2001 Media Godfather

Chapter 95 Waiting for Sister to Return

"Hit, Hit a Big Watermelon" is a profoundly anti-war animated short film.

The film opens with a meeting between the two heads of state, and the world map in the background is an abstract depiction of two vicious dogs fighting over a bone.

There wasn't a single wasted shot; that alone is unlike Lu Mingze's style.

You should know that the main reason Lu Mingze can't make movies is that he's used to making TV dramas, and the narrative pace is simply not fast enough for him.

Telling a story in 2000 minutes is completely different from telling a story in 100 minutes.

The film progresses from the negotiation table to all-out war, with visual elements building layer by layer, and metaphorically comparing people and weapons to playing cards on a poker table, making it extremely profound.

The fact that the two main characters go from fighting to the death to living peacefully in a secluded corner, finding contentment amidst the flames of war, elevates the film.

"That's great!" Many teachers had the same thought as Lu Mingze back then: Why the hell wasn't this filmed by me?

Yes, despite the increasing capitalization and commercialization of the film and television industry, some things will never change.

That is, although most of the great works that have gone down in history do not make money, or even lose money.

But damn it, it has a magical power that makes all creators flock to it.

No matter how well a director translates commercial success, they can't compare to directors of serious dramas and art-house films who have a good reputation.

This is similar to Zhang Yimou; no matter how successful his commercial films are, people still praise him for his early art films.

Even though Feng Xiaogang has mastered comedy, he still wants to make films like "Assembly" and "Back to 1942".

This isn't just true in China; it's the same in Hollywood. Michael Bay is successful enough, right? But he's still a step below those top Hollywood directors because he only knows how to make commercial films.

To put it bluntly, even the teachers from the Central Academy of Drama here, who have studied the film and television industry their entire lives, may not have 16 minutes of something worthwhile to show for themselves.

At this moment, the atmosphere in the small screening room became somewhat eerie.

Even Wang Zhan looked at Chu An differently now.

If someone can produce something like this before they're even 20, what will they be like in the future?
Many people looked at one of the people in the room with envy.

This man is named Ma Liangchen, the deputy director of the Film and Television Department and the director of the Film Directing Research Office.

In everyone's opinion, a promising talent like Chu An could only get into the film directing major at the Central Academy of Drama; it would be a waste of his talent to be assigned to any other major.

In other words, Chu An is destined to be Ma Liangchen's soldier for the next four years.

Although Zhang Heng and Lu Mingze didn't get along, he didn't hold a grudge against Chu An. At this moment, he said to Ma Liangchen with a hint of jealousy, "You old Ma, you've hit the jackpot!"

“These talented and capable individuals can achieve results within two years of working under you.”

He was genuinely envious. He could imagine Chu An studying for a year or two, using his connections in the industry and his screenwriting skills to create his debut film, and even win some awards.
Wouldn't the old horse's tail be sticking up to the sky?

The key point is that if you can get awards while still an undergraduate, what about after that? What about graduate school? To put it bluntly, for the next six or seven years, or even ten years, Chu An will be Ma Liangchen's stepping stone for promotion.

He patted Ma Liangchen on the shoulder and said, "Congratulations!"

Ma Liangchen, however, remained very calm.

He frowned as he looked at Chu An, who was still standing on the stage. Anyone who didn't know better would think that he looked down on Chu An, his new disciple.

He glanced at Wang Zhan and finally spoke, "Old Wang, what do you think?"

Wang Zhan's face darkened. "What the hell do I think?"
His targeting of Chu An and Wang Chengzhi was no secret within the department; everyone could see it.

But, Ma Liangchen, it's a bit unfair of you to ask me to make a statement at this time, isn't it?

Without this short film, Wang Zhan would still have something to say, and could even express his dislike for Chu An.

But as the head of the department, he couldn't possibly ignore the students' judgment when it came to admissions.

Even if Chu An performs exceptionally well in the preliminary exam, she may still be rejected by the Central Academy of Drama.

but
If Wang Zhan were to say anything inappropriate at this time after "Hit, Hit a Big Watermelon" is released, then he would be out of his mind.

All he could say was "okay".

At this moment, facing Ma Liangchen's probing questions, old man Wang Zhan only gave a forced smile and a snort, "Not bad! The Central Academy of Drama needs talented young people like this!"

In short, it set the tone. It both showed acceptance of Chu An and demonstrated good manners.

Upon hearing this, Ma Liangchen immediately smiled and said, "My thoughts are the same as the director's!"

Then he turned to Chu An and asked, "How are your academic grades?"

Chu An answered truthfully, "A second-tier university is no problem, but a first-tier university is impossible."

A second-tier university degree in academic subjects is sufficient for admission to the Central Academy of Drama.

To Chu An's surprise, Ma Liangchen's brows remained furrowed after hearing this.

