A great director who grew up happily

Chapter 335 The Perfect Party A

"This must be Director Chen Jinnian, right? He's really young and promising, and a very handsome man."

Chen Jinnian followed Wang Yidi and as soon as he walked into the living room, he was surrounded by a group of enthusiastic uncles. They looked so familiar to him that if you didn’t know them, you would think they had watched Chen Jinnian grow up.

"No, no, it's all thanks to you."

Although he was still confused and didn't know the identities of these people, he believed that a strong dragon cannot defeat a local snake, so as a foreigner, it would be better for him to be polite.

After the greetings began, Chen Jinnian realized that these people in front of him were all from important backgrounds, and most of them held positions such as vice president of Zhuhai Film Studio and Cantonese Opera Theater.

Especially the gentle Zeng Xiaomin, who not only maintains herself well, but also looks like a beautiful young woman in her forties. Her resume is even more brilliant. She is an outstanding Cantonese opera actor, a national first-class actor, a member of the CPPCC, and the vice president of the Guangdong Cantonese Opera Theater. Just list one of them and she is a winner in life.

The other people on the opposite side were also filled with surprise. They knew that Chen Jinnian was a new talented director, but they were still shocked by his actual age. A commercial film director who was just a freshman in college was young, too young.

"What's the matter with you guys looking for me?"

After finding out the identity, Chen Jinnian asked the question in his mind directly. He really didn't know what the other party wanted from him.

"It's like this. My husband, Director Chen, should know Chang Hongmei."

When Chen Jinnian heard Mr. Wang from Zhuying mention this name, he immediately realized that Chang Hongmei was one of Wang Qing’s best friends and had invested in his film project during last year’s National Day.

"I heard from my wife that Director Chen has been staying in Shenzhen recently. I just happened to be back from Guangzhou for the New Year, so I thought of coming to meet him and get to know him."

Chen Jinnian raised his eyes. He knew that the other party was still practicing Tai Chi, so he asked, "Mr. Wang, since we are all familiar with each other, why don't you just tell me what you want to say? This will help me understand everyone's intentions and make sure I can act accordingly."

"Haha, young people are straightforward." Mr. Wang patted his thigh and continued, "Then I won't beat around the bush. To be honest, we came here to ask Director Chen to help us make a movie."

"filming?"

Chen Jin looked at everyone. His first reaction was not joy, but a hint of confusion. "Why me? There shouldn't be a shortage of candidates for director."

"The main reason we want to make a film is quite special. It is an opera film. We will create a Cantonese opera repertoire based on the folk myth The Legend of the White Snake. We have only two purposes in making the film. One is to complete the 4K film industry chain, and the other is to do our best to protect the increasingly declining Cantonese opera and let as many young people as possible see the treasures left by our ancestors." Dean Luo explained.

"So we chose Director Chen to shoot the film for this purpose. After all, only young people understand young people. People of our age can only guess your ideas. It's better to let you shoot it freely. We also learned that Director Chen has his own special effects production company, which is a perfect fit."

"Wait a minute." Chen Jinnian interrupted Dean Luo, "Let me sort it out first."

He ran to the TV in the living room. Wang Yidi's grandfather was a big fan of drama, so his family not only still had a DVD player, but also a large number of DVDs. He just picked up a box and brought it back.

"You want me to take this photo?"

"No, no, no." Dean Luo quickly rejected it. "Not this kind of traditional opera film. We want to shoot movies in a way that's close to young people. What's with the recent American revenge thing..."

"The Avengers." Chen Jinnian suggested.

"Right." Dean Luo clapped his hands excitedly, "That's it. We want to shoot that kind of thing. The Legend of the White Snake is considered a myth, so we want that kind of thing."

Chen Jinnian looked at Wang Yidi hesitantly, and seeing that she was also a little stunned, he quickly said, "Cantonese, with opera, and filmed like a visual effects blockbuster, no, the audience is too small. This is not a profitable commercial project. It needs at least 400 to 500 million in box office revenue to break even. I don't have the ability to get that much."

Chen Jinnian didn't even need to do the math, this project would definitely be a loss.

Unexpectedly, everyone laughed after hearing this. Mr. Wang shook his head and said, "Four or five hundred million? We wouldn't even dare to dream of it. We'd be content with a box office of ten million. Director Chen, you don't need to worry about the film's profitability. You just need to make it good enough to attract young people."

“So what’s the project budget?”

"There is no budget. Our two families will first contribute 100 million yuan. If it is not enough, we will continue to make additional investments." Mr. Wang said the most arrogant words in the most sincere tone.

"During the filming..."

"We will not interfere in any way. Director Chen can create however he wants. We only want the final effect. We want the best opera film in the country." Dean Luo replied.

Chen Jinnian admitted that he was tempted. Although he was not really needed as a director for a drama film and he could not give guidance to the actors, it was a good project for his special effects production company.

Moreover, the other party is simply the ideal client who fell from the sky. All they do is give money. As long as the work is done well, they have no objections.

At the same time, he explained: "No, that's not what I meant. I meant that during the filming, I need a Mandarin translation assistant. I don't understand Cantonese."

But this time, before they could say anything, Wang Yidi ran over excitedly and said, "You don't understand, but I do. I'll translate for you."

"If you translate for me, how are you going to ask for leave from school?"

Wang Yidi thought about it and realized that he could take leave to film, but how could he take leave to work as a translator?

"It's a small matter. We can just send an official letter to your school in the name of our company." Mr. Wang waved his hand casually. They are a legitimate state-owned enterprise, and it should be no problem for them to connect with the school.

After communicating these things, the only thing left is the script issue.

Chen Jinnian does not need to worry about the actors, the Cantonese Opera Theater will make the arrangements. The candidate for the role of White Snake is Zeng Xiaomin, who is the protagonist in the theatrical version of "Legend of White Snake". Now that it is put on the big screen, she is naturally still the undisputed leading actor.

After Chen Jinnian took the script handed over by Zeng Xiaomin, he sat down and flipped through it briefly, and then he found that there were quite a few problems.

The movie was derived from a theatrical performance, so its structure was quite complete. After reading the script, he could imagine that the actors' performances were quite mature, but the problem also originated from this.

A complete storyline means a long time, and he has a standard three-hour Cantonese opera script in his hand, which is just right for a drama but too long for a movie.

After all, not all movies have the same cost-effectiveness as Sammo Hung.

And it would be fine if it just took a long time, he also couldn't make any changes. There is a big difference between the lines in a play and the lines in a movie, with unique singing styles and pronunciations. If he deleted or changed things here and there, those Cantonese opera teachers would tear him apart.

In addition, the fighting scenes in opera are different from those in movies after all, so he needs a professional martial arts director to adapt them.

"Teacher Zeng, I'm an outsider, and you're a master in drama, so the script still needs to be edited by your Cantonese Opera House. I need it to be under two hours long, the shorter the better."

"Secondly, for the martial arts, I will hire a professional martial arts choreographer. Since it's going to be adapted for the big screen, I'll do it thoroughly and not be confined to the stage."

After hearing Chen Jinnian's words, Mr. Wang of Zhuying and Dean Luo looked at each other. They felt that they had found the right person today and the trip was not in vain.