Huayu 1999: Starting with nothing but getting something for nothing

"Next, please watch the trailer."

Then the room lights went out, the projector light illuminated the screen, and the projector made a "whooshing" sound.

The trailer opens with Fan Bingbing turning around and smiling.

"real?"

The scene shifts to Fan Bingbing walking arm in arm with Huang Haibo, who looks pained. The camera pans down to show the moment when they are changing shoes.

Want to know a secret?

"What?"

I won't wear a bra on the day of the exam.

Everything

"What did you say to the professor?"

"I told you I wanted you to come with me to get an abortion."

"Professor, professor, that can't be real..."

Later, there are scenes of someone flicking their forehead on the subway, fighting in tight leather outfits, and dancing wildly in a bar, all using the original audio.

Soft smiles could be heard from the audience every now and then.

There were also whispered discussions like, "This actor is good," "This scene is so pleasing to the eye," and "Fan Bingbing is indeed beautiful."

Suddenly, the Canon in D major variations began to play, and then the scene changed to Fan Bingbing playing the piano, and Huang Haibo wearing a baseball cap and mask going on stage to present flowers.

The camera then circles around the two of them. The scene no longer switches, but dissolves, like a flashback, showing Fan Bingbing alone under a big tree;

A beautiful image of a person resting their chin on their hand, crying and laughing at the same time;

Xu Shaohua and Zhu Ling smiled at each other in the courtyard.

The scene shows Fan Bingbing entering the subway and Huang Haibo running and chasing her on the platform;

Finally, there's a scene where Deng Jie pulls Huang Haibo along, and the two meet again.

The second half, three and a half minutes long, was also the first time Yang Che had seen this trailer. Cheng Er's editing was amazing.

The first half is lively and features original dialogue; the second half has no dialogue, only the background music of Canon in D major. However, it is a relatively complete and touching love story that is completely different from the original film, but is edited from fragmented clips.

When the second half of the segment played, the audience became very quiet.

Many reporters were taking notes, and among them, Zhang Jiayu from China Film News probably took the most notes in her notebook. As a graduate of the Literature Department of Beijing Film Academy and a professional film reporter, she saw a lot in this trailer.

For example, she wrote: "Top-notch visuals, top-notch costumes and props, top-notch soundtrack, and competent acting." Based on the trailer clips and the reactions of her media colleagues, it can be inferred that this is a youth romantic comedy film that will make people laugh and cry.

Yang Che could only hear the two security guards behind him whispering to each other.

"Hey, isn't that Tang Sanzang?"

"And Zhu Ling too."

"And Consort Yi."

"..."

Amid applause, the screen went dark, and the indoor lights came on.

The applause was loud, and it was clear that most reporters, like Zhang Jiayu, thought the movie was awesome.

The high praise wasn't mainly due to the 500 yuan red envelope, but rather to Yang Che's "preconceived notions" strategy, coupled with the "using foreign influence" tactic unique to this era.

When the Japanese and Koreans said they were willing to pay a high price for the film's rights, the journalists had already labeled this film, which they knew nothing about, as the "best movie ever."

In the upcoming trailers, they will find various details to prove their point of view and include these points in press releases to encourage more people to accept and agree with them.

So, in future releases, as long as the movie isn't utterly terrible, they will continue to praise it as always, since they previously said it was good.

If you release the trailer first and then announce the price, it's like playing dumb to fool others, showing off and then getting slapped in the face. Is that satisfying? Not at all, it's utterly stupid.

That would most likely offend all the media present. They would think you were playing them for fools. They might not do anything to you, a behind-the-scenes staff member, but they would take their anger out on the people close to you or related to you present. And those close to you would think you are an idiot, a selfish idiot at that.

..........

While the trailer was playing, Dong Qing, who was sitting on the side of the stage, watched the two foreigners chatting casually and naturally. She realized that being handsome is not about appearance, but a feeling. From this perspective, Yang Che is incredibly handsome, and she has hit the jackpot.

When she returned to the stage, Dong Qing radiated relaxation and joy: "I want to say that this is the most beautiful movie scene I have seen this year. It seems that many of the reporters in the audience share the same opinion as me."

So how did they make such a film? Let's move on to the next section.

Please welcome screenwriter and producer Yang Che, director Cheng Er, production managers Liu Chang and Yu Wenhao, and actors Fan Bingbing and Huang Haibo to the stage to share their insights.

The microphone was handed to Yang Che: "Hello everyone, my name is Yang Che. I'll save more of the creative story for the movie premiere. Besides, today's main characters are Kazuo Fukasawa and Jung Byung-won, so you should all keep quiet. I guess the reporters think so too."

"no."

"I want to hear what you have to say."

"We're not in a hurry."

"..."

Yang Che shook his head again: "Please ask questions later, thank you."

After he finished speaking, he handed the microphone to Cheng Er.

Cheng Er remained expressionless: "Three months ago, I had just graduated from Beijing Film Academy and was assigned to Shanghai Film Studio. Before leaving, I was eating barbecue with my classmates near the school when a handsome guy at the next table struck up a conversation with us. He asked if we were in the film industry. He said he studied painting, had written a love story, and had even secured investment. He wanted to find someone to make it into a movie, and that's how this movie came about. That handsome guy was Yang Che."

This is the first time Fan Bingbing has heard of this. He's such a good brother, haha.

The reporters' eyes lit up immediately. This story was brilliant! It would be so eye-catching if written down. So they asked him to say a few more words, but before long, he had already handed the microphone to Liu Chang next to him.

Director Wu, sitting in the audience, whispered to Factory Director Zhu, "Has Cheng Er directed any works before?"

Director Zhu smiled and said, "I made a graduation project called 'Criminals,' which was filmed in Shanghai. The actors were all from Shanghai, and it received high praise. It even won an award at the Busan International Film Festival not long ago."

Director Wu nodded, clearly not believing in such a chance encounter story, but he was very satisfied with the young director Cheng Er, since he was one of their own.

Factory Director Zhu glanced at his secretary and nodded almost imperceptibly.

Secretary Zhang thought to herself: Yang Che, thank you for reminding me to talk to the boss about Cheng Er's resume...

"I'm the classmate who had dinner with Cheng Er. That day, Brother Che asked me if I wanted to be his assistant, and I said yes. Then Cheng Er and I gathered a bunch of classmates who had just graduated and some who hadn't graduated yet, and we started working together. It wasn't all students. For example, the oldest person in our crew was the cinematographer. The person who used to shoot GG was named Zhao Xiaoding, and he was 32 years old."

The reporters fell silent, simply taking photos, videos, and quietly documenting: An amazing young team...