Chapter 87: Speaking One's Mind

Gu Changwei found a quiet spot, took a deep drag of the cigarette in his hand, then threw it on the ground and ground it out with his foot several times.

He had been holding this matter in his heart for a long time and wanted to find someone to talk to, but he couldn't be as jumpy as Ning Hao and those other assistants; it would be too embarrassing.

So he picked up the phone and called his wife, Jiang Wenli.

"Old Gu, what's wrong? Is working with Director Cao going well? Seven of Dots."

Jiang Wenli was playing a seven of dots while answering the phone.

Gu Changwei replied, "Working with Director Cao is actually quite pleasant. You might not believe me if I told you, but the crew's progress is so fast that the production manager has to re-plan every three days, otherwise it would cause chaos, but everyone is used to it now..."

He then realized he had said a bit too much; Jiang Wenli didn't know the first thing about filming, so why tell her all this?

"Ah? Is that so? Pong, nine of dots.

Is it like with Jiang Wen, where the schedule is set for two months, but it might take half a year or even longer to finish? These big directors are all like this; not a single one is worry-free."

After saying this, Jiang Wenli might have felt it was a bit inappropriate, so she continued, "But it's fine, slow work produces fine products, just keep grinding away with him... Wait a second, let me see, forget it, I don't want it."

Gu Changwei opened his mouth, having countless things he wanted to pour out, but in the end, he simply said, "No, Director Cao's two-month schedule will be finished in at most a month and a half, maybe even less."

"Oh, is Director Cao that fast?"

Old Gu couldn't be bothered to argue about this; he hadn't called to talk about that, so he couldn't wait to share with his wife.

"Wife, you might not believe me when I say this, but I think this movie is, really, fucking incredible. It's Gao Yuanyuan; I still don't know how Director Cao managed it even now. If I could have half of Director Cao's skill, I would fucking..."

"What are you talking about? You're incoherent, I don't understand a word. I'm not talking to you anymore, I'm playing mahjong... Oh my, why is it this again, it's really bad, seven of dots..."

"Beep, beep..."

Old Gu stared blankly at the phone, listening to the dial tone coming from inside. He wanted to smash his phone just like Cao Yang smashed the walkie-talkie, but in the end, he couldn't bring himself to do it.

He lit a cigarette, took a puff, blew out a smoke ring, finally sighed, looked up at the sky at a 45-degree angle, and said slowly, "Director Cao is truly awesome."

Sigh!

It wasn't just Gu Changwei who felt this way; the newly joined intern assistants at the Beijing Film Academy, and even the newcomer Wang Luodan, were all amazed by Cao Yang's ability to coach actors.

The veterans of the crew were all used to it. You bunch of bumpkins, do you know how formidable Director Cao is now? Have you learned something?

Ning Hao observed everything, and combined with hearsay and asking around, he would squat there and ponder during his free time, gradually forming a clear picture.

That is, before filming, gather all the lead actors together, talk to them every day about the scenes, the theme of the movie, the content the movie wants to express, and how they should interpret it.

Then, ask the actors for their thoughts every day, whether they understand, and set aside time every day to answer their questions.

Finally, according to the different individuals, use different methods to guide them into character when filming begins.

For example, with Gao Yuanyuan, Director Cao's method was to grind on the same shot non-stop on the first day, constantly using various ways to guide her to feel the character, letting her enter the state as soon as possible...

Success!

Ning Hao felt he had initially grasped the essentials. This internship on Director Cao's crew was truly worth it; it was not a waste of his few packs of cigarettes.

Director Cao is truly awesome; no wonder he became a Golden Lion-winning director at such a young age.

Of course, Ning Hao knew that besides this superficial process, Director Cao definitely had hidden methods he hadn't shown in public, which should be the most critical part.

However, Ning Hao didn't dare to hope to reach Cao Yang's level; as long as he could get sixty percent... no, forty percent, if he could reach forty percent of Director Cao's skill in coaching actors, Ning Hao would be satisfied.

