I'm just trying to ride the wave of popularity!

Chapter 238 Shock!

In the conference room.

A brief silence.

Wilson glanced out the window, momentarily lost in thought, as if lost in a memory.

“A long, long time ago, when I was a child, I followed my father and accidentally walked into an old movie theater and watched a movie.”

"That was around 1965..."

"Perhaps it's not a movie, but an autobiographical documentary about a race car driver, called 'Zorro,' which tells the story of a race car driver racing on the track..."

"I still remember the shock that movie gave me..."

"I saw a group of crazy people, passionate figures, and stories about family and kinship..."

"I was about 10 years old that year..."

"That year, I sat in the theater seven times, watching the figures speeding through the movie, their speed and passion radiating a strange charm!"

"I still remember that feeling; every time the tachometer plunged into the red zone, it felt like my spine was electrified..."

"It was that movie that made me fall in love with racing!"

"..."

In the conference room.

Everyone was listening attentively.

Wilson's voice gradually faded.

That movie was his introduction to racing, which led him to become a race car driver. However, due to an accident, he left the racing circuit and began working behind the scenes.

Over the years, as the president of the FIA, he has seen far too many documentary-style racing films like "Zorro"...

However, the film's meticulously recreated track data and technical jargon are piled up like a textbook, lacking both the passion and brotherhood of "Zorro." Some elements are present, but they fail to move the viewer.

Over the years, he had tried to find the original team behind "Zorro," but the screenwriter and director had left in the 90s, leaving only a cinematographer.

He shared a series of his feelings with the photographer, who also tried to write a script...

Every script was written according to his requirements, but the content was more like a pile of soulless words, which disappointed him.

Later, he also approached many screenwriters in Hollywood and talked to them about his deepest thoughts.

However, there aren't many "racing" movies in the international film industry, and most of the screenwriters are not professional, resulting in disappointing scripts. He tried investing in several films, but the content was atrocious, and the box office results were even worse...

Later, his longing gradually faded.

Until recently, at Lin Guodong's invitation, he came to China to inspect the application status of the F1 international racing series.

Over the past three years, Lin Guodong has applied for races more than once, and his persistence is very touching. However, during these three years, China's motorsport industry has been stagnant.

There are few professional athletes, even fewer spectators, and absolutely no commercial value, making it very difficult for them to apply...

Until this year, he came to China again.

I witnessed the astonishing popularity of racing in China, and by chance, I also saw "The Lord of the Rings: The Second Ring," which rekindled a long-lost passion within me.

At first, he didn't care much. After all, besides movies, what he wanted was the global market, not just the Chinese market...

until……

He saw the news that Paimon had secured the global distribution rights for "Saw," and he saw this familiar Chinese director!
Then, he had his secretary look up the information on this Chinese director, and the spark of that idea in his heart was rekindled!
“Hollywood screenwriters simply don’t understand that feeling…” Wilson stared at Zhou Yang: “They turn F1 into a damn math competition! Data! Strategy! Who cares about that? It’s a completely soulless work. They’re still stuck in those old frameworks, only able to write scripts according to my requirements, but they can’t even film them properly…”

"..."

"What do I want to see? I want to see the smell of burning rubber when the tires lock up! The feeling of the steering wheel struggling in my hands! It's... an indescribable emotion... You know what that emotion means, right?"

Wilson spoke earnestly about a series of ideas.

Lin Guodong, who was standing next to him, was completely dumbfounded.

He finally understood.

You feel the screenwriter lacks feeling because they don't write the script according to your requirements...

The screenwriter writes the script according to your requirements, but you feel that the screenwriter has no soul at all...

What left Lin Guodong speechless was that, judging from Wilson's description, even someone as experienced in racing as Lin Guodong had no idea what kind of movie he wanted!
Isn't this nonsense?

What do you mean?
Who knows what you mean!

Lin Guodong looked at Zhou Yang.

However, Zhou Yang's expression did not change; instead, he listened attentively, seemingly lost in thought.

"Mr. Wilson, is there another way we can approach this?"

"What idea?"

“I’ve been looking at a lot of Hollywood movies related to racing recently, and I’ve noticed that the racing scenes in those scripts are all about straight-line acceleration and overtaking on curves. Could we try a different approach and make movies using the format of ‘street racing’?”

"Street racing?" Wilson was taken aback.

"True street racing is about car modification culture! Like using drainage ditches to navigate corners in 'The Lord of the Rings: The Two Rings,' that's the soul of it all, don't you think?"

