I didn't want to be an actor

Chapter 621 Negotiation (44)

Shen Liang admires Chen Sicheng very much, especially after watching "The Yellow Bird Behind" and "The Grass and Trees"...

Both are crime thrillers.

The subject matter itself is very attractive, and the three cases in "The Yellow Bird Behind" are parallel, which looks very awesome;
"Grass and Trees" even involves pyramid schemes!

Then, "The Yellow Bird Behind" uses a clever Rashomon structure, thinking that a forced reversal can attract attention...

The execution is terrible. First of all, from the perspective of the movie itself, the narrative rhythm is very problematic. It's not fast where it should be, and it's not fast where it shouldn't be. It's sensational in some places, but there's no empathy at all. When it's sensational, I can only say that it's full of question marks. It's really a mess.

As a suspense film, the logic is not clear. I didn't feel the plot was unraveled at all. The last half hour had to be reversed, and it wasn't a brilliant reversal. It was just a forced theme...

"The Grass and Trees" is even more excessive, involving pyramid schemes...

The publicity and promotion tried to copy "All or Nothing", but the result was that the protagonist's literary confession, accompanied by large landscape and empty shots, made people think it was a social art film.

The film has almost no rhythm and the imagery is very deliberate.

The middle part looks like a legal program shot by a horror film director.

Dim lights, strange music, red, black and purple tones. Constant shouting.

With assembly line narrative and old-fashioned deception

The plot is advanced entirely by shouting, smashing and hitting.

What the director might want to express is that the heroine is oppressed by life and explodes in the pyramid scheme - the problem is that the description of suffering in the early stages is also sporadic, and the madness is only expressed through shouting + clapping + beating + dancing in the later stages.

With such a high level of filmmakers as a backdrop, Chen Sicheng immediately looked much more pleasing to the eye!
Domestic films after "Dying to Survive" often avoid those empty and pretentious themes. Instead, they focus on real-life issues and tell stories that happen on Chinese soil, which is very attractive in itself.

So for a period of time, the plot outlines of many movies looked very good, but the more such moments there are, the more they test the technical level and artistic attainments of different directors, because there are enough choices, and if you want to stand out, you still have to hone your skills.

Especially in "The King's Woman", it's hard to keep your attention on the screen. It feels like all the characters he filmed lack charm and all the stories lack appeal.

If you think about it carefully, the story of "The Yellow Bird Behind" is actually quite extreme and shocking.

But when he filmed it like this, it just felt more boring than interesting, and it made people want to fast forward. Even those who are most interested in this kind of story only want to know the result and have no interest in the process.

In this regard, we have to admire Chen Sicheng, as he has done one thing well: no matter whether the logic makes sense or not, his movies are very watchable. Even if they cannot withstand careful scrutiny and have many bugs, the viewing process can still attract you to watch to the end, and your emotions will rise and fall with the pictures.

Even if you feel disappointed and want to curse after watching it, your curse will be passionate, and you will be able to find a lot of resonance. In the end, the pleasure you get from this passionate output will, to some extent, make up for the pain of watching a bad movie.

"She Vanished" is also good. Shen Liang is still interested in playing a villain, but he really doesn't have the schedule...

"I'm about to go to Hengdian to reshoot Watergate Bridge, which will take about a week, and then I'll go back to Shanghai to shoot Secretary Kim... I'll join the crew of New Journey in March... Then I'll be filming The Legend of Zu, The Legend of Canglan, and Keep You Safe... I have to wait until at least November before I have time..."

Chen Sicheng immediately asked: "New Journey? Variety show?"

"No, it's a satirical comedy... the kind that satirizes celebrities who are out of touch with the masses."

"What about 'Keep You Safe'?"

"The main plot is about Wei Ping'an, a cemetery salesman who embarks on a difficult and bumpy road to clear the name of his deceased client Han Lu from the internet's "dirty rumors"... It's a road comedy!"

Chen Sicheng became interested as soon as he heard it: "Clearing the injustice... this is interesting! Was the male lead also rumored?"

"The male lead was also slandered?"

"In this case, there will be double pressure and the dramatic conflict will be even stronger!" "That won't work..." Shen Liang shook his head: "This will make you look like you are clearing yourself of your grievances..."

"Then... the protagonist cannot be a saint."

"Yes..." Shen Liang nodded: "We didn't plan to create a saint as the protagonist. The original setting was divorce, serving a prison sentence, and so on. There was also a family line, but I was not old enough, so it was cut."

"But if the family storyline is removed, the charm of the characters will be reduced a lot..."

"… Let's talk about this later," Shen Liang waved his hand and said, "The movie you mentioned is also suitable for meat, right?"

Chen Sicheng nodded immediately: "It would be better if Rouba is willing to act..."

Shen Liang reminded: "Rouba, thank you Director Chen!"

"Oh, thank you Director Chen!" Rouba immediately picked up the drink...

Chen Sicheng smiled and said, "...You are a big star. It is a great honor for us to be able to come to our crew..."

……

There was no talk of salary...

In fact, everyone in the industry knows that when Shen Liang takes a role, unless it is a main theme tribute film, the salary is generally 500 million + 15% profit dividend.

Liang Ge has never been a cheap actor!

The pay is a reflection of an actor's acting skills and the overall value of a star. It is impossible for him to reduce his pay...

However, as a pure actor who does not participate in the production, his salary is distributed in a tiered manner - based on Hollywood stars.

It is a down payment of an agreed price + dividend model. The dividend is no longer a one-size-fits-all 20%, but is calculated in segments based on the final box office figures. For example, 2% for those exceeding 10 million yuan and 3% for those exceeding 20 million yuan, which is similar to the algorithm of personal income tax.

Shen Liang gets 10% of the 10 billion box office, and 20% of the 20 billion...

We’ll talk about this later. The pay and other things are basically negotiated with the help of the agent.

Otherwise, what is the purpose of having an agent?
Oh, Chen Sicheng talked about "Mozart from Outer Space" and he talked about many of his ideas.

Mainly from a business perspective!
Something like building a commercial IP...

In fact, this perspective is correct. "Mozart from Outer Space" is a standard family-friendly movie, which is the type with the most box office advantages among commercial movies!

It has a very good business model: real people plus 3D special effects, Mozart's doll is a commercial profit point.

This is a commercial project that appears to have all the elements for success.

But... the most important thing is missing?
Yes, Mozart from Outer Space is a commercial project that has all the elements for success.

But...it's not a good movie!

That's it!
Of course Shen Liang would not spoil the fun, he did not mention the movie at all, and just talked about it along his lines...

Anyway, this movie has nothing to do with Liang Ge. We just met, and Liang Ge won’t tell the truth casually...

He can do whatever he wants!
Just a joke...

(End of this chapter)