Chinese Entertainment: Academic Director

Chapter 374 Affection for the Seaside City
Love Affair in a Seaside City.

Cao Yang typed the movie's name into his computer, stared at it for a while, and couldn't help but laugh out loud.

He thought with a touch of wicked humor that, just based on the movie's title, any audience looking for a "romance" blockbuster would certainly not be disappointed.

Yes, you definitely won't be disappointed.

The movie title also has a story behind it; it's the Chinese translation of a movie from Hong Kong. The original title was "Manchester by the Sea," which also sounds like a romantic movie.

Whether you watch this movie because of its English title or its Chinese translation of "Hong Kong," you'll definitely be deeply moved afterward.

Since the goal is to make a Chinese-language film to embody "unity," a slight adaptation of "Manchester by the Sea" would be very suitable.

Of course, this so-called suitability refers to being particularly suitable for participating in film festivals, especially the Berlin Film Festival—films that explore human nature in an anti-inspirational style are quite likely to win awards.

Adaptation is actually quite easy.

The male protagonist is a Hong Konger. Due to his own mistake, he caused a fire that tragically killed several young children, and his wife also left him.

To escape and avoid being reminded of the past, he chose to leave for distant lands, going to England or Canada—places that are currently the most popular destinations for Hong Kong people and are considered "holy lands" by many.

Of course, Cao Yang also contributes to the export of cultural values.

The male protagonist is a down-on-his-luck apartment manager who lives a life of utter emptiness, devoid of any excitement, having lost all faith and hope in life, and lives alone in a cramped semi-basement room.

Despite never complaining about the tediousness of his work, he still faced a lot of discrimination—it's common for older white men to discriminate against people of other races, even though they verbally advocate against racial discrimination and for equality.

If there is anything in this world that people vehemently deny, then it must exist, and it must be quite serious, so serious that they have to resort to slogans.

Cao Yang set up a few minor conflicts here. The male protagonist is already like this, what else is he afraid of? What else is there to be afraid of?

The protagonist didn't tolerate those who deliberately caused trouble or were racist. He was a short-tempered and rude person who had been complained about countless times.

Even if a manager receives numerous complaints about a worker who is low-paid, hardworking, capable of doing anything, and never complains, they will not fire him.

And they would protect him and make excuses for him.

Otherwise, they would need to hire several workers and pay them several times more in wages, and managers aren't stupid.

The story actually has two narrative threads, revolving around him and his brother respectively.

His brother, a fishing boat owner, was diagnosed with congestive heart failure. His wife, an alcoholic and gambler, disappeared after his brother became seriously ill.

The older brother suddenly fell ill and passed away, leaving behind a 16-year-old son. In his will, he designated the male protagonist as the son's guardian.

The male protagonist returns to Hong Kong to handle his brother's funeral arrangements and is forced to live with his nephew, at which point the two storylines intersect again.

Despite his interactions with his nephew, the protagonist was still unable to let go of his resentment. The gossip of acquaintances and the heavy psychological burden prevented him from regaining a happy life, and he ultimately chose to leave once again.

For the protagonist, the idea that "time heals all wounds" is completely ineffective. His tragedy lies in the fact that he is forever living in the shadow of the past and cannot erase the traces left by it.

Real life was cold and distant to him, but the memories of the past were vivid and inescapable.

The film reaches its tragic climax when he chokes down the words "I can't take it anymore" to his nephew.

Of course, the Hong Kong version of the protagonist's life and his nephew's school life will be adapted to reflect reality. These changes will not affect the main plot or the story's theme.

Whether this movie will be successful depends mainly on the male lead's performance.

Therefore, Cao Yang secretly wondered if he could find a big star in Hong Kong who wasn't known for his acting skills, and then have a few of them get into character and experience the role, surprising everyone.

This will also let the Hong Kong film and television industry and their media see what it means to train actors.

Hmm, if it doesn't work, just add a few more.

Of course, the premise is to ensure that the actors don't get too immersed in their roles and become depressed. Even if they do become depressed, their safety must be guaranteed.

It's best to have a professional psychologist join the group from the very beginning.

Given the male lead's experiences, if an actor gets too immersed in the role, they can easily do something foolish...

Cao Yang thought about it and thought it might not be so. Judging from the plot, the male protagonist probably didn't intend to commit suicide. He was punishing himself and wanted to live in pain forever.

Perhaps, the day he forgives himself or lets go, he might actually take his own life.

Throughout the entire film, the male protagonist never lets go of or forgives himself. Therefore, even if an actor is deeply immersed in the role, even if he is extremely immersed in the role, even if he is completely immersed in the role, he would not easily take his own life.

Then what is there to worry about!
Immerse yourself in the game and feel free to add more content!

Let the Hong Kong film industry and their media see how an actor who isn't known for his acting skills becomes a Best Actor.

