I'm not a drama freak, I can really see through the script

Chapter 379, Lu Chuan: My art is sophisticated, but what Li Xuan said also inspired me!
at this time.

Wang Su felt very uncomfortable.
Ever since "Into the Dust" outperformed "Springtime" and "Cow" in both box office and critical reception.

He sensed that he was surrounded by malice.

This feeling was particularly strong after Zhang Mouzi betrayed him, and the damage caused by this betrayal was exceptionally intense.

The impact is huge, very huge.

It's almost fair to say that Zhang Yimou, the "number one in China," wants to decouple from the government.
This level of 'backstab'.

This made Wang Su feel extremely uncomfortable. How could he do this? How dare he? How could he possibly do this?

"If it weren't for his contribution to the box office of 'Into the Dust', we wouldn't have lost so badly."

"Actually, I think so too."

Zheng Long's expression was also slightly heavy at this moment. Zhang Mouzi's 'overstepping' actions this time were actually quite obvious to everyone.

“In the past, he would express his dissatisfaction secretly, but this time he directly used his own resources to support Li Xuan. What he wanted to express and what he meant was very clear. This time he completely stopped pretending and stopped acting.”

Wang Shuo was very somber at this moment.

That means it's openly expressing the intention to cut off.

And they were somewhat unscrupulous.

Use Li Xuan to suppress the Beijing entertainment circle.

It's shameful.

Indeed, Li Xuan's latest wave has overshadowed the works of the Beijing art circle, from the seventh generation to the sixth generation.
The Beijing circle has very few cards left to play.
Now, if Zhang Yimou wants to express his opinion, the only one left is Ma Xiaogang.

Wang Suo was very distressed, never expecting that there were so few cards left to play in the Beijing circle.

Lu Chuan's words
"As long as we can promote Lu Chuan, everything will be fine. Two years from now, we will use all our resources and efforts to ensure that Li Xuan doesn't win a single award, and we will absolutely guarantee our dominant position."

Wang Shuo took a deep breath and said, "Our Beijing circle is still the biggest power in the entertainment industry, without exception. We still have the biggest channel to absorb fresh blood."

"Let Lu Chuan give a speech at the Beijing Film Academy, let him be the benchmark to reinforce the impression and awareness. We will remain the benchmark, so that fresh blood will be proud to enter our Beijing circle."

Zheng Long then said with a complicated expression.

"I heard that Li Xuan also gave a lecture at the Beijing Film Academy as a visiting professor."

Wang Su felt his eyelids twitching wildly as he thought, “Such a young visiting professor at Beijing Film Academy.”

How old is he?

Are you thirty yet?

Like the professors at Beijing Film Academy in their Beijing circle, aren't they all over forty or fifty years old?
Visiting professor at Beijing Film Academy, the first person to subvert scar literature, and a seventh-generation director—these are all titles that Li Xuan has achieved so far.

Really.

This is a genuine, damn threat to the Beijing elite circle.
Lu Chuan's threat.

Absolutely exists
We can't let his influence continue to grow.

This time, we must take him down in the two-year grand prize competition.
"No matter what movies or TV series Li Xuan has scheduled for release in the next two years, we'll adjust their release dates to target him, preferably with similar genres, to squeeze out his opportunities for awards, box office success, critical acclaim—everything! We absolutely cannot let him continue to exist."

At this moment, Wang Su lowered his head.

We absolutely cannot allow the Beijing elite circle to lose its status.

Absolutely not.

He relinquished the power he had wielded in the entertainment industry for half his life.
"Let Lu Chuan give a lecture to these Beijing Film Academy students, let them know that the Beijing entertainment circle is still the Beijing entertainment circle, still the place they yearn for. If they want to make it in our circle, if they want to make it in the entertainment industry, they still have to join our Beijing entertainment circle."

At this moment, Lu Chuan was on the phone with Wang Shuo, having been summoned to the Beijing Film Academy. Guan Hu and Gu Changwei also came with him.
"Why isn't Jia Zhangke here?"

"They're filming a movie, they can't come over."

"Oh," Wang Su said after a pause, looking at Guan Hu and Gu Changwei. "Thank you for your help."

"Um"

Guan Hu and Gu Changwei exchanged a glance, both feeling somewhat stifled.

