Huayu: Director started with art films

Wuhan has always been known as the thoroughfare of nine provinces, which means that nine provinces border Wuhan, it is well connected, and has abundant water transportation routes, which has made Wuhan a battleground for military strategists since ancient times.

Today, Wuhan not only has strategic significance, but also has extremely special commercial significance. As one of the Five Tigers of the Yangtze River, the rushing Yangtze River flows from the mountain city through Wuhan and then goes south through Anqing, Nanjing, and directly to Shanghai.

This Yangtze River shipping route almost connects Sichuan and Shu with the seaport of Shanghai in the south.

Wuhan, located in the central part of the city, has naturally become an important inland port on the Yangtze River shipping route.

This is not the first time Li Yishu has come to Wuhan. In her previous life, she came here to film several web dramas.

But coming here again now, he couldn't help but think of what happened more than 20 years later.

I really have to bear a huge blame!

It was already early morning when Li Yishu arrived at Wuhan Airport. He checked in at a foreign-related hotel in Wuhan with Izumi Sakai and a Japanese female assistant who was fluent in Chinese and English.

After a night's rest and recuperation, Li Yishu did not rush to report to the crew. Instead, she called Han Sanping and told him about her arrival in Wuhan. She notified the crew to hold a meeting in the afternoon and prepare to start filming tomorrow morning.

After finishing breakfast in the hotel, Li Yishu said with a smile: "Let's go, Quanshui, I'll take you around Wuhan in the morning. I have to report to the crew in the afternoon. I'm afraid I won't have time to accompany you during this period."

"It's okay, Li Jun, work is more important."

"I'll take you to the Shanghai Film Festival in October." At this point, Li Yishu remembered something and reminded them, "Remember not to speak Japanese next time."

Although China and Japan have friendly relations now, he has not forgotten the Battle of Wuhan, so he still reminded Izumi Sakai not to speak Japanese.

Izumi Sakai seemed to understand something and nodded: "Okay, Mr. Li."

I suddenly felt a little worried about the future.

Li Yishu noticed that her expression was not right. After thinking about it for a moment, he knew the reason. He smiled and touched her hair without saying anything else.

Some things are better left unsaid.

The three of them took the car arranged by the hotel and began to wander around Wuhan city.

After getting in the car, Li Yishu asked, "Driver, is there any busy place in Wuhan recently?"

"If we talk about the most popular place recently, it must be the Tonghua Cup Model Contest held in Zhongnan Commercial City!"

"Tonghua Cup Model Contest?"

As the exclusive driver of the foreign-related hotel, the driver naturally knew that these people had just returned from abroad and did not know the situation in Wuhan, so he smiled and said:
"Yes, Zhongnan Commercial is the largest shopping mall in Wuhan. Last year, they held a Tonghua Cup model contest, which is a children's clothing competition for children. Whoever looks the best wins. This year is the second session... Today happens to be the finals!"

Hearing about this competition, Li Yishu turned around and looked at Izumi Sakai and asked in English: "Izumi, do you want to go and have a look?"

"Okay!" Izumi Sakai agreed readily. She had just learned what this competition was about from the translator.

"Then please drive over there and take a look."

"no problem."

Along the way, Li Yishu discovered that there are already quite a lot of cars in Wuhan these days, but bicycles are still the main type, and motorcycles are rare.

After about ten minutes.

Soon the car arrived at Zhongnan Commercial City.

At this time, many ordinary citizens came to the square in front of Zhongnan Commercial City to watch the fun.

After Li Yishu told the master where to wait for them, he led Sakai Izumi and the female assistant out of the car and walked towards the square.

As it was impossible to squeeze in at the front, and Li Yishu didn't want to force her way in with two other women, she went around the crowd and came to the back of the square stage.

At the back, there were also many citizens watching, but not as many as at the beginning.

When seeing the seven or eight-year-old children, all dressed in beautiful children's clothes, gathered together, Izumi Sakai couldn't help but exclaimed: "Kawaii!"

The next second, she immediately covered her mouth.

"Don't be so sensitive." Li Yishu patted her arm.

Hearing this, Izumi Sakai smiled and said nothing more. Instead, she looked at the group of children who were putting on makeup. She couldn't help but said, "Mr. Li, do you like children?"

"It's okay, the child is cute."

Li Yishu thought of her older son, wondering if the boy had started learning to walk recently.
He is almost one year old now, so he should have started learning to walk, right?

Izumi Sakai's eyes lit up: "Then I will give Li Jun lots of children in the future!"

