This director lacks vision.

Chapter 390 Zhang Yimou's Rare Complaint

Upon hearing Jiang Yifeng's name again, Zhang Yimou was speechless.

It's Jiang Yifeng again. Not content with stealing his female lead, he's now snatched the male lead too.

This is really unreasonable!
Zhang Yi got angry for a moment, but there was nothing he could do.

Strictly speaking, Zhang Yi's actions were not wrong, since Zhang Yi had not given a clear answer beforehand.

However, after receiving the role from Jiang Yifeng, Zhang Yi did not hesitate to give up the male lead role for even a second. Even after Zhang Yifeng offered him the male lead role, Zhang Yi still refused.

The contrast is too strong.

Clearly, Zhang Yi believed that cooperating with Jiang Yifeng was more valuable than cooperating with Zhang Yimou.

Thinking of this, Zhang Yi sighed.

Zou Jingzhi, who was standing to the side, said: "Talented people emerge in every generation, and new people replace the old."

Jiang Yifeng has emerged out of nowhere and is currently at the peak of his career, truly enjoying unparalleled popularity.

If you ask me, if the male and female leads you want are both unavailable, then you might as well postpone filming by a second.

Let's postpone filming this movie until the end of this year or next year, and film other movies first.

Zou Jingzhi had worked with Zhang Yimou for many years and knew him very well, so her suggestion was very timely.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yimou actually began to consider suspending the "One Second Project" and waiting for Liu Yicun's availability.

After Zou Jingzhi fell asleep, Zhang Yimou, full of energy, watched "Youth" again and grew to like Liu Yicun more and more.

……

Jiang Yifeng was unaware that after Liu Jicun rejected Zhang Yimou once again, Zhang Yi dealt Zhang Yimou another heavy blow.

After all, the casting work was handled by Han Jianu and others. Jiang Yifeng only told them to find Zhang Yi, and he didn't concern himself with the specifics of making the contact.

In addition to filming "Zhu Xian" this past month, Jiang Yifeng also came up with the script outline for "In the Name of the People".

After trying repeatedly, he still felt there was no need to drastically change the character settings of Hou Liangping and Qi Tongwei.

Because in reality, Hou Liangping and Qi Tongwei did exist.

This is the charm of the TV series "In the Name of the People".

The show became a huge hit, sparking widespread discussion across society.

In Jiang Yifeng's view, the biggest problem with the TV series "In the Name of the People" is not the factual part, but that it only shows a part of the "factual" situation.

Slogans and spirits such as serving the people and selfless dedication are what we should do, the ideal state that everyone hopes to achieve, and the mainstream ideology of our country.

Although there are indeed some unsatisfactory aspects in reality, and there are times when the actual situation conflicts with these slogans and spirits.

Instead, we should encourage and praise those who have faith.

Since there are people like Hou Liangping and Qi Tongwei, there should also be comrades with firm beliefs and a willingness to dedicate themselves.

Therefore, Jiang Yifeng decided to create a new character as the male lead. His name is He Jianguo, and he is Qi Tongwei's classmate. Like Qi Tongwei, he comes from a poor family and is assigned to a grassroots position.

Unlike Qi Tongwei, he did not complain about the grassroots environment, but instead took root in the grassroots and worked to build up the local area.

After working at the grassroots level for more than a decade, the country was reforming and establishing the Anti-Corruption Bureau, which was looking to select a group of loyal and reliable cadres from the grassroots.

He Jianguo was selected to serve as the team leader of Investigation Group 2, and was Hou Liangping's subordinate. He Jianguo's low-ranking position better reflects the pressure and danger of anti-corruption work.

His first case was the investigation of the "Zhao Dehan case," and the story unfolds from there.

In Jiang Yifeng's script, He Jianguo is the protagonist, while Hou Liangping's role is significantly reduced, making him a mere plot device. However, there will still be a contrast between him and Qi Tongwei.

Jiang Yifeng simply introduced an additional comparison, namely the comparison between He Jianguo and Qi Tongwei, to praise and commend those who have firm beliefs and selfless dedication, and to explain the rationality and necessity of this.

At the same time, some redundant subplots were removed, such as those involving Zheng Shengli, Zhang Baobao, and other characters' daily life and family scenes.

The entire series has been condensed to about 30 to 35 episodes.

This approach elevates the overall scope of the series while preserving the success of the original "Nominal".

He Jianguo is a down-to-earth character, so his image can't be too handsome. Jiang Yifeng's first thought was Zhang Yi.

When Zhang Yi received Han Jianu's call, he was so excited that he shouted with joy and agreed without even reading the script.

