Chapter 101: Split-Screen Montage

On July 22, 2002, Lu Kuan was in the editing room at Beidian, explaining some precautions to Ning Hao and others, when his shoulder was suddenly patted.

"Ouch!"

Boss Lu turned around abruptly, then sat down holding his waist in pain.

"Teacher Tian, why don't you make a sound when you walk? You'll scare people to death!"

Tian Zhuangzhuang's calm face remained unchanged: "What's wrong with your waist? You shouldn't have strained it just by turning around like that."

"Young people today have such poor bodies."

Lu Kuan had bitterness he couldn't speak of; his kidneys had suffered greatly recently.

Bingbing hadn't had many announcements recently, and she came to him last night to report on her work for the whole night.

A strong man and a woman who had been lonely for a long time; it was inevitably another sleepless night.

Tian Zhuangzhuang's trip was to care about the editing progress of *Whiplash* and Lu Kuan's college entrance exam results.

"Hey! Teacher Tian, don't worry, there shouldn't be any problem, but if there are any accidents, I'll have to trouble you to say a word..."

Lu Kuan and Tian Zhuangzhuang walked outside the editing room, and he handed a cigarette to old Tian very flatteringly.

The cultural course score required for the undergraduate degree in the directing department is 70% of the first-tier admission line of the province where the candidate is located. In 2002, the first-tier line in Jiangsu was 552, and 70% was 387 points.

The Chinese, Math, and English scores are 150 each, totaling 450, and the comprehensive score is 300, for a total of 750. It shouldn't be a big problem for Lu Kuan to score 387.

After all, in his previous life, he was an undergraduate at Beidian and a master's student at USC. Just taking out Chinese and English would earn him quite a few points.

"I don't have that ability; this matter depends on yourself."

Tian Zhuangzhuang glanced at him and then gave an idea.

"Speed up the editing of *Whiplash*. I'll talk to President Zhang and let you have a small-scale screening at the standard projection room."

Lu Kuan understood his meaning. In case his cultural course didn't pass, he could add points at Zhang Huijun's place with this stunning film work.

Rules are rules, and human feelings are human feelings. There is no real threshold or one-size-fits-all in domestic society; everything can be discussed.

The premise is that you have to have something; don't be a piece of shit, then the back door will definitely not be opened for you.

"Yes! Understood!"

Tian Zhuangzhuang saw him jumping up and down like a monkey and greeted him to go downstairs together.

"Teacher Tian, where are we going?"

"Take you to Beiying Factory to learn how Hollywood directors shoot films."

"Hollywood? Who?"

"Quentin."

Dead memories suddenly attacked, and Boss Lu instantly thought of the experience of a group of Beidian students queuing up to watch the set in his previous life.

Quentin arrived in Beiping in May. The interior scenes for the revenge part of O-Ren Ishii in *Kill Bill* were moved from Tokyo to Beiping, which was due to Miramax's consideration of reducing costs.

But Quentin played too happily in Beiping, resulting in endless blunders where action scenes scheduled for three days on the schedule were dragged out for eight weeks.

This caused the final film cost to surge by 50% from 36 million US dollars, even exceeding the estimated cost in Tokyo...

The two walked all the way without words, passing through the crowd of extras in front of the Beiying Factory gate.

The sun was blazing, and those figures who were about to be wilted by the sun were still looking forward to it. If it weren't for the *Blind Shaft* crew, Shagen should be one of them now.

*Blind Shaft* finished filming in May, and it should be about finished with post-production by now.

Lu Kuan had been too busy lately, only touching on editing ideas with Li Yang after the wrap-up, and was preparing to find another time to watch the finished film.

Entering the crew station of *Kill Bill*, Quentin's screams were endless, mixed with the output of the f-word without cooldown.

"Stop! Stop!" With a desperate scream, Chen Feihu shook his head at his master and gave up.

Yuen Woo-ping looked at the white man who was lying on the ground like a dead pig with a piece of white belly exposed, and said helplessly: "Quentin, change someone, you can't act."

The foot-fetish director raised his hand weakly to agree, giving up the role of "Master Pai Mei" in the film.

There was another burst of good-natured laughter on the set, and everyone was happy to witness the embarrassment of the Palme d'Or director.

Lu Kuan looked closely, wow! Half of the country had come!

Zhang Yimou, Chen Kaige, Jiang Wen, Jiang Zhiqiang.

There was also a burly man who looked a bit unfamiliar, but Lu Kuan recognized him; this was Gao Chengsheng, Han Shanping's secretary.

Zhang Yimou greeted Tian Zhuangzhuang first, and then saw Lu Kuan on the side.

"Little Lu, long time no see."

"Hello, Director Zhang, I'm here with Teacher Tian to learn and observe today."

Zhang Yimou smiled kindly, the nasolabial folds on his face deeper. He had a very good impression of this young man.

