Chapter 49: Tian Zhuangzhuang and the Youth Film Studio

By 2002, Beijing was already showing signs of early morning rush hour. Lu Kuan had risen early, yet he still arrived late, not reaching the Beijing Film Academy until after 9:00 AM.

Today was the day the results for the fourth round of auditions were posted.

The Beijing Film Academy was a very small campus—so small that the surrounding area lacked the standard amenities found near other universities, such as commercial streets, affordable housing, or snack alleys.

On the day results were posted, the north side of Jimen Bridge was, as usual, "difficult to navigate."

Lu Kuan followed behind the queue, listening to a female media field reporter broadcasting with a microphone.

"Hello everyone, today is the day the Beijing Film Academy posts its fourth-round audition results. We are currently standing at the entrance of the Beijing Film Academy."

The reporter signaled for the camera to zoom out: "As you can see, it is already a sea of people."

"We have obtained this year's relevant data from the Beijing Film Academy admissions office. The most popular department, Acting, has over 4,000 applicants this year, and the admission ratio has reached 1:130—it's staggering!"

Lu Kuan remained expressionless as he drifted with the crowd. With 4,000 people just for the Acting department here to see the results, there was no way to squeeze into that line for a while.

If he were to be crushed and lose an arm or a leg today, Xu Jinglei and Zhao Wei would have to take full responsibility.

It is no exaggeration to say that the rise of the two of them—especially Zhao Wei after *My Fair Princess*—had completely ignited the fervor for applying to the two art schools in the capital.

"This student, may I ask if you are an applicant this year?"

Unexpectedly being cued, Lu Kuan froze for a moment, then immediately smiled with a sense of camera presence and answered, "Yes."

"May I ask if you applied for the Acting department?"

"The Directing department."

The female reporter knew she wouldn't be able to squeeze to the front for a while, so she simply latched onto Lu Kuan to milk him for more interview material to edit later.

"Your physical appearance is quite good. May I ask why you chose the Directing department instead of Acting?"

Lu Kuan took a look and realized it was Jin Wei from the *Movie Channel*. She would officially host *China Movie Report* in 2003; it seemed she was only a field reporter for now.

Since he had nothing better to do, Boss Lu decided to chat with her for a bit.

"Why apply for Directing? Because I could have relied on my looks to make a living, but in the end, I chose to rely on my talent."

Jin Wei and the cameraman were stunned; they had never seen a student speak like that—it was too unconventional.

She bit the bullet and continued the interview: "You haven't seen the results yet, right? May I ask what you would choose if you failed to get in?"

"Go home and inherit a billion-dollar family fortune."

"Pfft, hahaha!" The surrounding crowd burst into laughter. Even with his deadpan expression, everyone could tell he was joking.

Jin Wei, however, felt this kind of program effect would be quite good and gave a very positive response: "They say gold will always shine. I don't think you should be discouraged if you don't get in; there are still many opportunities in life."

Boss Lu couldn't swallow her bowl of chicken soup: "Only gold shines. I'm just a shard of glass; I can only reflect light!"

Liu Yifei and her mother were also in the crowded throng, not far from the small circle of the interview. The young girl was frequently amused by his classic quotes.

"Xixi, this little Lu is quite humorous."

The scene from the stairwell that day still floated before Liu Yifei's eyes, and she blurted out, "Yeah, he just doesn't like washing his hands."

"Huh?"

Jin Wei was so amused by his remark that she was out of breath, determined to dig to the bottom of this fun-maker today.

"Everyone knows the four rounds of interviews for the Beijing Film Academy's Directing department are extremely difficult. Do you have any insights, or perhaps any experience that could make the judges' eyes light up?"

"None. If you want to make the judges' eyes light up, you should learn electric welding, not directing."

"Hahahaha!" "Is he from the crosstalk department?"

Since the line wasn't moving anyway, the surrounding students and parents simply stopped to watch the live broadcast; listening to this young man talk was more interesting than watching the Spring Festival Gala.

