Unscientific Movie King

Chapter 191: Being a Director, Embarrassing Journey Begins

October, National Day holiday.

Good news, during the seven-day holiday, the cinemas were crowded with people watching movies.

Bad news, there are many blockbuster movies, all directed by famous directors and starring movie stars, and ordinary movies will be killed without a single scratch.

But these have nothing to do with Qin Chuan, because he has no movies released during the National Day holiday.

He was busy throughout October, personally checking the costumes, props, and makeup.

In November, the script of Lost on Journey was reviewed by the State Administration of Optoelectronics, approved for filing, and the filming permit was obtained.

In the president's office of Qin Dynasty Entertainment, Qin Chuan looked at a page of ordinary license with a stamp and smiled.

Films that are not registered and do not have a license are called black films. If they are reported during the filming process, they will be stopped, and they cannot be released even after filming is completed.

In the 1990s, many directors' large-scale films were considered black films and could only be sold to foreigners at film festivals abroad.

Lost on Journey is a low-budget comedy film with no large-scale scenes and no political sensitivity, so there is no possibility of it failing the censorship.

The issuance of permits is to be expected.

It was just the first time in his life that Qin Chuan was preparing for a movie, so he felt a little emotional, just like a novice who was washing his feet for the first time. It was obviously a very ordinary thing, but he felt inexplicably nervous, excited, a little expectant, and uneasy.

Qin Chuan picked up the landline phone on the table and called Jin Lian's office: "Gather people and hold a meeting."

Ten minutes later, the management of the film and television department arrived.

Qin Chuan was the last to enter, carrying a thermos cup.

Everyone stands.

Nodding with a smile, he motioned for everyone to sit down.

More than an hour later, the meeting ended and Qin Chuan could hardly smile.

The meeting was over and preparations for all departments of Lost on Journey were almost complete, except for the less than ideal investment.

Not many people are willing to invest in him.

It is true that coal bosses are rich, but they are not stupid. If they want to invest, they will invest in directors who are capable and have achieved results.

Qin Chuan is a newcomer, so they don’t dare to invest and are just waiting and watching.

Scratching his head, Qin Chuan said in a deep voice: "Forget it if no one invests. For the first play, we will invest alone and take money from the company's funds. The budget is 15 million. When the time comes, we will refund or make up for the shortfall."

"Mr. Qin!" Jinlian wanted to persuade Qin Chuan to be cautious.

There is no sole proprietorship in filming TV series and movies. Even a large company like Tangren cannot guarantee that every drama will be a hit and sell well.

There are also some social etiquette that need to be taken care of.

Sole proprietorship has more disadvantages than advantages.

Qin Chuan raised his hand: "No need to say more, let's do this, everyone get ready, gather the actors, and start filming next month."

The main actors in this play are him and Wang Baoqiang, and the others are just minor roles, so it's not a big problem.

After the meeting, Qin Chuan called Wang Baoqiang and Liu Sisi respectively to tell them the start time.

Then he put on his coat and drove to Zhao Jian's house.

In addition to being one of the leading actors, Qin Chuan is also the nominal director of the play. However, since he is shooting and directing the play himself, his schedule must be tight, and he needs someone to share the director's work with him.

So he hired four assistant directors for this play, one was responsible for filming, and the remaining three were responsible for life on the set, department coordination, on-site guidance, etc.

The reason I looked for Zhao Jian was because I was worried about being cheated by outsiders, so I asked him to be a consultant for the crew and keep an eye on things.

Qin Chuan has been in the industry for more than a year or two, and he knows how complicated this industry is. There are so many departments in a film crew, with hundreds of people working together, and there are many places where money can be defrauded.

Some assistant directors and directors would cheat investors without blinking an eye.

It cost hundreds of thousands to build a bunker, and it exploded after filming a scene, and later you were asked to pay two million.

A shabby prop hat, said to be purely handmade, cost five thousand yuan, but was actually bought from a two-yuan store.

There was once a joke like this: a boss invested in a movie, and at the beginning he drove a Mercedes-Benz to visit the crew.

Half a year later, the crew had spent tens of millions of dollars, but the filming was still not finished.

