Huayu: As a child star, I just want to be famous

Chapter 223 Returning a favor, an unexpected surprise

Zhang Yimou still looked a little tired.

"I wasn't going to be at the premiere today. I'm directing an opera in the United States. I heard that you would be here, Xiao Chen, so I rushed back just to chat with you."

Chen Linfeng raised his eyebrows, "Director Zhang, what is it that you want to talk to me about? Why is it so urgent?"

"Hey, it's about the preparations for the Olympics."

really.

"What's wrong?"

Zhang Yimou thought about it awkwardly, "It's not a problem, but considering that you have always had new ideas, which are obvious to everyone in the industry, I want to listen to your opinion."

He and the core creative members of the preparatory group have been discussing various ideas for more than half a year, and there are still many debates and doubts.

As the chief director of the group, he cannot show this mentality, but the pressure he feels in his heart is undoubtedly enormous.

It was also a coincidence that he met Bruckheimer in Hollywood during this period and talked about Chen Linfeng.

Bruckheimer spoke highly of him, praising him for always having new ideas in his mind and accepting various new technologies and new concepts much faster than these "old people".

It just hit some thoughts in his mind.

It is not good to show your emotions in the group.

Find a colleague, who is younger and more reliable, and maybe he can give you some new ideas.

Of course Chen Linfeng was happy to contribute.

The 08 Olympic Games was itself a milestone event for China.

Moreover, if he is just asked to talk and give some advice, no one would refuse.

"Well, let me first tell you about our ideas for the fireworks at the opening ceremony. Let me hear if you have any new ideas."

The creative idea is naturally the one we have seen on TV in later generations, the big footprints, the effect is shocking enough.

But the problem now is that the idea is almost killed in practice.

Fireworks explode from the center outward. If all 30 bombs that make up the footprint explode, the resulting image will be unbearable and chaotic.

We have made many attempts but have not been able to solve this problem. Now this idea is about to be abandoned.

"So, think about whether you have any new good ideas. This one doesn't work now, so you can only try another way."

Zhang Yimou looked very regretful. This plan was approved unanimously by the director team, but unfortunately it was blocked in implementation.

Chen Linfeng had watched documentaries and some behind-the-scenes stories in his previous life, and knew that this plan could eventually be realized.

He certainly wouldn't think of any other creative ideas.

"Since fireworks can't make it, why don't you try something else, like flares used by the army?"

Zhang Yimou originally thought that Xiao Chen might come up with other ideas, but he didn't expect that he would come up with a new approach to the original plan.

"Hmm? Wait a minute, let me think about it."

Zhang Yimou paced in the room, thinking back and forth. The more he thought, the more he felt that flares were a good idea.

It glows by itself and doesn't explode.

These flares rise from a vertical distance of 2 meters to an altitude of 150 meters, forming a bright footprint in itself.

Wonderful, wonderful.

His first reaction was to call the preparatory team and ask them to try to see if it would work.

But think about it, Xiao Chen is still here, I can write it down and try it later.

At the same time, he felt extremely excited about asking Xiao Chen for help, which was a stroke of genius.

I really found the right person!

Since Xiao Chen has so many ideas about solving the problem, we should change our previous thinking.

Zhang Yimou no longer wanted Chen Linfeng to provide creative ideas, but instead focused on existing good but difficult to implement solutions.

"We plan to organize a large group percussion music at the beginning of the show, and the current idea is to recreate the scene of beating drums and singing in ancient times.

But now that the props have been made, the problem becomes how to knock them.

The production team has thought of many ways, but none of them seem to be that interesting. Can you come up with an idea? "

It doesn't make that sense. If a foreigner hears it, they will definitely not understand what it means.

But as a Chinese, I understand it as soon as I hear it. It must have ancient style and charm, contain the great power and momentum of an ancient civilization, and also be ceremonial.

After all, it was a song played with the beating of drums, and even if one did not understand the specific meaning, one could still feel some emotion in it.

This is something that the Chinese people take for granted.

Zhang Yimou used a stool as a demonstration prop on the spot and personally demonstrated several ideas currently summarized by the program team.

"Look, our fighters are basically showing these kinds of feelings at the moment."

Chen Linfeng looked at it carefully and found that it was indeed lacking some flavor.

This program is deeply engraved in his mind.

Chen Linfeng signaled Zhang Yimou to move aside, and then performed it again as he remembered.

If an outsider watched, their actions would be a little funny.

After all, they are not professional dancers.

But the two of them had serious expressions and didn't find it funny at all.

Zhang Yimou held his chin with his hand and thought for a long time.

“I do have that feeling, but it’s not real just by looking at it.

How about this, I'll record your movements, and then our production team will gather more people and try again. With more people, maybe it will be different."

Chen Linfeng nodded. Indeed, the aura of one person and that of many people are completely different.

Both plans had made new progress, Zhang Yimou was greatly excited, and immediately proposed the next one.

The two discussed in the room for several hours, and by the time the discussion ended, it was already late in the morning.

Zhang Yimou was full of energy and didn't look sleepy at all.

Although there are so many solutions below, not every one of them has a clear solution.

But as far as tonight's discussion is concerned, the gains have been huge.

It is no exaggeration to say that it can save at least half a year.

Chen Linfeng yawned and felt a little sleepy.

Since his rebirth, he rarely stayed up so late.

Zhang Yimou calmed down a little and asked, "Xiao Chen, I heard that you are preparing to make a movie now?"

It has been registered with the higher authorities, so people in the industry will naturally hear the relevant news.

The school also knew that Zhang Yimou actually heard it from the school.

Chen Linfeng had nothing to hide, "Yes, it will probably be ready during the summer vacation."