At present, when it comes to male actors who can represent the Hong Kong film and television industry, without a doubt, it is the "two Chows and one Jackie Chan", the "two Leungs and one Wu" plus the "Four Heavenly Kings".

That is, Zhou Runfa, Zhou Xingxing, Cheng Long, Liang Chaowei, Liang Jiahui, Wu Qihua, Liu Dehua, Zhang Xueyou, Li Ming, and Guo Fucheng.

Others, such as Louis Koo, Lau Ching-wan, Cheung Ka-fai, Cheng Yik-kin, and Chef Tse, who is being heavily promoted in Hong Kong, are still somewhat inferior to the people mentioned above.

Li Lianjie is from mainland China and cannot represent Hong Kong.

Cao Yang thought for a moment and said that among the actors who are recognized as representatives of Hong Kong, those who are recognized by the media and audiences for their acting skills include Chow Yun-fat, Tony Leung, Leung Ka-fai, and Ng Kei-wah.

Why add Wu Qihua?
Because he followed Cao Yang, although he never won the Best Actor award at one of the three major European film festivals, he did receive the highest award.

For example, in the Venice Golden Lion film "3-Iron," he played an important role as a domestic abuser.

For example, he was the male lead in the Cannes Palme d'Or-winning film "Secret Sunshine".

He also played a significant role as a tycoon in "Inception," a film that grossed over $9 million worldwide.

He also played the alien leader in District 9, which won him Oscars for Best Director, Best Actor, and Best Adapted Screenplay.

These films have the highest artistic merit, box office success, and critical acclaim. Who can say that Ng Kei-wah cannot represent Hong Kong? Who can say that Ng Kei-wah lacks acting skills?

He is currently recognized in Hong Kong as the second most popular international superstar after Jackie Chan.

These four can be removed for now.

Stephen Chow's acting skills are also very good. Cao Yang believes that, putting aside other factors and only considering acting skills, his acting skills are no worse than those of Chow Yun-fat, Leung Chiu-wai, and Leung Ka-fai.

In terms of awards, he won the Golden Horse Award for Best Supporting Actor in 88 for his role in "Final Justice", and the Hong Kong Film Award for Best Actor in 02 for his role in "Shaolin Soccer".

During this period, he was nominated for Best Actor at the Golden Horse Awards and the Hong Kong Film Awards countless times.

Stephen Chow can also be temporarily removed.

Among the Four Heavenly Kings, Zhang Xueyou is widely recognized as the best actor. Although he has never won a major award for Best Actor, he has already won the Golden Horse and Hong Kong Film Awards for Best Supporting Actor.

He also contributed a great many memes to later generations, which also reflects that his acting skills were quite good.

Therefore, Jacky Cheung can be temporarily removed from the list. Although Andy Lau's acting skills have always been criticized, if we only look at awards, he has won the most Best Actor awards among the Four Heavenly Kings.

To date, he has won two Hong Kong Film Awards for Best Actor and one Golden Horse Award for Best Actor.

Aaron Kwok, once a heartthrob and the king of Asian dance, might lead one to subjectively assume that his acting skills are terrible based solely on these labels.

But he won the Golden Horse Award for Best Actor for two consecutive years, in 05 for "Divergence" and in 06 for "After This Our Exile".

To be honest, his performance in these two movies was very good, and it was truly impressive.

Another heartthrob who was once popular throughout Asia, Li Ming, the Heavenly King who captivated everyone with his good looks, might be subjectively considered by many to have poor acting skills.

However, he did win the Golden Horse Award for Best Actor in 02.

The last one is Jackie Chan, who is also the most famous among them. He is known as a comedy action star, and some people may think that his acting skills are not very good.

However, Jackie Chan has also won the Golden Horse Award for Best Actor and the Golden Rooster Award for Best Actor.

However, his strong action star label overshadows his acting skills.

It wasn't until the release of "Shinjuku Incident" in 09, when Jackie Chan abandoned his forte of action scenes, that people realized he was also a very good actor.

So, after Cao Yang checked the information in detail, he discovered that almost all of these actors who could represent Hong Kong were award-winning actors.

It's not easy to pick an "easy target".

Perhaps the only option left is to create a preconceived notion for the audience.

For example, there's Jackie Chan, known for his kung fu skills; or actors like Li Ming or Aaron Kwok, who started as young heartthrobs; or even Andy Lau, whose acting skills are generally considered mediocre.

Let's wait and see. We need to consider other factors before making a final decision.

The first thing to do now is to spread the word and see the reaction in Hong Kong, which will also temporarily thwart the idea of ​​Hong Kong and Taiwanese capital trying to smear Cao Yang online for being "disunited".

The label of "disunity" would have had almost no impact on Cao Yang if it weren't for the Olympics next year. It's only at this crucial moment that being labeled with such a label is somewhat troublesome.

