New Age Artists

Chapter 619: The Whale's Back Revealed After the Clouds Cleared, It Was Just an Old Skin

It was just a coincidence.

In February, Zhao Wenzhuo and Zhen Zidan collaborated on the movie "Special Identity", but less than a month after filming started, some media revealed that Zhao Wenzhuo did not follow the crew's arrangements, acted like a big shot, and left the crew.

Zhao Wenzhuo made strict demands on the crew, requiring them to be responsible for the expenses of his eight entourage members and their families. The daily expenses were as high as 5 yuan, which seriously occupied the crew's funds.

The production team then terminated the contract with Zhao Wenzhuo on the grounds that he was "playing big shot".

Ten years ago, this would have ended there.

Zhao Wenzhuo is labeled as a big shot, and if he fails to become popular again in the future, he will have to bear this burden for the rest of his life.

But times have changed. It's not that Xiao Bailong was beaten, but instead of hiring some internet trolls and spreading some press releases, Wang Bozhao was considered to have a bad character, be a habitual liar, and sit on someone else's bench without permission, and he deserved the beating.

This is 12. More and more people are going online. It is no longer an era where what the media and opinion leaders say is the truth.

Netizens can directly participate in the topic discussion, and the incident quickly evolves from an industry dispute to a social issue that attracts the attention of the entire nation.

Awakened historical memory.

Zhou Jie was excluded by the Wandao crew in the early stages of The Great Ruler, and her image was damaged because of Lin Xinru's accusation of "forced kissing".

There was also the case of Xiao Bailong being beaten. Although the court ruled it as "intentional injury", the Hong Kong and Taiwan crews still looked down on mainland actors and made unreasonable demands.

The most famous actor in the crew of "The Return of the Condor Heroes" is from Hong Kong, as are the people behind the scenes and the director. In this situation, who would look for trouble, and who would dare to look for trouble?

In this conflict between Donnie Yen and Zhao Wenzhuo, Donnie Yen is both the leading actor and producer, and has the power to modify the script and adjust the roles.

As a mainland actor, Zhao Wenzhuo is in a disadvantaged position in the crew dominated by Hong Kong capital.

With such an imbalance in power, it doesn't make sense to say that Zhao Wenzhuo is "playing big shot".

After Zhao Wenzhuo quit the crew, he fought back. In an interview, he mentioned that Zhen Zidan was the one who acted like a big shot.

Zhen Zidan kept modifying the contract script during the filming process without obtaining his consent afterwards. The script was changed too much and he could not continue filming. The crew also blamed him.

This response touched the public's sensitive nerves about industry injustice.

Escalating personal conflicts into professional ethics disputes further brought internal affairs of the circle to the surface.

The public has discovered that the film and television industry is not just slightly backward, but extremely backward.

As the situation escalated, Zhen Zidan denied Zhao Wenzhuo's statement, saying that he had originally admired Zhao Wenzhuo and had asked him to act in the role, but now he was acting like a big shot and he was very disappointed in him.

Because it was he who insisted on letting Zhao Wenzhuo play the role against all odds. At that time, the production team felt that there was something wrong with Zhao Wenzhuo and were unwilling to use him.

Both sides held their own opinions and argued back and forth, implying that they both denied that they were the one who was playing big shots.

Then the friends around both sides also took sides and got involved in the verbal battle.
Shu Qi was the first to come out to support Zhen Zidan, saying that he is dedicated and serious.

This aroused the dissatisfaction of netizens, who rushed to her Weibo to scold her and dug up her "black material" from her early years.

Seeing this, Shu Qi cleared her Weibo.

Yao Chen said that he felt sorry for Shu Qi, hence the name "Yao Xintong".

In terms of marketing capabilities, Hong Kong and Taiwan artists are much stronger than mainland artists. The next day, Shu Qi was photographed crying in the park.

Feng Xiaogang was heartbroken and called out to netizens on Weibo: What do you want to do?
Netizens turned their criticism towards Feng Xiaogang, calling him "Whisper".

More and more people are involved in this war of words, and the scope of impact is becoming wider and wider.

Shu Qi, Wang Jing, Du Wenze and others voiced their support for Zhen Zidan, while new generation actors such as Yang Mi, Jing Tian and Qin Lan expressed their support for Zhao Wenzhuo.

Most of those who support Zhao Wenzhuo are mainland stars, while most of those who support Zhen Zidan are Hong Kong stars.

By the end of March, "Special Identity" experienced a casting change storm, and finally Andy On replaced Zhao Wenzhuo, and the Head & Shoulders endorsed by Zhen Zidan was urgently taken off the shelves.

