Chapter 312: Slapping That Eagle, The Art Exam Storm

Inside the private screening room of Shanhe Building, Wei Jin, Wu Ershan, and others watched the finished cut of *Mojin: The Lost Legend*.

Two hours passed and the film was still not finished; Wei Jin frowned, as this film was edited too long.

"Director Wu Ershan, how did you consider this?"

Wei Jin pointed at the closing credits still playing on the screen and turned his head to ask.

"President Wei, I feel that the cast and crew of this film have truly worked too hard, especially the visual effects team. From preparation to filming and post-production, it took over a year. I hope to tell the audience that it was the entire team that created this film."

Wu Ershan's tone was very sincere; it seemed he really thought this way.

"Hmm, the idea is good, but have you considered the audience's feelings? Have you considered the situation of theater scheduling?"

Wei Jin was not angry. Wu Ershan was not skilled at stories but was skilled at aesthetics, somewhat similar to Chen Shiren.

The common flaw of such directors is that they always feel their shots are beautiful and that the audience can perceive their inner thoughts during creation through the lens language.

The film *Mojin: The Lost Legend* indeed needs to win through visual effects, but not every shot needs to be used.

According to Wu Ershan's version, the finished runtime reached 130 minutes, which is neither conducive to audience enjoyment nor to theater scheduling.

After all, for a 100-minute film, theaters can schedule 10 screenings a day, but yours can only be scheduled for 8. From the perspective of profit, theaters naturally will not give you more screenings.

"This..."

Wu Ershan was stunned for a moment. Shouldn't watching a film be about quality? Just say whether it looks good or not.

Looking at Wu Ershan's expression, Wei Jin also knew the minds of these directors and told him his requirements directly.

"Without changing the plot structure, compress the time. It is best to control it within 110 minutes. If you really must have closing credits, adding 5 minutes is enough."

Seeming to fear that this fellow would be stubborn, Wei Jin patted him on the shoulder.

"Directors and audiences consider different things. Trust me, for the sake of the box office."

After saying this, Wei Jin stood up and left. As for how to edit, he believed Wu Ershan would do it well.

Returning to his office, Wei Jin noticed a piece of news: *The Flowers of War* was on the trending list again.

The 83rd Academy Awards had come to an end, and Batman, Bale, had won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.

For *The Flowers of War*, this was simply a massive boon. People in the industry were all saying that Zhang Yimou and Zhang Weiping had sharp eyes.

Zhang Weiping naturally would not miss such a hype opportunity and immediately jumped out to loudly shout a slogan:

"From the start of the project, I never doubted the box office. Now it seems that the original goal of 1 billion was still a bit conservative. Relying on this Little Golden Man, the box office should increase by at least 200 million. I hope *The Flowers of War* can snatch the top spot in the box office from *Avatar*."

Zhang Weiping's ability to shout slogans and stir up excitement was truly no joke, and many netizens were full of expectations for the film. — Time entered March, and Jing Tian and Liu Yifei both attended Paris Fashion Week events at the request of the brands.

Looking at the photos sent back from Paris by the two women, appearing intimate and inseparable, Wei Jin felt deeply comforted; after all, harmony at home leads to prosperity in all things.

In the office, Wei Jin handed Ning Hao a cigarette.

"Senior brother, it's been a while since we last met. What brings you here today?"

After Ning Hao took the cigarette and lit it, he took a deep drag and slowly replied.

"Junior brother, the follow-up for *No Man's Land* is about done. I plan to start *The Great Buddha*."

"That's a good thing. This film has been grinding you for two or three years; it's time to look forward."

Wei Jin's tone carried a sense of emotion. Ning Hao was a perfectly fine 200 Million Club big-name director, but he ended up delayed for over two years because of one film; it was truly miserable.

"Yeah, I think so too. But the criticism and irony in the script for *The Great Buddha* are too strong. I plan to go to Hong Kong to film it. When the time comes, I'll need you to help me coordinate with Golden Harvest."

This was the purpose of Ning Hao's visit today. As the saying goes, once bitten by a snake, one is afraid of a rope for ten years; he had to make foolproof preparations.

"No problem, I will arrange it."

Wei Jin agreed immediately, also feeling emotional inside. Ning Hao had finally matured. Even if this script could pass in Mainland China, it would likely be edited beyond recognition during the later release; it was better to take the path of a Hong Kong art film from the start.

After finishing the serious business, the two began to chat idly. Wei Jin remembered the data he had seen on the internet earlier and spoke up to tease him.

"Senior brother, I haven't congratulated you yet. You just made a cameo in a film, and the box office is almost 200 million. Haha..."

After the Spring Festival Film Season, the film market was exceptionally cold. The box office for *Wo Zhi Nu Ren Xin* barely crossed the 70 million mark, ending in a dismal state.

Gu Xiaozhang's *Magical Couple* suffered a collapse in both word-of-mouth and box office, being pulled from theaters directly by the exhibitors, with a box office return of 50 million.

