Japanese Entertainment: From special effects actor to action superstar

Chapter 404 Launching a New Project

It was late at night, and after some effort, Wan Gu Ao finally managed to get Wan Gu Eiji to rest.

The children were sent to rest, and it was now the adults' time. In the small room that had been temporarily used as a meeting room, everyone knelt on the ground and looked at each other.

Wan Gu'ao said, "I do not support doing this, and even if a new work is to be released, it is not now."

Wan Guyi stood with his hands clasped behind his back, but his expression looked like he was about to pick a fight at any moment.

"What else can we do! That was our father's last wish. Do you want to be an unfilial son?"

Wan Gu'ao suddenly looked over: "Let him go to the film set, work him to death, and then the Wan Gu family will be without a father forever. Are you a filial son then!"

"What did you say, you bastard..."

"You want to fight, huh! I've been putting up with you for too long!"

Wan Gujie tried to stop the two, but as the youngest brother and the lowest in status, he was no match for them, who were on the verge of exchanging blows.

Tetsuo Kinjo hesitated to speak, while Koichi Takano lowered his head and remained silent.

Seeing that the two were about to fight, Gu Ming finally stood up, grabbed them by the wrists, and separated them.

Despite their faces turning bright red, Gu Ming still pressed them back into their seats.

“I’m an outsider, and I shouldn’t be saying these things, but if I may be frank, neither of you are good sons. If there were a ranking of unfilial sons, you two would probably be worse than Date Masamune ordering the shooting of his own father.”

The two fell silent instantly, but their gazes toward each other remained unfriendly.

“Go ahead and film it. I think you should film it. Don’t forget, it was an old man’s last wish. If he were to leave this world, would he leave in obscurity, or would he leave behind his last light and warmth, and then fade away amidst applause? Don’t you understand this?”

"Brother Yi, you're a director yourself. Do you want to end up as an unknown beginner?"

The two lowered their heads and fell silent for a while.

Tetsuo Kinjo blinked, his gaze sweeping over the group before finally settling on Gu Ming's face.

So, whose surname is Wan Gu?

Koichi Takano remained silent, simply drinking cup after cup of tea, as if the events here were none of his concern.

An eerie silence filled the room until Wan Guyi uttered a somewhat sour sound.

"What are we going to film? We haven't even come up with a script yet."

“I have one.” Gu Ming pushed the cup forward.

“As you all know, I’m from Nara. I recently went back to my hometown and visited the elementary school I used to attend. It’s quite dilapidated now and is no longer the place where I used to laugh and play. So, I donated a little money to help rebuild the school.”

The group didn't understand why Gu Ming said that, so they all turned their attention to him.

"Let's film a story set in a school."

Gu Ming said this.

Tetsuo Kinjo spoke first: "Furuya-kun, I don't necessarily want to disagree, but Manyu's specialty is tokusatsu (special effects), how can we do without a defense team? Are we going to have a defense team at school, like 'Armor Squad'?"

“Of course not.” Gu Ming spread his hands: “Who says that there must be a defense force in a tokusatsu work? Okay, let’s put it another way, who says that the protagonist must be in the defense force? Does that mean the protagonist can’t be a hero if he’s not in the defense force?”

Facing the gazes of the crowd, Gu Ming began to explain his idea.

"Just like the previous story... A hero from outer space lands on this planet, and what does he see? Restless hearts, a turbulent era, an age where fame and fortune are pursued at the expense of one's true self, a world as vibrant as a bubble, yet fragile and easily shattered." "Those 'negative energies' influence people's minds, eventually transforming into monsters. So, to cleanse all of this, he becomes a school teacher, fighting against the negative energy monsters while simultaneously educating his students. Because he knows very well that children are the most beautiful, and whatever you do, you must start with children."

"As for how to expand the story and how to develop the content, I believe Mr. Jin Cheng is capable of solving these problems."

Koichi Takano spoke up: "In terms of stunts, we can no longer use the old-fashioned stunts. Four years! Four years! The level of stunts has also improved by leaps and bounds. Without better action design and more outstanding stunts, it is impossible for people to like them."

“These things can all be resolved and coordinated; they are not problems. I can find filming locations, I can find filming equipment, I can handle the post-production special effects, and I can even attract investors. I can solve all of these things. However, there is only one thing.”

Gu Ming held up one finger: "This is not Wangu's work, it is my work. Now, I authorize Wangu to film it, to fulfill my father's last wish."

Tetsuo Kinjo lowered his head again and began to look at the patterns on the kotatsu in front of him.

Koichi Takano patted his lower abdomen and continued drinking his tea.

Wan Gu'ao spoke up: "Gu Gu-kun, isn't this a bit too much?"

Wan Guyi also frowned.

Gu Ming spread his hands: "What, you don't agree? Then let's pretend that nothing was said before, and you can think of a new script. But Wan Gu probably can't afford the filming budget right now. So, who should we ask to film it? TBS? Fuji TV? It can't be TV Tokyo, can it?"

Wan Guyi and Wan Guyao looked at each other, remaining silent for a long time.

Wan Gujie remained silent, only slightly shifting his position closer to Gu Ming.

Tetsuo Kinjo suddenly spoke up: "I'm sorry, but designing a script takes time. If there's an existing framework, it will be easier to design, which means it will be faster."

Koichi Takano finally put down his teacup.

"Actually, when it comes to action stunts, if I may be so bold, the best stunt company right now is probably still Furuya's company. Otherwise, you'd have to find an overseas team. But, in all of Japan, there's only one team with experience in tokusatsu (special effects) filming."

Wan Guyi hesitated for a moment, but Wan Gu'ao suddenly stood up.

"Furutani Akira, you bastard, what do you think you're doing!"

"I just want to make a film, that's all." Gu Ming pushed his teacup forward. "Don't get so worked up, have a drink."

Wan Gu'ao suddenly turned to Wan Gu'yi and said, "Brother Yi, we can't listen to him! If we listen to him completely, we're all doomed. Will Wan Gu still be Wan Gu? Will we have to be Gu Gu from now on?"

But Wan Guyi did not speak.

Enraged, Wan Gu'ao overturned the teacup.

"Just you wait, you just wait... Only I can do all this! You all just wait!"

Wan Gu'ao left in a hurry, leaving only the sliding door swaying back and forth, the hinges making an old, sickening sound.

Mango looked down at the tea stains running across the tatami mat. The tea seeped into the tatami mat and eventually disappeared.

“Then… let’s do it this way.” Wan Guyi let out a long sigh: “This is also to fulfill my father’s last wish.”

Gu Ming held his teacup, his tone relaxed: "Brother Ao is gone, aren't we going to ask for his opinion?"

"I'm not going to ask anymore. Let's take his departure as his consent! I don't want to keep dragging this out and only produce my work years later. By then, let alone my father, I probably won't even make it to that day!"

Gu Ming took a sip of tea, letting the aroma linger in his mouth.

So, turn it on. Consider it fulfilling an old man's wish.

(End of this chapter)