At this point, the Zhao Zhen incident did not subside, but instead merged with the "Down with Shen" incident and became a part of the "Down with Shen" incident.

The "anti-Shen" movement caused Shen Santong's original film plan to be scrapped.

It was a retreat in order to advance, and he really retreated and went into seclusion, without making any sound from beginning to end.

But again, Shen Santong does not just represent himself. He has now gathered very powerful forces from the industry to the policy level.

Chen Chexi named and blasted Zhang Weiping on Weibo: "You, Zhang Weiping, were not like this when you came to the crew of Red Cliff for help. You are ungrateful and fanning the flames behind the scenes. You are a mean person!"

When "Curse of the Golden Flower" was released, Zhang Weiping said all the good things and acted like a grandson in front of Hollywood. He was strangled in overseas distribution and finally ran to Shen Santong for help.

Only with the help of Shen Santong were some of the losses recovered.

Of course Zhang Weiping would not admit it, so Chen Chexi took out the sign-in record of the set visit that year, and Zhang Weiping's name was signed on it, and the time and date matched.

"Red Cliff" was filmed many years ago. Chen Chexi did not experience this personally. She heard about it from Shen Santong. Fortunately, Santong Entertainment has preserved the information in this regard very well.

For the "Red Cliff" project, Shen Santong wanted to make a template, and the crew kept very detailed records.

The intern students at that time came out one after another to confirm this matter.

Some of these interns joined Santong Entertainment, while others left the industry or returned to their hometowns.

There are no interests involved and the credibility is high.

Some people even found their internship notes from that year.

Director Chen also spoke up and asked Shen Santong for help. He and Zhang Yimou had an old friendship and he was doing it for Zhang Yimou's sake.

Covering both inside and outside the industry, from the front stage to behind the scenes, so many people are doing cross-verification.

Both the records of the crew at that time and the people involved in the event all confirmed this.

How to say it, you don’t know until you dig deeper. The more you dig deeper, the more valuable Shen Santong becomes.

The costume blockbuster encountered a siege overseas because of Shen Santong's efforts behind the scenes. After the success, he kept the credit and fame to himself and did not take any credit for it.

All these years have passed, and if it weren't for this conflict, many people might never have known about it.

Shen Santong has done a lot of things.

"Red Cliff" is not just a simple film project, it carries the hope of saving historical themes, or at least leaving a spark of fire. The crew has a sense of mission.

More details about Shen Sanjiao's past work were revealed, such as Director Shen's crew is very standardized, does not allow unspoken rules, and does not allow couples on the crew. The requirements are high and the income is also high. It is a career.

Some netizens asked directly below, isn’t it a basic requirement to not have unspoken rules or couples on the set?

The person who broke the news smiled and said nothing, because he is still working in the circle.

However, some people who changed their careers gave netizens some information about the situation in this circle.

The "normal" atmosphere in the industry is to raise money through listing, de-filming, follow unspoken rules, and suppress peers.

The casting is chosen on the bed and the script is decided on the drinking table. It is not an exaggeration, it is basically the fact.

In the film industry, Santong Entertainment and Guangguang Style are better.

This is not just a matter of personal style, but also about the logic of project operation.

The mainland is deeply influenced by the Hong Kong circle. Hong Kong movies have a characteristic: stars come first, scripts can be written on the spot, and as long as there are stars, there will be people to invest.

After arriving in the mainland, a certain degree of localization has been done, but film and television projects are still centered around directors, stars, and investors.

This mode of operation will inevitably lead to circle culture, and the script can be changed on the spot as long as it gets the favor of the project controller.

Shen Santong is not a good person, but compared with his peers, Shen Santong is about to become a saint.

One netizen casually posted: "Shen Santong, come back soon!"

It immediately triggered millions of reposts, which was terrifying.

After Chen Chexi stood up to criticize Zhang Weiping, it meant that the "gag order" was gone.

The more dirty secrets of the "anti-Shen" forces are uncovered, the more they reveal.

In art colleges on the mainland, the phenomenon of self-production and self-sales is serious, from award selection to annual admissions.

It is not uncommon for art school teachers to be responsible for admissions while running training classes outside.

There are some people who simply treat the annual enrollment as the selection of concubines.

Some people in Hong Kong Island have also stepped forward to dispel the myth about mainland netizens.

When Johnnie To was filming "PTU", a supporting actor was slapped a hundred times by Simon Yam.

A young man was given 300 yuan for being hospitalized after being slapped so hard that he became deaf. Johnnie To talked about this in front of the camera and even dared to ask him to shoot it again. He even had a smile on his face when he recalled the incident.

