New Age Artists

Chapter 660 Chinese Superhero
Huairou Film and Television Base.

After the evacuation of Santong Entertainment, this place is still one of the important branch bases.

Shen Santong didn't really run away. He invested more than 3 billion yuan in infrastructure and equipment in Huairou Film and Television City.

Plus, BJ is a natural cultural center.

No matter how it changes, the focus, or brain, of Santong Entertainment will never stray far from the cultural center.

There are also the most advanced projection equipment here. Shen Santong and a group of main creators, theater chain, and publicity and promotion personnel watched "The Return of the Great Sage" together.

The picture stays at the end, a close-up like a long scroll.

Under the soothing melody, all the people involved were silent for a long time.

Epic pictures, epic stories, epic rhythm
The picture quality is actually secondary. The main thing is the exciting plot, which gave some theater staff goosebumps.

They all looked quietly at the hot guy in the best viewing area in the middle.

There is no doubt that "The Return of the Great Sage" is another work with a deep imprint of Shen Santong. The more related practitioners are, the more they can feel the unique flavor of Shen Santong.

Shen Santong's movies have a unique rhythm. Even though Santong Entertainment has discovered many new directors, no one can cover Shen Santong's film aesthetics.

It is easy to judge whether a movie is Shen Santong's.

That mark is too vivid and the taste is too strong.

Just like "1937", the director's name was Kang Honglei, but everyone knew that the person in charge was Shen Santong.

clap clap!

Warm applause broke out.

The eyes of practitioners of Santong Entertainment are fanatical.

Shen Santong's status in Santong Entertainment is almost god-like. This is not based on what he says, but what he does.

Whether it is the direction of the company's development or the achievements of personal works, one decision after another, one victory after another, victories recognized by facts and judged by time, have forged Shen Santong's unique position.

The cinema workers present knew after watching the movie that "Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons" had no chance of winning.

The gap is too big. Not to mention the investment in special effects and the quality of the pictures are much worse, the core of the story is not on the same level at all.

For the main event of Santong Entertainment, there may be some off-site factors, but there is definitely no such thing as a cinema chain.

In the past, there were some small tricks. Santong Entertainment directly recycled the copies and blacklisted the relevant cinemas.

Shen Santong thanked them and told the distributor: "You guys entertain our friends from the cinema. I'll be leaving now."

Amidst the compliments, Shen Santong took a group of main creators to hold a small meeting.

"This play will have an exaggerated result."

After leaving the screening room, Shen Santong said to the creators excitedly, "Compared to the box office, it's mainly because we have established a preliminary animation production industry chain through this drama. It can be said that it has reshaped our animated films."

Shen Santong was followed by one on his left and one on his right.

One is Tian Xiaopeng, the original director of "The Return of the Great Sage", and the other is Jiaozi.

In the animation field, before "The Monkey King: Hero is Back", the highest-grossing movie was "Boonie Bears". This time, the time was moved forward to "Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf" movie.

As expected, the Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf movie was also reported.

There's nothing we can do, this is the environment now.

On the surface, the people who took action were parents, but in fact they were some colleagues in the film and television industry.

Only when interests are involved can one push something forward for a long time, from public opinion to policy, and persevere until someone is killed.

The box office of "Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf" exceeded 100 million. Compared with the box office of other so-called "aspirational" movies, isn't this a slap in the face?
It is no exaggeration for Shen Santong to comment on the significance of The Return of the Great Sage. The Return of the Great Sage will reshape the image of animated films in the minds of the audience, the public and the government.

This was the effect of "The Return of the Great Sage" in the previous life, and it will definitely be even stronger in this life.

The original team for this version of "The Return of the Great Sage" was from the Shanghai Film Art Studio. Unfortunately, it was too late and the skilled people were poached, and the ones who stayed were left alone, and the technology has not been updated for many years.

"Journey to the West: Conquering the Dragon King" and "Nezha Conquers the Dragon King" are both classic works, but artistic aesthetics are different now than in the past.

After some twists and turns, it can even be said that it started from scratch, overturning the 2D freehand Chinese style and turning it into a 3D realistic style, which is the original style.

With the support of Shen Santong, the production cost reached 4 million, which is six or seven times higher than the original version.

Real money was invested and the effect was immediate. Not only was it completed two years earlier than in the previous life, the effect was also better.

Even if we did it two years in advance, it still took five years to redefine the 08D production style from 3.

It takes longer from the start of the project.

Making "The Return of the Great Sage" requires money, but money alone is not enough; it also requires time.

Not to mention 4 million, even if it's 10 billion, it will take at least 5 years.

This drama aims to restructure the industrial chain of animation production, from film and television bases to related talent training. It is building a system from scratch.

It would take a lot of time to replace anyone.

