This director is so innocent.

Chapter 97 Invitation Acquired

Why do you call her that? Are you a fan?

For some reason, Gong Li suddenly felt a little uneasy.

It wasn't that she was jealous, but rather that she and Zhang Manyu were only two figures in the Chinese film industry who had never been called that before.

Leslie Cheung and Gong Li have a good relationship.

After all, the two of them were winning various awards overseas and had no conflict of interest, so they had a mutual respect for each other.

However, neither of them had a good relationship with Zhang Ziyi. Gong Li once took the opportunity during filming of "Memoirs of a Geisha" to slap Zhang Ziyi seven or eight times.

Meanwhile, Maggie Cheung refused to present an award to Zhang Ziyi at the 2013 Golden Horse Awards.

Following the principle of giving priority to ladies, Andy Lau stepped forward twice to give the trophy to Maggie Cheung so that she could present it to Zhang Ziyi, but Maggie Cheung avoided him both times.

Moreover, while Andy Lau was presenting an award to Zhang Ziyi, Mandy Lieu quickly slipped off the stage, as if she didn't want to share the stage with Zhang Ziyi for even a moment longer.

Su Jin briefly explained "why she's called Maggie Cheung," but of course, it wasn't the kind of thing she used to fool Maggie Cheung.

After all, Gong Li's achievements are no less than hers, so saying that would definitely make Gong Li unhappy.

After explaining, Su Jin didn't want to waste any more time and went straight to the point, as he had a lot of things to do later!

Reporters from the Movie Channel and Southern Weekly are waiting to conduct exclusive interviews with him!

"Ms. Gong, I have a film that would be perfect for you. Do you have any availability at the moment?"

"Oh? What kind of movie?" Gong Li raised an eyebrow.

"It's a dark suspense thriller called 'The Invisible Guest,' and it tells the story of—" Su Jin rattled off a long string of words for five or six minutes.

This movie is very mind-bending; a detailed explanation could take half an hour. The film features 48 plot twists.

Simply put, it's a story about a domineering CEO who goes on a date with his mistress secretary, accidentally hitting and killing someone in his car on the way home, and then the female lead pretending to be a lawyer to avenge the victim's son.

"Teacher Gong, when I first thought of this script, I felt that the role of a lawyer was very suitable for you. You need to have a strong presence and be able to control the whole scene."

It's safe to say that, among all the actresses in China, none other than you could have played this role.

To be honest, apart from Gong Li, there are really very few actors in China who can play the role of a lawyer well.

The only requirement is that you must have a strong presence; that's a hard requirement.

In this way, she won't appear out of place in front of the camera, facing a highly intelligent and domineering CEO. She can control the situation and lure the CEO into the verbal trap she has set step by step.

Gong Li smiled gently. She had been somewhat surprised to see Maggie Cheung leading a young man around the Lumière Hall last night, but now she understood why.

"Su Jin, you have such a sweet tongue! Is this how you tricked Manyu into introducing you to other people?"

"Teacher Gong, it's not that I'm being sweet-talking, but the facts are right here. You can't expect me to lie!" Su Jin said innocently.

Gong Li smiled slightly. She realized that the young man in front of her was not only sweet-talking, but also had a thicker skin than most people.

"I listened to what you just said, and the plot is acceptable; I quite like it. But I need to see the entire script before I can agree to your request."

"No problem. After I finish writing the script, I'll send it to you once I get back to China," Su Jin said without hesitation.

At Gong Li's level, she is very careful about accepting roles, considering many factors, unless it's to repay favors.

"Haven't you finished writing your script?"

"No, I've only written an outline; I haven't started writing anything else yet."

"Alright then! Show me as soon as you finish writing it. If the script is good and the logic is sound, I might agree."

"Okay, thank you, Teacher Gong."

After exchanging contact information and chatting for a while, Gong Li left, while Su Jin went to give an exclusive interview to a reporter from the movie channel.

Huang Jiaqiang, Zhao Shan, and Zhong Li are receiving film distributors. After watching the finished film, they shared their thoughts on "The Coffin in the Mountain."

The praise is very high.

It is said to be the most surprising work in Cannes this year and is expected to compete for the highest award, the Palme d'Or.

So, foreigners can also use the tactic of flattery to their advantage.

Huang Jiaqiang and his two companions were very tactful. Knowing that they had a high probability of getting an invitation, they kept their mouths shut and played coy with them.

However, they were just playing cat and mouse with those big international companies.

Those smaller countries and regions, on the other hand, are seriously selling their films.

