Global Film Emperor

Chapter 231 "Mistaken Love" Seminar
The first trailer for "To Live" did not cause much of a stir that night, since ordinary people don't usually pay much attention to when a movie's trailer will be released.

Moreover, the announcement was made after 11 p.m., and although tomorrow is May Day, most people are already asleep at this time.

The real push came on the morning of the second day, when Tiancheng joined forces with Qianshijia to launch a large-scale promotional campaign. Through a massive online hype, the promotional video for "To Live" appeared on major apps that morning.

Various bloggers have stepped forward to offer their opinions, making baseless speculations about the content revealed in the trailer. They simply extrapolate and guess based on the color scheme, the main content, and the dilapidated hotel. In fact, to those who know the script, these comments are completely off-topic, but they can't stop the persistent pursuit of those movie fans who prefer profound themes.

This is a very rare subject matter in China, with a heavy theme, oppressive shots, and pairs of eyes waiting for death in despair, constantly stinging those moviegoers who just want to join in the fun and take a look.

You can tell from the colors that this is not the same formula used in the two similar films that were released before, "Go Away Mr. Tumor" and "Dying to Survive".

This film, "To Live," is definitely negative, heavy, and serious. After all, Zhuang Yu's previous work was also negative, and given his criminal record, nobody believes he can make anything positive or uplifting.

Therefore, this movie's box office is destined to be low. Although it has Lu Ze as a strong teammate, the subject matter will definitely deter a large number of people. This is a dark dish prepared for hardcore movie fans, and ordinary movie fans will definitely not appreciate it.

In the following days, there were many online discussions about "To Live", and Tiancheng released a second trailer three days later. The trailer was equally heavy, and the same people evoked fear in the heart. However, this time the protagonist was not Lu Ze, but Wang Zhen.

At this time, Lu Zexin was not focused on the movie "To Live". After all, publicity was not his forte and should be handled by professionals. He just needed to wait for the movie to be released.

Lu Ze spent three days in Hong Kong, visiting Uncle Ya every day. The old man was dying; perhaps he remembered Lu Ze on the first day, but forgot about him again on the second.

He can only remember two and a half people now: his son Asheng, his daughter-in-law Fang Sao, and the other half is Jia Changwei, the one he doesn't recognize but always talks about.

"Ah Sheng, I can walk by myself. By the way, where did Ah Wei go?"

This sentence became the topic the two talked about most every day. Jia Changwei would occasionally joke that Awei was dead, but this made Uncle Ya very angry. Jia Changwei was the only son of the Jia family. Even if he died, it was impossible for Jia Changwei to die before him.

After saying this, Jia Changwei's eyes always turned red. Uncle Ya was a villain, but also a loyal subject. He dared not acknowledge Jia Changwei as his son, but he cared for him much more than he would his own son.

At this time, Lu Ze was an outsider. Even though Uncle Ya really liked Lu Ze's portrayal of Jia Helong, he still forgot about Lu Ze.

After enjoying three days of Hong Kong-style life, Lu Ze packed his bags and set off again, boarding a plane to Beijing to begin preparing for his next project.

At 10 a.m., he arrived at the five-star hotel business room prepared for him by Jiaxing Media. He would be staying in Beijing for the next few days to attend a script discussion meeting.

Lu Ze had never participated in this before. After all, every director has a different workflow. The directors Lu Ze knew before didn't have this habit. They would study the script at home and then leave a day or two before filming to allow the actors to get used to each other.

To be honest, Lu Ze felt that these seminars were not very meaningful, because a play has to be filmed on camera. It's not something you can understand by sitting in a conference room with a group of actors drinking tea and talking about the script for a few days. You still have to go out and do real work to achieve the desired effect and come up with something from the discussion.

Before filming began, the actors locked themselves in a small dark room, holding the script and working on it from morning till night. Once they had reviewed the script from the previous days, they were all set.

Do you think you can become familiar with the entire script just by sitting and chatting with other actors at a seminar? Impossible. It will only make you bored out of your mind.

You still need to act with other actors during filming to maintain your best condition. The most effective way is to practice every day except for eating and sleeping.

Ultimately, the real purpose of this seminar was simply to let everyone get to know each other before filming started, so that they wouldn't be awkward not recognizing each other on set. It was just a matter of everyone interacting and warming up to each other.

This rule likely stemmed from Xiao Fengying's lack of confidence in her ability to intimidate the film crew, and the main source of this confidence was Lu Ze.
After all, you have to admit that it's much harder for female directors than male directors. Just on set, if a male director gets angry, he might grab a big stick and beat you up. Can a female director do that? So, naturally, her intimidation power can't compare to that group of tough guys among male directors.

Lu Ze understood Xiao Fengying's thoughts. She was worried that he would become a tyrant on the set, so his purpose in attending the seminar was simply to reassure Xiao Fengying and express his willingness to cooperate with the director and follow his instructions.

