This director loves making friends.

Last year, when Qin Keqing finally accumulated 10 points, he decided without hesitation to use them to try "making friends".

This can be considered one of his experiments.

What if the "good friend" system is just his self-indulgence and imagination?

There's a saying, "Early detection, early treatment..."

Therefore, it is still very necessary to verify it as soon as possible.

However, Qin Keqing hesitated on the issue of who to choose.

Logically speaking, it would be best to use it on "people around you", such as the crew members of a movie where Qin Keqing will be an extra.

The best goal is to become a director.

The director is usually the "biggest" person in the crew, and under normal circumstances, it's impossible for him to become friends with an extra, even a casual acquaintance.

But what if something abnormal happens?

Just like Wang Baoqiang, didn't he also get to know the director as an extra?

Therefore, Qin Keqing decided to go all out.

So he used those 10 points on Zhang Yimou, thus becoming acquainted with Zhang Yimou and forming a casual friendship.

Qin Keqing was considering that Zhang Yimou was the first mainland Chinese director to win the highest award at one of the three major European film festivals. He won the Golden Bear at the 38th Berlin International Film Festival in 1988 with "Red Sorghum," which was also the first Asian film to win the Golden Bear.

Zhang Yimou rose to fame overnight and is now one of the most influential directors in mainland China.

Judging solely from awards, at least so far, there is no director in mainland China who can stand shoulder to shoulder with Zhang Yimou. Although the great poet Chen Kaige became famous earlier than Zhang Yimou, he has not yet won the Palme d'Or at Cannes, and at most he can only be considered a well-known director in China.

If it only takes 10 points to get to know Zhang Yimou, even if they become just casual acquaintances, it would still be a great gain for Qin Keqing.

And it also proves that "making friends" is really useful.

However, after binding, Qin Keqing was a little confused. How could she know the effect?

It's impossible for Zhang Yimou to tell everyone he knows Qin Keqing for no reason.

So how can we prove the truth of this matter? If it comes true, and he becomes a casual acquaintance with Zhang Yimou, what role can he play...?

Qin Keqing was filled with doubts.

About a month passed like this, and Qin Keqing began to doubt himself. He began to doubt whether his reincarnation was real, and he began to doubt whether the so-called system was just an unrealistic fantasy of his...

He even began to doubt whether he was really as crazy or possessed as his father had said.

A few days later, he became an extra in the film "Divorce" produced by Beijing Film Studio. While waiting for his turn, a "miracle" happened.

Qin Keqing was waiting on set when he glanced up and almost blurted out "Holy crap!"—he saw Zhang Yimou!

Qin Keqing didn't know if it was the system's doing or if this was bound to happen, since Zhang Yimou had a purpose in coming to this film crew.

Zhang Yimou was walking towards the director of the film crew when he inadvertently looked up and made eye contact with Qin Keqing, and an unexpected situation occurred.

Zhang Yimou hesitated for a moment, I don't know what he was thinking, maybe he was considering that it was not good to disturb the director who was filming at the moment.

So, he took a step and stopped next to Qin Keqing, without saying a word, silently watching the filming crew.

Qin Keqing was stunned.

Perhaps because the media was not as developed in that era, even though Zhang Yimou had won the Berlin Golden Bear and was very well-known, not many people actually knew him.

At least the other extras didn't recognize him.

It's understandable that although Zhang Yimou won the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival with his directorial debut "Red Sorghum," which can be described as a peak right from the start, the other three films he directed between "Red Sorghum" and "The Story of Qiu Ju" did not have much "impact".

"Code Name: Jaguar" was co-directed by Zhang Yimou and Yang Fengliang. Although it was released in mainland China, it didn't have much impact.

Due to its subject matter, "Ju Dou" was not allowed to be screened on a limited scale until September 1992. At the time when Qin Keqing met Zhang Yimou, "Ju Dou" was still banned.

"Raise the Red Lantern" also did not receive a public screening permit due to co-production and subject matter issues, and it was not until September 1992 that it was approved for limited release.

Therefore, although Zhang Yimou was very famous, he only had two films released in China at that time.

Others may not know Zhang Yimou, but Qin Keqing does.

Then, on a whim, he blurted out, almost without thinking, "Are you here to be an extra too?"

Zhang Yimou was visibly taken aback. He glanced at Qin Keqing, smiled—a rare occurrence—and said in a low voice, "I'm here to find someone."

Then, he pointed to Liu Peiqi, who was filming, and said, "That's him."

Qin Keqing looked over and suddenly realized what was happening.

