The literary era since 1979

Zhuxinzhuang, Changping, northern suburbs.

Gong Xing was standing at the gate of Beijing Film Academy when a familiar car slowly came into his sight and soon stopped in front of him.

After opening the car door and sitting in, I noticed from the corner of my eye that Fangyan's brows were furrowed and he looked like he was in deep thought.

"What's wrong? Was today's meeting not going well? Didn't you solve the problem of creating "The Great Battle"?"

"That's not the case. The problem with 101 has been solved, but a new problem has arisen."

While driving, Fangyan spoke briefly about the controversies and differences at the seminar.

"'The Final Battle' is going to be made into a mainstream movie? That's perfect, you were the one who came up with the term 'main theme', it's your strong point!"

Gong Xing was very surprised.

"The problem is not here, but in 'highlighting the main theme and adhering to diversity'."

He spoke in a torrent of words in dialect.

Gong Xing also shared his own views. After all, during the period of further studies at the Beijing Film Academy, he not only learned how to become a director, but also often discussed the most cutting-edge topics in the film industry on campus, such as the "entertainment films", "commercial films" and "main melody" proposed by Fang Yan.

And just like in the film industry, those who support "entertainment films" and those who support "main melody" in Beijing Film Academy are almost like water and fire, and are opposed to each other.

So when I heard the dialect mention "main-theme commercial films" or even "main-theme entertainment films", I was extremely surprised.

"It's amazing that you could think of combining 'main theme' and 'entertainment film' into one category."

"Well, it's hard to explain right away. Let's sit down and talk about it when we get home."

"I'm going to write an article called 'Where are mainstream movies headed?'"

Fangyan stepped on the accelerator and drove towards Shichahai without any obstruction.

...............

The next day, as the 30th anniversary cultural and artistic exchange activities were coming to an end, Fang Yan brought the first draft of "Where Are Main Theme Movies Going" to the editorial office of "Mystery World" on Lama Temple Street, and gathered Shi Tiesheng, Wang Shuo, Yu Hua and others, and everyone circulated it around.

Then, we will study every word and sentence of this manuscript and find out how to add, delete and improve it.

There was a pile of information on the desk, and Chen Ximi and Shi Lan were buried in it, specifically responsible for comparing official documents.

The slogan "highlight the main theme and adhere to diversity" is not just a random announcement.

When the higher-ups come up with a new idea, it has to go through numerous rounds of discussion and research before it can be announced at an appropriate time. If the central government hasn't mentioned it, what the hell are you trying to do here?
The order cannot be reversed!

Therefore, there must be a basis for writing articles. The current basis is the slogan "highlight the main theme and adhere to diversity". Therefore, this ideological argument must be consistent with the above spirit. New words cannot be created at random. We can only supplement them and talk about our own "understanding" and "thinking".

"Ya Zi, I think it's almost there, it's already very comprehensive."

Shi Tiesheng read it from top to bottom and asked, "Do you have any additional comments or suggestions for revision?"

"Change 'the main theme can be entertaining and commercial' to 'the main theme can also be entertaining and educational and popular among the people'."

The dialect was also read through.

"Teacher Fang, if we do this, will it seem like we are trying to cover up our own faults?"

In fact, Wang Shuo is not interested in either mainstream films or entertainment films. In his eyes, a movie that does not make money is not a good movie!
“Thoughts must be liberated little by little. If you are half a step ahead of everyone else, you are a genius; if you are one step ahead of everyone else, you are a madman.”

Fang Yan said: "When a real mainstream commercial film is successful and opens everyone's eyes, then we can talk about it openly. So even if we think so in our hearts now, we should not say that the mainstream commercialization and entertainment are the main themes. This will cause trouble. Do you understand?"

"Understood!"

Everyone said almost in unison.

Yu Hua suddenly asked, "Teacher Fang, from what you said, should we write this main theme commercial film?"

"Asking questions knowingly!"

Fangyan said playfully: "Let's work harder. I'll treat you guys to a good meal in the evening. You've worked hard these past few days."

Then, after another round of checking for omissions and strict revisions, articles such as "Where is the Main Melody Film Going" and "The Future of Chinese Films: The Shackles and Way Out of Main Melody Films" were finally finalized. "Where is the Main Melody Film Going" will be submitted to the magazine "Popular Film". As for the other manuscripts, if the first manuscript triggered a debate, I would keep them to refute or discuss them in depth to add fuel to the flames.

