Entertainment: I am the peak

Chapter 99 It’s so high!

Although he didn't drink any alcohol, Li Qiutang felt a little drunk and had to vomit.

"Zhao Yanzi and Xiao Songjia are both well-known actresses in mainland China, especially Zhao Yanzi, who is probably the most popular actress in mainland China. But they could only play supporting roles to Xiao Qiao in Red Cliff.

“After watching the movie, I thought about it for a long time and wondered why Xiao Qiao was chosen as the heroine in Red Cliff and why she was given so many roles.

"Later I figured it out. He is tall, really tall." Li Qiutang gave a thumbs up.

"What do you mean high?" Lei Zhenjian asked.

"The idea is great, and the actual execution is great." Li Qiutang continued, "It's not that Zhao Yanzi can't play a supporting role, but it would be strange for anyone who is familiar with the film and television industry to let Lin Zhiling play a supporting role. Zhao Yanzi is a top actress, and she is given a new movie star as a supporting role. Lin Zhiling's status and value have risen immediately. This is a great way to promote someone."

Lei Zhenjian raised his own doubts: "It can't be said that they are deliberately promoting her. After all, no one thought that Xiao Qiao would become popular before the movie was released."

"I think the film company, or at least the director team, was aware of this," said Li Qiutang. "The director designated Lin Zhiling to play Xiao Qiao very early on, and was very determined. Then during the actual filming and editing, she was given so many scenes, and was eager to arrange a passionate scene with Liang Chaowei for her. It was obvious that they were trying to promote her."

“There’s nothing wrong with promoting newcomers.” This is indeed true. The beautiful vases in blockbusters are most suitable for promoting newcomers. Isn’t Megan Fox created like this?

"But this kind of operation is very suspicious. It's not that I have a prejudice against mainland China and Hong Kong and Taiwan, but the film company's casting and the role of the film force me to think in this way. The market for this film is definitely in the mainland and in Asia. Is Zhao Yanzi not as good as a newcomer who started out as a model in the mainland and Asian film and television circles?

"So I think he is using the mainland's first-line actors to support newcomers from Hong Kong and Taiwan in a planned and organized manner. You will see more and more such combinations in the next few years." This model started with "Red Cliff" and was carried forward a few years later. Li Qiutang doesn't think that he can put an end to this model by pointing it out now. His personal power is too weak.

Lei Zhenjian didn't care whether what Li Qiutang said was true or not, but asked him: "Why did this situation happen?"

"It's because the mainland market doesn't have enough say. Fundamentally speaking, the mainland market has not yet developed. Mainland audiences and investors have not really gotten rid of the mystique of Hong Kong and Taiwan, and we still have superstition about Hong Kong and Taiwan teams.

"In my two subsequent dramas after Comet, people wanted to insert Hong Kong and Taiwan actors into the crew, saying, 'If you use so-and-so, I'll give you an extra 200 million.' Some investors even wanted to take the project away and give it to Hong Kong and Taiwan directors."

Lei Zhenjian had never heard of this inside story before: "It is obvious that they did not succeed." Judging from Lei Zhenjian's contact with Li Qiutang in the past two years, this director is not very old, but he has a strong desire to control the crew and the project. In his eyes, people like supervisors and producers are there to work for him, and investors are there to pay him. He has the final say on how to shoot. Unless he wants to use them himself, it is extremely difficult to get people into his crew, let alone steal his project.

"Hong Kong and Taiwan films were once glorious, but now they are declining. However, there are still 3,000 nails in the broken ship, and the developing mainland market will take up these 3,000 nails. This is a normal phenomenon. It will be fine in seven, eight or ten years."

Lei Zhenjian didn't seem to agree with Li Qiutang's point of view. It was already 10 years later, so it was normal for him not to believe it: "What you said was all speculation. Let's get back to the movie. What do you think of the movie Red Cliff Part ?"

