Abstract Art Award Winner

"Le'er, are you still in Beijing?"

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Zhou Le visited Yu Qian's home to offer his New Year's greetings.

Yu Qian originally wanted Zhou Le to stay overnight, but in the evening, Guo Qiling came over and said he wanted to find a place to go out and chat for a while.

This walk lasted all night.

Guo Qiling was getting a little bored at home.

When I chat with my family, we either talk about my current business or about Deyun Club.

But when it comes to Deyun Club, he's no longer around, so there's not much to talk about.

But when the conversation turned to their own businesses, they asked if the industry was doing well now, implying that they also wanted to get involved.

Although Guo Qiling started the company with Zhou Le, and part of his motivation was to prove himself to his family, he didn't want his stepmother to get involved in the business he and Zhou Le were doing together.

Guo Qiling has experienced firsthand the power and influence of his stepmother.

Moreover, he was certain that he and Cao Yunjin, who had already left, had the most say in his stepmother's personality and character.

Moreover, when the stepmother was talking, she also subtly implied that Zhou Le was too smart. The so-called major shareholder had only invested some money, and Guo Qiling was the one who was busy with everything inside and out. It would be better for everyone to stay at home and discuss turning these companies into their own.

Hearing this, Guo Qiling felt a headache coming on.

In the end, he simply said, "Well, don't worry about this. I trust Brother Le's character; he would never cheat me." Then he made an excuse and left.

"So you just ran out like that, and we didn't say anything to you?"

"I did tell him to drink less if I go out drinking. Actually, he doesn't care about me much now. The main thing is that our business is really booming. Even if what I'm doing now is not related to what I used to do, at least it's successful. He usually just asks me how the short drama is being filmed, whether it's hard work, etc. Anyway, things are much better than before."

"That's fine."

"So I said, a person still needs to have their own career, otherwise I always feel like I'm living under someone else's roof over there."

"Yes, it's not worth it. I'd have to be the legal representative for someone else. I definitely can't do that."

"Absolutely. Actually, my dad used to be strict with me, but I didn't think much of it. The only thing I might complain about now is that he didn't let me continue my schooling. Otherwise, he was pretty good to me. But after I had a younger brother, things started to change a bit. After all, people can't avoid making comparisons."

Guo Qiling does live a very authentic life. He knows what he wants and is aware of his strengths and weaknesses. Zhou Le nodded.

"But your short drama..."

"Brother Le, I now think your decision back then was absolutely right. Now everyone's locked down and can't go out, all we can do at home is play on our phones, right? Speaking of which, I'm also planning to donate some money. My dad agreed when we were still at home, and I guess a few hundred thousand would be enough for us. But now that I'm running my own business, how can I not express my support?"

"I've talked to them about this before. You weren't here then, so we'll just donate ten million on the surface. In addition, I'm planning to get some supplies and stuff."

"That's great for supplies. Brother Le, did you also buy a mask factory?"

"Ah."

"Then I'll try to get something else done later."

"Okay, we can hire a few more trucks to go together or go separately, we have to do something."

They chatted like that.

That evening, Guo Qiling called home and then went straight to Zhou Le's house.

2020 is destined to be different from the past.

It's much quieter outside than before.

Guo Qiling originally planned to go home the next day, but when he woke up early in the morning, a case was found in the community, which led to the entire community being locked down.

"Luckily, I prepared some food at home before the New Year. I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to go out, so I stored some up. This should be enough for the two of us to eat for at least a month."

Guo Qiling nodded: "It's all thanks to Brother Le's thoughtful consideration."

After breakfast, the two of them just stared at each other in the room, not knowing what to do.

Open the residents' group chat, and everyone is talking about how many cases have been discovered in their relatives' homes or in their neighborhoods.

When you turn on the TV, the news broadcasts are mostly about this kind of thing.

"I was originally thinking of booking a few movie screenings for them to support them, but given the current situation, it seems unlikely."