They also planned to make two copies of "Where Are Main Theme Movies Going" and let Gong Xing take them to Beijing Film Academy and Central Academy of Drama to trigger a small-scale discussion in the two major film schools and collect feedback from teachers and students. However, they did not expect that Zhao Baohua, who was arguing with dialects at the seminar, could not sit still first.

In the latest issue of "China Film Weekly", Zhao Baohua published a commentary article.

"I was transferred from Changchun Film Studio to Beijing to help Director Teng design a slogan for the main theme creation symposium held by the Film Bureau:

'Highlight the main theme and insist on diversity.'

This was the first time that this was clearly put forward. Another slogan that was adopted at the same time was the unity of three qualities, namely, artistry, thoughtfulness, and ornamentalness.

Now, these two slogans have become the guiding ideology of the entire film industry.

It comes at a time when the Chinese film industry is facing tremendous changes. As the saying goes, it is difficult to accomplish great things without unified thinking.

I would like to share my personal views on the issue of the main theme.

The main theme was first proposed by Mr. Fangyan, a famous Chinese writer, playwright, and film screenwriter.

Originally it referred to a musical concept, and was extended to mean the main spirit in literary and artistic works.

In my personal opinion, the main theme is to carry forward the spirit of the times. It is a social responsibility that changes with the spirit of the times. There have been many definitions, but I don’t think there is a scientific definition for it…”

Although Zhao Baohua opposed the dialect's views on commercialization and entertainment films, he also accepted the inclusion of "subjects that promote national spirit and reflect the spirit of the times" into the category of mainstream music. Since it is the spirit of the times, it will certainly be different in each period.

As for national spirit, truth, goodness and beauty, he did not explain them in detail, or he did not have the ability to elaborate.

But as soon as this article came out, it was like throwing a huge stone into a calm lake, causing an uproar.

All of a sudden, various filmmakers published articles, mainly focusing on three propositions:

How should the main theme be defined?

What types of mainstream movies are there?
How should we understand the main theme and diversity?

Not only conservatives, but also some filmmakers who work in entertainment and commercial films speak out without fear.

On the campus of Beijing Film Academy, Gong Xing could see students supporting different positions everywhere, and even heated discussions broke out between teachers and students.

"If the main theme refers to the content, and diversity also refers to the content, then this is contradictory in itself. So it must be that the content is the main theme and the form is diversified. We should correct the narrow understanding of the main theme, especially the argument that 'only revolutionary themes are the main theme.'"

"To implement the main theme, we must pay attention to both artistic logic and commercial logic. That is, the story is weak, the characters are weak, and the spirit is over-exaggerated, while the most basic creative elements are ignored, and the basic demands of the audience are also ignored, that is, the film must first be good-looking."

"........."

"Teacher Fang has previously explained his work Saving Private Ryan and the American mainstream theme. Films like First Blood, Platoon, and Top Gun are both American mainstream films and Hollywood commercial blockbusters. It's just that Hollywood is more clever in its mainstream theme, melting the so-called American spirit into the story and characters."

"For example, 'Rocky' is a sports movie, yes, but at its core it is a solid American theme."

"Why can't we use this as a reference to make a sports film with the Chinese women's volleyball team as the main theme?"

As soon as these words were spoken, they were immediately attacked by everyone.

A teacher from Beijing Film Academy tried to correct students’ misconceptions: “We can’t make the mainstream theme entertaining!”

"Can you choose not to help someone in the face of a disaster? Can you enjoy a romantic relationship with a clear conscience?"

"Then let's talk about the characters. Can you moan without reason? Can you break away from the masses and play the high and mighty kings, generals, ministers, young masters and young ladies?"

"Even when playing a revolutionary leader, one must be similar in spirit and appearance. Can you just let whoever can make a box office hit play the role?!"

There was a heated debate within the Beijing Film Academy, between the Beijing Film Academy and the Central Academy of Drama, and even in the entire film industry. The debate gradually got out of control and the remarks became increasingly extreme. In fact, both sides agreed on "highlighting the main theme", but the disagreement lay in the issue of "diversity".

It seems that acknowledging the diversity of forms is equivalent to acknowledging that the main theme can be entertaining.

The conservatives, especially the most narrow-minded among them, firmly believe that the main theme is revolutionary and biographical themes.

Whether it is a mainstream entertainment film or a mainstream commercial film, they are all heresy! They are all cancers in the film industry! (End of this chapter)