The director starts by learning from the abilities of renowned directors.

Chapter 122 Final Box Office

On March 23, Shen Qing and Fan Bingbing each brought several assistants and bodyguards to the United States to attend the premiere of "The Source Code." While they were somewhat discreet in China, they completely let loose abroad, booking only one room. In truth, whether in China or abroad, Fan Bingbing wanted to live openly with Shen Qing; it was Shen Qing who didn't want to be too blatant. Having a real girlfriend meant that contact with other women would have to be clandestine.

Fan Bingbing was very happy, thinking that she had received a clear signal that the Empress was in sight, so she further probed Shen Qing's intentions that night.

"What do you think would happen if the media found out that we're openly sharing a room?"

Fan Bingbing leaned halfway down on Shen Qing, looking up to observe Shen Qing's reaction.

Shen Qing patted her gently and said, "It's simple, just don't admit it."

"What if nobody believes me?"

"Then continue to deny it."

"That's it?"

Fan Bingbing was speechless.

"Even if the media barges in with cameras while we're doing our workout in bed, we should say we're just rehearsing under the covers," Shen Qing said. "Confessions are the king of evidence. Do you know what it means to be silent when something happens, or even a god can't touch you?"

Fan Bingbing stared blankly at Shen Qing for a few seconds, then turned over and lay down on his back to sleep.

The next day, the two attended a premiere event organized by Legendary Pictures. At the event, countless foreigners shouted Shen Qing's name upon seeing him, some even blushing and weeping with excitement. Shen Qing and Fan Bingbing both realized that Shen Qing was now a top star in North America.

Back at the hotel that evening, Fan Bingbing, feeling bored, invited the two men's assistants to their room to play cards. They played until around 11 p.m., when Fan Bingbing got tired and asked them to leave.

"That's enough, Xiao Chen, you guys should all go back to sleep. The director and I need to do our audition too."

Last night, Shen Qing's words, "Even if the media barged in with cameras while we were exercising in bed, we should say we were just rehearsing under the covers," left a deep impression on Fan Bingbing and made her feel uneasy.

The assistants, suppressing their laughter, left the room. A screen test late at night? Are you kidding me?

Fan Bingbing got up and locked the door. As she turned around, she heard Shen Qing's voice come softly, "Let's take a shower together. I can't wait for the audition!"

"Source Code" grossed $1044 million on its opening day, $1033 million on its second day, and $756 million on its third day, for a total of $2833 million over its opening weekend, ranking second at the weekend box office.

The champion was the animated film "How to Train Your Dragon," which also opened its doors, with a weekend gross of $4330 million. Third place went to "Gravity," which had been in theaters for five weeks, with a weekend gross of $1970 million.

截至2010年3月28日24时，《地心引力》华夏大陆票房13.3亿，超过了《阿凡达》刚刚创造的13.1亿的内地票房纪录。北美累计票房5.76亿美元，全球累计票房15.18亿美元。

There's probably not much potential left. But even so, Gravity's performance is still nothing short of miraculous. One could even say that, based solely on the film's quality, it shouldn't have achieved such high box office numbers.

In modern terms, this movie was like a pig that got caught in the right wind, blown to heights that it didn't belong to by the global 3D storm sparked by Avatar.

The group flew back to China on the 29th.

Shen Qing then focused her main energy on the preparation of "About Time".

The movie tells the story of Shen Qi, who, at the age of 21, learns a secret from his father: the men in his family all possess the ability to travel through time and space, which triggers a series of events.

The script has been handed over to the main actors. After returning to China, Shen Qing first organized a script reading session.

Li Xuejian and Wang Zhiwen are both veteran actors with profound acting skills. Liu Jia, who has collaborated with the male lead Shen Qi's mother multiple times and played Li Huanying in "Hi, Mom," is equally impressive. Shen Qing plays the male lead Shen Qi, possessing acting skills comparable to Zhang Yimou and Cheng Long at their peak, and can easily handle the role. Guo Jingfei plays the supporting role of the main character's best friend, also a talented actor. Fan Bingbing is an international superstar.

It's understandable that Liu Shishi felt immense pressure reading the script with such a group of people.

During the script reading, Liu Shishi showed a strong preference for sidling up with Mao Xiaotong, who played the male lead's sister Shen Yue, because Mao Xiaotong was also a newcomer. However, Mao Xiaotong, a graduate of the Central Academy of Drama, had formal acting training and her skills were still superior to Liu Shishi's.

Looking around, everyone seemed better than her, yet she was the lead actress. Liu Shishi couldn't help but glance at Shen Qing, who was organizing everyone to read the script aloud.

In the original film, the male protagonist, Tim, was originally from a small seaside town in Cornwall, England. He later moved to London for work, where he met the female protagonist, Mary. Shen Qing set the seaside town in Qingdao and changed London to Beijing. Filming is scheduled to begin in early April.

