HuaYu: A Great Director Starting with Dream of the Red Chamber

Doujiao Hutong is not far from Shichahai.

Just outside the alleyway are bustling tourists and small shops selling fried skewers, snacks, and yogurt, creating a vibrant local atmosphere.

There's a fork in the alley; once you turn into it, the noise immediately stops.

Walk another hundred steps or so, and you'll find two old-style red brick apartment buildings. The ivy that had been withered all winter is now just sprouting some green shoots.

Li Yan's new residence is on the first floor.

The homeowner is an elderly professor in the Department of Dramatic Literature who is going to Europe for a year-long visit and is worried about leaving his plants at home.

Perfect, this is a good deal for Li Yan.

Half of the window that was originally on the balcony was knocked down and turned into a gate. A small courtyard of about ten square meters was enclosed by a fence.

There is a short crabapple tree in the yard, which is in full bloom, a sea of ​​pink and white blossoms.

Below is a stone table and two stone stools.

A quiet oasis amidst the hustle and bustle, a hidden paradise.

"Mom, don't worry, I'm fine."

Li Yan held a watering can in one hand to water the crabapple tree, while holding up his phone in the other.

"What are you going to do with the 20,000 yuan you sent back? Just keep it for yourself. Expenses are high in Yanjing, so keeping it will give you more money on hand..."

On the other end of the phone, my mother's voice was both gratified and heartbroken.

"Mom, I've already told you, I'm a director now, making money from making pornographic films, enough to live on."

Li Yan straightened up, listening to her family's caring nagging, and felt particularly at ease.

"By the way, I met with Jing Tian a couple of days ago and we had a meal together."

"Oh? You saw Tian Tian? That girl was bright even when she was little, and I heard she's a star now. Given our families' relationship, you should help her out, okay?"

"Okay, I've got it. Mom, take care of yourselves, you and Dad. Bye."

Li Yan put away his phone and breathed a sigh of relief.

After tidying up the yard and changing into a loose sweatshirt, Li Yan grabbed the script he had already printed and went out.

After walking through two alleys and strolling for about ten minutes, we arrived at Guo Fumin's house.

The aroma of tea wafted through the air as Mr. Guo Fumin and Mr. Li Guangfu, two elderly gentlemen, stared intently at a half-finished game of chess, locked in a fierce and evenly matched battle.

"Oh, what a rare guest!"

Hearing the noise, Guo Fumin looked up and glanced at him, then snorted irritably:

"Big directors are just different. Before, when they didn't have money, they would at least bring some things with them. Now that they have money, they're too embarrassed to come empty-handed."

Li Yan chuckled, not acting like an outsider, and skillfully moved a wicker chair over to sit under the grape trellis:

"Teacher, what are you saying? It's just that the script wasn't finished the other day, and I was afraid you'd laugh at me if I showed it, so I didn't dare say anything."

"Stop talking nonsense!" Guo Fumin said and then ignored him.

Li Guangfu chuckled and gestured with his chin toward Guo Fumin:

"Old Guo was just saying that you've really made up your mind now, you even dare to go against Zhang Yibai, and you can't tell him the truth anymore."

Li Yan refilled the tea for the two teachers, not forgetting to protest his innocence:

"I wanted to try making a short film to compete for an award, but I was afraid my teacher would scold me for being too ambitious."

Guo Fumin pointed at him: "What else could you be but someone who's overly ambitious, aiming for awards? Let me see your notebook first!"

Li Yan quickly took the script out of his pocket and handed it over.

The Tuner.

Guo Fumin glanced at the script and nodded.

Old Li told him that this kid's script was particularly well-structured, and indeed, it was a standard Hollywood style, which was more comfortable to read than the novel-style scripts commonly found in China.

After reading a page, he casually handed it to Li Guangfu across from him.

The courtyard quickly quieted down, with only the sound of papers turning.

I watched it for another twenty minutes or so.

Guo Fumin put down the last page, took off his reading glasses, and rubbed his temples:

"Ingenious structure, complete closed loop, or open ending."

"The premise of pretending to be blind, the weakness, greed, and fear of human nature, voyeurism and exhibitionism, hmm, very O. Henry, quite interesting."

Li Guangfu also closed the script. "It's really good, especially the scene at the end where the male lead plays the piano at the crime scene. You can feel the tension of the audiovisual language just by reading the script."

Guo Fumin took a sip of tea to calm himself, then asked, "How are the preparations going?"

"It's almost done. The apartment building that Teacher Li found for me doesn't require much set design. It's just that I need your advice on casting... I originally thought Wen Zhang's masculine charm was quite good for the male lead..."

"Stop, stop, stop! You really dare to dream like that!"

Li Guangfu interrupted him, both amused and exasperated, "Someone who's a top newcomer is already booked up so much, why would they come to act in your short film?"

Li Yan chuckled, "Yeah, that's why I asked you to help me think of something."

Without much thought, Li Guangfu said directly, "Why don't you do it yourself?"

Li Yan smacked his lips. Following his habits from his previous life, he didn't really like directing and acting in his own dramas.

Filming one take and then reviewing it on the monitor, or filming while constantly watching the monitor.

The latter is much more efficient and doesn't affect the actors' emotions.

Fine, I'll do it myself. The short film shouldn't have much of an impact.

