Chapter 357

After Literature Department Head Liu Yibing and the other two left Cao Yang's office, they returned to the Literature Department and arrived at Liu Yibing's office.

"Director, Secretary Zhang, thank you both very much for your help today. You really went to a lot of trouble for us."

Zhuang Yuxin said with some emotion.

Only by personally filming a movie from scratch can one truly feel the difficulty involved.

From the conception of this film, to exhausting every possible means to secure investment, to personally holding the script to persuade several famous actors to join, the hardships Zhuang Yuxin endured are beyond words.

The reason he was able to secure investment in the midst of this was that his status as a teacher at the Beijing Film Academy played a very significant role; otherwise, he would definitely have been treated as a swindler.

What Zhuang Yuxin found most unforgettable was that just as filming was about to start, the investor suddenly vanished into thin air, and he couldn't be contacted no matter what.

If it hadn't been for the already quite famous lead actress Yan Bingyan stepping up at the critical moment and saying, "Let's film on schedule; I don't want my salary, let's just film as far as we can...",

and if it hadn't been for Yan Bingyan really liking this script and supporting him strongly, Zhuang Yuxin might not have been able to hold on until the investor changed their mind.

Party Branch Secretary Zhang Min patted Zhuang Yuxin on the shoulder and said with a smile, "It's not easy for our Literature Department to produce a director. As long as you truly have the ability, we will definitely find ways to support you with all our might."

Liu Yibing chimed in, "Secretary Zhang is right. Actually, we can't do too much; at most, we can just use this old face of ours to help you out verbally.

If you really want us to step forward and ask the Youth Film Studio for projects and investment, that would be making things difficult for us two old men. Director Xie is famously selfless; no one's face works well with him."

His subsequent words appeared to be praising Xie Xiaojing, but one always felt there was more of a teasing tone to it.

Zhang Min coughed and said with a smile, "Director Xie doesn't have it easy either. The Youth Film Studio has made some money in the past few years and funds have become more abundant, but the quota for external investment has also increased accordingly; they've invested quite a lot of money in two or three projects in Hollywood.

Coupled with the fact that the number of feature films in the school has expanded from the previous fixed four or five to fourteen fixed projects, plus several backup projects added each year, there are almost twenty in total.

There is also a large amount of short film shooting; these are all money.

If one or two of these twenty feature film projects don't lose money, Director Xie could probably wake up laughing in his dreams. His pressure is actually quite high; it almost entirely relies on the Hollywood projects following Cao Dao to provide blood transfusions for the school."

Liu Yibing is the head of the Literature Department and definitely puts the Literature Department first in everything, striving for benefits for the Literature Department.

Zhang Min is different; as the Literature Department's Party Branch Secretary, while considering the Literature Department, he also has to take into account the school's "big picture," which is also one of his responsibilities.

"I understand."

Zhuang Yuxin knew that the Secretary was explaining this to him because he was afraid that he would have opinions about the Youth Film Studio for not getting the "quota" from the Youth Film Studio.

"However, two leaders, I am both happy and nervous right now. I don't know how Cao Dao will evaluate 'Tooth of Love' this afternoon. I'm really anxious; honestly, I'm more nervous than when I participated in the College Student Film Festival."

"Relax, think on the bright side. If Cao Dao thinks your movie is good, he will definitely recommend it to the Venice Film Festival. By then, you kid will become famous overnight, haha..."

Liu Yibing made a joke; he could see that Zhuang Yuxin was indeed a bit too nervous.

Of course, it was also understandable.

Who is Cao Dao? He is the top director in the country, bar none, and also one of the most top-tier and influential directors in the world.

If he pushes Zhuang Yuxin's movie to the Venice Film Festival, Zhuang Yuxin will save years of struggle, and his fate might change because of this.

That is the Venice Film Festival, one of the three major European festivals. As long as one can be selected for the main competition unit, even if one doesn't win a single award, one can become famous overnight, and one will never have to worry about funds for movies in the future.

"Don't worry, Cao Dao is a very good person. He can't stay for many days this time he's back, and he is very busy. Even so, he was able to agree without hesitation to watch your film. You kid should just be secretly happy; what else is there to be anxious about?"

Zhang Min followed up with a smile to comfort him.