In addition to his outspokenness about the structural problems of his script during the fourth test, it was also shown in his unyielding attitude after having conflicts with Hong Kong filmmakers.

"I heard from Zhuangzhuang that your movie is about to be finished. Invite me to the screening then, okay?"

"Of course, you are most welcome!"

Boss Lu definitely had to be humble on this occasion; a group of people were watching.

The three exchanged pleasantries and continued to watch Quentin filming.

He saw him wiping sweat with a handkerchief, discussing problems intensely with the first assistant director Zhang Jinzhan and the photography and art departments on the Chinese side.

Several big directors like Chen Kaige formed a circle, listening to the translation.

Lu Kuan didn't need translation and soon understood Quentin's confusion.

There were mainly two points.

The first was a plot in *Kill Bill* where a killer goes to the hospital to kill the heroine. Quentin felt the plot was too redundant and the narrative method was not innovative enough.

Depicting the female killer killing her way into the hospital in a flat narrative, until she fought fiercely with the heroine on the hospital bed and was defeated, seemed a bit too plain.

As everyone knows, Quentin is famous for the non-linear narrative structure in *Pulp Fiction*, and he has extremely high requirements for his film's narrative language.

The second point was that before the duel between O-Ren Ishii and the revenge bride, a bloody growth history of O-Ren Ishii needed to be inserted.

This insertion could neither steal the show nor be naturally embedded, so that the audience wouldn't feel abrupt. This was very demanding for the director's overall planning ability in film editing.

The set soon fell into a dead silence, with only Quentin's occasional complaining f-word popping out, and everyone fell into deep thought.

Film is an ancient art, and modern film techniques are already very mature.

And Quentin is called a film genius because he has his own innovations in narrative structure and visual expression.

This is also the purpose of a group of Chinese directors coming to observe and communicate.

Zhang Yimou spoke first: "Quentin, this part is really a bit abrupt. Not to mention disrupting the narrative structure, the main thing is that it affects the plot rhythm. The rhythm of Beatrix's revenge will be interrupted, and the audience's previous experience will have a pause here."

Jiang Wen mainly considered the second problem, which was somewhat similar to the lens of the police station director in his *Devils on the Doorstep*.

"Quentin, look at this for the first part. How about omitting the female killer's preparation work directly? First, a close-up of the heroine, and then use a Hitchcock zoom to set off the tense atmosphere?"

Quentin's eyes lit up, then he shook his head and said: "This kind of zoom is too background-dependent. The hospital bed background doesn't have so much lens language to reflect, and the effect shouldn't be very good."

Boss Lu laughed as he watched. These two questions were open-book exams for him.

"Split screen montage!"

Split screen montage is split-screen montage.

This sentence was spoken in English. While a group of Chinese directors were still waiting for translation, Quentin had already begun to preview this set of plans in his mind.

Chen Kaige looked displeased: "Zhuangzhuang, don't let your students interrupt in such an occasion, so as not to show embarrassment."

Boss Lu glanced at him disdainfully.

Show embarrassment? Who didn't tie their pants properly and exposed you?

Speaking out is showing off, suppressing, relying on old age to sell old age, which is disgusting.

Over there, Quentin slapped his thigh: "Genius idea!"

He stood up and walked over to invite Lu Kuan to the monitor.

"Friend, talk about your thoughts."

A group of big directors looked at each other. Zhang Yimou, Jiang Wen, Tian Zhuangzhuang, and others all had their eyes lit up when they heard the translated split-screen montage.

Only Chen Kaige's face was gloomy, feeling very embarrassed.

Foreigners are foreigners, they don't understand human feelings at all. I scolded you, but you treat him as a guest of honor?

Boss Lu didn't care about that set of his. He already knew who was the awesome one and who was the big water one among those present!

"It's very simple. Split-screen montage plays a role of space-time juxtaposition."

"On one side, it depicts the female killer's preparation, and on the other, it shows the heroine's helplessness. The two can produce a strong contrast."

"Here, the heroine is paved as a lamb to be slaughtered, and her counter-killing later will be very cool."

The principle here is similar to a cool novel. The author must use all means to suppress the protagonist, suppress the reader's emotions, and then pretend to be cool once, ruling the world.

Jiang Wen clapped and praised: "This idea is really wonderful! How to handle the inserted scene of O-Ren Ishii?"

Tian Zhuangzhuang and Zhang Yimou nodded continuously, looking forward to Lu Kuan's answer.

"This part can try to use animation, Japanese anime style."

Lu Kuan asked the art department for a few sheets of paper and simply drew some Japanese-style scenes and comic compositions.

This is the basic skill of a master's student at USC in his previous life. There is no excellent director who is not good at drawing storyboards.

Quentin and the Chinese directors all gathered around to look carefully, each conducting a brainstorming session.