However, *The Pretending Couple*, starring Xu Cairen and Li Yapeng and directed by Zhang Yibai, performed quite well. The opening day box office was nearly 20 million, and currently, less than three weeks after release, the box office was already approaching 200 million.

Ning Hao made a cameo as a police officer in this film, which is why Wei Jin spoke up to tease him.

"Hey, this is a film invested in by Xiaoma. Wasn't I tied up by *No Man's Land* during that time? With nothing else to do, I just went to help out with a cameo. But don't say, this kind of film that rehashes old memories and sells nostalgia, I didn't expect the box office to be quite high."

Speaking of this, Ning Hao paused and added.

"Come to think of it, it's also thanks to that group of people from the '6-1 Class' for their tireless promotion; otherwise, I reckon it wouldn't have reached this height."

Hearing this, Wei Jin nodded. The so-called "6-1 Class" was a small circle in the music scene headed by Wang Fei, including Na Ying, Jing Gangshan, Zheng Jun, and others, with some people from the acting circle also leaning toward them.

The male lead of *The Pretending Couple* was Li Yapeng, so it was not surprising that Wang Fei led the 6-1 Class to cheer for him.

"But junior brother, come to think of it, your relationship with Wang Fei is fine, so why do you look down on Na Ying?"

Ning Hao knew that Wang Fei did not plan to participate in the fourth season of *The Voice* this year and recommended Na Ying to participate, but for some reason, it was rejected.

Wei Jin shook his head and explained the ins and outs of the matter.

Wei Jin and Na Ying had had unpleasantness a long time ago. Back then, regarding the Zhang Yadong matter, she was the one who came forward to mediate at first.

Perhaps thinking she was a local tyrant and a big sister in Beijing, this woman's attitude and posture were set very high, appearing like a senior in the underworld coming forward to preside over justice. Wei Jin didn't even pay her any mind.

This time, Wang Fei withdrew from the fourth season of *The Voice* and took the opportunity to recommend her good friend Na Ying.

Originally, with Na Ying's status in the music scene, there wouldn't have been any problem. The key was that her agent, who was also her sister, opened her mouth like a lion. Besides the 12 million appearance fee, she actually wanted 5% of the show's dividends, and in addition, the right to prioritize signing singers.

How could Wei Jin indulge such unreasonable demands? He told her to get lost directly.

Not to mention that Wei Jin didn't like Na Ying's character to begin with, just from the perspective of profit, *The Voice* had profits reaching hundreds of millions at every turn; how much face did she have to dare to act like an elephant in front of him?

As for the right to sign singers, Wei Jin also knew what this woman was thinking. There are many so-called kings and queens in the music circle who, even if they haven't released an album in many years, are unwilling to see newcomers emerge.

Once a newcomer with good strength makes a name for themselves in the circle, they will be pulled into their own circle.

If the newcomer dares to refuse, then they can just wait for the smearing and suppression by these kings and queens. Treating them to dinner, beheading them, and taking them in as dogs—they are all too familiar with this set of procedures.

In fact, the film and television circle is no better. The major talent agencies treat newly debuted artists in the same way as these music kings and queens. However, wanting to use these methods on Wei Jin is picking the wrong target.

After hearing Wei Jin's explanation, Ning Hao didn't know what to say either; he could only say that these "relics of the past" were still living in the glory of the last century.

"Then how did you handle it later?"

"Heh, the Variety Department turned around and sent an invitation to Han Hong, and she has already accepted."

Regarding Han Hong, Wei Jin admired her quite a bit; dedicating half a lifetime to charity work was truly not easy. The reason so many people slandered her was simply because she practiced transparent charity, tearing away the fig leaves of quite a few filthy people.

"Hmm, although Han Hong's fame is a little smaller, her personality is forthright, and her temper is quite spicy and overbearing; she will definitely be a highlight as a mentor."

Ning Hao nodded, clearly also feeling that Han Hong was very suitable, and then said with a bit of mockery.

"But Junior Brother, once this news gets out, Na Ying is going to be embarrassed, haha."

Wei Jin smiled faintly. What Ning Hao said was the truth. In the current music scene, Han Hong's status was quite a bit lower than Na Ying's. Abandoning Na Ying to use Han Hong was clearly a slap in the face.

"So, never take yourself too seriously; the world will keep spinning without anyone."

"That's the logic." — The Post-production Special Effects for *The Sorcerer and the White Snake* were finished. This film started production in the middle of last December, and now, three months later, the efficiency could be considered quite high.

As for the acceptance inspection, it was naturally impossible for Wei Jin to show up; Juli's Yang Zi did not have that much face.

However, since the visitor was a guest, Chen Zhiming received Yang Zi and his party in his capacity as the group's president.

Two hours later, Chen Zhiming returned to report.

"President Wei, I've finally managed to send that Yang Zi away."

"What? Putting on airs in front of you again?"

