Started as an independent producer in 1988

Chapter 293 What is a magical epic!

In the office of the Literature Department of Beijing Film Studio, a group of screenwriters gathered together to discuss the plot intensely.

"Since we're not following history, what's wrong with having a more magical plot?"

"This should be a historical epic. It would be great if it was just about Zheng He's voyages to the West!"

"This is a magical epic and has nothing to do with history! It just borrows the background to make the audience feel familiar, just like Turandot!"

"I can't argue with you, I'm going out to smoke a cigarette."

"Don't worry about him, let's continue. I think we should start with silence!

The army sends the princess out to sea, then turns west and appears at the end of the film, setting the stage for the next film!"

"Then we have to add the reason why the princess went to sea, and the plot will be more complicated!"

"It's very simple! Add a monologue from Zheng He before his death. If the sea no longer belongs to us, let them all go looking for treasure! Those monsters will bury them all!"

The young screenwriter's face turned red with excitement after he said this.

I couldn't help but clap my hands and continue: "This will increase the maturity of the entire script and give it a different depth!"

The other screenwriters frowned slightly and felt that it was quite interesting.

"No, no, this subsequent plot doesn't make sense. It doesn't make sense that the pirates are afraid of the Ming Dynasty!"

"Wrong! They are afraid, they are scared, and when fear reaches its extreme, they will want to conquer! Look at our daily lives!

So those pirates are eager to become stronger, so they want to grab all the power and put their hopes on the devil! "

"Emmm, okay, I'm fine!"

"What's the reason for the Western Expedition?"

"It's easy. There is a country that is funding these pirates! They want to start a war! Break the Celestial Empire's control over the sea!"

“It seems more and more grandiose the more I talk about it, and it feels more and more difficult to shoot!”

"Then I don't care. This is the factory director's business. I'm just a screenwriter. What does it have to do with me?"

"No problem, then let's change it! Let's change the number of pirates to seven, each with their own characteristics. Two or three will appear in the first part, and the rest can be left as foreshadowing for later!"

"Yes, the princess's purpose of going to sea should also be changed. This is to confuse the enemy, but also to take the opportunity to reconquer the sea and conquer these disobedient pirates! To demonstrate the majesty of the Celestial Empire!"

"The male protagonist helps her in the process? And he also gains love? And he can also add a love rival pirate to create a love triangle later?"

“Isn’t this too bloody?”

“The audience loves it!”

"Let's put this last and discuss the others first!"

"Do you have any ideas about the monsters on Misty Island?"

"I'm reading the Classic of Mountains and Seas!"

The creative passion of the literature department was completely aroused, and everyone let themselves go and started to brainstorm.

The next day, Chen Shiping couldn't help laughing when he heard the news from the Department of Literature.

What kind of magical epic is this? It’s just The Lord of the Rings.

The Lord of the Rings: Warring States!

The Lord of the Rings is a movie that ranks alongside The Greatest Show, winning over 300 awards.

However, The Lord of the Rings is not suitable for China as the special effects are not up to par.

If you really want to make it, you can only come up with a high-level martial arts version, and it's difficult to make a magical version.

At least don't think about monsters.

Just like this movie, Chen Shiping would not choose to create an octopus monster or something.

It's easy to make a fake octopus head, but it's difficult to make each tentacle move.

Special effects can’t be produced, and there’s no need for skeletons.

Skeletons have no expressions, only movements, and this can be achieved through special control methods.

Chen Shiping's head hurts. It's so annoying to make such a movie.

Let the students in the literature department finish writing the script first.

Leave professional matters to professionals. Chen Shiping doesn’t think that he is better than these screenwriters just because he has watched a few movies.

It would definitely work if you just copy it, but as for making a modification, it’s better to gather ideas from all sides.

This is not nonsense, we are going to use cannons to fight against the Titanic!

Chen Shiping also thought of the little fat boy in Yu Hua's family. Although his words were impolite, they made some sense.

Don't take your own words as truth.

Be able to listen to opinions and acknowledge the excellence of others.

Chen Shiping felt that his mentality was very peaceful now.

Although the film is in a hurry, it is not that urgent. With the manpower in the factory, one year is equivalent to two or three years in Hollywood.

Didn’t it take only five years to film Titanic, and the production was stopped several times due to lack of funds?

To be precise, it wasn't five years, because Cameron was busy with other things in the meantime, so the preparations took a little longer. There was no money and no people, so it was definitely slow.

Cameron actually started filming this year.

The slogan has been shouted for five years, and it’s just to attract people.

Chen Shiping also planned to shout out slogans, such as preparing for ten years.

Who doesn't know how to brag?
Cameron invested 200 million US dollars, but Chen Shiping didn't need to invest that much, 200 million RMB would be enough.

Chen Shiping plans to spend five months in preparation, four months in shooting, and two months in post-production.

Maybe it can be released a few days before the big ship, it would be great if that happens.

