Chapter 49: Being Young Has Its Advantages

The atmosphere at the venue was a bit strange.

The leaders were nodding, deep in thought.

The directors in the audience hadn't expected Lin Nan to be so bold; he was truly worthy of being a young man.

Several big-name directors looked at Lin Nan with smiles, but some of the elders in the association didn't look pleased.

The roll-call for speeches continued; Lin Nan sat there, thinking to himself that what he had just said was actually quite tactful, right?

"You really dare to say anything. At the Golden Rooster Awards at the end of the year, are you still going to enter *Return to Dust*?"

Ning Hao leaned over and said this.

This reminded Lin Nan, "Of course I'm going, why wouldn't I? I've already won the Silver Bear; shouldn't it be the Golden Rooster jury that's in a difficult position?"

Ning Hao thought about it and realized that was true, "Only you, having won a Silver Bear and considering your age, could be this fearless."

"Enough of that, let's listen to the others speak." Lin Nan interrupted Ning Hao.

Being young really does have its advantages; even if you say something brutally honest, the consequences won't be too severe.

They had lunch at the cafeteria there. It was a government-run cafeteria, after all, so it had cuisines from all over the country; the taste and variety were no worse than outside hotels. You could take whatever you wanted to eat, and it was said that the cooks were all on the official payroll.

After the afternoon session ended, Wang Chang specifically came over to exchange pleasantries with Lin Nan. *Shanghai Dreams* was set to be released domestically in early June. Having learned from the lessons of *Peacock*, Wang Chang was preparing to hold a premiere and invited both of them to attend.

"No problem."

"Goodbye, directors." Gao Yuanyuan took the initiative to wave.

Once the people had walked away, Ning Hao sighed, "I really want to film that kind of subject matter too."

Ning Hao's old habit had flared up again.

"Stop looking, Zhou Zhiruo has already gone far away." Lin Nan deliberately led him astray.

"Who was looking? Don't talk nonsense. I was just expressing my feelings; for drama films and realistic subject matter, one still has to take the film festival route to chase awards."

In the distance, Han Dong caught up, "You brat, you really have a big mouth today, daring to say anything."

"Han Dong, but I wasn't wrong. Look at those veteran judges; how many of them actually make movies? They're all so old, yet they still occupy their positions and won't let go..."

"Alright, alright. That's just how things are here. We have to give the old seniors some face. Change will definitely happen, but it has to be done slowly."

I'm afraid that will take many years, Lin Nan silently grumbled to himself.

At this moment, someone from the Shanghai Film Studio came over, "Han Dong, Director Lin, Director Ning."

"Director Lin, why don't you take some time to go to the film festival? Director Ren specifically instructed me to tell you about this. After all, our Shanghai Film Studio is the host..."

"The Shanghai Film Festival?"

Han Sanping paused, then reacted.

"I don't have a film, so why would I go there? Didn't Ning Hao already agree to take people?"

Ning Hao stood to the side without speaking; although he was the director of *Crazy Stone*, it was clear that others were very concerned about whether Lin Nan could attend.

"If he's not going, he's not going. Lin Nan still has to prepare for the release of *Return to Dust* during those days next month."

At this point, Han Sanping stepped in and spoke, helping Lin Nan out of the situation.

China Film Group was responsible for the promotion and distribution of *Return to Dust*, which Han Sanping had negotiated in Berlin, so naturally, he wanted Lin Nan to focus his efforts there.

"Yes, I'm really sorry. You heard it too; I truly have work scheduled."

Lin Nan took the opportunity to add.

The film festival from the 11th to the 19th, to be honest, wouldn't affect the promotion of *Return to Dust*, but since Han Sanping had already found him an excuse, he might as well use it.

The people from the Shanghai Film Studio had no choice but to leave.

"Ren must be feeling bad inside, even you aren't going, hahaha." Han Sanping laughed.

"You only need to look at this year's lineup of judges and entries to know; if I went, I'd just be setting the stage for others."

Lin Nan had one more thing he didn't say: while they called it an international film festival, the scale really wasn't big. He didn't want to go and carry the sedan chair for others. If it were next year, he might consider going for a visit.

Many of the attendees left one after another. Ning Hao returned to his studio and dropped Lin Nan off at school on the way.

"Can't you just buy a car?"

Ning Hao complained the whole way; he had never seen anyone with Lin Nan's "old master" mentality—not buying a house, not buying a car.

"When I get a wife in the future, I'll use hers." Lin Nan said glibly.

"Forget it. You don't even have a girlfriend, let alone a wife. Besides, your skin is too thick."

Ning Hao wore an expression of disbelief.

In March, *The Royal Swordsmen*, produced and written by Wang Jing, began airing. The ratings were very high, and everyone sighed that Wang Jing was truly Wang Jing—he could handle movies and make great TV dramas.

In the last two days, *The Proud Twins*, directed by Wang Jing himself, began airing, and it attracted even more followers. Xie Tingfeng, Zhang Weijian, Yuan Quan, Fan Bingbing... just looking at the cast made the audience full of anticipation.

Students at the Film Academy also watched dramas. Lin Nan heard many girls talking about Yang Xue from the class of '99, their words full of envy. That was Jiang Yuyan, the main antagonist who ran through the entire show. Even with people like Fan Bingbing and Yuan Quan in the show, they were all just supporting roles.

According to Liu Yifei, Liu's mother and the others were contacting people at Sony, wanting to produce the Mandarin and Japanese albums together.

Lin Nan had to admit that at this stage, the pop music over there was indeed very powerful. Many singers in Hong Kong had collaborations with them, and Sony's strength was also top-tier in the industry.

