HuaYu97: Starting as a Singer

Chapter 274 [274] Qi Yuan Comes to Promote the Person the Imperial Advisor Couldn't Make Famous
June 27, Shanghai.

Filming commencement ceremony for "Bouquet".

The area in front of the stage was packed with reporters, their cameras and microphones all focused on today's main characters: Qi Yuan, Chen Kaige, and Fan Xiaopang.

If a movie has one of the actors, Qi Yuan or Chen Kaige, it can easily gain widespread attention.

When the two of them teamed up, all the major and minor media outlets from the mainland came, and even some reporters from Hong Kong and Taiwan were present.

This also shows how much attention the outside world is paying to "Bouquet".

Director Chen Kaige delivered a spirited speech: "From its inception last year until now, preparations for 'The Bouquet' have been thorough in all aspects. I am confident that I can present the audience with a wonderful art-house romance film..."

Qi Yuan and Fan Xiaopang, as the male and female leads, were also the focus of reporters' attention.

Today, Fan Xiaopang only wore light makeup, a slightly oversized linen shirt, light blue wide-leg jeans, and white sneakers.

In his early years, Fan Xiaopang followed a youthful and innocent light makeup style, and only later did he start to adopt a heavy makeup style.

Li Bingbing is the same; she is currently following a fresh, natural, and lively style.

Fan Xiaopang's outfit and makeup today perfectly match the character of the female lead, An Ran, a cultured young woman.

Similarly, Qi Yuan wore a basic white T-shirt, paired with jeans and white sneakers, keeping it simple, which fits the character of the male protagonist, Lu Shi.

Residents living nearby gathered to watch the spectacle and couldn't help but exclaim when they saw Qi Yuan and Fan Xiaopang, "The young man is so handsome, and the young woman is so beautiful."

Qi Yuan and Fan Xiaopang selectively answered some of the reporters' questions.

"Everyone can rest assured that Xiao Fan will not die this time. Lu Shi, whom I play, and An Ran, whom she plays, will both survive to the end."

An Ran and Lu Shi are names Qi Yuan changed. When filming the Chinese version of "Bouquet", the names will definitely be changed to Chinese.

The characters "Shi" and "Ran" have a romantic feel to them, and when put together they form "Shiguang Renran," hinting at the final outcome of their relationship and adding a sense of destiny.

A reporter asked if she would develop feelings for Qi Yuan, such a charming actor, while filming a love story.

Fan Xiaopang is no longer the naive little girl she was during the "Wild Princess Looking for Her Father" period. In the past two years, she has dealt with reporters quite a bit and accumulated a lot of experience.

"Oh my, President Qi is so handsome, how could I not like him! If I were An Ran, I would definitely marry Lu Shi."

The reporters quickly pressed on, asking, "You just said you wanted to marry Qi Yuan?"

Fan Xiaopang skipped the question and didn't answer it again, leaving the reporter eager to know more.

……

After the opening ceremony, filming for "The Bouquet" began.

The photographer Chen Kaige hired was Gu Changwei, who was also the cinematographer for "Farewell My Concubine".

Five years later, Gu Changwei transitioned to directing, and his first film as an independent director was called "Peacock".

Chen Kaige and Gu Changwei have collaborated several times. Both are alumni of the Beijing Film Academy's Class of '78, one from the Directing Department and the other from the Cinematography Department.

Chen Kaige praised Qi Yuan a lot in front of Gu Changwei, and even said that Qi Yuan wanted to be a director in the future, and that Gu Changwei could help out if he had time.

Chen Kaige had always wanted Qi Yuan to help him beat up Zhang Yingmou.

Gu Changwei gave a perfunctory reply, but he didn't really take it seriously.

Qi Yuan was born the year he studied photography at Beijing Film Academy. How could he possibly be a photographer for a little kid? Didn't he have any pride?

He also didn't think Qi Yuan had the ability to be a director, and he felt that Chen Kaige was pushing Qi Yuan too hard.

Of course, Gu Changwei didn't think highly of Qi Yuan as a director, but he thought highly of Qi Yuan as an actor.

He had already witnessed Qi Yuan's acting skills in "Infernal Affairs," and they were excellent.