The key is how to organize people. Only when people are organized can money be spent in the right place. Otherwise, no matter how much money is spent, it will be useless.

Shen Santong initially had ideas about Tian Xiaopeng.

He liked the original version of "The Return of the Great Sage" very much and bought a lot of peripheral products, but the core of the movie was really not good.

It’s still the same old thing, human nature.

The Monkey King Sun Wukong in the original "The Return of the Great Sage" was endowed with complex "human" traits.

In the early stages, the character shows a certain degree of confusion and fragility, decadence and self-isolation, evasion of responsibility, and is still very fragile.

Not only did he fall into a passive position, but he also had to watch Jiang Liuer die. He felt powerless and his heart was full of struggle.

Whether compared with the unruly and rebellious Monkey King in the original work, or the modern image of the Monkey King under the influence of Teacher Li, it is far from that.

Moreover, he heard that Tian Xiaopeng's character design for "Deep Sea" was very similar to "Down Syndrome Boy".

In order to win the award, he personally pulled his eyes during an interview with NHK TV.

It was just that Tang's company took the lead, which created public opinion, and then they had to redo the work after stepping on a landmine.

Later, I chose Tian Xiaopeng.

The reason is simple, there are really no good candidates.

If you want to work on this subject, have the ability, qualifications and ambition, there are very few options.

As early as 97, Tian Xiaopeng served as the production supervisor of the domestic animation film "Journey to the West". In 04, he directed the 06D animation film sample "TURBOBOY", which won the Excellent Animation Sample Award of the China Cartoon Art Committee and the Best D Animation Award of the China Digital Art Professional Committee. In , the original film sample "Jungle Master" he directed won the Excellent Animation Award of the China Digital Art Professional Committee.

In addition to Tian Xiaopeng, Shen Santong did not put all his eggs in one basket and looked for dumplings, which had just become famous at the time.

Jiaozi is a man of ideas, ambitions and abilities. He has been making "Hit a Big Watermelon" at home for several years. His self-control and execution ability are incredibly strong.

However, he had accumulated a lot of knowledge in his previous life, but in this life, Shen Santong just packed it up and took it away.

One may have ideological problems, but has qualifications and a team; the other is young and has his own system. Shen Santong wants them all.

Tian Xiaopeng, who has a lot of experience, spoke first: "The Monkey King Sun Wukong has a very important meaning for our generation. I am also confident in the results."

"The audience is easy to talk to. Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf has achieved good results. As long as we satisfy the audience a little bit, the results will be good."

Shen Santong said: "Many remarks are deliberately made to stir up conflict. We young people actually love our history and our myths. We watch comic books, anime and American TV series because they are well made, and they are not mainstream in the entire group."

After knowing Tian Xiaopeng for many years, Shen Santong's ideas have also been reshaped.

This is not only true for Tian Xiaopeng, but for the entire art industry.

Breaking the stereotype.

Tian Xiaopeng can tell jokes, and Shen Santong knew that in his previous life.

"The Monkey King: Hero is Back" was on the roadshow, and an audience member asked about the sequel, will the Monkey King still have a horse face?
He replied that according to the set age, the Monkey King’s appearance should not change much.

Many netizens are clamoring for the birth of a baby boy online. A reporter asked in all seriousness, what do you think of fans who are shouting that they want the Monkey King to have a baby boy?
He replied that fortunately they were all primates and could be considered the same species.

Of course, what really broke Shen Santong’s three views was the distorted state of art-related majors.

They are sarcastic and forward all kinds of nonsense, but they think they are right and that they are patriotic.

Shen Santong initially thought it was fake.

People like Jiaozi are rare in the circle. Many artists who graduate from professional schools are even more twisted than filmmakers.

However, after observation, it was finally found that this was true, including for Tian Xiaopeng.

I am shocked by this kind of twist and also shocked by the stance that is different from the stereotype.

It's not just artists, filmmakers as well.

Whether it is the fifth or sixth generation, they are all for Chinese films. Most of them are not pretending, they are really like this, they think like this, and they do it.

To outsiders, it seems very twisted, awkward, and reverse.

Shen Santong said: "The Monkey King: Hero is Back" goes beyond the scope of excellent animation and excellent movies. It is a truly high-quality entertainment product. We, the audience, cannot resist high-quality content."

I wanted to say "good stuff", but this word has been stigmatized and Shen Santong felt uncomfortable when he mentioned it.

Shen Santong instructed the two of them.

"Stick to our own perspective and aesthetics, and don't be influenced by outside influences."

This reminder is mainly for Tian Xiaopeng: "Don't let the painter involve racial discrimination, especially the characters who discriminate against themselves."

Shen Santong doesn’t want to say “insulting China”. He actually doesn’t understand why the media likes to use the term “insulting China”.