"dong dong dong"

"Hey, have you missed me these past few days? Has Brother Liu been acting up lately? Sorry for the trouble."

Liu Bin stood at the door with the cat cage in his hand. Lu Ze took the cat cage, opened the door, and let the cripple out. He then asked Liu Bin about the cripple's behavior over the past few days.

"It's doing great. It doesn't run around after eating; it just sleeps in its cage and can even watch cartoons by itself. It's very smart."

"Really? You really didn't miss me, did you? You're so comfortable at Brother Liu's place that you don't want to come back, right? Hmm?"

Lu Ze pinched its armpit and lifted it up, teasing the little thing that had recently gained weight. The lame thing still looked miserable, staring at Lu Ze. When it heard Lu Ze's words, it didn't bark, but silently punched Lu Ze.

He put it back in the cat carrier, glanced at the time, and realized it was getting late. The seminar was probably already starting. Lu Ze and Liu Bin went downstairs, got into the car, and Lu Ze asked Liu Bin to drop him off at the entrance of Jiaxing Media's building.

Good morning, Mr. Lu.

"Hello, no one is in the hotel room, and I'm worried about leaving it alone at home. Could you leave it at your front desk?"

"No problem, would you like to let your cat out?"

"If conditions permit, then I would be very grateful. It is very obedient and hardly moves. You cripple, you better lie still, you hear me? Wait here for me and don't run around."

Having a pet always makes you feel a sense of apology and gratitude towards others, and Lu Ze is no exception. Actually, no one would stop him from bringing his cat carrier in, but he still needs to follow the rules in other people's places to avoid being annoying. Bringing a pet into the company is already troublesome enough, and Lu Ze knows that, so he'll just follow their instructions. The cripple was sleeping at the front desk. Lu Ze followed the receptionist to the meeting room door. The glass door was opaque, so Lu Ze couldn't see how many people were inside. He nodded politely to the receptionist, knocked on the door, and only after hearing Xiao Fengying say "Come in" did he push the door open and go inside.

There were six people sitting in the room. Lu Ze knew them all, but he had never met them before. When they saw Lu Ze, they gave him polite smiles and nodded politely. To be honest, among all the people in the room, Lu Ze was the most famous. Regardless of age, they would give Lu Ze appropriate respect.

"You're here! You just came from Hong Kong, right? Please have a seat. Let me introduce you. This is Deng Bo, the screenwriter of the script. You know Dai Xilu, right? She's the female lead, playing Wang Mengjun. Ding Zhiyi plays Wang Mengchen. Xue Zhong is a veteran actor, playing Zhou Yi's father. Wang Yuxia plays Zhou Yi's mother."

Hello, hello.

Lu Ze shook hands with each of them and introduced himself to them. Xue Zhong and Wang Yuxia were both veteran actors who had been in the industry for over ten or twenty years. They weren't very popular and were longtime supporting actors in various film crews. They were the kind of actors whose faces were familiar, but whose names you couldn't recall.

Ding Zhiyi is a well-known young actor. At only 21 years old, he has been in the industry for three years and his acting skills have been praised by many. He has also worked with many big names. He is currently studying at the Beijing Film Academy. He is very good-looking, the kind of cute puppy that is popular now. He is fair-skinned and very handsome. However, the awkward thing is that he has a nickname: Little Lu Ze.
This nickname was given to Ding Zhiyi by a prominent online figure. It was initially used to praise Ding Zhiyi's acting skills, comparing him to Lu Ze back in the day. However, netizens generally disagreed with the title, believing that the gap in ability between him and Lu Ze was too vast, and that he was unworthy of the title "Little Lu Ze."

Fans, on the other hand, believed that Ding Zhiyi was not a second Lu Ze, but simply himself. The two sides argued fiercely, but they both forgot that neither side actually wanted to be called "Little Lu Ze." In the end, the argument escalated, even to the point that Ding Zhiyi's studio had to take public relations measures.

After a series of public relations efforts, Ding Zhiyi himself also spoke out on Weibo, expressing his admiration and respect for Lu Ze, admitting that there was a big gap between him and Lu Ze, and that he still needed to learn from Lu Ze. Lu Ze (as stated by his studio) also affirmed and praised his acting skills. The two shook hands and made peace. This was the only time Lu Ze and Ding Zhiyi had any interaction. Now the two are in the same production team, which can be considered a kind of fate.

"Hello, Brother Lu. It's a pleasure to finally meet you. I'm Ding Zhiyi. It's a pleasure to meet you. Please take care of me in the future."

"You're too kind. We should learn from each other. I don't deserve your help. Please sit down; there's no need to stand up."

Lu Ze's acting skills are better than his, he has won more honors, has a better public reputation, and is older than him. Even in terms of Lu Ze's weaknesses, he has been in the industry longer than him. Therefore, Lu Ze speaks to him in the tone of a senior.

