Chinese Entertainment: Starting from 1996

Chapter 566 Interviews and Film Ratings

As time went on to the morning, with more media coverage and more people seeing it, the discussion about "The Tangshan Earthquake" on the Internet became more lively.

However, these media outlets were more focused on reporting the grand occasion of the premiere in Tangshan and the audience's reactions at the time. The headlines were similar, almost all of which were "Aftershock" premiered in Tangshan with tens of thousands of people, and the audience burst into tears."

These reports were all about the grand premiere and did not describe the movie in much detail.

But it does not affect everyone's curiosity about this movie. There are many messages from fans on the official Weibo of "Aftershock", and the comments are almost all one-sided praise.

From director Liu Zhou, to the screenwriter, to every actor, they all became the object of praise, which made all the audience who were looking forward to the movie even more excited.

On Thursday, July 26 at 6 p.m., "Aftershock" held its second premiere at Beijing Golden Harvest International Cinema.

Although the scale of this premiere was not as large as the premiere in Tangshan, it was much more grand and lively.

It not only attracted many heavyweights in the circle, such as directors Zhang Yimou, Xu Ke, Chen Shishi, Ning Hao, as well as well-known artists such as Jacky Cheung, Jet Li, Andy Lau, Qin Hao, Gong Li, etc., but also was star-studded.

At the same time, many domestic media columnists and well-known film critics were also invited.

This premiere was purely to promote the release of the film, so many celebrities and reporters were invited.

During the screening of the movie, there were constant sobbing sounds in the screening room, especially from the audience who were lucky enough to have bought tickets to attend the premiere. The guests, film critics and reporters also almost all had red eyes.

So the movie "Aftershock" is indeed very touching. It not only deeply touched the people of Tangshan, but also the vast majority of audiences across the country.

As the ending song of the movie sounded, the audience in the theater had not yet recovered, but soon after, they immediately gave warm applause.

Xu Ke was sitting next to Liu Zhou, and at this moment he said with some emotion:
"Mr. Liu, it's amazing, really amazing. Not only is the story good, but the special effects are also very good. I thought I should have caught up with you in the application of special effects, but after watching this movie, I found that there is still a big gap between us."

Xu Ke really admires Liu Zhou. He started using special effects in movies since the early 1980s with "The Swordsman of Shu Mountain" and has been the top special effects artist in China for more than 20 years.

It was not until Liu Zhou's sudden emergence that the several films he shot in Hollywood, as well as "The Martian" and "Interstellar", allowed him to surpass himself and become the country's most skilled director in applying special effects.

However, since Xu Ke joined Golden Harvest in 06, he has communicated a lot with Liu Zhou and the Golden Harvest Special Effects Studio. He thought that the gap between him and Liu Zhou should not be too big.

He didn't expect that this was just what he thought. "Aftershock" made him realize the huge gap between himself and Liu Zhou.

Although this movie does not use many special effects shots, the technical level is very high, especially the combination of physical special effects and CG, which is even more powerful than the special effects of Hollywood blockbusters.

"Director Xu, you're too kind." Liu Zhou replied with a smile.

Xu Ke is indeed obsessed with special effects. What he paid most attention to in the movie "Aftershock" was the special effects, which is indeed a bit different.

"When you are free, we can communicate again."

"no problem."

Afterwards, Liu Zhou received another round of praise. After seeing off many guests, he could not leave yet, as he had to hold a special press conference to accept media interviews.

This is also the most effective way of publicity.

During the question-and-answer session, the reporter asked some routine questions, and then the questions became more and more pointed.

First, a reporter from the Beijing Evening News:
"Director Liu, the movie Aftershock is very shocking and has had a huge impact on me. What I want to ask is, is Aftershock also a mainstream movie?"

Hearing this question, Liu Zhou felt helpless. He didn't know why they were so concerned about such a meaningless question.

When "Assembly" was released, especially after the movie was featured on the "News Broadcast", there was a heated debate about whether this movie was a mainstream movie.

Some people think that the main theme is to sing praises and emphasize collectivism, but "Assembly" does not have that so it is not that.

