Reshaping the landscape of the Chinese entertainment industry

After entrusting some matters to Yu Feihong, He finally had time to visit the person Mu Deyuan had recommended to him.

In fact, from the very beginning when Mu Deyuan asked him to contact someone, He Ye had already made calls to each of them in advance. When the other party heard that he was Mu Deyuan's student, they were all very polite.

Despite their politeness, very few actually agreed to come to the film crew.

The excuses they used were all the same: either their schedules were too tight, or they lacked confidence in the new director.

After all, He Ye is only eighteen years old, and this is his first movie. Who would be willing to bet on a young kid?

He Ye wasn't in a hurry about this. He had already gathered a group of people, and apart from a few who were particularly needed, it wouldn't matter whether the others came or not.

He also planned to invite the few people he particularly needed to meet one by one and talk to them in person.

Liu Bei, the Imperial Uncle, even went to the thatched cottage three times to invite the Prime Minister to serve in his cause.

He won't lose any meat by going there in person.

And as fate would have it, the lighting technician and sound engineer he needed happened to be on the same film set.

He also knows people in this film crew.

So He decided to ignore everything else and just go there first.

……

That morning, Liu Guonan drove to pick him up at the agreed time.

He Ye got into the passenger seat, fastened his seatbelt, and looked around: "Senior, whose car are you driving?"

"Borrowed." Liu Guonan started the car. "The crew of 'Dangerous Journey' is in the suburbs of Beijing, and it's not convenient to take a taxi, so I borrowed a van from a friend on the crew."

"Great job, senior. You're reliable."

"Stop flattering me." Liu Guonan gripped the steering wheel. "The crew's preparations... right now, the only things missing for the camera crew are lighting and sound recording, right?"

"The lighting and sound engineers on the 'Dangerous Journey' crew are indeed very skilled. If we can finalize the deal, filming should be no problem."

"The teacher recommended it, and you also confirmed it's good, so it must be someone with excellent skills." He was indeed quite interested in someone who could gain the approval of both of them.

Liu Guonan didn't hide anything: "Their skills are indeed excellent, but their temperaments are a bit strange."

"I don't care if they have a strange temper, as long as they can get the job done." He leaned back in his chair, finding a comfortable position. "Senior brother, tell me, where do these people come from?"

Liu Guonan thought for a moment and said, "The lighting technician is Zhang Shudong, Gu Changwei's partner who has worked with him several times. He has a delicate lighting style and is especially good at using light and shadow to shape the emotions of characters. He has a very good reputation in the industry, but he is not easy to talk to."

"Li Xuelei, a sound engineer from Beijing, worked with Shen Tao on 'A Native of Beijing in New York' in his early years and is considered a veteran in the industry. He rarely works on sound recordings himself anymore; he mostly mentors apprentices."

"If you can get him to come, you won't have to worry about the recording for the film crew."

"Take on an apprentice?" He suddenly remembered a recording assistant that Yu Feihong had introduced to him yesterday. It seemed that the assistant had just graduated from university. Could he be handed over to Yu Feihong to train?

A film crew, especially the photography crew, should ideally consist entirely of people from within the company.

Otherwise, the footage will have a lot of problems.

He also knew that with Li Xuelei's seniority, it was impossible for him to work with him, so training new people was the best option.

However, he didn't ask the question aloud, intending to ask it in person later.

"There's also a script supervisor named Liu Miao, who also graduated from the Beijing Film Academy. He should be easy to talk to."

He also silently noted down this information; this is the advantage of having an inside contact.

……

After a forty-minute drive, we arrived at a film and television base on the outskirts of Beijing.

The filming location for "Dangerous Journey" was deep within the base, in a building resembling the style of the Republic of China era.

When He Ye got out of the car, he saw several prop vehicles parked at the entrance, with staff going in and out, busy as bees.

Liu Guonan led He Ye inside, and along the way they encountered several acquaintances who all greeted Liu Guonan.

"Director Liu, you're here?"

"Yes, bring your junior brother over for a look."

"This is the genius junior brother you were talking about? He does look quite young."

"Young as he may be, he's quite capable."

He followed behind, frequently nodding and smiling at the people who greeted him.

Upon entering the film set, we found that an indoor scene was being reshot.

The so-called layman looks at the excitement and the insider looks at the doorway.

He Ye almost instantly recognized the lighting technician's role, because the lighting was very well done, with warm yellow light streaming in from the window and casting soft shadows on the actors' faces.

His facial expressions and emotions were captured with unparalleled clarity.

It's often said that photographers speak through their photos, but who knows that lighting technicians can use light to enhance and amplify actors' facial expressions and create atmosphere, making the shooting process much more efficient?