Seeing her cute appearance, Li Yishu couldn't help laughing: "Okay, give birth to many children."

At this moment, a woman passing by couldn't help but look back at him in surprise.

Li Yishu didn't expect that someone could understand English. She glanced sideways and was slightly stunned when she saw the other person's appearance.

Liu Tianxian's mother Liu Xiaoli? !

Liu Xiaoli looked at the man's face and felt that he looked familiar, but she couldn't remember who he was. Just as she was wondering, a little girl ran over, grabbed her hand, and shouted, "Mom, come here quickly."

Li Yishu looked down and saw a little girl about seven or eight years old. She was wearing a fluffy princess dress, with two crystal earrings hanging from her ears and a white mesh tied on the back of her hair.

Liu Tianxian!

Wow, it’s really her!
"so cute!"

Izumi Sakai also saw this fairy-like girl, and her eyes were full of stars.

"She is very cute." Li Yishu nodded in agreement. To be honest, Liu Yifei has been a beauty since she was a child.

Seeing the mother and daughter running to the makeup artist, Li Yishu and Sakai Izumi watched the excitement for a while, then left and prepared to go somewhere else.

It's a rare opportunity to play with Izumi Sakai, so I can't waste time here.

Although it was a bit surprising to discover the little fairy and her mother, it was more or less confirmed with my own eyes that what Song Moude said on the Internet more than ten years later was pure slander, such as transgender and plastic surgery face. She has been a beauty since she was a child!

Near a pier.

At this time, the crew was surrounded by onlookers in three layers.

Li Yishu glanced at the crowd behind him and the police officers standing guard nearby, and said, "Director Xie, the battlefield scene at Red Cliff will take quite a few days to shoot. Have you informed the city government?"

The next thing to be filmed is the naval battle scenes of the Battle of Red Cliffs. Unlike the previous filming in the artificial lake in Hengdian, this time it will be held in the Yangtze River, using five-story high warships, and real ancient naval battles with real swords and guns.

At that time, not only will rockets be launched, but a warship will also be sunk later.

This actually has a significant impact on the current Yangtze River shipping work. Xie Jin nodded: "Don't worry, Director. We have already informed in advance. The leaders in the city are very supportive. We have also informed the upstream and downstream cities, including some nearby fishermen, docks, etc. in advance."

"That's good."

After making sure that both the official authorities and private enterprises had been informed, Li Yishu finally felt relieved. If a ship suddenly appeared during the filming and caused some unnecessary trouble, it would really be a waste of time and effort.

"Is Leon Lai ready?" Li Yishu turned around and looked at the assistant director of the crew.

The assistant director quickly said, "I just went to see her. She should have finished her makeup. Can I go call Mr. Li now?"

He is a director from Wuhan Film Studio. He came here to participate in the filming of the Battle of Red Cliffs and added his name to the subtitles later.

Well, to put it simply, it’s a relationship.

After all, the filming had to start in Wuhan, so many extras and some less important roles that required a few lines were basically given to people recommended by the Wuhan Film Studio.

It's a kind of reciprocity. Others provide help, and you give them some experience as a relative.

Li Yishu didn't mind this. He didn't have to pay them wages, and they were all talented actors and directors. They were free labor, so why not take them away?

Li Yishu noticed that there was someone holding a camera in the crowd who looked like a reporter, so she said, "Well, let him come out and show his face first, because we'll start filming later."

The next scene to be filmed is Zhou Yu personally boarding the warship and sailing to the opposite side to observe the specific situation of Cao’s army’s water stronghold.

Of course, Cao’s army’s water fort is in Hengdian, and there is no place to build a water fort in Wuhan.

In the later stage, editing will be used to show the majestic water forts and camps of Cao’s army that stretch for hundreds of miles.

"Okay, Director!"

The assistant director hurriedly turned around and went to the makeshift makeup room.

A moment later, Liming, wearing Han Dynasty armor, walked out.

It immediately aroused cheers from the onlookers.

"It's Dawn!"

"Dawn, I love dawn!"

"Dawn I love you!"

"..."

At this time, the Four Heavenly Kings were sweeping the mainland, and it was also their most glorious year. Leon Lai was also very popular in the mainland because of his image of a refined and elegant young man.

His look today is not bad, a mighty custom-made armor, and a high-tied wig. Although his skin has become a lot darker due to filming, he has become more masculine and handsome, what a gentleman!
Listening to the screams and cheers, Han Sanping couldn't help but sigh: "Leon Lai is really popular, no wonder the director chose him to play Zhou Yu!"