Zhou Yang looked at Wilson, who was taken aback. After a brief moment of deep thought, Wilson looked at Zhou Yang again and said, "Continue..."

"Your screenwriters have turned the drivers into mere tools who only know how to step on the gas. It seems that there's nothing deeper about them besides racing. They're like puppets on the front lines, lacking any human depth. Would it be better if we added family, brotherhood, betrayal, and redemption to the film? What if a character, who is very low-class, a petty thug who only steals DVD players to support his family, could, at some point, burn the stolen car to protect his family..." Wilson fell into deep thought.

Zhou Yang observed Wilson's expression and then continued, "There's a common problem in Hollywood movies: the villains are always mercenaries who are paid to do things! Maybe it was interesting at first, but after a while, it gets boring. What if we set the villain as the protagonist's brother, who becomes enemies because of an accident, or rather, because of a street race accidental killing... What do you think?"

"..."

"In a movie, speed is the outer shell, but family affection is the core. Just like the father-son relationship in my movie 'The Lord of the Rings: The Two Rings,' many viewers were deeply moved..."

After listening, Wilson nodded, seemingly lost in thought.

"Also, Mr. Wilson, there's a very important point in what you said: the screenwriter can't even distinguish between nitrous oxide acceleration and turbocharging. For this film, we can collaborate with Audi China to have official, professional design engineers demonstrate the most realistic modification schemes for each car, allowing the audience to gain a more intuitive and professional understanding of real racing..."

After seeing Zhou Yang say those words.

Wilson frowned slightly, but said nothing.

Zhou Yang continued, "Hollywood screenwriters' scripts are all about American heroism, with the protagonist always saving the world. Why don't we try a different approach this time? How about we make a story about a group of low-level drivers using modified cars to fight against the powerful? For example... a slum team smuggling gasoline? What do you think about using that as the main storyline?"

The air conditioner in the conference room was humming.

Wilson did not respond to what Zhou Yang said, but only glanced at the outline that Zhou Yang had just written.

He glanced silently at the outline, then at the sincere Zhou Yang, and once again looked down at the script outline.

A brief silence fell over the meeting room.

He stared intently at Wilson's profile, trying to discern the slightest change in his expression.

Wilson just stared silently at the script outline Zhou Yang had just written, his fingers tapping lightly on the table, the rhythm sometimes fast and sometimes slow, as if he was thinking about something.

The damn silence lasted for a full three minutes.

For some reason, Lin Guodong suddenly felt nervous.

Just at this time……

"Mr. Zhou certainly knows more about racing than those Hollywood guys, but..."

Lin Guodong paused again, glanced at the media in the distance, then turned back to Lin Guodong: "I have a contract here!"

Wilson waved his hand, and then his secretary bent down, took a document from his briefcase, and pushed it in front of Lin Guodong.

"Huh?" Lin Guodong was stunned.

He took the document blankly, and when he saw the title, his pupils suddenly contracted!
That is!

Agreement on Hosting the International Formula 1 China Grand Prix

"What is this...?"

Lin Guodong's hand trembled slightly when he saw the agreement.

Wilson gave a rare smile: "Sign it, Mr. Lin. I said when you first applied three years ago that I would approve it as soon as Chinese racing culture met the standards, and now... all the data has exceeded our expectations... I see your sincerity!"

Lin Guodong was momentarily dazed!
Scenes from the country's past echoed in his ears...

He had been rejected so many times that when he saw the contract, it felt somewhat unreal.

And at this moment...

Wilson turned to look at Zhou Yang, a strange light flashing in his eyes: "Mr. Zhou Yang... do you prefer Paimon or Universal?"

"Huh?" Zhou Yang was taken aback.

“Universal Pictures is one of the six major Hollywood film studios. Founded in 1912, it is one of the oldest film studios in Hollywood. The production manager there is a good friend of mine… We can save ourselves a lot of tedious steps. As for Paimon, I'm not familiar with it, but I know you two have a collaboration, so I need to hear your thoughts…”

"..."

..............................

【Tianyu】

Xu Haibo, who had stayed up all night, had only been resting in his office for less than ten minutes.

The office door was suddenly pushed open!

Then came the secretary's panicked voice!

"Something terrible has happened, Mr. Xu! Something horrible is about to happen!"

"Zhou Yang..."

"..."

Zhou Yang, Zhou Yang, Zhou Yang!

It's Zhou Yang again!

You'd be fucking dead without Zhou Yang!