He must have seen Zhang Yimou's "The Story of Qiu Ju" in his past life, after all, this film was the first mainland Chinese film to win the Golden Lion Award, and its influence was still very significant.

Liu Peiqi is Qiu Ju's husband in "The Story of Qiu Ju," the one who was beaten, and the one who leads to the subsequent story.

And so, the two chatted on set for a while, and surprisingly, there wasn't a dull moment.

Everyone says Zhang Yimou is a man of few words, but Qin Keqing has a different opinion. He thinks Zhang Yimou is actually quite talkative.

Qin Keqing also half-jokingly said that he was particularly interested in movies, that he was a recent college graduate, and that he had taken a leave of absence without pay at his workplace to pursue his dreams...

They chatted briefly for about ten minutes. After they finished filming a scene, as Zhang Yimou was about to go over, Qin Keqing asked in a somewhat joking tone, "Director Zhang, does your crew need any more extras?"

To everyone's surprise, Zhang Yimou paused for a moment, then said, "It's not good for a college student like you to be an extra. How about this, you come work as a production assistant on my set."

And so, Qin Keqing "unexpectedly" worked as a production assistant on the set of "The Story of Qiu Ju" for three months, from the autumn equinox of 91 to winter, in a remote village called Shiyaohe in western Shaanxi Province.

However, during filming, Zhang Yimou did not take special care of Qin Keqing. The two barely spoke to each other during the three months of filming.

Come to think of it, the two were just casual acquaintances. Zhang Yimou assembled a whole film crew, and probably most of the staff knew him, right? There must have been quite a few who were more than casual acquaintances.

To Qin Keqing's regret, even after working as a stagehand in the "The Story of Qiu Ju" crew for three months, he only earned 1 point. In addition, he earned another point by making a cameo appearance, for a total of 2 points in three months.

Although it took more time and the work was more complicated, I wouldn't say I regret it.

Furthermore, the fact that "The Story of Qiu Ju" has now been nominated for the main competition at the 49th Venice International Film Festival has unexpectedly brought Qin Keqing 3 points, making him even more satisfied.

Moreover, Qin Keqing knew that if nothing unexpected happened, the movie had won the Golden Lion. Would there be any additional awards?

Qin Keqing was quite pleased when this was mentioned.

He recalled that what truly cemented the great poet Chen Kaige's legendary status, and was also his most outstanding work, was "Farewell My Concubine," which won the Palme d'Or at Cannes.

The film "Farewell My Concubine" was shot in Beijing for several months this year. Qin Keqing was an extra in the film in June. When "Farewell My Concubine" goes to Cannes next year, he will have another "unexpected" point to earn.

Entering the main competition section earns you 3 points. If you win an award, you'll definitely get even more points, right?

At this moment, Qin Keqing wished that every movie she starred in would win an award.

However, this is something that can only be encountered by chance... No, Qin Keqing suddenly thought that before Zhang Yimou transitioned to making "Hero", he had won numerous international awards. Could he make something of that?

You can earn points at the Venice Film Festival. I guess the Cannes Film Festival and the Berlin Film Festival, which are also part of the three major film festivals, are in a similar situation?

I wonder if the three major Chinese awards—the Golden Rooster Awards, the Taiwan Golden Horse Awards, and the Hong Kong Film Awards—will also award this many points.

Those who know Zhang Yimou know that many media outlets describe him as "not good at small talk," "silent when away from work," and "ashamed to show goodwill," among other things.

However, the Zhang Yimou that Qin Keqing met was clearly different. They had a very pleasant conversation. From this, it can be roughly seen that the other party was influenced by the system and first developed a liking for him, that is, he found him pleasing to the eye.

After this incident, Qin Keqing analyzed it carefully for a long time and realized that there are actually limitations to "making friends".

First of all, the fact that points can only be earned in the film and television industry tells us that the friends we can make with points are only people in the film and television industry, a point he has verified.

People from other industries simply cannot be found in the system, and therefore cannot be linked as friends.

In addition, to be bound to someone, you must first meet that person and be able to strike up a conversation. If you can't meet the person or strike up a conversation, then being bound to someone is useless.

Qin Keqing set two tangible small goals for herself for the time being.

Firstly, if possible, try to improve your friendship with Zhang Yimou, and ideally, get a minor role in one of his subsequent films to "farm" points for European awards.

Secondly, try to go to Hong Kong. These past few years have been the last golden age of Hong Kong cinema, and earning points there is much easier than on the mainland.

Of course, Qin Keqing would also think carefully to see if he could recall any other films that could win awards at the three major European film festivals, as this was a "shortcut" to quickly gain points.