Chinese Entertainment: Academic Director

Chapter 321 The Choice of Roles
Cao Yang called Hou Keming again.

Unlike President Han, Hou Keming understood that if there was any hope of getting Cao Yang's film approved by the Beijing Film Academy, he would definitely give the Academy that opportunity.

This is also why Beijing Film Academy has always spared no effort in supporting Cao Yang.

It's fair to say that even if Hou Keming wasn't in that position at Beijing Film Academy, anyone else would have given Cao Yang their full support.

Conversely, most of Cao Yang's films are affiliated with the Beijing Film Academy and the Qingdao Film Studio.

At the 11th National Congress of Literary and Art Circles in November this year, Cao Yang was promoted to vice chairman of the Federation of Literary and Art Circles by the Beijing Film Academy, which mobilized all its resources to help him get the position.

The Federation of Literary and Art Circles is different from the Federation of Youth Leagues where Cao Yang was temporarily assigned.

The Federation of Literary and Art Circles is a national people's organization for the literary and art circles, with high-ranking officials clearly designated as its members.

At that time, the chairman and vice-chairmen of the Federation of Literary and Art Circles elected at the Eighth Congress of Literary and Art Circles will no longer be on secondment, but will be officially elected positions.

If Cao Yang is promoted to this position, it will be very beneficial for Beijing Film Academy.

I won't go into the other political considerations.

To put it simply, the Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Awards are film awards jointly sponsored by the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles and the China Film Association, while the Golden Eagle Awards are television awards jointly sponsored by the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles and the China Television Artists Association.

The Federation of Literary and Art Circles has a very high say in the selection of judges for each major award.

Although there are multiple vice chairpersons of the Federation of Literary and Art Circles, those with global influence still wield considerable power.

The hidden benefits this brings to the Beijing Film Academy are self-evident.

Cao Yang told Hou Yuan about "New Pirates of the Caribbean" and also explained the risks, asking Hou Yuan if he wanted to invest with China Film Group.

Hou Yuan laughed heartily upon hearing this and said almost without hesitation, "As long as it's your film, Beijing Film Academy will fully support it."

Okay, Cao Yang understood. He then called Xie Xiaojing from Qingying Film Studio and told her about it.

Xie Xiaojing was clearly more excited than Hou Keming. He once again experienced the happiness of having political achievements fall into his lap while he was sitting at home.

It's true that our Qingying Film Studio is a school-run enterprise, but looking at the whole country, how many can compare with Qingying Film Studio now? Our Qingying Film Studio has awards and box office success... it's just waiting for an upgrade.

Xie Xiaojing was confident that he could handle this matter.

Yes, this confidence comes entirely from my good junior brother, Cao Yang.

Most Hollywood film companies wouldn't dare to cheat China Film Group, but that doesn't mean that cooperating with China Film Group will give them special treatment—not cheating you is already the greatest favor you can do for them.

Therefore, the investment shares of China Film Group and Qingdao Film Studio, what they can get in return for these investments, and what they need to pay before the film is shot and released all need to be negotiated.

During this time, Cao Yang called over Li Mingyi, the on-site assistant director he always used, and Liu Shan, the actors' assistant director.

Ning Hao is serving as Lao Tian's assistant director on the filming of "Saintly Tragedy," while Cheng Jianye, representing Cao Yang, is the executive producer of "The Wrong Fate in Our Stars," an adaptation of the novel "The Incomparably Beautiful Pain."

When Li Mingyi and Liu Shan arrived in Los Angeles, Cao Yang, together with the executive producer sent by Disney, began casting.

When Cao Yang first entered Hollywood, he was very careful in casting for "The Dirty Milk," following Hollywood rules completely.

Casting involves hiring specialized casting companies, and even during auditions, union representatives are present, with very little private contact between actors.

Nowadays, it's not that complicated.

Hollywood rules are designed for ordinary directors and producers to follow, which is what Hollywood film companies want to see, as it will prevent some bad things from happening to a certain extent.

But with Cao Yang's current status and influence, he can ignore all of this. Many steps can be skipped, and no one will be so bored as to jump out and question anything.

In Hollywood, as long as you keep succeeding, whatever you do is right, and the film company will absolutely protect you.

Jack Sparrow is definitely Depp's; he's the soul of this film and the key to its success.

As has been proven, relying solely on the romance between the blacksmith and the female lead and their adventurous "tourism" will not lead to success. Audiences watching these kinds of films expect more than just adventure and grand scenes; they also have certain expectations regarding the plot.

No one likes watching a fantasy blockbuster with a romance plot, and of course, neither do sci-fi blockbusters, as demonstrated by the later Chinese film "Shanghai Fortress".

Cao Yang significantly reduced Will Turner's screen time, portraying him as a "male decorative figure," so he had to be handsome.

Furthermore, the actor playing this role needs to be somewhat famous, otherwise it would be difficult to act opposite Depp.