Because they are poor!

Even if "The Coffin in the Mountain" wins an award, they still can't raise the price, so it's better to reach an agreement now.

To prevent them from taking the money and buying other movies.

A private room with two chairs.

Su Jin sat opposite the reporter from the movie channel.

The movie channel, also known as CTV6, does not belong to CCTV, but is directly under China Film Group Corporation and is affiliated with CCTV.

-

It's very profitable; GG earned over 5 million last year alone.

Moreover, the movie channel is like a fool, daring to broadcast anything and everything, closely following current events.

For example, when Obama visited China, it aired "The Attack on Pearl Harbor"; when Sino-Japanese relations were tense, it aired "Shangganling".

Heroes and Heroines.

It used to be extremely arrogant, rarely buying the rights to foreign films and broadcasting them directly.

Of course, it will buy domestically.

After all, they're family; they wouldn't behave so badly.

The reporter who came to interview Su Jin was an editor-in-chief, a middle-aged woman in her thirties, good-looking and quite capable.

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, the interview began.

"Director Su, how did you feel when you learned that you had been shortlisted for the Cannes main competition?"

"I'm quite happy and also quite surprised. I applied with a 'let's give it a try' attitude, but I didn't expect to be shortlisted for the main competition."

How did you come up with the script for "The Coffin in the Mountain"?

"Oh, the idea for this script came from the old folks in my village. I heard them tell a story about three families fighting over a corpse. After hearing it, I felt that this story was very good and quite suitable to be written into a script."

"As a novice director, how did you manage to invite so many excellent actors to join the cast?"

"To tell you the truth, I just sent the script to them and then they came. Later, I heard from them that they thought the script was excellent and that they would regret it for the rest of their lives if they didn't act in it."

They were also very understanding, asking if I had enough money. If not, they would lower their fees, or even work for free.

"Was it difficult for you to attract investment back then?"

"It's difficult, as you know. I'm a well-known writer with some achievements, but no film company believes I can be a good director."

I remember that summer, I went to more than a dozen film and television companies, and I was rejected by all of them without exception. Some of them I couldn't even get through the door.

Just when I was at my wit's end, ready to sell my house and car and take a desperate gamble, someone appeared. He was like a ray of light illuminating my summer.

"Who is this person?!"

"Mr. Han from China Film Group invested in my project without saying a word after reading my script."

I remember his assistant told him to think about it again, but Han Zhong was very decisive and persuaded others.

"Looking back now, if it weren't for Han Zhong's strong opposition and investment in me, a novice director, I wouldn't be standing on the Cannes stage today," Su Jin said with emotion.

The reporter looked at Su Jin, who was telling her story, and smiled helplessly.

As a channel under China Film Group, before she arrived, her superiors instructed her to make sure she conducted a thorough interview with Su Jin.

She had done a lot of research and knew all too well the inside story of investing; it was nothing like what Su Jin had described.

However, she quite liked the story, and she believes the leader will like it too.

After asking a few more questions, the interview came to an end.

Of course, there were still small gifts: a dozen or so movie tickets from other main competition sections, and small red envelopes for everyone.

Su Jin then gave an exclusive interview to Southern Weekly, with similar questions, and a small gift was presented afterward.

Back at the hotel, Huang Jiaqiang reported the results of the film sale.

"We have signed buyout agreements with a total of 28 countries and regions, and they will pay tomorrow."

"How much money did you make in total?"

"One million seven hundred thousand euros."

"Twenty-eight countries, and only this much has been sold?"

"There's nothing we can do. They're too poor. Their places are tiny, and they simply can't afford to pay high prices."

Huang Jiaqiang changed the subject excitedly, saying, "Boss, 20th Century Fox is very interested in 'The Coffin in the Mountain' and is offering $800,000 to buy out the North American rights and adaptation rights."

"I can understand copyright, but why would they buy the adaptation rights? Cremation is common in the US, isn't it?"

"Who knows! Boss, should we sell?"

"We won't sell it for now; we'll sell it after we win the award."

OK.

After Huang Jiaqiang left, Su Jin took out her phone and called Shen Haobo in China.

Huang Jiaqiang just mentioned 20th Century Fox, which suddenly reminded him of a series of novels that Fox also invested in.

France is six hours behind China, so it was a little after 4 p.m. in China at that time.

Shen Haobo stretched and was about to pick up the coffee his secretary had prepared when his phone rang.

When I picked it up, it said "Boss".

"Boss, how does it feel to stand in the highest hall of art?"