In early April, "Gravity" was granted another two-week extension to its theatrical run. On April 8, "About Time" officially began filming in Qingdao.

The first scene depicts the male lead's father talking to the male lead, Shen Qi, explaining that any male member of the family can travel to a dark space, such as a closet, and silently recite the time and place they wish to travel to. The limitation is that they can only travel within their own lives and can only travel to places they have been to and remember.

This scene was quite challenging, packed with information and a lot of dialogue. The fact that the father and son were seriously discussing such an absurd topic already created a lot of dramatic tension. Then, without realizing it, the two actors started acting out a scene. On the first day of filming, the first take of the very first scene saw these two award-winning actors, catching everyone, including themselves, completely off guard, immediately entering a state of intense acting, leaving everyone around them stunned.

One take.

Liu Shishi was right there when this scene was filmed, but she only found out about it from others afterwards. Looking back, she did think the two of them acted very well, but she really didn't know it had reached the level of a dramatic acting contest.

A few days later, they filmed the New Year's Eve party scene. In the UK and the US, there's a tradition of couples kissing when the New Year's bells ring, and Shen Qing retained this scene. Firstly, while China doesn't have this tradition, it's understandable; for example, the TV series "iPartment" features many party scenes. Secondly, this movie will most likely be released in the North American market, and retaining this scene will help North American audiences understand it.

This scene marks the first time the male lead uses his superpowers. Earlier, when the New Year's bells rang, the girl next to him was ready for him to kiss her, but he hesitated, making them both feel awkward. To verify his father's claim about his time-traveling ability, the male lead returns to the party he just ruined and bravely kisses the girl as the New Year's bells ring.

The girl being kissed was played by Tan Songyun, who was under Shen Qing's company. At the time, she and Mao Xiaotong were signed into Shenqi Film and Television Company by Chen Zhixi.

During the filming of this scene, Tan Songyun was stunned by Shen Qing's kiss. Shen Qing simply kissed her as written in the script, but who was Shen Qing?

He was her big boss, a famous director and star who made a blockbuster movie that grossed over $15 billion worldwide. He was also very young and handsome, exuding sexual tension and perfectly matching all the fantasies of a young girl like her.

"Everyone get ready, we'll film another take in a bit." After saying that, Shen Qing turned to Tan Songyun, who had already come to his senses, and said, "Don't be nervous, newcomers are all like this, we'll film another take in a bit."

Tan Songyun nodded emphatically upon hearing this.

The next day, the filming location moved to the beach, where Fan Bingbing and Mao Xiaotong sunbathed in their swimsuits. Fan was Mao's boyfriend's cousin, visiting the male lead's house. Beautiful and with a hot figure, the male lead was instantly smitten.

In the beach scene, Fan Bingbing's character, Xia Meng, asks the male lead, Shen Qi, to apply sunscreen for her. Due to excessive nervousness, Shen Qi applies too much sunscreen and spills it all over Xia Meng. He travels back in time to before the mishap and tries again, successfully applying the sunscreen to Xia Meng the second time.

"You kissed that young girl so hard she was completely stunned during yesterday's scene."

Fan Bingbing, who was lying on the blanket in a swimsuit, suddenly spoke after listening to Shen Qing's explanation of the scene. Mao Xiaotong, who was also lying on the blanket in a swimsuit next to her, turned her head curiously.

"Yes? It was just a normal kiss, wasn't it?" Shen Qing said.

Fan Bingbing said, "Judging from her state, could it be her first kiss, or maybe she's always had a crush on you?"

"Really? I don't think so. She's being mentored by Chen Zhixi, and we don't interact much," Shen Qing said.

Fan Bingbing suddenly turned to look at Mao Xiaotong, startling Mao Xiaotong who was eavesdropping. Fan Bingbing said, "You're also managed by Chen Zhixi, and you don't interact much with your boss. If you were the one kissing in that scene, would you be confused?"

"I...I...I..." Mao Xiaotong stammered for a long time without being able to utter a complete sentence.

A few days later, there will be another kissing scene, which is the kiss between the male lead Shen Qi and the female lead Ma Li before they go to bed for the first time.

Liu Shishi spent several days mentally preparing for this scene, even imagining that Shen Qing might deliberately yell "cut" or insist on multiple takes just to kiss her more times. In her mind, Shen Qing clearly had several girlfriends, yet he still flirted with her repeatedly. He specifically requested her to play the female lead in "Scarlet Heart" and invited her to play the female lead in his movie. Someone as scheming as him certainly wouldn't let go of this opportunity to film a kissing scene.

"Fine, if she wants to kiss me a few more times, let her kiss me a few more times. Consider it a thank you for letting me play Ma'ertai Ruoxi and Ma Li this time."

The day for filming this scene has finally arrived, and Liu Shishi thinks with a somewhat flustered feeling.

