Director of Photography Department of Huayu

Chapter 330 The Disappointment of the Big Flowers
The announcement that "The Martian" would be casting at the Beijing Film Academy after the Lunar New Year immediately caused a huge uproar in the entire entertainment industry, spreading like wildfire across the entertainment circle.

That evening, various media outlets published reports on the matter.

[The biggest casting call of the year in Chinese-language cinema begins! Wu Chen's new film "The Martian" has secured auditions at the Beijing Film Academy!]

[Actors' Spring Festival Gala? The most explosive good news before the Lunar New Year is here!]

【.】

Compared to the usual pre-Lunar New Year specials, Spring Festival Gala news, or box office reviews, this year's news struck the industry like a thunderbolt, causing many brokerage companies that had planned to take a break before the New Year to collectively refocus.

For the artists, this is undoubtedly the best news before the Lunar New Year, but the press releases from the three companies are a bit puzzling.

The joint press release from the three companies was vague about the term "protagonist," leaving the question open: does it mean only the male lead is being considered, or does it also include the female lead?
This difference is worlds apart.

Especially for those top actresses who are queuing up for top-tier resources, this is not a small semantic issue, but a life-or-death matter concerning "whether they can get into a production" and "whether they should hold back resources and change their schedule."

The major brokerage firms acted swiftly, all inquiring within the industry and gathering information from almost everyone involved, even Shu Chang herself.

"Wow, I'm getting lucky too. Someone actually managed to find out about me by asking about the character. They really think too highly of me."

After hanging up the phone, Shu Chang stared at her phone in shock.

"What did you ask about?" Liu Yifei leaned lazily against the sofa, peeling fruit bite by bite, her feet crossed on the coffee table, her long knitted cardigan wrapped around her in a relaxed manner.

Wu Chen had arranged a pre-New Year's dinner with her roommates tonight, so she naturally went back to Liu Xiaoli's place. Coincidentally, Shu Chang had finished all her scenes and commercials and had nothing to do.

"It's all because of Wu Chen's new movie. Have you seen their press release? It says 'leading role,' but it doesn't specify whether it's the male or female lead. It's causing quite a stir now, everyone's guessing it." Shu Chang said, leaning closer and chuckling softly.

"Sisi, do you know? Is it the male lead or the female lead?"

"Peel a few tangerines for me and I'll tell you." Liu Yifei raised an eyebrow.

"Hey, it's nothing."

"Actually, there's only a male lead. 'The Martian' is a male-centric film; there's no female lead." Liu Yifei took the peeled orange, picked up a plump segment of the mandarin orange with her fingertips, and gently put it into her mouth. Her tongue touched the flesh, which was slightly sour and sweet.

"Then many people will be disappointed." Shu Chang was stunned. She knew that the top actresses in the industry were all eyeing this resource, so this was undoubtedly a bolt from the blue.

"Is it okay for you to tell me?"

"It's okay. Wu Chen said he'd have to tell everyone soon, so it's fine for you to tell everyone now." Liu Yifei nodded with a light laugh, and her phone rang, clearly someone else calling to inquire about the news.

"Then I won't be polite!" Shu Chang pulled out her phone, her face beaming with barely suppressed excitement.

She had such a great opportunity to show off, shouldn't she take advantage of it?
"Changchang, let's spend the New Year here this year." Liu's mother's gentle voice came from the stairs. "We won't go back to Jiangcheng. It'll be lively here."

"Okay, thank you, Auntie!" Shu Chang thought for a moment and finally agreed.

Celebrating the Lunar New Year here is much happier than on the other side.

"Don't thank me, it's settled then."

Meanwhile, on the other side, Wu Chen was also in a familiar little restaurant, sitting around a table with Xiang Zhuo, Pu Songri, and Chu Tianshu. With the end of the year approaching, the four of them from the dormitory were bound to get together for a meal.

This is the first year-end reunion since graduation.

"Did you get promoted?" Xiang Zhuo patted Chu Tianshu's shoulder with a grin.

"It won't be that fast," Chu Tianshu said with a smile and shook his head. "But I'm definitely busier than before. They said they'd give me more responsibilities."

"When you become the station director, don't forget about us," Wu Chen teased, raising his glass. "Even if my Chu family's ancestral graves were to emit smoke for three days and three nights, it still wouldn't be my turn to be the station director," Chu Tianshu waved his hands repeatedly, eliciting laughter from the crowd.

"By the way, Tianshu, which path are you planning to take? Are you still planning to stay in a technical role, or are you switching to the program or directing team?" Wu Chen asked again.

Most of the film and television graduates recruited by CCTV initially enter the technical center, program production department, and special program department, starting as "assistant cameraman" or "camera assistant," commonly known as "camera operator."

However, some photographers will "change course" midway.

"I haven't decided yet," Chu Tianshu said, looking confused.

"Take your time, don't rush. Everyone has their own pace." Wu Chen finished speaking, raised his glass, and clinked glasses. "Let's start with a happy new year in advance."

"Happy New Year!"

"."

Just as the group was having dinner at the small restaurant, news from the outside world was spreading like wildfire.

As key information leaked from Shu Chang, China Film Group, and Shanghai Film Group, the initial "vague protagonist" has gradually been revealed, and the truth has begun to be pieced together and reconstructed from private messages.

I heard that The Martian only has a male lead, no female lead.

"Who said that? Is the information reliable?"

"I heard it came from Shu Chang, so it should be reliable. Don't you think about where she got the information? It's either Wu Chen or Liu Yifei, how could it be wrong?"

"Someone at China Film Group seems to have said it too, it really is just the male lead!"

People from various brokerage firms quickly exchanged ideas.

"The male lead is fine, but with such a large production team, there must be other astronauts or supporting actors, even if they're just research-related supporting roles, we need to keep an eye on them."

The news left many top actresses extremely disappointed, and they all called to confirm it.

Zhou Xun then called Liu Yifei's cell phone.

"It's true, that's really how it is, Sister Xun."

Zhou Xun sighed. What bad luck! Such a great opportunity, and they didn't get a chance.

She felt that, apart from a limited number of people like Gong Li and Liu Yifei, the others, such as Zhang Ziyi and Li Binbin, were not as competitive as her. After all, her relationship with Wu Chen and others was much better than that of the others.

Sometimes having a good relationship is an advantage; at least under the same circumstances, her chances of being selected are slightly higher than others.

"Thank you, Iphie."

"It's alright, Sister Xun. By the way, are you still stuck in Hengdian?"

"Yes, I was planning to go back, but I couldn't get tickets due to the snowstorm, so I decided to stay here. Anyway, I'm going to be filming Tsui Hark's 'All About Women' in a while."

"."

At this time, Zhang Ziyi, who was working overtime at the Beijing Film Studio to catch up on the progress of "Mei Lanfang", also took the opportunity to check the information. She naturally had ideas about this Sino-US co-production, especially at such a crucial time.

After seeing the news circulating in the industry and calling Zhang Zinan to inquire, he could only sigh in the end.

Meanwhile, the top male actors in the industry were filled with excitement; their opportunity was about to arrive.
(End of this chapter)