The two's comfort was still somewhat useful to Zhuang Yuxin, but he... was even more anxious.

For him, the trial viewing in the afternoon was no different from the greatest opportunity in his life; who wouldn't be nervous?

At 1:30 PM, when Cao Yang and Old Tian arrived at the small screening room, Liu Yibing and Zhuang Yuxin were already waiting there.

Cao Yang chatted briefly with a few people and didn't ask why the two didn't seek investment from the Youth Film Studio. For this kind of thing, it's better to see the quality of the movie first, and then go to the Youth Film Studio to understand the specifics.

No matter what era, whether domestic or foreign, as long as one is not a well-known director, it is not an easy thing to secure investment.

Of course, still the same saying, whether domestic or foreign, those with deep backgrounds are not included in this list.

This "deep" is not the ordinary meaning; even those with slightly shallower backgrounds won't do. There are too few profitable movies, and most movies are money-losing when filmed.

Who would knowingly throw money into a pit? So the word "deep" is not just talk.

"Director Zhuang, this trial viewing session this afternoon was originally prepared for Director Tian's new film. Your movie was inserted by my decision, so let's watch yours first, okay?"

Cao Yang said to Zhuang Yuxin.

This was also a decision Cao Yang made after consideration.

He is relatively familiar with "Pieta" filmed by Old Tian; there are people in the crew who will report the progress to him from time to time, and will also report whether the filming has deviated from the script.

Even if Cao Yang hasn't seen Old Tian's "Pieta," as long as it is filmed according to the script, plus the intensity Old Tian put on the actors, it shouldn't be bad overall.

If "Pieta" were watched first, everyone would definitely compare "Pieta" with "Tooth of Love," which is a bit unfriendly to Zhuang Yuxin.

"Okay, Cao Dao, you just arrange it as you see fit."

Zhuang Yuxin said hurriedly.

Just in the soft conversation of a few people, people entered the small screening room one after another. Zheng Dongtian, Xie Fei, and other older generation directors, and later school leaders like Xie Xiaojing and Hou Yuan also came.

Zhuang Yuxin looked at the people coming in, and his heart became increasingly nervous.

Subsequently, only after seeing Cao Yang receive a phone call did he walk out, and not long after, he brought Old Situ in.

At this moment, except for old guys like Zheng Dongtian and Xie Fei who were of the same generation as Old Situ, school leaders including Hou Yuan all stood up.

As Cao Yang's influence and status became higher and higher, Old Situ's prestige also became more and more sufficient.

"That old guy who stepped in dog shit! A guy who plays with documentaries taught one who is best at filming art-house movies. Is there any reason left for heaven's sake?"

Every time Xie Fei sees Old Situ, he can't help but complain in his heart.

Seeing Cao Yang with Old Situ this time, he became even more sour.

Zheng Dongtian couldn't help but roll his eyes, and his mouth was also muttering; no need to think, it must be elegant vocabulary of "praise."

This is a small screening room, so there can't be too much small talk. After only a moment, Cao Yang saw that almost everyone who should come had come, so he let the staff start the screening.

"Tooth of Love" can be considered a movie with quite an artistic temperament.

This made Cao Yang couldn't help but think of "In the Heat of the Sun" or foreign films like "Betty Blue" or "Dead Poets Society," all of which are cruel stories about youth and love.

Later, there were more movies of this type, and there was a special "classification" called youth pain films.

However, compared to the formulaic youth films of later generations, "Tooth of Love" can be considered to have started a precedent, with the abortion and meeting a scumbag that youth pain films must have...

The story time is set from the late 1970s to the late 1980s. The lead actress, Qian Yehong, was a big sister when she was in high school, very fierce, riding a 28-inch men's bicycle.

This movie is divided into three parts to tell the lead actress's life love journey.

The ignorance, obscurity, and face in high school; falling in love during that period would make one an object of rejection by classmates. It is precisely because of this that the lead actress Qian Yehong read the love letter He Xuesong wrote to her in front of her classmates.

For this, her back was hit by a brick by He Xuesong, and from then on, her back would ache faintly on cloudy and rainy days. And He Xuesong's self-mutilation and drowning could not be released along with the faint pain in her back.