I browsed through other groups and saw that most of the directors I knew who had movies scheduled for release this year were preparing to announce their withdrawal.

Xu Zheng, however, remained mostly silent.

And so it went until the afternoon.

Sure enough, news of the movies being pulled from release dates was released, but Douyin suddenly started issuing announcements, inviting everyone to watch the movies.

Upon closer inspection, it turns out that ByteDance bought the copyright to Xu Zheng's "Lost in Russia" for 6.9 million yuan.

Now, all of ByteDance's video platforms, such as Douyin, Xigua, and Toutiao, can be watched online.

"Brother Zheng, this is a big deal."

Zhou Le was shocked.

Normally, theatrical films are a relatively closed circle. They are usually shown in various theaters first, and then the broadcasting rights are sold to various platforms.

But now Xu Zheng is bypassing those theaters and releasing the movie on his own online platform, which is equivalent to breaking down the paywall for movies and offending those theaters.

The reason why a film needs to reach three times its investment to make a profit is that one-third of it has to pay various taxes to the government, and another third goes to theaters and distributors.

By doing this, Xu Zheng essentially rejected middlemen who profited from the difference and directly connected with internet capital.

If doing this doesn't provoke hatred, then the theaters are being incredibly magnanimous.

Sure enough, after Zhou Le sent a message to Xu Zheng, Xu Zheng called him that evening.

"Hey, Le'er, I just saw your message." "Brother Zheng, it's nothing, I just found out this afternoon that your movie was sold to ByteDance. Did the theaters say anything?"

"Hehehe, they'll definitely talk about it. Anyway, the information I've received is that at least a dozen cinema chains have reached an agreement to boycott me. But, it doesn't really matter. I think the internet is so developed now, it's like online shopping. E-commerce definitely has a big impact on physical industries, but now there are so many e-commerce platforms, right? Nobody dares to offend the cinema chains, so I'll be the first to try it out. Besides, the cinema chains saying they'll boycott me is really not that serious. After all, they always have to make a statement on this kind of thing."

Although our company's films planned for theatrical release may face some pressure for a while, ultimately it depends on the market appeal of the films themselves. If they are profitable, they will get screenings, so it's not an absolute certainty.

Zhou Le nodded. When he first saw the news, his analysis was indeed correct.

"But Zheng, I feel like you're thinking of changing your career path. Although those theaters want to blacklist you because they think you broke the rules, your reputation among the audience is still very good. As an innovator, I feel that this label is actually more beneficial than breaking the rules. On the one hand, the money has been received, bringing huge economic returns and avoiding the financial risks brought by the delay. On the other hand, I think you might also want to move behind the scenes like Hao?"

"Zhou Le, I always feel that you look young, but there's an old man living inside you. You can even guess that. I'm only considering this matter right now. After all, I'm getting older, and I can't do everything myself. I'll train my team while also looking for some subjects that interest me to shoot. The future career path for all directors is to become producers or executive producers. I guess the sudden pandemic last year accelerated my transition. Sigh, but how's it going on your end?"

"As for me, well, never mind, I'm stuck at home and can't go out. Luckily, Guo Qiling came to see me yesterday, so at least I have some company and I'm not too bored."

"That's alright. I'll come to Beijing to visit you when I have time."

"Okay, then Brother Zheng, you can get back to work."

After making the call, Zhou Le couldn't help but sigh to himself, "As expected, a director like Xu Zheng has real power. With the backing of the Shanghai entertainment circle, he can always find a way."

But being confined at home all the time wasn't a good idea, so a few days later, Zhou Le contacted Su Yingxia and got two passes.

You can go out after you've completed the nucleic acid test and confirmed that you're okay.

After settling things at the company in Beijing, we'll allow everyone to work from home as much as possible. Salaries will remain the same, but each person will receive an extra 1,000 yuan living allowance per month.

"These days have been tough, so everyone must be careful and wear a mask when you go out. Don't push yourself if you're not feeling well."