"With such a huge investment in the movie, we still have to choose actors who have many fans."

Li Yishu did not object to what Han Sanping said. He chose Leon Lai and Andy Lau because they were both very popular.

He even invited Aaron Kwok and Zhang Xueyou to play the roles of Sun Ce and Guo Jia.

They all have minor supporting roles with only a few scenes and only appear in the memories of Cao Cao and Zhou Yu.

The former is a scene in which Cao Cao has an indoor conversation with Guo Jia about how to fight before defeating Wuhuan. Later, after being defeated at Huarong Road, he cried bitterly for Fengxiao's early death, otherwise he would never have fallen into the trap.

The Sun Ce played by Aaron Kwok is even simpler. Only when Zhou Yu leads his troops to attack Cao Cao’s water stronghold does he briefly recall the past when he and Sun Ce became sworn brothers.

The Four Heavenly Kings starring in a movie together is a huge gimmick!
At the very least, in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, and Southeast Asia, it will definitely attract many fans of these four people to go to the cinema.

Liming smiled and waved to the fans behind him, then came to Li Yishu and greeted them: "Director General, Director Xie, Director Han."

"Well, Ming, the scene later will be you boarding the warship and spying on Cao's water stronghold..."

Li Yishu briefly explained what was going to be filmed next, and Leon Lai nodded: "I understand, Director."

Seeing him nod, Li Yishu pointed to the crowd outside and said, "Take a few stagehands with you to say hello to your fans."

Liming was puzzled, but still nodded and agreed: "Okay, Director."

He left with two stagehands, and Li Yishu asked someone to call Zhao Fei over and asked him to bring the camera.

Li Yishu said, "Lao Zhao, start filming Leon Lai meeting his fans, and then edit the footage of Andy Lau and his fans into a behind-the-scenes clip. I will arrange for someone to send it to Asia Television for broadcast."

"Okay, director." Zhao Fei has been following Li Yishu for so many years and immediately understood what Li Yishu meant. It was to attract the audience and make people feel excited. He immediately picked up the camera and went to shoot.

Han Sanping and Xie Jin didn't react at first, until they heard that it was broadcast on Asia Television, then they suddenly realized.

"Director, there's no need to do this, right?" Xie Jin frowned. In his heart, he still holds the traditional ideas of the older generation. He believes that as a director, one should focus on the quality of the film instead of spending time on other publicity.

The aroma of wine is not afraid of deep alleys!

"Director Xie, I understand what you mean, but society is like this now. If you don't promote it, no one will know about the movie you made. It's okay in the mainland, but you have to promote it in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Southeast Asia, Japan and South Korea..."

Li Yishu could understand what Xie Jin meant, but the entertainment industry was different. In the past, it was an underwriting system. After the director of the production studio finished filming, the state-owned theater chain would underwrite the film.

In addition, the number of films shot each year is limited, so naturally the higher the quality of the film, the more audiences like it, and the more screenings it will have.

But times have changed. Without the underwriting policy, if a movie wants to be released in theaters and seen by more people, it must be promoted in advance.

Even Lee Yi-su, who is at the peak of her fame, must abide by this principle. Otherwise, ordinary audiences will not pay special attention to when your new film will be released.

Hearing this, Xie Jin did not say much about this, but asked in return: "Is Leon Lai really popular abroad?"

“It’s really hot!”

Li Yishu smiled and said, "They are extremely popular! Not only him, but also Andy who plays Zhao Yun, and other actors who have not yet joined the crew. The four of them form the Four Heavenly Kings. They are extremely popular in Japan, South Korea and Southeast Asia."

"Alas, I am old and can't keep up with the times."

Xie Jin sighed. Leon Lai's acting skills were just average, idol-like. When filming in Hengdian, he often made mistakes and was criticized by him for having no acting skills.

It is hard to imagine that such a person can be an actor. Even Liu Xiaoqing, who was famous all over the country at that time, was essentially an idol celebrity, but her acting skills in "Furong Town" were very good.

"Director Xie, in fact, each of them is excellent, but you just don't know them very well."

It was not difficult for Li Yishu to understand Xie Jin's mentality. While comforting him with a few words, she also mentioned some of Leon Lai's charity work and Andy Lau's participation in the 91 East China Flood Charity Show.

Hearing this, Xie Jin nodded slightly, and approved of Leon Lai and Hua Zai. (End of this chapter)