Chinese Entertainment 2017: Starting from the Top Writers

Chapter 493: The significance of the coming-of-age ceremony, a stunning transition
“To be frank, the adult world presented in the film Better Days is not something we can long for.”

"And the rite of passage in my understanding is a ceremony to awaken maturity, a beginning to the realization of trust, a transformation of wild power into the ability to take responsibility, until the moment of love arrives, the person you are courting can entrust the weight of trust to you."

"For me, the young you is a coming-of-age ceremony for me personally and for several young actors in the crew."

Having said that, Lin Li paused, giving the audience some time to digest what he had just said.

At the same time, Lin Li glanced at Zhou Ye who was looking at him. When he saw his gaze, Zhou Ye immediately looked away.

"Heh~"

Lin Li chuckled and stopped looking at her, turning his gaze back to the audience.

Seeing Lin Li's gaze shift away, Zhou Ye locked his eyes on him again.

His coming-of-age ceremony, and my own coming-of-age ceremony?

In a sense, it seems to be true.

In the audience, a crowd began to analyze what Lin Li had just said, especially Lin Li's close female friends, who all began to think about what Lin Li wanted to express.

For them, they had never regarded Lin Li as an ordinary college student, but after hearing what Lin Li said just now, they suddenly realized that Lin Li had not graduated yet and was just a college student who had just finished his junior year.

In their opinion, Lin Li perfectly fits the description he gave, has the ability to take responsibility and is worthy of being trusted.

Thinking of this, Chen Duling and others became more focused.

They all knew that Lin Li’s next words were the key point.

People like Sun Zhonghuai and Gong Yu were also watching Lin Li on the stage with great interest, and were full of curiosity about his next speech.

On the stage, Lin Li raised the microphone again.

"In most people's understanding, people are adults after they turn 18. Many families will also prepare adult ceremonies for their children, which means that from now on you have the ability to make decisions, not only for yourself, but also in a family or a group."

"I believe many people here understand my experience. Maybe in everyone's eyes, I have had a smooth journey and have hardly encountered any setbacks. If I were to tell everyone about my difficulties, you might just think I am being pretentious."

"But I won't hide it from you. In my opinion, I walked very cautiously and on thin ice."

When Lin Li said this, a noisy discussion immediately broke out in the audience.

"Heh... you see, everyone's reaction is exactly what I thought."

Lin Li smiled faintly and spoke in a relaxed tone.

The discussions in the audience suddenly stopped and soon became quiet.

"Actually, I can understand everyone. After all, if you put yourself in their shoes, it's not surprising that everyone has this idea."

"Because everyone is used to my success, and I am used to my own success, and because of this, I sometimes wonder... What if there is such a time when I fail?"

"For me, Better Days is a gift I made for myself as a coming-of-age gift. I've said before that this will be the last youth campus movie I shoot."

"The two protagonists in this movie are both eager to grow up, to become adults, and to enter the adult world."

"During the filming of this movie, many actors put their heart and soul into it, and I also used all the knowledge and skills I had acquired during the filming of this movie."

"Like I said when I was at Beijing Film Academy, from the shooting techniques to the spatial transitions to the color tones, the work Youth is like my graduation project. Until this moment today, I am ready to be reviewed by everyone."

"Boyhood is the culmination of everything I have learned. It is also the first film work of a kid in our crew. It is also the film work of a kid who is about to enter adulthood. It is also the first time that a kid has subverted his previous image in a movie."

"Of course, I also believe that they will gain more from this movie."

"Bei Ni is the first film I have made about school bullying. Although it has received a lot of support from everyone, the content still has many shortcomings."

"Better Days is another attempt by me to explore the protective relationship between teenagers and adults, teenagers and society, and teenagers and each other, based on the tragedy and adversity of school bullying."

"So for me, this movie is my own coming-of-age ceremony, as well as the coming-of-age ceremony for many actors in the crew, and even more so the coming-of-age ceremony that Xiao Bei and Chen Nian in the movie longed for."

"Chen Nian wants to become an adult. She wants to take her mother to BJ and start a new life."

"Xiaobei wants to be an adult. He hopes that he can protect the people he wants to protect and be with the person he likes in the sunshine."

"Shallow love is like a gray sky, deep love is like a long wind."

"If the south wind knows my will, don't let the sunset fall into the dusk."

“Perhaps after watching the movie, everyone will have a deeper understanding of these two sentences.”

"I also hope that today our crew can hand in a satisfactory answer to everyone's questions."

"The above is the meaning of the coming-of-age ceremony."

"thank you all."

As Lin Li finished his words, the theater immediately erupted in applause, and the cheers from the back row of the audience were even louder.

Lin Li's words moved many people in the audience, and they could feel the sincerity in his words.

Yes, people who have never failed are more afraid of failure.

Lin Li's attempt among teenagers this time also aroused great interest among them. What kind of presentation would make Lin Li define it as a "rite of passage"?

Chen Duling looked at Lin Li on the stage with distress in her eyes.

Chen Duling suddenly realized that she cared less about Lin Li.

