Rebirth 02, the Celestial Being Told Me to Stop Pretending

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Lu Chen drove to Beijing Film Academy the next day.

He parked his car downstairs at the entrance of the building, went up to the third floor, and knocked on the door at the end of the corridor.

"Enter."

Pushing open the door, I saw Tian Zhuangzhuang sitting behind his desk, wearing reading glasses and reading a script. His face immediately lit up with a smile when he saw Lu Chen.

"What brings you here, kid? Something wrong?"

"Can't I come to see you if there's nothing wrong?" Lu Chen walked to the table, took out a can of tea, and said, "This isn't a gift, but you can have some."

Tian Zhuangzhuang took off his glasses and pointed to the chair next to him. "Sit down. What have you been busy with lately?"

"Busy with company matters, preparing to move."

Tian Zhuangzhuang pointed at him with his finger. "You're something else, kid. You've only been out of school for a short time, and you've already started a big company."

"Good luck."

Tian Zhuangzhuang waved his hand. "Don't give me that."

Lu Chen smiled shyly and didn't reply.

Tian Zhuangzhuang poured him a cup of tea. "You're only twenty-three, don't push yourself too hard."

Lu Chen was stunned for a moment, just about to say something.

Tian Zhuangzhuang waved his hand to interrupt him.

"Alright, I know you have other things to do. I'll accept the tea. Next time you come, don't bring anything, just come in person."

"Alright, Teacher Tian, ​​you go ahead with your work."

Lu Chen walked to the door and glanced back.

Tian Zhuangzhuang had put his glasses back on and continued reading the script.

Lu Chen walked out of the Faculty Building and arrived at the entrance of Room 302 in the Literature Department Teaching Building.

Before long, he saw students coming out in twos and threes after class, and some of them recognized him and greeted him politely.

"Director Lu."

"Greetings, Senior Brother Lu."

Lu Chen nodded without saying anything more.

After most of the students had left, he pushed open the classroom door and entered, carrying a brown paper bag in his hand.

A woman in a gray cardigan is tidying up teaching materials on the podium.

Xue Xiaolu.

A part of the director's matrix in the future coordinate system.

"Teacher Xue."

Xue Xiaolu raised her head.

"Who are you……"

She only recognized him when Lu Chen got closer.

"Lu Chen, is that right?"

"right."

Xue Xiaolu adjusted his glasses.

"Why did you end up in the literature department?"

"I came to see you." Lu Chen straightened up and handed over the brown paper bag.

"Take a look at this."

Xue Xiaolu opened the paper bag, inside was a script outline, the cover of which read "Love is Not Blind for Thirty-Three Days".

"What is this?" She turned two pages.

"Movie synopsis. It tells the story of a girl 33 days after being dumped."

The students had all left, and the classroom was quiet.

The only sounds were the chirping of cicadas outside the window and the rustling of Xue Xiaolu turning pages.

She paused for a moment when she turned to the page about the female lead's character.

"Huang Xiaoxian, 27 years old, a high-end wedding planner. She has planned hundreds of weddings for others, but she never expected that her boyfriend of seven years would get together with her best friend."

Xue Xiaolu raised her eyebrows slightly.

She continued flipping through the pages, stopping again when she reached the male lead's character description.

"Wang Xiaojian, Huang Xiaoxian's colleague. He looks effeminate, speaks with a sharp tongue, and is always at odds with Huang Xiaoxian. But during her heartbreak, he was the only one who stood by her side."

Xue Xiaolu's breathing slowed down.

She turned to the last page and closed the outline.

The cicadas chirped one after another.

"Director Lu." Xue Xiaolu looked up, her gaze shifting from polite appraisal to serious scrutiny.

"You contacted me wanting me to write this script?"

"Not only that," Lu Chen said.

"I want you to direct. You can be the director."

Xue Xiaolu was stunned for a moment.

"I've never made a movie."

"Teacher Xue, you should be able to tell that this is a film targeted at women. You could also call it a chick flick."

Xue Xiaolu shook his head.

"Chick flicks are romantic comedies told from a female perspective. They originated in Hollywood in the late 20th century. Films like *Legally Blonde*, *The Devil Wears Prada*, and *Bridget Jones's Diary* are examples of this genre."

Xue Xiaolu's eyes lit up.

"It's not that the market doesn't need films aimed at women; most of them are male-dominated, focusing on power, gangsters, and brotherhood. What are women in these films? Background characters, accessories."

He paused.

"But 52 percent of the audience sitting in the cinema are women. So the Chinese market also needs chick flicks."

Xue Xiaolu looked at him, her eyes different from before.

"Love is Not Blind is a standard chick flick. The target audience is women aged 18 to 35. It's about urban life, love, heartbreak, and growing up. Male directors can't make this kind of film well; they don't understand women's minds."

Lu Chen knew that "Love is Not Blind" was directed by Teng Huatao in his previous life, and it was not bad, but he always felt that it lacked subtlety.

"What do you mean?"

"Male directors film heartbreak by showing men getting drunk in bars, running in the rain, or chasing after someone at the airport. But it's not like that for women when they're heartbroken. You understand that better than I do."

Xue Xiaolu's fingers tightened slightly, her expression showing some interest.

"These are details that male directors can't capture on film. But you understand."

"Director Lu, why me of all people?"

"Your screenplays, such as 'Don't Talk to Strangers,' 'Together with You,' and 'Autumn Rain,' are all from a female perspective. You understand stories better than most directors, and you understand women even better."

"Writing a screenplay and making a movie are two different things."

"They are two different things. But what you lack is not ability, but opportunity."

Xue Xiaolu gently placed her hands on the outline.

Lu Chen pressed his advantage, "Six million in budget. Released next Valentine's Day. You write the script, you direct. All I ask is authenticity."

"reality?"

"Yes. I don't want elegance or romance. I want you to capture the most authentic side of a woman when she's heartbroken."

Xue Xiaolu looked at Lu Chen, her eyes filled with hesitation.

"Director Lu." Her voice was a little low.

"I've been writing screenplays for ten years, but I've never directed a film. I'm afraid..."

"What are you afraid of?"

"I'm afraid I'll mess it up."

Lu Chen stared intently at her face.

"Teacher Xue, do you know why your scripts are so good?"

Xue Xiaolu shook his head.

"Because the women you portray are not the women men imagine, but real women. Most directors never learn these things in their entire lives."

Xue Xiaolu adjusted her glasses again.

"What you lack is the experience of sitting behind a monitor. That's something you can get by filming one movie."

Xue Xiaolu was silent for a while, then she took a deep breath.

"Okay, I promise."

Lu Chen nodded, not showing much excitement.

"But there are two conditions," Xue Xiaolu said.

"Please speak."

"First, I'll revise the script myself; you can't interfere."

"You're the director, you call the shots."

"Secondly, I want to choose the actors myself."

"Sure, but the female lead is set as Su Chang, you should know her."

Xue Xiaolu thought for a moment and nodded.

"Yes, she's suitable."

"Then there's no problem. Come to the coordinate system office for a meeting next Monday morning at nine o'clock."

"What kind of meeting is it?"

"Strategy meeting. You'll find out when you get there."

After leaving the Beijing Film Academy, Lu Chen called Wang Yan.

"Have you found a new office yet?"

"Found it. Wangjing, 800 square meters, an entire floor."

"Moving tomorrow. Meeting the day after tomorrow."

"So urgent?"

"We can't delay any longer."

"it is good."

Lu Chen hung up the phone and drove home.