Before filming officially began, Shen Qing went to Liu Shishi's side to explain the scene to her. Liu Shishi listened somewhat absentmindedly, but she clearly heard the last few words.

"The photographer will take a picture of the back of my head from behind in a moment, so we don't have to actually kiss, we can just use a camera angle to convey the meaning."

""

Then Liu Shishi paused briefly, just like Tan Songyun had a few days earlier.

She had been mentally preparing herself for several days, even thinking about the possibility that Shen Qing might take the opportunity to kiss her endlessly. She had even considered eating garlic to prank him, but Shen Qing told her that she could just use a camera angle to fake it.

Then Liu Shishi suddenly felt a little ashamed.

Shen Qing was already acting alongside Li Xuejian in the very first scene of the production, and afterwards he was incredibly busy every day. He communicated with the cinematographer, coached the actors, and after work each day held meetings with the main cast and crew, showing them the rough cuts to check for any issues. With so many things to do every day, and doing each one meticulously and conscientiously, he simply didn't have the time or energy to scheme for a kiss from her!

If he weren't a workaholic, could he have made a movie like Gravity?

Liu Shishi looked at Shen Qing, who was talking to the photographer about camera movement, and suddenly felt that Shen Qing was really charming when she was working hard.

Actually, Shen Qing hadn't thought that much about it; she was simply following the original movie. In the original, there was a close-up of the male lead Tim kissing a girl at the New Year's Eve party—it was a real kiss—while when he kissed the female lead Mary, the camera only showed the back of her head. These kinds of camera angles are usually just a trick of perspective.

While the crew was filming in Qingdao, the TV series "Scarlet Heart" officially premiered on Beijing TV and Jiangsu TV.

The day after the premiere, Cai Yinong called Liu Shishi's cell phone at noon. The first thing she asked was whether Shen Qing had told her about the premiere ratings.

"No, K-sister, what's wrong? Has 'Scarlet Heart' aired yet? How's the reaction?"

"Last night's broadcast averaged a 1.6 rating on Beijing TV and a 1.5 rating on Jiangsu TV. Based on past experience, our 'Scarlet Heart' has a very high probability of securing the annual championship on both Beijing TV and Jiangsu TV."

Liu Shishi's heart pounded, and she asked, "Are your grades that good?"

Cai Yinong was equally excited, saying, "This is only the first day; normally, the price will rise further."

"Hmm." Liu Shishi suddenly remembered the scene a few months ago when she learned that Shen Qing strongly recommended her to play Ruoxi.

"Shi Shi, your name is on the Baidu Hot List. It looks like you won't even have to wait for the movie you're currently filming to be released. Once 'Scarlet Heart' finishes airing, you'll probably be a top-tier star, or at least a near-top-tier star."

After hanging up the phone, Liu Shishi was in a state of turmoil.

"Scarlet Heart," "About Time," ratings, top-tier, near-top-tier—various terms kept popping into her mind. Then, the scene of Shen Qing pulling her into his arms in the restaurant restroom that day also flashed into her mind again.

Her heart was in turmoil, and her mind was even more confused. That person's image kept flashing before her eyes.

When it was time to finish work at noon, Liu Shishi hesitated for a long time, but finally quickened her pace to catch up with Shen Qing.

"Director, did you know that 'Scarlet Heart' has premiered?"

Liu Shishi stopped Shen Qing from speaking, and the assistant director, director of photography, and others around Shen Qing all walked away in a tacit manner.

"Has it aired? I really didn't know. Chen Zhixi did call yesterday, but she didn't mention this. How was the reaction after the broadcast?"

"Sister K said the response was very good, with Beijing TV at 1.6 and Jiangsu TV at 1.5."

"This is indeed a very good result." As she spoke, Shen Qing looked Liu Shishi up and down and said, "After this drama airs, you'll be pretty much a top-tier actress. If the media ever ranks the 'Four Little Actresses' again, you'll definitely be on the list."

"Really?"

"More or less."

"director."

"Um."

"Thank you, I—I will repay you."

"Why say all this? We chose you because you are indeed the best choice for Ma'ertai Ruoxi in 'Scarlet Heart,' and the ratings prove it, don't they?"

Anyway—thank you.

In late April, Gravity finished its global run, with its final domestic box office reaching 14.6 billion yuan, a full 1.5 million yuan higher than Avatar's domestic box office. It grossed 5.7 million Hong Kong dollars in Hong Kong and 11 million New Taiwan dollars in Taiwan. While these figures seem impressive, they are still significantly lower than Avatar's. Avatar grossed 1.78 million Hong Kong dollars and 1.1 billion New Taiwan dollars in Taiwan.

Gravity grossed $5.97 million in North America and $15.83 billion worldwide.

Looking at the final box office figures, Shen Qing himself was in a daze. This time, he successfully rode the wave of "Avatar" to send Chinese-language films to an unprecedented height.