Huayu: From charlatan to great entertainer

Chapter 49 Tian Zhuangzhuang and Qingying Studio

In 2002, Beijing had already begun to show signs of the morning rush hour. Lu Kuan got up very early, but still arrived late, and did not arrive at the Beijing Film Academy until after 9 o'clock in the morning.

Today is the day when the results of the fourth exam will be announced.

Beijing Film Academy is a very small campus, so small that it does not have the standard facilities that other universities have, such as commercial streets, low-rent housing, and snack streets.

On the day of the results announcement, the north side of Jimen Bridge was once again difficult to walk on.

Lu Kuan followed the queue of people, listening to the female host of the media broadcasting with the microphone.

"Hello everyone, today is the day when the results of the fourth Beijing Film Academy exam are released. We are currently standing at the entrance of the Beijing Film Academy."

The female host motioned for the camera to zoom out: "Everyone can see that there are already huge crowds of people."

"We previously received this year's data from the Beijing Film Academy Admissions Office. The most popular acting department had 4000 applicants this year, and the acceptance rate was a staggering 1:130!"

Lu Kuan drifted in the crowd with an expressionless face. There were 4000 people from the acting department alone who came to see the list today, and it would be impossible for this team to squeeze in for the time being.

If he was squeezed to the point of losing limbs today, Xu Jinglei and Zhao Wei would be fully responsible.

It is no exaggeration to say that the popularity of the two of them, especially Zhao Wei, after "Return of the Condor Heroes", has completely ignited the enthusiasm for applications to the two art schools in Beijing.

"Excuse me, classmate, are you a candidate this year?"

Being called out for no apparent reason, Lu Kuan was stunned for a moment, then he smiled and answered the question with a camera-ready smile: "Yes."

"Excuse me, are you applying for the acting department?"

"Directing Department."

The female host couldn't squeeze to the front for a while, so she just took advantage of the width of the road and squeezed as much interview material as possible to accumulate more for editing.

"You have good looks. Why did you choose the directing department instead of the acting department?"

Lu Kuan then took a quick look and realized that it was Jin Wei from the "Movie Channel". She officially hosted the "China Film Report" in 2003, and it seemed that she had just made it to the location shooting.

Since he had nothing to do anyway, Boss Lu decided to chat with her about ten dollars.

"Why did I apply to the directing department? Because I could have made a living relying on my looks, but in the end I chose to rely on my talent."

Jin Wei and the cameraman were stunned. They had never seen a student speak like that. It was so eccentric.

She gritted her teeth and continued the interview: "You probably haven't seen the list yet. What would you do if you failed the exam?"

"Go home and inherit a billion-dollar fortune."

"Hahaha!" The crowd burst into laughter. Even if his expression was calm, everyone could tell that he was joking.

Jin Wei, however, felt that such a program would have a better effect and gave a very positive response: "They say that gold will always shine. I think you shouldn't be discouraged if you didn't pass the exam. There are still many opportunities in life."

Boss Lu couldn't drink her bowl of chicken soup: "Only gold can shine, I am a piece of broken glass, I can only reflect light!"

Liu Xiaoli and her daughter were also in the crowded crowd at this time, not far from the small circle of interviewers. The little girl was frequently amused by his classic quotes.

"Sissi, this path is quite humorous."

The scene at the stairs that day still flashed before Liu Yifei's eyes, and she blurted out: "Well, I just don't like washing my hands."

"what?"

Jin Wei was so amused by his words that he was out of breath. He decided to dig up the truth about this funny guy today.

"Everyone knows that the four rounds of interviews for the directing department at Beijing Film Academy are extremely difficult. Do you have any tips or experiences that could impress the judges?" "No, if you want to impress the judges, you should learn welding, not directing."

“Hahahaha!”, “This must be from the crosstalk department!”

Since they couldn't form a line anyway, the students and parents around simply stopped and watched the live broadcast. Listening to this young man talk was more interesting than watching the Spring Festival Gala.

