The King of Directors 2000

Chapter 553: Cover Character of "Cahiers du Cinema"

The sun crossed its legs and sat above the white clouds.

I am distracted a lot of the time, but occasionally I think of work and shed some sunshine on the earth.

It's like the people here in France who don't do things in a formal way.

It is normal for trains here to be delayed, flights to be delayed, and buses to be less frequent.

If you order takeout, it's no surprise that it's delivered the next day.

The French people have long been accustomed to this, and they don't care. Many movies have even been made to ridicule themselves.

The situation in the French news media is similar. They do things irregularly, often lose information, and have inaccurate information.

In the French media world, there is only one group of people who are special. Their rigor exceeds that of the French Press, and they are called the most sophisticated group of people in France. They are the staff of Cahiers du Cinéma.

On this planet, Cahiers du Cinema is the world's number one film magazine.

Magazines such as "Sight & Sound", "Empire", "International Screen", "Film Review", etc., always lack some temperament compared with Cahiers du Cinema.

For example, the sales volume of "Sight and Sound" around the world should be higher than that of "Cahiers du Cinema", but in the minds of people in the industry, "Cahiers du Cinema" is the world's number one film magazine. The reason should be "Cinéma" Cahiers is more pure, it is a magazine founded and maintained by a group of people who really love movies.

In order to maintain the high quality of Cahiers du Cinéma, these editors from Europe have rolled up.

It’s normal to watch movies all year round and work overtime to write manuscripts.

But even if it is so tiring and tiring, "Cahiers du Cinema" is still the most desirable place to work in the hearts of all young people who love movies throughout Europe.

Leo Carax, 52, used to work at Cahiers du Cinema.

At that time, he only worked as a handyman at Cahiers du Cinema, helping an editor find information.

That period was a very important day in his life, and he was crazy about absorbing film-related knowledge.

When he was 20 years old, he made his first short film.

When he was 23 years old, he shot his first feature-length film.

Since then, Leo has been cheating all the way, becoming a representative of the French post-new wave and a famous French director.

Although his status has undergone earth-shaking changes, Leo still likes to go to the headquarters of Cahiers du Cinema to chat with editors, find inspiration, and understand the development trends of today's world movies.

On this morning, in the warm sunshine, Leo caught two gusts of spring breeze and strode into the headquarters building of Cahiers du Cinema.

He was not looking for inspiration or meeting old friends, but to discuss something with Stephen Delorme, editor-in-chief of Cahiers du Cinema.

Soon after, Leo saw Steven Delorme in the editor's office.

Leo Carax is an all-rounder. He is not only a director, but also a screenwriter, photographer, and actor.

He is not tall, but his face is quite handsome. His hair has been dyed white today and he looks much younger than his actual age.

Wearing a casual suit at this time, it looks very comfortable.

Steven Delorme is obviously not as handsome as Leo. He sits in an office chair all year round, works more and exercises less. He is about the same age as Leo, but he looks a generation older.

He was also dressed very formally, and you could tell by looking at him that he was a man of integrity.

"My friend, Jacob said you have something to convey. What is it?"

Delorme asked his secretary to pour coffee for Leo, and after the secretary left, he asked.

Leo smiled, and then said: "Jacob asked you to arrange an interview with our upstart movie star - Li."

Delorme knew that the "Li" Leo was talking about was the Chinese director who had just won the Palme d'Or at Cannes.

He nodded, "No problem, this is what it should be."

Lee Sung-yew won the Palme d'Or. As the world's number one film magazine, "Cahiers du Cinéma" should interview this young director who set a Cannes record.

Leo held the coffee in both hands, lowered his head and took a sip, and then said without looking up: "Jacob has one more thing."

"What's up?"

Leo's behavior made Delorme more solemn. Although Jacob was his respected senior and Leo was his good friend, he had always been very strict with Cahiers du Cinema.

“Jacob wants Lee on the cover of the June issue.”

When Delorme heard this, he frowned instantly.

"Friends, this is very important. It's not something I can decide alone."

Just like the cover of Time magazine is an honor, Cahiers du Cinema is a monthly magazine, and the cover is also very important.

The cover of each issue is either a respected director in the industry, an actor that fits the theme of Cahiers du Cinema, or a movie promotion.

