Han Sanping's success this year would have been a foregone conclusion.

In recent years, Han Sanping has been most criticized for his arrogance and poor investment skills.

Although he has grown the market size of Chinese films from 20 billion to nearly 200 billion today, except for the films invested in Rongchen Pictures, most of his other investments have failed.

The most impressive thing was that he sold the Japanese copyright of "That Mountain, That Man, That Dog" for US$10, and the film ended up grossing 4 million yen in Japan.

Shi Chuan, vice chairman of the Shanghai Film Association, once publicly stated: "Han Sanping is not good at investment, he just got lucky."

What does this good luck mean? Even a fool knows that Han Saping's greatest luck is his ability to recognize people. He has been almost tied to Rongchen Pictures for nearly ten years.

Hollywood also reacted strongly to Han Sanping's promotion.

Han Sanping is very well-known in Hollywood.

The next day, Li Chen was invited to China Film Studio.

Han Sanping introduced him to two successors, one was La Peikang, chairman of China Film Co., Ltd., and the other was Jiao Hongfen, chairman of China Film Group.

La Peikang knew that Li Chen was the God of Wealth of China Film Corporation. The two had known each other for a long time, but Li Chen did not deal with him much. It was always Han Sanping who had direct contact with Li Chen.

"We are all acquaintances, so I won't introduce them."

"Hahaha, Director Han said it well. We are all acquaintances. Director Li, if you need anything in the future, just call me directly." La Peikang took out a personal business card and handed it to Li Chen. Jiao Hongfen followed suit, exchanged a few words, and also handed over a business card.

"You two leaders are too polite. Rongchen Pictures will definitely need your help in the future." Li Chen was not stingy with such polite words.

But as for future cooperation, it depends on whether the two sides can get along well.

Han Sanping's personality is to his liking, but La Peikang may not be the same.

The meal was eaten in the small canteen of China Film Academy.

Han Saping drank a lot, and Li Chen took the initiative to send Han Saping home with great tact.

After getting into Li Chen's car, Han Saping remained silent and just closed his eyes to rest.

Li Chen sent Lao Han home and was about to leave when Lao Han asked him to chat with him for a while.

After brewing a pot of tea, the two men sat opposite each other. Han Saping poured Li Chen a cup, and Li Chen quickly took it with both hands.

"Why do I feel like you are a little... a little polite to La Peikang, so polite that it's a little strange."

Li Chen took a sip of tea. He also drank some tonight.

"We don't have much contact to begin with, so shouldn't I be polite? I've always been polite to my boss."

Han Sanping snorted and scolded with a smile: "I don't know you, kid, you are just a donkey who follows the wind."

"I've told La Peikang that if you have any questions, go to him directly."

Li Chen nodded without saying anything. He still knew the limits.

It is better for the county magistrate to be in charge now. Reporting such matters to higher authorities is a taboo everywhere.

However, Li Chen is not optimistic whether La Peikang can have the influence of Han Sanping.

When Li Chen left, Han Sanping saw him out the door. Before he left, Han Sanping said something meaningful: "You are not a young boy anymore. You still need to pretend to do some things."

Han Sanping didn't say it explicitly, but he believed that Li Chen was smart enough to understand.

At the 1942th Directors Guild Awards Ceremony, Feng Xiaogang won Director of the Year and Film of the Year again with , following Earthquake.

Li Chen is still alone and almost an outlier in the industry.

All the directors under Rongchen Pictures, from big directors like Zhang Yimou to young directors like Lu Yang, are members of the Directors Association.

But Li Chen is not like that.

Li Chen could hear the good and bad words, so he smiled and agreed: "Got it, Director Han!"

Li Chen also paid attention to the 4th Directors Guild Awards Ceremony.

Feng Xiaogang, who flew in from Haikou that night, burst into tears after winning the award, and said frankly that he had "lived up to himself" over the years. Speaking of the repeated revisions caused by censorship, Feng Xiaogang was still his true self, claiming that only fools would be able to persevere.

In Li Chen's opinion, this repeated distortion of the censorship system is more like a gimmick to attract attention.

Although he is clearly the beneficiary, he pretends to be a miserable person who has suffered great injustice.

If the association is full of people like this, it would be better not to join.

Han Saping snorted softly. It was the same sentence again. He had heard it four times.

People's Daily Online

"'The Chef' sparked a war of words! Xu Zheng strongly supports it! Ning Caishen harshly criticizes it!"

"The action comedy "The Chef, the Actor, the Scoundrel" directed by Guan Hu and starring Liu Ye, Zhang Hanyu and Huang Bo was released on March 3 and has grossed nearly 29 million yuan in nine days. The film has a good box office, but its reputation has been "polarized."

"Ning Caishen's complaints triggered a "Weibo war of words" in the industry. Liu Chun said: "It is best to read Ning Caishen's film reviews in reverse. Everyone unanimously recognizes him as the Ning Bailey of the film industry."