"Damn it, we're supposed to be top directors, how come we've been reduced to being supporting actors when Lu Chuan gives a lecture?" Guan Hu said, watching Lu Chuan, who was dressed in a suit and looked very well.

The scenery is infinite.

“But we are the losers.” Gu Changwei said with a complicated expression, “Lu Chuan, in fact, in terms of similar works, his ‘Nanjing! Nanjing’ has a reputation in some places that is no less than ‘Nanjing Photo Studio’, especially in developed areas. In the Yangtze River Delta region, Lu Chuan’s reputation is better than Li Xuan’s. Only we lost completely.”

What's here now are just two 'losers,' the kind of failures that lost to Li Xuan in both box office and critical acclaim.

"Losing once is nothing. What's the big deal if two low-budget films beat us? Don't say his budget was low; normally, hiring Liu Yifei to act in a film would cost more than our entire production."

"But this time Liu Yifei's contribution was entirely negative. On the contrary, it was Li Xuan's directing ability that brought him back. If we have to say something, we still have to stick to the facts."

"you"

Guan Hu stared at Gu Changwei, who was stretching his arms out, speechless, and said nothing more.

At least for now, these two "losers" have to serve as foils for Lu Chuan, who is "not so much of a loser".

At least Guan Hu knew this.
"Forget it, I might still have a chance at the big award two years from now. So-called 'reputation' and 'box office' aren't necessarily the foundation for winning. We can still give it a shot."

Looking at Lu Chuan, Guan Hu immediately thought of today's lecture content.
I heard that Li Xuan's lecture yesterday received rave reviews.
Humph.

Lu Chuan could definitely have said it better.

Although Guan Hu could hardly suppress his dislike and disgust for Lu Chuan's ambition to catch up with his own status, from a 'professional' perspective, Lu Chuan was definitely stronger than Li Xuan.

Coming from a family with a long history in the entertainment industry, he knows the teaching materials like the back of his hand, while someone who started out halfway through, whose talent has been exhausted, may have no future opportunities.
Watching Lu Chuan's retreating figure, Guan Hu murmured to himself.

"Keep performing, and when it's time to win the award, you'll all be at my feet."

"Li Xuan, the leader of the seventh generation of directors and a member of the Beijing film circle, has no formal training in directing. But when it comes to lecturing, you can tell at a glance who is more professional."

"Being more professional doesn't necessarily mean being more effective. Anyone can give a lecture, and I might even be better at it. But whether it has any impact is the significance of this public lecture."

At this moment, Wang Fengsheng and Tian Zhuang exchanged smiles and light conversation.
Principal Wang remained noncommittal.

Being more professional does not necessarily mean being more useful.

"I never thought I'd live to see the signs of aging in the Beijing entertainment circle."

This is what makes Weiwei so remarkable.

Aging is a cycle of every era.

The old king goes down, and a new king is born.

So back and forth.

This is the cycle and logic of the times.

But at this moment.

What made him see signs of aging were actually his students from recent years. And the fact that it was Li Xuan who caused it—that's the most shocking part.
Let people.

I can feel a kind of spiritual shock
I suddenly felt a sense of disorientation.

There was a sense of déjà vu, like the waves of the Yangtze River pushing the old ones forward. "I wonder who will have the last laugh two years from now," Tian Zhuang said softly. "It's really not certain."

"Even after watching Nanjing Photo Studio and Nanjing Nanjing, did you still come to this conclusion?"

Wang Fengsheng was somewhat surprised.
Whether it's lectures or Li Xuan's works.

Tian Zhuangdu gave it high praise.

In a sense, Tian Zhuang is also a member of the Beijing circle, but he may not have as many conflicts of interest.

When there are not many vested interests involved.

Wang Fengsheng felt that his stance would be more rational.

"I do admire Li Xuan, but I won't deny Lu Chuan's professional skills. He has a fundamentally different perspective and ideology from Nanjing Nanjing and Nanjing Photo Studio. They represent different positions."

"But different stances attract different audiences. They just make different choices. What kind of choices they make and what kind of results they achieve are debatable."

Tian Zhuang remained calm.

At this moment, Wang Fengsheng also turned around.

This point cannot be refuted.

Li Xuan represents a practice, a choice.

But who can guarantee that this approach, this choice, is absolutely correct?