After careful consideration and based on the information he had gathered, Cao Yang sent audition invitations to three people.

Casey Affleck, Ben Affleck's younger brother, previously worked with Cao Yang, playing the "boyfriend" hired by the protagonist Milk in "The Dirty Milk." He was quite handsome in his youth and had good acting skills; he later won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in "Manchester by the Sea."

"Manchester by the Sea" has been included in Cao Yang's "Cao Yang's Fantastic Journey".

The second is Chris Evans, who later became Captain America. He's not that famous yet; his most famous role is the Human Torch in the already released Fantastic Four.

This guy is a heartthrob now, at least in the eyes of American audiences, he's still very handsome, otherwise he wouldn't have played Captain America.

The last audition went to Jude Law, who was very handsome and beautiful before he went bald. Although his "flowering" period was a bit short, Jude Law is currently in his "flowering" period.

Jude Law was named one of the 50 most beautiful people in the world in 2000, and he was still on the list in 2004, which shows that his "beauty" is widely recognized.

Of the three candidates, in terms of star power, only Jude Law is qualified to play opposite Depp; the other two are currently far from being his equals.

However, after Cao Yang looked at some information about Jude Law, his first reaction was that Jude Law had no chance—he joined Wong Kar-wai's first English-language film, "My Blueberry Nights," in June of this year.

As is well known, Wong Kar-wai's films are shot on a "year" basis, and it is standard practice for him to take three to five years to make a film.

However, the reality once again surprised Cao Yang.

According to information provided by Disney and the casting company, Jude Law had already finished filming in August, which means that Wong Kar-wai's English film was completed in just two months.

Oh, so Wong Kar-wai can actually make movies too!
That's really unexpected.

Cao Yang asked the person sent by the casting company out of curiosity, but the person was even more surprised and said, "Actors sign contracts according to the plot and plan. The longest contract is for this movie for two months. If it exceeds the period, you have to pay extra."

After a moment of surprise, Cao Yang finally understood what he meant.

Oh, Hollywood actors usually sign contracts that specify a certain duration. If they exceed that duration, their pay will be recalculated, or they may simply not act at all.

Of course, it's rare for someone to simply refuse to act, otherwise their reputation would collapse and they'd be labeled a "weirdo."

However, if the schedule is exceeded, more money is certain, and producers won't tolerate the director's behavior; they might just replace the director altogether.

Therefore, Wong Kar-wai is not powerful enough to make others adapt to his pace. When he makes Hollywood movies, he can only adapt to other people's rules.

Filming in the country is different; even an international star like Zhang Ziyi has to adapt to Wong Kar-wai's pace.

However, once you reach Cao Yang's level of fame and influence, you don't need to worry about so much.

"The Dirty Milk" received ten Oscar nominations and won five awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Cinematography, and Best Original Screenplay.

After that, whether it was "District 9" or "Inception," when he signed contracts with actors, none of them or their agents would specify how many hours they would be given on the contract.

Even if it's just a cameo appearance by Leonardo DiCaprio, he's signed a contract for the entire production, not a contract for specific schedules.

Well, Hollywood talent agencies and actors also treat people differently based on their status.

The lead actress is Elizabeth Swann. Cao Yang initially wanted to give the role to Anne Hathaway, but she was filming "Becoming Jane," a film produced by Miramax, a subsidiary of Disney.

Based on the information and his own knowledge of Hollywood actresses, Cao Yang sent audition invitations to Natalie Portman and Eva Green.

The two are a good match in terms of age and their appearances also conform to popular aesthetic standards.

Coincidentally, Natalie Portman is also one of the main characters in Wong Kar-wai's "My Blueberry Nights" and is currently available.

As for Eva Green, her portrayal of Princess Sibylla of Jerusalem in the recently released "Kingdom of Heaven" was quite stunning.

Quite coincidentally, the male lead of this movie is none other than Orlando Bloom, the original male lead of "Pirates of the Caribbean" and the elf prince.

Cao Yang saw in the information that Eva Green also has a big IP that hasn't been released yet, the 007 series "Casino Royale", so she can now be considered the new "Bond girl".

In Pirates of the Caribbean, there is another rather special character, Hector Barbossa, the pirate captain who has a love-hate relationship with Captain Jack Sparrow.

Compared to Jack Sparrow, who called himself a pirate captain but was actually a lone adventurer, Hector Barbossa, the "traitor," was more like a legendary pirate.

Watching only the first movie, you might think Hector Barbossa is a villain, but after watching the third movie, you'll find that Hector Barbossa is also a very charismatic pirate.

Others may not know Cao Yang's plans, but at most they know that Hector Barbosa is a major villain on the surface.

Therefore, when Cao Yang wanted to give the role to a Chinese actor, even Disney CEO Robert Iger did not object.

After all, this movie is a co-production, so giving a Chinese actor an important role isn't a big deal; it's not like there are two male leads.

(End of this chapter)