Huayu: Director started with art films

Chapter 11 [Film completed, screened in the factory] Please read
"Is this the song you had in mind?"

Teacher Fang was a little surprised. Just by listening to Li Yishu humming, he thought the song seemed pretty good.

"Yes, it just popped into my head involuntarily when I was filming."

"That's great, Yishu. I didn't expect you to have a talent for music."

"No, no, I don't have any musical talent. It's just that this melody popped into my mind, and I hummed it and it sounded pretty good."

"Then your writing really has a bit of a natural talent, a stroke of genius."

"Haha, Mr. Fang, please stop making fun of me. Do I need to hum again?"

"Do you have a tape recorder at home?"

"Have."

"Go back and record a video for yourself and bring it to me tomorrow."

"Okay, Mr. Fang. I'll go back first."

"Go back, go back."

After leaving the dubbing studio, Li Yishu was not sure whether Teacher Fang could reproduce the song, but as long as it was roughly the same, it would be fine. The most important thing was the English lyrics.

When watching this movie for the first time, Li Yishu was curious why an art film like "The Mountain, the Man, and the Dog" with an obvious rural flavor would choose an English song?
It was not until I revisited it many times and thought about it carefully for a long time that I finally had some ideas.

This song is slightly inconsistent with the temperament of the mountains. It may be that the director wants to express that the young people in the mountains are quietly changing and are gradually being attracted to the outside world, which also adds a sense of alienation to the relationship between the son and the girl.

Just like the dispute between postal routes and highways in the play, the father insisted that rural postmen must take the postal route and cannot take shortcuts; but the son thought that they could take the bus on the highway, which would save time and effort.

Ultimately, how to choose and which path to take is a question that the times have given to the mountains and the people in them.

It is also a choice left to the viewers.

For Li Yishu now, in addition to the above factors, the reason for choosing this song is more for participating in the exhibition.

If you choose a Chinese song, those foreigners may not be able to understand it, but a song like this that clearly contains love between a man and a woman will still have an effect after all.

time flies.

In a blink of an eye, it was time to invite the factory leaders and a group of main creative staff to watch the finished film.

Jiang Qinqin originally wanted to come by herself because her mother has been busy with work recently.

However, Zhao Xue disagreed, saying that she, a beautiful girl, might be easily abducted by bad guys if she came here from the mountain city, so she ordered her son Li Yishu to take the last bus that night to pick up the person.

Fortunately, Chuanshan was the same company and they had a special car. Li Yishu went there that evening and returned to Sichuan the next afternoon.

During the one night in Shancheng, Jiang Qinqin's mother was very enthusiastic. Not only did she bring a lot of her homemade chili sauce to Li's mother, she also told Li Yishu privately that if Jiang Qinqin threw a tantrum, she should call her and she would deal with her when she returned to Shancheng.

Sichuan girls are born with a hot temper. Even if they look weak on the surface, no one can withstand them when they get mad.

No one knows a daughter better than her mother. Jiang's mother knew that her daughter had a bad temper. She told her in advance that she would give Li Yishu a heads-up.

This posture is exactly the rhythm of a mother-in-law.

This made Li Yishu feel very embarrassed. Looking at the rather young Jiang Qinqin, he always felt like a weird uncle.

Fortunately, his current body is only 21 years old.

this day.

Emei Film Studio.

The small screening room, which could only seat 50 people, was already full, and a dozen seats were temporarily added in the corridor next to it.

In addition to the main creative staff of "That Mountain, That Man, That Dog", the leaders invited from the factory, there were also many employees from the factory who rushed to the scene after hearing the news.

From the preparation of the crew to the final editing of the film, in the two months since then, the news has spread throughout the entire factory.

Everyone is curious about what kind of movie Mr. Li's son wants to make that is worth Mr. and Mrs. Li spending all their savings and even losing face by asking others for help.

During this period, there were naturally some who encouraged and were optimistic, but there were also some who made sarcastic remarks. Father Li Jian never responded to these topics, but mother Zhao Xue was a hot-tempered person, so she naturally didn't indulge these people and scolded them when necessary. Anyway, in a word, I am happy to pay for it, and my son is very capable!
"son!"

Seeing that most people had arrived, Zhao Xue patted her son's arm and said through gritted teeth, "Today you must fight for your mother and give those old women a slap in the face."

Jiang Qinqin beside her immediately nodded in agreement, "Godmother, Brother Yishu can definitely do it. I believe he can do it."

"Don't worry, mom, this movie is definitely not bad."

Li Yishu was full of confidence because he had already watched the finished film with his father and photographer Zhang Jiwu two days ago.

The overall style is similar to the original film, the only difference may be the scenery and the leading actors.

But Uncle Zhang is worthy of being an experienced photographer at Emei Studio for many years, and his skills are quite good. This version of the scenery gives Li Yishu a more beautiful feeling.

As for the leading role, the father Li Jian plays himself. Although he does not have the same superb acting skills as Teacher Teng, he also shows a father's expectations and recognition for his son's growth.

Li Yishu played the role of a 17 or 18-year-old young man who had just graduated from high school and was eager to take over his father's job. Later, he embarked on the postal journey with his father, and also acted out the feeling of being afraid of his father but longing to be close to him.

If Li Yishu gives herself a score, it is definitely not as good as Liu Ye’s, but fortunately, the main point is the expression of true feelings.

As for Jiang Qinqin, Li Yishu feels that she is better than the original version. Being prettier is one thing, but the most important thing is the wedding scene that night. Jiang Qinqin's eyes were full of movement, and she really performed what it means to be a girl with a poetic heart.

"Alright, be quiet, let the show start."

The deputy director stood up, interrupting the whispers of the people behind him, and nodded to the projectionist behind him.

"That Mountain, That Man, That Dog" officially started screening.

The screen was still black, but a beautiful flute sound was heard. As the opening credits ended, the words "Director Lee Yi-su's work" appeared in large letters, and someone at the scene laughed out loud.

Zhao Xue was angry and just as she was about to stand up to protect her child, she was stopped by Li Yishu.

"Mom, let's talk after we finish reading it."

"These people really can't stand seeing others doing well."

Zhao Xue was angry, but with Jiang Qinqin's comfort, she soon immersed herself in the film being shown.

“There’s nothing wrong with this shot.”

"so so…"

"This heroine is quite beautiful."

"Not bad, this wedding scene is well shot. Lao Zhang's photography skills have improved."

"Why is there an English song in this? This is ridiculous. This is just a local art film with a foreign song."

"..."

The people behind didn't seem to care at all whether their whispers would be heard by Li Yishu in front.

Although Li Yishu didn't care at first, the more she talked, the more she felt uncomfortable.

Jiang Qinqin grabbed Li Yishu's hand and smiled brightly, "It's okay, Brother Yishu, they don't understand at all. I think it's very good."

Yeah, what are they, just a bunch of old guys.

Even if he couldn't send it over in the name of the factory, he would have to find a way to sign up on his own. He was also hoping that it would sell well in Japan.

Now it is 1991, and the Ministry of Finance in Japan has taken the initiative to burst the biggest bubble, the real estate bubble. After the hard landing, there is wailing and pain everywhere.

They are traumatized and in urgent need of a film that can heal their souls.

As for the bad economy, there may not be many people going to the cinema, but I think this is not a big problem.

Japanese audiences have a long-term habit of watching movies. In this social context of double blows to the soul and economy, spending the money for a cup of coffee to buy a ticket for an art film that heals the soul is something that many middle-aged people would be happy to do.

(End of this chapter)