Being a director starts with fighting domestic violence

Li Shengxiong finished his work at around ten o'clock in the evening and had time to read the script in the car.

Who knew I'd be fascinated by it at first sight.

This young man Xiao Gao is quite something.

The next day, Li Shengxiong took the initiative to call Gao You and expressed his intention to cooperate with Gao You to film "General Mulan".

However, Gao You is now rich and has won an award, so he has more say and the two sides are cooperating on an equal footing.

Leung Ka Ying of Silver Shing On also read the script and was interested in participating, so the two collaborated again, with Leung Ka Ying serving as producer.

Thanks to the efforts of Qingying Studio and Shengxiong Pictures, the script of "General Mulan" was approved quickly and the project was established soon.

After that, it’s time to form a team, recruit actors, shoot scenes, prepare costumes and makeup, etc.

With Leung Ka-ying as the producer, Gao You's work went much more smoothly.

The scripts were handed to many actors that the two had their eyes on, including Zhao Qing, Ke Ying, Yu Lishu and Wu Yunxin.

Gao You has worked with Zhao Qing twice and they have a very good understanding of each other. He feels that Zhao Qing is quite suitable for the role of Sister Lan.

However, Leung Ka-ying has different ideas. She thinks that although Zhao Qing just won the Best Actress award, she is not famous enough in Hong Kong.

The character of Sister Lan is the soul of the film, and she hopes that the actor can have a certain box office appeal.

Leung Ka-ying said it very bluntly, although Gao You, as a director, has won an international award.

However, there is currently no director with box office appeal in the Hong Kong film market. If you want to stabilize the box office, you have to find actors with greater fame.

For example, several actresses who have won Best Actress awards in Hong Kong, or Ke Ying and Tong Li, who are quite famous in Hong Kong.

The investment in this film is not small. Shengxiong Pictures contributed 2 million, Yinsheng'an contributed more than 1 million, and Gao You also contributed 1 million.

It’s hard for her to say about the box office in mainland China, but sometimes, in the Hong Kong movie box office market, many audiences are very familiar with some big directors and big stars.

Of course, this is her opinion as a producer, and the most important thing is whether the actor is suitable.

Gao You listened to Leung Ka Ying's advice and gave the script to more actresses.

This time, the level of attention paid to the script submitted by Gao You has undergone a drastic change compared to last year.

There were even some actresses who heard the news but didn't get the script and took the initiative to discuss the role.

Gao You then conducted several auditions.

After deciding on several main actors, Sister Lan finally chose Tong Li.

Tong Li has been learning the martial arts role since she was a child and has very solid basic skills, an advantage that other actresses cannot match.

Moreover, Tong Li is also quite well-known in Hong Kong.

The role of Hua Ying is the least controversial, as Gao You and Liang Jiaying both agree that it must be Yu Lishu.

This role requires real singing in several scenes, so naturally it would be best to have a professional Cantonese opera actress like Yu Lishu to play the role.

Yu Lishu not only performs Cantonese opera, but is also better at acting in movies than most other Cantonese opera actors. This role is most suitable for her.

Moreover, Yu Lishu is also quite famous in Hong Kong.

The role of Amu was played by Guan Liping, a Hong Kong actress recommended by Leung Ka-ying to Gao You.

Guan Liping is the new female action star signed by Yin Sheng'an. She also started learning opera in elementary school and is good at both fighting and acting. Leung Ka-ying intends to promote her to become the new generation of female action star in Hong Kong.

She actually wanted to promote Gao You, who had outstanding looks, was a good fighter, and had superb acting skills. His performance in "Cold Dew" was of a very high standard.

But it is obvious that Gao You still prefers to be a director at the moment.

She didn't even think about playing Amu, the role that suited her best.

Leung Ka-ying was not polite and supported her new artist.

Gao You auditioned Guan Liping's role and was satisfied with her.

Guan Liping's pair of clear black and white eyes reminded her of Liu Xiaozhen.

I don’t know how Liu Xiaozhen is doing now.