On the one hand, this word downplays the nature of the incident, and on the other hand, it also weakens its seriousness.

Many of the image settings are not "insulting to China" but blatant racial discrimination.

"Racial discrimination" is the correct term. "Insulting China" narrows the scope and also has an element of self-aggression.

Jiaozi listened attentively, he didn't have any representative work yet.

This time, he was just the assistant director, and he knew that it was not meant for him.

Tian Xiaopeng has known for many years that Shen Santong has some prejudice against him: "Director Shen, I definitely won't."

Shen Santong didn't say much, this thing was really annoying.

After the problems with "Deep Sea", some modifications were made. Compared with the heavyweight Tang, the other party probably did feel that it would be easier to win awards with this image, which really brought glory to the country.

Arriving at the conference room, Shen Santong said: "The Monkey King: Hero is Back is our first animated film and mythological film, so it must be great!"

"Next, Santong Entertainment will accelerate the launch of more mythological and anime-themed movies."

Most of the people present were animation people, and they were all very excited.

However, Shen Santong had made up his mind that Tian Xiaopeng must not be the main character in the animation, and that the role should be handed over to Jiaozi, who would then gradually become the general manager of the animation.

If Tian Xiaopeng gets sick, just let him go.

Anyway, after the success of "The Return of the Great Sage", the other party had no shortage of investors, and Tian Xiaopeng was listed as the director.

Shen Santong was willing to share the honor and benefits with others, especially since the other party was the original director.

Shen Santong always had good intentions towards the people he copied.

Summarizing the experience with a group of main creators, Shen Santong extracted the core of "Chinese superhero" and analyzed the differences between China and the West.

This is Shen Santong's core creative concept, but he never avoids people, nor is he afraid of people learning from him.

The Monkey King in the original version of “The Return of the Great Sage” suffers from psychological trauma and cognitive confusion, and is not a Chinese superhero at all.

China has had the concept of superheroes since ancient times.

Whether it is the earliest Classic of Mountains and Seas, or the Biographies of Assassins, or the various novels of immortal heroes and monsters that have always existed, even the Romance of the Three Kingdoms and Water Margin have added a lot of supernatural powers.

But among Chinese superheroes, the core is never confusion, but fuck it!
rebel!

Resist!

struggle!

Why is the Japanese male gun so recognized by the Chinese people in later generations? After all, it is because a common man’s anger can make blood splatter ten steps away, which fits the image of a Chinese hero exactly.

At the same time, China’s superheroes may have different personalities, but their cores are mostly stable. They are “adults”, unlike teenagers who are hesitant and worried.

For example, in Water Margin, in order to earn money to go up the mountain, they would kill.

Wu Song killed with great pleasure.

Even if there is some consideration, it is the thinking of adults. To put it bluntly, it is not the kind of pretentiousness that comes from having nothing to do.

On a broader scale, Chinese superheroes possess "divinity", recognize "reason" and "destiny", and tend to be justified by their actions. They come from China's order and etiquette rather than spiritual victory.

In comparison, the superheroes of the United States are quite "childish".

It still strictly complies with the needs of Western narrative.

Citigroup superheroes are contradictory at their core.

On the one hand, the greater the power, the greater the responsibility, and on the other hand, it also responds to a certain "destiny" call.

Superman, Batman, Iron Man and the like are basically of aristocratic bloodline, while Spider-Man is considered a lucky commoner. It's the same for all of them.

The other side will go through a painful phase.

All superheroes have this state.

Suddenly I discovered that I had powerful super powers, which made me different from ordinary people. I was excluded by society, so I was very distressed and wanted to escape.

But out of compassion and affection for humanity, he has to plunge into reality to save ignorant humanity.

This is actually self-contradictory and difficult to explain.

Having super powers is so exciting, why would you worry? Who would dare to laugh at someone with super powers?

Aren’t you afraid that I won’t eat beef?

When anyone has enormous power and ability, no matter whether he is doing good or bad things, the first thing he does is to do things, that is, to show his strength.

This is instinct, not something to worry about because you are different from others.

Such a setting comes from reality and serves reality.

Superheroes like Marvel and DC are not simple cartoons, because the United States has no history and no legitimacy. Its cohesion relies on concepts created by culture and media.

Superheroes are the equivalent of Chinese mythology and past history.

Superheroes, from anime to movies, have been contradicting themselves for decades.

For example, in World War II, “you begged me to get involved,” and after the Cold War, “you begged me to fight against the Soviet Union,” and when the Cold War ended, “you begged me to be the world’s policeman.”

It is a projection of Citigroup’s core mentality, a concrete manifestation of win-win-win, and also the mainstream mentality of Citigroup.

I am strong and excellent, but the world cannot accommodate me.

