director of the millennium

Chapter 81 Kaigo’s small class begins!

2002, June 12.

At 12:[-] noon, outside the solemn Great Hall of the People, there was a great deal of voices.

The square outside the Great Hall of the People was almost packed to capacity with more than a thousand Chinese and foreign journalists and media, as well as special audience members specially invited to watch the movie.

On the various long guns and short cannons set up on tripods, flashing points flickered non-stop.

What's interesting is that every reporter on the scene was dressed in formal attire, including the photographers in suits and leather shoes.

Zhang Weiping's request was strictly followed.

Outside the Great Hall of the People, there was a lively and crowded scene, and everyone had a look of anticipation on their faces. After all, this was the premiere of the first domestic blockbuster!

The staff of New Screen is strictly conducting the entrance inspection. Every guest and reporter who wants to enter the venue must undergo a check comparable to a security check. No electronic equipment or recording equipment is allowed to be brought in!

Even the reporters, when they enter the venue, they have to deposit the video recorders, cameras and other equipment in the hands of the staff, and wait until the press conference interview session after watching the movie to get the equipment again for interviews.

The reason for such strict requirements is mainly to prevent piracy from flowing out.

In order to meet the conditions for Oscar participation, "Hero" first entertained the audience in Shenzhen.

As a result, some people used some illegal methods to steal the content of "Heroes", which triggered a small-scale piracy spread.

Therefore, to prevent criminals from taking advantage of this premiere to carry out piracy activities, the cultural department has specially formulated various very cumbersome preventive measures, for fear that the scandal of piracy will flow out before the movie is released.

Of course, this also made reporters generally feel that the premiere of "Heroes" was really big.

In the past, invitations to movie premieres were couriered, mailed, or distributed to reporters on the spot by the organizer. However, for this premiere, in order to ensure that one person has one ID, the reporters had to go to the organizer's company to receive the invitations in person, making the reporters "the uncrowned king." His prestige was swept away.

When entering the venue for the premiere, the reporters were required to go through a series of cumbersome procedures such as bag storage, security check, inspection, and storage of photographic equipment an hour in advance, and waited for the admission in advance.

This made the reporters even more unhappy. Many reporters were thinking that at the press conference after watching the movie, they would definitely let the "Heroes" crew feel the power of "The Uncrowned King" and ask questions as sharply as possible!
Front-court reporters and specially invited spectators were admitted after inspection in an orderly manner.

In the Great Hall of the People, in the screening room of "Heroes", a group of guests who had arrived in advance had gathered and were socializing and chatting with each other.

Wu Yuan, who was also dressed in formal attire, was also among them.

He arrived in the capital at five or six o'clock in the morning. After a few hours of rest, he and Chairman Han accompanied him to the Great Hall of the People and entered the inner court through another gate.

Wu Yuan and Han Dong were not the only ones who received this kind of treatment.

In addition to the "Heroes" crew, Jiang Wen, Chen Kaige, Feng Xiaogang and other domestic first-line directors, leaders of the Ministry of Culture, and people in charge of China Film and New Screen are also among them.

These people quickly divided their circles and communicated with each other.

Wu Yuan got together with directors Jiang Wen, Chen Kaige, and Feng Xiaogang.

"Director Wu, I finally met the real person this time. After my wife finished filming your "The Undertaker", she will give you a good meal when she comes home!"

Director Kai Ge looked at Wu Yuan with a smile, and patted him on the shoulder very kindly.

Although "The Undertaker" did not bring any artistic awards to Chen Hong, director Kai Ge didn't always value this, he really admired Wu Yuan himself!

"Your filming of "The Undertaker" is indeed very good. The film is full of warmth and emotion. No wonder you won the best director in Berlin."

Director Kai Ge slammed his lips, as if he was reminiscing about the content of "The Undertaker", and then said with some regret: "It's just that you still have some shortcomings in terms of lens aesthetics."

