Reshaping the landscape of the Chinese entertainment industry

Looking at the people bustling around the room,

Yu Feihong stood in a corner, clutching the script He Yi'an had given her, and read it over and over again.

The script is very thin, only a few pages long; it's more like a "filming guide" than a script.

The storyboards are also very simplistic, consisting mainly of simple lines and repetitive shots.

Can this even be considered making a movie?

Yu Feihong felt somewhat doubtful, and for the first time, he felt that He Yi'an was a bit unreliable!

Is he really going to film this himself? What if he messes it up?

While she was thinking, He Yi'an handed over the DV camera: "Senior, here you go."

Yu Feihong took the camera, his palms slightly sweaty: "I...can I really do this?"

"Don't worry, you can do it."

He Yi'an patted her on the shoulder: "Remember, what you need to do is not 'make a movie,' but be a 'recorder.' Don't interfere too much with them; just record the lives of these two people and the strange things they encounter."

"Don't interfere with them, don't instruct them, just let them do it themselves."

Yu Feihong knew that at this point, there was no way to back down, so he had no choice but to bite the bullet and go for it.

As soon as the order to start filming was given, the camera was turned on.

In the video, Mark and Emily are making breakfast in the kitchen.

Mark burned the fried eggs, and Emily laughed and scolded him. The two bickered and teased each other, and the sunlight streamed in through the window, making the scene as warm as a romance movie.

Yu Feihong gradually got into the rhythm and followed He Yi'an's advice, simply filming quietly.

……

After filming for nine days, He Yi'an felt he had enough footage.

They abruptly ended this so-called film shooting.

They had to finish filming; Yu Feihong was clearly really into it. What could have been finished two days ago ended up taking two more days.

In fact, her enthusiasm has been growing these past two days. I don't know if it has completely sparked her directorial ideas, but compared to the beginning, she is now clearly more willing to stick to her own ideas.

This is outrageous!

He Yi'an decisively wrapped up filming for this movie!

Watching He Yi'an casually flip through the shooting records and initially filter out usable shots, Yu Feihong gradually calmed down.

Thinking about the feeling of shooting these past few days, as well as the choice of shots and presentation methods.

She suddenly realized that what He Yi'an had said before might have made some sense.

Did I overcomplicate making movies before?

Is making movies really that easy?

Those directors at the Beijing Film Academy treat filmmaking as an art, something noble, which is completely putting the cart before the horse.

very good!

Yu Feihong's previously incomplete academic filmmaking perspective seems to have become somewhat fragmented, and he has begun to slowly establish his own filmmaking concepts.

He Yi'an, of course, paid no attention to Yu Feihong's somewhat shattered view of film.

He carefully collected all the videotapes and handed them to Richard: "Take these back and edit them. Cut out some of the daytime footage, but focus on the nighttime material. Keep all the footsteps, door openings, footprint powder, and cabinet doors opening by themselves."

"What about the ending?" Richard asked. "The scene where the female lead pounces on the male lead after being possessed, and the subsequent killing scene, haven't been filmed yet."

"No need to film anymore," He Yi'an shook his head.

Richard was taken aback: "Not filming? What about the ending?"

"Let the audience fill in the blanks themselves."

He Yi'an smiled and said, "The main marketing point will be that the police found the videotape, the female protagonist disappeared three days later, and her boyfriend never showed up again. What was the last thing the camera recorded? Let the audience imagine it themselves."

"What they come up with is always more terrifying than what we film."

"Whose name is on the credits?"

"Senior? Should we put your name on it?" He Yi'an decided to ask the person in question for their opinion.

Upon hearing this, Yu Feihong, still immersed in his somewhat shattered worldview, immediately reacted: "No, don't use my real name!"

"You're the director, you can't just not be credited, right?" He Yi'an smiled, knowing that Yu Feihong didn't have much confidence in the film and was afraid that people would dig up this dark history.

"Let's call her Faye, that's my English name."

"OK!"

Yu Feihong was still somewhat dazed as he watched He Yi'an arrange everything so casually.

A week ago, she was filled with awe and fear about making movies, feeling that it was a huge undertaking that required talent, experience, and perfect timing and circumstances.

A week later, she actually made a movie herself.