Some people also mobilized the Internet to muddy the waters, but the more information there is, the more transparent it is.

Many viewers naturally came to the conclusion that the entertainment industry is really terrible.

If there were no Santong Entertainment, the only conclusion would be “bad”, but we wouldn’t know how bad it is or where it is bad.

With Santong Entertainment, everything is different.

The market is not big?

During the Spring Festival, Santong Entertainment's "Lost on Journey 4" and "Zhao Zilong" both broke 20 billion.

As long as the themes don't clash, two good movies of different genres can complement each other and the audience can appreciate them.

Nowadays, material life is abundant. Unlike in the past, when people could only eat oily food a few times a year, it is now normal for an average family to eat meat several times a week.

Movies are good and make the New Year more festive. There is a place to have fun, spend money, and have family activities together.

Hollywood is powerful?

That’s true, but comedies and dramas have cultural barriers and don’t require special effects.

What matters is the quality of the film.

Who would like this ancient costume movie with Chinese skin and Western bones?
Without Santong Entertainment, does it mean that the audience does not like historical themes and does not like to watch historical themes?

If there hadn't been the comparison between the two versions of "Red Cliff" and the success of Santong Entertainment's historical dramas one after another, the audience might have had to bear the blame.

With the same suffering and trauma, Shen Santong's "Nanjing Nanjing" is about suffering and hope amid darkness, while Lu Chuan's film focuses on the book.

Compared with "The Flowers of War", it is even more amazing. That's right, Shen Santong's interference in the creation of Colonel Lu Chuan was also revealed, along with the details and his creative ideas.

In contrast, the audience discovered that the film and television industry is like holding a golden bowl, but insisting on sticking the rice spoon into a cesspool!

Such a profound culture, such a magnificent reality, how can you not even take a look at it!
Huayi, a former leader, is now also one of the giants. It is really capable!
In order to ring the bell for listing and fool the audience, after listing, it immediately carried out "strategic transformation" and boasted about its ecological layout in the financial report.

He is good at being sarcastic and doesn't do any serious work.

Rather than elevating yourself, it’s better to bring others down, right?
"Down with Shen" will turn Shen Santong into a saint.

Then the battle between Zhao Wenzhuo and Zhen Zidan intensified, and friends from both sides took sides.

The public discovered that, wow, the various forces jumping up and down in the "overthrow of Shen" movement are all from the same circle as those who support Donnie Yen.

The stars who support Zhao Wenzhuo are more or less close to Santong Entertainment.

The two things inexplicably converged at the end of March.

If the Zhao Wenzhuo incident was an effort to fight for "equal rights", mainland capital and market have an absolute advantage in the Chinese entertainment industry, and mainland actors should enjoy equal treatment. However, as it merged with the "anti-Shen" incident, it directly became a struggle between two forces.

The conflict between Zhao and Zhen implies interest alliances and industry factional struggles.

The original Rashomon between Zhao Wenzhuo and Donnie Yen suddenly became clear. Zhao Wenzhuo became the side of justice and progress, while Donnie Yen became the representative of backwardness.

The incident inevitably expanded and a huge rift actually appeared.

Wang Zhongjun found that the leader who used to get along well with him suddenly ignored him, and he was unusually flustered: "Huayi is not an ordinary company, it has made contributions. We are not bad people, how can you say we are bad people!"

Wang Zhonglei suggested: "Brother, why don't we expand it and turn it into a regional conflict to get us out of it."

Wang Zhongjun looked at his brother like he was an idiot, thinking that he had improved over the past two years. "We are in the middle of this situation, isn't this courting death? The most urgent task is to reduce the impact."

Wang Zhongjun feels that something is wrong with the current atmosphere, and there is a sign that something is about to go wrong.

There is a saying that goes, if you don't weigh 40 ounces, you will never be able to stop weighing a thousand pounds.

In the past, even if Hua Yi had problems, he would always deal with them in private.

Firstly, they have made historical contributions, and secondly, as an entertainment company, they are under the spotlight, and because of their solidarity and influence, they will try their best to avoid adverse effects even if it comes to the point where they have to deal with it.

Fame is a talisman. If your reputation is bad, there will be no buffer zone.

They have many connections, but when using these connections, they must at least have reasons and ensure that they do not dirty their hands.

Hua Yi has been controversial in the past, but it has never been to the point where its popularity has been ruined.

Now it’s not just them who need to be on the list, but also the relationships behind them.