He muttered to himself, "A second-tier university? That's still not a sure thing!"

Chu An, “???”

Chu An didn't understand. What did that mean? Wang Zhan wasn't holding back anymore, so you're going to trip him up again?

At this moment, Ma Liangchen turned to discuss with several other teachers, including Wang Zhan, "Such a good young man, we have to make sure that other universities don't snatch him up!"

The students themselves said that getting into a second-tier university was no problem, so what were you worried about?

Ma Liangchen: "What I mean is, what if he underperforms? What if he doesn't make it past the second-tier university cutoff score?"

Wang Zhan was speechless. "So you mean... special admission without examination?"

Admission without examination is not out of the question. As mentioned before, universities have a lot of power to conduct their own admission exams these days.

Direct recruitment is available, but the procedures are a bit more complicated.

Of course, it's not the paperwork from Chu An's side, but the paperwork from the Central Academy of Drama.

Wang Zhan: "We don't need special admissions, right? He can just pass the second-tier university entrance exam himself. If that doesn't work, we can just lower the bar."

Old Wang wasn't trying to make things difficult; he was genuinely proposing feasible solutions.

Ma Liangchen nodded, but still frowned. "The director's plan is feasible. Besides, the number of special recruitment slots is limited, so there's no need to waste them."

First affirm, then deny, but with a conflicted look, "I'm afraid that Beijing Film Academy and Shanghai Theatre Academy will smell the talent and come looking for them, offering some good conditions and snatching them away."

"How about," I tentatively suggested, "that I propose a plan, and we all give it a try and see if it works?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Zhan and the other teachers asked, "What plan?"

Ma Liangchen blurted out, "Has the deadline for submissions to the College Student Film Festival passed?"

Wang Zhan: "The deadline was already set? They rejected submissions half a month ago."

Ma Liangchen said, "Then how about we ask our colleagues at Beijing Normal University to make an exception and submit Xiao Chu's short film?"

"If we win an award, we'll have to get special admissions even if we don't need them!"

Wang Zhan, “.”

A group of teachers, “.”

Suddenly it dawned on me—that old fox was waiting here all along!
Zhang Heng pointed at Ma Liangchen speechlessly, tapping him several times, "You!! I underestimated you, okay?"

Zhang Heng just said that once Chu An has studied at school for two years and achieved some results, Ma Liangchen will be able to benefit from it.

But this old bastard didn't even want to wait two years; he wants to take advantage of the situation right now.

At this moment, Ma Liangchen finally revealed a triumphant smile. His forehead was wrinkle-free, but his eyes were wide enough to trap flies.

"The way you're saying that makes it sound like I'm the only one who benefits from winning the award. Wouldn't that make everyone at the Central Academy of Drama look good?"

Zhang Heng thought about it and realized it made sense. He didn't hold back anymore, saying, "I'm quite familiar with Old Jia from the Beijing Normal University Preparatory Committee; I'll talk to him about this!"

And so, Chu An, who hadn't participated at all, found himself in the Shengjing University Student Film Festival without even realizing it. Standing on stage, Chu An could only sigh, "Damn, even schools aren't clean; this is another world entirely!"

It's even more complicated than the entertainment industry!
The Shenyang University Student Film Festival was founded in 1993.

It has always been independently hosted by Beijing Normal University, and it is well-known not only among university students but also throughout the country.

That's why Zhang Heng was able to suggest finding someone to put in a good word for him.

This isn't really a big deal, since it's just an animated short film, not a feature film in the main competition. Beijing Normal University will have to give it some face.

However, Lao Lu was a little unhappy afterward, "Damn it! That Zhang guy got his revenge here."

He stole Zhang Heng's girl back then, and now Zhang Heng is stealing his woman.

"what!"

Chu An didn't want to get involved; the entertainment industry was too chaotic, and it was better to play dumb.

In June, the college entrance examination arrived as scheduled. Chu An, who had been given a second chance at life, was full of expectations and wanted to make up for his regrets. However, after taking the exam, he didn't feel anything special. It was just so-so.

In retrospect, it's possible that I didn't invest enough and my sense of immersion wasn't strong enough.

Anyway, I ended up with a score of 400-500, which was just average.

This score is high enough to get admitted to the Central Academy of Drama, without even needing any special admissions.

However, he also knew very well that participating in the College Student Film Festival wasn't for special admissions; it was to enhance the reputation of the Central Academy of Drama.

Chu An had no objection to this; after all, the martial world is all about human relationships and social interactions.

So much so that when the awards were presented in July, "Hit, Hit a Big Watermelon" unsurprisingly won the Best Animated Short Film award.

When Chu An went on stage to receive the award, he had no interest at all and felt completely bored.

For a long time afterward, he lost interest in domestic film and television awards. Frankly, what kind of honor is it to be awarded for sharing the spoils?

