Made in Hollywood

"He is the most successful commercial director in Hollywood history and one of the most compelling directors in the 20th century. Each of his films is setting new personal box office records and setting new benchmarks for future films. He has only been in the film for more than ten years, but his directed works have earned more than $7.5 billion in gross box office. He is persistent, hardworking, and tenacious. He is praised by the North American media as the representative of the American dream. He is Duke Rosenberg! "

Standing in the background, Duke waited patiently while listening to the narration accompanied by the dance music in the front hall. Applause from time to time told him clearly that besides the host Yang Lan, there were many audiences in the studio.

"Last week, the 8th Shanghai International Film Festival opened. At this film festival, the arrival of the famous Hollywood director Duke Rosenberg has become one of the biggest highlights of this event."

There was another round of applause. Seeing the director's gesture, Duke stepped onto the stage, waved to the audience first, smiled slightly, and sat opposite Yang Lan.

For Duke, who has appeared on the cover of Time Magazine several times, this is just a small battle.

He wore a usual dark casual suit. He was natural and easy-going. His short and capable hair was vigorous and energetic. He seemed to be completely stuck in the mature, stable and charming age of thirty.

Yang Lan shook hands with Duke and said, "It's okay for us to communicate in Chinese."

"As long as you don't speak local slang." Duke's Mandarin is even more fluent than many Shanghai people. "There are idioms."

Hearing his words, a voice of admiration came from the audience.

"I have been in the United States for a long time. In the eyes of many Western language geniuses, Chinese is simply a nightmare." Yang Lan is obviously controlling the pace of the interview, "How long did you spend it to the current level? "

"About three years," Duke recalled. "It's probably been such a long time, I'm still a little talented in this aspect."

"So, you are still a genius in language?" Yang Lan asked.

Duke shook his head, "No, I only know English and Chinese, and I have studied other languages. But I haven't made any progress. For example, French. I only know a few basic vocabulary so far. Maybe it's a destiny, I learn Chinese. It feels very simple."

Then, just like propaganda in France and other countries, Duke began to talk about how he was interested in Chinese culture.

"You are interested in Chinese culture, have you seen Chinese movies?"

Upon hearing this question, Duke replied gently, "I have seen it. But not many, such as Jack Chen's action comedy and Lee Ang's "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Tiger."

Yang Lan asked again, "What do you think is the biggest gap between Chinese movies and Hollywood movies?"

"Industrial base!"

This answer obviously exceeded everyone's expectations at the scene, and there was even a surprise in the audience.

Yang Lan asked curiously, "Isn't it somewhere else?"

Of course there are other things, but this involves multiple factors such as culture, politics, and economy, and Duke doesn't want to go too far, said. "I personally think it is an industrial basis, or technology."

Do not wait for the other person to ask again. He explained, "Before the 90s, Hollywood movies were far from being as prosperous as they are now. European movies still have the ability to compete with Hollywood, but these have all changed since the early 90s. If you look carefully. These ten For many years, Hollywood’s most successful films in the world are supported by technology."

"Is the next step for Chinese films to pay attention to the development of technology?"

"Film is the result of a combination of multiple factors, and technology is only one of the links." Duke thought for a moment. "Each director has his own style. For example, myself, only with sufficiently advanced film technology can I The images in my mind become reality, so some people think that I am a director of technology flow."

Having said that, Yang Lan suddenly realized that the initiative was taken away by Duke unknowingly. This is a taboo for talk shows. She quickly changed the subject, "In your movie, excellent special effects , Can always create stunning and enthusiastic visual effects. Of the ten top-grossing movies in movie box office history, four of them are yours. What do you think contributed to your success?"

"Dream, persistence, and hard work." Duke paused, then said, "There are also continuously developing theaters. For example, ten years ago, a film could be drawn in 3,000 theaters in North America, which is very impressive. , But now it is not difficult to recruit 4,000 cinema chains. The development of cinema chains and the increase in the number of screens are one of the most basic conditions for a film’s box office increase."

This is a very simple reason, Yang Lan and the people in the audience are nodding their heads.

Duke added, “Although TV, Internet, and disc players are all developing at a high speed today, the movie-watching experience in theaters will not be replaced for a long time in the future. Movies like The Lord of the Rings trilogy can be watched on the big screen. Watching on the small screen is totally two sensations."

Yang Lan reacted very quickly, and immediately asked, "Is this the reason why you focused on shooting special effects movies?"

