Huayu: A Commercial Director

Chapter 228 The Bloody Reality

When joking with friends, Chen Shouzhao never acts like a director in private.

Work is work; you should be serious about work, but you should also relax in life.

Besides, Guo Fan and the others have a good relationship with me, so why should I act like a director in front of them?

Seeing his fellow disciples from the Deyun Society drifting further and further away from him, now when he goes back to the Deyun Society, he will either be met with unfamiliar children or childhood friends who keep a certain distance from him.

Now I can finally understand why Luan Yunping always has a stern face. It's not that he's hard to get along with, but rather that everyone thinks he is.

He joined Deyun Society after graduating from university, but even highly educated people are not well-regarded there.

Moreover, when Luan Yunping was in charge of performances, he often clashed with those who withdrew.

He was the traitor and rebel.

It was precisely because he always put the company first that many people found him difficult to get along with. However, Chen Shouzhe and he had a pretty good relationship. There was no distinction between superior and subordinate; they respected each other and would occasionally go out for drinks together.

The only downside is that he drinks too much easily. Don't be fooled by his honest appearance; he's a real culprit when it comes to drinking.

After inquiring about Guo Fan's film, she left Xiaoxiaomeng to stay and watch over the film company.

"The Ghost Blows Out the Light series in Wuershan is still being filmed. The Ancient City of Jingjue and the Yunnan Insect Valley are also being filmed simultaneously. One of them should be released during the Lunar New Year holiday season at the end of this year," Zhong Lifan said.

"Just leave it to him. After filming the two movies, let him rest for a while," Chen Shouzhe nodded and said.

"What about you? Are you going to take a break for the rest of the second half of the year? The company is getting bigger and bigger, and we still need you to handle the business," Zhong Lifan said.

After all, the A Chinese Ghost Story series has ended, the Painted Skin series has ended, and the Ghost Blows Out the Light series is still being filmed. Currently, Chen Shou still has one major IP that he hasn't developed yet, and Zhong Lifan is also anxious. He's itching to dig into this gold mine.

“We have plans to shoot a film in the second half of the year. If you feel that the company’s business is not doing well, how about we make some Hong Kong films?” Chen Shouzhe thought of his previous collaboration with Emperor Entertainment and suddenly felt that the market there was also quite good.

"Hong Kong films? Is that okay? Hong Kong films are already declining and are moving closer to the mainland. You want to enter the Hong Kong film industry now?" Chung Lai-fan was completely confused.

“It’s about shifting from export to overseas markets. Don’t think that Hong Kong films are no longer popular. The government still provides a lot of support for them. There are some policies that are not available on the mainland, which are more suitable for them there,” Chen Shou said.

“If, and I mean if, my next script doesn’t pass muster, I might take it to Hong Kong to film and change the background story,” Chen Shou said.

“Uh, we need to film in Hong Kong. Is the script that dangerous? You're not obsessed with winning awards, are you?” Chung Lai-fan said.

"It's not for winning awards, but because I feel it's meaningful. You really think I've been resting these past few days? I've been revising the script the whole time. Third Master has given me a real challenge." Chen Shou gave a wry smile.

"Third Master? Which Third Master?"

"Who else could it be but Master Han? His daughter wrote a realistic script, which I revised. Whether it will be approved depends on what the higher-ups think; it's a bit sensitive."

"May I take a look at it?"

"I brought it with me, take a look."

Chen Shou handed the script to Zhong Lifan from his briefcase and then turned on his computer to check it.

Zhong Lifan was reading the original script. Being a producer herself, she could understand scripts, but the more she read, the deeper her brow furrowed. Less than half an hour later, she put the script down. "This… how could this possibly be made into a film? The script is excellent, yes, but it's too realistic, and it happens recently. Even big directors are very careful during sensitive periods; a lot of it gets cut. This script will offend a lot of people. Are you really going to take it on?" Zhong Lifan asked worriedly.

"This is my revised version, take a look." Chen Shou handed the revised version to Zhong Lifan.

Zhong Lifan saw a more detailed script, including character designs, dialogues, Chen Shouzhe's habits, illustrations, and storyboards.

Chen Shouzhe's scripts are very interesting. He inserts storyboards into his scripts, showing the scenes he has in his mind.

This is so that the actors can present the scene they need, since it's not quite as good as just imagining it through words.

When she saw an old woman crying and saying she was poor, her heart ached.

The scene was so impactful that she understood even more how desperate these people were, and how much pressure that miracle doctor was under as he continued to go to India to buy medicine for them.

After Chen Shouzhe's revisions, it became a complete movie script. However, it will still be difficult to pass the censorship and be released. The submitted script is definitely not as detailed as the one in Chen Shouzhe's hands. It will most likely be somewhat vague. If it is to be filmed, it will definitely be the complete script in Chen Shouzhe's hands. At that time, the film filming censorship will probably not be so easy to pass.

The good news is that the script was written by Han Sanping, who was once the head of China Film Group and has enough influence. With Chen Shou, the newly crowned Oscar winner, they might be able to shake things up.

But Chung Lai-fan felt it was still a thankless task. Chen Shou had made so many commercial films, and the pressure of this next film was obvious; he might even offend people.

Movies that expose reality always offend people. The word "reality" says it all; they are all based on real people, some of whom wielded the power of life and death.

Although the movie was changed, it still put pressure on the country. Some drugs are still restricted by the West and cannot be included in medical insurance. A box of medicine can cost thousands or tens of thousands of yuan, which is not affordable for ordinary families. It is like buying life with money.

It is an invisible burden on the country. Even though the drug in the movie has been included in medical insurance, there are many other drugs that have not yet been included.

Moreover, the key patents are in the hands of the West, but what about our own domestic companies?

There are too few independently developed cold medicines on the market.

Chen Shouzhe has also looked up some information in the past few days, including a principle called the 95.5 rule.

This refers to the structure of China's medical industry, where 95% comes from abroad and 5% comes from within China.

In contrast to the military-industrial complex, which needs to wage war to make money, the medical complex is the knife that kills without drawing blood.

They're making money comfortably while lying down, but you insist on disrupting that and inciting public anger. Who will let Chen Shouzhe off the hook?

Take dentistry for example, are the materials very expensive?

A single tooth can cost thousands or tens of thousands of dollars, while the actual cost is only a few cents. If you threaten someone else's interests, you can imagine what the consequences will be.

The good news is that the country is now strong and has become aware of this issue; the bad news is that without approval from higher authorities, this film cannot be made.

It might even disrupt the plans set up above. Chen Shouzhe might need to meet with higher-ups, which is beyond the scope of what the bureau can handle.

The most likely scenario is that filming will not be possible, or filming will be done and the film can only be released after receiving notification from higher authorities, in conjunction with their promotional efforts.

(End of this chapter)