It's reasonable for me to be a three-time Golden Horse Award-winning director and an all-around

Chapter 249 You're being a scoundrel! (Seeking monthly votes)

"Following her disappointing loss at the Hong Kong Film Awards for Best Actress, Zhou Xun has once again failed to win the Golden Horse Awards for Best Actress, sparking heated discussions within the industry about whether her acting skills are still immature..."

"Because of his contact with a drug user at the Golden Horse Awards, Zhou Xun has been accused of having an incorrect tendency to take sides."

According to insiders, Zhou Xun is suspected of cheating again. After breaking up with Li Yapeng, his relationship with stylist Li Daqi has encountered another setback.

"Huayi held a press conference to clear Zhou Xun's name..."

"..."

After returning from the Golden Horse Awards in Taiwan, negative rumors about Zhou Xun spread like wildfire online.

There's a very cruel rule in this industry:

The wall fell and everyone pushed it!

For other female stars in the industry, being able to dethrone a top-tier female star is undoubtedly an excellent opportunity to seize resources!
Thus, just like Liu Yifei, who was once "besieged," Zhou Xun was also caught in the predicament of being attacked by the entire internet.

When other top actresses get serious, they don't hold back at all, launching a variety of negative press releases with a single, targeted approach.

Even Rongxinda, the former employer, seized the opportunity to add fuel to the fire, making the controversy even more intense!
After all, when Zhou Xun left Rong Xinda and joined Huayi, he had a particularly unpleasant falling out with Li Xiaowan.

All the old and new grudges erupted at this moment.

This directly led to the fact that in the last few days of November, negative news about Zhou Xun dominated the headlines of major entertainment news outlets online!

The root of all this lies in the fact that she herself was not clean to begin with.

In particular, her background as a non-professional and her early experience as a "delinquent girl" have been the subject of much controversy.

Some former classmates even came forward to give media interviews, accusing her of bullying them when they were in school.

Under multiple blows, Zhou Xun was in a terrible predicament.

Coupled with the dismal box office performance of "The Banquet" and the fact that "Perhaps Love" missed out on both the Hong Kong Film Awards and the Golden Horse Awards in its Best Actress nomination...

Her once-rising career momentum was abruptly cut short, plunging her into the lowest point since her debut.

"Girl, your mom's pretty ruthless!"

During a break in filming, Lü Rui scrolled through entertainment news and glanced at Liu Yifei, who was reading the script beside him.

When Liu Xiaoli previously said she wanted to borrow the Ruishijie PR team, he knew she was going to retaliate, but he didn't expect the offensive to be so fierce!
If Zhou Xun didn't have Hua Yi backing her up, this attack would have definitely dragged her from the first tier to far beyond the second tier.

Especially when it comes to smears involving toxic elements, if it weren't for Huayi's emergency public relations efforts, she would have been badly injured even if she didn't die!

"Who told her to bully me? She deserved it!" Liu Yifei muttered under her breath, puffing out her cheeks. "My mom says this is called 'an eye for an eye.'"

"Yes, I agree with that."

Lu Rui was only somewhat surprised that Liu Xiaoli had changed her usual gentle approach and become so forceful this time.

As for Zhou Xun, he felt no sympathy whatsoever.

She should have known this would happen when she was causing trouble behind the scenes!
The topic was quickly dropped.

Filming for Pacific Rim continues.

At this point, filming has reached the most important moment: the Watchers of the Great Wall and Crimson Storm are battling the three-headed monster underwater and destroying the black hole.

This part of the plot is crucial, and also the most difficult!
Lü Rui's plan is to get this part of the work done by New Year's Day.

In this way, only some side shooting tasks will remain, which will greatly reduce the difficulty.

If all goes well, we might be able to wrap up filming before the Spring Festival.

While he was busy, on the other side, Zhou Xun, who was waiting for news at Huayi, had his brows furrowed and his face was so gloomy that it seemed like water could drip from it.

She never expected that even after holding a press conference to clarify the rumors, the public opinion still showed no signs of calming down.

As for the reason, she knew it perfectly well.

It's nothing more than rivals in the industry taking advantage of the situation, Rongxinda kicking him while he was down, and certain forces stirring things up behind the scenes...

The key problem is that if this continues, her career will plummet!

Just then, with a "click," the door was suddenly pushed open, and the agent hurriedly walked in.

Zhou Xun immediately stood up, his eyes full of anticipation: "How is it? Has the public relations department come up with a solution?"

The agent shook his head helplessly, his tone heavy: "There's no other way now, we can only keep a low profile, keep a low profile and keep a low profile."

Try to stay out of the limelight and avoid making any big fuss. Let time dilute the public opinion, and once this storm has passed, slowly seek resources to make a comeback.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Xun's face turned pale and then flushed, becoming extremely ugly.