It can be said that no one, whether it is a director or an actor, will refuse to be the cover character of "Cahiers du Cinema".

Many people had tried to bribe Delorme, or other editors at the magazine, to be on the cover of Cahiers du Cinema.

Without exception all failed.

Including Delorme, the editor-in-chief, Cahiers du Cinema has a total of nine editors. The cover character of each issue is decided by a show of hands by the nine editors.

Delorme wasn't lying when he said it wasn't up to him alone.

As an old acquaintance, Leo naturally knew the operation of Cahiers du Cinema. He put down his coffee cup and continued: "I have four reasons."

"Oh, you also support Li?"

"Yes, I went to Cannes to participate in this film festival. I watched almost all the popular movies. I am sure that "Parasite" is the best movie this year. Lee deserves the Palme d'Or."

Delorme nodded and did not answer.

Leo continued: “Parasite won the Palme d’Or, and Lee broke the record at the Cannes Film Festival, becoming the first director ever to win two Palme d’Or.

This is the first point. I feel that Cahiers du Cinema has an obligation to promote him. "

Delorme picked up the pen and wrote a line.

Leo continued: "The second point is that this is Jacob's request. He said that there will be rewards in the future."

Jacobs is the chairman of the Cannes Film Festival. He wants to cultivate direct directors and is willing to give more honors to Lee Sung-yew. This is normal operation.

Delorme understands this.

Leo continued: "I watched "Parasite" in Cannes. This movie is very good and finds a perfect balance between business and art. I think his movie is already very mature and has almost no shortcomings.

Moreover, the threshold for watching his movies is very low and can be understood by ordinary adults. His movies can make ordinary audiences feel the charm of movies. "

After hearing this, Delorme picked up the pen and wrote down Leo's words.

"Finally, Cahiers needs new blood, and since we're already looking for people who love cinema throughout Europe, why ignore Asia? There's a talent pool there."

"Cahiers du Cinéma" just started, with only French film lovers serving as editors. Later it expanded to the whole of Europe and continues to develop abroad. This is actually the general trend.

In the last century, Cahiers du Cinema was only available in French and English.

At the beginning of this century, "Le Monde" acquired "Cahiers du Cinema". In order to increase sales and adapt to the post-millennium market, "Cahiers du Cinema" began to establish an official website and issue electronic versions. In addition, it also published Cahiers du Cinema in London, New York, Los Angeles and other places. On sale.

A few years later, Fiden Publishing House in Great Britain acquired Cahiers du Cinema and began to add Spanish and Portuguese versions.

It is not impossible that a Chinese version will be released in the future.

After hearing this, Delorme was silent for a moment, "We are sure to interview Li. As for whether he can be the cover of the magazine, we need to discuss it."

He knew his editors, and they were all people who appreciated purely artistic films.

Whether it is "1937" or "Parasite", Lee Sheng-yew always finds a balance between business and literature.

Perhaps many ordinary movie fans think that Lee Sung-yew is very rare and appreciate such an attitude.

In the opinion of the editors of Cahiers du Cinéma, Lee Sheng-yew is still not artistic enough, and his films are not artistic enough.

It is not an easy task for his editors to recognize Lee Sing-yao.

Leo sighed, "Delorme, we should find more ways out, not only to consider artistry and film innovation, but also to consider how to enhance the influence of literary films and expand the market."

In his early years, Leo believed that film artistry was the most important, but as he later became a great director, he increasingly felt that films needed to find new paths in order to maintain their influence among many forms of entertainment.

The reason why he is optimistic about Lee Sheng Yew is because he has read some news about Lee Sheng Yew and knows that Lee Sheng Yew's commercial films are very successful. He hopes that Lee Sheng Yew can give some inspiration and suggestions to literary and artistic film directors around the world.

……

After Lee Sung-yew attended the Cannes Film Festival, his schedule was quite tight.

He first signed a contract with Raymond Pictures, and sold the rights to "Parasite" on the African continent to Raymond Pictures for US$300 million.

In addition, Raymond Sales will also hold a personal film exhibition for Lee Sung-Yao.

He then participated in interviews with Cannes TV, France [-], French Press, and CCTV.

CCTV's interview team was originally in London, reporting on the preparations for the London Olympics.

Because Li Shengyao won the Palme d'Or twice, these people were immediately arranged to go to Paris and then conducted interviews.