"There is warmth and emotion in the movie, but the use of the lens is relatively restrained and simple. In fact, it can be bolder. For example, the scene of Zhang Guorong playing the suona under the snow mountain. If I were asked to shoot, I would stand a few more camera position, and add another bird’s-eye view.”

"In terms of color, we should also do some design. The snow mountain is white. If Zhang Guorong can wear a red dress, the picture will be more impactful!"

"Or tie a red ribbon on the suona, and it would be nice if the red ribbon flutters in the wind when it is played!"

Wu Yuan listened carefully, nodding seriously from time to time.

He wasn't acting, the camera aesthetics was indeed one of Wu Yuan's shortcomings.

After all, his main focus in the dream is still in the field of commercial films, which is also the main development direction of Chinese-language films in the 21st century.

Let’s put it this way, when it comes to film aesthetics and color aesthetics, the seventh generation of domestic directors are all tied together, and may not be as strong as any one of Chen Kaige, Sunglasses King, and Zhang Yimou.

Even the ginger pattern can't compare!

In "Sunny Day" and "The Sun Also Rises" shot by Jiang Wen, the lens aesthetics are also very slippery!
But commercial films don't value this. Commercial films pay more attention to the conflict and drama of the movie's plot, commercial value, and the use of special effects.

Wu Yuan is very good at filming special effects shots. Let him play special effects. He can confidently say that he is definitely better than the current major directors.

So there was no pressure for him to shoot "Pirates of the Caribbean".

Even if this movie requires a lot of special effects shots, and half of the scenes have to be shot in a studio, he can still complete the shooting tasks very well, and he is very familiar with green screens, little green men, and motion capture equipment!
If it were director Kego who had made "Pirates of the Caribbean", he would definitely not have been able to make it.

Similarly, Wu Yuan's level of lens aesthetics, which is entirely achieved through real shots, is at the level of an average director, far inferior to that of director Kege.

Therefore, when selecting films, he also deliberately avoided films that required a large number of empty shots, beautiful imagery, color aesthetics and visual impact, and focused on films that rely on plot to win.

For example, "The Night the Comet Came", such as "The Undertaker", these are movies with good scripts, not movies with beautiful pictures, classics, or images.

"Farewell My Concubine", "The Promise" and "Legend of the Demon Cat" directed by Kai Ge all use a lot of artistic aesthetics such as images of natural scenery, man-made things, colors and sounds.

This is something Wu Yuan can't even catch up with.

There is a saying that goes well, no matter who plays the play directed by Kego, his appearance will automatically improve to a higher level.

Concubine Yang in "Legend of the Demon Cat", without the lens of director Kai Ge, would no longer have that thrilling aesthetic feeling, and it would even be a bit ugly under the lens of other directors, not photogenic.

This is all thanks to Director Kaigo's top camera control ability.

No wonder many people say that director Kego is more like a top cinematographer than a director.
Wu Yuan didn't want to distinguish whether Director Kai Ge was a director or a photographer, he just wanted to learn more strengths and advantages from Director Kai Ge.

Director Kego is also willing to impart knowledge to this young director he admires.

One of the two is willing to learn, and the other is willing to teach. The chat atmosphere is harmonious and fun.

Jiang Wen, who had been banned for five years, joined the discussion with interest.

In terms of film aesthetics, he also has a lot to talk about.

In comparison, Director Feng was more embarrassed.

At least at this stage, Director Feng actually doesn't have much in the tank.

His movies are still at the level of large sitcoms, and the shots have no artistic value.
Listening to two Nortel directors and a director of a Chinese opera talking about film aesthetics and camera language, Director Feng couldn't intervene even if he wanted to.
Just leave, other circles have nothing to do with him
He also had no choice but to stand aside silently with a smile, pricking up his ears to listen carefully to the discussion of the three of them.

Director Feng also has a heart to make art films, this is also a good opportunity for him to learn!

(End of this chapter)