In Manchester by the Sea, besides the male protagonist, there are three other important characters: his wife, his brother, and his nephew.

The male lead's wife has very few scenes, but she is very important.

Cao Yang plans to try inviting Maggie Cheung to play the role, as she is the right age.

If she really retires from acting, it doesn't matter. There are plenty of actresses who have won awards in China; we can just pick one to fill the quota.

The role of the nephew will no longer be cast in a wide-ranging public casting call; there's no need for that.

Generally, large-scale casting is just a publicity stunt for a movie. Cao Yang's movies don't need to do this in China, nor do they need such a gimmick.

Since the male lead's nephew is a high school student, we can just find someone with a youthful appearance from among the students at the Beijing Film Academy. This would be a benefit for the students at the Beijing Film Academy, and if word gets out, it will further motivate them to apply to the academy.

The other main character's brother doesn't have many scenes either. We can find a teacher from the Beijing Film Academy to make a cameo appearance, or we can find a veteran actor from Hong Kong. It won't make much difference.

Therefore, the most important thing right now is still the selection of the male lead.

Because the news was deliberately leaked, many people in Hong Kong's film and television industry soon learned that Cao Yang planned to make an art film, which would most likely be shown at next year's Berlin Film Festival.

Most importantly, the male lead has a very substantial role, and it is said that Cao Yang is also looking for an actor in his forties from Hong Kong to play the male lead.

This has truly caused a great stir.

Being the male lead in Cao Yang's film—despite the fact that the media in Hong Kong was reluctant to report on Cao Yang in the past, for actors in the Hong Kong film and television industry, this is absolutely the best resource, the director they most want to work with, and the "high branch" they most want to climb.

Putting aside other factors, just look at Wu Qihua's status and influence...

Thinking of this, countless people were startled. Everyone knows that director Cao Yang is sentimental and likes to use "old" people. Could this role be played by Wu Qihua?
Then, a reporter interviewed Wu Qihua.

Unexpectedly, Wu Qihua smiled wryly in front of the camera and said that Director Cao felt his image was not quite right for the role, so he was not involved in the film.

This interview caused quite a stir.

In Hong Kong, actors around forty years old, regardless of their status or whether they have acting contracts, all openly or secretly ask friends and relatives for information, hoping to find out what kind of actors Director Cao needs and whether they have a chance.

"Two Chows and One Jackie Chan," "Two Leungs" plus "Four Heavenly Kings"—all of these people have taken action.

"Okay, okay, thank you, Mr. Han. I'll treat you to dinner another day."

Cheng Long hung up the phone, his smile fading, and he sighed.

He didn't get much information from General Manager Han of China Film Group.

Mr. Han only speculated that Director Cao was very likely trying to win the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival with this film, because Director Cao was only one Golden Bear away from winning one of the three major European Grand Slams.

As for the movie's content or information, Mr. Han said he wasn't quite sure either.

Mr. Han's words made Cheng Long even more eager.

A film aiming for the Golden Bear Grand Slam is guaranteed to be of high quality and will most likely be another classic art film.

If this film wins the Golden Bear, it will definitely secure a place in film history.

Who wouldn't want to have a place in film history and be someone that can't be ignored?

Of course, this is only part of it.

Cheng Long is now someone who knows his own situation.

The disappointing performance of "Rush Hour 3" almost cost him his last chance in Hollywood, and "Rush Hour 4," which he originally wanted to develop, is now indefinitely postponed.

He had already accepted that he should focus on the mainland, since he was too old to compete anyway.

Little did they know, the last straw appeared without warning—if they could get in touch with Cao Yang, there might still be a chance in Hollywood.

Even if there are no opportunities in Hollywood, following Cao Yang will make it easy to succeed in the mainland film and television industry. Isn't that much better than trying to find your own way?
Besides, what if this movie could win the Best Actor award at the Berlin Film Festival?
The three great cinematic institutions of Europe and the world—who doesn't yearn for art?
If I actually starred in this movie and won the Berlin Film Festival's Best Actor award, wouldn't that be the perfect ending to my nearly completed "world film journey"?
Perhaps it can also be seen as an exclamation mark.

He took out his phone, eager to call Cao Yang—which was actually a bad idea, because if the other party refused, there would be no room for negotiation.

This is why he called President Han instead of Cao Yang directly.

He had just scrolled through his contacts when he slapped his forehead and muttered to himself, "I must have lost my mind."

Cheng Long tossed his phone onto the sofa and paced back and forth, frowning.

Then, on a whim, he decided to go to Beijing to see if he could talk to Director Cao in person.

As long as Director Cao is willing to use me, I'd be willing to do anything, even just a symbolic one yuan as payment, let alone share the profits!
(End of this chapter)