On December 8th, the 38th Golden Horse Awards ceremony was held. Cao Yang didn't go, citing the excuse that he was at a critical stage of filming.

Li Xiaoran did go; her probability of winning Best Actress was infinitely high.

Cao Yang remembered that Qin Hailu was the big winner of this Golden Horse Awards, taking home both Best Actress and Best Newcomer for the movie "Durian Durian" directed by Chen Guo.

It could be considered one of the representatives of peaking right at the debut.

However, it might be a bit uncertain this time, after all, the influence of Li Xiaoran's Berlin Best Actress award was too great.

It wasn't like later years; at least in terms of individual awards, including the Golden Horse in Taiwan, the Hong Kong Film Awards, and the domestic Golden Rooster, they hadn't started playing the "maverick" game yet, at least it was slightly better in these few years.

Unlike later, when it was all just self-entertainment.

As expected, the Golden Horse gave Best Actress to Li Xiaoran, and Qin Hailu got Best Newcomer.

But Qin Hailu didn't know that if Li Xiaoran hadn't been there, she could have won Best Actress, so she was still quite happy to get Best Newcomer. Who wouldn't be excited to win an award at their debut?

Liu Ye won Best Actor for "Lan Yu."

This guy, once happy, would just talk nonsense.

When receiving the award, he not only thanked the director of "Lan Yu," Stanley Kwan, but actually thanked Cao Yang, saying that he felt in Director Cao's crew that making movies was also a pleasure...

!

The camera cut to Stanley Kwan, and it was obvious that his smile was a bit awkward.

Liu Ye was also a representative of peaking at his debut. Now he not only had the Golden Horse Best Actor award but also the Venice Best Newcomer Silver Lion. His market value was soaring, and in the film and television circle, he definitely surpassed a crowd of young actors.

Even among the middle-aged generation, there were few who could compare to him.

Interestingly, Wang Xiaoshuai's "Beijing Bicycle" lost to Chen Guo's "Durian Durian" in both Best Film and Best Original Screenplay.

It lost to "Lan Yu" director Stanley Kwan and editor William Chang in Best Director and Best Editing.

It lost to Mark Lee's "Millennium Mambo" in Best Cinematography.

Out of five nominations, Wang Xiaoshuai came away empty-handed.

According to the official statement of the Golden Horse, some movies didn't win not because they weren't good, but because this year's Golden Horse focused more on marginal themes and marginal characters.

So a reporter asked, if prostitutes and "gay men" are marginal characters, then aren't migrant workers who come to the city to work also marginal characters?

The Golden Horse officials didn't respond.

Then, Taiwanese media broke the news that it was because a director on the jury had engaged in irregular operations when applying for Taiwan's film "counseling funds."

The production company of "Beijing Bicycle" was the Taiwanese company Arc Light Films, and their boss, Hsu Hsiao-ming, publicly criticized and condemned the behavior of this irregular director, and then, out of retaliation, the Golden Horse didn't give them any awards.

Then, the producer and screenwriter of "Beijing Bicycle," the godmother of Taiwanese cinema, Peggy Chiao, angrily blasted the Golden Horse in front of the media.

"We gave the Golden Horse Awards respect, but they didn't want it. The Golden Horse Awards once played a respected role in Taiwanese cinema, but now it is dead, and it has also led Taiwanese cinema to a dead end. The territory of Taiwanese cinema is already small, and everyone's mind is more focused on forming cliques..."

Actually, it's quite ridiculous. Ever since the Taiwanese film market was completely opened in the 90s, it lost its vitality. Their directors either quit the film circle or could only shoot art films.

It is under these circumstances that the smaller the film market and the lower the vitality, the more intense the internal competition becomes, accompanied by chaos and disorder, forming cliques and factions, and the infighting is incredibly spectacular.

Externally, simply put, the Golden Horse wants Hong Kong and mainland films to come so that the Golden Horse doesn't "die," so sometimes it is slightly fair.

But internally, it is a determined, heavy-handed strike to eliminate dissidents without mercy.

"Beijing Bicycle" can be considered a victim of this infighting.

(End of chapter)