When the boss comes again, he can only ride a motorcycle.

……

In December, Qin Chuan found a Feng Shui master, picked an auspicious day, and led the crew to hold the opening ceremony.

When he was filming in the past, he would sneer at the director when he saw him doing this. Now that he is a director, he learns word for word.

When worshiping the gods, Qin Chuan silently recited the names of Amitabha Buddha, Jade Emperor, and Guanyin Bodhisattva, hoping that the gods would bless the filming of the movie to avoid any accidents and that it would be a big hit at the box office.

"Clap clap clap!"

The opening ceremony ended with the sound of crackling firecrackers.

Qin Chuan gave red envelopes to the actors one by one, and finally everyone took a group photo.

In the evening, everyone had dinner together.

Qin Chuan and Liu Sisi sat at the same table.

"Your scenes are all in the back. It's a bit early now. Why don't you go home and rest?"

Qin Chuan knows the workload involved as she is starring in two dramas in a row, both of which are female leads.

I didn't want her to come so early, but I didn't expect her to arrive on the first day.

"Rest is not rest no matter where you are." Liu Sisi looked a little haggard, but still smiled sweetly: "It's the same if I come here to rest."

"I've been on the set for so long. To be honest, if I were asked to go home now, I might not be used to it yet."

She had just finished filming the drama "The Strange Hero Iljimae" yesterday, rested for a night, and flew over this morning.

I almost missed the launch conference.

So we rushed here just to support Qin Chuan.

"Thanks a lot."

"It's not hard, it's all fun."

When Qin Chuan was participating in the crew's team building, some artists in the circle saw the photos he posted of the start of filming and sent their blessings under his Weibo.

Yang Mi: "Brother Chuan, sure, since it's such a secret, please consider me for the female lead in the next play."

Liu Yifei: “?”

Han Hong: "I wish it a big box office success."

Hu Ge: "Boss, I have something to discuss with you."

Long Danni: "No, he's going to be a director again. When can the concert be arranged?"

Li Huizhu: "Chuanzi, this business is very complicated, you can't control it."

Cai Yinong: "Okay, okay, keep going, I'm rooting for you."

The person who is most depressed when Qin Chuan is the director is Long Danni.

Qin Chuan’s album sold well last year and his popularity skyrocketed. If nothing unexpected happens, the next step for him to do is to hold a concert to reap the profits.

Qin Chuan jokingly calls himself an amateur singer and his main job is an actor. He spends most of his time filming.

His schedule was already tight, so it was not easy for Long Danni to stop him once, and now he is playing the role of director, leaving him even less time.

The concert will take forever to be scheduled.

If Long Danni is depressed, then Cai Yinong is happy.

Qin Chuan, this prodigal son, has so much money that he has no place to spend it.

He actually went to make a movie.

This is much worse than investing in pornography, gambling and drugs.

A movie can easily cost tens of millions, and the payback period is very long. From preparation to release, a year is considered fast.

If the movie flopped, not only would the company lose tens of millions, but all of the work put into the movie for the entire year would have been in vain.

How many artists who are at the peak of their careers are delayed for a year?

The initial budget was just over 10 million. If we can make another big-budget movie next year, haha, we will be one step closer to becoming a sugar man.

There are many people on the Internet who have similar ideas to Cai Yinong.

Especially the directors in the circle, when they saw Qin Chuan directing, they all sneered and waited for him to fail, and then they would give him a beating and say that not everyone can be a director.

Of course, there are also many people who hope Qin Chuan will be well.

Such as fans and friends.

They all encouraged and supported him.

……

In Lost on Journey, in the first scene, Qin Chuan was filmed at the airport using a candid camera.

Niu Geng and Li Chenggong met at the airport.

This scene was half live-action and half set.

The actual shots show people coming and going in the airport, rushing to catch flights, and the scene in the waiting room.

The set was the service counter, where Niu Geng went through security check and was forced to hand over all the pots and pans.

"Camera, ready!"

"Take the photo secretly, quickly, and try not to draw attention."

"Three, two, one!"

"start!"