It can only be said that Jiang Yifeng has an excellent reputation in the industry, and his dramas are very successful in promoting actors.

This was a stroke of good fortune for Zhang Yi.

After Jiang Yifeng finished writing the outline of the script for "In the Name of the People," he handed the script over to the company team to expand on the details and began to gradually finalize the cast.

As the director and boss, Jiang Yifeng only needs to grasp the general direction, which makes his work much easier.

On May 2, Zhang Yimou was interviewed by reporters during a roadshow event for "Return" in Shanghai. He said that the "One Second" project would be postponed for several months, and announced that the movie "The Great Wall" would be released on July 4.

Previously, Great Wall had announced that it would be released during the summer season, but the specific date was not confirmed.

This time, Zhang Yimou specified the timeframe.

According to the current practices in the film industry, the specific release date of a film is usually announced about a month in advance.

Zhang Yimou's announcement of the release date two months in advance is clearly a publicity strategy of the Great Wall production team. The goal is to secure the earliest release date in the summer season and tell other production teams that they'd better avoid releasing during this period.

This is a domineering act of "land grabbing," and anyone who dares to do this is undoubtedly a big-name director.

Zhang Yimou is clearly qualified.

In particular, on May 8th, Tom Cruise's sci-fi blockbuster "Edge of Tomorrow" announced its release date in mainland China as June 6th;
Shortly after, the monster blockbuster "Godzilla" announced its release date as June 13.

Upon seeing these news reports, many of Zhang Yimou's fans were thrilled, feeling that this was the power of the "national master" (a highly respected figure in Chinese cinema), even Hollywood blockbusters would have to back down.

The Great Wall production team also took the opportunity to release a number of promotional press releases.

"The strongest summer movie season yet? Zhang Yimou is the first to show his skills!"

"With the Great Wall in place, even Tom Cruise would have to give way."

"After The Great Wall announced its release date, Hollywood blockbusters moved up their release dates one after another."

These press releases all convey the same message: after Zhang Yimou announced the release date for "The Great Wall," Hollywood blockbusters were all scared, and no film dared to directly confront the "national director."

To be honest, this kind of news is very abstract.

Because July is the month for protecting domestic films, Hollywood movies also wanted to be released in July, but the authorities did not allow it.

The Great Wall production team seems unaware of this matter, and their claim that Hollywood films are afraid of The Great Wall and therefore moved up their release dates is rather far-fetched and abstract.

But that's how news works; the more abstract and outrageous it is, the more attention it gets.

Uninformed viewers might think Zhang Yimou and the Great Wall are incredibly impressive, and that they absolutely must see this movie. Those familiar with the film protection month will then try to refute the claims and provide explanations, which also generates buzz for the film's promotion.

Moreover, LeEco and Huayi have high hopes for Great Wall, and they have invested heavily in its promotion and marketing.

With a large number of online trolls present, these netizens who argue and provide scientific information cannot cause any significant trouble for the time being.

In particular, on May 13th, "Transformers: Age of Extinction" also announced its release date ahead of schedule, with the movie set to be released on June 27th, a week earlier than "The Great Wall".

Now those who support Zhang Yimou and Great Wall have something to say again—even Transformers, which has been a huge hit in the Chinese market, is afraid of Great Wall.

Their reasoning is that Transformers also "moved up" its release date and announced it ahead of schedule, which is clearly influenced by the Great Wall.

Some media outlets also took the opportunity to interview crew members from films like Edge of Tomorrow and Godzilla. These foreigners, of course, were just being polite and praised Zhang Yimou and the Great Wall for the sake of making money.

The Great Wall production team has released another round of press releases to boast about it, creating quite a stir.

It's as if Zhang Yimou, and even Chinese cinema as a whole, had already won before The Great Wall was even released.

Seeing how much buzz the Great Wall production team had generated, Fengxing Media also decided to join in the fun.

After all, why not take advantage of this free popularity?

On May 16th, Fengxing Media posted a Weibo post officially announcing that "Pacific Rim: Survival of the Fittest" has been scheduled for release on July 4th.

This official announcement caused a huge stir!

Pacific Rim has been developing its presence in China for several years, with three seasons already aired and the fourth season scheduled for this year.

Various comics and fan fictions have been created and promoted, merchandise sells very well, and there is also the influence of spin-off series Stranger Things and the movie John Wick.

The influence of the Pacific Rim IP is already enormous.

Coupled with the previous special effects controversy, this proves Monsters Company's special effects production capabilities.

Domestic audiences have been eagerly anticipating the Pacific Rim movie.

