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

Chapter 294 Liu Yifei's criteria for choosing a partner, Jackie Chan angrily confronts Li... (Seeking monthly votes)
On August 10th, the press conference for the start of filming of "The Witch" officially kicked off at Huairou Film City!

Lü Rui got up early today and arrived at the filming location before 8 a.m.

Although Xue Xiaolu is not a newcomer, it is her first time directing, and she is confused about many processes, so she needs someone to guide her.

It's quite interesting that the two are a generation apart in age, but in terms of directing experience, Lü Rui actually has more.

"Here's your breakfast, senior."

"OK, thanks."

In the break room, after arranging some work on site, Lü Rui began to check email messages sent from abroad.

Liu Yifei thoughtfully inserted the straw into the soy milk cup for him, and even used a tissue to cushion it before handing the steamed bun to him.

Neither of them thought there was anything wrong with it.

But Liu Xiaoli, who was putting on makeup, saw this scene in the mirror and couldn't help but sigh.

Over the years, she had never enjoyed such thoughtful care from her daughter, but unexpectedly, Lü Rui was the first to experience it.

"Sis, don't move around."

The makeup artist gently reminded her and turned Liu Xiaoli's head back.

"Excuse me."

Liu Xiaoli looked away, then at herself in the mirror, and finally couldn't help but ask, "Was it necessary to make myself look so...old?"

"Sister, in the script, your character is a peasant woman, so our makeup has to match the image. The director specifically instructed us to do that."

"Fine……"

Liu Xiaoli could only nod helplessly.

At the time, Lü Rui only said that she had a cameo role with less than 10 lines, so she agreed without much thought.

But now it seems I was absolutely tricked by him.

The elegant and beautiful woman was transformed into a farm worker, and the script even had her working in the fields, carrying a hoe and planting vegetables?!
On purpose?

This is so damaging to her image!

Meanwhile, Lu Rui was unaware that his future mother-in-law was internally ranting about him.

He's currently checking the box office data for Twilight that Peter Griffin sent him.

In the domestic market, with the official release of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" in mainland cinemas today, earlier releases such as "Transformers" and "Spider-Man" have gradually been taken off the screens.

The same applies to "Twilight," which ultimately closed with a box office of 5536 million RMB.

As of now, the film has been in theaters for a full 55 days since its release.

According to the email, the North American box office has reached $2.52 million, far exceeding the original timeline's less than $2 million.

It goes without saying that it will definitely have a place in this year's top ten box office rankings in North America!
In addition, the film has also performed very well at the global box office, grossing over $4.5 million.

It even grossed HK$3100 million in Hong Kong, which can be described as a very successful achievement.

It's worth mentioning that Brazil is the highest-grossing overseas market, having earned $4500 million so far.

In addition, the Mexican box office reached $2600 million.

The data analysis report indicates that Latin American audiences seem to really enjoy this type of film.

Of course, it may also be related to the population and the number of moviegoers, plus the fact that local movie tickets are relatively inexpensive.

The House of Brom has already set its distribution strategy there, and will focus its promotional efforts there once other Twilight films are released.

At this point, the theatrical release of "Twilight" has essentially come to an end.

A $3000 million investment yielded a global box office of $4.5 million.

This achievement undoubtedly caused a huge sensation in Hollywood!

From "Lurking" to "Paranormal Activity," "I Am Legend," and "300"...

With one blockbuster film after another, Lü Rui successfully established himself as a "golden producer"!

In a short time, major international media outlets and newspapers such as Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, The Hollywood Reporter, The Hollywood Reporter, The Hollywood Reporter, and Time Magazine gave him extensive coverage.

When the news reached China, it immediately sparked a new round of heated discussions online and within the industry.

It's important to understand that in the current climate, the prevailing attitude is that "the moon in China is never as bright as the one abroad."

The affirmation and recognition from abroad immediately boosted Lü Rui's status and prestige in the industry by a significant margin!