After sending the message while sitting in the airport, they went to board the plane.

This time I'm going to Shanghai.

Because there was still filming to be done there, although some of the crew members who had been scheduled to come out couldn't, thankfully the actors were all okay.

After arriving in Shanghai, Zhou Le first met with the actors.

Zhou Le, who was directing a film for the first time, did his homework beforehand, emphasizing in meetings that the most important thing was his personal health.

Immediately following this were script meetings, and numerous meetings with the director of photography, art director, and management personnel responsible for costumes, props, and sets.

"Brother Le, do you think I'm good enough to be an assistant director? I have absolutely no experience with this. Back when we were making short dramas, we hired directors from outside."

"What's so difficult about that? I can be a director, so you being an assistant director is more than enough for me. Otherwise, do you want to stay at home forever?"

"If you don't want to, I'll stay here with you."

The filming location they chose was very close to the hotel, basically right across from it. They could easily take a car out of the hotel, and there were dedicated staff to deliver meals and daily necessities.

All safety measures have been implemented as thoroughly as possible.

After giving all the overall instructions, Zhou Le began to talk to each person individually.

He found Yin Zheng first.

“Brother Zheng, your role in the movie is the male lead, which is also the most important. There’s not much to say about the script and your acting skills; with your abilities, it’s basically a piece of cake.”

"No, no, Director Zhou, if you have any problems, just tell me. If there's anything you didn't do well, just say so. After all, this is your debut film, and I only have one thought right now, which is to make this movie a success."

"Haha, with Brother Zheng here, I feel reassured. Shall we go and talk to the female lead again?"

"Row."

When it comes to serious matters, Zhou Le never dares to be alone in the same room with an actress. Even when there's a film festival or something, he only dares to be in the same room with his own people or those he's close to. Usually, whether he goes to them or they come to him, he has to do it in secret.

"Teacher Deng Jiajia, I am your most loyal fan. I loved watching 'iPartment' back then, and of all the characters in it, your character was my favorite."

Deng Jiajia's career development has not been very smooth.

As a member of the post-80s generation, she debuted in a TV series in 2001, and even played the third female lead at that time.

However, he remained relatively unknown until he starred in "iPartment," after which his fame truly took off.

However, everyone in "iPartment" was portrayed very well, which led to a situation where no one knew her real name during that period; they simply called her Auntie.

Even so, she was still happy, because at least someone could remember her face.

"iPartment" did bring her a lot of contracts, but she still didn't have any particularly good works or roles.

Until last year, Zhou Le contacted her and said he wanted her to play the female lead in his new movie. Deng Jiajia agreed without any hesitation.

In her opinion, this was completely unnecessary to consider.

Zhou Le is one of the most popular artists in recent years, with all kinds of resources at his disposal. Even if he were to switch to directing, he wouldn't be bad at it.

Moreover, when it comes to career transitions, Zhou Le and Da Peng are different. Da Peng makes online short dramas in addition to movies, and he also follows the comedy and nonsensical style. But Zhou Le only makes high-quality works. No matter how abstract a person may be, he would never produce a bad movie to fool the audience.

So at that time, she had already made up her mind that she would make the movie even if she received no pay.

Because once you've taken the photo, it's like entering a new circle.

Compared to herself, Zhou Le has far more resources around her. Even if she doesn't get the lead role in her next project, it will still be much better than her previous works.

This time, Zhou Le clearly came over to have a private talk.

The fact that Yin Zheng was also present indicates that it was a legitimate chat.

And Zhou Le immediately said he liked his character in "iPartment" as soon as he arrived...

"Director Zhou, you flatter me. I have been working hard all along, but I am especially grateful to Director Zhou for giving me the opportunity to play the female lead this time."

As Deng Jiajia spoke, she picked up a small notebook from the table: "Director Zhou, this is a short biography I wrote for this role. I'm not sure if it differs from your vision. Could you take a look? If there's anything unsuitable, I'll revise it." (End of Chapter)