Huayu Entertainment: Tianxian really wants to improve

Chapter 354 The Presence of a Movie Queen
Liu Yifei glanced at Guo Fan with a hint of surprise, and found him somewhat familiar.

The 'junior' in front of me looks tall and thin, with the typical features of a science and engineering student. He even looks a bit like Yang Yu, the promising director known for his dumplings. Could he also be a director?
"Teacher Wang, let me ask Director Gu for you first, and then I'll give you an answer."

Liu Yifei, filled with doubts, refrained from reacting for the time being and first reassured Wang Jinsong.

"It should, it should."

Wang Jinsong answered politely.

He was already very satisfied with Liu Yifei's attitude.

Although he is the vice dean of the Performance Academy of Beijing Film Academy,

During their time at school, they could freely reprimand these performing arts students.
But when people actually enter society, there aren't many who are still willing to respect him as a teacher, even if it's just a pretense.

After all, the entertainment industry is a very realistic place. He, as the vice dean, is far less popular than Professor Huang Lei, who has better connections in the industry, simply because Huang Lei has better resources.

For Liu Yifei to reach this position and still respectfully address him as Teacher Wang, she is already far superior to many of her students.

After Wang Jinsong and Guo Fan left,

Shu Chang said enviously from the side, "You guys at Beijing Film Academy are so lucky! You can easily find someone in the industry to be your senior or junior!"

Liu Yifei laughed and retorted, "If you didn't want to go to the Central Academy of Drama back then, why don't you just take the entrance exam for the Beijing Film Academy's graduate program? Then you can call me senior sister!"

"I don't want it!"

Shu Chang rolled her eyes at Liu Yifei.

What's the point of calling someone "senior sister"? It's much more meaningful to call someone "boss lady."

Liu Yifei looked at the light screen that hadn't appeared for a long time. She hadn't had a chance to look at it before, but now that she had, she saw that it was indeed a task triggered by Guo Fan.

[Triggering Quest: Since We're Already Here]

At thirty-eight, you look at Director Guo Fan, whom you haven't seen in a long time. The last time you crossed paths was exactly halfway through your life. At that time, Director Guo Fan was working as an illustrator for the prequel comic of The Forbidden Kingdom, and you met him once on the set of The Forbidden Kingdom.

Unexpectedly, after many years, director Guo Fan has become a veritable director with a box office of over 10 billion yuan, having directed two sci-fi blockbusters, The Wandering Earth I and II. He has also become the vice president of the China Film Directors Association and the vice chairman of the China Film Association.

Director Guo Fan seems very interested in your project to remake Gravity. As a pillar of Chinese science fiction films, it would be great if he could support you, even if it's just by posting a Weibo message.

Please let this sci-fi Daji, cyberpunk succubus, and idealistic big brother support your project!

[Mission Objective: To persuade director Guo Fan to support the film]

[Task Reward: One random draw opportunity from the Entertainment Treasure House]

Oh, it was him!

Liu Yifei suddenly realized why the face looked so familiar.

If I were 38 years old, I might not remember it very clearly.

But now, just over two years later, Liu Yifei still remembers seeing Guo Fan once on set back then, and she even has a comic book called "Destiny," a prequel to the Kung Fu King, at home.

Who would have thought that this artist would become a pillar of Chinese science fiction films in the future?

And there's more...

Sci-fi Daji, cyber succubus, idealistic big brother,

What kind of weird nicknames are these?

Liu Yifei felt completely confused and couldn't understand it.

Fortunately, the title of "billion-dollar director" is simple and straightforward, just like the title of "dumpling director" Yang Yu before, which allows one to see Guo Fan's future achievements at a glance.

How can you rely on light alone?
Liu Yifei started turning her little head.

She was thinking about how to bring Guo Fan into Gu Bei's Linlang Entertainment, preferably by letting Gu Bei know about Guo Fan's talent and making good use of him.

Thinking about it,

Liu Yifei remembered Shu Chang's teasing words from earlier, and her face flushed slightly.

Isn't this exactly what the boss lady of Linlang Entertainment did?

She glanced at Shu Chang beside her, seemingly afraid that Shu Chang would read her thoughts.

Fortunately, Shu Chang, who was by his side, did not know how to read minds.
They continued chattering away with Liu Yifei about the grand premiere.

This premiere of "The Message" can be seen as a joint effort by Linlang Entertainment and Enlight Media to flex their muscles, second only to the premiere of "The Founding of a Republic" half a month ago.