Tian Zhuangzhuang asked suspiciously: "Will this be too abrupt, from realistic lens to comic style?"

Lu Kuan explained with a smile: "There are two benefits to doing this."

"First, comic style replaces live-action shooting, and the scale can be larger. Many bloody and frequent stabbing actions are impossible for live-action actors to perform."

"Second, use another expression technique to distinguish it from the main plot, without affecting the integrity of the narrative structure, and it is more stylized and dramatic."

Quentin never looked up from beginning to end, just let the monitor replay the live-action version of O-Ren Ishii's revenge, frantically substituting the perspective of Japanese comics.

"Crazy idea!"

Zhang Yimou and others looked at the young director approvingly.

The solution to these two problems might be a bit exaggerated to call it a stroke of genius, but it is indeed the optimal solution at present.

Tian Zhuangzhuang watched Lu Kuan and Quentin talking freely in fluent English, while Zhang Yimou and others on the side listened intently, feeling very gratified.

This fifth-generation director, who was old and ambitious, returned to Beidian and picked up the teaching whip again just to cultivate the next generation of film talent.

His golden decade was banned, and it was already difficult to have the impulse to create, so it was better to exert some residual heat.

At the 2017 China Film Directors Association Annual Commendation Conference, he once spoke on behalf of fifth-generation directors such as Zhang Yimou and Chen Kaige.

At that time, the face with gullies was not old, but full of great wishes and hopes.

The tone was smooth, not impassioned:

We are a generation of inheritance, but we have seen people, seen heaven, seen earth in this society, and know what love is, what responsibility is, and what giving is.

We later put all these into our movies, using our own lives to make movies. I think this may be the attitude of our generation.

I hope that future filmmakers will also do this and pass on the backbone of our Chinese filmmakers from generation to generation.

Seeing Lu Kuan like a piece of uncut jade at this time, he was naturally happy to see the talent.

Tian Zhuangzhuang was determined to say hello to Zhang Huijun first, and not miss such a good seedling.

Boss Lu showed off again in front of others, returned to Beidian contentedly, and called Ning Hao to have dinner.

After eating, they had to go back to the editing room, so they didn't want to run outside the school and went directly to the Xinjiang restaurant in the canteen to eat hand-grabbed rice.

"What's wrong? If you have something to say, say it!"

Boss Lu gnawed on the lamb chops with a mouth full of oil and glanced at Ning Hao opposite.

Ning Hao was tongue-tied like he was constipated for a while, and then swayed left and right like he had hemorrhoids for a while.

"That, Director Lu, oh no, President Lu!"

"My script is almost saved, I want to... hehe..."

Boss Lu knew it well: "What's the budget?"

"I plan to put the location in Shancheng, and try to find actors whose reputation is greater than their fame, or those who came from the Central Academy of Drama or Beidian."

Ning Hao gritted his teeth and reported a number: "6 million!"

Boss Lu sneered secretly. This number was about the same as the funds he proposed when he sought Liu Dehua's "Asian Star Director" plan in his previous life.

"As a director, I understand that your requirements for funds are the more the better."

"But as a producer, I suggest you scout the scene and draw the storyboard first, and make a qualified and compliant budget for me before talking."

This was Ning Hao's first theatrical feature film. Lu Kuan wanted to gradually cultivate him to operate according to the standardized process of the Hollywood crew, which was also good for his future career.

The biggest benefit is not to cause trouble or exceed the budget for himself as an investor.

Ning Hao didn't care about these and thanked him repeatedly and happily.

In fact, he just mentioned it casually. After fighting side by side with Lu Kuan against the Hong Kong people, he knew that Boss Lu was far from as simple as he appeared on the surface.

Therefore, he pinned his hope for the funds for his first movie on him, never expecting Lu Kuan to agree so readily.

He was happy, and Boss Lu was even happier.

Who shot this movie, he knew, and he would make money after shooting it.

Lu Kuan smiled: "Tomorrow I will let Wenwen find you to sign the contract. Think about whether you want box office share or a fixed director fee."

"By the way, consider arranging auditions for Zhang Songwen, Huang Bo, and Wang Baoqiang."

"Of course, prioritize the role. If they are unqualified, you can brush them off."

Ning Hao nodded repeatedly. Not to mention arranging auditions, even the investor dad's shit was fragrant.

In 2002, the domestic film industry was particularly desolate at this time node. It was indeed too difficult to pull some investment, and the improvement of this situation had to wait until the explosion of *Hero*.

And it was only for those famous directors.

Lu Kuan made a phone call to Sun Wenwen in front of Ning Hao, looking at the big gold chain and flat head who was beaming in front of him, sighing that his butterfly wings had changed the life of another director.

Alas! Why didn't I have such good luck in my previous life!

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 102 =====