I heard from Leader Lu that Liu Xiaozhen followed the team to work in Guangdong Province two years ago, but then she and her fellow villagers quit their jobs and left the factory, and there has been no news since then.

Leader Lu also asked someone to go to the factory where Liu Xiaozhen worked to ask, and everyone said that Liu Xiaozhen had returned to her hometown to get married.

Leader Lu could only sigh, hoping in his heart that this poor child could meet a family that would treat her well.

Gao You also felt a little emotional, but Liu Xiaozhen was a person with her own ideas and strong vitality, and she could also fight.

Gao You felt that Liu Xiaozhen would not just go back to her hometown and marry any man.

I hope she can live well with her own abilities.

In addition to the three most important female characters, "General Mulan" also has some other characters, such as the gang leader Sister Hong, who is domineering and loyal. She was finally played by the newly signed actress Shen Qiang under Shengxiong Pictures.

Shen Qiang was one of the most popular actresses in Hong Kong a few years ago, but then she fell silent for a while. Only last year did she sign a contract with Shengxiong Pictures and return to filming.

After the audition, Gao You was quite satisfied with Shen Qiang. Shen Qiang is the kind of actor with a strong sense of story, and it would be easy for her to shine in this role.

The main actors have been decided and the team has basically been assembled.

Screenwriter Mo Huan remains unchanged.

Photographer Gao You recommended Zhou Can.

The twins Luxue and Lushuang, who have worked with Gao You twice, are planning to shoot their next short film, which is also a thriller and suspense film.

This is the twins' favorite subject.

Originally, they wanted to ask Gao You to shoot the film, but Gao You was preparing for "General Mulan" and recommended his classmate Yan Hui to them.

There are eight female students in the directing department this year. Gao You has a good relationship with all of them and usually completes homework with them.

According to Gao You, Yan Hui also likes suspense movies.

Gao You introduced them to each other, and the three of them hit it off and began to plan and shoot the short film "Silent". Gao You also sponsored them 10,000 yuan.

So this time Gao You found Zhou Can as the photographer.

Zhou Can is now a contracted photographer under her.

After graduating this year, Zhou Can was assigned to the Beijing Film Studio.

But Zhou Can resigned after working for two months.

The meager fixed salary from Beijing Film Studio was not enough to support her mother's medical expenses.

On the contrary, with Gao You, one day's work is enough to pay for her mother's medical expenses for a week.

So Zhou Can decided again and again to resign.

Gao You naturally welcomed this talented photographer. After signing a contract with her, he even made an effort to promote Zhou Can to become the most popular photographer at the moment.

Now Zhou Can can get a three-digit fee for taking a set of photos, which has greatly alleviated her predicament.

Zhou Can is grateful to Gao You.

This time Gao You asked her to be the photographer, and Zhou Can accepted the offer without hesitation.

After seeing some of Zhou Can's photography works and his graduation works, Liang Jiaying also recognized Zhou Can's ability.

I have to sigh: genius!

If the film can be shot smoothly, it will be able to secure the Best Cinematography award at next year's Hong Kong Film Awards, and there will be no problem in being nominated.

For art direction, Gao You found Qi Fengshou, a teacher from the Guangdong Film Studio.

She is a very experienced art director who also understands the customs and culture of Guangdong Province and Cantonese opera, making her a perfect fit.

Zhu Xiaoya also didn't want to miss this learning opportunity, so she asked Gao You to help her talk and let her be an assistant to Teacher Qi Fengshou.

Of course Gao You agreed.

Zhu Xiaoya has talent, but lacks some experience.

She has previously demonstrated her outstanding abilities in "Mistakes" and "Factory Pianist", as well as some of her own student works.

Liao Hanyu was asked by Wang Qiyun to be a recording engineer, so Gao You found Mu Jin, another classmate from the recording department.

In terms of music, Leung Ka-ying recommended a senior music composer from Hong Kong, Kang Yu-kam.

After the team was confirmed, Gao You invited Yu Lishu's mother's troupe to provide a one-month Cantonese opera training for the main actors.

During the preparation for the filming, Gao You and Mo Huan also went to visit a teacher.