Chapter 80: Li Jie's Heart and the Cannes Film Festival Entry

On the set of "Room," Wei Jin sat behind the monitor, wearing a headset and staring at the footage being filmed.

On the sofa, Ceng Li, with a sobbing tone, accused Zhang Kaili: "You have no idea what is actually going on in my head."

"Then tell me!"

Zhang Kaili's voice gradually rose, carrying a certain helplessness:

"I have asked you, but have you ever said anything?"

"..."

As the plot progressed, the mother and daughter began to argue. Both of them handled their emotions very well, and a single long take perfectly recorded the performances of the two actors.

"Cut, very good, everyone take a break."

Wei Jin shouted, then buried his head to look at the playback on the monitor. After repeatedly comparing it with the images in his mind, he was very satisfied.

This time, the overall performance of Ceng Li, Zhang Kaili, and Wu Lei on set was excellent, especially the estrangement and conflict between the mother and son, which were portrayed very well.

As the days of filming passed, some actors gradually finished their scenes, and the few guest actors were all veteran performers. The entire cast's acting was on point, and the filming speed was quite fast.

On set, in the female lead's bedroom, the mother and son sat on the bed. Ceng Li looked down at Wu Lei, who was playing with toys.

The camera gave Ceng Li a close-up at this moment. Her face was full of guilt. This was her first time seeing her son since returning from the hospital after her attempted suicide, and she was still thinking about how to speak.

"I'm sorry, An'an..."

Ceng Li's tone was full of apology.

"It's okay, Mom, just don't do it again in the future..."

Wu Lei looked up at his mother and whispered: "I promise you, son."

"Are you feeling better now?"

"Mm, everything will slowly get better..."

"Cut."

Wei Jin, sitting behind the monitor, carefully watched this shot, took off his headset, and said loudly:

"I announce that 'Room' has officially wrapped!"

Hearing Wei Jin's words, the crew members began to cheer.

"Everyone take note, we will meet at the wrap party at 7 o'clock tonight."

The entire filming process of this movie was very oppressive, and Wei Jin intended to let everyone get together to have a happy and lively time.

In the evening, at a hotel in the city, the crew booked an entire floor.

By now, even the actors who had finished their scenes earlier had arrived. The wrap party was very lively from the start. Without the various job titles from the set, regardless of status, everyone drank and chatted in groups of two or three, and the atmosphere was quite harmonious.

Wei Jin, as usual, had many people coming to toast him. Relying on his physical stamina, Wei Jin naturally accepted everyone, drawing cheers from the crowd. Seeing everyone in high spirits, Wei Jin was also very happy.

Halfway through the banquet, Wei Jin discovered Ceng Li looking somewhat dejected in a corner, and his heart skipped a beat.

Later, the forced smile when Ceng Li interacted with Wu Lei made Wei Jin realize that Ceng Li had sunk too deep and was having trouble getting out.

Clearly, the look in her eyes when she looked at Wu Lei was overflowing with maternal love, but her own emotions were in a state of extreme repression.

Wei Jin knew this was not a good sign, and he racked his brain for ways to help Li Jie get out of the character.

"Li Jie, do you still remember this tree?"

Beijing in April had already warmed up, but Wei Jin and Ceng Li were still fully disguised, because Ceng Li was not the same as before; if they didn't disguise themselves, they might be swarmed as soon as they stepped out. Today, Wei Jin brought Ceng Li to that tree in Beihai Park; he knew that Ceng Li had left many beautiful memories here.

"Of course I remember. That day, it was right here that you truly stole my heart."

Arriving at a familiar place in her memory, Ceng Li's mood seemed to brighten. She also knew her own situation and was happy to accept Wei Jin's thoughtful arrangement.

"Then if time could turn back, Li Jie, would you still be willing to let me steal your heart?"

Wei Jin held Ceng Li's arms gently with both hands. Although his tone was flirtatious, his eyes were sincere. He knew that some things could not be hidden from Ceng Li.

"..."

Ceng Li was somewhat silent. After being together for so long, she knew a little about Wei Jin's philandering nature. She also often asked herself in her heart if she could leave Wei Jin, and the answer was negative, which once made her very conflicted.

Wei Jin's question before her gave her a hypothesis: if she went back to the past, would she still be willing to fall in love?

