The only sun in Huayu

Chapter 16: Starting with Character Research

Han Sanping's secretary, Liao Yun, also came to inquire.

The project has been approved, but that's only China Film Group's approval. It still needs to be filed, reviewed by experts, and then approved financially.

However, the broadcasting registration requires copyright authorization from Shen Shandeng.

Compared to the lax copyright awareness of this era, Shen Shandeng, as a reborn individual, understands the value of copyright better.

"The Supervisor" has registered copyrights for the entire chain, including movies, TV series, music, and even costumes, prop designs, and flying fish costumes. Everything that can be registered has been registered.

"If the film doesn't turn out well, it's a small matter if I suffer losses myself. I'm just worried that the director will be criticized. The director has done so much for me, I'm already overwhelmed with gratitude. Please tell the director, Secretary Liao, that I, Shen Shandeng, will use my own money first to build a framework, and then China Film Group can come in."

Shen Shandeng's answer was calm and composed.

“This way, President Han’s influence within China Film Group will be greatly reduced.” Han Sanping’s secretary looked at Shen Shandeng with newfound respect.

They're not usually generous with public funds; they're rarely generous with their own money.

It seems that Shen Shandeng is not only good with words, but also truly capable of handling things.
Upon hearing this, Shen Shandeng knew that the other party had misunderstood, but he did not point it out and tacitly agreed.

"Secretary Tian, ​​I need to invite some experts as consultants, and I need to use the name of China Film Group."

After obtaining permission.

Shen Shandeng asked Zhou Qifeng to go to China Film Group to handle some formalities.

Before the team was established, he tried to avoid going to the Beijing Film Studio.

He heard some rumors from Yu Jianhong.

Shen Shandeng had worked in a state-owned enterprise in his previous life and had seen plenty of ridiculous and absurd things.

However, the most important thing right now is to build up the team, and then the problem will be solved.

Shen Shandeng delegated external liaison work and other errands to Zhou Qifeng, letting his junior colleague handle them.

Shen Shandeng devoted himself to content creation.

Han Sanping made some artistic adjustments to the play "The Eunuch," which was not inspired by the creation of "Brotherhood of Blades."

Initially, Shen Shandeng wanted to write a book and submit it to overseas awards.

However, he is unwilling to tackle realistic themes because he fears that doing so might lead to winning an award but jeopardizing his future.

So he wrote a story about an emperor who was a eunuch.

The story of a boy who suffered a disaster, entered the palace as a eunuch, and eventually became the emperor by chance.

A treasure of ancient Chinese civilization, the unified system, where the emperor, the epitome of masculinity and supremacy, was replaced by a eunuch, the epitome of femininity and supremacy.

Absolutely sensationalism, absolutely stigmatizing.

Is it true that non-realistic themes are less likely to win awards?

Don't worry, they'll take action during the Olympic opening ceremony.

The Olympic opening ceremony is a major cultural event, and the West will definitely try to sabotage it.

The three major European film festivals are ideological machines, founded during the Cold War.

Even today, it still carries a strong Cold War flavor.

In the West, where everything is politically charged, the subject matter is a minor issue.

Moreover, the West has mastered the art of winning.

The fact that realistic themes were not included demonstrates that the film festival is open to diverse talents, which is a win-win situation.
This demonstrates that even within the existing framework, they are able to adapt to changing circumstances, showcasing the flexibility of the system—a win-win situation.

Even cold, hard rules must yield to art; this is the third point.
In short, I won.

Shen Shandeng could easily come up with three points.

Similarly, there are winners and losers.

The critique in "The Eunuch" demonstrates serious problems within Eastern culture, which is the first loss; the fact that "The Eunuch" has received such recognition from the art world is something to be grateful for, which is the second loss.
If he's lucky, in order to associate the traditional image of the East with eunuchs, Shen Shandeng might even be featured in various major Western newspapers.

Isn't this idea quite bold?

However, Shen Shandeng later gave up.

The sacrifice was simply too great.

If he were reborn in the 1990s, there would be no way around it. The domestic film industry was in decline, and film studios couldn't survive. They could only rely on overseas resources.

In the 1980s, there was a large gap between China and Europe and the United States, and the opportunity to earn foreign exchange was very tempting.

If you're being kept by a sugar daddy, then don't talk about having an independent personality.

Let's not talk about art, let's just honestly shoot what people like.

Now it's 2007, five years have passed since the cinema chain reform in 2002. The domestic market is gradually maturing, and the domestic market is the future.