Although it was just a low-budget found-footage horror film, although it was shot with a home DV camera, although the actors were all unknown extras, and although she didn't even have editing rights.

But could this be considered her first true "director's work"?

Just as Yu Feihong was lost in thought, He Yi'an, having finished arranging everything, came over again: "Senior, still thinking about the movie? Stop thinking about it, tell me, what do you think?"

Yu Feihong thought for a moment, then smiled.

"It doesn't seem that difficult..."

He Yi'an nodded: "That's the right way to think. It's not difficult at all, especially for this kind of mockumentary film."

"To put it simply, filmmaking is about telling a story through the lens. As long as you tell a complete story, the equipment and actors you use are secondary."

"When you return to China, if you want to film 'Ginkgo, Ginkgo,' just follow this approach. Don't overthink it or worry too much. Just honestly film the latest adapted script I gave you and what you have in mind."

Yu Feihong nodded vigorously: "Brother An, I need to prepare properly, but thank you anyway."

"No need to thank me." He Yi'an waved his hand. "We're friends, it's only right that we help each other out."

Yu Feihong looked at him, then suddenly remembered something and asked with a smile, "What about that girl named Liu Yifei? You've been chatting with her all the time these past few days, I had someone check her out, and she's still a newcomer..."

"Is she a friend, or...?"

He Yi'an was speechless: "Senior, why did you investigate her?"

"Just curious." Yu Feihong blinked. "This is the first time I've seen you chat so happily with someone. You're always laughing like that. Are you really just friends?"

"Wasn't yesterday her birthday?"

"Senior, why are you peeking at other people's chats?"

"You were too engrossed! And your smile was too bright!"

He Yi'an's face stiffened. Sometimes, when he saw the news, he really couldn't control his expression.

But how could he admit it now? He simply replied with an indifferent attitude: "Of course, we're just friends, we've only met so far, and I think she's very talented!"

"You..." She shook her head.

……

On August 27, the day after He Yi'an and Yu Feihong finished filming their movie, the Venice Film Festival officially opened.

Lido Island became bustling overnight.

Filmmakers, journalists, film critics, and film distributors from all over the world flocked to the island.

Hotels were fully booked, restaurants had long queues, and the red carpet in front of the main venue was surrounded by crowds from morning till night.

He Yi'an didn't walk the red carpet; his movie hadn't premiered yet, so there was no need for him to join in the fun.

Moreover, if he were seen by domestic reporters or reporters who know him, he would only be surrounded by them and asked pointless questions such as "Do you think you can win the award?" and "What do you think of Gong Li as chairman?"

He preferred to stay in the organizer's hotel and browse through the festival's official program.

This year's main competition features 22 films from more than a dozen countries.

He Yi'an flipped through the catalog and saw several familiar names.

The Magdalene Sisters – directed by Peter Mullan, Scotland.

The film's ratings haven't been released yet, but He Yi'an knows that this movie will be the biggest winner this year.

In the original timeline, it was this product that won the Golden Lion Award, and it should be no exception this year.

He Yi'an was so sure because this was an absolutely politically correct film, especially within the Catholic cultural system, it was impossible for it not to win an award!

They won't give it to non-Europeans!

Aside from this film, another noteworthy work is South Korean director Lee Chang-dong's "Oasis".

He Yi'an was also deeply impressed by this movie. The performances of Sol Kyung-gu and Moon So-ri were textbook examples and won many awards.

……

As for the others, only Tian Zhuangzhuang's film "Spring in a Small Town" caught his attention.

However, this film is not in the main competition, but in the Upstream section, and it will win the Best Film award in the Upstream section this year.

Finally, he saw his film in the back of the program booklet.

"Fireworks in the Human World" - Directed by He Yi'an, China.

Each promotional brochure featured a photo of the director, and He Yi'an almost lost his composure when he saw that photo.

Because this photo was taken last year during a movie promotion, his attire was very casual, lacking any of the formal attire expected of an adult.

"Who chose this photo?" he asked Richard, speechless.

Richard peeked over and said, "It was provided by China Film Group; it was probably chosen by your mother."

"...My mother's perspective is still stuck in the last century."

Yu Feihong laughed heartily beside him: "It looks great, so youthful."

"Youth my ass." He Yi'an closed the program booklet. "Let's go to the premiere and see the movie while we're at it."