The photographer winked at Jin Wei, who nodded in acknowledgement and began to wrap up the interview. "Okay, thank you for your kind advice, classmate. I wish you a good score on the list!"

Lu Kuan looked at his watch and prepared to turn around and leave. He asked Zhang Songwen to find someone to take a look at the list for him.

I finally squeezed out of the crowd and suddenly felt someone patting my shoulder. What I saw was an old man with wrinkles on his face.

"Don't look at it anymore. You ranked first in the four tests. Now prepare for the cultural exam."

"Hello Teacher Tian!"

Lu Kuan thought that when he felt sleepy, someone would hand him a pillow. This was a good opportunity for him to get close to this highly respected director so that he could get in touch with Qingying Studio.

Young people in the post-entertainment era seem to know very little about this director who was a contemporary of Zhang Yimou and Chen Kaige, because his works are too few and too obscure. The biggest label of his works is: incomprehensible.

His debut film, September, which is considered a "movie that is difficult to understand," was screened at the Beijing Film Studio. Afterwards, the audience was as quiet and polite as they were during the film itself, because they simply couldn't understand it and couldn't discuss it.
His "Hunting Ground Zasa" made his superiors angry because it was too obscure and difficult to understand. It was only approved by the Dutch documentary director Ivens, who was the artistic consultant of the Ministry of Culture at the time. As a result, he immediately made "The Horse Thief". This time, even his die-hard fan Ivens couldn't stand it anymore, and secretly asked Tian Zhuangzhuang at night: Can you play it for me again?

However, the film was later requested to be sent to Venice by Bertolucci, who was filming "The Last Emperor" in the Forbidden City. He was the chairman of that film festival.

Putting aside his artistic attainments, he is a virtuous elder, which is recognized by the industry. He spares no effort to help his colleagues and juniors in the film industry as long as they have their needs.

It’s a pity that there was a golden scissors among the disciples, causing trouble in the secondary market.

"Teacher Tian, ​​I have a script I'd like you to take a look at."

Tian Zhuangzhuang looked at him in surprise, thinking that he was just an ordinary high school student. Thinking of his evaluation of Zhang Yimou's script on the stage that day, he led him to the Beijing Film Studio next door.

With this person's qualifications and family background, he can be easily recognized at the Beijing Film Studio. After finding an office, Tian Zhuangzhuang leisurely watched Lu Kuan's "Whiplash".

After reading it through, he nodded secretly at the standard Hollywood structure.

Several shots are also used very cleverly, such as the close-up of the three clocks before the teacher solemnly enters the rehearsal room, and the opening of the movie from far to near and then from the long shot to the protagonist.

"The script is good, and you have your own ideas for lighting and photography. Do you have some basic directing skills?"

Lu Kuan smiled modestly and said, "I was just figuring it out, haha."

"Where is the filming team? Is there anyone willing to invest?" Tian Zhuangzhuang was also very aware of the constraints faced by young directors. He unscrewed the lid of the cup and blew on the boiling hot tea.

"I scraped together some money and was able to set up a stall. The filming company wants to hang out with the Qingying Studio at our school. Teacher Tian, ​​could you please write them a note?" Seeing that Tian Zhuangzhuang was willing to help, he took the opportunity to make his request.

"Why should I write a note! I'm neither the department head nor the school leader." Tian Zhuangzhuang waved his hand.

Lu Kuan thought to himself, just pretend, everyone knows your background.

Tian Zhuangzhuang thought for a while. After all, he was a freshman in the directing department of Beijing Film Academy. The young director found investment on his own and dared to try. It was only right and reasonable to support him.

"First, you should organize the location scouting and storyboarding, gather the main creative staff, and I'll go say hello to Qingying Studio."

“Thank you, Teacher Tian!”

Lu Kuan secretly clenched his fists, the last link was completed, and the start-up was just around the corner.

(End of this chapter)