Huayu: The Big Players Behind the Scenes

As expected,

After "A Day with a Celebrity" aired on Beijing TV, it became a huge hit.

People are always interested in the private lives of celebrities, let alone the fact that this time the big star is Zhuang Huai'an, who rarely gives interviews.

This is also Zhuang Huai'an's little strategy. Scarcity increases value, and besides, he is a director. He can just create a buzz every now and then. His brand name has already been established, so he doesn't have to worry about a lack of audiences for his movies.

The interview was a pretense; the real purpose was to criticize the TV series.

After the seven-day National Day holiday, filming for "Chinese Paladin" and "A Deadly Secret" wrapped up one after the other.

Liu Yifei, full of energy, settled down in the 91 Recording Studio, determined to practice the song well and then pull Zhuang Huai'an together for a duet.

Li Zongsheng lived up to expectations and managed to persuade Luo Dayou to come over.

Although Lao Luo repeatedly emphasized that it was because of Zhuang Huai'an, Lao Li was still proud and believed that he was the one who deserved the greatest credit.

Zhuang Huai'an smiled without saying a word and didn't get involved in the argument; after all, he was the one who benefited.

After discussing it, Li Zongsheng, who was best at teaching newcomers and was the one who started it all, was assigned to take charge of Liu Yifei, the newcomer, while Luo Dayou was assigned to take charge of Zhang Liangying. This kept Wang Zhengliang, who was in charge of Hu Ge, very busy, running around all day, almost like he was learning from a master.

"Huai'an, are you really not planning to make your own album for fun?"

Ever since watching these songs, Luo Dayou has been asking Zhuang Huai'an every day. He feels that Zhuang Huai'an is talented and has a good voice, so it would be a pity if he didn't sing a few songs himself.

Zhuang Huai'an smiled and declined, "Let's talk about it later. As the boss, I can't steal the spotlight from my employees."

He really enjoys singing, but once a hobby becomes a job, it can easily become boring. It's fine to just dabble in it like this.

In contrast, Li Zongsheng was much more cunning. He felt resentful compared to Zhuang Huai'an's daily exhaustion and lack of effort, but he knew he couldn't persuade him. So he encouraged Liu Yifei to do it, as he had always suspected that there was something fishy going on between the two.

Of course, the girl wasn't stupid. She didn't want her senior to do things he didn't like, so she kept changing the subject, which made Old Li so angry that he called her a rebellious disciple.

Zhuang Huai'an greatly appreciated Liu Yifei's cleverness and presented a duet song, "Coral Sea," in advance. The line "Seabirds and fish fall in love, it's just an accident" perfectly captures the story between the male protagonist and the little girl in "Detachment," making it a suitable end credits song.

"Detachment" is intended to be sent to Berlin, and there are no plans to release it for the time being.

December 15th,

This is a day that all Chinese people should remember.

Shenzhou V spacecraft, carrying astronaut Yang, was launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center at 9:10 AM today. After orbiting for 14 times and lasting 21 hours and 23 minutes, it successfully completed all scheduled missions. Its return capsule returned to Earth at 6:23 AM Beijing time on October 16, 2003.

The success of the Shenzhou V mission marks China as the third country in the world to independently master manned spaceflight technology, realizing the Chinese nation's millennia-old dream of flying into space. It is a high-level embodiment of the wisdom and spirit of the Chinese nation and a new milestone for China's space program in the 21st century!

This grand ceremony is a cause for national celebration!

At the same time, the space agency did not forget the publicity task assigned by the Ministry of Science and Technology. They asked someone to pass on a message to Zhuang Huai'an, because they still had some follow-up work to do and could only send a few more experts over the New Year to assist the "Mars Rescue" crew in setting up the production.

Zhuang Huai'an naturally had no objection to this.

When it comes to national-level tasks, everything else has to take a backseat!

...

this day,

Wang Jing arrived at 91 Company with his prepared filming plans for "Veteran".

Zhuang Huai'an gave the script to a new Chinese company two months ago, but for some reason, Long Wu and his wife are only now preparing to launch the project.

Zhuang Huai'an gave Wang Jing, one of Hong Kong's most pragmatic directors, considerable face by personally greeting him at the elevator entrance, which made Wang Jing feel quite flattered.

"Director Zhuang, you dare not accept such praise." Wang Jing smiled like a Maitreya Buddha, showing none of the ruthlessness of the fat mantis.

"Director Wang is a senior, so it's only right that I come out to greet him."

After taking him to his office and making him tea, the two exchanged compliments for a while before Wang Jing finally got down to business.

