Huayu: Hard fight against Zhang Weiping at the beginning

Chapter 420 Huaqiang Fangte
"After talking about skills, let's talk about attitude~"

“Who are movies made for? For the audience~”

"The audience is the one who pays real money to buy tickets, so shouldn't we, as filmmakers, respect the audience and even please them?
This is also the reason why I have always disliked author films and advocated commercial films.

Commercial films please the audience, while author films essentially please themselves.

What I want to say is that I have never looked down on auteur films and art films.

Director, you are free to shoot the film however you like, but the prerequisite is that you don’t waste the investors’ money.

People invest in your movie because of you and your fame. What is their purpose? Is it to fulfill your dream?

People want to make money.

You made the film so boring that you felt good about it, but can you really feel at ease with the fact that you made the investors bankrupt?

So, my view has always been that directors who like art films, if you like to make art films, you can, please use your own money to make them, and don’t ruin the entire film ecosystem…”

After Zhang Chen said these words, the scene became a little awkward.

Because whether it is the Central Academy of Drama or the Beijing Film Academy, what they teach is actually the European style, which promotes art films.

Zhang Chen now openly despises art films, which seems to be a slap in their faces.

"Dear fellow students, I don't have much to prepare today. These are all. As usual, you can ask questions freely in the remaining time. If you have any questions, you can raise them. I will try my best to answer them..."

Originally, Zhang Chen was just planning to have a brief chat with the directing department and the photography department, so he didn't prepare much.

Everyone present here is his younger classmates, and many of them only have theory but have not put it into practice. If you tell them too many profound things, they won’t be able to gain much insight.

To be a director, you have to learn by doing. You can’t teach others by others, but you can learn it once by being taught by things.

When we heard that we could ask questions freely, the atmosphere suddenly changed.

Someone immediately raised his hand: "Senior, I want to ask about the relationship between the director and the producer or the investor~"

The question was asked by a boy with glasses.

Zhang Chen asked: "What exactly do you want to know, or are you facing any problems?"

The boy with glasses pushed his glasses up and answered, "Actually, it wasn't me, it was a senior I know well, who graduated several years ago.

He is currently working as a TV drama director. I am interning in his crew. Sometimes when we chat together, I find that he is very distressed because the investors always make some excessive demands, such as inserting his mistress into the relationship. He doesn't want to agree, but he can't refuse. I want to know how to deal with this situation..."

The man with glasses sat down after he finished speaking. Zhang Chen smiled and looked around: "This is a very common conflict in the crew. In a crew, the director is undoubtedly a very important role, but so is the investor.

Especially when the director is not famous yet, the investor's status is actually higher than that of the director.

So what should we do when we encounter this situation?
Generally speaking, you should contact the producer first.

The producer is the representative of the investors and he must consider the interests of the investors.

If someone wants to mess around on the set, it may affect the quality of the series, and the producer will definitely not allow it.

But this situation is when the crew has multiple investors. If there is only one investor, or the one causing trouble is the largest investor, then there is nothing that can be done.

If this is the case, I suggest the director just listen.

You may think that if it affects the quality of the series, it will ruin the director's reputation.

Don't think too much~
For a new director, the most important thing is experience.

You have work experience and the dramas you participated in can be broadcast, which is your qualifications.

No matter how well a film is made, if it cannot be broadcast, then its qualifications are meaningless.

Reputation is of no use without qualifications.

Of course, there is more than one way.

For example, you can try to train the people who are inserted by the investors. If their acting skills are really not good, you can also avoid it through technical means, such as using medium shots as much as possible and reducing close-ups.
Being a director requires flexibility and adaptability, and also, try not to fall out with the investors. Before you grow up, capital is still king in the industry.”

After hearing Zhang Chen's answer, some of the people below looked obviously disappointed. They probably didn't expect that Zhang Chen would let them give in.

Zhang Chen took in all of this and said with a smile, "Why, are you a little disappointed? Do you think what I said today doesn't fit my personality? Usually I always criticize this and that, but why did I change today~"

After Zhang Chen finished speaking, the classmates all smiled awkwardly. Zhang Chen shrugged indifferently: "Of course I can do this, because I am already famous, but you guys here better not do it.

Director, the success rate is very low, so everyone must seize any opportunity~
If you are really successful, then whatever you say is right. If you are not successful, then just do one thing, seize the opportunity, and become famous~"

Zhang Chen's words were all valuable information. Someone in the audience whispered, "Ah, I envy Senior Brother Ning Hao so much. He doesn't get embarrassed by the investors~"

The person speaking looked familiar, and seemed to be from the photography department.

Zhang Chen laughed and said, "Who said Ning Hao wasn't troubled by the investors?

Our company does not have many restrictions on him, but it does have some.