"It's estimated to take a year; good songs also need time to be created."

Liu Yifei told Lin Nan the news she received from Sony.

"Are you not taking any roles during this time?"

"Mom and my godfather said I won't be taking any more TV dramas. If there's a movie, I could take a look."

As Liu Yifei said this, she winked at Lin Nan.

"Hehe, don't look at me like that. I can't come up with a script suitable for you at the moment."

Lin Nan spread his hands.

At Liu Yifei's age, having only acted in four TV dramas, it was hard to find a suitable movie for her to star in, unless she played a supporting role. As for some realistic subject matter, she might not necessarily be able to pull it off.

"Don't you forget what you promised me."

Liu Yifei crossed her arms over her chest; paired with this sentence, she looked quite "fiercely cute."

"I won't forget. When the time is right, I will definitely find you to play the lead," Lin Nan said with a smile.

"That's more like it."

On June 2nd, Lin Nan and Ning Hao were invited to attend the domestic premiere of *Shanghai Dreams*.

Every year, many movies are released, but very few end up with ideal box office results, especially realistic drama films like *Shanghai Dreams*. It was only because it won the Jury Prize that it had a bit more confidence; *Return to Dust* was the same.

There wasn't much time left for *Shanghai Dreams*. Zhou Dong's *Initial D* was coming, and the power of fans could not be ignored.

Many directors came to support Wang Chang, most of whom were long-immersed in drama films and realistic subject matter. Lin Nan and Ning Hao felt quite awkward there, mainly because their ages didn't match; everyone around them was around forty or even older.

Without lingering, Lin Nan and Ning Hao left the moment it ended.

"Commercial film premieres are much livelier," Ning Hao complained.

"Yeah, I'm thinking of not holding a premiere for *Return to Dust*."

Realistic subject matter is generally a bit heavy; holding a banquet after watching the movie always feels abrupt, whereas it would be appropriate for a commercial film.

The premiere of *Shanghai Dreams* was attended by old-school media, mostly state-run media. The atmosphere was conventional, even a bit dull, which was why Lin Nan and Ning Hao couldn't stand it.

"Not holding one is fine too; just do the promotion well. After all, it's the movie you won the Silver Bear with. Tsk tsk, it's all profit after release."

"Haha, that's true."

Facts proved that audiences still didn't like watching such heavy films in theaters; after *Shanghai Dreams* was released, the first-day box office was only a few hundred thousand.

The media had already linked *Shanghai Dreams* and *Peacock* together in their reports. Both had won Jury Prizes at Cannes and Berlin, and their box office results were consistently and surprisingly low.

The pressure was now on Lin Nan. With nearly a month left until the release of *Return to Dust*, could he break the curse of low box office numbers that plagued *Shanghai Dreams* and *Peacock*?

Han Sanping contacted Lin Nan, asking if he wanted to make a public statement to take the opportunity to kick off the promotion.

No sooner said than done, Lin Nan accepted an interview.

"I know most audiences like feel-good movies that can delight the body and mind. Realistic subject matter generally can't achieve that; it expresses stories from life, and they are mostly filled with regrets and suffering. But it is real and sincere, and what touches people's hearts most are often the hardships and sufferings in life..."

The draft provided by China Film Group was good; Lin Nan modified it slightly and used it.

*Return to Dust* was different from *Shanghai Dreams* and *Peacock*; it was more bitter and harder than the latter two. Lin Nan only hoped he wouldn't be scolded when the time came, but the word-of-mouth shouldn't be bad.

Lionsgate's efficiency was truly high; only a month and a half had passed, and *Saw* was already about to finish filming.

"James, you're not lying to me, are you?"

Lin Nan asked Wan Ziren. Although he was mentally prepared, hearing that it was about to finish filming, he still couldn't believe it.

"Director Lin Nan, your script is excellent. We didn't make any changes, and the crew filmed very smoothly. You know, as long as the props department has no issues, this kind of film is naturally fast. Next, we will do the post-production as quickly as possible. Once the final cut is out, you'll need to come over and take a look..."

"Okay, I will definitely be there."

Judging by Wan Ziren's meaning, the post-production would be concentrated in June, and they planned to complete it entirely this month.

And looking at Lionsgate's intentions, once the post-production was done, it would be released at any time. This was also the reason they contacted Lin Nan; the time to verify the results was approaching.

Ning Hao took the crew to Shanghai in advance. The whole group was full of anticipation; *Crazy Stone*'s box office and word-of-mouth were so good, the probability of winning an award should be quite high, right?

The promotion for *Initial D* was in full swing. A movie starring the hottest singer of the last two years, Zhou Jielun, combined with a cast of Hong Kong actors, was not lacking in gimmicks.

*Shanghai Dreams* definitely made money by selling its rights at Cannes, but after the promotion for *Initial D* spread, the former's box office became even more miserable, barely reaching two million so far.

"*Crazy Stone* hasn't been out of theaters long. By then, *Return to Dust* can borrow the former's reputation to hype it up. You have an advantage over Director Wang Chang and Director Gu Changwei."

China Film Group was already preparing for the release of *Return to Dust*, and borrowing the heat from *Crazy Stone* was reasonable.

Han Dong was still worried about whether *Initial D* would affect *Return to Dust*. After all, China Film Group's promotion and distribution fees were taken from the box office revenue.

"It won't. There's a twelve-day gap. Their focus for promotion is Zhou Jielun, but no matter how many fans they have, they can't keep supporting the box office like this forever. The box office should be about done by July."