Huayu: A Commercial Director

Chapter 324 April 24st

Operation Red Sea is undoubtedly one of the biggest prizes this year.

Of course, the movie that everyone considers to have the biggest cake is Chen Shouzhe's Journey to the West, followed by Operation Red Sea, and then Guo Fan's The Wandering Earth 2.

Over the years, films produced by Shou Zhe Film Industry have been regarded as the biggest piece of the pie in the industry, with countless people coveting this huge pie. Some actors have even openly or secretly expressed their willingness to sign with Shou Zhe Film Industry.

Chung Lai-fan is also looking for talent, but unfortunately, most of the better actors have their own companies. It's too troublesome to cultivate them yourself; you need to provide resources, and there's no guarantee they'll succeed. It's better to choose established actors.

Guo Degang does hope to give some opportunities to the actors of Deyun Society, but while they are good at crosstalk, only Yue Yunpeng and Guo Qilin are watchable when it comes to acting; the others are not up to par.

"Director Chen, this is the cast list, but is this a good idea?" Zhong Lifan asked.

"It doesn't matter, it's just a formality. Besides, if he's not suitable for the main character, we can give him to another supporting role," Chen Shou said.

Zhong Lifan nodded. It was a bit underhanded of her to have already decided on the lead role and then invite people to audition. It was like she was just playing with people.

Chen Shouzhe gave the lead role to Wu Jing, who is also the lead in The Wandering Earth 2. Chen Shouzhe even asked Wu Jing if she wanted to invest some money in The Wandering Earth, and Wu Jing was extremely excited.

He kept thanking Chen Shouzhe, clearly indicating that Chen Shouzhe wanted to help him make money. Although the share was small, it was still an affirmation of his current status. It wasn't just about giving him a salary, but also a share of the profits, a treatment only top actors receive.

There are eight production companies. It's rare to see so many production companies in movies these days. The share distribution is as follows: Shouyi Pictures takes the lead with 30%, Golden Shield 10%, Haiyi 10%, Xi'an Film Studio 10%, Wanda Pictures 20%, Penguin Pictures 10%, and Secret and Emperor Entertainment each take 5%.

Wanda Pictures is second only to the film studios. There's no way around it, since these two are practically inseparable and firmly control 50%.

I received quite a few audition applications. There were mostly men in the military film, but only two actresses.

Dilraba is not suitable, nor is Yang Mi. We need to choose another actress who is heroic and capable of being a sniper.

Another one, Chen Shouzhe, was given to Yan Danchen; it was pre-arranged.

This means that the main roles have already been decided internally, and the remaining minor roles are being revealed.

Chen Shouzhe, along with Guo Fan and Shen Yijie, auditioned together.

"Ah Jie, how's your script coming along?" Guo Fan asked when he was bored.

"It's all settled," Shen Yijie said.

"Is it settled? When can I see it?" Guo Fan immediately became interested.

“Director Chen helped me revise it, and I think his revisions are better than mine. We'll just use Director Chen's script directly,” Shen Yijie said.

"Did you bring it?"

"It's on my person."

He took the script out of his bag and showed it to Guo Fan. Guo Fan quickly read it, then glanced at Shen Yijie's original version. After a moment, he said with a serious expression.

"With Director Chen in charge, there's no problem, but let me give you a heads-up."

"What?" Shen Yijie asked.

"We must film according to Director Chen's script."

Shen Yijie understood Guo Fan's meaning; he was afraid that Guo Fan would mess things up. Many directors go astray while filming, mixing in their own ideas and completely changing the original script.

The most typical example is the great poet, who was hailed as the god of the first half. The first half was fine, but the second half suddenly changed course. It was supposed to be a martial arts story, but it suddenly turned into a cultivation story.

After reading both versions of the script, Guo Fan was certain that Shen Yijie had his own ideas and insistence. After all, his script was like his own child, and it was no wonder that Chen Shouzhe had revised it so much. As a professional director, he knew very well which script was better; Chen Shouzhe's was clearly superior. He was just worried that Shen Yijie might not follow Chen Shouzhe's script during filming, so he gave him some special instructions.

“No problem, I will definitely follow the script. I probably won’t participate in the filming of Operation Red Sea. I will prepare my movie after filming Journey to the West,” Shen Yijie said.

"Let me know if you need anything, and I'll come visit the set," Guo Fan said, patting him on the shoulder.

"It's a deal. Come visit me in the Northwest when the time comes."

"I can't wait to go, I hope you can take me with you."

After the lunch break, the auditions will continue in the afternoon. The auditions will be completed within two days, and the staff will coordinate their schedules.

[According to Shouzhe Pictures' announcement: Casting for Operation Red Sea is complete, with Wu Jing in the lead role. It is also reported that Wu Jing will star in The Wandering Earth 2. Since Wolf Warrior 2, Wu Jing has not directed any new films, but has been constantly offered roles.]

When the news broke on Weibo, many people were surprised, not expecting that Wu Jing would ultimately get the biggest resources.

As the roles were revealed, it became clear that Shou Zhe Film Studio was quite fair. Apart from Wu Jing, Yan Danchen, and Zhang Hanyu, most of the remaining actors were from outside the studio. However, two people from Secret Company were also selected to play supporting roles.

Many people were disappointed, while some of those selected were very excited, since the film industry is judged on people, not connections.

However, when they sign the contract, they will find a very important agreement: they are not allowed to break the law or evade taxes. If they are found to be in violation, they will be held accountable, and in serious cases, they will have to pay huge liquidated damages.

They all felt they were in the right position before signing the contract. Next, they coordinated their schedules. Filming was scheduled for September and October. In July and August, they would undergo closed training and enter the military for a period of time.

Wu Jing is very familiar with this, and he will take people to the military for special training for a period of time.

Chen Shouzhe, on the other hand, was busy preparing for the filming of Journey to the West. As the films were being prepared one after another, he was also busy drawing storyboards, inquiring about costumes and props, and building some sets, etc.

In short, he's very busy, and the outside world has once again been shocked by his actions regarding the film industry.

[An insider revealed that Shouzhe Pictures recently submitted two film scripts, one of which is for "The Wandering Earth 2," while the other's identity is still unknown.]

Now, every move the film company makes attracts the attention of the film industry. They already knew about The Wandering Earth 2. Guo Fan had already revealed it, and the actors had even been negotiated and given to Wu Jing.

So now everyone envies Wu Jing.

Now that the movie script has been submitted for review and the production company has been decided, everyone is eagerly anticipating who will get the share.

"Seriously, in the current film market, only he is still consistently producing films; other film companies can only look on in envy," Ye Ning said with a wry smile after hearing the news.

“Our company also makes movies,” Wang Zonglei said.

Ye Ning nodded. Feng Xiaogang's "Cellphone 2" had already announced the start of filming on the 10th, and the news had spread throughout the industry. The opening ceremony was also quite grand, after all, it was the second installment.

While other companies were waiting to see what new moves the film industry would make, a Weibo post on the 24th shocked the entire nation.

All eyes in the film and entertainment industry were drawn to it, and even Chen Shouzhe, who was engrossed in his work at Xiaoxiaomeng, was disturbed and had to stop what he was doing.

"real or fake?"

"It's true, it's been two hours already, and it's gone viral online. Plus, the name on the contract hasn't been altered," Zhong Lifan said with a serious expression.

"It's none of our business. We're clean, but some people are going to be in trouble."

(End of this chapter)