But some people also think that the protagonist Guzidi of "Assembly" is loyal to the country and his comrades, so it is.

I didn't expect that the question about the main theme would be related to my own movie. It's been so many years, I really don't know what's there to ask.

Both the higher-ups and the Film Bureau have determined that this is a mainstream film.

However, Liu Zhou also knew that it was not a good time to confront them, so he hesitated for a moment and replied:

“I think some people have a very narrow understanding of mainstream themes, and they view mainstream themes movies as a scourge, and even habitually give them bad reviews.

However, the concept of main theme is very broad. The main theme is not just about praising the revolutionary heroism, collectivism, optimism and fearless spirit of struggle.

At the same time, the main theme can also reflect the mainstream values ​​of society.

Our film is mainly about family and relatives. There is no need to say much about relatives, but what is home? Home is the eternal spiritual home of the Chinese people and the sustenance of life.

The Spring Festival travel rush is a large-scale population movement unique to China. Everyone knows the reason for this, which is that many people are going home, and even heavy snow cannot stop people from returning home.

Are there any differences between these people who are going home and the people in the car with Zhou Gongzi, Hu Jun and others who want to go home in the movie? There is no difference!
This is our mainstream value, and Aftershock is also a movie that reflects mainstream values, so it is a mainstream movie! "

Many reporters present nodded in approval. Most of them were relatively young people. Even those born in the 1970s were still young when the earthquake occurred and did not have a deep memory of the Tangshan earthquake.

But they will still be very moved when watching "Aftershock". Home is the softest and warmest part of everyone's heart, and this movie touches the warmest and softest place in everyone's heart.

Of course, this question seems simple to say, as if every director can do it. In fact, this is not the case. There are very few directors who can really do it well.

Otherwise, President Ju's deputy would not have thought that "Aftershock" was a milestone main theme movie after watching it.

At this time, the reporter with the label of "Huaxia Youth Daily" stood up and asked:
"Director Liu, the movie poster for Aftershock says 'Not recommended for primary school students and preschoolers'. I just watched the movie and the scenes were indeed quite tragic.

So Director Liu, do you support film ratings? "

This is another more difficult problem.

The issue of film ratings has been debated in the country for a longer time, since the 1980s.

However, in the 1980s and 1990s, the film industry was still in a big studio system, and the censorship was much more relaxed than it is now, so it was still in the discussion stage rather than the debate.

After the new century, the censorship became more stringent, and the issue of film classification gradually became a controversial issue. However, this time it was more directed at the general public, especially those directors of art films, who hated it.

Many of the subjects they wanted to shoot would not pass review, but they were all stubborn people for the sake of art, so the result was that they could only shoot underground films.

If you send your underground films to overseas film festivals to win awards, the president will not tolerate you and banning the director is a regular practice.

This has increased their resentment, and the fact that art films receive almost no attention in China makes them even more like shrews.

Therefore, the censorship system has always been the area they criticize the most, and film rating is the system they most call for.

Moreover, not only these art film directors, but also most directors in the circle and some film and television companies actually hope that such a policy can be promulgated in terms of film classification.

For film and television companies, it is okay if the script is reviewed, but if the film is stuck, it is very likely that tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of funds will be wasted.

However, there are loud calls for film ratings, but Zongju has remained unmoved. No matter how people criticize them outside, they remain indifferent and do nothing.

Liu Zhou is more aware of this situation. It should be impossible to classify films in China. In a few years, not to mention films, the review of other entertainment industries will also be greatly strengthened.

Why does Han Shanping have such a high status? In addition to the influence brought by his identity as the chairman of China Film Group, his powerful connections are also an important factor.

The original time and space "Dying to Survive" was able to be successfully approved and released thanks to his mediation, otherwise it would have been stuck. By that time, he had already retired from China Film.

The reason why he marked "Not recommended for primary school students and preschool children to watch" on the poster this time has nothing to do with the film rating. The main reason is that some scenes are indeed quite tragic and may cause discomfort to some people, especially for children.

Many parents take their children to the cinema to watch movies and can only rely on finding out in advance whether it is appropriate or not, but few parents do this.

