New Age Artists

Chapter 137: Fire! It's all business! Cheap or not?! (24)

Shen Santong understood what she wanted to ask.

Helped her organize her language.

"I understand what you mean. It's like being a journalist. The textbooks and theories you learn are all Western, and the teachers and leaders around you also believe in this."

"They are convinced that the moon is rounder abroad. They are more cruel internally but very wagging their tails externally. As students and subordinates, even if they object, they cannot show it for the sake of their own lives and futures."

? ? ? ? ?

"."

Jiang Wei couldn't respond.

You are too sharp: "This segment cannot be published and must be deleted. It will not do you any good if it gets out. Let's get back to the movie."

Shen Santong nodded and agreed with her opinion: "To put it bluntly, I am different from the sixth generation directors. My mental state is very stable, and I don't have dark, dim, impetuous, critical, or reflective thoughts."

"I don't know if you've noticed that in the protagonist Xu Le's room, there is a line of words saying 'Become Stronger'. This is also my attitude towards life."

"When choosing a location, I chose a bright, lively, youthful and vibrant university campus. Because my own university life was like that: youthful, hormonal, free and happy."

"At the end of the film, I repeatedly considered and chose every shot and every frame. I do not deny the bitterness of life and the setbacks in life, but I emphasize hope and looking forward. Flowers are blooming and swallows are returning."

Jiang Wei said: "You are completely different from the sixth generation of directors, and even different from the fifth generation. Many people commented online that your films are still very Shen Santong-style, but still not domestically made."

"It is hard to imagine other local directors making such films except yours. So your film is unique and has no competitors."

"What is your pursuit in movies? In the topic selection of Life and Death, you mentioned that you actually had the idea of ​​shooting horror and suspense, but because of the audience feedback, you gave up. Do you care about the audience's thoughts?"

Shen Santong admitted: "Yes, I was a little bit arrogant after Supermarket. The budget was 2 million, and the box office was 150 million. I'm not being arrogant. Take Jia Zhangke for example. He has been making movies all his life, but his box office is not as good as mine."

Jiang Wei was speechless: "Why are you naming him? How can you be sure that Jia Zhangke will not make commercial films in the future, or that they will not be successful, or that the audience will never like his films?"

Shen Santong said, "Just wait and see. The level of the sixth generation directors is very poor. They didn't handle the material world well, so they went for the metaphysical world."

"If you don't have a good grasp of the basic techniques, you're going to explore the so-called art. As the old saying goes, if the foundation is not solid, the whole world will shake. If you miss your youth, you can't make up for it later."

"When there are more new-generation directors, everyone will understand that art films can also be 'good-looking'. Please keep this part for me."

"alright."

Jiang Wei thought: You are not afraid of people causing trouble for you, or making wrong predictions, so I am even less afraid.

She brought the topic back to the topic: "You care about the audience very much. Your movies are more likely to attract ordinary audiences to the theater."

"But I think you are different from Hong Kong directors. Your movies are not utilitarian, and you don't particularly care about money. You can just make whatever you like."

Shen Santong didn't quite understand her question: "I shoot what I like."

Jiang Wei: "But you change the subject."

Shen Santong: "I like them all, including the previous ideas, which I used in "Lost Town", but this one will not be shown in theaters, and it is an experiment with digital movies. I originally wanted to make it more comedic, but later when editing it, it leaned towards suspense. This drama should be available on the movie channel after the movie is over, and it will be given to everyone for free."

"I think after watching this movie, everyone will understand what I mean. Art films and author films can also be very good."

Jiang Wei noticed a question: "Do you have different standards for theatrical films and non-theatrical films?"

Hearing this, Shen Santong was shocked: "How can you ask such a question? It's not a different standard, it's a completely different thing. Cinema movies require audiences to pay."

Jiang Wei didn't want to leave an unprofessional impression on Shen Santong, so she quickly said, "I know you mentioned that making money from the audience should at least respect the audience. It has nothing to do with morality and is a basic professional pursuit. You have done a deep study of cinema movies. Can you talk about your understanding of the film market?" Shen Santong also felt it necessary to teach his domestic counterparts a lesson: "I'll tell you a common sense. The state of moviegoers, I think, can be regarded as rational brokers in the economic hypothesis. The audience buys movie tickets to enter the theater. There is really a movie ticket. I made up a joke."

Jiang Wei: "What's the joke?"

Shen Santong: "Ask a celebrity fan, are you willing to donate 100 million to this celebrity? The fan replies, I am willing. Are you willing to donate 10 million? Still yes. Are you willing to donate 1 million? Still yes. Are you willing to buy a movie ticket for his movie? No, because I really have the money to buy a movie ticket."

Jiang Wei couldn't help but laugh: "You put it very vividly."

Shen Santong: "Movies that sell copyrights are fundamentally different from theatrical movies."

"Copyrighted films only need to serve a certain film festival's artistic director who has not changed for decades, or the needs of a certain political body, and allocate funds to art theaters every year. As long as they serve a few people well, they can live a good life as long as they are supported by others."

"A movie in a theater needs tickets from the audience. Even if everyone says it's good, but the audience says it's not, the reputation will still be ruined. Because the audience really bought the movie tickets."

Jiang Wei seemed to be thinking about something, and felt that Shen San's call was hinting at something.

But I can’t understand the deeper meaning of Shen Santong.

Jiang Wei continued the interview and asked a difficult question: "Now many people call you one of the three major directors, along with Feng Xiaogang and Zhang Yimou, the three major commercial directors. What do you think?"

Shen Santong shook his head: "I am not interested in this title. I don't like false reputation. I am just an ordinary director born in the 80s."

Although he was the one who originally created the three marketing directors, Shen Santong no longer needs them now.

The two movies were a big hit and had an initial word-of-mouth effect.

What kind of person are you, Zhang Yimou? The things you shoot are both confusing and cater to the West.

Feng Xiaogang is even worse, with a greasy and decadent vibe to him that comes from a middle-aged background.

Don't get involved!

As far as Jiang Wei knows, this title was first given by the public relations department of Shen Santong Company.

Even if it is difficult to claim it directly, we should still be "modest" and praise each other, giving people the feeling that three people are on par.

Shen Santong's answer surprised her again.

She asked the most pointed question: "Can you talk about your artistic pursuits? Don't you want to win awards at all, just make money at the box office?"

Shen Santong said: "Winning awards is also for money. I have said that the sixth generation directors make money by selling copyrights. Director Zhang Yimou is the same. Winning awards makes money. It's not just us. The Oscars are the same, especially for non-commercial films. Awards determine whether the cost can be recovered."

"If Chinese people want to win awards, they have to shoot some twisted things, and they also have to do public relations and run for awards. For example, the public relations fees for the Oscars are several million dollars, and some actresses have to serve the production bosses in various ways in order to win awards."

"I make movies that I like, and I can make money through the cinemas, and I can also entertain the audience, and I don't have to go through the process of winning awards to make a profit. It's one less step. It's great."

Jiang Wei was speechless again.

The more pointed the question, the more unexpected Shen Santong's answer was, but it also inexplicably fitted a certain logic.

Jiang Wei couldn't help but ask: "But directors like the Sixth Generation and Director Zhang Yimou make money in US dollars or Euros?"

Shen Santong twisted his mouth: "The US dollar is money, the euro is money, but the RMB is not money? Isn't it cheap?"

This concludes the interview.

When Jiang Wei said goodbye to him, "Director Shen, I'm afraid your remarks will be very controversial. Do you need to make some cuts?"

(End of this chapter)