Entertainment: I am the peak

Chapter 33 I don't recruit you, you recruit me
Although "The Night the Comet Came" was only the third place during the Golden Week, Li Qiutang is undoubtedly the hottest director in the second half of the year.

And a box-office director is almost at the top of the food chain in the film and television industry.

The Busan Film Festival was Li Qiutang's first public appearance after the Golden Week of "The Night the Comet Came", which naturally attracted many domestic stars to come and cheer. Which actor doesn't want to meet a rising director?

Li Qiutang and Qin Lan stood on the stage. Neither of them spoke Korean. Qin Lan might have watched some Korean dramas and understood a few sentences, but Li Qiutang only knew one sentence, "Smecta". The two still greeted the Korean audience in Chinese.

But it was not known whether it was CJ's negligence or the carelessness of the film festival officials. The Korean host who worked as a part-time translator on site had a very heavy Chinese accent. He could understand Chinese and translate Li Qiutang's words into Korean for the audience, but Li Qiutang had a hard time understanding the Chinese he spoke.

But Li Qiutang even joked: "Your Chinese accent is a bit heavy, I'm OK with you speaking English."

But the host insisted on speaking in Chinese, so Li Qiutang had to try very hard to understand what he meant. She wasn't unhappy, it was just a little more work. This kind of situation often happens when doing activities abroad, and there are even poor translators at the Olympics.

"Director Li, this should be your first time in Korea and your first time in Busan. Is there anything that impressed you during your first visit to Busan? What do you think of the city of Busan?" Do locals like to ask foreigners this kind of question?

Li Qiutang couldn't just say that Busan was just average, so he just said, "Busan is a beautiful coastal city. I like the beaches and sunshine here." What else could he say.

But the Korean host seemed to be deliberately trying to lead Li Qiutang to talk about the advantages of Korea over China: "Director Li, have you tried our kimchi? You probably rarely get to eat it in China, right?"

Li Qiutang was not polite to say that. He sneered and then said, "It's okay, because those kimchi are usually placed in the free condiments area of the restaurant in China. You can take as much as you want. I usually try a little after the meal."

Qin Lan did not give the host a chance to speak and promptly took over the conversation: "If you have the chance to come to China, I will invite you to try our restaurant."

Zhou Xun, Andy Lau and others who were sitting in the audience were almost laughing like crazy. They didn't expect that this director was quite good at playing the role of yin and yang.

Not getting any good response from Li Qiutang, the host started the following process. He asked a few questions about the movie, then asked Li Qiutang and others to sit down in the audience and started showing the film.

Li Qiutang sat between Andy Lau and Zhou Xun, with Qin Lan sitting next to Zhou Xun. This is the reality of seating arrangements in the entertainment industry. Even though Qin Lan is the heroine of the movie, she still cannot sit with Li Qiutang.

Zhou Xun laughed at him: "The kimchi is in the free condiments area, take as much as you want. You are so mean."

Zhou Xun skipped the self-introduction part and started chatting with Li Qiutang as if they were very familiar with each other.

Li Qiutang shrugged and said, "He provoked me first. He treated kimchi and barbecue like a treasure."

Zhou Xun said she couldn't get used to eating at Korean restaurants: "Especially the soju, it's so hard to drink."

After chatting with Zhou Xun, Li Qiutang turned to talk to Andy Lau. In China, Andy Lau had never seen The Night the Comet Came. At this moment, he was staring at the screen and saying to Li Qiutang, "How did you come up with this kind of story?"

"It's all because I don't have money," Li Qiutang said honestly, "Even if I had money, I wouldn't shoot this kind of production."

Liu Dehua smiled softly and said, "You can come to me if you need money in the future." The success of "Crazy Stone" made him more confident in investing.

Li Qiutang laughed dryly, as if he accepted his words. He was not short of investment now. Liu Dehua was not well-known in the investment circle, so his money might not be able to be stuffed in.

Li Qiutang's mind was not on the movie. He was about to vomit after watching "Comet". Instead, he was answering questions to Liu Dehua in a low voice. He seemed to be quite interested in science fiction. Li Qiutang said that his was soft science fiction, or humanistic science fiction. It mainly played with science fiction concepts and could not play with big scenes: "In fact, soft science fiction tests the creators' grasp of the story more, because there are no spaceships and aliens, and no space battles. You have to fill the length with the most primitive dramatic conflicts and character contradictions. If there were spaceships, it would be easy. I would just blow them all up with bang bang bang. It would take five to ten minutes. There would be no story at all. The length would be enough." I'm talking about you, Explosion Baby.

But Andy Lau also said: "Audiences go to the theater to seek excitement, and bang bang bang is necessary."

"Of course, it's entertaining and visually stimulating," said Li Qiutang.

After the movie was over, the main creators returned to the stage.

Knowledgeable media critics and veteran movie fans actually like "The Night the Comet Came" very much. They can see the director's ability to create a unique experience. However, it is different for some ordinary audiences. Their understanding of science fiction is spaceships, aliens and the like.

Moreover, some people only remember the rewards and not the punishments. An hour and a half ago, the host was defeated by Li Qiutang, and an hour and a half later, the Korean audience came to provoke him again.

A Korean audience member stood up and asked in Korean, and the host translated: "Where do you think the gap is between Chinese and Korean films? What do Chinese films need to learn from Korean films?"

Li Qiutang ignored him: "Chinese films don't need to learn anything from Korean films. Next question." The Korean film market has been dominated by Hong Kong films for nearly 20 years and has been living in the shadow of Chow Yun-fat, Jackie Chan, Leslie Cheung and the Four Heavenly Kings. What qualifications do they have to say that Chinese films need to learn from Korean films.

Li Qiutang's indifferent answer made the host at a loss for how to translate it for a moment. He paused for a few seconds before translating the original words.

The Korean audience at the scene buzzed and started discussing.

Fortunately, there are still normal people in the Korean film industry, and the subsequent questions and exchanges were relatively friendly.

For example, a South Korean reporter asked about the support of the two countries for young directors. Li Qiutang said frankly: "In fact, it is not easy for young directors to come out all over the world. The external investment environment is naturally distrustful of newcomers. Newcomers cannot make films without investment, which falls into a vicious circle. Therefore, newcomers must seize every opportunity and go all out when they have the opportunity to make a film. However, sometimes you can also find investment in the market. For example, our Brother Hua has his own support plan for new directors." Liu Dehua smiled in the audience.

"When I was shooting Comet, the biggest difficulty was that no company was willing to distribute my film. I basically went to all the film companies in Yanjing, but no one was willing to take me on. In the end, China Film Group felt that my film had distribution value and accepted me back. Otherwise, I wouldn't be here now."

Then, Li Qiutang shared some personal insights. He believed that for new directors to stand out, they should not only keep looking for opportunities, but also improve their skills: "In fact, the film companies are not stupid. They know that you are a newcomer and may not be able to make a good film, but you have to let them see your potential and conquer them with your skills and ingenuity."

The premiere was quite successful, with heated debates and friendly exchanges.

After the premiere, the crew of "Comet" became busy. It was common to work twelve or thirteen hours a day. Li Qiutang ran around for various public or private activities and meetings.

(End of this chapter)