Duke shrugged and did not deny, "It is one of the reasons. Now that the number of channels through which the audience can watch movies is increasing, why must you enter the theater? You have to show something that you can't see on the small screen."

Yang Lan obviously did enough homework for the interview, and then asked, "In your opinion, if the film is selling well, does the application of film technology play a role in fueling the flames?"

"I used cg technology on a large scale for the first time in "Independence Day". "The Matrix" and the Lord of the Rings trilogy also used a lot of high-tech." Duke did not shy away from the audience and said directly, " I don’t think movie audiences care about how the movie is made. The audience only wants a certain experience. They like movies that attract them and lead them on a journey. Both "The Matrix" and "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy It’s such a movie."

Hearing what Duke said, people in the audience nodded unconsciously. Duke has done a lot of research. Few ordinary audiences care about how the film is made. What they want is simple pleasure.

Seeing that Duke was unknowingly grabbing the dominance again, Yang Lan changed the subject again, "This time the "Hurricane Rescue" you brought has a very good response. I have a copy of the latest box office statistics from last Thursday. Since its release, the total Chinese box office of this film has reached 28.65 million yuan."

She looked at Duke and asked, "Do you have any thoughts?"

"The audience likes my video, I am very happy."

This figure looks inconspicuous. But it is only 2004, and there are very few movies with a box office of over 100 million yuan in a year. The data of 28.65 million RMB is quite good.

"This film was released simultaneously in China and the United States." Yang Lan continued, "Has the North American box office statistics come out?"

Seeing Duke nodding lightly, she asked, "Can you share it with us?"

"Of course you can." Duke recalled the data he got at noon and said, "Three days in North America on weekends. $51.25 million."

"Box office champion?"

"Box office champion."

"Hurricane Rescue" is not a big commercial film at all. It can get $51.25 million in the first weekend. Both Duke and Warner Bros. are very satisfied.

"Congratulations." Yang Lan said with a big smile, "Another film is going to sell at the box office."

"Thank you." Duke accepted it unceremoniously.

If "Hurricane Rescue" wants to sell like the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, it is absolutely impossible, but in the first weekend. Realizing profit through the box office is not difficult.

"From entering Hollywood to now, you have made so many movies." Yang Lan turned the topic to the box office. "After entering the new century, the cost of filming has been rising, and the market is under great pressure. Will you feel a little nervous before your film is released?"

"I will be nervous, and even suffer from insomnia due to anxiety," Duke pointed to his forehead. "There will be various thoughts, including the consequences of failure, until you see the box office data, you can't breathe a sigh of relief."

Yang Lan's topic turned to pressure again, "Your works have high expectations all over the world. China is no exception. What kind of pressure does this make you face?"

"Pressure is something every director must bear, and pressure is often the driving force for progress." Duke's fingers slowly tapped the arm of the chair. "You can have different opinions on attention. Although there is a lot of pressure, it is also A good opportunity. I have also made low-cost films. The huge challenge for low-cost films is how to attract audiences to see your work. The advantage of shooting such blockbuster films is that you know it has the opportunity to meet with global audiences. As a filmmaker, this is the best opportunity."

The interview gradually came to an end, and after asking a few more questions, Yang Lan gave the audience a chance to ask questions.

A male audience of about 30 years old stood up and asked, "Director Rosenberg, I became your fan in the 90s."

"Thank you, it's my pleasure."

After that, Duke made a continued gesture to him, and the man said, "You make movies almost at the rate of one movie a year. How do you maintain such a strong creative energy?"

After thinking about it for a few seconds, Duke said, “I enjoy the process of making movies, especially when I work with teams and creative people to make movies. The sparks of thinking collide in the room. This is very exciting. ."

"Take the filming of the Lord of the Rings trilogy as an example. We want to create a new world and design new creatures. I love this process. If you do what you like, it’s not work. You are very interested in what you do. You don’t have to work a day, so my plan is to never work. Making movies is my biggest interest."

The next one was a female audience. The question she asked was related to interest, "Why is making movies your biggest interest?"

"I think the greatest power of movies is to bring experiences and experiences that audiences have never had before. Whether it is reality or non-existence, fantasy, etc., movies are an excellent way to let the audience see them from Things that have not been imagined or seen."

At the end of the half-hour interview, Duke's trip to China has come to an end. (To be continued...)