Entertainment: I am the peak

Chapter 599 Difficult to handle
Since Disney officially announced Guo Fan as the director of the live-action "Mulan", Guo Fan has become one of the most sought-after people in the entire film industry.

To put it bluntly, it was an extravagance that could never be fully displayed, a feast that could never be finished, a chorus of praises that could never be heard, and a constant stream of gifts that could never be received.

This isn't a question of whether Guo Fan wants it or not; it's a matter of being in that position and having to face these challenges.

He's had enough of being treated like a big shot these past few months.

Neither the company nor Disney really cares about Guo Fan's behavior. He can accept invitations and socialize as he pleases. That's how things work in the entertainment industry. It's his right as a director. Neither company believes in the idea that "too much purity leads to nothing."

But things can't be delayed.

Fortunately, Guo Fan is a pragmatist; while entertaining guests, he didn't forget to get things done.

However, Disney's money isn't so easy to get.

Not to mention him, there aren't many directors in all of Asia who have managed Disney projects.

Therefore, he has almost no experience to draw upon, and he cannot contact those who do have experience for the time being.

In the six months since the official announcement, he has felt that Hollywood's action methods are completely different from his own.

Putting everything else aside, just talking about the script, Disney certainly allows him, as the director, to participate in script revisions, but he doesn't have the initiative in this work.

Even when he explicitly told the two foreign screenwriters that he didn't want to film "this kind of story," the two screenwriters wouldn't listen to him.

They explicitly told Guo Fan that Disney's stories need to cater to the widest global audience of teenagers, so the stories cannot be too complicated and must be "summarized in one sentence".

Guo Fan has no objection to this, and he also hopes that his films can be understood by most audiences around the world.

He studied in Hollywood for half a year and learned that there is a creative rule for Hollywood commercial films: a simple story that can be summarized in one sentence, plus cool and exciting visual effects.

Guo Fan also followed this basic principle in his creation of "Mulan", but what he found unacceptable was that Disney's script included such nonsense as air, witches and phoenixes.

Guo Fan did indeed communicate with Disney producers, emphasizing that adaptations are not random fabrications and that fictionalizations are not mere fabrications.

He told the two screenwriters very seriously, "Chinese people will absolutely not accept this kind of Mulan."

But the two screenwriters seemed indifferent, saying that adding fantasy elements was to "get more people around the world interested and go to the cinema."

“But this is not Mulan,” Guo Fan argued.

Unfortunately, he didn't have enough say. The screenwriters respected his opinions but didn't listen to him, and Disney didn't care at all.

Chen Zhixi and Zhang Zhao both made some efforts in this regard, but with little success.

This is just one aspect of the script; in other areas, Guo Fan's work is equally awkward.

That's why I came to find Li Qiutang.

"The conflict between you and Disney boils down to one thing: the conflict between focusing on the Chinese market and looking towards the world." After listening to Guo Fan, Li Qiutang said, "Disney has to consider the acceptance of the global market, but Mulan is a story with strong local characteristics."

A simpler way to put it is cultural distortion. Disney claims that "Mulan" is rooted in China, but given Disney's size, its creative inertia is naturally enormous. Asking them to break free from American narratives and truly establish themselves in China is incredibly difficult.

"The two countries are separated by a time difference, and communication is inconvenient." Guo Fan's work in the past six months has been filled with setbacks in every aspect.

Li Qiutang thought for a moment. He didn't have a particularly good solution for the time being, but he had to come up with a plan for Guo Fan. So he asked, "How's your script coming along?"

"There's no problem finalizing the draft this year." Even after taking on the Disney project, Guo Fan didn't give up on his own "Mulan."

Li Qiutang pondered for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea before saying, "Here's what we'll do: you and Zhixi invite those two screenwriters and the producer/director in charge of 'Mulan' to China. Just say you're inviting them for a cultural study tour. After all, you can't film 'Mulan' without coming to China. Zhixi is also in charge of cultural communication for 'Mulan,' so the reason is perfectly legitimate."

“Once they’re here, they’re not going anywhere. We’ll take them down one by one and persuade them one by one,” Li Qiutang said, laughing at herself.

However, this wasn't exactly a bad idea. With a 12-hour time difference, how could they possibly communicate? The director couldn't meet the screenwriter; what control could he possibly have? "You guys arrange the itinerary, make sure the food, drinks, and entertainment are all taken care of, and then arrange a cultural study of Mulan. You need to let the foreigners know what Mulan is. I bet most of the people at Disney know nothing about Mulan except for the 98 animated film."

“They’ve never even been to China. You can’t expect a group of people like that to do a good job as Mulan.”

After chatting with Guo Fan for half an hour, Li Qiutang told him to go back and she would continue filming.

Unexpectedly, as soon as I returned to the film set, I heard people arguing, and it was quite heated.

"We won't allow you to film here!"

"We have a formal contract with the property management company."

"The property management didn't notify us. With so many of you, what if you hit a child?"

Li Qiutang knew what was going on as soon as she heard it: the film crew and the residents of the community were having a conflict.

Many of the crew members were discussing with several property owners, and even the lead actor, Qin Hao, was talking to an older woman.

"What's going on?" Li Qiutang pushed through the crowd and entered the venue.

When the staff member explained it, it turned out to be true.

"You're the director, right?"

"Yes, I am the director."

"What's wrong with your film crew? You guys..."

But what could Li Qiutang say? The production crew had all the necessary permits and licenses in order.

“We didn’t mean to disrupt your work. You’ve been filming here for a week, and we haven’t said anything, but recently you’ve been affecting our access and normal lives…”

Both sides have their own reasons for this, but Li Qiutang patiently explained to the homeowners that the film crew would be more careful in the future and would ensure that it would not affect everyone's travel and safety.

However, Li Qiutang's explanation failed to gain the understanding of the homeowners.

"Have the property management and street officials arrived yet?" Li Qiutang asked the assistant director on site.

"They said they would arrive soon, and we even called the local police station to come over."

One of the homeowner representatives recognized Li Qiutang and pointed at him, saying, "You're that director Li Qiutang, right?"

Li Qiutang was overjoyed. It was good that they knew each other; perhaps she could use her connections to smooth things over.

"Yes, I am Li Qiutang." Li Qiutang shook hands with the man, who looked to be around 40 years old.

"You're a famous director!" The older brother held onto Li Qiutang's hand tightly, clearly a fan. That made things easier.

This man really wanted to help Li Qiutang, so he said to the other homeowner representatives, "Listen to me, this is Director Li Qiutang."

Li Qiutang has a decent reputation; many homeowners know his name, but they've never met him or recognized him.

“He’s an internationally renowned director. He must have gone through the proper procedures to film in our neighborhood.”

"Even if you complete the procedures, you can't disturb the peace. We don't care if it doesn't affect our normal lives." Even the international director was useless; Master Jing wouldn't give face to anyone.

Difficult to handle.

"Is that little girl Liu Yifei?" An auntie saw the female lead drinking water not far away and pointed in her direction to ask.

(End of this chapter)