Wei Jin could guess Yang Zi's nature without even seeing him. He had asked to see him several times and had been rejected every time; he had no time to deal with such arrogant and ignorant characters.

"You bet, he kept clamoring to see you. When that didn't work, he proposed investing in our company's film. After I rejected him, he said we could consider Huang Shengyi for casting. It was endless; I couldn't even be bothered to deal with him."

Chen Zhiming was clearly disgusted by this guy Yang Zi and complained for quite a while, but seemingly thinking of something funny, Lao Chen suddenly laughed.

"President Wei, you don't know how funny this person is. He said that with such good special effects, it would be no problem to advertise them as costing one hundred million. I kindly reminded him that special effects made in three months couldn't possibly cost that much money. Guess how he answered?"

"Oh? How did he answer?" Wei Jin was a bit curious about this guy's thought process.

"He said, let's keep the production time a secret. He spoke with such conviction, saying this is the client's right. Hahaha, it cracked me up."

Wei Jin was amused upon hearing this. This guy wanted the price kept secret and also demanded the production time be kept secret; what he was planning was obvious.

"Since the client has requested it, we'll just cooperate. We'll just claim to the outside world that the client requested confidentiality and it's inconvenient to answer, haha."

"High, President Wei, your idea is high, haha." — Perhaps as capital enters the field, money in the entertainment industry is becoming easier and easier to earn, and even many stars are using their connections to pave the way for the second generation.

For example, Jiang Wenli takes Ma Sichun to almost every event in the circle, just to get a familiar face in front of major directors and Producers.

There are also many topics online regarding the high income of stars. In view of this, this year's art exams are exceptionally hot.

As one of the three major academies, the Beijing Film Academy is naturally bustling with activity.

According to statistics, the number of applicants to the Beijing Film Academy has been on an upward trend for several years in a row. This year, the number of applicants for the Performance Academy exceeded five thousand, and in the end, only 30 were admitted; it is truly terrifying.

It is no exaggeration to call it thousands of troops crossing a single-plank bridge.

In early March, it was time for the final results of the Beijing Film Academy to be released. The scene was a sea of people, and the art examinees were waiting expectantly, having quite the air of passing the imperial examinations in ancient times.

Without exceeding the expectations of the outside world, the highly-watched Zhou Dongyu passed through the danger and was successfully admitted.

But what made people's jaws drop was that the child star Mo Xiaobei, who had participated in *My Own Swordsman*, was regrettably cut.

"To be honest, seeing this result, I am also very surprised myself. I thought I should have been able to pass."

When Mo Xiaobei was interviewed, she told reporters that it was clear she found this result hard to accept.

Regarding this, the vast number of netizens were also discussing it heatedly.

"The Beijing Film Academy is becoming more and more unbearable now; it's completely based on looks."

"Not necessarily, Zhou Dongyu doesn't look that great either, isn't she just relying on the National Director's connections?"

"Hehe, either you have big connections, or you look pretty; you have to have one of them, right?"

"Don't cry, Xiaobei. Of the three major domestic academies, if the Beijing Film Academy doesn't keep you, we'll go to the Central Academy of Drama, we'll go to the Shanghai Theatre Academy."

Regarding the mockery from netizens, the Beijing Film Academy chose not to respond, which seemed very ironic.

Looking at the news online, Wei Jin specifically asked Lu Yang, who had just finished his art exam work.

"What is the real situation?"

Speaking of which, the Beijing Film Academy loves to show off. This time, besides directors like Lu Yang being conscripted, even students with a little bit of fame were pulled out to help maintain order at the scene, such as Yang Zi and Zhang Yishan and others; it really left people speechless.

"It's about the same as what's being said online. Mo Xiaobei had already passed the professional exams, but she was cut during the physical examination."

According to Lu Yang, out of the 118 students who passed the third round of physical exams, only 30 were kept; the room for manipulation here is just too great.

"Tsk tsk."

Wei Jin didn't know what to say either. The Beijing Film Academy was determined to go down this path to the end. He shook his head and thought of another matter.

"By the way, you've been resting for so long, do you have any plans?"

Seeing Lu Yang shake his head, Wei Jin understood in his heart. This guy didn't have many works to begin with, and he had even been fleeced by him; he was truly unlucky.

After thinking about it, Wei Jin intended to add some burden to his worker.

"How about this, the Screenwriting Department has an idea. Do you know about that kidnapping case in '04?"

After pondering for a moment, Lu Yang asked uncertainly.

"Mm, President Wei, are you talking about that actor?"

"Yes, that's the one. The Screenwriting Department plans to adapt it into a script and shoot a movie. How about it? Are you interested?"

Wei Jin didn't know if Lu Yang could handle a script adapted from a real case, but with his own help to check for gaps and make up for deficiencies, he believed it shouldn't be a big problem.

"Sure, I'll go talk to the Screenwriting Department right now."

Today's first update.

(End of this chapter)