She originally thought she was doing it and she thought she was doing a good job, but Lin Li’s words just now made her realize that he needed more support and care.

I must treat him better in the future!

Chen Duling secretly made a request to herself.

Not only her, Tian Xiwei and others also had similar feelings.

They had always been used to Lin Li's omnipotence, used to everything being arranged by Lin Li, and used to being protected by him. Now they realized that, yes, no matter how powerful he was, he was just a 22-year-old boy.

He needs more care and support.

Zhou Ye on the stage was chewing over the two sentences Lin Li had just said. The more she thought about it, the more complicated her expression became.

Off the stage, Zhang Ruonan and others did the same.

After carefully thinking about the two sentences Lin Li just said, he always felt that they were a portrayal of the relationship between him and himself. The more he thought about it, the more he thought about it.

"Okay, next, please calm down and enjoy our new movie. See you later."

Lin Li looked at the gradually fading applause from the audience, bowed again to signal, and then walked to the reserved seat on the left amid the new round of applause. Hou Minghao and others also bowed to the audience and followed Lin Li to their seats.

"Hey, come sit next to me."

After Lin Li took his seat, he whispered to Zhou Ye who was about to sit in the back.

Hou Minghao and the others pretended not to hear. He took Zhang Zifeng to sit on the right side of Lin Li. Zhou Ye glanced at Lin Li, curled his lips at his calm gaze, and sat down next to him obediently.

Chen Duling and others, whose gazes followed his figure, looked at Zhou Ye one by one and secretly made up their minds.

Of course, they all knew about the Weibo video that Lin Li posted just for Zhou Ye, and now he specifically asked her to stay by his side. The significance of this special treatment was self-evident.

But Zhang Ruonan and the others knew that Zhou Ye seemed to be still having a quarrel with Lin Li. Thinking of this, they became more and more curious about Zhou Ye's performance among the teenagers.

And the answer will soon be revealed.

As all the main creative staff of the youth drama crew took their seats, the lights in the theater dimmed instantly, and an extremely familiar dragon-shaped icon appeared on the giant screen. All eyes in the theater turned away from Lin Li and his group and shifted to the giant screen.

You know what, watching a movie on such a giant screen is such a wonderful experience that many people subconsciously adjusted their sitting positions.

They have been looking forward to this movie for a long time.

Beside Lin Li, Zhou Ye and others also held their breath. It was also the first time for them to see the entire film.

"Don't worry, you're doing great."

Lin Li said to Zhou Ye from his side in the darkness.

The warm breath hit Zhou Ye's face, and she tensed up and said nothing.

The giant screen gradually lit up, and words appeared.

The first things that appeared were the icons of Nanxun Culture and Ali Pictures, followed by the words "Produced by Nanxun Culture".

"Starring: Hou Minghao and Zhang Zifeng"

"Starring: Zhou Yeyin Fang Huang Jue"

"Starring: Zhang Yifan..."

Until the very end, the words "Better Days" flashed on the dark giant screen, and the words "Director Lin Li's work" appeared. The screen stayed here for about five seconds before gradually lighting up.

The directors in the audience were moved and thought deeply about this scene.

As the screen lit up completely, the picture appeared in a classroom. Zhang Zifeng, dressed maturely, appeared in the picture, writing English on the blackboard.

This opening took everyone by surprise.

Moreover, the color tone is quite warm and harmonious, which is completely different from what they had imagined.

The blackboard reads:

This used to be our playground.
This was our playground.
This is our playground.
After writing, Chen Nian, played by Zhang Zifeng, turned around and asked: Does any classmate know the difference between was and used to be?
A student answered: "Was means in the past."

Before the student finished speaking, Chen Nian immediately explained: "In fact, both of them mean once upon a time, but the difference is that if you use used to be, it will have a feeling of losing paradise."

At this time, Chen Nian saw a female classmate who kept her head down, looking introverted and not daring to communicate with others, with a strange look in her eyes.

At this time, someone said in the background, "This is our playground." The camera suddenly transitioned to the playground, where many students were running and shouting slogans to cheer each other on.

In an instant, everyone at the scene could feel the tense atmosphere facing the approaching college entrance examination.

This scene changes!

Many directors and actors in the audience felt a tingling sensation on their scalps.

Stunning!

The transition of this scene is so smooth, which is not something that can be achieved easily.

Just this one scene made everyone in the audience look forward to the next plot.

“This was our paradise. This was our paradise. This was our paradise.”

Chen Duling chewed over the three paragraphs of English that Chen Nian had just written. Considering the theme of the drama Better Days, the curiosity in her eyes grew stronger.

Sun Zhonghuai, who was sitting one seat away from Chen Duling, heard her voice, glanced at her with interest, and then looked at the big screen again.

Everyone can see that these three sentences must contain metaphors, so everyone is curious about how the subsequent plot development will echo these three sentences.

Zhou Ye and others in the audience looked at Lin Li at the same time. As eyewitnesses, they couldn't help but feel unfamiliar when they saw the beginning of the film.

They have a feeling there will be more surprises to come.

Lin Li maintained a faint smile and stared at the big screen calmly.

The show has just begun.

(End of this chapter)