Celebrities who have even the slightest connection to either side rushed over to show their support.

One celebrity after another raised the atmosphere to a fever pitch, until finally, the main members of the "The Message" crew appeared on stage, bringing the atmosphere to its peak.

Men such as Jiang Wen, Huang Xiaoming, Ying Da, Wang Zhiwen, and Yu Shaoqun appeared one after another.
Finally, in the introduction by Liu Yan, the host of Enlight Media, it was said: "Lastly, we welcome the two most important female characters in The Message. Their joint performances connect the tense plot of the entire film and give us a perfect performance."

Let's welcome Zhang Ziyi, who plays Li Ningyu, and Liu Yifei, who plays Gu Xiaomeng!

Liu Yifei and Zhang Ziyi appeared together.
Liu Yifei wore a pure black dress, exuding a more masculine and sophisticated style, paired with a black suit jacket, giving people a refreshing feeling.

Especially noteworthy is that Zhang Ziyi, standing next to her, wore a pure white long dress, paired with stylish curly hair, and was slightly shorter than Liu Yifei.

Although he is several years older than Liu Yifei, he actually looks petite next to her.

One black and one white,
The scene where the two female leads of "The Message" appear.

This boosted the viewership of live TV channels.

The way the two walked the red carpet so intimately made many fans even start shipping them as a couple.

Gu Bei watched the footage of the two of them being interviewed.

He knew it better than anyone else.
Zhang Ziyi played most of the roles.
Having been in the industry for so long, even the deepest conflicts can be put aside in front of the spotlight.

As for Liu Yifei's words, they simply don't resonate with me.

Because she has met so many kind people along the way, she is not very perceptive of other people's malice. Even if she is betrayed, she will forget about it as soon as she turns her back.

Unless the other party does something really serious to her, she probably won't be able to see the true face behind the mask.

The premiere continues.
The awkward part has begun.

The cast and crew answered some questions on stage, then interacted with the guests in the audience, trying to evoke nostalgia or create some surprises, so they could make the headlines tomorrow.

at last,

After a period of interaction,
After Zhang Liangying sang the OST for "The Message"

The premiere was almost over, and The Message was being screened for the first time.

Although many premieres no longer screen films, Gu Bei still feels that premieres without films are essentially meaningless.

The performance was still going on stage, and Gu Bei asked Jiang Wen next to him, "Is the movie finished filming?"

"without!"

Jiang Wen said frankly, "If you, the boss, aren't in a hurry, then naturally I won't be! Let's just give the brothers a break, and also give myself a break."

"Take your time, no rush. Anyway, the release date is next year's Lunar New Year season, there's still plenty of time," Gu Bei said calmly.

"Did you hear that, honey? I told you Boss Gu wouldn't care about such a short time!"

Jiang Wen said smugly to Zhou Yun beside her.

Zhou Yun rolled her eyes at Jiang Wen and said leisurely to Gu Bei, "Just keep spoiling him!"

"Don't!"

Gu Bei made a prohibition gesture, "Don't call me Boss Gu. I keep comparing your face to Zhang Muzhi, and it sounds really creepy. It makes me feel like my house is going to be ransacked one day!"

"Hahaha!"

Jiang Wen laughed twice.

Taking this opportunity, Liu Yifei said to Gu Bei, "I have a junior from the Beijing Film Academy. I'd like to introduce you to him. Maybe you can get an internship in the Gravity production team."

"Junior brother?"

Gu Bei searched his mind for a moment.

Although it's often said that the Beijing Film Academy's directing department doesn't produce many directors, it does have its share of talented individuals. For example, Shen Ao, who directed films like "All for the Winner" and "The Photo Studio," is a graduate of the Beijing Film Academy's directing department.

If Gu Bei were to guess, there would be too many people and he really wouldn't be able to guess.

After a pause, he said with a smile, "I'll meet him then. If he really has potential, I can let him learn from him. If he's just here to coast, I'll play the villain for you."

"Uh-huh!"

Liu Yifei nodded.

Surely a future director who's worth billions can't fail Gu Bei's interview?
As the two talked, the sound of the wind began to play.

In the original version of The Message, Fruit Chan brought a lot of horror elements, and some scenes were obviously filmed by him. Gu Bei naturally had to make some changes to these elements, otherwise it would be too strange.

He incorporated some elements from horror films.
To replace Chen Guofu's overly obvious personal style.