In "The Bouquet," Qi Yuan's performance wasn't as high as in "Infernal Affairs," but it was more than enough for him to portray an artistic young man. Mainly, Qi Yuan himself has become the best actor in the cast, with no other actor able to match him.

……

The second day after turning on the machine.

"Bouquet" made the front page headlines of mainland entertainment news.

The high-profile pairing of Qi Yuan and Fan Xiaopang has also attracted the attention of the media and netizens.

Netizens have commented that Qi Yuan and Fan Xiaopang are the most good-looking on-screen couple in the history of mainland Chinese films.

Starry Sky Entertainment promoted the film in mainland China, while Media Asia Entertainment promoted it in Hong Kong and Taiwan. Even actors like Qiong Yao, Zhao Yanzi, and Lin Xinru heard about the latest news on "Bouquet" and saw photos of Qi Yuan and Fan Xiaopang at the filming start ceremony.

Fan Xiaopang looks absolutely radiant in the photo.

These three people had mixed feelings.

Is the maid really about to turn her life around?

Impossible. A maid is always a maid, someone who can't be brought into the public eye. Even if Qi Yuan and Chen Kaige try to promote her, Fan Xiaopang still can't change her fate as a maid.

Zhao Yanzi and Lin Xinru certainly wouldn't say that outside.

Lin Hsin-ju attended an event in Taiwan and said in a teasy tone, "I hope our Jin Suo can shine in the film industry. I am Jin Suo's only relative, and I sincerely hope that she can have a great career and smooth sailing."

In the past, if Lin Xinru had said something like that, Fan Xiaopang would have been completely disarmed.

She kept calling her Jin Suo, seemingly showing a deep sisterly bond, but actually implying that Jin Suo would always be her maid.

This time, Fan Xiaopang wasn't angry; he was even a little disdainful.

Haha! That Taiwanese guy surnamed Lin is just being sarcastic.

The strong will not care about the sarcastic remarks of the weak.

In the film industry, Fan Xiaopang has already surpassed Lin Xinru and Zhao Yanzi.

Fan Xiaopang was quite clear-headed and didn't pay too much attention to outside information. She focused on figuring out the character of An Ran and only wanted to play the role well.

Qi Yuan was quite surprised. When acting opposite Fan Xiaopang, he found that Fan Xiaopang's acting skills had matured a lot since "The Legendary Siblings".

I only found out after asking that he had taken further training with a teaching assistant at the Central Academy of Drama.

Qi Yuanting admires Fan Xiaopang's learning attitude. Fan Xiaopang's acting talent is not low among the "Four Dan and Two Bing" (referring to four top actresses and two top actresses in China), and is about the same as Li Bingbing, or maybe slightly better.

However, Fan Xiaopang later chose the route of becoming a popular actress, taking on any role that came her way, starring in several TV series a year, as well as making movies. Over time, this led to her developing a formulaic acting style.

If she puts in the effort to hone her skills, she should be able to develop decent acting abilities.

……

A few days later, Qi Yuan received news from Li Xue that Da Tian Tian was going to release an EP.

Money talks. Last time, Uncle Lu bought three songs from Qi Yuan and immediately found the best teacher to teach Da Tian Tian to sing, found the best recording studio to record line by line, and even found a director to shoot three relatively simple music videos.

The EP is called "Courage Explosion," which is consistent with the title track, and it is released by Jingwen Records.

This EP will only be released in mainland China; the Hong Kong and Taiwan markets will not be considered at all.

On July 1st, the EP single of "Human Wealth and Beauty" Da Tian Tian was officially released on Beijing Radio.

Qi Yuan was quite looking forward to it, but she didn't know if the unthinkable path of Da Tian Tian singing children's songs would work.

If it works, then he'll be amazing; he's made someone famous that even Jackie Chan and the national director couldn't make famous.

　Writing today was so painful. I kept deleting and rewriting, and now I'm down to just one chapter from over 5,500 words. I'm currently writing the second chapter. Let's see how many chapters the author can manage today. I've never experienced such writer's block since I started writing; nothing I do just feels right.
　　
　
(End of this chapter)