Many people don’t understand what the movie is about. They go shopping as a family on the weekend and watch a movie together. By the time they enter the theater and realize that the movie is not suitable for children, it is already too late.

When "Lust, Caution" was released, there were actually quite a few parents who brought their children into the theater. It was because they didn't understand the situation clearly and bought tickets just because they saw Li An's name.

Liu Zhou specifically noted on the poster that although there might be some box office losses, he felt it was worth it and there was no need to traumatize some children's childhood just for the sake of box office revenue.

"This question is too complicated and cannot be explained in a few words, so I won't go into details here. However, the reason why I marked that line on the poster was because some scenes in the movie are indeed not suitable for children to watch. I didn't consider it too much." Liu Zhou replied calmly.

After hearing Liu Zhou's answer, the reporters present couldn't help feeling a little disappointed.

They had expected Liu Zhou to express some explosive opinions, which would have certainly been a hot topic.

I didn't expect that even though Liu Zhou has such a great influence, he still doesn't dare to express his attitude on this issue.

However, they did not dare to continue asking questions, and then a reporter asked:

"Director Liu, how much do you think the box office of the movie "Aftershock" will be?"

Damn, this question is the most tricky.

Many reporters ask this question, especially for big productions shot by big directors.

Liu Zhou had been asked this question many times before, and sometimes he would give them a number for the sake of publicity, but this movie obviously could not do that, and it was a big pit.

In the original time and space, Feng Kuzi was asked this question because he shouted that "Aftershock" could make 500 million at the box office, and was scolded by many people, saying that he was making money from the national disaster.

Liu Zhou would naturally not make such a mistake, and said with ease:
"Of course the higher the better, the higher the box office, the more viewers will come. For a major subject like this, the more people pay attention to it, the better.

China is a country prone to earthquakes, with earthquakes occurring every year. If our film can help more people pay attention to this issue, and help more people understand earthquakes and learn about earthquake escape knowledge, I think it will be a very meaningful thing.”

"Director Liu, will this film be nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar?"

The Chinese film industry has a very deep obsession with the Oscars, whether it is the directors, the audiences or the media.

The main reason is that in the past 30 years since the reform and opening up, Chinese-language filmmakers have almost won all kinds of film awards, big and small, except for the Oscars, so everyone always likes to talk about this.

Both Zhang Yimou and Chen Shishi have attempted to win an Oscar several times, but were unsuccessful, which makes everyone even more eager for it.

This is also why Li An's Oscar win greatly improved his status in the hearts of domestic movie fans. If Zhang Yimou had not directed the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics, his status in everyone's mind would not be as high as Li An's.

As a director as famous as Zhang Yimou, Liu Zhou has of course been asked this question many times, especially since he has never taken the initiative to sign up for an Oscar.

He didn’t have much of a filter for the Oscars before, especially since he knew what Hollywood would be like in a few years.

Not to mention the Oscars, even the influence of Hollywood movies in China has plummeted. Yang Ziqiong won the Oscar for Best Actress, but the popularity was just a passing fad.

But back to the present, Liu Zhou clearly felt everyone's obsession with the Oscars. He was influenced more and more, and he gradually had some ideas about the Oscars.

Especially when the audience was discussing the competition between him and Zhang Yimou for the title of the top director in China, it greatly increased his thoughts on the Oscars.

As the saying goes, there is no first in literature and no second in martial arts, so of course he also hopes to become the recognized first director in the country.

Now no one can match him in box office, but he is weak in awards, especially when compared with Zhang Yimou, the gap is even bigger.

The only way to overtake others is to win an Oscar.

So he is now also preparing for an Oscar, and not just the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar.

Winning the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film alone may not necessarily be enough to make up for the gap between him and Zhang Yimou. Only a more influential award can do that.

If Chinese-language films want to win more important awards like the Oscars, it is almost impossible to succeed if they just rush into the awards without any connections.

This is also why he started by striving for Oscars with Hollywood movies, and then worked on Chinese-language movies after building good relationships.

This is also the path that South Korean films have taken historically, and they have succeeded.

Chinese-language films may be more difficult, but he still wants to give it a try while national relations are not so tense in recent years.

(End of this chapter)