Moreover, there are many uncontrollable factors in overseas awards. Shen Shandeng did not have such connections. His mentors only had some connections in industry and policy research. They were not close enough with the teachers in the directing department who had overseas connections to ask them to recommend him.

So, to win awards, film selectors have to make their own contacts and travel between film festivals to campaign for awards. Even at this stage of preparation, he still had some hesitation.

Because he can choose to use his graduate school years only: prepare in his second year and try to win awards in his third year. If he wins an award, he's made a profit; if he doesn't, so be it.

However, as his understanding deepened, Shen Shandeng's cognition suffered some damage.

After all, a basic persona is essential to winning awards.

To win international awards, both the films made and the words spoken by the creators must cater to Western narratives, making them feel like they've won big.

Shen Shandeng tried it and found that the sacrifice was too great.

He wants to win!
Not being able to win is no different than killing him.

If you get labeled, you'll be blacklisted in the future.

He wasn't born into a privileged family; reaching this point basically means his life is over.

Therefore, Shen Shandeng decisively fled.

The conclusion drawn was that even dogs wouldn't bother trying to win awards overseas.

There are roughly three paths to becoming a director.

One path is the domestic academic route, where one reaps the benefits while sulking, and is essentially a recipient of domestic government funding.
One is to pursue awards overseas, live off foreign funding, and rely on foreign capital.
The third point is to be market-oriented and rely on the diverse opinions of the audience.

The academic path in China was the first one that Shen Shandeng rejected.

This path is in the hands of the directing department.

Shen Shandeng can only be described as a latecomer to the field; he studied film management, but he wasn't a direct descendant of the main line.

These teachers and department heads have their own children, their friends' children, their lovers, and their students; there are far more monks than porridge.

Ning Hao, for example, gradually progressed from short films to feature films, and has made two decent feature films. For the "Crazy Stone" project, China Film Group helped him find funding, but he couldn't get funding through the Young Directors Fund and had to find funding from Hong Kong.

These fiscal funds are all in one place, and even Han Sanping doesn't have a good solution.

"The Supervisor" also went through normal investment channels, such as the Young Director Fund. This year's funds have already been distributed, so we can only apply for next year's. We have to go through the process and wait patiently.

There are three paths, but for Shen Shandeng, who has no connections, there is only one.

That means serving the audience and being market-oriented.

Although he gave up on pursuing awards overseas, this half-hearted attempt, like an accidental swim in a cesspool, left Shen Shandeng with an unforgettable memory.

A period of reverse training is, in a sense, an invaluable asset.

After shifting its focus to serving the audience, Shen Shandeng rewrote the plot of "The Eunuch".

It was changed from a fictional setting to one based on real history, placed during the Jiajing era.

However, since the initial goal was to win awards overseas, there were inevitably some shortcomings.

The first meeting of the main creative team for "The Supervisor".

They found an empty classroom at the Beijing Film Academy.

"Word Research!"

First, Shen Shandeng wrote the two large characters "字研" on the blackboard.

"The most basic and important part of a project is the text work. This work requires little input but yields great output."

"Therefore, the most important task for 'The Eunuch' at present is word research, studying the text and working hard on the script."

"Let the script be restored to its rightful place! Let it return to the essence of a drama! The talent and role of the screenwriter should not be buried!"

“We have two teams, one offline and the other online. Some bestselling online novel authors serve as our consultants on emotional tension, the enhancement of the sense of satisfaction, and the setting of martial arts.”

"Later, Ming Dynasty history experts joined the team to serve as our historical consultants. Whether it's a literary script or a film script, I only have one requirement: smooth pacing and an exciting plot."

Shen Shandeng made demands of the three editors who were working on the project.

These three screenwriters are all current or recent graduates of the Central Academy of Drama and the Beijing Film Academy—fresh and promising young people.

He doesn't need to be very experienced; he needs to be intelligent, eager to prove himself, willing to dedicate himself, and have a certain degree of obedience and teamwork.

Shenzhen.

Wu Jing is currently recuperating under a sun lamp. He has a serious injury and needs to rest after working in Hong Kong for a period of time, as he is particularly sensitive to damp environments.

However, today, a guest from Beijing brought a letter.

Wu Jing stared at the cover, stunned.

Do you want to understand the meaning of film? Do you want to truly stand tall and proud on the big screen?

"YES or NO?"

(End of this chapter)