Huayu: From charlatan to great entertainer

Chapter 128 Xiji Animation
After the roadshow ended in the evening, Lu Kuanzheng went to the banquet in a refreshed mood.

Today Jiang Zhiqiang is inviting back all the people from the entertainment industry in Taiwan Province who attended last night.

Chai Zhiping, known as the godmother of Taiwanese idol dramas, Wang Weizhong, the father of variety shows, and other big names in the film industry.

The person Lu Kuan was relatively unfamiliar with was a short and fat middle-aged man, but judging by how close An Yixuan was to him, he should be An's father.

The drinking culture in Taiwan is eccentric. It is common to force people to drink, urge them to drink, and toast at different tables, just like in mainland China.

The indigenous people can drink even more. They drink whenever they have nothing to do and drink it like water. Some tribes even drink from jars and their alcohol tolerance is endless.

But today, after all, we are talking about some well-known figures in the island's entertainment industry, so everyone just touched upon the subject briefly and started discussing the core topic.

The casting of "Chinese Paladin" and Lu Kuan's new movie.

The script for Boss Lu’s new film is almost finished, and it is still a feature film that focuses on both commercial and literary aspects: "Shoplifters".

This art film, which was later exclaimed by the media as being more popular than commercial films, was of course subject to more sophisticated and film festival-specific artistic processing.

Boss Lu looked at the crowd, each with their own agenda, and had to smile wryly, "Everyone, the movie script is still being polished, and we'll need to scout locations and draw up storyboards later, so we won't discuss that today."

"As for 'Chinese Paladin', besides the female lead, can anyone recommend one or two suitable artists?"

An Yixuan's original surname was Wu. Her father, Wu Anguo, asked Wang Weizhong beside him in a daze, "Boss Wang, isn't this a collaboration between Lu Kuan and Hunan TV in mainland China? He has the final say on the roles."

Wang Weizhong knew that he came here this time to pave the way for his daughter.

"Xiangtai released a statement on a mainland blog a few days ago, saying Lu Kuan participated in the filming as a producer and that he held all the rights to casting."

An Yixuan on the side couldn't help but be shocked when she heard this. She could just be considered a person in the entertainment industry.

It is not common for a personal cultural media company to take the lead in the cooperation with a provincial TV station.

The fact that Qiongyao occupies a dominant position in the cooperation with Hunan and Taiwan has its own historical reasons and cultural background, which is different from the cultural nature of Lukuan's Wenjie.

Chai Zhiping got straight to the point: "Director Lu, 'Chinese Paladin' is a product of a Taiwanese gaming company, and we are all very familiar with it."

"For the male lead, I'd like to recommend myself. What do you think of F4?"

"Whether it's popularity, appearance, or fan value, he's now in a class of his own."

The word "fans" has become popular after being popularized by Boss Lu. It is concise and vivid.

Boss Lu disagreed in his heart. What kind of acting skills do these four have?

Of course, he wouldn't refute it immediately: "Try it out on screen and see how they look in ancient costumes."

"Also, as the producer, my primary criteria for selecting each role is character compatibility and acting skills. I hope everyone understands this."

Chai Zhiping only had male artists in her portfolio, and it was not until 2005 that she signed her first female artist, Lai Ya-yen.

But other brokerage companies and people in the circle can’t sit still. The female lead is gone, but there are still so many supporting roles?
Among the three main female characters, there are Lin Yueru and Anu, and there are even more supporting male roles, some of whom have few roles but outstanding images.

However, when facing the Golden Lion Award-winning director who was visiting the island for the first time, everyone was cautious and did not want to leave a bad impression on him by randomly sending people to him.

After all, the beginning is the peak, combined with the box office of "The Drummer" which has been released for more than 20 days, and the strength of his cooperation with Hunan TV.

No one doubts the future development prospects of Lu Kuan and Wenjie Culture.

After collecting a large number of audition recommendations, Lu Kuan and Jiang Zhiqiang prepared to go back to the hotel to rest and recharge their energy for the roadshow in the evening.

"Guide, please wait!"

Lu Kuan was about to enter the elevator when he turned around and saw that it was An Yixuan and her father who had attended the dinner together at noon.

Maybe there's something on the table that's inappropriate to talk about?

"Mr. Wu, is there something wrong?"

Jiang Zhiqiang smiled and patted Boss Lu on the shoulder, nodded to Wu Anguo, and went back to the room first.

Boss Lu also nodded to An Yixuan. The little rabbit just trotted over from a distance, jumping around quite cutely.

It can be said that it has begun to take shape.

"Director Lu, there were a lot of people at the dinner table just now, that's what happened."

He gestured to his daughter beside him: "This is my daughter Xuanxuan. She just entered the entertainment industry and wants to see if there are any suitable roles in "Chinese Paladin". Hehe."

Wu Anguo certainly dotes on his daughter, but his eyes are also wide open, fearing that his daughter will suffer in the mixed entertainment industry.