Shen Santong retired and Santong Entertainment almost ran away. Even though Shen Santong did not say anything on the surface, Santong Entertainment regarded it as a normal decision of the company, but the adverse impact had already been formed.

Putting aside the issue of influence, who will make up for the taxes paid and the jobs provided by these businesses every year? Who in the film and television industry can make up for it?

Other cities want to have their own outstanding cultural and creative works, doesn’t BJ want it too?

As for popular culture, the cultural center doesn't have much to show for itself.

The public opinion storm remains at the public opinion level, so we can ignore it. However, it has had a substantial impact on the industry, which needs to be mentioned.

If it's bad, but it still plays a certain role, we may turn a blind eye to it.

After all, the entertainment industry is only famous in name only, but its actual output value is very little.

But it is not only bad and stupid, it also has side effects. And not just ordinary side effects. It is going to destroy the only entertainment industry that can be shown off. Doesn't it mean that it has reached the point where it must be dealt with and the ecosystem has been completely corrupted?
Wang Zhongjun is well aware that the government is not omniscient and omnipotent and that it has its priorities.

The entertainment industry is not even considered “light” and is not on the list. As long as you rush in without opening your eyes, there won’t be much energy to manage it.

But now Hua Yi is somewhat short-sighted.

"Brother, how about we run away?"

Wang Zhonglei panicked. After 12 years, he could only say that those who understand understand. The media is just the outermost ring, and the inner part is more dangerous: "We are also successful overseas. If we are not careful in this vortex, we will lose everything."

Wang Zhongjun's mind, which had been dull for the past two years, has become sharp again: "I definitely can't run away. If I run away, I won't be able to explain myself. Besides, I don't have any foundation inside anymore, so going outside is just courting death."

Many members of their clan left a hundred years ago. They had prominent status, but now they are overseas, and there are only a few left, let alone branches and leaves.

"Besides, the worst case scenario is that we fail in our business." Wang Zhongjun calmed down and his thoughts became clear: "You jumped a lot in this matter, but didn't I pull you back in the end?"

Wang Zhonglei gritted his teeth and said, "Brother, how about I take on this responsibility?"

Wang Zhongjun asked back: "What are you carrying? What's the matter?"

Wang Zhonglei said: "We want to get rid of Shen Santong."

Wang Zhongjun sighed: "You are confessing yourself. Remember, we didn't do anything."

Wang Zhonglei was confused: "Brother, you..."

Wang Zhongjun's eyes turned cold: "Looking at this circle, our Huayi is actually still pretty good. We are not the most enthusiastic among them."

Wang Zhonglei hesitated: "Brother, what do you mean?"

Wang Zhongjun said: "Push out the rotten and smelly people in Hong Kong and Taiwan, the places where the spotlight doesn't shine, the rotten and smelly people in schools and other small circles."

Wang Zhonglei took a deep breath. There were many things that Shen Santong might not know. They had been in the business for so many years and knew too much. "We're going to offend people like this."

Wang Zhongjun said calmly: "But we survived."

Entering April.

Many scandals in the entertainment industry have exploded one after another. These people are not famous in the outside world, but they often have certain positions and titles.

chongqing.

Han Sanping brought a group of people to find Shen Santong.

Two months after returning from the United States, Shen Santong had indeed disappeared from the public eye, completely disappeared. Both his main and secondary accounts were inactive, and it was difficult to find him.

Santong Entertainment was determined to "split" step by step. Fortunately, after some communication, Weibo was retained.

The code name used internally is "evacuation business function", and externally it is in the name of creating a "city business card". Santong Entertainment uses cultural and creative industries to empower the city.

Create cultural and entertainment works that can be shown off and put on the table as a "city business card."

Only the film content department remained on BJ's side. Santong Entertainment is centered on content, and the central brain remained, but it is just a brain.

By taking this step, Santong Entertainment can directly obtain local assistance, which is at a level no lower than that of the Film Bureau, the General Administration, and the cultural and propaganda departments.

Moreover, as an entertainment company, Santong Entertainment does not have too many conflicts of interest. It occupies a noble ecological niche and has strong cultural and creative capabilities, which makes it a perfect match for the local area.

For works such as "Wolf Tooth" and "Inception", a separate line of thanks was given to explain that they were key cultural projects of xx Province. After they became popular, they also received research and guidance, which gave them face.

Shen Santong took this step and took great initiative.

Since he took the initiative, naturally someone else would be passive.

Han Sanping had to make this trip to save his reputation because he was asked to do so by various parties.

"Is this what you call playing in the mud?" Han Sanping saw Shen Santong in the crowd and almost didn't recognize him. Shen Santong had spots all over his body and looked like a cement worker.