Zhang Yimou understood the elegant meaning of the music by just listening to the strings, and that was what he guessed.

"Do you have any plans to sign up for the Venice Film Festival?"

Chen Linfeng raised his eyes and looked at the other party. What did this mean?
"Yes, it should be just in time."

"Okay, I understand." Zhang Yimou patted Xiao Chen's shoulder heavily. "You look very sleepy, go back to sleep first."

"Oh, I'll go back first. Director Zhang, if you need to communicate with me anytime, just call me."

"Okay, I'm sure I'll have to trouble you."

Chen Linfeng was no longer sleepy at this time, and he did not expect to have an unexpected gain.

What Zhang Yimou meant just now...

There is a tacit understanding between the two.

If the film is terrible, then there's nothing to say.

But if it is really competitive, then Director Zhang will have to return the favor.

The opinion of the president of the Venice jury undoubtedly carries a lot of weight.

This made Chen Linfeng feel a little excited. Maybe there really was a chance.

……

A few days later, Chen Linfeng appeared at Li Xuejian's home.

Also present was Teacher Tian from the school.

Tian Dazhuang and Li Xuejian are cousins, so it would be more convenient to talk with him around.

The purpose of Chen Linfeng's visit was naturally to invite Li Xuejian to play the role of the teacher in the new movie.

In fact, he originally planned to let Feng Yuanzheng play this role.

The terrifying sense of pressure in "Don't Talk to Strangers" is very consistent with the role setting of the teacher in the movie.

But after thinking about it carefully, I still felt that something was wrong.

The coach in the original work was set to be the most capable teacher in the nation's top music school, and he had once produced outstanding students, but this student committed suicide because he couldn't bear it anymore.

A teacher with such experience should not be too young.

In domestic universities, the number of people who attend will definitely not be very young.

The actor in the original work was in his 50s, while Feng Yuanzheng is now in his early 40s.

Not only that, the People's Art Theatre is filming a lot of dramas this year, and it is almost impossible for Feng Yuanzheng to free up his schedule.

This made him want to invite her to try out the makeup effects, but it was impossible.

Just change roles.

There aren’t many other actors who can bring pressure and fear to people while also having a gentle and refined temperament.

Chen Linfeng thought about it for a long time but couldn't think of a suitable one.

Then I thought again, this kind of role should not be a difficult task for those big names with superb acting skills.

From this perspective, Mr. Li Xuejian, who does not look particularly handsome or positive, is the best choice. He is now in his 50s and is of the right age.

So he asked the school teacher to contact Tian Dazhuang and ask him to help introduce him.

Tian Dazhuang read the script and thought it was good, so he agreed to introduce the actor.

Now, Li Xuejian has read the script and also thinks it is a good one.

He asked, "This character is a paranoid, even a little bit scary, do you think I am suitable for this role?"

Li Xuejian followed up with another sentence, "I have never played a role like this before."

"An excellent actor always has to try different types of roles, right?" Chen Linfeng said calmly.

He didn't believe that someone like Li Xuejian would not have higher aspirations.

"Haha, well said. Of course I want to try it." Li Xuejian said with a smile.

“It’s just that this role is not something that everyone can play. He has to understand jazz, or at least have some knowledge of it.

Also, I need some time to prepare myself mentally for the character's paranoia."

This is very difficult to do, time is running out.

Chen Linfeng frowned and asked, "How long will Teacher Li need?"

"At least a month."

Chen Linfeng breathed a sigh of relief. It was still in the preparation stage and a month would still be enough.

“I have already contacted the Yanjing Academy of Modern Fine Arts, which has the best jazz department in the country. They will provide the technical support for the script this time.

I can communicate with them and let you go in and study for a while."

"Okay, I'll go there right away after you make the contact." Li Xuejian said decisively, "See you in a month."

"See you in a month."

The deal was successfully concluded and Chen Linfeng said goodbye and left.

Tian Dazhuang asked with some concern, "Can you do this? You just recovered from your illness, and you want to do this..."

Li Xuejian smiled happily, "Of course, such a good role came to me. I am in good health. Maybe because of this, I can live another ten years."

The important characters in the movie, besides the protagonist's teacher, are the protagonist's father and girlfriend.

The role of girlfriend is naturally played by Liu Qianqian, but after all, it is just a vase role and has little impact.

If it were someone else, Xixi would definitely feel aggrieved.

The second is the protagonist’s father.

Chen Linfeng found Ma Yue just to add to the plot, and it would be a bit of a gimmick when the film was released later.

As for other musicians, they must be professional musicians to avoid making low-level mistakes.

As for the performance, that's easy too. He already has some experience in training novice actors like this.

In the past few days, after a few days of release, the reputation of "Curse of the Golden Flower" has gradually spread.

The actual evaluation of the public is, of course, far from satisfactory.

There is nothing else except the grand scene.

The scene in which Zhou Jielun staged the final coup was even hilarious, with all the soldiers being melee combatants, and not even any long-range attack methods.

Audiences who have seen too many palace coups and wars in history will always feel a sense of disharmony.

But Zhang Yimou can’t take care of these things for the time being.

That night, many of Xiao Chen’s ideas were proven to be effective.

The time we bought for progress was more than half a year, and the exclamation we felt at that time was actually an underestimate.

Everyone in the preparatory group was delighted. They really hadn't known that Xiao Chen was so capable, otherwise they would have asked him for help.

But when he is busy, Zhang Yimou would occasionally think about it.

On that day, Xiao Chen never mentioned anything about the movie. He thought it was because he was also going to make a movie and was too embarrassed to mention it.

Now that I think about it, maybe it was more about saving his face.

This person is really...

Zhang Yimou shook his head.

(End of this chapter)