Fengxing Media and Jiang Yifeng had not previously specified a release date for Pacific Rim.

The official announcement of the July 4th release date was very sudden and gave the audience a big surprise.

What's even more interesting is that the Pacific Rim and the Great Wall were released at the same time.

The topic has generated tremendous buzz.

The Great Wall production team had been promoting Zhang Yimou's awesomeness, saying that all his films had their release dates moved up or pulled, and no one dared to challenge him.

As a result, the Pacific Rim ignored them completely and went straight into battle.

This left those who had previously supported the national advisor completely bewildered.

The funniest thing was the reaction of the Transformers crew.

After learning that Pacific Rim was scheduled for July 4th, Transformers actually moved up its release date by a week, announcing a June 20th release, which shows great respect for Jiang Yifeng and Pacific Rim.

This completely caused an uproar online.

The abstract promotional materials used by the Great Wall production team had already generated a lot of dissatisfaction, but it was suppressed.

Now netizens have found a trigger point and are criticizing it.

"What do you mean by forcing other movies to move up their release dates? Pacific Rim is the real example. The Great Wall has been completely overshadowed by Transformers, and some people are still praising it. It's hilarious!"

"Where are those idiots who were previously shouting that Transformers would avoid the Great Wall? They said a week's difference would be enough. Look at Pacific Rim's release date, Transformers obediently moved up its release date, changing it by half a month!"

"The prerequisite for moving up the release date is that a release date must be set first. These Hollywood blockbusters were just set to release dates normally before, but the Great Wall production team used them to boast. Zhang Yimou really thinks we are fools."

"Let me explain to everyone: Legendary Pictures initiated the Great Wall project because they asked Jiang Yifeng to direct John Wick 2, but he refused. Zhang Yi was just a substitute from the beginning."

"The Great Wall was hyped up like crazy before, but now it's caught in a bind. I bet the Great Wall will definitely change its release date. After all, face isn't important, making money is. If it's released at the same time as Pacific Rim, how much box office revenue will the Great Wall lose!"

"Haha, the more hype Great Wall had before, the more miserable they are now. If they really change the release date, where will Zhang Yimou's face be?"

"I really want to see Zhang Yi's expression right now. Imperial Advisor, come out and say something!"

"Zhang Yimou will not make any statements. No matter how much criticism he receives from the outside world, he will never respond."

Netizens still know Zhang Yimou well; in the face of controversy, the "national advisor" did not refute it.

But this time everyone guessed wrong.

First, Jiang Yifeng intercepted Liu Yicun, and then Jiang Yifeng snatched Zhang Yi away. Zhang Yi was already very angry.

He chose to back down, swallowing his anger and delaying the filming by one second.

Unexpectedly, Jiang Yifeng chased after them and attacked them. Pacific Rim is set to be released on the same day as The Great Wall.

When Zhang learned of this news, he was truly devastated.

On May 17, Zhang Yimou made a rare complaint during a joint interview with Sina Entertainment and LeTV.

"I don't understand Jiang Yifeng's behavior. We are all Chinese directors, working together to contribute to the Chinese film and television industry."

But he targeted me time and time again!
I wanted to invite Liu Jicun to play the female lead for just one second, but Fengxing Media said that Liu Jicun had been punished and could not take on any roles for a year!
This is truly incomprehensible!
A 15-year-old Cannes Film Festival Best Actress winner is a true acting prodigy in China's film and television industry, and we should cherish and protect her.

Jiang Yifeng blacklisted her for a year. How many opportunities might Liu Jicun miss in that year?

He's stifling a performing talent!

The Imperial Advisor still loved Liu Jicun and spoke at length to him, passionately defending him.

After a pause, he continued, "Fine, we couldn't get the female lead, but then Jiang Yifeng snatched away the male lead actor for my movie, Zhang Yi."

I tolerated it, and postponed the filming by one second, waiting for the male and female leads to be available.

I was very nice, wasn't I?

As a result, Jiang Yifeng is still targeting me, and the Pacific Rim event is scheduled for July 4th.

We announced the release date of The Great Wall in advance to avoid competing with Pacific Rim, whose release date was uncertain.

We don't want domestic blockbusters to fight amongst themselves, as that would be a lose-lose situation and detrimental to the development of Chinese films!
Therefore, we deliberately chose to release it in early July.

As we all know, the best time for the summer movie season is late July to early August.

I never expected that Pacific Rim would choose to release in early July instead of its best release date.

If you say Jiang Yifeng isn't targeting me, I really don't believe it!

I really don't know what I did to offend him!

(End of this chapter)