Chen Shiping has a beautiful idea, but the future will definitely be full of difficulties!
However, Chen Shiping was still very excited at the thought of going out to sea to fish.

You can fish while filming, how wonderful!

It’s a pity that Zhou Huimin can’t accompany him this time, and Chen Shiping feels a little regretful.

I need to find an actor who knows how to fish to go fishing with me!
Chen Shiping strolled into the art workshop and looked at the sailboat designs they had made, feeling that they were too conservative.

Don't let yourself go at all!

"This blueprint looks very ordinary, not domineering enough!"

The artist immediately explained: "This is our design based on the sailing ships of the Ming Dynasty, which is in line with the situation at that time."

"No, no, no, I don't want it to conform to the situation, I want it to be imaginative! It's not like I'm really sailing on the ocean, just being able to float is fine."

Art: "." What else can I say? Change it! Add a dragon head cannon!
The level of firearms in the Ming Dynasty at that time was already world-leading, so it’s okay to be a little exaggerated!
Those kids in the literature club all said that this is a magical epic!
The people in the set design department were buzzing with excitement. It was not easy to build a super large studio, and it also had to be able to store water for underwater filming!

The people in the photography studio said, "Stop barking! I'm the one who went into the water!"

The production department is in a mess, stop barking, in the end you still have to make me coordinate!
After Chen Shiping took a stroll, it was time for lunch. The food in the cafeteria was not very good today, so he went to have a look next door.

Beijing Film Academy has recruited new students this year. I’ll see if they are the same as the ones I knew before.

It seems that Chen Kun is also from this class. According to the development of history, he should have been friends with Li Xiaoran.

It’s a pity that I’ll never know you in this life.

Chen Shiping arrived at the gate of Beijing Film Academy, nodded to the doorman and went straight in.

The old man looked at Chen Shiping's back and couldn't help but complain, he didn't even smoke a cigarette!
Chen Shiping attracted a lot of attention when he walked on campus, but everyone was used to it.

The factory director next door would come once or twice a month, under the pretext of inspecting the students' meals. Chen Shiping strolled into the cafeteria and pulled out a meal ticket from his wallet, which he had obtained from Yu Feihong.

Chen Shiping looked at the dishes and was not satisfied, so he just ate casually.

In less than three minutes, Yu Feihong sat opposite him with a cup of water.

"You're here to check on the food again today. Is there anything you need guidance on?"

Chen Shiping glanced at her and said, "It's too plain, there's no meat at all. Your school is as stingy as the one next door."

Yu Feihong smiled and said, "The food at Normal University has improved and is better than ours."

"Then you should study harder." Chen Shiping took a bite of mung bean sprouts, making a crisp chewing sound in his mouth.

Yu Feihong asked with a smile: "Are you here for casting this time? This is Director Chen's last movie. Can I participate?"

"Are you in need of a maid to warm the bed?"

"That depends on who you're warming the bed for."

Chen Shiping smiled, then looked up and saw a girl with big eyes, and his brows immediately frowned.

Today's good mood is gone.

Yu Feihong followed his line of sight and said curiously, "Do you know him? He's a freshman, and he's in pretty good shape."

Chen Shiping curled his lips and said, "Forget it, each generation of you is getting worse and worse."

"You haven't told me yet, do you know him?" Yu Feihong asked curiously. She was more concerned about Chen Shiping's relationship with the opposite sex.

Chen Shiping shook his head and said, "I know her. Yan Zha, right? She was involved in a movie with Zhang Yuan before, and that was the one I banned."

Yu Feihong’s eyes widened and he looked back at the girl, quite surprised.

Zhang Yuan was looking for non-professional actors at the time, and no actor in the circle dared to come forward. This big-eyed girl is really brave!
"Then fire her!" Yu Feihong said darkly.

Chen Shiping shook his head and said, "I'm too lazy to argue with a little girl, otherwise people will say I'm too stingy. She has so many schemes and wants to succeed, so she will have many opportunities to make mistakes in the future."

Yu Feihong rolled her eyes and said, "You are pretending to be a gentleman. It is never too late for a gentleman to take revenge, right?"

Chen Shiping shrugged and said, "I am a gentleman."

As the two chatted, Huang Lei suddenly appeared, took the initiative to sit next to Chen Shiping and said with a smile: "Director Chen is here, and he happened to bring some food from home today, would you like to try it together?"

"I can smell the aroma of fried hairtail. Give me some!"

Huang Lei quickly pushed the food box over and said with a smile, "Eat more. I'm not very hungry today."

"Haha, then I won't be polite." Chen Shiping picked up a piece of fried hairtail and said with a smile.

Yu Feihong assisted her colleague and said, "You have to show some appreciation for eating someone else's hairtail."

Chen Shiping bit the hairtail and turned to look at Huang Lei and said, "Can you fish?"

Huang Lei was stunned for a moment and quickly said, "Yes!"