It’s not wrong to say that they are cement workers, this is a construction site.

Shen Santong enthusiastically introduced the unfinished scaled-down model of the Three Gorges Dam: "I have always had an idea, and finally I have the time to implement it."

"It took about 17 years from the early planning to the full completion of the Three Gorges Dam. The project was approved in 1992 and put into operation in 09. The main construction took about 15 years. It was officially started in 94 and completed in 09."

“The feasibility study dates back to the 1950s, and after many geological surveys, technical demonstrations and social impact assessments, the final decision was made on April 1992, 4.”

"The construction of the Three Gorges Project officially started on December 94, 12. On May 14, 06, the concrete pouring of the main body of the dam was completed and the dam top was fully connected, marking the completion of the entire line."

"After another three years of follow-up improvements, the Three Gorges Project passed the national acceptance in 09, marking its full completion."

"The Three Gorges Dam took nearly a hundred years from conception to full operation, and the actual construction took about 15 years, which reflects our ability to coordinate super-large projects."

"Its time span is not only due to the technical difficulty, but also because it needs to balance multiple goals such as flood control, immigration, and ecology, making it a classic example of a complex system in human engineering history."

"The entire project is huge, requiring the pouring of 2800 million cubic meters of concrete, the relocation of 130 million people, and the coordination of tens of thousands of construction workers."

"The engineering and technical challenges are enormous, and we need to overcome world-class problems such as giant ship locks, ultra-high voltage power transmission, and ecological protection."

"The social impact is complex. We need to do a good job in resettlement of immigrants and protection of cultural relics. For example, the relocation of Zhang Fei Temple will take many years."

"After its completion, it broke many world records. The Three Gorges Dam is a concrete gravity dam with a total length of 2335 meters and a dam height of 181 meters. The total installed capacity is 2250 million kilowatts, far exceeding the second-ranked Itaipu Hydropower Station jointly built by Brazil and Paraguay."

"The most important function is flood control. The Three Gorges Dam has raised the flood control standard of the Jingjiang River section from 'once in a decade' to 'once in a hundred years' by regulating flood flow, greatly reducing the threat of floods to life, property and the economy."

Shen Santong spoke eloquently: "As for industrial expression, after much thought, I decided to start with heavy industry, because this is the most eye-catching. The aesthetics of heavy industry are rough and grand."

"The beginning and climax of the new play have been thought out. The protagonist is Jiang Sheng, who is from the Jingjiang area. When Jiang Sheng was young, he witnessed his father's rescue work in the flood area. He also wanted to go to the embankment to rescue the disaster, but his elders arranged a pretext for him to move supplies to protect him. He saw his uncle being washed away by the flood with his own eyes."

"Jiang Sheng was very sad about this incident, but later his grandfather told him that he didn't need to be sad or feel guilty because this was a tradition, and what he had to do was to keep the tradition going."

"Jiang Sheng was admitted to Hohai University with his uncle's notebook. He discovered the error in the water level measurement in the yellowed pages and returned to the Three Gorges as an assistant engineer in 01."

"One climax was when the Three Gorges Dam faced its first once-in-a-century flood peak, with the water level in the reservoir approaching the 175-meter warning line. Jiang Sheng asked young people to carry supplies to the rear, while he stood on the embankment as a designer and insisted on using the deep flood discharge hole that had just passed acceptance."

"He practiced the tradition and hoped to pass it on to the next generation, and he chose to keep the moment of glory for himself."

"My idea is to show that man can conquer nature, and to show the grandeur and romance of 'cutting off the clouds and rain of Wushan Mountain, and a calm lake emerging from a high gorge'. The grandeur lies in conquering nature, and the romance lies in the fact that such a spirit can be traced back thousands of years and remains the same."

"Yu the Great held a meeting at the Goddess Peak of Wushan Mountain, Li Bing patrolled the Ling Gorge in Jiangxi, Lin Zexu surveyed the Nanjin Pass, and now people use satellite mapping."

"From the bronze axe splitting the rock, to the fire and water excavation method, to the hydraulic hammer smashing the granite and sending debris flying."

“The people are different, the tools are different, the methods are different, but the spirit is the same.”

"Of course, the main focus is on the 30-year time span, showing the spiritual inheritance of two generations of builders, expressing the entire project with a heavy industrial aesthetic, and depicting the wisdom and courage in the face of the great power of nature."

"If we can show a little bit of the spirit of our ancestors in transforming themselves and what people today have accomplished, this play will do well."

As he listened, Han Sanping was unable to speak for a moment about the purpose of his visit.

(End of this chapter)