The cameraman gave Jin Wei a wink. She nodded to signal she had received it and began to wrap up the interview: "Alright, thank you to this student for your golden words. I wish you success in making the list!"

Lu Kuan checked his watch and prepared to turn and leave. As for checking the results, he could just ask Zhang Songwen to take a look for him.

Just as he managed to squeeze out of the crowd, he suddenly felt a tap on his shoulder. Before him stood an elderly man with a face etched with deep lines.

"Stop looking. You're first in the fourth round. Get ready for the cultural exams."

"Hello, Teacher Tian!"

Lu Kuan thought to himself that just as he was getting sleepy, someone had handed him a pillow. It was the perfect chance to get close to this highly respected director and make contact with the Youth Film Studio.

Young people in the post-entertainment era seemed to know very little about this director, who was from the same generation as Zhang Yimou and Chen Dadao, because his works were too few and too obscure. The biggest label for his work was: "Incomprehensible."

His "incomprehensible" debut film, *September*, held a screening at the Beijing Film Studio. After it ended, the audience was as quiet and polite as they had been during the film, simply because they couldn't understand it and had nothing to discuss.

His *The Horse Thief* was so obscure that it angered the leadership. It only passed censorship after Joris Ivens, the Dutch documentary director and then-artistic consultant to the Ministry of Culture, spoke up for him. As a result, he immediately filmed *The Horse Thief*, and this time, even his die-hard fan Ivens couldn't take it, quietly asking Tian Zhuangzhuang that night: "Can you play it for me one more time?"

However, this film was later requested by Bernardo Bertolucci, who was filming *The Last Emperor* in the Forbidden City, to be sent to Venice; he was the chairman of the film festival that year.

Artistic achievements aside, he was a man of virtue—this was recognized throughout the industry. For colleagues and juniors in the film industry, he would spare no effort if they had any needs.

It was just a pity that among his students, there was a "Golden Scissors" who stirred up trouble in the secondary market.

"Teacher Tian, I have a script I'd like you to take a look at."

Tian Zhuangzhuang looked at him in surprise, having thought he was just an ordinary high school student. Remembering his evaluation of Zhang Yimou's script on stage that day, he led him toward the neighboring Beijing Film Studio.

With his seniority and family background, he was someone who could "brush his face" (get direct access) at both the Beijing Film Studio and the Beijing Film Academy. Finding an office, Tian Zhuangzhuang calmly began to read Lu Kuan's *Whiplash*.

After reading it through, the standard Hollywood-style structure made him nod secretly.

Several camera techniques were also very clever, such as the three close-ups of the clock before Teacher Zhuangzhong entered the rehearsal room, and the film's opening, moving from a distance to close-up, then from a long shot toward the protagonist.

"The script is good. The lighting and cinematography both have your own ideas. You have a foundation in directing, don't you?"

Lu Kuan smiled modestly: "Just fumbling around on my own, hehe."

"What about the filming team? Is anyone investing?" Tian Zhuangzhuang was also very clear about the shackles of young directors. He unscrewed his cup lid and blew on the scalding tea.

"Scraped together enough to barely set up a stall. I want to register the filming unit under the school's Youth Film Studio. Teacher Tian, do you think you could write a note for me?" Seeing Tian Zhuangzhuang's willingness to mentor him, he seized the opportunity to make the request.

"What note should I write! I'm not the department head, nor am I school leadership." Tian Zhuangzhuang waved his hand.

Lu Kuan thought to himself, *Just keep pretending; who doesn't know your background, old man. *

Tian Zhuangzhuang pondered for a while. After all, he was a freshman in the Beijing Film Academy's Directing department, and a young director who had found his own investment and dared to try was, in reason and emotion, worth supporting.

"You prepare to organize the location scouting and draw the storyboards first. Get the main creative team together, and I'll go say a word to the Youth Film Studio."

"Thank you, Teacher Tian!"

Lu Kuan secretly clenched his fist. The final piece was in place; the start of filming was just around the corner.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 50 =====