At least the script must be reviewed and approved before filming can begin, as was the case with the previous films "Stone" and "Racing".

As I said before, as a director, you have to live up to the investors. They spent real money to give you training, so you should also have the same serious attitude. "

Zhang Chen originally wanted to tell the story of Ning Hao and "No Man's Land", but later felt it was inappropriate and gave up.

At this time, someone said, "Senior, can you tell us about the process of making a science fiction film like Pacific Rim, how to prepare, how to shoot, how to release it..."

"Yeah, yeah~"

After the man finished speaking, there was an immediate chorus of agreement from those around him.

"Well, this is fine~"

Zhang Chen also felt that what happened just now was a bit inappropriate, and someone happened to change the subject.

He thought for a moment and said: "In Hollywood, similar science fiction films generally follow the 727 principle, that is, 7-8 months of preparation, 2-3 months of shooting, and 7-8 months of post-production.

The same is true for Pacific Rim, the preparatory work required is very long.

Especially since this is the first science fiction movie in China, many supporting equipment are not available, and we need to make them ourselves or purchase them from abroad...

Let me take Pacific Rim as an example. The filming of Pacific Rim requires a super large studio, which is not available in China, only in Pinewood Studios in the UK.

So, either I go to the UK to shoot it, or I make it myself in the country.

The former is worth a lot of money, and the latter is equally worth a lot of money.

Fortunately, Hengdian Film and Television Base was willing to help us build a studio free of charge, so we decided to shoot in the country.

By the same token, all the mecha models and sci-fi cockpits used in the movie all needed to be recreated, so I specially formed a physical effects team for this purpose.

Science fiction films are different from regular movies in that the scenes in them cannot be found in real life.

Almost all of them require physical special effects or computer special effects to synthesize.

This requires thorough preparation in advance.

Before filming begins, every mecha, every monster, and every shot needs to be confirmed, which requires a large number of storyboards and concept drawings.

What the eyes can see is the basis for communication between the director and post-production.

According to our statistics, the entire film "Pacific Rim" has more than 4000 special effects shots, which requires about 3000 concept drawings, and the number of storyboard drawings may exceed 6000. This is a huge workload that cannot be completed by just a few people.

This is only part of it.

When the storyboard drawings are completed, an artist needs to be found to draw all the storyboards into oil paintings.

With these images, special effects artists can start modeling based on the paintings, and some parts even need to be rendered.

Each step takes time and each step costs money.

Once the preparations are completed, shooting is actually the easiest. A physical model plus a green screen is enough, and a lot of work is done in post-production.

The bulk of the post-production work is the special effects synthesis. Although part of the work has been completed in the early stages, there is still a lot of work to be done in the later stages.

This also takes several months.

In this way, usually a year and a half will pass, so the release date needs to be set in advance, and how to release it overseas also needs to be decided in advance.

In addition, if the movie has peripheral products, these should also be arranged in advance, and the peripheral products should be launched online at the same time as the promotion before the movie is released.

It’s very complicated anyway~”

It was impossible for Zhang Chen to explain in too much detail, because many of the problems he encountered had to be solved temporarily. With such a large project, there are always unexpected things.

“By the way, I came here for another thing today, I want to recruit a group of volunteers.

As I mentioned before, Pacific Rim has more than 4000 special effects shots, more than 3000 concept drawings, and more than 6000 storyboards. I need people to help me complete all of these, preferably students from the directing or photography department, who have a foundation in this area...

Are there any students here who are interested? If you are interested, you can come to my crew for internship. Of course, you have to sign a confidentiality agreement..."

As soon as Zhang Chen finished speaking, a bunch of arms immediately raised up: "I, I, I do~"

"I am willing to do so~"

"I'm going to do an internship~"

What a joke, Pacific Rim, how many people dream of being able to participate in a project like this, what is there to consider?

Zhang Chen waved his hand and said, "Don't worry, let me make it clear. This job is not as easy as you think. You have to sign a confidentiality agreement. You cannot tell anyone what you see and hear on the set during the contract period, otherwise you will face huge compensation...

Of course I believe in the quality of our people at Beijing Film Academy, but for such a big project, we must be humble first and then gentleman. You don’t need to decide now. Discuss with your mentors. If you are sure you want to come, just contact Xingchen Entertainment..."

After this matter was finalized, someone immediately asked, "Senior, is there anything else that can be done in other departments? Anything is fine..."

Zhang Chen still underestimated the appeal of "Pacific Rim" to young people.

When these people knew that they had the opportunity to get close to the filming of a science fiction film, they were all eager to try it out.