After the interview, the reporter told Li Shengyao that some footage from this interview would be broadcast on the News Network.

Being on the news network is not an easy thing, it represents recognition from above.

Li Shengyao was in a very good mood. He received an interview invitation from Cahiers du Cinéma and immediately agreed.He naturally knows the status of Cahiers du Cinema in the industry.

"Cahiers du Cinema" and "Sight and Sound" have now become the benchmark for film criticism in the industry.

Whether a movie has a high historical status can be known by looking at the rankings in Cahiers du Cinema and Sight and Sound.

After the turn of the millennium, the number one movie was "In the Mood for Love" by King of Sunglasses. In the entire history of movies, this movie was initially ranked tenth, and then continued to rise. By the time Lee Sheng Yew time traveled, "Sight and Sound" ranked number one in the history of movies. Big, "In the Mood for Love" has ranked fifth.

"Parasite" is naturally not as good as "In the Mood for Love". In his previous life, it ranked second in the year and was not included in the top [-] films in history.

In 2012, except for "Love", which was outstanding, other films were not so good. Now that Lee Sheng Yew has produced "Parasite" in advance, it may be ranked first in the year.

This afternoon, the sky was overcast and it looked like it was going to rain.

The streets of Paris are full of tourists, making a lot of noise and noise.

Li Shengyao took his assistant and drove to the headquarters of Cahiers du Cinema.

After a while, he met the editors, led by Delorme, and the host of this interview, Leo Carax.

Leo is not a professional host, he plays more of a conversationalist.

Five minutes later, Li Shengyao and Leo sat opposite each other, with a small round table placed between them and two glasses of water on the table.

"Li, can you adapt to the Paris environment?"

"I'm not used to it. It's much worse than expected. I'm a little disappointed."

Paris is full of thieves, dog poop, and urine, which already stink in Europe.

Asian travelers also yearn for Paris.

Leo clapped his hands, "Very well, Li, you didn't compliment us. You are right. This city is declining, just like the movies. French movies are declining, and movies all over the world are declining."

Not only the photographers, but also the stenographer and the nine editors of Cahiers du Cinema came over.

Delorme wants to put Lee Sing-yew on the cover of the June issue, just as he predicted.

Other editors expressed that Lee Sung-yew's films were not artistic enough.

However, everyone is willing to accept Lee Sing-yew as a candidate for the cover of the June issue.

They had several previous candidates, namely Reygadas for "The Dark Side", Tim Burton for "Dark Shadows", Michael Haneke for "Love", and the superhero movie collection "Avengers". .

There is no absolute advantage among these choices, each has its own advantages and disadvantages.

At this time, I heard that Lee Sheng Yew was coming, and the editors came to watch, wanting to see Lee Sheng Yew who had won the Palme d'Or twice.

To be honest, as a group of editors who often sit in the office and work on movies late at night, they have ordinary looks and average bodies. In terms of appearance, there is nothing outstanding about them.

When they first saw Li Shengyao, they didn't feel very good.

So young, so handsome, he looks like an idol star.

This is the natural repulsion of ugly men to handsome men.

Li Shengyao didn't know what the editors were thinking. Hearing Leo's words, Li Shengyao nodded, "Yes, movies are declining, both in terms of technical innovation and plot narrative. They are retreating."

Fast food culture has swept the world, and Hollywood movies are becoming less and less nutritious, although the box office continues to set records.

But in terms of film development, it has slowed down a lot after the millennium, which means that "In the Mood for Love" is awesome enough.

The two complained about current commercial movies for a while.

Leo glanced at the editors who were watching. He knew how to please these editors, and then asked: "Do you know the founding spirit of Cahiers du Cinema?"

"Of course, Mr. André Bazin hopes that Cahiers du Cinema will be a highly involved, critical magazine with a clear stance."

The so-called criticism means mainly finding faults.

Li Shengyao has always admired this point.

In 2022, "Cahiers du Cinéma" has changed its boss again. This time, the new bosses include several producers. When these producers were interviewed by reporters, they directly expressed their hope that "Cahiers du Cinéma" would be gentler and more fashionable.

This sentence directly angered the editors, led by Delorme. Seven of the nine editors resigned, leaving only two.