He observed for a while and came to a conclusion: the crew members were indeed as Liu Guonan had said, they were quite capable.

Liu Guonan patted him on the shoulder: "Come on, I'll take you to see Director Shen first."

The two walked across the film set and behind the monitor.

Shen Tao was staring at the screen, his brows slightly furrowed.

"Director Shen," Liu Guonan called out.

Shen Tao looked up, saw Liu Guonan, and then glanced at He Ye: "These are Old Mu's students?"

"Yes, why?"

Shen Tao looked He Ye up and down, then nodded: "You look quite energetic, young man. Old Mu called me, saying you're making a movie and want to poach talent from me?"

He smiled and said, "Director Shen, it's not poaching, it's borrowing. I'll return him to you after my filming is finished."

"Still?" Shen Tao laughed. "You've got a way with words, kid. Alright, my filming here is almost finished. You can find whoever you want, as long as they're willing to come with you, I won't stop them."

"Thank you, Director Shen."

Shen Tao waved his hand and continued watching the monitor.

He waited for a while until this group of shoots was over before walking towards Zhang Shudong.

Zhang Shudong was squatting on the ground adjusting the lights when He Ye walked over and squatted down next to him.

"Teacher Zhang."

Zhang Shudong didn't even look up: "Who is it?"

"I am He Ye, a student of Mu Deyuan."

Zhang Shudong then looked up and glanced at him: "Oh, you're Old Mu's student? You came to ask me to light the lamp for your film?"

"Yes." He also took out a cigarette from his pocket, pulled one out, and handed it over.

Although he doesn't smoke, he still needs to carry some cigarettes with him.

Tobacco and alcohol, tobacco is the bridge, alcohol is the road; with tobacco and alcohol, it's easier to do research, isn't it?

Zhang Shudong casually took the cigarette, put it in his mouth, and said, "You're young, but you've got guts. Alright, since you've come in person, where's the notebook? Let me see it."

He also took the script out of his bag and handed it over.

Zhang Shudong took the script and flipped through it casually.

About ten minutes later, he closed the script.

"Old Mu said your script was good, and it seems he wasn't lying to me." Zhang Shudong handed the script back to him. "I can understand the kind of down-to-earth feel you're looking for. But there's one thing I need to make clear first: my lighting style leans towards realism and isn't really suited to that kind of flashy tone."

Hearing this, He knew that things were probably settled: "Teacher Zhang, what I wanted was realism."

Zhang Shudong glanced at him, hesitated for a moment, and then stood up: "Old Mu's student, the notebook is well written, and I have nothing else to do afterward. Okay, I'll take this job."

He paused, then said, "But let me make this clear from the start, I still have work to do right now, so I can only go to your place after I finish filming here."

"No problem," He Ye quickly replied. "My film won't start shooting until the end of the year at the earliest, so there's plenty of time."

"Then it's settled."

He was secretly pleased and turned to look at Liu Guonan.

Liu Guonan gave him a thumbs up.

After dealing with Zhang Shudong, He Ye went to find Li Xuelei.

Li Xuelei is in his fifties, with some gray hair, but he is in good spirits.

He didn't take He Ye's script, but said directly, "I already heard it. Old Mu's student? He's quite handsome. He doesn't look like a photographer; he looks like an actor."

"Professor Li, you flatter me. I am indeed a photography major."

"Old Mu told me you're making a movie and wanted me to do the sound recording. I hadn't replied before because I didn't want to go through too much trouble. But since you've come in person today, I can't let you go empty-handed. So, I have a condition."

"Please speak."

"Let my apprentice be in charge of the pole, I'll just keep watch," Li Xuelei said, pointing to a few young men beside him. "If you think it's okay, let them be in charge of the pole for you, and I'll keep an eye on things for you."

"OK."

He didn't refuse, but he made a condition: "Teacher Li, Senior Yu Feihong recommended a recent graduate as a recording assistant named Zhou Jia. Could you let her learn from you first? And could you mentor her as well?"

"Recommended by Yu Feihong? Then it should be pretty good." Li Xuelei considered for a moment and then nodded: "Then it's settled."

"Thank you, Teacher Li."

With Zhang Shudong and Li Xuelei secured, the task of managing script supervisor Liu Miao became much easier.

After a round of negotiations, He Ye had basically finalized the names of the people he wanted for the "Dangerous Journey" production team.

The cinematography team has basically finished its work, but the post-production work will likely be handled by China Film Group.

Now all that's left is for the script to pass review, and for Yu Feihong to confirm the location and actors, then he can start filming immediately.

------