It's important to know that female celebrities need exposure the most.

Without exposure, there is no attention, no resources, and no commercial value.

For example, Fan Bingbing, even though Huayi Brothers has long stopped giving her any exposure resources, she still pays out of her own pocket to maintain her popularity, just because she is afraid of losing attention.

But now, forced by public opinion, Zhou Xun has no choice but to go into hiding.

This frustration was like a knife to her heart, yet she was helpless and could only resign herself to fate, praying that the storm would pass soon...

Before we knew it, it was December.

"A Battle of Wits" only grossed 1600 million RMB in its first week of release, a dismal performance.

The comments that Lau Tak-wah couldn't carry the box office have spread again in the industry, even affecting the Hong Kong film market. Industry insiders are joking that the golden age of Hong Kong films has come to a complete end.

At the same time, mainland cinemas welcomed "The Knot," distributed by China Film Group.

Set against the backdrop of the War of Resistance against Japan, this film tells the story of military doctor Chen Qiushui and Taiwanese girl Wang Biyun who fall in love and stay together, but are forced to separate due to the Taiwan Strait, and their longing and waiting spans half a century.

The film only grossed around 300 million yuan on its opening day, a mediocre performance.

However, China Film Group's publicity campaign was extremely large!
Huge posters have been displayed in cinemas across the country, and official media outlets have published articles recommending the films…

It's clear to anyone with eyes to see that this is a counterattack against the Golden Horse Awards' previous inappropriate handling of the "Formosa" award, using a patriotic theme to demonstrate the unified stance of Chinese-language films.

On the 3rd, another bombshell scandal broke in Hong Kong's entertainment industry!
At the beginning of last month, Anita Yuen and Julian Cheung's son, Cheung Mo-tung, was born, which was described by Hong Kong media as the birth of a "second-generation star".

Unexpectedly, she, who had just finished her postpartum confinement at the beginning of this month, frankly admitted during her appearance on TVB's "Be My Guest" that she had been involved in a wealthy businessman's family when she was young and had been kept by him.

"Back then, I had just won the Miss Hong Kong title and felt I deserved better. To be honest, I was just vain. Now I've turned over a new leaf and successfully made it on track..."

This candid self-disclosure instantly sparked heated discussions within the industry about the topic of "being kept by a sugar daddy/sugar baby".

It's worth noting that last December, Wang Lihong was rumored to be being kept by the CEO of Yulong Group.

At the time, the other party spent 1500 million to buy the photos taken by the paparazzi, which finally quelled the controversy.

Unlike Anita Yuen, Wang Lihong has always been rumored to be a "double-pronged" man.

The re-emergence of this old topic has once again generated considerable buzz.

The successive development of these two events has broadened the horizons of netizens in mainland China.

A "price list for celebrity sugar daddies" subsequently exposed by Hong Kong and Taiwan paparazzi completely overturned everyone's worldview!

Leslie Cheung topped the list with 1000 million, followed by Simon Yam with 960 million, Andy Lau with 900 million, and Nicholas Tse, Edison Chen, and Aaron Kwok with 800 million each…

Among Taiwanese celebrities, Vic Chou and Takeshi Kaneshiro topped the list with 1000 million each.

Following closely behind was Yan Chengxu at 900 million, and Jay Chou at 800 million...

Interestingly, Stephen Chow also appeared on the list, but his price was not listed.

The paparazzi noted that the wealthy women unanimously believed he was there to be funny, and that they would only be willing to try him if they paid him to do so, making him the biggest joke on the list!
As for the mainland, there is no corresponding list.

However, quite a few wealthy women have spoken out online, expressing their interest in the four currently popular young male stars.

If the man is also interested, then they can discuss the price privately.

Are they so starved for love?

Liu Yifei rested her chin on her hand, looking at Lü Rui with a puzzled expression.

She simply couldn't understand why those women would spend money to support men.

Logically speaking, shouldn't it be men who support women?
Lu Rui smiled, understanding this mentality: "Maybe it's to seek excitement."

Stimulate?

Xiao Liu blinked, a hint of curiosity flashing in his eyes.

After dinner, while she was going back to her room, she quietly grabbed Lü Rui's sleeve and pulled him to the stairwell.

There were no lights in the stairwell, only the dim light coming from the corridor outlined the two people's blurry silhouettes.

A faint smell of dust lingered in the darkness...

Clearly, almost no one comes in here normally.

"What do you want to do?" Lu Rui raised an eyebrow, looking at the girl who was getting closer.

"I also want to try what excitement feels like."