This isn't Lu Ze being arrogant; it's just how things are in this circle. If Lu Ze addressed him as an equal, Ding Zhiyi wouldn't dare accept it. If he did, and it got out, the seniors in the circle would naturally have a much worse impression of him, which wouldn't be good for his future development.

After all, although the entertainment industry in China is not as abnormal as that in Japan and South Korea, it still values ​​seniority and seniority.

Dai Xilu is a relatively popular artist recently. She came from a girl group and later went solo. She is 24 years old this year and her acting skills are acceptable, but she mainly relies on her popularity. She is currently in a transitional period of transformation.

This cast is pretty good. It includes two veteran actors, one accomplished actor, a young, somewhat popular actor, and a popular celebrity. If these two kids don't drag the show down, given the quality of the script and Lu Ze's abilities, they should be able to carry the show.

This is also a popular film cast system nowadays, where popular stars attract viewers, while talented actors reap the rewards. This not only makes the film more remarkable and interesting, but also attracts viewers and draws attention. Therefore, Lu Ze doesn't mind Xiao Fengying's arrangement. After all, it's a romance drama. Without these popular stars and handsome men and beautiful women, who would want to watch two ugly faces kissing each other on the screen?

If all else fails, Lu Ze wouldn't mind giving them a lesson and teaching them some acting tips. The two-time Golden Horse Award winner wasn't being arrogant at all; there are plenty of people who would pay Lu Ze to teach them but don't even have the connections.

"Hello Brother Lu, I'm Dai Xilu. It's a pleasure to meet you. Please take care of me."

Lu Ze shook hands with Dai Xilu and exchanged a few casual pleasantries. The girl was beautiful and had a sweet voice, making it hard for a man to feel disgusted. Seeing Lu Ze's response, she breathed a sigh of relief. If she hadn't heard that Lu Ze was coming, she wouldn't have come to study the script today. She had thought Lu Ze wasn't coming and was planning to leave. Now she was just glad that she hadn't left so early, otherwise she might have offended Lu Ze for no reason.

He pulled out the chair next to Xiao Fengying, took out a pre-printed complete script, a notebook, and a water cup from his bag, glanced at the six people who were still staring at Lu Ze expectantly.

"Director Xiao, would you like to say a few words? Where were we before I arrived?"

"I won't say it again, Screenwriter Deng. How about we repeat it again? Lu Ze just arrived and didn't hear what we said before."

"No, no, no, you and screenwriter Deng can continue, I'll listen to what's going on. You go on."

Since Lu Ze had said so, Deng Bo didn't stand on ceremony anymore and continued explaining the script. Lu Ze took out his phone from his pocket, put it on silent, glanced at the message sent by Shen Jinghan, turned off the phone screen, and placed it on the corner of the table.

The news says that the initial payment for "Wrong Love" has been deposited into the company's account, totaling five million yuan. After the payment is fully received, Qian Shijia will pay the taxes himself, and the remaining amount will be deposited into Lu Ze's bank account after his share is taken.

Speaking of salary, we have to mention the contract that Shen Jinghan negotiated with Jiaxing. On the night of the 30th, Shen Jinghan chose to wait. Subsequently, Lu Ze successfully won the Hong Kong Film Award for Best Actor, and his value skyrocketed. The contract for this movie was 15 million!

Four movies, two Best Actor awards, and no bad films—there's no other actor in the country with such high efficiency. Lu Ze has become a hot commodity in the industry, with film offers constantly flooding Qian Shijia's fax machine. They're really scrambling to get him for 15 million.

Deng Bo took a sip of water after unscrewing the cap. He was talking about the characteristics of the character played by Dai Xilu and the reasons why the female lead was initially chosen. It wasn't directly related to Lu Ze, but Lu Ze was listening quietly. Strengthening the personality traits of other characters and combining them with his own character to form a complete network of relationships is very beneficial to the performance. A good actor not only needs to be thoroughly familiar with the character he plays, but also needs to have a deep understanding of other characters who are closely related to him.

With Lu Ze on the team, the four actors kept writing and drawing in the notebook, which made Dai Xilu, who didn't have much acting experience, feel a little embarrassed. Their professionalism exposed their amateurism, which was very shameful. She could only follow along and write down what Deng Bo said in the notebook as if she were taking notes.

Time flew by, and before they knew it, it was noon. Everyone went out for lunch, and Xue Zhong suggested that they have a couple of drinks, but Lu Ze declined.

This man was in his forties, yet he didn't seem to care about the most basic rule of not drinking during work hours. Although Lu Ze knew he wanted to build a relationship with Lu Ze, well, Lu Ze welcomed making friends, but it depended on the time and place.

As for Xue Zhong, Lu Ze had nothing to say. He could only say that there was a reason why some veteran actors were called veteran actors rather than seasoned actors.

However, this made the atmosphere a little awkward. After a quick meal, they went back to continue the meeting, which didn't end until 5 p.m.

"."

(End of this chapter)