I don't want to care about you, but if you leave me you will be bullied by other bad guys, so I have to leave.

Internally, it is using winning learning to build consensus, while externally it is using it to shirk responsibility.

To put it bluntly, they want to take the benefits but not the responsibilities.

Throughout history, all medium-sized and larger military operations supported solely by the United States have basically never been victorious.

All the victorious ones eat after following behind.

How did World War II escalate, who was profiting from both sides, and how big was the real role of the United States?

However, because it was the last to die and had the greatest preserved strength, and was the first to have nuclear weapons, it suffered the most.

In addition, as the victor of the present, he can shape the past at will.

Eat a lot, but don’t admit it.

This was most obvious after the Cold War, so Citigroup superheroes are very "green tea".

The pain of superheroes is described in great detail in film and television works, highlighting social injustice and the inequality in the world.

The destruction that has to be caused in order to kill the bad guys, and the criticism of this destruction by civilians, will further intensify the superhero's self-doubt and pain.

Is this the injustice of superheroes?

No!

It is the United States that feels it is at a disadvantage!
Master Wuju, no, Master Wuju’s status is too low, it’s Master Huang, it’s the county magistrate who is wronged!
In fact, who dares to bully a superhero? Who dares to bully you, Citi?
You are so powerful, who dares to discriminate against you?

Thank God you don't kill anyone or do anything wrong.

Even in the first stage, when the greater the strength, the greater the responsibility, it is not a defense but an "offense", which serves to enable the hammer in one's hand to hammer nails unscrupulously.

Therefore, this is what makes the later "Game 749" laughable: it is Chinese in appearance but Western in nature.

How could any Chinese person with superpowers, once they discover that they have the power, be upset and want to quit or go to the Internet cafe to play games?

It must be that he either does good deeds or causes harm to others.

The main thing is that there is no hypocritical reality basis.

If we wait, we can just take the kangaroo away, vent our anger, and make a fake superhero story, which might give people a little sense of immersion.

Compared with business affairs, Shen Santong now prefers to concentrate on creation and pays attention to the cultivation of people.

What template, what model, everything is about people. Talent is the key, and everything depends on people.

Shen Santong analyzed himself, and everyone analyzed together.

During the brainstorming session, Shen Santong seemed to have some understanding.

Why are Chinese movies about "superheroes" so distorted, including the filmmakers, because of reality.

If a nation or a country wants to become stronger, especially to return to the top, how can it be without a price?

Especially when faced with the influence of memes that are mixed with Japanese barbarism, racism, imperialism, hegemonism, etc.

It is not the Chinese who believe that "those who lag behind will be beaten", "dignity lies only on the edge of the sword", and "there are no eternal friends, only eternal interests".
It is a belief in power.

If we fall behind, we will be beaten. This is a fact and also history.

Without the edge of a sword, there is no dignity. If you are weak, you may be abandoned and divided at any time. This is also a historical fact.

To put it bluntly, culture and public opinion are where Western resources are mainly concentrated, and they are the real focus of artillery fire.

It is normal for distortions to exist in areas such as film, fine arts, etc.

For example, in the original version of "The Return of the Great Sage", it is more like Tian Xiaopeng's own struggle than the Monkey King's struggle.

He himself has a "hero complex", but the era and industry he lives in, and the cognition it brings him, make him struggle, confuse, and entangled.

This is the price.

To some extent, this is all a continuation of modern history and the remnants of suffering.

Therefore, Shen Santong criticized and attacked Zhang Yimou and others, but never fundamentally denied them.

1 month 17 day.

The Berlin Film Festival announced the main competition shortlist, and No Man's Land is among them.

Ning Hao also criticized Shen Santong on Weibo: "I have worked with Director Shen for many years, and the ability I admire most about him is his creativity."

"He is different from other directors who write and direct their own films. He seems to have a complete script in his mind from the beginning. Many times, I thought he had a team in his basement helping him write."

"In the crew, he has an overall view of the whole situation. There are many assistant directors serving him. He doesn't need to take the photos himself, nor does he need to think about composition, light and shadow. He only needs the effect. We privately say that Director Shen is ruling by doing nothing. He can put anything on the set. Haha, just kidding."

Shen Santong did not respond, but he did not stop his men from quarreling.

Guangtou Xu rushed forward the most and angrily scolded Ning Hao for being ungrateful.

With Xu Guangtou starting the attack, others joined in.

Ning Hao was still sarcastic and unrepentant at first, but was finally forced to delete his blog and change his profile picture to "V for Vendetta".

Time is like water.

2 month 7 day.

The 63rd Berlin International Film Festival kicked off.

It’s the Spring Festival again.

January 2st, the first day of the Lunar New Year.

"The Return of the Great Sage" is now in theaters nationwide.

(End of this chapter)