After saying that, she tilted her head back, stood on tiptoe, and kissed him. Her movements were somewhat clumsy yet forceful. She pushed Lü Rui's back against the cold wall, completing a somewhat awkward wall slam.

A soft touch came over my lips, carrying the lingering milky scent of a meal.

Lu Rui was taken aback for a moment, then found it somewhat amusing, and simply obediently raised his hand to support her waist.

At this moment, Liu Yifei's heart was pounding like a drum, and she even felt like she was about to float away!

Crew members who had finished eating occasionally came and went in the corridor, their footsteps and laughter clearly audible. But the two of them were secretly kissing in the dark stairwell, and this secretive and tense atmosphere made her feel hot all over.

That was so exciting!
After a long while, Liu Yifei suddenly reached out and pushed Lü Rui away, staggering back several steps.

The dim light in the stairwell illuminated her flushed cheeks.

She glared at Lü Rui with reproachful eyes: "You're being a pervert!"

"Who's being a pervert?" Lu Rui raised his hand in an innocent manner, but the lingering soft touch on his fingertips couldn't be faked.

"You...you pinched me!" The girl's voice was tinged with embarrassment and annoyance.

"Didn't you say before that squeezing it would make it bigger, and you even asked me to help you?" Lu Rui teased her on purpose.

Liu Yifei was speechless for a moment, twisting her fingers around the hem of her clothes for a long while before finally muttering in a whisper, "But...it's so itchy..."

Lu Rui was about to say "you'll get used to it" when his phone in his pocket started vibrating inconsiderately.

Taking the opportunity to slip away, Liu Yifei said with a flushed face, "I...I have to go back first. My assistant can't find me, so I should call my mother."

Before she could finish speaking, she dashed out of the stairwell like a startled fawn.

Lu Rui smiled and shook his head, picked up his phone, and pressed the answer button: "Hello?"

Ning Hao's hearty laughter came from the other end of the phone: "Director Lü, the new script has been approved! I'll come to your set tomorrow, let's meet and chat?"

"Okay, come on."

"okay!"

Ning Hao hung up the phone with a cheerful laugh, his tone full of excitement.

Following "Crazy Stone", his second work is finally about to be released, which makes him very excited!
……

"The Film Bureau has announced the latest batch of approved scripts: 'Crazy Racer,' 'The Equation of Love and Death,' and 'CJ7'..."

"A joint announcement from Ruishijie and Emperor Entertainment: The premiere of 'New World' will be held in Beijing tomorrow. Stay tuned."

"New Pictures has announced the premiere schedule for 'Curse of the Golden Flower,' which will be held globally on December 14 at the Capital Film Studio, followed by a second run in Taipei on December 19."

The news that Stephen Chow's new script passed censorship did not generate much discussion within the industry.

The main reason is that the roles in his movie were basically all decided internally, and there was no public casting call.

Unlike "Pacific Rim" and "The Forbidden Kingdom," which had a huge fanfare from preparation to casting and attracted attention from the entire Chinese-speaking film region, this film is not like "Pacific Rim" or "The Forbidden Kingdom."

Moreover, the popularity of newcomers like Xu Jiao and Zhang Yuqi is far less dazzling than that of Liu Yifei, Fan Bingbing, Zhao Yanzi, and Li Bingbing.

Overall, Stephen Chow's new film is far less popular than his previous movies.

As for the "science fiction" slogan they've been shouting...

With an investment of only 2000 million, how dare they market science fiction in front of "Pacific Rim"?

Isn't this like showing off your skills in front of Guan Yu?
~

Ning Hao and his wife Xing Aina arrived at the Pacific Rim film set early in the morning.

When Lü Rui spoke to him on the phone last night, he told him to come over at noon because there was a filming schedule here in the morning.

But he still arrived early and stood by the monitor with great interest, watching the filming process.

However, as he looked, Ning Hao suddenly felt a strong sense of awe and wonder!
When he was the photographer for "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty," he knew that Lü Rui had an extremely meticulous control over color and scene.

Looking back now, it's clear that Lü Rui's directing skills have made an incredibly exaggerated leap!

When filming the scene of the mechs and monsters battling in the harbor, he used multiple camera angles to clearly separate the smoke from the explosions, the metallic sheen of the mechs, and the rolling waves.

Even in the most intense action scenes, the spatial logic of every fighting detail remains perfectly intact.

When the camera pans to the cockpit where Liu Yifei, playing the driver, bids farewell to Chen Baoguo, he then uses soft side lighting to outline the character's silhouette.

The close-up shots of the trembling lips and reddened eyes accurately conveyed the emotions of life and death separation, and the two narrative styles were switched smoothly.

Ning Hao was increasingly shocked as he looked at the document, and a desire to become his disciple arose in his heart!