During college, the lead actress fell in love with a married man, and after an accidental pregnancy, the two quietly had an abortion at the man's home, without anesthesia...

When the matter was exposed, the man pushed all responsibility away to save his job, but the lead actress calmly bore everything. She bore it all alone and was eventually expelled from school.

In the third part, the lead actress married a man she didn't love, and the five-year marriage eventually came to an end.

When they got married, the lead actress said her husband's canine tooth looked good. When the two decided to divorce, the husband pulled out the canine tooth with pliers and gave it to her—also without anesthesia.

At the end of the film, the lead actress Qian Yehong asked the dentist to pull out a tooth for her too—the same canine tooth in the same position as her ex-husband Wei Yingqiu, and without any anesthesia, because she also wanted to try that feeling.

Or perhaps, what she wanted to try was the taste of love.

To be realistic, the third part, including this ending, is indeed far-fetched and falls into form and concept. The director wanted to emphasize the relationship between pain and love too much, fearing that the audience wouldn't feel enough pain and wouldn't understand his deep meaning. In short, it was not as simple, direct, and authentic as the first two parts.

But compared to the formulaic youth pain films of later generations, this movie is much more normal.

Actually, in Cao Yang's view, the biggest highlight in "Tooth of Love" is the performance of Yan Bingyan, who plays the lead actress.

Especially the acting, Cao Yang can say without exaggeration that Yan Bingyan's acting is definitely a top-tier existence among domestic actresses.

Such a youth pain film, she acted in it with no sense of incongruity at all, really like the true experience of such a woman.

It's almost like adding an immersive experience, at most just a little bit off.

Cao Yang thought of another movie Yan Bingyan will have in the future, "Feng Shui," and her performance in it is also completely crushing.

It can even be said that whether it is "Tooth of Love" or "Feng Shui," it is not the movie that achieved Yan Bingyan, but Yan Bingyan's performance that achieved the movie.

This is really an actress with extremely high plasticity!

The only regret is still the movie.

Cao Yang even wanted to ask the director Zhuang Yuxin directly what he was thinking. Since you want to win awards so much, change the plot a little bit; you really just put it entirely on the lead actress's love growth experience!

You could even dig into the human nature of the characters a little bit; don't just stop at the surface and touch it and pull back.

If you don't want to dig deep, then learn from "Beijing Bicycle" and reflect the changes of the era through love.

Awards and box office, one must choose one, right?

If you don't want to win awards, just make it into a commercial film mode, make the audience cry, make the audience feel unsatisfied, make the audience want to beat you up...

If you want to win awards, you don't dig deep; if you want box office, you are hesitant and unwilling to compromise completely with commercial films. If it weren't for Yan Bingyan's brilliant performance, this movie would really be an ordinary, mediocre work.

Sure enough, as Cao Yang thought, when the movie finished playing and the symbolic applause ended, he heard several people discussing it.

"This actress is not bad, is she a graduate of our Beijing Film Academy?"

"Probably not, high probability she is from the Central Academy of Drama; this acting is really good."

"Do you know what the actress's name is? Haven't heard of her much before."

In this kind of trial viewing, after watching a movie, one must definitely take a break in the middle, trying not to be influenced by the movie, in order to continue watching the next one.

Cao Yang thought for a moment and beckoned to Director Zhuang Yuxin to come over.

Zhuang Yuxin was stunned, and for a moment, he was a bit nervous and at a loss. He sighed and glanced at the department head Liu Yibing next to him.

Liu Yibing patted Zhuang Yuxin on the shoulder and whispered, "Don't be nervous. Whatever Cao Dao asks, you say it. Tell the truth, absolutely don't lie, so as not to affect Cao Dao's judgment."

Zhuang Yuxin nodded hurriedly, then got up, fell two steps behind Cao Yang, and followed Cao Yang to a small office on the side.

Cao Yang signaled Zhuang Yuxin to sit down and talk. Zhuang Yuxin smiled stiffly and sat in the position below Cao Yang.

"When this movie was filmed, why didn't you think about digging into human nature or the changes of the era?"

Cao Yang still couldn't hold back the doubt in his heart and asked this question.

Zhuang Yuxin almost stood up reflexively. He took a deep breath and replied:

"Two reasons. One is my personal reason. The process of pulling investment for this movie was very difficult. I was afraid that if I dug deep into some things, it would be troublesome if it couldn't pass the censorship."

