Huayu Entertainment, all I can do is make bad movies.

After seeing off the dozen or so young people, Wang Hai went straight to Jiang Wu's house.

Squeezing through the thick circle of neighbors, Wang Hai was surprised to see the famous Jiang Wen.

The other person, with a cigarette dangling from their lips, glanced at Yan Ni practicing self-defense techniques for women and said with disdain, "Clumsy and slow. This is something even an 8-year-old can't defend against."

Wang Hai leaned closer and chimed in, "Indeed, Director, could you give me some advice?"

Jiang Wen turned his head: "We know each other? You're also in this production crew?"

Wang Hai laughed and said, "Well, how could anyone in the film and television industry not know you? As an actor, you're a top-notch actor; as a director, you made an exceptionally good film, 'In the Heat of the Sun'."

These words tickled Jiang Wen's sore spot, and he rolled up his sleeves and handed Wang Hai a cigarette.

Let's not even talk about "A Native of Beijing in New York," it's a TV series from several years ago.

His directorial debut, "In the Heat of the Sun," was truly amazing.

His very first film produced a Venice Film Festival Best Actor winner who was just over ten years old.

The film was featured in Time magazine.

Winning multiple awards at the Singapore International Film Festival and the Golden Horse Awards marked a significant milestone in his directing career.

This is something to be proud of.

Feeling quite pleased with himself for a moment, Jiang Wen asked curiously, "Hey, what's the plot of your film? I don't understand it at all!"

Wang Hai explained, "It's a comedy film that's like a play within a play. There's some zombie content interspersed in the film. Our crew is small and doesn't have much money, so we had to make do with the camera work."

A play within a play?

Jiang Wen ignored it.

The director looks to be in his early twenties. Does he have the ability to write a play-within-a-play storyline, or is he capable of directing it?

Zombie movies, on the other hand, are more likely.

Many people in their industry are influenced by early Hong Kong films and love to make movies that are absurd and unrealistic.

There is another reason.

Ghost movies are easy to shoot, with low requirements for costumes, props, and set design, and they don't require famous actors, making them perfect for new directors to practice with.

But there was a problem, Jiang Wen kindly said: "Zombie movies are not allowed to be filmed in China."

Wang Hai smiled and emphasized, "The zombies are part of the plot within the play."

Jiang Wen smiled faintly.

Good intentions are misunderstood.

Still stubbornly refusing to admit it, what kind of play-within-a-play is this?

Seeing Jiang Wen remain silent, Wang Hai had no choice but to take the initiative. While offering Jiang Wen a cigarette, he said, "Director, you have a wide network of connections. Could you introduce us to some theater staff because of your brother? Our film's release date is still uncertain."

Jiang Wen declined, saying, "Let's talk about it after you've passed the bureau's review."

As the elder brother, it is necessary to help his younger brother advance in his career when appropriate.

The problem is that Jiang Wu takes on too many niche films.

This means the movie won't get any promotion, and if no one watches it, there will be no box office revenue. It's better to save your connections for next time.

However, directly refusing is not a manly style.

They then used the veil of approval as a shield.

Wang Hai hurriedly replied, "Then it's settled. I'll trouble you again after the review is completed."

Jiang Wen scratched his head: "Who are you?"

Do actors in a film crew really need to work this hard?

"I'm the director and producer of the film," Wang Hai said with a smile.

Jiang Wen looked somewhat embarrassed.

Whispering behind someone's back is not something a real man should do.

Moreover, he belittled the entire film crew in front of the director.

Just as Jiang Wen felt utterly ashamed, the camera stopped rolling. Wang Hai quickly said, "You're looking for Jiang Wu, right? You two talk first, I also need to talk to the actors."

Wang Hai walked to the film set in a great mood.

Having bumped into Jiang Wu by chance and received a verbal promise, Wang Hai became increasingly confident about the box office performance of "Code Name 1".

The review process is indeed a problem.

But Wang Hai is confident that as long as the relevant personnel watch the movie, even if they skip to the end, they will find that "Code Name 1" has nothing to do with superstitious movies about zombies and zombies.

"Code Name 1" could be a comedy.

It can also be described as a work full of humanistic care, but it is definitely not a ghost movie.