Especially in the very first interrogation scene, Gu Bei uses the relaxed pace often found in horror films to keep the audience engaged.

In fact, the fright from horror movies is the most effective way to stimulate dopamine.

A good horror film should skillfully control the dopamine levels of its audience to keep them engaged in the movie.

The sound of the wind has a significant advantage.

It's been spy movies and TV series for many years.
The audience has already gained a sufficient understanding of the intelligence-related MacGuffin.
Therefore, by simply controlling the audience's concerns about whether the intelligence agent leaked information, it is very easy to control the audience's emotions without needing to cause excessive alarm.

The opening scene alone stirred the emotions of the premiere guests.

They had a vague feeling that this news was going to be something extraordinary!
at this time,

The five-person panel of judges from "The Message" has arrived.
A very clean long take introduces the five people in one stroke.

The movie then transitioned into a werewolf game segment.
At first, everyone thought that Zhang Ziyi was the undercover agent, since both the camerawork hinted at it and the original novel described it that way.

But as the plot unfolds, everyone discovers that the seemingly carefree Gu Xiaomeng is actually the real Old Ghost.

"hiss!"

Wang Jinsong gasped, "Is this still Liu Yifei?"

There was a hint of confusion in his eyes. The Gu Xiaomeng on the big screen who could keep up with Zhang Ziyi's pace and not be at a disadvantage at all was actually played by his student.
Even if you asked him to act, he couldn't possibly act to this level!
"Yes, that's right, Old Ghost must be Liu Yifei!"

Guo Fan, who was watching from the side, found it quite exciting and thought that Wang Jinsong was trying to figure out who Lao Gui was.

"I wasn't talking about the movie plot, but Liu Yifei's acting skills." Wang Jinsong was still somewhat shocked; he didn't remember teaching her so much!
"Your acting is pretty good, senior sister!"

Guo Fan said with a cheerful smile.

He felt that Liu Yifei's portrayal of Gu Xiaomeng was spot-on. She perfectly captured the essence of a woman from a wealthy family who joined the revolution because of her ideals, making the character very charming and convincing.

Wang Jinsong felt like he was talking to a brick wall.

Well, this isn't his graduate student; he's a management student, so it's understandable that he doesn't have a deep understanding of acting.

at this time,

A film critic standing nearby said, "I also think Liu Yifei's performance this time is almost too good, much better than in her later film, Stardom."

Wang Jinsong found common ground with the film critic and chatted with him: "We don't need to count those commercial films; they're much better than those from the Mei Lanfang era."

"I actually think the best part is the period when Mei Lanfang was young. Yu Shaoqun and Liu Yifei could have continued to play the role until adulthood. With Zhang Ziyi added, Mei Lanfang might have been much better than he is now."

The film critic nodded in agreement.

Yu Shaoqun chatted with the film critic for a while.

The two were quite in agreement: Liu Yifei had made significant progress compared to her time with Mei Lanfang.

It wasn't until Liu Yifei's interrogation scene unfolded that...
The two fell silent once again.

Liu Yifei's acting in the first half can be explained by improvement.

How should we interpret the second half?
Guo Fan couldn't empathize with the two, but he just sighed, "Sister Liu and Teacher Zhang's performances were both fantastic; they are fully qualified to compete for Best Actress."

"Indeed, Liu Yifei truly has the makings of an award-winning actress this time."

The film critic nodded in agreement, "But how exactly did she improve?"
So...ordinary in TV dramas.
Her career truly took off after she entered the film industry. "The Forbidden Kingdom" and "Starry Night" were both very successful, "Mei Lanfang" was a pleasant surprise, and "The Message" could become a representative work of her career!

After thinking it over, Wang Jinsong could only blame Zhang Dahuzi: "Young actors still need to learn more. Zhang Dahuzi has delayed Liu Yifei for too long!"

The film critic thought about it and agreed: "It's all Zhang Dahuzi's fault!"

At last,
In the film, Zhang Ziyi finally deciphers the last words Liu Yifei left on the cheongsam.

Accompanied by Liu Yifei's gentle monologue: "I am not afraid of death, what I fear is that those who love me will not know why I died..."

As the movie ended, all the lights in the theater came on.

The cast and crew list appears.

The first one is "Director Gu Bei".
This is also the first time Gu Bei has presented his director's name in Chinese.

After a brief silence, the guests immediately began to applaud. The lingering excitement after watching the film made them generous with their praise for the crew of "The Message".

(End of this chapter)