Hong Kong Entertainment 1979: A Beating Up the Manager at the Start

The next morning.

Li Jiangbo opened his eyes early.

The room was pitch black, with Pan Yingzi's soft snoring coming from the side, and a strange smell lingering in the air.

Li Jiangbo sat up, lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, and stubbed it out in the ashtray after it had passed through his lungs.

Suddenly, the phone on the bedside table rang with a piercing sound.

"Feed?"

After hanging up the phone, Li Jiangbo turned around and saw Pan Yingzi supporting her waist as she slowly sat up straight.

"Awake?"

Pan Yingzi didn't turn around, but just hummed in response before leaning against the headboard, rubbing her aching lower back with her left hand.

The blanket slipped down with her movement, revealing her smooth back.

Li Jiangbo naturally leaned against the headboard and rubbed his stiff neck.

"last night......"

Li Jiangbo chuckled and said, "What happened last night? Didn't you have enough fun?"

Upon hearing this, Pan Yingzi's cheeks flushed slightly.

This young man is too much! He keeps going on and on, last night until 3 a.m.

If I weren't in good health, I probably wouldn't be able to get out of bed today.

The side effects are also quite noticeable: a dull ache in my lower back, and numbness in my genitals...

After a long while, Pan Yingzi sat up, got out of bed, and, supporting her aching back, went to the bathroom.

Then the sound of running water was heard, and Pan Yingzi, naked, sat down next to Li Jiangbo.

"war?"

I don't know how much time has passed...

Pan Yingzi fell into a deep sleep, while Li Jiangbo got dressed, put his hands in his pockets, stretched, opened the door, and headed to the company.

When Li Jiangbo entered the company, the reception area and office area were already bustling with activity.

The sounds of telephones ringing, people making calls, hurried footsteps, and employees discussing things mingled together.

Upon seeing Li Jiangbo enter, several employees lowered their heads and greeted him, "Good afternoon, boss."

Li Jiangbo smiled and nodded, then walked towards his office.

Before I even reached the office, the secretary hurried forward and whispered:

"Boss, a director named Xu Ke has been waiting for you in the conference room all morning."

Li Jiangbo responded with an "Oh," and asked, "Xu Ke? What's this guy doing here?"

At this time, Xu Ke had only directed his debut film, "Butterfly Murders," and was not yet very famous.

If Li Jiangbo remembers correctly, Xu Ke's thriller comedy "No Gates to Hell" will be released next month.

Why is he here instead of checking the post-production of his own film?

Li Jiangbo pushed open the door to the reception room and saw Xu Ke sitting in a chair, lost in thought.

"Director Xu? What brings you here?"

Xu Ke slowly turned around, saw that it was Li Jiangbo, and suddenly stood up.

He strode up to Li Jiangbo, grasped Li Jiangbo's hands in both, and said excitedly:

"Director Li! Congratulations! 'A Better Tomorrow' is the hottest topic in town right now, tickets are impossible to get!"

Li Jiangbo smiled politely and said, "Director Xu, you're too kind. It was just luck. Please have a seat, Director Xu."

After the two sat down, Li Jiangbo asked his secretary to pour two cups of tea.

Before the tea was even served, Xu Ke couldn't wait to ask, "Director Li, I saw the movie at the premiere, and I watched it again yesterday. The movie itself is undoubtedly excellent—the emotions, the characters, the pacing—all are superb! But right now, all I can think about is that promotional video that aired on TVB before the film's release—that first-person gunfight scene!"

He paused here, and seeing that Li Jiangbo didn't seem to mind, he continued to ask:

"The footage in that promotional video doesn't look like it was shot with a commercially available camera. I'd like to ask Director Li if he could tell us what equipment was used, or if any special tracks were used?"

Li Jiangbo instantly understood why Xu Ke had come.

He wasn't in a hurry. He picked up his teacup, took a sip of tea, and then put the teacup down.

"Director Xu has a good eye. I really didn't use a commercially available camera, nor was it a camera track."

Xu Ke looked at Li Jiangbo with a puzzled expression. "Not the track?"

Li Jiangbo nodded. "I'm using a relatively new gadget called a Steadicam, a type of camera stabilizer."

Xu Ke frowned upon hearing this. He had never heard of this machine before. Could it be some new equipment? If it was new equipment, then it could only be from the United States.

He asked tentatively, "From the US?"

Li Jiangbo nodded with a smile, but Xu Ke still looked puzzled.

Without wasting words, he explained the principles of the Steadicam to Xu Ke.

After explaining the principle of the equipment, Li Jiangbo took a big gulp of tea to moisten his throat.

Xu Ke sat there blankly, his mind still replaying the scene Li Jiangbo had just described.

Suddenly his eyes lit up. "So... that promotional video was filmed with the cameraman wearing this thing, simulating a first-person perspective shot of the shooter, performing actions within a set?"

Li Jiangbo nodded without saying anything; he had already said enough.

After receiving an affirmative answer from Li Jiangbo, Xu Ke slapped his thigh, stood up excitedly, and paced back and forth.

Suddenly, he braced himself on the table and stammered, "This is so much more free than traditional cameras! How do you get one? Is it expensive? Is it difficult to operate?"

Li Jiangbo ignored Xu Ke; he was already deep in thought.

He wondered, if he brought Xu Ke into his company, would Cinema City still be established? How would it develop?

It's important to know that Xu Ke wasn't actually that important to Cinema City; what was important was his girlfriend, Nansun Shi, who had worked at CTV and RTV and was best at distribution.

Nansun Shi played an indispensable role in the later success of Cinema City.

Thinking of this, Li Jiangbo was like someone trying to lure a child.

"Director Xu?"

Xu Ke hummed in agreement and looked at Li Jiangbo with a puzzled expression.

"Would you like to try out the new equipment?"

"think!"

"Would you like to own new equipment?"

"think!!!!"

When Li Jiangbo got to this point, his true colors were revealed: "Then come to my company, you can use the equipment as you like."

Xu Ke...

What do you mean by this? I came to talk to you about new equipment and new technologies, and you're actually after me?

However, this new device is just too attractive!

Seeing that Xu Ke was hesitant, Li Jiangbo led him directly to the warehouse.

Upon seeing the equipment, Xu Ke was captivated, his hands constantly stroking the brand-new machine.

Under Li Jiangbo's guidance, Xu Ke put on a Steadicam for the first time.

......

Ten minutes later, Xu Ke took off the equipment, put his hands on his hips, limped, pointed at the equipment, and shook his head vigorously.

"Who can use this to film? Can this thing even film?"

When he was studying at the U.S. military's house, he did carry a camera to film, but he could never last more than five minutes each time.

This device lasted for ten minutes, but a single shot takes at least half an hour to film.

Using this to make a movie? Even a dog wouldn't believe it!

Just as Xu Ke was still standing with his hands on his hips and rubbing his legs, Li Jiangbo put on his equipment and began his performance.

Half an hour later.

Xu Ke said, "I believe it! Dogs might not believe it, but I do!"

Then, Li Jiangbo walked ahead with his hands in his pockets, while Xu Ke followed obediently behind him.

Xu Ke looked at Li Jiangbo, who had his hands in his pockets, and his eyes filled with admiration.

But Li Jiangbo had only one thought in his mind: That year, with my hands in my pockets, I didn't know who my opponent was!

And so, Xu Ke was lured to Time Film and Television by Li Jiangbo.

After signing the contract, Xu Ke received his first assignment at Time Film & Television—to direct "Dao Ma Dan".