Zhang Chen smiled and said, "It really is~"

He looked at the eager eyes of the crowd and continued, "After all, Pacific Rim is the first science fiction film in China. It will encounter various problems during the preparation and filming process. I want to find a few people to do nothing but record the various mistakes made by the crew. These are the mistakes that occurred in the stage of China's film industry from zero to one.

We must write down the mistakes we made and then review them. This will help us continuously accumulate experience in the film industry and allow more students and colleagues to use them.

After the movie is released, I will compile the entire production process of Pacific Rim and all the mistakes into a textbook, which can also be regarded as a book of experience. If other people in China want to shoot science fiction in the future, they can avoid some detours~"

After Zhang Chen finished speaking, his image in the minds of his fellow juniors immediately became taller again.

Zhang Chen is sharing his experience of making science fiction films selflessly, which is so valuable. We all study film and know the importance of Zhang Chen's notes.

Applause broke out, and even some school leaders joined in the applause.

At present, there is indeed no concept of film industry in China.

"Pacific Rim" is undoubtedly the beginning of the domestic film industry from scratch. Zhang Chen's approach is truly selfless.

"Not many people want it, maybe 20. Is there anyone who wants to come?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a group of hands stretched out from below.

Just now it was only for those in the directing and photography departments, but now it is open to everyone, and quite a few people have signed up enthusiastically.

Seeing that there were too many people to choose from, Zhang Chen could only say to Teacher Fu in the first row below: "Teacher, how about you help me choose these 20 candidates~"

Teacher Fu also knew his difficulties and nodded in agreement.

"Then I have a piece of advice for everyone here. I hope you will take movies seriously~"

After changing the topic, order was restored in the classroom.

“The story of Pacific Rim was actually in my mind long before Taken, but I didn’t dare to shoot it at the time.

Do you know what I did first when I thought of this story?

I did a business feasibility analysis.

Like I said just now, the starting point of a film project must be profit, so before filming begins, I have to figure out whether this film can be profitable and how to make it profitable.

Only after I achieved success with Taken did people start to believe me.

I calculated that the filming of "Pacific Rim" would cost at least 100 million US dollars, which is 800 million Chinese yuan.

Among them, Xingchen Entertainment contributed 100 million yuan and Golden Harvest contributed 100 million yuan, which means that I contributed a quarter of the share. In addition, the domestic box office of the film depends on the theaters, so China Film and Shanghai Film also invested. If you want to distribute it globally, you must have the participation of Hollywood companies, so Warner is also one of the main investors...

In this way, the framework of the project was established.

But this is the first science fiction film project in China after all, and no one is sure about it.

Therefore, I must achieve some results before spending all of Star Entertainment’s 100 million budget, so that everyone can see the possibility of the project’s success, and then everyone will invest more money.

Investors' money doesn't come from the wind, so everyone is very cautious.

Signing a contract is signing a contract, but if these investors find that the crew is wasting money and the project has no prospects, they will withdraw their investment at any time.

Therefore, I would like to advise all of you in the future to take any film project seriously.

Be responsible for yourself, the crew, and your investors~
A good director must be one who makes money for all parties~"

Zhang Chen tries his best to guide his younger classmates in a positive direction. He hopes that Chinese films will take off in the future.

And he was not exaggerating, the crew of Pacific Rim actually did this.

Such a big project, so many people are watching it.

China Film Group Corporation and Shanghai Film Group Corporation do not have the final say.

Zhang Chen showed his attitude and gave priority to using the budget of Star Entertainment. Those guys in the dark couldn't say anything.

The financial officers of China Film Group and Shanghai Film Group are all on the crew. Everyone is watching to see whether Zhang Chen is spending money recklessly and whether the money is spent wisely.

……

After sharing his experience, Zhang Chen returned to Xingchen Entertainment, where the finance department informed him that the money from Haixin Film and Television had arrived.

Zhang Chen’s first reaction was, could it be that Lao Li was also at the sharing session just now?
But after thinking about it, I felt it was impossible.

Today’s sharing is limited to Beijing Film Academy, and no outsiders are allowed to enter.

Zhang Chen originally just wanted to have a brief chat with students from the Directing Department and the Photography Department, but the school took the initiative to expand the scope to include the entire Beijing Film Academy, which was a bit too much. If they dare to let students from other schools in, they must be prepared for Zhang Chen to never come to Beijing Film Academy again.

The only explanation is that Lao Li is really supportive. He usually doesn't just talk, but shows his support with practical actions.

……

In Hengdian, when Mr. Xu and his son finished their meal, they also watched Zhang Chen’s press conference video, in which he specially thanked Hengdian Group.

"How's the progress at the studio?"

Everyone was very grateful, so of course Mr. Xu also asked about the progress.

"The blueprints for the new studio have been completed and construction has started in the past two days. The underwater studio is also being renovated. There should be no problem completing it within the agreed time frame."