"I don't like the movie itself. The scenes are just okay, the acting is average, and the story is average." It's worth buying a ticket to kill time, but Li Qiutang still doesn't like it after watching it. "I can see that the director wants to oppose war and call for peace, but I don't understand why he opposed war in Red Cliff. If you want to make a new film, it doesn't have to be this new."

Finally, he did not forget to criticize Wu Yusen: "Maybe he learned the advanced Hollywood ideas in the United States."

The next day, Lei Zhenjian only did some simple editing, and the views expressed by Li Qiutang in the conversation with him were almost reproduced word for word in the report.

"Director Li Qiutang just returned to Beijing from other places, and accepted an exclusive interview with this website in the midst of his busy schedule. ... He is a typical Northeastern person, tall and straightforward, and speaks his mind. During the conversation, he told the reporter... He also has his own unique views on the recently popular movie "Red Cliff",..."

Li Qiutang's remarks caused a great response on the Internet, especially his statement that the method of using first-line mainland actors as supporting roles to promote newcomers from Hong Kong and Taiwan in "Red Cliff" will be promoted on a large scale in the next few years.

This method of promoting newcomers is not new. A large number of netizens questioned Li Qiutang's conspiracy theory to speculate on the intentions of the director and the crew. Actors from Hong Kong and Taiwan are very popular in the mainland now, and it is even "correct".

But Li Qiutang just didn't want to use it. However, all the films he made were small and medium-budget, and Hong Kong and Taiwan stars didn't even look down on them.

But Li Qiutang's criticism of "Red Cliff" was attacked by some netizens.

"You can only shoot low-budget movies, and have never made a big movie. What qualifications do you have to say that Red Cliff is not good?"

"The box office of one "Red Cliff" is equivalent to three of yours!"

"I didn't watch "Famous", in my opinion, Lee Ka Fai should have let Nicholas Tse play the role, but he couldn't invite Nicholas Tse."

The crew of "Red Cliff" did not respond to Li Qiutang's remarks. They were so busy collecting money that they had no time to pay attention to Li Qiutang.

Li Qiutang no longer accepted subsequent media interviews caused by these remarks.

After he and Lei Zhenjian had supper, they rested for half a day the next day and went to Bincheng. It was a bit hot in Yanjing in the summer, so he went to Bincheng to work and escape the heat.

The Qiuzhuang that Li Qiutang wanted has been completed, including the main building of Qiuzhuang, and some external facilities such as iron gates, suspension bridges, and guardrails.

This Qiu Zhuang is just a frame. It is impossible for the crew to shoot on the cliff by the sea. The interior scenes of Qiu Zhuang are all in the studio in Zhuolu.

Li Qiutang suddenly decided to invite her parents to Bincheng beach to play for a few days.

"Your dad and I are busy." Mother Li said before her son could finish, "I have so much to do in the store, why would I go to the beach with you to fool around?"

"What can happen to your little shop? Who watches tapes anymore?" Li Qiutang asked her to stop running the video store last year. This business is not making money anymore. Many video stores have closed in Yanjing this year. The store that Li Qiutang went to most often when she was a student also closed last month. The store was taken over by a barbecue seller.

"I'm not selling anymore. I'm clearing out the stock and opening a small store at the end of the year to sell cigarettes, alcohol, snacks and other things." On the phone, my mother was very proud of her own ability.

"Just keep on struggling. You don't even know how to enjoy the blessing you were given."

"I'm not too old to work, so why do I need you to support me? If you really don't want me to work, you can find a wife and give me a grandson, and I will do nothing to take care of your child."

"Why are you talking about this?" Li Qiutang said with a smile, "These past few years are the rising period of my career, and I don't have time to talk about love. Where is my dad? If you don't come, we can just play together."

"Your father is even less free. He is tutoring students."

Well, my parents don’t buy into my filial piety.

Li Qiutang said that he was in Bincheng now and would go home in a few days, and then hung up the phone.

(End of this chapter)