Huayu02 started by making films.

Han Yi glanced at the time and guessed that everyone was there. Just as he was about to return to the screening room, a group of men and women walked over from a distance, chatting and laughing as they headed towards the Buñuel Hall.

As they approached, Han Yi recognized that the leader was Robert, who was with a group of independent filmmakers and the Italian women who had shown the movie that night.

Robert stepped forward first and gave Han Yi a bear hug: "Han Yi! You're amazing! You actually made it to the Cannes Short Film Competition! You're our role model!"

"It's all good luck, good luck..."

Men and women took turns embracing and greeting Han Yi, and Han Yi responded to each of them, exchanging best wishes.

Now everyone was finally together. Han Yi returned to the screening room and took his seat in the reserved area for the short film's creators in the front row.

A moment later, Emma, ​​dressed in a business suit, walked onto the stage and began to introduce her short film.

Speaking fluent French-accented English: "My first short film, 'Crazy Stone' from Canada..."

……

"This is a film by a Hungarian director, titled 'After the Rain'..."

……

Each short film was very short, about six to eight minutes long. Emma read out the film titles one by one, and finally it was Han Yi's turn.

She spent over a minute on stage introducing the film: "This is a work by a Chinese student director. It tells the story of two brothers who suffer abuse in a unique family environment, and what happens afterward..."

In the audience, Director Jia patted Zhao Tao, who was dozing off, and said, "Here it comes, my junior's work. I wonder what he can produce at his age."

In the directing profession, the older you get, the more sought-after you become. As long as you can persevere, ten, twenty, thirty years... you'll eventually become a "great director." Take Lu Tailang, for example. Every film he directs gets criticized, and he cries every time. He cries when Jiang Wen is around, and he cries even when Jiang Wen isn't around. He's not even as good as a pet.

Zhao Tao retorted, "Didn't you see the cast list at the bottom of his movie poster?"

Section Chief Jia looked bewildered: "It's just a picture of a coffin, isn't it?"

Looking at the "section chief" she had raised to be so fair and delicate, Zhao Tao couldn't help but facepalm: "This movie only has two male leads, guess who they are?"

"Who?" Section Chief Jia turned to look at her.

"Jiang Wen, Jiang Wu."

"Holy crap..." Section Chief Jia's mouth dropped open, and after a moment he sighed, "My junior brother is treating me like an outsider!"

As the two spoke in hushed tones, "I'm glad you're dead now" began to play softly.

The film opens with the male protagonist (played by Jiang Wu) dragging a burlap sack out of a room...

A member of the audience whispered, "Is that Jiang Wen? Why has he gained weight?"

The scene then shifts to the eccentric second male lead (played by Jiang Wen), who enters through the door, and a conversation unfolds in a fog...

Section Chief Jia looked at Han Yi's back in the front row with surprise, thinking to himself, "My junior brother is too honest, isn't he? He invited Jiang Wen and Jiang Wu but didn't publicize it much. He does have some of my style..."

Someone in the audience recognized Jiang Wen and exclaimed in surprise, "This director actually managed to get Jiang Wen to star in the film? And the style of the film doesn't resemble Jiang Wen at all. This guy is a genius!"

Four minutes later, the scene shifts to the dock. The Jiang brothers, Jiang Wen and Jiang Wu, begin their acting duel, leaving the audience on the edge of their seats, eager for more.

At the end of the film, the director did not reveal whether the person lying in the coffin was their father or not. Amid the audience's astonishment, the Wenwu brothers embraced each other tightly.

The video ends here!

The subtitles appeared, and the lights came on.

Han Yi looked around, feeling a little nervous. About ten seconds later, the audience suddenly erupted in waves of applause that lasted for several minutes.

Robert and his group of independent filmmakers were the first to stand up, cupping their hands to their mouths and cheering:

"Han! Han! Han!"

"Who is actually in the coffin?"

"Is he their father?"

"It's too short, not enough to watch!"

"One more time!"

The cheers, accompanied by applause, rose in waves, one after another.

Han Yi glanced at the directors of the short films next to him and saw that their faces had turned green, and he immediately understood what was going on.

He happened to see Emma making hand gestures, so he got up and walked towards the stage.

Han Yi thought to himself: I should have known better than to use so much hairspray. Otherwise, if I had just tossed my head and made a "Pan Zhou Dan" style entrance, I would have definitely stunned a large audience.

Han Yi strode to the center of the stage, waved to the audience, and gave a gentlemanly bow.

When the female and male audience members saw that the director was such a young and handsome man, their applause became even more enthusiastic, and some even whistled.

The commotion lasted for several minutes. Han Yi took the microphone from Emma, ​​and the interview officially began.

Emma addressed the audience's questions, saying, "Director Han Yi, the first question I'd like to ask is, how did you manage to get Jiang Wen to star in your short film? This is probably the question everyone wants answered most."

"Ahem... This was actually an accident."

Han Yi looked down at the audience and said seriously, "I originally only planned to invite Jiang Wen's younger brother, Jiang Wu, to play the role. Unexpectedly, when the script was sent to Jiang Wu's house, his older brother saw it. Teacher Jiang Wen felt that the character in the script had a lot of metaphor, so he just went along with it and joined the cast."

A chorus of "Oh—" of realization rippled through the audience.

"My second question," Emma continued, "is the person in the coffin in the movie actually the father of the two main characters?"

Han Yi smiled shyly: "A thousand viewers will have a thousand different interpretations of Hamlet. I can only say that I leave the answer to the audience to decide."

Emma aptly changed the subject: "So how did you become a director? After all, judging from the list, you're only eighteen years old."

Seeing that the warm-up activities were over and the atmosphere was gradually heating up, Han Yi unleashed his ultimate move. His tone shifted from shy to aggressive as he loudly proclaimed:

"My first experience with movies was when I was eight years old. My parents took my hand and we went into the cinema. As soon as I saw the images on the screen, I was so excited that I couldn't contain myself. From that day on, I fell deeply in love with movies."

Last June, I tried to apply to the directing department of the Beijing Film Academy, hoping to seriously study filmmaking, but I didn't get in. So I had to go to the literature department first, as a roundabout way to achieve my goal.

Before the start of the new school year, I told my parents at home that I wanted to make a short film. My family was very supportive. My father is an honest, simple farmer, and he asked me how much it would cost to make a short film. I did a rough calculation and gave him a figure, but…”

"Oh—?" The audience below the stage had been piqued and were eager to listen.

Han Yi continued:

"The night before I started school, my father sat alone in the living room smoking all night. The next morning, he took the family's cow to the market to sell, just to raise money for me to make a movie."

That was an old ox that worked diligently in my family for more than ten years and accompanied me throughout my childhood.

My father came home, handed me the money, and said, "Do your best in making the film. We'll sell everything we own to support your dream of making movies."

I heard my father sold the old ox, and I rushed to the market like a madman, trying to buy it back. I don't care about making movies anymore, I just want it back. But when I got to the market, I found…”

As Han Yi spoke, he lowered his head, blinked hard, and reminded himself: Hold back your laughter, or you'll give a final jolt.

He looked up, tears welling in his eyes, but he didn't let them fall. The audience rose to their feet and applauded, cheering on the young man.

Han Yi's voice trembled slightly: "My old ox, which had been with me for almost ten years, has already been slaughtered and sold. When I went there, the stall owner even asked me if I wanted to buy some beef..."

Hearing this, some of the female audience members covered their faces and sobbed softly. The atmosphere in the theater became somber.