Chapter 357: Art is Interconnected

After the 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 so much for your help today; you really went to a lot of trouble for us."

Zhuang Yuxin said with some emotion.

Only by personally making a film from scratch can one truly feel the hardships involved.

From the initial conception of this film, to exhausting every means to secure investment, to personally holding the script to persuade several famous actors to join, the hardships Zhuang Yuxin endured were beyond what could be told to outsiders.

The reason he was able to secure investment was largely due to his status as a teacher at the Beijing Film Academy; otherwise, he would certainly have been treated as a fraud.

What Zhuang Yuxin found most unforgettable was that just as they were about to start filming, the investor suddenly vanished into thin air and could not be reached at all.

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 a salary, let's just film as far as we can..."

If it hadn't been for Yan Bingyan liking this script so much, and if it hadn't been for her strong support, 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 talent, we will definitely find a way to support you fully."

Liu Yibing chimed in: "Secretary Zhang is right. Actually, we can't do 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 demand projects or investment from the Qingying Studio, that would be making things difficult for us two old men. Director Xie is famously selfless; no one's influence works on him."

His subsequent words seemed to be praising Xie Xiaojing, though it felt more like he was teasing him.

Zhang Min coughed and said with a smile: "Dean Xie also has it tough. In recent years, the Qingying Studio has made some money and funds have become more abundant, but the quota for external investment has also increased. They’ve invested a lot of money in two or three projects in Hollywood.

Plus, the number of feature films in the school has expanded from the previous fixed four or five to fourteen fixed projects, and every year a few backup projects are added, making it nearly twenty.

There are also a large number of short films being shot; all of this costs money.

Out of these twenty feature film projects, if even one or two don't lose money, Dean Xie could probably wake up laughing in his dreams. His pressure is actually quite high; it almost entirely relies on the blood transfusion from the Hollywood projects following Director Cao."

Liu Yibing is the head of the Literature Department, so he certainly puts the Literature Department first in everything and fights for its interests.

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

"I understand."

Zhuang Yuxin knew that the Secretary was explaining this because he was afraid that Zhuang would have opinions about the Qingying Studio for not getting the "quota."

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

"Relax, look on the bright side. If Director Cao thinks your film 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 understandable.

Who is Director Cao? 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 were to push Zhuang Yuxin's film to the Venice Film Festival, Zhuang would save years of struggle, and his fate might change because of it.

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 future films will never have to worry about funding.

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

Zhang Min followed up with a smile to comfort him.

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

To him, the afternoon screening was no less than the greatest opportunity of 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 them and didn't ask why the two hadn't sought investment from the Qingying Studio. For such matters, it's better to see the quality of the film first and then go to the Qingying Studio to understand the specifics.

In any era, whether domestic or foreign, unless one is a well-known director, raising investment is never an easy task.

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

This "deep" is not an ordinary meaning; even those with slightly shallow backgrounds won't do. There are too few profitable films, and most films are made at a loss.

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

"Director Zhuang, this afternoon's screening was originally prepared for Director Tian's new film. Your film 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 was quite familiar with the "Pieta" that Old Tian was filming; someone in the crew would report the progress to him from time to time, and would also report whether the filming had deviated from the script.

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

If they watched "Pieta" first, everyone would definitely compare "Pieta" with "Teeth of Love," which would be a bit unfriendly to Zhuang Yuxin.

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

Zhuang Yuxin said hurriedly.

Amidst the quiet conversation of the few, people entered the small screening room one after another. Zheng Dongtian, Xie Fei, and other older generation directors arrived, followed by school leaders such as Xie Xiaojing and Dean Hou.

Zhuang Yuxin watched the people coming in, feeling increasingly nervous.

Subsequently, after Cao Yang received a phone call, he walked out, and not long after, he brought Old Situ in.

At this moment, except for the old guys of Old Situ's generation like Zheng Dongtian and Xie Fei, all the school leaders, including Dean Hou, stood up.

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

"That old guy who stepped in dog shit! A documentary filmmaker who taught someone who is the best at shooting art films—is there any reason left in this world?"

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

Seeing Cao Yang with Old Situ this time made him even more jealous.

Zheng Dongtian couldn't help but roll his eyes, muttering to himself; no need to guess, it must have been "praising" with elegant vocabulary.

This was a small screening room, so there couldn't be much small talk. After just a moment, seeing that everyone who should be there had arrived, Cao Yang had the staff start the screening.

"Teeth of Love" could be considered a film with quite an artistic temperament.

This made Cao Yang think of "In the Heat of the Sun" or foreign films like "Betty Blue" or "Dead Poets Society," all of which were cruel stories about youth and love.

Later, when there were many films of this type, there was a special "classification" called "youth pain films."

However, compared to the formulaic youth films of later generations, "Teeth of Love" could be considered a pioneer, with the inevitable abortions and scumbags in youth pain films...

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

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

The ignorance, obscurity, and pride of the high school period; at that time, dating would make one an object of exclusion by classmates. It was 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 from He Xuesong, and from then on, her back would ache faintly on cloudy and rainy days. And He Xuesong's self-harm and drowning could not be let go along with the faint pain in her back.

During her university years, the lead actress fell in love with a married man, and after an accidental pregnancy, the two secretly performed an abortion in the man's home, without anesthesia...

When the affair was exposed, the man pushed all the responsibility away to save his job, but the lead actress calmly took on everything. She took it all on herself 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 used pliers to pull out the canine tooth 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 one of her teeth—the same canine tooth in the same position as her ex-husband Wei Yingqiu's—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 objective, the third part, including this ending, was indeed far-fetched, falling into form and concept. The director wanted too much to emphasize the relationship between pain and love, fearing that the audience wouldn't feel enough pain and wouldn't grasp 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 film was much more normal.