Sina Entertainment News

"On April 4, the second work of Happy Twist, the comedy film The Richest Man in Xihong City, adapted from the American film Brewster's Millions, officially started filming in Xiamen."

"Director and screenwriter Yan Fei, Peng Damo, and starring actors Shen Teng and Zhang Yiming appeared at the opening ceremony."

"The film company officially announced that the movie "The Richest Man in Xihong City" will be released on December 2013, 12."

"This time, 'The Richest Man in Xihong City' once again sets the story in this 'very troubled' city, telling the story of Wang Duoyu (played by Shen Teng), who is at a low point, unexpectedly receives 1 billion yuan in funds, but must spend it all within a month."

"How can I spend money the fastest? For the first time in his life, Wang Duoyu felt "very troubled about spending money"! The audience is looking forward to what kind of story this "trouble" will bring."

"What is even more exciting is that as a newcomer in the film industry, Happy Twist's first self-directed and self-acted work is scheduled for the Lunar New Year holiday, and is expected to face off against the old king of the Lunar New Year holiday, Feng's Comedy."

"Will this year's Lunar New Year box office have a new king crowned or will Feng Xiaogang continue to dominate the world?"

"The Richest Tomato" is the first film this year to be announced to be released during the Lunar New Year holiday.

In fact, everyone from Happy Twist's CEO Zhang Chen to Shen Teng and other leading actors were both nervous and excited.

Although Feng Xiaogang's "Private Tailor" has not yet been scheduled, Feng Xiaogang previously revealed on Weibo that "Private Tailor" will meet the audience at the end of the year.

There is a high probability that the release dates of the two films overlap.

Coupled with the media fanning the flames for fear that the matter would not get out of hand, Zhang Chen was almost certain that the two dramas would clash.

This is equivalent to the first passionate collision between the new comedy star Happy Twist and the Lunar New Year's Day holdout Feng Xiaogang.

To say it is true is a lie.

But Li Chen's words made everyone in Happy Twist feel like they were injected with chicken blood.

Shen Teng was full of confidence and laughed, "Boss Zhang, what are you afraid of? Director Li said it well. If Happy Twist wants to establish its status as the uncrowned king of comedy, it has to overcome the hurdle of Feng's Comedy!"

"Besides, we are Director Li's people, and we are incompatible with Huayi."

Zhang Chen was not particularly scared, he was just nervous, even though "Charlotte's Troubles" is the box office ceiling for comedy films today.

But there are too many factors involved, such as being produced by Rongchen Pictures, Liu Yifei joining the team, and being directed by Director Li. Without these, it is unknown whether "Charlotte's Troubles" can top the list of Chinese-language comedy films.

On Weibo, various entries dominate the charts.

“Feng-style comedy meets a strong opponent!”

"Happy Twist enters the Lunar New Year movie season!"

“Who is the king of mainland comedy?”

"Can Feng Xiaogang hold on to the Lunar New Year box office?"

Wang Zhonglei's face was so gloomy that blood could drip out!
He felt that Li Chen was disgusting, by hiring a makeshift troupe to disgust the Feng-style comedy that was the treasure of Huayi.

Now that the other party has just started filming, they have already taken the lead in occupying the Lunar New Year box office. Huayi has no way out.

"Xiaogang, I won't say anything more. The company has provided you with everything you need."

Feng Xiaogang said in a deep voice: "Let's wait and see."

Wang Zhonglei invited Chenglong to make a guest appearance and even gave up 10% of his share to Chenglong!
"Idol Coming" started recording in Hainan, directly stealing the limelight from "Private Tailor".

Wang Zhonglei hated Li Chen so much, but he could do nothing about him.

He also learned a lesson from Wen Zhang's incident. Not only did he find someone to privately investigate the dirty laundry of the actors at Rongchen Pictures, he even included Li Chen himself in the scope of the investigation.

As long as he finds out some explosive information, he will follow Li Chen's example and give him a fatal blow before the movie is released.

Li Chen received a call at Zhizhen Painting Art and returned to Jinxiu Mingzuan.

Today, Jinxiu Mingzuan welcomed a special guest.

In the reception room of Jinxiu Mingzuan, Li Chen's secretary served tea to the middle-aged man: "Please wait a moment."

"Thank you. It's okay. In the past, it was always Director Li who waited for me. Today, it's my turn to wait for him."

The secretary smiled, and was also curious about what the CCTV leader wanted to do with Director Li. About half an hour later, Li Chen appeared in Jinxiu Mingzuan.

"Mr. Luo, sorry to have kept you waiting." As soon as Li Chen entered the room, he took the initiative to extend his hand and shook hands with the other party.

Luo Ming smiled and said, "I am a little abrupt. I know you are busy."