Throughout the summer vacation, Chu An stayed at home, preparing for the filming of "You Are My Glory" with Lu Mingze.

Unfortunately, his "staying put" is in quotes.

He may be honest, but others won't have a moment of peace!
"Teacher Chu, give up. Acting skills are not within your talent range!"

Xu Shu put her hands on her hips and started to hurt her feelings again.

She took three days off from her film crew in Shanghai just to return to Shengjing and act alongside Teacher Chu.

After three days, it's not that there's no progress at all, but it's only slightly better than when we were filming "With You".

"Why don't you just make do with the performance?"

Chu An glared at him: "What are you talking about? Just getting by won't do! We need to take every performance seriously; that's how we treat the audience right, isn't it?"

Xu Shu rolled her eyes. "Admit it, you were overwhelmed by the online mockery."

Ok
Chu Zong's participation in the College Student Film Festival has generated a lot of buzz, and with the early promotion of "You Are My Glory" underway, CCTV conducted an exclusive interview with Lu Mingze, during which it was revealed that Chu An will play a main role and will be acting alongside a mysterious actress. Everyone is encouraged to look forward to the interaction between the two.

This finally gave the general public an outlet to vent their anger and ridicule Chu An.

"As far as Teacher Chu's acting skills are concerned, no one but Xu Shu can tolerate them."

"I really can't imagine which fairy sister would have such magnanimity to tolerate Teacher Chu's terrible performance."

"I can't wait! What am I going to do? I'm going to see Teacher Chu make a fool of herself again."

Although it was all in jest, the problem is, our CEO Chu is a man who cares about his reputation!

Moreover, he had long worried that he would be completely outmatched by Su Manqing's superb acting skills.

Therefore, recently, President Chu has really been staying home diligently to hone his acting skills.

Even if it's just a last-minute effort, we can't let unscrupulous netizens get away with it, can we?

"Take two more days off. Actor Zou will come to teach me tomorrow. You're sure to improve then!"

Xu Shu, “.”

Before she could make an excuse, another voice rang out in the courtyard, "Give up! Teacher Zou can't save you, just give up!"

Lin Wanxing barged in, threw her small bag onto the sofa, and then began to complain to Xu Shu, "Before you came, I had been working with him for a whole week, it was torture!"

Although Miss Wanxing and Xu Shu are sworn enemies, they share an absolute consensus on the matter of teasing Chu An and enduring the torment of his acting skills.

Upon hearing this, Xu Shu quietly reached for her small bag, grabbed it, and ran off. "Perfect timing! You're relieving me tomorrow. I'm leaving now, or the crew will be in chaos!"

He vanished in the blink of an eye, leaving Lin Wanxing dumbfounded.

"Run, ran away?"

The adorable little thing looked left and right, then turned to Chu An and asked, "Are you leaving already?"

Chu An grinned, "Then I'll have to trouble Miss Wanxing for help tomorrow."

The next day, Zou Qingsong arrived at the invitation, intending to establish a good relationship.

He was one of the first people in the industry to know Chu An.

Thinking about it, this screenwriter, who's so accomplished, is now turning to directing and has even won an award.
Although he is from Tiandu, it's not a problem to maintain a good relationship with him.

But after only two days of guidance, Actor Zou regretted it.

Damn, the price for this good deed is a bit too high!!
He had never encountered such a stupid actor before. He really didn't know anything. Actor Zou tried every trick in the book to improve his acting skills.

Useless! !
Chu An can only act himself; he can't perform at all.

It's true, he plays every role as if he's playing Chu An.

"You're just so clueless, aren't you?"

After the third day, she said, "Well, I have work to do, I'm pretty busy, so I won't be coming tomorrow!"

Chu An, "."

Well, another one has survived.

That evening, I called Su Manqing, who was in the United States, and asked, "How about... we change the male lead?"

"I have a damn feeling that if I don't act well, the audience will curse me to death."

"Oh!!" Su Manqing maintained her lazy demeanor, her tone teasing, "Teacher Chu, who doesn't care about anything, is starting to have an idol image to maintain?"

Chu An was taken aback, suddenly realizing it was true.

Spending a lot of time in front of the camera, you really start to care about things.

They care about public opinion, they care about their image, they care about...
Su Manqing, "When it comes to acting, do you know what the biggest taboo is?"

Chu An: "I know, it's about separating the body from the spirit."

Zou Yingdi's classes weren't for nothing; he does understand these basic concepts.

But to Su Manqing's surprise, she exclaimed, "Wrong!!"

"The worst thing you can do is use too much force!"

Chu An, "What do you mean?"

Su Manqing said, "Don't overthink it. When I get back, I'll give you a good lesson for a few days, and I guarantee you'll make great progress."

.

(End of this chapter)