Chinese Entertainment: Academic Director

Chapter 50: Working Together

Yang Qian cooperated very well and almost never quarreled with Cao Yang throughout the whole process.

Although he thinks that some shots are more meaningful when edited in, editing is a process of trade-offs. What you think is good may be different from what the director thinks is good.

Everyone may have a different understanding of things. If you don’t want to argue, just seek common ground while reserving differences.

Editing is a boring process, just watching, cutting, and connecting every day. Fortunately, Cao Yang's work efficiency is very fast, which shortens the process a lot.

After cutting, color deviation must be corrected.

During the filming process, the color of the film may deviate due to factors such as equipment and light. Color grading can correct these deviations to ensure the overall color tone of the film is consistent.

At the same time, the pictures must be consistent with the theme and emotion of the film to enhance the artistic effect of the film.

For example, for shots in a movie that need to create contrast, the color tone should be slightly enhanced to make the contrast more prominent.

After all these tasks were completed, the only thing left was the music. Two days ago, Hou Keming brought several soothing pieces of music according to Cao Yang's request, and also found someone to sing three songs from the Western Regions.

In "Empty Room", original soundtracks are used most of the time, and only a few clips have music, which is very simple and crude.

After selecting suitable music and adding it in, Cao Yang played several short clips with music several times and found that although it was different from the original, it did not feel out of place and was quite good.

Just like the short videos of later generations, selecting one or several clips from TV or movies, adding different soundtracks, and editing them together, would it be inconsistent?
So most of the time, the purpose of soundtrack is to match the plot and convey emotions, but some music can hit that point better if chosen correctly - those who can do this are almost all masters of soundtrack.

Empty Room is finished.

After Cao Yang came out of seclusion, it suddenly occurred to him that the movie was completed, so it should not be considered a violation of his promise to Old Situ.

Forget it, now is not the time to think about this, let me have a good sleep first.

After a day's rest, Cao Yang returned to school.

As expected, as soon as he came out of Old Situ's office, Hou Keming seemed to be waiting for him. He pulled him aside and asked, "Have you finished the post-production?"

Cao Yang didn't even want to answer. Is there anything else about Qingying Studio that you don't know?
"It's done. I'll finish the English subtitles in the next two days. I've informed Sony Classics and MK2. They will send someone over in two days. Then we can watch the original film together."

This matter cannot be concealed, so it is better to speak out. The school will most likely be happy to see it happen. If the movie is good, it will also be a great help.

Sure enough, Hou Keming didn't care. He nodded thoughtfully and said, "This is a good thing. Let's wait for two days. Sony Classics still has a way."

During the time when Cao Yang was in seclusion working on post-production, "On the Beach at Night Alone" had already been released in North America. The fact that it was an art film and a Chinese-language film naturally limited its box office potential.

There is nothing that can be done about it. At this stage in the Chinese film industry, perhaps only kung fu films are of interest to ordinary American audiences.

Based on the box office trend, professional organizations predict that it will be between 500 million and 700 million US dollars, with the majority of the box office going mainly to areas with large Chinese populations.

The reason for such a big fluctuation was mainly because Li Xiaoran went to the United States to promote the show. The effect was immediate and the attendance rate in several places increased significantly.

Even though the box office is not high, it is far beyond Sony Classics' expectations. Their internal expectation was about 300 million, and with the box office in South America, the cost can basically be recovered.

The remaining box office in East Asia and Southeast Asia is pure profit, which does not include long-term profit.

Sony Classics did not expect that it would be able to recover its costs and make a profit in North America alone, so it naturally raised Cao Yang's grade classification by two levels.

As long as you can bring them benefits, you are their most honorable uncle.

Sony Classics took Cao Yang’s call very seriously and promised to send professionals over.

MK2 also agreed to send people over. They don't want to see results as quickly as the Americans. In Europe, they have special theaters for art films, and they rely on long-term screenings, aiming to achieve a steady stream of revenue.

Upon learning that Cao Yang had come out of seclusion, Yu Feihong sent another "1206" to Cao Yang.

I don't know why, but whenever she's with Cao Yang, Yu Feihong's competitive spirit is so strong, and she always wants to be recognized. Just like riding a horse, Cao Yang only said "Your acting skills are comparable to Li Xiaoran" after just a short while, and Sister Feihong almost screamed at the same time and fell off the horse trembling.

The effect is immediate.

If Cao Yang didn't praise her acting skills, she could sometimes even compete with Cao Yang.

Yu Feihong shook Cao Yang's arm and asked, "Tell me the truth, what do you think of my acting skills?"

Cao Yang looked at her. You're not going to stop, are you? I remember that every time you asked me this, you looked at me with your chin down. What happened this time? Why aren't you being so arrogant?
"The acting in 'Empty Room' was outstanding."

To be honest, Cao Yang's performance in other film and television dramas is just okay. Compared with the young actresses of later generations, there are still some things worth affirming.

"Director Tian said that my acting skills were a pity, but I never understood what he meant and he didn't give me an answer when I asked him."

"Maybe it was just a casual remark."

Just from this one sentence, Cao Yang didn't know what it meant. If he wanted to understand it, he had to at least infer it based on the previous and subsequent sentences.

"Don't make trouble."

Yu Feihong slapped Cao Yang's mischievous hand away and continued, "I don't think he was just saying it casually. He first said that if I won the award, I would also be called Cao's girl, and then he said it was a pity for my acting skills."

"Grass girl?"

Yu Feihong said "hmm" softly and patted Cao Yang's hand again, "Don't make trouble for now, wait a minute..."

Cao Yang didn't listen, and thought for a moment while he continued, then said, "Do you want to hear the truth or Lao Tian's random guesses?"

Yu Feihong became more and more confused, biting her lower lip lightly, "What...what do you mean?"

"The truth is that your acting in 'Empty Room' was really good. It would be a shame if you didn't win an award for such a good performance."

"Old... what does Old Tian mean?"

Cao Yang kissed her forehead, without stopping his hands.

"Don't……"

"What Lao Tian meant was that Liu Ye's performance was also very good, and he had more scenes than you... He felt that if an actor could win an award, Liu Ye would have a greater chance than you, so he felt sorry for you."

"Yes...really?"

"Don't listen to Lao Tian's nonsense. He is only speaking from the perspective of the film. Sometimes when it comes to winning an award, as long as you meet the standard, off-field factors are more important."

"What reward? I'm going to reward you now..."

Yu Feihong's eyes were blurred, and she turned into a female knight with a flip, still as heroic as ever.

Lean less.

"Quick, tell me, how is my acting?"

"Good, very good, as good as Li Xiaoran."

what……

The female knight fell off her horse again.

(End of this chapter)