Director of Photography Department of Huayu

Chapter 69: There is only one Wu Chen in Beijing Film Academy

Early morning of November 1st, Los Angeles International Airport.

The exit hall was bustling with activity, the glass curtain walls reflecting the dawn, and the giant chandelier hanging from the ceiling casting a cold white light, casting a cool glow on the smooth tiled floor.

Clocks from around the world are neatly arranged on the wall, and Los Angeles time is clearly at seven in the morning.

Time passes, yet it seems like no time has passed. This is the charm of jet lag.

The advertising light box on the other side kept flashing, and a huge poster of the new Hollywood film "The Aviator" occupied the entire wall, with Leonardo Dicaprio's profile hidden in the interweaving of light and dark.

Wu Chen dragged his black suitcase out of the gate and yawned, feeling tired. He looked up and saw Jason Blum leaning against a pillar. He was wearing a brown jacket and shaking his car keys in his hand. He grinned at Wu Chen:
"Wu, welcome to Sunshine City. The car is outside, let's go."

The two men walked through the crowd and got into a black SUV. The engine roared, and the palm trees outside the car window cast sparse shadows in the scorching sun.

In the car, Jason Blum pointed to a hill in the distance to the north and said, "Look, that's Hollywood."

Wu Chen followed the instructions and saw a row of huge white English letters "HOLLYWOOD" standing tall among the lush and rolling hills.

"This is the world's largest film and television city. You rarely see rain here in a year, and it's incredibly dry." Jason smiled and casually asked, "Wu, where is the largest film and television city in your country? Did you choose a place with particularly good weather?"

Wu Chen's eyes moved slightly, and he smiled faintly: "Not really, Hengdian, it rains a lot."

"???"

Jason raised his eyebrows, seemingly in disbelief. "How is that possible? How could a major film and television studio be built in such a rainy place?"

He understood Jason Blum's logic. After all, how could they film in a place where it rained frequently? It would be a waste of money.

Wu Chen leaned back in his chair, looking at the scenery outside, his tone calm but meaningful:
“There are many reasons, just go and find out.

You may prefer to adapt to local conditions, but we prefer that man conquer nature."

"Man can conquer nature!" Jason Blum pondered Wu Chen's meaning and looked at him seriously again. "Wu, you are different from the Chinese filmmakers I know."

"What's different?"

"You have more confidence than them. I can't explain it now, but maybe I'll tell you one day when I know." Blum held the steering wheel with one hand and took out a cigarette and lit it with the other.

"By the way, I've got Bell. Five hundred thousand dollars, mid-December, a month's schedule."

Wu Chen's eyes lit up: "Good news."

Jason heard this and yesterday's scene flashed through his mind. He smiled at Wu Chen and said, "Do you know how I dealt with him?"

"When I found him, he was in an old gym in Los Angeles. He said he didn't have time. I talked to him for a long time, even putting the script in front of him, but he was not interested.

Until I asked you, "Would you like to try being buried alive in a coffin?", he actually said he would like to try it.

Blum found it a little unbelievable.

Well, it turns out that there are people who really want to challenge the feeling of being buried alive.

"This is very interesting, isn't it?" Wu Chen laughed dumbly, but he was looking forward to the male lead. Maybe the cooperation between the two of them could create different sparks.

At noon on November 2, the two flew from Los Angeles to Wilmington, Delaware.

The SUV drove smoothly into the city. The streets were wet from the sprinkler trucks. The morning mist shrouded the street lights, spreading the light into circles of soft halos.

"Delaware is a damn place, but it's cheap to register a company. There are many shell film and television companies here, and the tax incentives are great. It's suitable as your first stop." Jason said casually while holding the steering wheel.

Wu Chen looked out the window and nodded slightly.

The two men found a lawyer from an agency, and then the SUV stopped in front of a modern office building in the city center. The glass curtain wall reflected the blurry sky in the morning light.