In fact, in Cao Yang's view, the biggest highlight in "Teeth of Love" was the performance of Yan Bingyan, who played the lead actress.

Especially the acting; Cao Yang could say without exaggeration that Yan Bingyan's acting was absolutely top-notch among domestic actresses.

Such a youth pain film, she acted in it without any sense of incongruity; it was really like the true experience of such a woman.

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

Cao Yang thought of another film of Yan Bingyan's in the future, "Feng Shui," and her performance in it was also completely crushing.

It could even be said that whether it was "Teeth of Love" or "Feng Shui," it wasn't the film that achieved Yan Bingyan, but Yan Bingyan's performance that achieved the film.

This is truly an actress with high plasticity!

The only regret was still the film.

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

You could have at least dug a little into the human nature; don't just stop at the surface.

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

You have to choose between awards and box office, right?

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

If you want to win an award, you don't dig deep, and 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 film would really be an ordinary, mediocre work.

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

"This actress is good, is she a graduate of our Beijing Film Academy?"

"Probably not, most likely from the Central Academy of Drama, this acting is really good."

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

In this kind of screening, after watching a film, there must be a break in the middle to try not to be influenced by the film so that one can continue to watch the next one.

Cao Yang thought for a moment and beckoned for the 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 looked at the department head Liu Yibing next to him.

Liu Yibing patted Zhuang Yuxin on the shoulder and whispered: "Don't be nervous, just say whatever Director Cao asks, tell the truth, and definitely don't lie, so as not to affect Director Cao's judgment."

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

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

"When this film was being shot, why didn't you think about digging deeper 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 own personal reason; the process of raising investment for this film was extremely difficult, and I was afraid that if I dug too deep, it would be troublesome if it couldn't pass censorship later."

"The other reason is that the investors kept emphasizing that it must not be filmed as a banned movie, otherwise they would claw back the investment."

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

One version for hoodwinking, and one version for attending film festivals abroad.

Cao Yang considered for a moment, and without beating around the bush, he said directly:

"Your film is set in the seventies and eighties, which is the easiest era to win awards abroad, but there are prerequisites for winning awards: you must either dig deep into human nature or reflect the changes of that great era. You haven't done either of these 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 upon the changes of that era; that boundary is hard to grasp."

"I'll tell you the truth, this kind of youth romance film isn't easy to win awards with, so you'd best not hold too much hope. However, if you only want to participate in the Venice Film Festival, getting into the main competition section is no problem."

"Ah?"

"Ah!"

Zhuang Yuxin's emotions couldn't keep up with the changes in Cao Yang's words, and he let out two exclamations directly. Anyone who didn't know better would have thought Cao Yang had done something to him.

"Thank you, Director Cao, truly, thank you so much. I'm fine with that; being able to enter the main competition section of the Venice Film Festival is something I didn't even dare to imagine... Thank you, Director Cao, thank you, thank you..."

Zhuang Yuxin was so excited he was a bit incoherent.

"It's nothing, keep working hard. Next time you have a script you're unsure about, you can call me. We at the Beijing Film Academy are one family; I am very happy to be able to provide whatever help I can to everyone."

Cao Yang stood up and said to Zhuang Yuxin: "Let's go, stay behind in a moment and watch Director Tian's new work."

"Ah? Ah!"

Zhuang Yuxin's emotions had another major fluctuation.

At this moment, his mind was a mess. Does this, does this count as entering Director Cao's circle?

Next, everyone pulled themselves together and began to watch the Old Tian version of *Pieta*.

As the film's plot progressed, watching Fu Dalong's performance in the movie, Cao Yang almost blurted out an expletive. Damn it, what kind of stuff did Old Tian teach? This is filming Fu Dalong like a pervert.

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

Can you imagine him having an indifferent look in his eyes while snapping a debtor's hand, yet having a smile on the corners of his mouth?

This wasn't an isolated case. In Old Tian's version of *Pieta*, every time Fu Dalong collected usury or committed evil acts, the corner of his mouth would twitch a few times, looking like he was smiling and being disdainful.

Additionally, I have to say, Old Tian is a real pervert.

The film was shot quite bloodily, and many of the lynchings were filmed in their entirety. If this isn't cut, it definitely won't pass censorship.

In front of the debtor, Fu Dalong stripped the man's wife of her clothes, then pulled out his belt and "slapped" the wife's buttocks.

Also, when the female lead played by Hui Yinghong approached the male lead and claimed to be his mother, he didn't believe it at first, and then it developed into the key plot. The film's male lead, played by Fu Dalong, pinned the female lead down, then gave his signature twitch of the mouth, looking like he was smiling.

He didn't hesitate to pull off the female lead's panties, and while smiling, he covered his nose with them and took a deep breath to smell them.

He said: "This isn't the scent I'm familiar with..."

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

Afterward, he began to undo his own belt, pulling it all the way down.

Old Tian also had a very perverse sense of humor, filming Fu Dalong's buttocks from behind.

Just like when Cao Yang filmed Depp's buttocks in *The Mean Milk*.

Afterward, Fu Dalong climbed on top.

Then came the act.

Furthermore, Old Tian, with a very, very perverse sense of humor, placed the camera behind Fu Dalong, filming his buttocks moving forward, which lasted for over a minute.

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

It's just that for these things to be shown domestically, many shots will have to be cut.

(End of chapter)