The people in the airport are all ordinary people. They have not received any training and will not cooperate with the filming at all, and they are not obligated to cooperate.

If you see film crews gathering together to shoot, you might just gather around and watch, which would be counterproductive.

Taking secret photos is the most economical and efficient method.

"it is good!"

"Pass!"

"Change place, next one."

At the airport, after shooting seven or eight takes, Qin Chuan felt that it was about right, so he led the team to finish work and prepare for the next scene.

A gymnasium in Peking.

Inside the studio built by the crew.

"Um, is this a standing ticket or a seated ticket?" "Airplane tickets are all seated."

"Thank you. Where is the platform?"

"Hey, hey, hey, young man, this is an airport, there is no platform." Li Chenggong, played by Qin Chuan, could not stand Niu Geng's ignorance, and in order to save time, he took the initiative to help: "Your boarding gate is 2B, seat number 13C, go quickly, bye."

"Brother, where is Er B?"

"Go through security first."

Not knowing where this weirdo came from, Li Chenggong just wanted to get rid of him quickly.

After a while, Niu Geng was stopped at the security checkpoint.

Holding an iron pot and a shovel in his hands, he angrily said, "You are not allowed to bring this, you are not allowed to bring that, and the luggage needs to be hauled. Okay, I will haul it later, but why are you not allowed to bring my milk..."

"Click, pass!"

"Prepare for the next one."

While waiting for the show, Wang Baoqiang came to the monitor to watch the playback and said, "Brother Chuan, you know what, it feels a bit like the Spring Festival travel rush."

"When I went home, I walked like this, carrying a snakeskin bag and a backpack. But there were no planes at that time, so I could only take the bus or the green train."

"But this security checkpoint is a bit dirty. Why aren't you at 2B?"

Qin Chuan smiled awkwardly: "It's all artistic effect, let's not talk about these small details. You're going to drink milk later, take it easy, we'd better get it done in one go."

I have to say that Baoqiang is really good at playing this kind of role.

It was so perfectly executed that it didn't look like acting at all.

So honest that it makes people want to laugh.

But not exaggerated.

"No problem, leave it to me." Wang Baoqiang patted his chest and assured.

A few minutes later, the milk was not allowed to be taken away, so Niu Geng chose to drink it on the spot in order not to waste it.

Outside the set, everyone's eyes were on Wang Baoqiang.

Because the big bottle in his hand was really milk, and it was ten kilograms.

"Get ready, start!"

After Qin Chuan shouted "start", Baoqiang unscrewed the bottle cap and drank it all in one gulp.

Five seconds later, he choked and milk flowed down the corners of his mouth.

But he didn't stop.

This scene made everyone's scalp tingle.

Liu Sisi, who was watching the show, swallowed her saliva and thought to herself that it was amazing.

Wang Baoqiang's acting skills have a natural quality to them. Sometimes you really can't tell whether he is acting or just reacting naturally.

The same is true for Qin Chuan's acting.

She had previously sought acting training from a teacher at the Beijing Film Academy, and the teacher said that the highest level for an actor is not to act.

Really listen, really watch, really feel.

All the actions, lines, and physiological reactions are expressed very naturally.

At present, Wang Baoqiang has reached this level.

No wonder he is the best actor and best TV actor at such a young age. Liu Sisi is not jealous at all.

"belch!"

After drinking the milk, Wang Baoqiang stretched his neck and let out a long burp.

"Click, pass!"

"Add a group performance shot."

Qin Chuan came to Wang Baoqiang and slapped him on the back: "Not bad, Baoqiang, you..."

"puff!"

After being hit, Wang Baoqiang vomited out all the milk he had just drunk, as if he had turned on a faucet, and he vomited while bending over.

Qin Chuan retreated and jumped one meter away.

"Oh my god, Baoqiang, are you okay?"

Wang Baoqiang waved his hands: "No, it's nothing, it's nothing."

A few minutes later, Wang Baoqiang rinsed his mouth with mineral water and wiped his mouth with a tissue. He sighed and said, "I probably won't drink milk again for the rest of my life."

When I was taking the photo, I couldn't hold it back any longer. After I drank the milk, it kept coming up and got stuck in my neck.