"It was just like that; the red carpet looked like a vegetable market." Before he could reply, Su Jin asked, "Old Shen, how are the company's overseas distribution channels?"

"Overseas channels? Jianmu Culture?"

"right."

"That depends on which region. Our channels in Southeast Asia are quite good, but in North America and Europe they're just so-so."

Are there any familiar publishing partners in North America?

"Yes, we have a good relationship with Delict Publishing House; they really like our online novels."

"To deepen our cooperative relationship, I'll write an English novel for you next month and ask them to help publish it."

"Boss, you can write English novels too?"

"Your boss is a genius. English is nothing. Chinese is the coolest. Okay, that's all."

Over the next seven days, Su Jin and her group attended many cocktail parties and watched a number of films in the main competition section.

Overall, the Coen brothers' "No Country for Old Men" and Romanian director Cristiano Ronaldo's "4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days" received the best reviews.

The official publication, Screenaily, gave them a score of 3.2 out of 4.

The film *The Coffin in the Mountain* has been showing for seven days and has received good reviews, with every screening sold out. *Screenshot* gave it a 3.1 rating.

Minute.

David Fincher's Zodiac also has a rating of 3.1.

None of the other films in the main competition received a score of 3 or higher. The highest score was Julian Schnabel's "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" with a score of 2.9.

Wong Kar-wai's "My Blueberry Nights" has a shockingly low rating of only 2.1, making it completely out of the running for Kim Jong-pal.

The two films with the lowest ratings, "Death Proof" and "Silent Sunshine," both scored 1.7.

In the past few days, he also took some time to attend the premieres of Diao Yinan's "Night Train" and Li Yang's "Blind Mountain".

To be honest, the movies were all so-so; he didn't like watching them anyway.

The Cannes news was also reported domestically.

Because the older generation of filmmakers suffered a complete defeat at Cannes, the media gave Su Jin a lot of attention and praise.

"Chinese films are really not good enough. It's unbelievable that we need a writer to switch to directing to carry the banner of Chinese-language cinema."

Su Jin: Everyone here is trash, are you convinced or not?

It can only be said that domestic media, in order to attract attention, will write whatever is most shocking.

As a result, whether Su Jin can win the "Golden Palme d'Or" has become a hot topic of discussion and speculation.

The opposing side argues that Su Jin has too little experience, no fame, and no public relations skills, making her chances of winning the Golden Bell Award slim.

The affirmative side believes that Cannes is the highest temple of art, and it will uphold a fair and impartial attitude in evaluating each nominated film, without letting personal feelings interfere.

But they also said that with Man Shen on the judging panel, she would fight for her own people.

On the other hand, Jianmu Media's online trolls were fanning the flames from both sides.

The interview with Su Jin was broadcast on the movie channel, and Zuo Shandiao also saw it. No one knew what he was thinking, and Su Jin did not receive a call from him.

However, someone heard a hearty laugh coming from his office that day.

On the evening of the 20th, I also attended the "Cannes Chinese Night".

Quite a few people went, including Man Shen, Fa Zai and his wife, Tsui Hark and his wife, Zhang Zhen, Du Qifeng, Shu Qi, and others.

Basically, all the Chinese stars in Cannes went, and Su Jin, as a Chinese filmmaker, naturally went to show her support as well.

Organizing committee chairman Jacob also gave the opening remarks.

International giants such as Sony and Fox also sent representatives to show their support.

Actually, this banquet wasn't called "Night of China," but rather "Night of Ji'an and Yongjia." It was just that mainland media changed it to "Night of China" when reporting it.

This is a press conference held by Beijing Ji'an Yongjia Film and Television Company for the new film production of five directors from Hong Kong and Taiwan—the company sponsored the project with over one million yuan.

Wong Kar-wai's "Miao Miao", Tsui Hark's "All About Women", Stephen Fung's "Jump Out", Ann Hui's "The Concubine's Daughter", and Stanley Kwan's "Bruce Lee".

They were all terrible movies, so let's not even talk about them.

The CEO of Yongjia also announced that he would invest 20 billion yuan in Chinese currency to produce Chinese-language films over the next five years, and then nothing happened.

Many media outlets had no idea where Yongjia had suddenly come from.

On the 24th, Su Jin received an invitation to the closing ceremony.

Liu Hua, Guo Tao, and Fan Wei have returned to China in the past few days.

Zhang Guoli and Yu Nan stayed to attend the closing ceremony.

Even the blind woman begged and pleaded to stay.