Global Best Actor: Starting with Picking Up Attributes in America

Chapter 469 Construction of a Movie City

Congjiang County, Qiandongnan Prefecture, Guizhou Province.

The car swayed on the mountain road for three hours, and Chris Hemsworth had already vomited twice. He was slumped in his seat, feeling utterly hopeless.

Vin Diesel gripped the roof railing tightly, his face pale, muttering repeatedly, "I've filmed nine Fast & Furious movies, driven off cliffs, and flown over tanks, but I've never been this scared. This road is more thrilling than the favelas of Rio."

"I'm going to throw up!"

Chris Hemsworth looked pained.

"If you dare to throw up in the car, next time you'll have to drive yourself up."

Chen Xun was looking at the data on impoverished counties in his hand.

Chris Hemsworth immediately sat up: "I'd rather hold it in than drive on this road. There was a bend just now, and I felt like half of my wheels were hanging in the air. The driver was still able to chat with us while driving. That's amazing."

The driver laughed from the front: "This road is considered good. The villages inside used to be inaccessible even to tractors. The asphalt road was only opened last year."

As they were talking, the car turned a corner and a small village appeared ahead.

Earth-yellow stilted houses are scattered on the hillside. Under the old locust tree at the village entrance, several old people sit on stones basking in the sun, while several children chase after a dog.

When they saw a car coming in, they all curiously peeked out.

The car stopped in front of the village committee, and a middle-aged man with his trousers rolled up to his knees walked over quickly.

"Director Chen! We've been waiting for you!"

He stretched out his rough hand and grasped Chen Xun's hand tightly: "I am a county official, just call me Lao Li."

"Secretary Li, you've worked hard," Chen Xun said with a smile.

"It's not hard at all."

Secretary Li rubbed his hands, a little embarrassed: "Our conditions here are poor, we're sorry to have troubled you. The guesthouse has been cleaned up, but it's a bit small and there's no hot water, so you can only boil water to wash."

"It's okay, we can endure hardship."

Vin Diesel immediately said, "When I was making a movie, I lived in a tent in the desert for half a month, which was much tougher than this."

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Chris Hemsworth nodded in agreement: "Yeah, we're not picky, as long as we have a place to sleep."

Secretary Li led them into the village. The elderly people they met along the way greeted him, while the children followed at a distance, not daring to get too close.

"Our county is a national-level poverty-stricken county, with a total of 12 townships and 97 villages."

As he walked, Secretary Li spoke, flipping through his notebook: "The young people have all gone out to work, leaving only the elderly and children in the village. Out of the county's total population of over 3, more than 1 have gone out to work. Many children can only see their parents once a year."

He pointed to a primary school by the roadside: "This is the only primary school in the township. There are only 12 students and 2 teachers. The children who live the farthest away have to walk two hours along the mountain road to get to school every day. There used to be a junior high school, but it was closed down the year before last. The children have to go to the county town to attend junior high school. It takes two hours by bus, and they can only come back once every two weeks."

Chen Xun stopped and looked at the children in class at the school. The classroom window was broken and covered with plastic sheeting.

A little girl dressed in thin clothes is writing on a table, the pencil tip so short she can barely hold it.

Chen Xun took off his down jacket and handed it to the village secretary next to him: "Take this to the child after class."

"Okay, sure."

The village party secretary quickly took it.

Seeing this, Thor didn't say anything, but silently took out a handful of chocolates from his bag and handed them to the village secretary: "Give these to the children."

Vin Diesel also took out his wallet and took out all the cash inside: "I have two thousand yuan here. Take it and buy some stationery and clothes for the kids."

Secretary Li looked at them, his eyes a little red: "Thank you. Many business owners have come to inspect before, but they all just took a look and left. No one is willing to invest in our poor place."

In the afternoon, Secretary Li took them to see the last alternative site.

After climbing the hillside for half an hour, we finally reached the top of the mountain.

Looking down, there is a wide valley with rolling green hills on both sides and a clear stream flowing through the middle of the valley.

There are several large banyan trees by the river, with lush branches and leaves.

"Director Chen, what do you think of this spot?"

Secretary Li pointed to the valley: "It's only 20 kilometers from the highway exit. The road has been built. Some business owners wanted to build a cement plant here before, but we didn't agree because we were afraid it would pollute the river. More than a dozen villages downstream drink the water from this river."

He sighed, "We also want to develop, but not at the expense of the environment. Building cement plants can make quick money, but the mountains are destroyed, the water is polluted, what will happen to future generations? But if we don't build industries, the people won't earn money and will have to go out to work. We've been worried about this for more than ten years and still can't find a way out."

Chen Xun stood on the hillside, looking down at the valley below. The wind blew by, carrying the fresh scent of grass and trees.

"This is it!"

Chen Xun made a decision.

Secretary Li was stunned for a moment, not quite understanding: "Huh?"

