Huayu Entertainment: You have been directing for three generations, are you comparing your qualifica

Chapter 69: The Abstract Lu Chuan Begins (Seeking First Subscription)

A press conference brought Lu Chuan, who had recently been basking in applause and flowers, back into the public eye in a different way.

Director Liu Yujun stood in front of reporters' cameras, accusing Lu Chuan of plagiarism in his 98 film, "Me and the Tibetan Antelope - The Glacier Flows Here".

The dialogue, character settings, camera language, and scene settings of the patrol team members are highly similar.

This has caused quite a stir. The film "Kekexili," which just won the Tokyo Grand Jury Prize and received five nominations at the Golden Horse Awards, is now accused of plagiarism?

Immediately, onlookers flocked to the scene to watch the drama unfold.

Some people suspect that he's just trying to ride the coattails of the award, that he's jealous and wants to capitalize on the success.

There are also rational analyses, comparing the two films and finding many similarities, with the dialogue in some parts even being almost identical.

What is this if not plagiarism?
Wherever there's buzz, there's Leyu.com, and the headline is immediately enlarged and bolded:

Do you believe Lu Chuan plagiarized?

With reports in print media and dissemination on major websites, it attracted a large number of netizens.

Before Lu Chuan could respond, her father became anxious and publicly declared:
"It's absurd to call it plagiarism. Xiao Chuan's critical thinking about society was influenced by me. He is more willing than me to confront the darkness when it comes to environmental protection. No one should be allowed to slander the achievements of [Kekexili].

Regarding this kind of overprotective behavior, netizens have voiced their opinions:
"Then explain why the visuals, camera angles, and even the dialogue are identical. Is this also due to your influence?"

"Those books you wrote, were they also cobbled together from various sources?"

···
After deciding to film "The Thieves' Alliance", Tian Xiaole specifically sought out Lao Tian to discuss the censorship process.

After briefly explaining the general plot, Lao Tian frowned deeply.

I've never seen this kind of plot in a domestic film before; it does have a Hong Kong or Hollywood feel to it.

Feng Xiaogang's film "A World Without Thieves" tells the story of pickpockets, but Tian Xiaole went further and created a script about "thieves".

The plot is quite novel and refreshing, making up for the lack of action scenes in mainland urban films.

"I suggest you change the Chinese background. With the Olympics approaching in China, your current setting won't pass the review," Lao Tian suggested.

Tian Xiaole had forgotten about this matter. Foreign media have been keeping a close eye on China. They will seize any opportunity, however small, to amplify it and portray China as an unsafe, backward, and poor country.

The thief character in the movie definitely doesn't comply with censorship regulations, and when it comes to matters of national importance, saving face is certainly not an option.

"Does that mean we can only set the background in Hong Kong Island?"

"Setting it to Chinese people is the safest and easiest way to get approved."

Old Tian pointed out the key point, which made Tian Xiaole realize that having an elder in the family is indeed like having a treasure.

Changing the subject, Lao Tian suddenly said, "You should stay out of the recent plagiarism controversy surrounding Lu Chuan."

He could tell that Tian Xiaole was a law-abiding person, which was evident from her repeated statements in support of Bai Long.

Many of his old classmates and friends called him to ask if this was also his idea.

Tian Zhuangzhuang seems to have had his edges smoothed out, becoming indifferent to the outside world and focusing solely on his films.

Therefore, he didn't want Tian Xiaole to get involved, especially since she wasn't even a party to it. Speaking out without knowing the truth would make her vulnerable to being manipulated. "Any director with common sense knows that many camera techniques and shot compositions, even if not plagiarism, are at least borrowed from. If we don't speak out, are we just going to let a director's hard work be stolen?"

Tian Xiaole was quite angry, thinking that just because someone has connections, they can deprive ordinary people of the fruits of their labor.

Thinking of the recent rumors, he looked at Lao Tian with suspicion and asked curiously:
"I heard that Lu Tianming was jumping around at the Film Association, begging those senior directors to keep quiet, and he also came to you to give you gifts?"

"What nonsense are you talking about? You have absolutely nothing to do with him. I just don't want you to get involved in this mess. Just focus on making the movie."

"That won't do. I feel restless if I don't speak up when I see something I can't stand," Tian Xiaole rejected Lao Tian's suggestion.

"Then you should be more careful, don't offend people too much."

Tian Zhuangzhuang seemed to see his younger self, who was not only stubborn but also loved to fight injustice.

As long as Tian Xiaole doesn't cross the line, the Tian family can handle these kinds of things in the domestic entertainment industry.

···
Tian Xiaole went back to the company, had her assistant submit the revised script for review, and checked the current online public opinion.

Liu Yujun, the victim, suffered repeated setbacks. Huayi Brothers deployed its legal team to analyze the film frame by frame and launch a counterattack.

It is pointed out that: "【Me and the Tibetan Antelope】" has not been registered for copyright and has no legal basis for protection. The poaching of Tibetan antelopes is a public issue, and all creators can adapt it based on facts.

Seeing the well-reasoned explanation, Lu Chuan stopped hiding and took the initiative to accept Nan Fang's weekend interview.

"The source material for 【Kekexili】is the result of our team's three years of field research and interviews with hundreds of thousands of patrol team members. Director Liu and I just share the same source material."

"Then how do you explain the fact that many scenes and shots in the film are the same, and even most of the dialogue is identical?" the reporter asked.

"This doesn't prove anything; it only shows that our ideas are coincidentally similar. The 'sky burial ceremony' and 'sand swallowing people' scenes in the movie are original designs."

"What about the other plot points and scenes? Are they all borrowed?" the reporter pressed.

"The poaching of Tibetan antelopes is a public issue. Anyone can create content about it. Professional legal teams have explained this to the public. Just because I made a film about it, does that mean I'm borrowing from his movie?"

Lu Chuan was pressed for answers and her voice became hoarse.

After seeing the full report, Tian Xiaole picked up her keyboard and posted an article:

"Not registering copyright is not a reason for plagiarism. 'Kekexili' does have many scenes and lines that are similar to 'My Tibetan Antelope.' As for the claim that the two directors have the same artistic concepts, that's pure nonsense."

My suggestion is to resolve this through legal means, not through verbal battles. Copyright awareness in China is already weak; we can't let this kind of thing happen. If they can copy him today, they can copy me tomorrow…”

The post quickly gained a lot of support from netizens, while a small number of people believed that Tian Xiaole wanted to suppress emerging directors and was afraid that his own position would be threatened.

Regarding such remarks, netizens naturally spoke out in his defense.

"Is the guy upstairs stupid? Director Tian is the youngest Cannes jury member and his domestic commercial films are second only to Zhang Yimou at the box office. Would he be worried about Lu Chuan?"

Would an elephant worry about ants poking its foot?

Tian Xiaole was satisfied with the netizens' comments, closed the webpage, and decided to start considering the cast list for "The Thief".

He made a phone call.

(End of this chapter)