After the two sat down, Li Chen got straight to the point and asked, "What did Luo Tai want to talk to me about today?"

When Li Chen arrived, he called Han Sanping.

I told him about the visit from the deputy director of CCTV.

As a result, Han Sanping's guess shocked Li Chen.

But when I think about it carefully, I feel that Han Saping's analysis makes sense.

If he remembered correctly, the Year of the Horse came after the Year of the Snake, and the chief director of the Spring Festival Gala in the Year of the Horse was named Feng.

Just because of two extra drops of water, the Spring Festival Gala in the Year of the Horse was called the worst Spring Festival Gala in thirty years.

Professors at Qinghua University even called this Spring Festival Gala "Huayi Customized"!
"Li Chen, I'm here today on behalf of CCTV to invite you to participate in the bidding for the chief director of the Spring Festival Gala in the Year of the Horse." Luo Ming said with a smile.

Li Chen's scalp tingled when he heard this, and he thought to himself that it was just as Han Sanping had expected.

Just now, Han Saping asked him to call back in twenty minutes.

After he called, Han Saping said that the ratings of the Spring Festival Gala were getting lower and lower every year, and there was a high probability that CCTV would break the old rules and use outsiders this time.

And he, Li Chen, is probably the first choice.

First, Li Chen has a diverse style. He can handle small comedy-style themes as well as large-scale scenes such as variety shows.

Moreover, Li Chen is multi-talented, and his screenwriting and composing skills are second to none.

No one is more suitable except Li Chen.

At that time, Li Chen really hated his own versatility.

He was absolutely unwilling to take on this thankless job.

Being the chief director of the Spring Festival Gala may be a very glorious thing in the eyes of outsiders.

But for people in the circle, that's just asking for trouble.

Yuan Dezhao, who has served as the chief director of the Spring Festival Gala twice, likened the chief director of the Spring Festival Gala to the "chief stage manager," meaning that he is the one who serves the actors, and there are more than a dozen people in charge in front of him.

Whether a program can be performed on the Spring Festival Gala is not an easy matter.

He himself is a well-known "dictator". Whether in the company or outside, he has the final say.

If there are disagreements at that time, who should we listen to?
He can't fight ten people alone.

Li Chen pretended to be stupid and said, "Luo Tai, it is my honor to be invited to the Spring Festival Gala."

"It's just that I can't get away from the post-production of 'Vientiane Island'. This is a $1.6 million investment, and I have to be responsible to several other producers, so I'm really sorry."

Luo Ming seemed to have expected Li Chen to say this, and waved his hand generously, "Don't rush to refuse. Your situation has already been considered by the station."

"I specially prepared two executive directors for you. In the past, there was only one."

"As for the post-production of 'Vientiane Island' that you mentioned, you can definitely take care of both sides. We fully believe in your ability."

"There's no rush for this matter. Go back and discuss it with your family." Luo Ming smiled confidently.

Li Chen sneered in his heart and discussed something with his family.

He could guess without even discussing it that his mother, his mother-in-law, and Miss Liu would most likely support him bidding.

This is the Spring Festival Gala for Chinese people all over the world.

Li Chen really wanted to refuse in person, but after thinking about it, he decided not to.

Li Chen sent Luo Ming to the elevator and then returned to the office.

When talking to Miss Liu in the evening, she was surprised to hear that the deputy director of CCTV had personally come forward to invite her husband to be the chief director of the Spring Festival Gala.

He immediately said in surprise: "Really?"

"Ah."

"Oh, you're so great, dear!" On the other end of the phone, Liu Yifei's face was full of pride and joy.

Unexpectedly, Li Chen said: "But I don't plan to go."

Liu Yifei was stunned: "Why?"

Li Chen told Miss Liu the reason.

Miss Liu also hesitated: "If it's really like what you said, then it's better not to go."

A few days later, Li Chen replied to Luo Ming and politely declined CCTV's invitation.

Han Sanping received a call from Luo Ming. They were both directors before, but now he is one level higher than him.

"Director Han, you are familiar with Li Chen. You should know his abilities better than anyone else. The station feels that no one is more suitable than Li Chen, so we hope you can help this guy change his mind."

"Don't worry, wait for my news." Han Saping patted his chest loudly, but his heart was actually beating fast.

Li Chen is a stubborn guy. Once he makes a decision, he never changes his mind.

Especially after Rongchen Pictures became bigger, he became a little arrogant, perhaps without even realizing it.

After hanging up the phone, Han Saping called Li Chen again and gave him a few words of advice as per routine.

"Luo Ming called me, please give me some face! Go ahead." Han Saping deliberately emphasized the word 'face'.

Li Chen understood what he meant: "Sorry, Mr. Han, no one can change my decision!"

The two thought their duet was perfect, but after a few days, Li Chen still couldn't stick to it.