Chen Xun explained: "I plan to invest 50 billion yuan to build an oriental science fiction film city here. The first phase will build a science fiction shooting base, an ethnic cultural park and supporting staff dormitories. The second phase will build a theme park, hotels and homestays. The third phase will build a film and television training school and a post-production center."

Secretary Li's eyes widened suddenly, and his hands trembled: "50 billion? Director Chen, you're not kidding, are you?"

"I'm not kidding."

Chen Xun reached out and patted him on the shoulder: "After the movie city is built, it will solve the employment problem for at least 5000 people. Cleaning, security, stagehands, extras, we will give priority to hiring locals. When film crews come here to shoot, they can purchase food, accommodation, and supplies locally. Your sour fish soup, glutinous rice, and bamboo handicrafts can all be sold to tourists and film crews."

"Once the theme park is built, it will be able to receive millions of tourists every year. At that time, every household will be able to open a homestay or a restaurant, and they won't need to go out to work anymore. Moreover, it will all be green industries, without cutting down trees, discharging sewage, or damaging the landscape here."

Secretary Li stared at Chen Xun for a long time, then suddenly covered his face and began to sob.

This man in his fifties had worked at the grassroots level for thirty years, enduring all kinds of hardships and difficulties, and had never shed a tear.

He cried like a child today.

"thank you!"

He grasped Chen Xun's hand and shook it repeatedly, saying, "You saved our entire county! From now on, our children won't have to walk dozens of miles through the mountains to go to school anymore, and they won't have to be separated from their parents anymore! On behalf of all the people in the county, I kowtow to you!"

As he spoke, he was about to kneel down when Chen Xun quickly stopped him: "Secretary Li, you mustn't. I was just doing what I was supposed to do."

The scenery here is so beautiful, and the people are so kind; it shouldn't be overlooked.

Robert, standing next to Chen Xun, tugged at his sleeve and whispered, "Boss, isn't 50 billion too much? This place is so remote, we're not even sure if the theme park will break even. Even if it does, it'll take at least fifteen years."

"Breaking even is not the most important thing."

Chen Xun shook his head: "In the past, when we made movies, we would build sets in big cities, spending hundreds of millions to build a studio, and then dismantle it after filming, leaving nothing behind. Now we are building a movie city in the mountains, which not only allows us to make movies, but also boosts the local economy and enables people to live a better life. This is more meaningful than making any amount of money."

Pointing to the valley below, he continued, "The scenery here is more beautiful than any constructed set. In the future, when filming science fiction movies, we won't need to go to New Zealand or Iceland anymore. We have the best filming locations in China. Film crews from all over the world will come here to shoot movies."

"I plan to build ten such film cities across the country: a desert martial arts film city in the Northwest, an ice and snow fantasy film city in the Northeast, and an ethnic customs film city in Yunnan. The film industry will become the economic pillar of these impoverished areas, allowing locals to earn money right at their doorstep without having to leave their homes."

Robert watched Chen Xun's retreating figure without saying anything more.

Having followed Chen Xun for so many years, he knew long ago that what Chen Xun wanted to be was never a businessman who made money, but someone who could make a difference.

Vin Diesel patted Chen Xun on the shoulder, looking serious: "Chen, I support you. I'll move half of the Fast & Furious series to film here, and I'll also get my friends to film here."

Chris Hemsworth chimed in, "Me too! I'll be filming my next Thor movie here; Asgard is built on this mountain!"

Secretary Li wiped away his tears, smiled, and said, "That's wonderful! I'll go back now and tell all the people in the county so they can all be happy!"

He turned and ran down the mountain, but after a couple of steps he turned back and bowed deeply to Chen Xun.

They started to head back as the sun was about to set.

When the villagers heard that a movie theater was going to be built, they all gathered around. Some brought boiled sweet potatoes, while others handed them freshly woven bamboo baskets.

An elderly woman grabbed Chen Xun's hand and gave him a dozen or so eggs: "Child, thank you. My son works in Guangdong and hasn't come back for three years. Once the movie theater is finished, he can come back to work."

"Grandma, don't worry." Chen Xun held her hand.

As the car started moving, the children chased after it, shouting, "Goodbye, Uncle Chen!"

Chris Hemsworth stuck his head out the window, waved, and shouted, "Goodbye! Once the movie studio is built, I'll take you guys to make movies!"

As the car drove away, the children's figures grew smaller and smaller, still waving.

Chris Hemsworth sat back down and rubbed his eyes. "I used to think that making movies was just about making money and becoming famous. But today I realized that movies can change so many people's lives."

Vin Diesel nodded: "I used to always talk about family, but today I truly understand the meaning of family. It's not about fighting and killing in movies, but about making sure everyone around you lives a good life."

Chen Xun looked out the window at the green mountains, which were bathed in the golden light of the setting sun.

"The significance of film has never been box office or awards, but rather giving people hope, showing them a different world, and making this world a little better."

Rob took out his phone, snapped a picture of the view outside the window, and posted it on his WeChat Moments: "The dream of making movies in the mountains officially sets sail today."

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