Thinking carefully, it had been almost three years since she met Wei Jin. Everything this man had done for her, the emotions he revealed when they were together, and even the look in his eyes every time they were intimate, all proved that he had her in his heart.

At this moment, Ceng Li made up her mind to cast everything aside and respect her heart.

"I would, Xiao Jin, as long as it's you, I am willing."

Wei Jin naturally did not know about Ceng Li's inner struggle; he just used his hands to tuck Li Jie's hair and gently pulled her into his arms:

"Li Jie, thank you."

Ceng Li did not speak upon hearing this, but just leaned gently on Wei Jin's shoulder, enjoying this time that belonged only to the two of them.

In this scene, it was just like the beginning; both of them had not changed, yet both had changed.

As Ceng Li's mood gradually improved, Wei Jin also began to get busy with the film's post-production. Time waits for no one. Perhaps he couldn't give Li Jie the diamond ring she wanted, so let this movie put a crown on her.

Time came to mid-April, and "Room" was finally finished. Wei Jin arranged for people to rush it to the Cannes Film Festival.

"The Conjuring" had officially finished its theatrical run, with a North American box office of 185 million and a global box office of 253 million. Summit Entertainment had thoroughly made a name for itself. The senior management had decided to launch "Insidious 2" in the second half of the year, continuing to release it in March next year, establishing every March as the North American horror month to demonstrate the company's strength.

"Taken" had also completed most of its filming and was planned for release in the second half of the year. Wei Jin's 20% investment share was eventually split in half for Huayi Brothers, priced at 36 million. Wei Jin did not ask for an exorbitant price, only a 50% premium, but Wei Jin obtained the priority investment rights for two future Huayi films, which could be considered a win-win.

In addition, "Temptation to Go Home" had officially started filming. As for the leads, the female lead went to senior Yan Danchen, the second female lead went to Yang Rong, and the male lead was finally chosen to be Ling Xiaoshu.

"Beauty's Rival in Palace" was also in the early stages of preparation. This was also the company's major project this year, with a production cost exceeding 30 million. Compared to the original version, the costumes, makeup, props, related sets, and large-scale scenes had all been qualitatively improved.

The main actors had been confirmed: the female lead was Fan Bingbing. Originally, Wei Jin intended to promote his own company people, but after Wu Jinyuan saw Fan Bingbing's look, he expressed that it was very suitable for the character. Considering that a drama couldn't be all newcomers, otherwise the TV station wouldn't offer a high price, so they finally chose Fan Bingbing, and Wei Jin could be considered to have given her an explanation.

The second female lead was Yang Xue. This was decided by Wei Jin; her Jiang Yuyan was simply too impressive.

This time, Yang Xue played three roles alone, all of them villains, satisfying her craving for playing a villain in one go.

As for that somewhat likable female assassin character, Wei Jin planned to let Jing Tian try it.

The male lead was Qiao Zhenyu, and the second male lead was Luo Jin. The rest of the supporting roles were left to the director to consider, but all the company's newcomers were packed and stuffed in by Wei Jin to show their faces.

The promotion for "Lost on Journey" had also begun. Topics had frequently appeared on major online forums and bulletin boards: "Share the embarrassing things you encountered during the Spring Festival travel rush," which actually sparked a lot of discussion among netizens.

For this distribution, Wei Jin intends to do it himself; distribution capability is also a reflection of a film and television company's comprehensive strength.

Currently, the Shanhe Cinema Alliance has already been formed, controlling a total of over 320 large screens, accounting for 11% of the market share, ranking among the top five. Coupled with Lu Zheng's mediation, the relationship with Wanda Cinema Line is also quite good, and the two companies have a vague intention to join forces. Other cinema lines also dare not offend them too much, so they should give more consideration to film scheduling, which is why Wei Jin is confident in building up the distribution business this time.

In the early morning of April 20, the Cannes Film Festival officials announced the list of 21 feature films shortlisted for the Main Competition Section of the 59th Cannes Film Festival, and "Room," directed by Wei Jin, was prominently on the list, and it was the only Chinese-language film.

For a time, the internet suddenly became lively. The new book is now available; I implore all book friends to kindly provide subscriptions and bookmarks. Thank you all!

(End of this chapter)