Lee Sheng-yew did not hesitate to speak out the founding spirit of "Cahiers du Cinema", which made the editors who were watching have a good impression of him.

"Then what do you think of the previous red wave?"

There was a red wave in France for a while, and Cahiers du Cinema was also deeply affected.

At that time, montage was called Soviet/Soviet montage. Due to ideological opposition, it was not very recognized by Western European cultural circles. They believed that montage was mental control imposed on the audience.

During the French Red Wave, French film workers, especially film scientists based on Cahiers du Cinéma, such as Truffaut, Godard and others, believed that montage could transcend the true meaning of the image itself. It is a very important photography method that can be perfectly integrated with realism.

This argument led film workers in Western Europe and Hollywood to accept montage. Since then, montage has become popular all over the world.

"I think it was a very important stage. The Soviet/Soviet film art had an interesting collision with Western European film concepts, and produced a very brilliant chemical reaction, which deeply affected the development of world cinema. Film workers should all understand that history, just like Truffaut, Godard and others, who have verified and innovated in the field of film."

Lee Sing-yew flattered "Cahiers du Cinéma" a little, which made the editors who were watching feel better.

Leo nodded, and then chatted with Li Shengyao about "1937" and "Parasite".

The two chatted for half an hour before Leo asked: "Li, I noticed that your two films that won the Palme d'Or were both commercial and artistic. Is this what you intentionally pursued?"

Li Shengyao nodded, "Yes, this is the direction I want to take in making movies. I hope that my movies can be seen by more people and that ordinary audiences can understand them.

Instead of raising the threshold for watching movies and making movies that ordinary audiences can't understand.

Under this premise, try to add some thinking and guide the audience to think. "

"In your mind, what is the difference between artistic films and commercial films?"

Li Shengyao thought for a while, "In addition to the difference in plot settings, I think another point is the audience's reaction. When audiences watch literary films, they see themselves, while when audiences watch commercial films, they see others.

We see ourselves and think.

When we see others, we feel aloof and distant.

This is an important difference between artistic films and commercial films. "

In fact, it's just another way of saying it. In the final analysis, artistic films and commercial films are different in subject matter, production, and give people different effects.

Leo heard this, nodded, and then asked the question he wanted to know most.

"Li, what do you think of the future of artistic films?"

The whole office became a little quiet, and the editors and staff all looked at Li Shengyao.

It is raining outside, and the raindrops are falling on the glass. This is the sound of footsteps in late spring.

Although the weather is getting warmer, spring is leaving.

Li Shengyao thought for a moment and then said: "With the rapid development of communication networks, the communication effect of traditional media is getting weaker and weaker. There are more and more channels for individuals to express their voices, and audiences will have more choices.

If it is a good literary and artistic film, it is actually easier to obtain higher box office and be recognized by more people.

When I talk about good literary films, I mean literary films that ordinary audiences can understand.

Generally speaking, literary films can be divided into commercial literary films and art films.

The threshold for viewing art films is relatively high, while commercial art films are much lower.

I think this is a matter of choice, it all depends on the creator’s intention.

There is no distinction between commercial and artistic films and art films, and both should be developed.

Personally, I am optimistic. I think the development of communication networks has brought audiences around the world closer together. When there are good movies, people with similar hobbies can more easily get relevant information.

Therefore, I am optimistic about the development of artistic films. "

……

Lee Sing-yew left the Cahiers du Cinema headquarters building shortly after.

Leo followed and left.

Nine screenwriters headed by Delorme gathered together and said, "Let's vote by a show of hands. Who will be the cover character of the June issue?"

Tim Burton, Michael Haneke, Reygadas, and Lee Seung-yew were voted on one by one.

It was Lee Sing Yew's turn and he received seven votes.

Through the interview just now, the editors realized that although Lee Sheng-yew is young, he is a director who is well aware of the development of "Cahiers du Cinéma" and has a passion for literary films.

Such people are worth wooing.

Jacob wanted to praise Lee Sing-yew, and they also wanted to praise such a young director.

After all, such a young director is so rare and should be given more encouragement.

In recent years, both commercial and literary films have almost come to a standstill. At this time, people who are willing to persevere are even more needed.

As long as Lee Sing-yew doesn't make purely commercial films, they are willing to accept him.

(End of this chapter)