The three of them walked into the lobby, the air filled with the scent of printer ink, and the receptionist skillfully handed over the documents.

The lawyer took the document, looked at it carefully, and then handed Wu Chen the contract: "LLC structure, 'Obsidian Films' (Obsidian Films), registered capital can be adjusted at any time"

Once Wu Chen signed his name, it meant that he had a company here.

The registration fee is very cheap, just over US$600 for the first year.

However, hiring a lawyer to handle all matters would cost $5000 a year. On the way back, Jason couldn't help but admire Wu Chen's name: "How did you come up with the name Obsidian? It really suits you. Obsidian symbolizes mystery and depth, and it's a perfect match for your psychological thrillers and art films."

Wu Chen held the car window with his hand, the corner of his mouth slightly raised: "No, I just wanted to make the company logo less brain-intensive in the future."

Obsidian will make it much easier to produce graphics or special effects in the future.

Jason was completely surprised by Wu Chen's answer.

"Wu, you are really very interesting."

After finishing his business, Wu Chen flew back the next day. After registering the company, he still had to go through the ODI filing process in the country before the money could be transferred, which also took time.

Jason Blum officially started preparing the crew.

On the 5th, Wu Chen had just returned from the United States when Gao Chengsheng from China Film Group called him and asked him to take some time to prepare for the film launch conference. The premiere was scheduled for November 28th.

"Secretary Gao, what do you think about the 15th?" Wu Chen asked everyone about the time before replying.

"Okay, then it's the 15th."

Gao Chengsheng nodded, and the time was set.

"So I have to go to the press conference too?" Zhou Yang was a little confused when she saw Wu Chen find her. Although her role as a supporting character was okay, it didn't matter whether she went or not.

"Why, you don't want to go?" Wu Chen smiled.

"Director, I still want to show my face." Zhou Yang responded immediately.

Wu Chen nodded. "By the way, I'm planning to go to Jiuzhaigou with Song Ri to visit the crew. Do you want to come?"

"Me?" Zhou Yang pointed at himself, blinked, and suddenly smiled, "Okay."

On the morning of the 7th, the lake was as green as jade, the autumn wind blew, the water rippled gently, and the distant mountains were shrouded in the light morning mist.

Liu Yifei stood by the lake, her white dress already wrapped in a down jacket, a scarf wrapped around her slender neck, her black hair blown by the wind, her eyebrows and eyes were as beautiful as a painting, and a faint white mist emanated from her breath.

"Xiao Li, the scene where Yifei crosses the waterfall and chases her senior sister 'Li Mochou' will be filmed at 2 pm. That way the weather will be warmer and not too cold."

Yu Min and Liu Xiaoli were communicating.

At this time, the daytime temperature in Jiuzhaigou was only 4 degrees Celsius, the water temperature was too cold, and this scene was quite long.

Liu Xiaoli's brows were still etched with worry, while Liu Yifei waved her hands aside: "It's okay, Director Yu, I can handle it."

Yu Min nodded with relief.

Suddenly, Liu Yifei seemed to have thought of something and quickly said, "Director Yu, I have a classmate visiting the set today. Will that be okay?"

Generally speaking, if someone wants to visit the set, you should let us know in advance.

Of course, it’s generally not a big deal if industry insiders who know the rules visit the set, but the crew should have the right to know.

Liu Xiaoli was stunned for a moment. Liu Yifei had never told her this news.

Yu Min didn't care about this:
"Well, tell the assistant director in charge of the stage management their names so that you won't be stopped from coming up."

"it is good!"

Liu Yifei responded with a chuckle and hurried to find someone.

After a while, Liu Xiaoli and the assistant director glanced at the list and were suddenly stunned.

This name seems a little familiar.

The assistant director looked at Liu Yifei and asked:
"Is this Wu Chen the Wu Chen from Beijing Film Academy?"

"Yes, it's Junior Brother Wu Chen. There is only one Wu Chen at Beijing Film Academy."

(End of this chapter)