Later, when An Yixuan was filming "Fighting Fish", she had an affair with Aaron Kwok. Wu Anguo directly gathered the younger brothers of the security company to intimidate the latter, and their nascent relationship ended.

However, such high-pressure management also fostered An Yixuan's rebellious psychology. When she was eager to break free from control and plunged into the big dye vat of domestic entertainment, she quickly fell.

For the sake of his daughter, this powerful figure, known for his connections in both the underworld and the underworld, had to resort to a cunning tactic, bypassing the entertainment industry insiders at the dinner table to snatch the highly sought-after Lu Boss. The three of them sat down in the coffee shop in the lobby of the upscale hotel, where the lobby manager and the hotel owner came over to greet them.

Wu Anguo's influence and social status are evident from this.

"Mr. Wu, I made it very clear at the dinner table just now. People are people, and drama is drama. It still has to be suitable in all aspects."

"Xiao An has a good image, but I think his acting skills might be a little lacking. It's better for him to audition first."

Wu Anguo knew very well what level his daughter was at, so at this moment he had no choice but to use the big stick of money to lure her.

"Director Lu, filming a TV series is not easy, especially a fantasy-themed drama like 'Chinese Paladin'. It definitely requires a huge budget for special effects."

"How about this? I'll personally invest in this TV series, and Xuanxuan doesn't want any remuneration. We can discuss the shareholding."

"Also, I have some connections with channels like CTV in Taiwan. I think they can help me sell the film and broadcast rights when the time comes."

What this means is that I pay the money and I can give you some of the shares.

Boss Lu sighed inwardly, if you had told me this a year earlier, there would have been no problem, but unfortunately, what he lacks now is not funds.

However, the special effects that Wu Anguo just mentioned did arouse Lu Kuan's interest.

As mentioned earlier, Boss Lu taught Eagle King Li Shoucheng and others a lesson, explaining how Hong Kong films declined under the iron hoof of Hollywood.

A very important timeline is the several major technological changes in Hollywood film companies.

In other words, the theme and branch of special effects science fiction films will increasingly become a hot spot for film companies and practitioners from all over the world to compete for resources.

At this time, it was still 7 years before James Cameron invaded the Chinese film scene with the power of Avatar.

Lu Kuan's foresight and foresight required him to accumulate capital for science fiction films, visual effects and related industrial technologies in advance.

Even though these things are now a Pi Xiu industry that is sure to lose money.

"Mr. Wu, I really have something I want to trouble you with."

"Are you familiar with Xiji Animation from the Bay Province?"

Wu Anguo was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "Of course, it's the best animation company on the island. I introduced some of their business to them."

Founded in 1988, Siggy Animation is Taiwan's top 3D computer animation production company. It has participated in the production of animated films such as "How to Train Your Dragon" and "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles".

Although it is not a pure-blooded visual effects company, it is enough for Boss Lu, who is just beginning to form a team.

All he wants are a few core members.

Boss Lu considered his words carefully before probing, "It's like this, Mr. Wu. I'm also planning to set up a visual effects company under my name, but it's really hard to find professional talent in this field in mainland China, so..."

Due to historical reasons, Taiwan has held an absolute technological advantage over the mainland in the electronics and high-tech industries for a long time.

This point cannot be avoided, but we can do some poaching articles during a period when cross-strait relations are less sensitive.

Xiji Animation will recruit some key personnel, and Baseus Special Effects, which is about to be established in China, will recruit some key personnel, and then recruit some technical talents with corresponding professional qualifications from the mainland.

Then, starting with this "Chinese Paladin", we used combat as training and slowly built up the special effects team.

It can also avoid the post-production company and partners having to pay large amounts of special effects fees to overseas companies when shooting special effects films, which would be a huge loss.

Boss Lu gave Wu Anguo a shot of confidence when he saw his hesitant look.

"Xiao An, I'll be back in the mainland in a couple of days. I'll give you an address. Come to Peking for the audition then."

"I think your image matches that of Anu and Lin Yueru quite well. You are all very pretty and charming."

An Yixuan grew up in a merchant family and was no stranger to the transactional rhetoric between her father and Lu Kuan.

But now, the young director whom he admired praised him generously and invited him to audition, and he couldn't help but feel his heart beating faster.

She glanced at her father secretly. Wu Anguo had no idea what to do when he saw her look on his face. He was a daughter slave after all.

"Director Lu, I can't guarantee anything, but I'll do my best. Give me a rough list of the technicians you'll need, or the departments you'll need, or whatever. Just give me a rough guide."

"Let me figure it out!"

Boss Lu was delighted: "Great! Mr. Wu is really generous! It's settled."

To recruit people from high-tech enterprises in Taiwan, it is not enough to just have money. Of course, family factors, cross-strait political environment factors, etc. must also be considered for core backbone employees.

With Wu Anguo, who is good at both black and white, taking care of this matter, Boss Lu can still look forward to it.

(End of this chapter)