Especially when it comes to winning awards.

What kind of perspective will they empathize with more? And who can explain these principles?

Perhaps they will criticize the shooting techniques.

This is undoubtedly where "Nanjing! Nanjing" is superior.

"Don't underestimate them. If a single failure could bring down a prodigy, then he wouldn't be qualified to compete for the top spot. Nor would the Beijing elites be willing to invest so much in cultivating him, sparing no expense. It's not about raising a good-for-nothing rich kid."

"He has an unparalleled family background, drive, and all of these things."

"Even if he has some human weaknesses, once he overcomes them, he still has the potential to become a grandmaster."

At this time, Lu Chuan came as invited.
While Li Xuan was explaining 'confusion' to these students, as the largest entertainment circle in Beijing, it was also his duty to address this matter. However, Lu Chuan could understand that he couldn't allow Li Xuan's reputation among young people to expand further.

Looking at the students who were gradually gathering together, a dark mass of them, Lu Chuan felt somewhat dazed.

There was a time when I was one of those students.
It is said that.

Li Xuan's lecture yesterday dispelled many people's confusion.
They understood something.
Looking at these students, young and handsome, they were different from my own generation.

This generation of young actors and students are all more handsome, charming, dashing, and beautiful.

It is completely different from the era we live in.

These are the latest generation of people.

Lu Chuan then slowly said
"Today, I would like to discuss with you the unique artistic expression of film as a medium."

"Many people believe that film is a vehicle for stories. But I think that's a superficial understanding. The essence of film is the poetics of images. It should not, and does not need to, be held hostage by a highly dramatic story."

"When we talk about the essence of film, we must strip away its excessive dramatic attachments and return to a calm, detached recording of images. Through the gaze of the lens, a sense of 'alienation' is established between the audience and the observed. This alienation is not indifference, but rather to give the audience a space for independent thinking, to examine and reflect, rather than passively accepting the emotions forcibly instilled by the creator."

He began to quote extensively from classical works, from Godard of the French New Wave to De Sica of Italian Neorealism, and then to Yasujiro Ozu of Japan.

Various film theories and academic terms flowed from his mouth.

"...So we see that at the end of *The 400 Blows*, Antoine runs towards the sea, then turns back and breaks the fourth wall with a long, drawn-out gaze. What does this gaze contain? Is it accusation? Confusion? Or liberation? Truffaut doesn't tell us. He returns the power of interpretation to the audience. This is the essence of sophisticated artistic expression..."

Very methodical.

There is something completely different from what Li Xuan said.

It was full of order.

The beauty of order in art.

The students present couldn't find fault with it.

“That makes so much sense. This is an interpretation of art and aesthetics,” Wu Jinyan murmured.

Sophistication and a sense of alienation
At this moment, Wu Jinyan couldn't help but compare what Li Xuan said yesterday with what Lu Chuan said today.

"They represent two directions."

“Lu Chuan represents high art. He believes that art is high-class, lofty, and something that is too sophisticated for the masses.”

"Completely different from Li Xuan."

Wu Jinyan couldn't help but ponder this as well.

But isn't this actually the most popular way art is perceived by the public?

applause.

Lu Chuan looked at it.

But more than anything, there was solemnity, fear, and a sense of looking up to someone from a high place.

Look up and see the art of the Beijing art circle.

Lu Chuan, seeing Wang Su and Zheng Long laughing so hard they couldn't stop, knew that the content of his speech this time was exactly what they wanted.

Regardless of how the students perceive it.

But at least this brilliant article made them happy.

Let them know the class of Beijing's elite.

It still exists.

At this point, holding the microphone, one should have already finished speaking.

But in fact.

He wanted to say something more.

I'd like to add a few more things.

The bigwigs in Beijing's elite circles want to hear something different. Yes.

Before stepping off the podium, Lu Chuan said this.

"Actually, there's something I want to say. I'm sure you're all wondering who gave a better speech, me or Li Xuan who spoke yesterday."

"His art is vulgar, while my art is sophisticated. We've taken different paths. There's one thing I need to make clear: art is..."

"It's really quite satisfying to bombard someone's head with your ideas. It's incredibly satisfying."

The guests, who had been invited by the Beijing elite circle, were taken aback.

Lu Chuan then stepped down from the podium.

(End of this chapter)