"The other reason is that the investor kept emphasizing repeatedly that it must not be filmed as a banned film, otherwise the investment would be recovered."

Cao Yang looked at Zhuang Yuxin with some surprise. You are really honest; don't you know that directors from the Beijing Film Academy are best at filming enough material and cutting two versions directly?

One version is used for fooling, and one version is used for participating in film festivals abroad.

Cao Yang considered for a moment and didn't beat around the bush, but said directly:

"Your movie filmed the 70s and 80s, which is the easiest to win awards abroad, but winning awards also has prerequisites, which is to either dig deep into human nature or reflect the changes of that great era. You didn't do either of these two points well."

A look of disappointment and frustration appeared on Zhuang Yuxin's face.

Cao Yang continued, "Personally speaking, it was a good choice that you didn't touch the changes of that era; that boundary is not easy to grasp."

"I'll tell you the truth, this kind of youth love film is not easy to win awards. You'd better not hold too much hope. However, if you just want to participate in the Venice Film Festival, there is no problem entering the main competition unit."

"Ah?"

"Ah!"

Zhuang Yuxin's emotions couldn't keep up with the changes in Cao Yang's words and issued two exclamations directly. Those who didn't know would think Cao Yang had done something to him.

"Thank you, Cao Dao, really thank you very much. I have no problem. Being able to enter the main competition unit of the Venice Film Festival is something I didn't dare to think about... Thank you, Cao Dao, thank you, thank you..."

Zhuang Yuxin was so excited that he was incoherent.

"It's okay, keep working hard. Next time if you have a script you are not sure about, you can call me. We at the Beijing Film Academy are one body. I am also very happy to be able to provide some help within my power to everyone."

Cao Yang stood up and said to Zhuang Yuxin, "Let's go, you stay too and watch Director Tian's new work."

"Ah? Ah!"

Zhuang Yuxin's emotions once again had a relatively large fluctuation and change.

At this moment, his brain was a mess. Am I, am I considered to have entered Cao Dao's circle?

Next, everyone cheered up and started watching the Old Tian version of "Pieta."

As the movie plot progressed, watching Fu Dalong's performance in the movie, Cao Yang almost shouted "Holy shit." Damn, what did Old Tian teach? This is filming Fu Dalong towards a pervert.

The performance of the male actor in the original "Pieta" was a bit "restrained," while Fu Dalong's interpretation of the character was completely "released."

Can you imagine that he could have an indifferent look in his eyes while cutting off the debtor's hand, but with a smile on the corner of his mouth?

This is not an isolated case. In Old Tian's version of "Pieta," every time Fu Dalong was collecting usury, every time he was doing evil, the corner of his mouth would twitch a few times, looking like he was laughing and disdainful.

In addition, I have to say, Old Tian is really a pervert.

The movie was filmed a bit bloody, and many lynching processes were filmed completely. If this is not cut, it will definitely not pass the censorship.

Fu Dalong stripped the debtor's wife's clothes in front of the debtor, then pulled out his belt and "slapped" the debtor's wife's butt.

Also, when the lead actress played by Hui Yinghong found the lead actor and said she was his mother, he didn't believe it at first, and then it developed into the key plot. The lead actor of the movie, Fu Dalong, pushed the lead actress of the movie down, and then the iconic twitching of the corner of his mouth, looking like he was smiling.

He pulled off the lead actress's panties without hesitation and even smiled and covered his nose with them, taking a deep breath and smelling them.

Saying, "This is not the smell I'm familiar with..."

Then he stuffed the panties into the lead actress's mouth.

Then he started to untie his belt and took it off directly to the bottom.

Old Tian also had a very bad taste and filmed Fu Dalong's butt from behind.

Just like when Cao Yang filmed Depp's butt in "The Infernal Milk."

Then Fu Dalong lay on top.

Then it was the movement.

And, Old Tian also had a very, very bad taste and put the camera behind Fu Dalong, filming the shot of his butt moving forward, which lasted for more than a minute.

Sure enough, Old Tian has something in common with European art-house film directors.

However, if these things are to be shown in the country, many shots have to be cut.

(End of this chapter)