New Age Artists

Chapter 136 Overconfidence (14)

When "Crazy Supermarket" was released, Shen Santong was busy with road shows and let the box office speak for itself.

I didn't pay too much attention to the media and let some media write whatever they wanted.

After reviewing the situation, I found that I had missed a lot of good opportunities.

The media's one-sided criticism is also a form of heat, and it can be of great use if used well.

When it comes to "Happy Birthday," he won't let go of the opportunity.

Jiang Wei greeted him warmly: "Hello, Director Shen. I'm honored that you gave us the opportunity to interview you, Beijing Youth Daily."

Shen Santong is no longer the same person as before.

The box office of "Sheng Kuai" exceeded 100 million yuan in five days, and two consecutive films that exceeded 100 million yuan were produced.

There is no dispute that he is listed as one of the three major commercial directors along with Zhang Yimou and Feng Xiaogang.

Moreover, compared with Zhang and Feng, Shen Santong has a very good image among young people and is very appealing.

Shen Santong smiled and shook hands, saying, "Reporter Jiang, I've read a lot of the reports you've written, and they're as controversial as mine."

Jiang Wei, born in June 1971, was the president of the first branch of Xuetong Press. He graduated from Beijing Broadcasting Institute and is currently an editor and reporter for Beijing Youth Daily.

She started writing some articles about Xiaoyanzi about two years ago, at the end of 03.

In 2003, four films starring Xiaoyanzi were coincidentally released at the same time, which was referred to by many media as the "Year of Xiaoyanzi".

However, Jiang Wei wrote several articles, listing the box office performance of Xiaoyanzi's four movies, saying that all of them were failures.

Xiaoyanzi was labeled as "box office poison".

He praised Xu, Fan, Zhang, and Zhou, but only stepped on Wei, and only stepped on Xiaoyanzi.

Xiaoyanzi's fans gnashed their teeth at her and hated her to the point of wanting to bite her.

Shen Santong's assistant team conducted a background check on Jiang Wei, and the female reporter in front of them was very close to New Picture.

I write these not just for personal opinion, but also for profit.

Jiang Wei felt that Shen Santong was not as sharp as she had imagined, nor did he have the arrogance of a so-called genius. He was a handsome boy: "Then we will have a lot in common."

The two exchanged a few polite words.

Jiang Wei first talked about the movie that is currently being shown: "Director Shen, Happy Birthday is your second theatrical work. How did you come up with the idea of ​​filming such a story? I saw that the film paid tribute to Groundhog Day. Did it give you inspiration?"

Shen Sandong: "At first I wanted to shoot a horror suspense theme with a time loop concept. When I talked with Li Bingbing, it gradually took shape. Later I used the story outline to do an audience survey and found that people prefer comedy. So I decided to focus on comedy instead of suspense and horror. So Happy Birthday came about."

Jiang Wei: "Compared to the previous film, "Crazy Supermarket", which took place in a convenience store of less than 30 square meters, "Happy Birthday" has more scenes. It must be difficult to control multiple scenes, right?"

Shen Santong replied: "In my opinion, being a director requires not only having a story in mind, but also having control over the crew. Compared to the public impression of artists, I am more like a contractor. The finished film is the house, the script and shooting plan are the construction drawings, and the crew is the construction team behind the scenes. I am probably an excellent contractor, so it feels quite simple."

Jiang Wei was a little surprised. Most directors would not compare themselves to contractors, as it was too embarrassing.

She couldn't help laughing and said, "Haha, this is the first time I've heard of this. There are also rumors that Director Shen is very scary on the set. I've heard that many directors curse people on the set. Do you curse people?"

Shen Santong nodded. Seeing that he didn't want to talk more, Jiang Wei brought the topic back to the movie: "In the play Happy Birthday, the most successful and outstanding character is undoubtedly the heroine Cheng Xiao. From the beginning to the end, her IQ is online and her logic is perfect."

"After discovering that she was trapped in an infinite death loop, the heroine Cheng Xiao did not sit still and wait for death. Instead, she was fully motivated and implemented various plans to try to find the real culprit. She even chose to enter the next loop to save innocent people."

“Even though the trailer gives viewers an idea of ​​what to expect, it still manages to break out of the box by being lighthearted and humorous.”

"The heroine is eager to help others, reconcile with her father, and apologize to her roommate. You will tell yourself that this is definitely not the last cycle, but you will also be confused and doubt yourself by these plots."

"Li Bingbing's performance was outstanding. No mainland actress has ever amazed me so much on the big screen. She really looks good with both heavy and light makeup."

Jiang Wei felt embarrassed as she spoke: "I'm sorry, I really like the role of Cheng Xiao. I can't help but interpret the role in front of you. I'm showing off my skills in front of an expert."

"Haha."

Shen Santong smiled happily and said, "Being favored by you also proves the success of my movie. We are just chatting and can say whatever we want to say."

Jiang Wei also relaxed and talked about her experience: "Director Shen, you started from the supermarket to this play, and many of your roles are very impressive."

"The biggest surprise, or shock, in the movie was Zhang Jingchu's acting. When the murderer finally revealed his true identity and began to explain the whole story, Zhang Jingchu's performance stunned everyone and left a deep impression on the audience."

"Some people say that you are the best director at filming actresses, but in my opinion, you are not only good at tapping the potential of actresses, but also male actors."

"After Zhu Liao in the supermarket, Huang Bo has a new representative role, the devilish Nima, which is one of the funniest elements in the film."

"Director Shen, how do you create these characters?"

Shen Santong thought about it and realized that in his previous life he knew what screen images of these actors were the most successful.

In addition, I have an aesthetic level that is ahead of the times, but I can’t say: “It’s hard to say, I can only say it’s talent. When I see an actor, I have some general impression in my mind.”

Jiang Wei slowly deepened the topic and came to some controversial issues: "I read a lot of reviews, and what people said most was that it didn't look like a domestic movie. From the title "Happy Birthday", as always, your style is clear and concise, telling us that this is a story that takes place on a birthday."

When Shen Santong heard this, he interrupted and said, "Actually, I kind of regret it."

Jiang Wei asked curiously: "What do you regret?"

Shen Santong: "The film could actually be called "Crazy Day - Happy Birthday", as the sequel to "Crazy Stone"."

Jiang Wei: "Will the box office be better this way?"

Shen Santong shook his head: "Probably not. My movies can basically reach the upper limit of box office potential, or the upper limit of the film market."

"I wanted to make the second installment of the Crazy series because I thought it would help the sequel to Superstore. After all, I gave it to a new director and was worried that the box office would not meet expectations."

Jiang Wei was speechless. Shen Santong implied that the only thing restricting him was the current film market. The bigger the film market, the higher his box office would be.

Too confident.

Shen Santong's confidence made Jiang Wei feel dazzled: "You have a kind of confidence and calmness that is rare among current directors. The mother and daughter's perspectives are exchanged at the end of the film. If it were an ordinary director, the ending might be a little fragmented, but your treatment is only touching, not sentimental, and the emotions are always positive."

"How did you do it? At the end of your film, the perspective shifts from the heroine to the audience, talking about the experience of life, and your experience is passionate. I mean, you are different from many directors?"

Jiang Wei tried hard to organize her words, but it was not easy to express what she wanted to ask.

(End of this chapter)