"I haven't thanked Director Zhuang for specifically asking me to direct this script yet. Now everyone in the Hong Kong entertainment industry is saying that I, Fatty Wang, must have bribed you to get this opportunity."

Wang Jing was quite pleased with himself. Everyone said that he could only make nonsensical films about toilet humor, but Zhuang Huai'an, an internationally renowned director, chose him to direct the script for "Veteran." To outsiders, this was a sign of Zhuang Huai'an's high regard for him.

"It's mainly because Director Wang's abilities are undeniable," Zhuang Huai'an said meaningfully, handing over a cigarette. "I remember when I first went to Hong Kong, Director Wang also gave me a lot of face by attending Yinghuang's banquet."

It turned out to be the case.

Wang Jing suddenly realized that his small action back then had been remembered by Zhuang Huai'an to this day. No wonder he specifically asked him to direct the film. There is always a cause and an effect.

Shaking off the distracting thoughts in his mind, Wang Jing handed over a business plan.

"Director Zhuang, this is my initial plan. I've looked into the background of 'Veteran,' and I don't think Hong Kong or the mainland are very suitable. Lung Tai also plans to film in Taiwan. We've been coordinating the schedule with the big shots there, so it's been delayed until now."

Zhuang Huai'an smiled and accepted the proposal. Wang Pangzi's words were quite insightful. What coordination time? It was just that someone wanted a piece of the pie in this project, and the Long Wu couple couldn't refuse because of the other party's background.

In fact, most Hong Kong films don't have any so-called planning documents. They just come up with an idea and start filming, thinking about it as they go. Perhaps in order to show his face in front of Zhuang Huai'an, Wang Jing wrote a very detailed plan, which shows that he put his heart into it.

The male lead, detective Xu Dao, is played by Liu Qingyun, a commoner actor; the young detective is Yu Wenle; the housekeeper, Cui, is played by Lin Jiadong from Dongguan; the head of the Zhao family invited Zeng Jiang, the "Eastern Heretic"; and the victim is played by Lin Xue, the "Big Head Boy".

Interestingly, the character Zhao Tai is played by Edison Chen, who plays a female police officer in the film, and Zhang Baizhi makes a cameo appearance.

Tsk, policewoman, blank paper, does Long Tai have the ability to foresee the future?

Zhuang Huai'an closed the proposal, pondered for a moment, and said, "The character of Zhao Tai is too neurotic, and Chen Guanxi is a bit lacking."

Wang Jing immediately understood, "So, what does Director Zhuang mean?"

"Weren't you planning to film in Taiwan? I have some connections there. Director Wang knows Wu Dun, right?"

"Of course I know." Wang Jing was filled with respect, never expecting that Zhuang Huai'an, this seemingly gentle young man, would have connections with such a powerful figure.

"He has a young man under his tutelage named Zhang Shi, who is a good actor. Director Wang might want to consider him."

Wang Jing hesitated for only a second before nodding in agreement, "Since it's Director Zhuang's recommendation, I'll have someone contact him."

Zhang Shi, far away in Taiwan, sneezed for no apparent reason. After touching his forehead and finding that he didn't have a fever, he continued digging.

After finishing their business, the two continued drinking tea.

To be honest, Wang Jing is indeed very emotionally intelligent and has a long-term vision. He always manages to provide appropriate opening remarks for Zhuang Huai'an in his conversations. Zhuang Huai'an believes that his ability to play the supporting role is no less than that of the old man.

"Director Wang, are you available after you finish filming 'Veteran'?"

Hearing Zhuang Huai'an's seemingly casual words, Wang Jing's heart stirred, and he carefully replied, "For next year's schedule, I currently only have one TV series on the line, and other projects are still under negotiation."

"That's good."

Zhuang Huai'an smiled. "I also have a detective movie script. I wonder if Director Wang would be interested in directing it?"

Wang Jing smiled and said, "Since Director Zhuang invited me, I'm naturally happy to accept."

Zhuang Huai'an was referring to "Detective Chinatown 1," directed by Chen Sicheng, who is nicknamed "Little Feng Pants."

His original plan was not to plagiarize domestic films, but he didn't like this person, so he simply cut off his lineage.

As for why they didn't direct "The Crouching Dragon" and "The Young Phoenix," the reason is simple: although they had experience directing solo, they were still students and hadn't learned the model of commercial films.

They still can't handle this kind of large-scale outdoor film.

Wang Jing's directing experience is unparalleled in Hong Kong, so this is a good opportunity to bring in Zhuge Liang and Feng Xiaogang to learn from them.

Once we've accumulated enough experience and leveled up, we can co-direct Detective Chinatown 2 and 3.