"Alright, I'll do it myself. What about the old lady? Does she have any suggestions?"

Guo Fumin held his teacup as he spoke and thought:

"This role is very important; it's the focal point of the performance. It needs to have presence, and also a... sinister undertone beneath the kind demeanor, sending chills down your spine!"

Li Guangfu was also pondering, his fingers unconsciously tapping on the stone table.

After a long pause, he and Guo Fumin exchanged a glance and spoke almost simultaneously:

"Lü Zhong!"

"Teacher Lü? Perfect! That face, as long as she's not smiling, has such a commanding presence..."

Li Yan's eyes lit up when he heard the name:

"Exactly, would a veteran artist of her caliber come to support me?"

"She just finished filming 'Aftershock' a while ago and is resting at home."

Li Guangfu said with a smile:

"Leave the script, I'll go ask around for you. This role is interesting, and the screen time isn't much. Half a day should be enough. It should be promising."

"Oh, thank you so much!"

Having solved the biggest problem, Li Yan finally breathed a sigh of relief.

However, thinking about the demands he would make next, the smile on his face became a little strange.

Guo Fumin got angry when he saw him like that, and said with a laugh:

"Just say what you have to say, spit it out. What are you being so coy about with such a thick skin?"

Li Yan scratched his head and chuckled twice:

"Um... teacher, actually there is another key character in this play, who is... the old man who was killed and sat on the sofa without moving."

Guo Fumin was taken aback, then pointed at his own nose: "You don't mean to make me play that corpse, do you?"

Li Yan nodded quickly.

"Get out! Get out! Get out!"

Guo Fumin was so angry that he grabbed a handful of chess pieces and pretended to throw them:

"Isn't finding you a place enough? Do you want me to be your corpse too? Are you trying to make me live too long? Why don't you just ask Old Li to go!"

Li Yan dodged while forcing a smile:

"This play has no lines, you just sit on the sofa, it's a half-hour performance, asking Teacher Li would be a waste of his talent. You have a refined and scholarly air, you are perfect for the feeling of a highly educated intellectual being persecuted..."

Li Guangfu, who was listening nearby, clapped his hands and laughed so hard that tears almost streamed down his face.

"Yes, yes, yes! Lao Guo, your presence is absolutely perfect for playing a dead intellectual. We've known each other for most of our lives, and I've never seen you act before. No doubt about it, it's settled!"

"You old codger, you always want to stir up trouble!"

Guo Fumin pointed at Li Guangfu and cursed, but he was clearly not really angry.

He also knew that the child truly didn't consider him an outsider, which was why he dared to make such a joke.

Just then, Li Yan's phone rang.

"Hey, senior brother?"

"Junior brother, why is no one home? I have so many bags and packages."

"I'm having tea at Teacher Guo's place."

"Alright, I'll head straight there then, perfect!"

Less than ten minutes later, Zhang Qiang rushed into the yard, carrying a thick list of equipment.

After greeting the two elders, I spread the list directly on the stone table:

"Junior brother, look at this, your senior brother has really gone all out this time."

"As per your request, RED ONE has also been contacted. I managed to secure a stock through connections."

"We also have a Cooke S4/i prime lens, and the lighting, costumes, makeup, and props are all handled by experienced professionals."

He finished speaking in one breath, then picked up his teacup and took two big gulps.

Guo Fumin didn't understand these things very well, so he curiously picked up the list and looked at it:

"Digital cameras? I heard that award-winning films are usually made with film?"

Most academics believe that film is the only true form of cinema.

Li Yan refilled their teacups and pointed to the menu, explaining carefully:

"Teacher, don't underestimate digital cameras. Film does have good latitude and grain, but most of the scenes in this film are in enclosed spaces."

"I wanted to use an overly calm, even sharp, visual style to contrast the protagonist's inner turmoil and fear."

"The film was a little too soft; the high sharpness of the digital camera is just right to satisfy this sense of oppression."

He then pointed to the section on cameras on the list:

"Furthermore, RED ONE's 4K RAW format offers a lot of room for color grading in post-production."

"To match the Cooke Look style, it adds a touch of warm, oily tone to the skin tone while maintaining sharpness, so that the image is not too dry."

Finally, Li Yan chuckled again and added:

"The key issue is that film is too expensive! And I don't have that much time; digital cameras are much more efficient."

Zhang Qiang chimed in from the side:

"See that, teachers? That's what you call professional! I used this method to completely fool those guys who were playing with equipment."

Li Guangfu stroked his chin and nodded:

"Since you've made such thorough preparations, I'll call Teacher Lü tonight and even swallow my pride to invite her over for you."

"Thank you so much, Teacher Li!"

After finishing their business, Zhang Qiang glanced at his watch and gave Li Yan a wink:

"Alright, teachers, we've finished our report. Junior brother, it's time to leave."

Guo Fumin was still thinking of inviting them to stay for dinner: "So soon?"

"No, teacher, I have something to do tonight."

Zhang Qiang pulled Li Yan up, his smile somewhat lewd:

"Isn't our GG famous? A lot of people in the industry want to meet Director Li, the one who took down Ogilvy."

"There's a party tonight, I'm taking him there to see what it's like, and also to give his new company some pointers!"

Upon hearing this, Guo Fumin waved his hand:

"Then get out of here now, but be careful not to cause any trouble!"