To put it bluntly, even if domestic media writes a hundred articles praising a foreign country, it won't be as effective as a single compliment from a foreign media outlet.

It's not just the media and the public who have this idea; even the government attaches great importance to this international influence.

For example, the titles "leading figures in the Chinese film industry" and "top Hollywood film producers" carry completely different weight in the eyes of many people.

Lü Rui is actually quite easygoing.

He doesn't care what foreigners think of him, which is evident from his consistent casting of Hollywood actors as villains.

However, he cares a lot about how people in China view him and how foreigners perceive him.

Because this is a good opportunity for him to establish his public image!
These days, when many people are interviewed by foreign media, they like to apply Western ideas, emphasizing things like self and freedom, and even taking the opportunity to subtly criticize China.

Take Wang Jiawei, for example. He usually looks like a respectable old man, but he's anything but honest under his sunglasses.

But Lü Rui was different.

When he used foreign media to promote himself, his words were full of recognition and support for the country.

He has consistently spoken and acted on topics related to economic development, cultural confidence, and national rejuvenation through industry, rather than making empty promises or spouting nonsense.

In this era where public intellectuals are rampant and traitors are everywhere, his behavior undoubtedly appears much more "pragmatic."

In addition, he is now not only one of the most influential entrepreneurs of the younger generation and one of the representatives of the post-80s generation, but he was also recently named one of the "Outstanding Elites of the Post-80s Generation in China" by the Publicity Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China...

With the support of various factors, combined with his achievements over the years, as well as his confidence in and promotion of the future of Chinese culture, he immediately gained unanimous recognition from higher authorities.

In a short time, many policies were implemented in favor of Ruishijie, and many pilot policies were also placed on Ruishijie's side.

Although there is some pressure, as long as you do a good job and cooperate well with the higher-ups, the benefits will definitely be huge!
For example, in the list of "Top Ten Outstanding Young People of 2007", it was clearly stated that he would be included.

At that time, another wave of benefits will come to him.

Actually, the Huayi Brothers and the Wang brothers should have been the ones to enjoy these benefits, but Lu Rui's talent, ability, and numerous achievements in the Chinese film market and Hollywood made him a better choice in the eyes of many people.

Keep in mind, he's only 25 years old this year.

Age is an asset!

Age means unlimited potential!

The key point is that his attitude and stance were very upright, and his thinking was never distorted.

Such a talented young man, the hope for the future of the country, and a leader and representative of the media industry, the entertainment industry—who else should we support if not him?

What made Lü Rui both amused and exasperated was that recently, even many leaders had started inquiring about his romantic history.

Even Han Sanping asked him if he wanted to go on a blind date or something, saying he could act as an intermediary.

According to what he conveyed, as long as Lü Rui agrees, Ruishijie's future development can even add another engine, transforming it from a "bullet train" into a "high-speed rail"!
However, that was clearly not what Lü Rui wanted.

He has no interest in becoming a live-in son-in-law.

If he hadn't been reborn and was still struggling like in his previous life, having to work hard in the industry all by himself, he might have given in.

There's nothing wrong with being a kept man.

But they were all reborn, and even with cheat codes, they still ended up becoming live-in sons-in-law of other people.

Then wasn't my rebirth for nothing?
"The profits from 'Twilight' will be divided into three parts. One part will continue to be used for expanding the distribution business, another part will be used for the preparation of 'Twilight 2', and the third part will be used for the filming of 'Sherlock Holmes'..."

After replying to the email, Lü Rui shut down his computer, drank the last sip of soy milk in his cup, glanced at the time, and immediately stood up.

It's already past 9 o'clock, the auspicious time has arrived, it's time to prepare to turn on the machine.

"Director Lü."

"Chairman Lü."

"Uncle..."

As soon as they stepped out of the break room, a chorus of greetings followed. As he passed Ma Sichun, Lü Rui looked at her innocent, gullible eyes and reminded her, "You should address people by their job titles when you're working."

"Okay, Director Lü."

Ma Sichun nodded obediently and followed behind Liu Yifei, the older sister she had only recently recognized.