Looking at the arrogant looks of the extras around him, he forced himself to finish pretending and planned to go to the bathroom to vomit later.

As a result, Qin Chuan was unlucky and got all of his anger hurled out by a slap in the face.

The attempt to show off failed.

Qin Chuan raised his hand and wanted to pat Bao Qiang on the shoulder, but he was afraid that he would turn into a water baby, so he took it back and said, "Thank you for your hard work. Take a break. There is still the next game."

The next scene won’t be filmed here.

Filming is such a money-burning process. The rental of the location, props, and labor costs cost 50,000 to 60,000 yuan, and it took less than half an hour to build this scene.

Next up, the aircraft simulation cabin.

Niu Geng happened to sit next to Li Chenggong.

After the two sat down, Qin Chuan fastened his seat belt, looked around, and found that it had been taken away by Wang Baoqiang.

"Ahhhh, seat belt, mine."

This part was not in the script, it was a complete misunderstanding, and I don’t know how my seat belt ended up on Wang Baoqiang’s side.

But since the staff had already called the shots, Qin Chuan had no intention of calling a halt.

Wang Baoqiang quickly responded: "Yours and mine, they are all the same."

"Can this be the same? Bring it here!"

"mean!"

After muttering something, Wang Baoqiang returned the seat belt and the two continued chatting.

Soon, the plane started to shake, which meant it was taking off and it was time to change the words.

His throat rolled up and down, and Wang Baoqiang's mouth bulged and then deflated. People who often suffer from motion sickness know what this means.

"waiter."

"waiter."

"Why are you yelling?" Qin Chuan rang the bell for him.

After a few seconds, the flight attendant came over and said with a smile: "Hello, how can I help you?"

"Can you open the window for some fresh air?"

"I'm sorry sir, but you can't open the windows on an airplane."

"I feel uncomfortable because you are not breathing."

"Please hold on a little longer. The plane will arrive soon. Do you want me to pour you a glass of water to relieve your stress?"

"Hurry up, I'm suffocating."

This scene was shot in a simulated cabin. People outside cannot see what is going on inside and can only watch it through the monitor.

Liu Sisi almost laughed to tears in the director's studio.

The cabin was filled with extras, and they all couldn't stop laughing as they listened to Wang Baoqiang's lines.

The scene of a mouthful of milk gushing up and then being swallowed made Qin Chuan's stomach churn.

Within three seconds, Niu Geng started making trouble again.

"Waiter, waiter."

Hearing him yelling, Li Chenggong stopped him: "Can you tell me what's going on?"

"I don't want to sit here anymore. Ask them to stop the plane."

"No, can a plane stop in the sky?"

"Then why do others say that the plane can't take off?"

"That's when there's heavy fog or heavy snow..."

"Click, pass!"

Qin Chuan came out of the cabin and went to the director's studio to watch the playback. He saw Liu Sisi holding a tissue in her hand and wiping her tears.

"No, I'm making a comedy. Do you think you need to cry?"

"I wasn't crying, I was laughing." Liu Sisi's mouth never closed. She laughed again while speaking, and snot bubbles came out of her nose.

All of a sudden, his old face turned red.

Qin Chuan smiled and said, "Why aren't you smiling?"

"Hateful." After wiping her nose, Liu Sisi said, "This show is so funny. You two are like a crosstalk."

Qin Chuan was surprised: "You really understood it."

Ordinary people watching these scenes may think that Niu Geng is the funniest character, and Li Chenggong's presence is very weak.

But at the beginning of the design, the interaction between the two was in crosstalk mode.

One is the supporting role and the other is the funny role.

Three parts teasing, seven parts praise.

Wang Baoqiang is the one responsible for making people laugh, while Qin Chuan is responsible for chatting up, throwing jokes and delivering punchlines.

It seems that Qin Chuan's presence is not strong, but if he is removed, many burdens will not be heard at all.

The two complement each other and are indispensable.

"What do you understand?" Liu Sisi asked with wide eyes.

Qin Chuan: "..."

Well, it turns out I was confused.

However, the fact that she has this intuition shows that she has some acting talent.

(End of this chapter)