This shooting technique, which combines industrial-level scene mise-en-scène with delicate emotional expression, is a truly groundbreaking achievement!

You should know that in all his years in the industry, he has never seen such a director in China!
When the morning's filming ended, Lü Rui turned to look at Ning Hao and saw that his eyes were red.

"What's wrong? Didn't you sleep well last night?"

Ning Hao rubbed his eyes, looking at him with a complicated expression, unsure of what to say for a moment.

The impact was so great that he was struggling to cope.

At the crucial moment, Xing Aina, who was standing next to him, took out the script and handed it to him, saying, "Director Lü, please take a look at the script first."

"Row."

Lu Rui reached out and took the script, then opened it and began reading with great interest.

The story of "Crazy Racer" mainly revolves around cyclist Geng Hao, unscrupulous businessman Li Fala, an amateur assassin duo, and a Taiwanese gang.

Several groups of people who were originally unrelated met due to a series of accidents and coincidences, which triggered a series of events.

The plot continues the dark humor style unique to "Crazy Stone", with multiple storylines running in parallel and vivid, three-dimensional characters, making it an upgraded version of the former.

Clearly, Ning Hao made many changes after listening to Lü Rui's advice last time.

The plot no longer tries to please all viewers, but instead focuses on the group that can resonate with the story.

'Speaking off the cue, are you planning to take the postgraduate entrance exam?'

Just by looking at the lines spoken by the two postgraduate entrance exam takers, the imagery is immediately vivid.

Turning to the last page, Lü Rui nodded with great satisfaction: "Good, this notebook is well written. You two put a lot of effort into it."

The husband is the director and cinematographer, and the wife is the screenwriter. It's a perfect team of men and women, and they work together without getting tired.

This couple is quite adept at playing this game.

Although Ning Hao became somewhat unruly after gaining fame and often went out to fool around, Xing Aina was able to easily keep him in check, unlike Gu Changwei and Jiang Wenli, who had already reached the point where they each did their own thing.

This kind of female-on-top, male-on-bottom relationship is quite rare in the industry.

"I'm glad Director Lü is satisfied," Xing Aina replied gracefully.

"Let's talk about investment." Lü Rui was in a hurry to get to lunch and didn't want to waste time chatting. "How much money are you planning to invest in this project?"

Xing Aina didn't say anything, but turned to look at her husband.

Ning Hao said with a slight nervousness, "Compared to the stone, the racing car is on a larger scale. I plan to invest ten million."

The last film, "Crazy Stone," had a total investment of 400 million yuan, while this film, "Crazy Racer," has a total investment of 1000 million yuan.

He couldn't help but feel a little flustered, worried that Lü Rui might be unwilling.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he finished speaking, Lü Rui nodded: "Okay, 10 million is fine. Invest more money and polish the details. Maybe we can break the 100 million yuan box office mark."

Ning Hao finally felt relieved: "Then I'll take Lü Rui's words as a sign."

Lu Rui pressed on, "How much are you planning to take from me?"

"400 million, I guess." Ning Hao chuckled awkwardly and explained, "President Han came to me specifically before, saying he also wanted to help push things forward, and I really felt bad refusing."

Lu Rui inwardly cursed "Zuo Shandiao" (a notorious bandit leader) and asked directly, "Rui Vision 40%, China Film 40%, and your bad monkey 20%?"

"Correct."

"Okay, so be it."

Lu Rui didn't think much of it; it was just a project worth tens of millions, not worth his special attention.

He stood up, handed the script back to Xing Aina, and waved to the two of them: "Since you're here, let's go grab a bite to eat together."

Then, he looked at the secretary who had just arrived and instructed, "Go and tell Hongliang to coordinate with Ning Hao on the film project later. 400 million, 40%."

"Yes, Chairman Lü."

Liang Lulu turned around and walked out.

~

After the meal, Ning Hao and his wife said goodbye and left to prepare for their new project.

Lu Rui had just seen them off and was about to go to the RV to rest for a while when his phone suddenly rang again.

It was Jiang Wei calling.

"Hello? Teacher Jiang?" He answered the call casually, thinking that something had gone wrong with the preparations for "Lurking".

Unexpectedly, Jiang Wei's voice was somewhat casual as he said, "Are you at the Beijing Film Studio? I'm at the entrance right now."

"Yes, I'll have someone come out to pick you up right away."

After hanging up the phone, Lü Rui couldn't help but feel uneasy.

Didn't you just visit the set last month? Why are you here again?
Just as I was pondering this, the production assistant led the group into the film set.

Lu Rui looked closely and saw that besides Jiang Wei, there was another person following him!

Coincidentally, he knew this person too; they were both teachers at the Beijing Film Academy, except one taught screenwriting in the literature department…

(End of this chapter)