What the hell, who would go fishing for no reason? Wouldn’t it be nice to catch girls?
Chen Shiping didn't bother to care whether he really knew how to fish or not, he nodded and said, "Okay, I'll ask you to join me when we film later, but the role won't be big."

"It doesn't matter what the role is!" Huang Lei said happily.

It doesn’t matter whether you are the protagonist or not, what matters is to have a good relationship with Chen Shiping!
However, the outside world still doesn’t know what kind of movie Chen Shiping is going to make, and even the name of the movie has not been announced.

I just heard that it is a super big production and the investment may exceed 200 million RMB!
This number is unimaginable in the whole of Asia!

Many people said that this movie would definitely lose money, as the Asian market could not accommodate a movie with such an investment.

This investment is extremely irrational. If you want to make a profit, you need to get at least 600 million in box office revenue!

Converted into US dollars, that would be 70 million US dollars!

Even if Chen Shiping can get a box office of 100 million US dollars, he won't make much money, 10 million US dollars at most!
Unless it is released worldwide and earns hundreds of millions of dollars at the box office, it will be a real loss!

Chen Shiping is not worried about losing money. A movie can bring in a lot of revenue, and CDs can also be sold for money.

Moreover, the Asian market can earn hundreds of millions of dollars at the box office. Big ships can earn hundreds of millions of dollars in Asia, so why can't Chen Shiping?

Even if it doesn’t work, it doesn’t matter, as long as I don’t lose money.

Chen Shiping was eating hairtail fish when he suddenly saw a dark young man running into the cafeteria. His eyes lit up slightly.

The blackness is very good, and you can tell at a glance that it has been exposed to wind and sun.

Chen Shiping put down his chopsticks and shouted to him, "That boy, the dark-skinned one! Come over here!"

Two boys stopped at the entrance of the cafeteria at the same time. The dark-skinned one? Are they talking about me?
Fu Dalong and Chen Kun looked at Chen Shiping at the same time and pointed at themselves with some confusion.

The students next to them couldn't help but say, "Who cares if they're calling you? Go over there first. That's Chen Shiping!"

Both of them reacted and ran over here quickly.

When Chen Shiping saw two people running over, he felt a little amused, but he didn't let the other one go back.

Chen Shiping glanced at Chen Kun, then at Fu Dalong, and said with a smile: "I called one over, and two came at once."

Chen Kun and Fu Dalong were both a little embarrassed, not knowing if they were the ones being too sentimental.

But now that I'm here, I definitely can't go back on my own initiative.

Huang Lei took the initiative to smooth things over: "Isn't this fate? Good things come in pairs!"

"That's right." Chen Shiping looked at them and asked, "What year are you in?"

"Third year."

"Freshman year!"

Chen Shiping looked at Fu Dalong and said, "You are in the same class as Jiang Qingqing and Chen Zihan in your junior year, right?"

"Yes! We are classmates." Fu Dalong said quickly.

Chen Shiping said "oh", looked at Chen Kun and asked, "How far are you in your freshman year? How is your major?"

Yu Feihong took the initiative to answer: "I taught you, it will definitely work!"

"Okay, Teacher Yu has already said it, so I won't ask any more questions. You two can wait for notification to come for the audition. It will be during this period of time..."

Before Chen Shiping finished speaking, Yu Feihong said, "If it's not an important role, don't audition. It will delay the students' classes."

Chen Shiping: “.” Forget it, give Brother Fei some face.

Chen Shiping still owes her a favor, but he still has to reap some benefits tonight!
I haven't practiced calligraphy on her for a long time.

"What do you think? Give me a word if it's okay or not. No, I won't let them go to the audition and delay the class." Yu Feihong pushed Chen Shiping and asked.

Chen Kun and Fu Dalong could hardly hold back and shout out.

Teacher Yu! I am willing to audition! Please, I am not that famous, don't take me seriously!

"Okay, Brother Fei has already spoken, what else can I say, right Lei Zi?"

Chen Shiping said jokingly.

Huang Lei smiled and said, "That's right, who wouldn't give Brother Fei face?"

Yu Feihong made a face at the two black eggs and said to Chen Shiping with a smile: "You two stop making fun of me."

Chen Kun and Fu Dalong both bowed to Chen Shiping to express their gratitude, then ran away quickly.

I was so excited that I jumped up!
The students in the cafeteria were so envious, why did they fall for those two guys!

Was it because my running posture when I entered the cafeteria just now was wrong?
Or am I not black enough?

Damn it, go to the kitchen to get some soot from the bottom of the pot and run again!
A few minutes later, Chen Shiping pointed at the black eggs at the entrance of the cafeteria and turned to Yu Feihong and said:

"You should open a psychiatric department in your school clinic. I think those kids are running so hard that they can't even breathe."

Yu Feihong held her forehead with one hand feeling very embarrassed!
(End of this chapter)