The Jiang brothers whispered to each other, while Wang Hai walked towards Gao Yuanyuan.

"Your appearance and your performance are completely unrelated."

Gao Yuanyuan was completely confused: "What's wrong with me?"

"Your look is that of a tomboy, and your character in the play is also very lively, showing more of the behaviors that young people should have," Wang Hai emphasized.

Gao Yuanyuan looked confused, clearly not understanding what she meant.

Wang Hai was speechless. He pointed at the sofa and said, "Older people will walk around to the back of the sofa, but you, a crazy, hot-blooded young man, will probably just step on the sofa and slouch over it, understand?"

Gao Yuanyuan's eyes lit up, and she nodded happily.

When she acted in "Spicy Love Soup", the director told her that the female student should be gentle and weak.

The photos of the girls show a serene side of the young woman.

Including the script for a TV series she just received, "True Love is Like a Dream," her character is also sentimental.

She always had a sorrowful face in the photos.

Over time, she almost forgot that she was only 19 years old, and her acting seemed to become formulaic.

Although she only had a superficial understanding of acting.

Gao Yuanyuan glanced gratefully at Wang Hai.

This director, who is the same age as her, is amazing. He pulled her back from the brink of being prematurely mature.

She couldn't imagine what would have happened if the other person hadn't warned her; would she have developed terrible wrinkles in a few years?

Having honed their skills with ten-minute long takes, the crew found shooting short takes effortless.

Without Wang Hai having to lift a finger, Zhou Yang single-handedly handled the director's family's daily routine.

After dinner, the film crew moved to Sanlitun.

This is the most bustling area in Beijing, used to showcase Fan Bingbing's status as a female celebrity.

After setting up the equipment, Wang Hai pulled Fan Xiaopang aside to discuss the play.

Just one thing: portraying the affectedness of an innocent female celebrity.

Using eye drops instead of tears, and explaining in the dialogue that you can't spray something on your face, Fan Xiaopang still had to act pretentious to create a strong contrast with his later appearance covered in blood.

This is what is called character arc.

There are also points worth discussing. In this day and age, the internet is not well developed, so even young viewers have no way of knowing about celebrities' character, personality, or even private life, making it easy for them to lack a sense of identification with the characters.

Fan Xiaopang himself also questioned, "Why would an actor who's just making movies be so difficult to deal with?"

When she was filming "My Fair Princess", she was almost scolded to death by the director.

They wouldn't dare offend even an ordinary staff member.

Wang Hai had anticipated this.

Unfortunately, it was difficult to adapt, so I had no choice but to keep this part.

The short scene was quickly filmed, and as a light rain began to fall, Wang Hai led the crew back to the company to continue filming indoor scenes.

The TV producer invited Jiang Wu to act in a movie.

Director Jiang Wu was initially delighted, feeling that his luck had turned around. However, upon hearing the production company's requirements for filming, he instantly understood why other directors were not taking on this project.

The requirements were simple yet demanding: the filming process had to be broadcast live on television for 30 minutes, and he had to film it in one continuous take without stopping.

In other words, this is called a film, but it is actually a reality show that shows how a film crew makes a film.

What kind of weird movie is this?

Jiang Wu's pride was hurt, and he refused on the spot.

It wasn't until he discovered that one of the actors in the film was a young, handsome actor whom his daughter liked, and considering his stagnant career, that he hesitated for a long time before accepting the role in the film-within-a-film related to "Titanic".

"Power on..."

"Okay, OK..."

With each "OK" being said, the plot of "Code Name 1" moved quickly, and in just five days, it came to an end.

Wang Hai handed the last bit of the plot over to Zhou Yang and then went into the editing room of the Beijing Film Studio.

The long takes, lasting several tens of minutes, reduced the difficulty of editing, and the main feature of "Code Name 1" was completed in just one day.

It has many flaws compared to a typical feature film.

There is no background music.

The image quality is poor.

There were also issues with the live sound recording of the Sanlitun segment.

Overall, however, "Code Name 1" is a decent film.

The length meets the requirements for feature films and television series.

And the plot is complete.

Whether it can be shown in theaters and meet the audience is just one step away from being approved by the censors.