Han Sanping achieved his goal and called Luo Ming back: "Luo Tai, this kid is so stubborn that he rejected me directly."

Luo Ming was furious when he heard what Han Sanping said, and immediately believed it to be true: "Director Han, thank you, I will think of a solution."

Li Chen thought that the matter should end here.

Unexpectedly, Han Saping asked him to come to the bureau that day. Li Chen asked what was the matter, but Han Saping said he would know when he came.

When he arrived at the bureau, Li Chen understood everything.

Two deputy ministers and one director, this is the three heroes fighting Lu Bu.

He is not Lu Bu, he can't even escape.

"Mr. Hu, Mr. Han, Mr. Luo, you don't need to say anything. I'll take this job."

"I only have one request. If you don't win the bid, that's fine. But if you win, I have the final say on everything."

"It's not that I, Li Chen, am overbearing. It's just that since the leaders have asked me, Li Chen, to take on this important responsibility, they value my status outside the system, so everything has to be done according to my style."

Hu Tai, Han Sanping and Luo Ming looked at each other and laughed: "We'll do as you say."

Since the goal was achieved, the two directors left first.

Han Sanping felt a little embarrassed, but the other party came to his door without saying hello, and he couldn't give Li Chen a hint in front of his two colleagues.

Li Chen said nothing, but sighed in front of Han Sanping: "Boss Han, wasn't that a bit too much?"

Han Sanping didn't react: "Which sentence?"

Li Chen shook his head: "It's just that I made the decision, no one can change it."

Han Sanping laughed heartily: "You just found out. I really wanted to kick you at that time."

"I'm acting with you, and you're serious." After saying that, Han Sanping laughed first.

Li Chen also started laughing.

"Well, since you've agreed, you should prepare well. The bidding is just a formality. The fact that Mr. Hu personally came to invite you means that you have already been selected."

Of course Li Chen understood this principle.

Feng Xiaogang was filming "Private Tailor" at that time, but it did not delay the bidding for "Huayi Tailor".

At this year's Hong Kong Film Awards, "Kowloon Walled City" leads with 12 nominations.

Chen Jiahe, Xiang Huaqiang and Liu Dehua all hoped that Li Chen could go.

But at this time, Li Chen didn't want to be in the spotlight.

Interestingly, the most popular nominees for Best Actor and Best Actress are both former artists of Rongchen Pictures.

It’s just that Zhou Xun didn’t go, and it’s a good thing she didn’t go, otherwise a Venice Film Festival Best Actress would have lost to a singer named Yang Qianye, and the Academy Awards would have made headlines again.

Deng Chao and Wang Baoqiang won the Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor awards respectively.

A pair of Running Man brothers seemed to have discussed it when they were interviewed after the award ceremony.

This set of rhetoric directly became a hot topic and created a famous scene at the Academy Awards.

Wang Baoqiang humorously told the media from both sides of the Taiwan Strait and Hong Kong: "I want to thank Director Li, Director Lu, the Academy Awards, and Brother Chao."

Wang Baoqiang continued to make shocking remarks: "Brother Chao, what you should be most thankful for is the Hong Kong Film Awards."

Deng Chao laughed beside him.

The reporters all laughed and asked, "Why?"

Wang Baoqiang said honestly: "Although I won the Best Supporting Actor Award, Director Li told me that if we only judge the Best Actor in this play, it must be Baoqiang!"

Many media present burst into laughter.

Although Li Chenren did not go to the Academy Awards, he is still the protagonist of the Academy Awards.

In recent years, the Hong Kong films produced by Rongchen Pictures have almost single-handedly carried the banner of Hong Kong films.

It even won the vast majority of awards at the Academy Awards.

Xiang Huaqi originally wanted to get a Best Supporting Actor award for his son.

Unfortunately, his strength is not as good as Li Chen.

"Husband, do you think he met with Zhou Xingchi for the sequel of Journey to the West? Doesn't he know about our relationship with Zhou Xingchi?" Ever since Mrs. Xiang learned that Zhou Xingchi went to Beijing to meet Li Chen secretly, she changed the way she addressed Li Chen from Director Li to "him".

Xiang Huaqi said impatiently: "So what if you know? Who do you think we are in the mainland?"

Xiang Tai was confused and didn't know why her husband was so angry.

Xiang Zuo was even more confused.

Chen Jiashang returned to Beijing with Deng Chao.

Before coming, Wang Changtian and Chen Jiashang hinted that Wang Baoqiang and Deng Chao's Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor awards were due to their strength.

The Chen family now has the support of Wang Changtian, and their base is all in the mainland, so it is naturally impossible for them to let Xiang Huaqiang take the helm.

If Xiang Zuo won the Best Supporting Actor award, I'm afraid he, as the chairman of the Academy Awards, should change his surname to Xiang.

In his opinion, Xiang Zuo has nothing to do with acting.

(End of this chapter)