They play best friends in the film, so they naturally need to communicate in private.

During the previous training camp, Liu Yifei demonstrated extraordinary skills, going toe-to-toe with the action director, which immediately impressed Ma Sichun!
Then, she started calling her "sister" obediently.

Left: Ma Sichun; Right: Wang Yuwen... plus Bai Bing, who would occasionally come over to flatter her.

Even before filming began, Liu Yifei had already successfully established herself as the "big sister"!

As for those Hollywood actors, being in a foreign land, they have no right to cause trouble.

At the press conference, Lü Rui stood in the center, with director Xue Xiaolu on his left and Liu Yifei on his right, accepting interviews from the media.

"Director Lü, what are your expectations for the 'The Witch' project?"

"Of course, we hope the box office results will get better and better."

"After 'Dying to Survive' and 'Pacific Rim,' do you have any new film plans?"

"Not yet." Lü Rui chose to keep it a secret for the time being.

Are you confident of winning the Golden Lion at the upcoming Venice International Film Festival?

"Excuse me, today is the press conference for the start of filming of 'The Witch'. We can talk about other issues another time, okay?"

The reporters in the audience could not hide their disappointment.

What launch event? They don't care about that at all! After all, there's nothing exciting or sensational about it.

Unfortunately, Lü Rui had evolved from a novice into a veteran and simply wouldn't engage with them.

As a result, many reporters turned their attention to Xue Xiaolu and Liu Yifei.

The latter, in particular, had microphones crammed into his face.

We started by talking about the "Witch" project, but then it suddenly veered off course.

A male reporter, who seemed to be a fan of hers, asked with a hopeful look, "Yifei, I really want to ask, what type of guy do you like?"

"what?"

Liu Yifei was slightly taken aback.

In fact, she has answered the question about her criteria for choosing a partner more than once on various occasions.

However, in the past, most of the responses were just perfunctory and the wording was quite common, emphasizing a casual attitude.

But this time, perhaps because her sweetheart was beside her, she suddenly became a little shy and said:

"As for my type, I think it's someone with whom I can have a spiritual connection. First of all, let me clarify that I'm not someone who's obsessed with looks, and I don't have many requirements regarding height, as long as they're not shorter than me."

Then, ideally, he should be somewhat masculine, someone I can connect with intellectually, someone who can give me a sense of security, and someone who can offer advice or guidance when I'm feeling lost…

The male reporter probably didn't listen much, and as soon as Liu Yifei finished speaking, he impatiently asked, "So do you think someone like me is suitable?"

"Huh?" Liu Yifei tilted her head, looking at him with a puzzled expression. "What suits you best?"

Male reporter: "..."

Why do I feel inexplicably heartbroken?

Lu Rui suppressed a laugh and silently added insult to injury: "Brother, if I were you, I wouldn't ask this question."

Liu Yifei stood to the side, pursing her lips and forcing herself not to laugh, lest she deliver another blow to the other person.

"Director Lü, what about you? What are your criteria for choosing a partner?"

Brave people enjoy the world first!
A female reporter at the scene immediately turned the topic to Lü Rui.

For a moment, many people turned their attention to him, and even Liu Yifei blinked her bright eyes, unable to hide her anticipation.

"secret."

Lu Rui remained silent and then announced the official start of filming for "The Witch"!
He felt that this topic was not appropriate to discuss in this setting.

At the very least, you should go to a more formal occasion.

Moreover, their relationship is not suitable to be made public at the moment, because for Liu Yifei, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages.

We need to wait until her status in the industry rises to a higher level before making it public; otherwise, she will inevitably face enormous pressure once it's made public!

Meanwhile, as filming of "The Witch" officially began, new news came back from Hong Kong the next day.

"The Gangster, the Cop, the Devil," directed by Rao Xiaozhi, and "Ip Man," directed by Lu Yang, have officially wrapped up filming after three months.