"Hmm~"

Old Master Xu nodded. He was more confident in his eldest son's work, otherwise he would not have passed the position to him.

"So do you think we should make a sci-fi film shooting base?"

This time, the son put down his chopsticks and said, "I think it's best to wait until Pacific Rim is released to see how it performs. Just like Zhang Chen said, if he fails, I'm afraid the door to science fiction in China will be closed~"

Mr. Xu nodded and thought his son's words made sense: "Okay, let's wait and see."

……

At the same time, Zhang Chen also received a call from Chen Xi.

"Mr. Chen, what can I do for you?" Zhang Chen joked with a smile.

Chen Xi's voice was also full of laughter: "Do you know that Storm Red is very popular in Hong Kong? Now many people are asking me to get the authorization of Storm Red. I think the peripheral products of Pacific Rim will definitely sell well~"

"Well, but wait, now is not the time~"

All of this was expected, and the peripheral products have always been considered, but the actual sale will have to wait until the eve of the movie's release, as a promotion for the movie.

"Also, our market value has increased again. It was 250 million before, and now it's 400 million~"

Pacific Rim held a press conference, and Red Storm became a household name overnight. Since Golden Harvest was also one of the investors of Pacific Rim, its stock price rose accordingly.

You should know that when Zhang Chen acquired Golden Harvest, the market value of Golden Harvest was only about 8000 million Hong Kong dollars. Now, in just a short time, the market value has increased fivefold.

Now, it shouldn't be a problem to pay out 100 million.

Of course, it is impossible to invest all at once, it has to be done in batches.

"Also, let me tell you, I signed a female artist to the company, and you promised me that you wouldn't interfere~"

"Oh, it's up to you, do whatever you like~"

When Chen Xi was at Xingchen Entertainment, he wanted to get into the artist management business, but Zhang Chen didn't want to do it, so they cooperated with Shijiu Culture.

When Chen Xi took over Golden Harvest, artist management business was one of the conditions. Zhang Chen agreed decisively and let her handle it all by herself.

Chen Xi was very happy to get a positive answer. Zhang Chen suddenly became interested: "I won't interfere, but can I find out who you signed with?"

He couldn't imagine any potential women in Hong Kong. It seemed that after 2000, there was no generation of Hong Kong actresses.
"have you seen?"

"Who?"

"Wen Yongshan~"

"Who?"

"Haven't you seen it before?"

"How did you know?"

"Of course I heard it from Boss Yang. At the time, I thought that you would come to Hong Kong frequently in the future, and it would not be safe to find a temporary place here. I might as well help you sign one. This way, at least you will be bound by a confidentiality agreement, and the other party will not dare to do anything wrong..."

During the time she was in Jiahe, she learned a lot about the shit going on here, and all she could say was that it was very shameless.

Chen Xi was also afraid that someone would leak random information, or simply record a short video or something like that, which would cause Jiahe's stock price to plummet.

"This is a job they found for me in the name of the company... Mr. Chen, you have grown very fast in this period of time~"

"Where, where~"

"But would you be so kind?" Zhang Chen seriously doubted it.

"Hehe, actually there is a reason why I am optimistic about this girl. Wen Yongshan is the only girl I have ever seen who looks glamorous with heavy makeup, but pure with light makeup. I think she has great potential for development..."

There was no admiration in Chen Xi's tone, it was clearly...

Zhang Chen suddenly became a little worried: "Chen Xi, you are not that thing, right?"

Chen Xi said angrily: "Go to hell, you can't spit out ivory from a dog's mouth. I have something very important to tell you. Do you want to hear it?"

"I want to listen, I want to listen~"

Chen Xi said unhappily, "It's about share repurchase. When we acquired Jiahe, we had an agreement with the second Chen Guoqiang and the third Li Chaoren that when the market value reaches 4 times, we have the right to buy their shares at the market price. Now the conditions have been met, you can initiate a repurchase at any time..."

Zhang Chen on the other end of the phone sat up straight immediately.

This is really good news.

If you want to acquire Golden Harvest, you must have absolute control over it, otherwise it will only benefit others.

At that time, Zou Wenhuai helped to make an agreement with Li Chaoren and Chen Guoqiang, stipulating that if the conditions were met within half a year, they could buy back their shares.

Unexpectedly, the conditions were met just one month later.

However, Zhang Chen still needs to make some preparations to buy it back.

Just as I was saying this, there was a knock on the office door.

"Please come in~"

At the door, Guo Fan poked his head out and saw Zhang Chen was on the phone, so he didn't dare to speak immediately.

Zhang Chen asked: "What's the matter?"

Guo Fan nodded: "Director Zhang, I found Mr. Liu Daoqiang, whom you asked me to help you find~"

(End of this chapter)