It's quite a coincidence that just as news of the film wrapping up in Hong Kong came back, Huayi Brothers announced the wrapping up of "The Forbidden Kingdom".

In a short time, the news of the completion of filming for three movies, plus the start of filming for "The Witch," all made headlines on major entertainment websites.

Among them, the most popular is undoubtedly "The Forbidden Kingdom".

Because Zhao Yanzi, Li Bingbing, Li Lianjie, and Jackie Chan launched their personal marketing campaigns almost simultaneously.

The rivalry between Zhao Yanzi and Li Bingbing mainly revolves around "grabbing popularity and vying for the center position," with various press releases and behind-the-scenes photos bombarding them as they secretly compete to see who has more screen time and whose look is more eye-catching.

In contrast, Li Lianjie began to use the role of Sun Wukong (Silent Monk) in "The Forbidden Kingdom" to rehabilitate his image.

Because he's about to film "The Mummy 3," where he'll be playing a villain again.

In order to avoid criticism from netizens in advance, he can only rely on his current positive roles to build goodwill.

After all, actors usually rely on their work to clear their name.

Many people say that the role and the actor should be separated, but in reality, very few people can do it. Humans are visual creatures after all, and they are too easily fooled.

In fact, most viewers' likes and dislikes are quite simple.

There are countless examples in the industry of people developing a positive view of an actor or a person because of a certain role or film/television work.

Li Lianjie was trying to use this to cover up the fact that he was going to play a villain.

But to his utter surprise, this time, Jackie Chan stood up directly and stabbed him without any hesitation!

In a solo media interview, Jackie Chan remained true to his straightforward nature. Although he didn't name names, every word he uttered was aimed at Li Lianjie:

"The 'Double J Plan' that everyone was so optimistic about officially came to an end with 'The Forbidden Kingdom'."

To be honest, when I first brought them together to make this film, I was hoping that two Chinese kung fu actors could join forces to give Chinese-language films some recognition and let foreigners see how powerful Chinese kung fu is.

As a Chinese actor, I've always felt that it's not easy for us to go out into the world. Every step we take should be about bringing honor to our hometown, not just about making money for ourselves.

Hollywood has great resources, but there are some roles you absolutely shouldn't take! Especially those villains who smear Chinese people and vilify our image. If you make a film about them, you'll lose face for the entire Chinese community. You wouldn't feel at ease making money like that!
I, Jackie Chan, have been making movies my whole life, and I've received many offers from overseas, but I won't touch roles that don't align with our values ​​or damage the image of Chinese people, no matter how much money they offer.

We must uphold our bottom line and know what we should and shouldn't do.

However, some of my colleagues are so focused on getting into Hollywood that they'll take on any role they want, forgetting where they're from. I really can't agree with this approach, and I find it quite hateful.

You've gained fame and fortune, but you've made it ten or a hundred times harder for other Chinese actors! It's truly shameful!

These words immediately caused a huge uproar in the industry!

Anyone with eyes can see that the "colleague" Jackie Chan was referring to was Li Lianjie.

After all, among the Chinese actors in the industry, only Li Lianjie was willing to discuss the "Double J Plan" with him and was about to play a villain in Hollywood.

His outspokenness instantly garnered widespread praise.

On the other hand, Li Lianjie was completely on the defensive. He had hoped to use "The Forbidden Kingdom" to clear his name and pave the way for his image, but Jackie Chan's rebuttal not only ruined his image-clearing plan, but also brought the controversy of "playing a villain" to the forefront ahead of time.

For a time, Huayi's public relations team was extremely busy.

On one hand, they had to deal with the negative public opinion surrounding Li Lianjie, and on the other hand, they had to maintain positive publicity for "The Forbidden Kingdom". They were besieged on all sides.

At this moment, Lu Rui, who was on the set of "The Witch", suddenly had a bright idea!
"Well said! That's really inspiring!"

Amidst his reflections, a bold idea popped into his mind.

He was still thinking about who should play the male lead in his upcoming film.

But now, the situation has suddenly become clear...

(End of this chapter)