novelraw Chapter 27: The Quick Gunner?
Chapter 27: The Quick Gunner?
At the end of October, the Film Bureau announced a batch of newly approved films.
Wang Chaowen saw the news in his dormitory. The screen showed a long list of movie titles, one of which read: "Speed Scandal", co-produced by Qianlang Pictures, China Film Group, Bona Film Group, and Xiaoxiang Pictures, written/directed by Liu Yu, and starring Zhang Guoli, Yan Danchen, and Yang Zi.
"Brother, look, the project has been approved."
Liu Yu grunted in agreement and continued eating his instant noodles.
Actually, he was quite excited. As the eldest brother, he couldn't show weakness in front of his younger brother. This was a principle he had learned in his previous life.
He asked Han Sanping to help him contact Zhang Guoli. He handed over the script, and Zhang Guoli called back that same day after reading it.
Those in the industry were slow to realize it.
Before the news broke, apart from a few core investors, no one knew that Liu Yu was about to start a new film so soon.
While everyone was still reeling from the shock of "A Moment to Remember" surpassing 100 million views, another movie, "Speed Scandal," suddenly appeared.
When people at the film company saw the news, their first reaction was, "That was so fast!" and their second reaction was, "How did Yan Danchen manage to snatch it again?"
Yan Danchen's agent later told Liu Yu that on the day the news broke, she received more than a dozen phone calls, all inquiring about the relationship between Yan Danchen and Liu Yu.
Some were tactful, some were direct, and some even discussed privately whether "she slept with Liu Yu."
The agent, of course, ignored the question. Yan Danchen was furious when she found out and yelled at Liu Yu on the phone for half an hour.
As Liu Yu listened to her scolding, he laughed and said, "So, did you sleep with me or not?"
Yan Danchen was silent for two seconds on the other end of the phone, then cursed "Get lost" and hung up.
The media coverage, on the other hand, was overwhelmingly positive.
"Liu Yu's new film has received joint investment from China Film Bona Film Group and Hunan TV, and the cast has been upgraded."
"Zhang Guoli teams up with Yan Danchen for the first time in 'Speed Scandal,' which is highly anticipated."
Following the phenomenal success of "A Moment to Remember," Liu Yu is releasing another romantic comedy. Can he create another miracle?
Liu Yu flipped through the news articles and thought that the reporters these days were quite adorable; they would praise you enthusiastically when you succeeded, and then smear you ruthlessly when you failed.
.....
One evening in early November, Liu Yu and Yan Danchen were huddled together in his apartment.
Yan Danchen had just finished shooting a magazine cover and was too tired to move. She collapsed on the sofa, resting her head on Liu Yu's lap, while holding the remote control and constantly changing channels.
Liu Yu was reading a script when she kept changing channels until her eyes were blurry. She reached out and grabbed the remote to turn off the TV.
"What?" She looked up at him.
"You've changed it a hundred and eighty times, what exactly do you want to see?"
"There's nothing to see."
"Then close your eyes and rest."
"I don't want to sleep." She rolled over, buried her face in his stomach, and mumbled, "Liu Yu, do you think our film will be a success?"
Liu Yu put down the script and reached out to touch her hair.
"It can be done."
Yan Danchen lifted her head from his stomach, looked into his eyes, and suddenly smiled.
"Do you know what people call you outside?"
"What's your name?"
"Quick draw."
Liu Yu paused for a moment, then smiled.
"Quick Draw? Who came up with that name?"
"The media says you make films quickly, release them quickly, and make money quickly."
"Then what they said was quite accurate."
Yan Danchen rolled her eyes and was about to say something when she suddenly realized that "quick shooter" had another meaning. Her face turned red and she fell silent.
Seeing her blush, Liu Yu found it amusing, so he lowered his head, leaned close to her ear, and whispered something.
"Senior sister, don't you know whether I'm fast or not?"
Yan Danchen's face turned even redder, and she shoved him, saying, "Get lost."
"Who begged for mercy just now? Do you want me to help you remember?"
"Liu Yu!" Yan Danchen sat up, picked up a cushion from the sofa, and threw it at him.
Liu Yu didn't dodge; the cushion hit his face, not painful, just ticklish. He took the cushion off, looked at Yan Danchen's sullen face, and couldn't help but laugh out loud.
She glared at him, then laughed herself, her shoulders shaking with laughter.
After laughing, she leaned back into his arms and said in a very soft voice, "You're the one who's not happy."
Liu Yu couldn't help but laugh even harder.
Yan Danchen pinched his waist, making him wince in pain.
The two bickered for a while, then got tired and settled down on the sofa without saying a word.
Liu Yu looked down at the person in his arms. She had closed her eyes, her breathing was even, and there was a slight smile on her lips. He reached out and pulled the blanket up to cover her, then kissed her forehead.
......
November 10th, Huairou Film and Television Base.
Filming for "Speed Scandal" began here.
There was no grand opening ceremony; Liu Yu didn't like anything fancy.
Wang Chaowen lit a string of firecrackers at the entrance of the film set. They crackled and popped for half a minute, and that was it.
The crew members stood by watching the firecrackers; some covered their ears, while others laughed heartily, creating a lively atmosphere.
Yan Danchen, wearing a white down jacket, stood next to Liu Yu, watching the smoke from the firecrackers dissipate in the wind. She turned to him and said, "Your opening ceremony was way too simple."
"Simple is best; fancy stuff is a waste of time."
She pursed her lips and didn't say anything more.
Zhang Guoli arrived on the morning of the day filming began.
Wearing a dark gray cotton coat, a baseball cap, and carrying a thermos, he looked no different from an ordinary old man.
He changed as soon as he arrived on set.
He had read the script so many times that the edges were frayed, and every page was covered with dense annotations; he had read it at least three or four times in red pen, blue pen, and pencil.
When Liu Yu first opened his script, he was taken aback because the annotations he had written on it were more numerous than those Liu Yu had written himself.
Some were interpretations of the characters, some were suggestions for revising the lines, and some were designs for the performance style.
"Teacher Zhang, you've prepared so thoroughly," Liu Yu said.
Zhang Guoli took a sip of tea from his thermos and waved his hand, saying, "It has to be thorough. I'm getting old, and my memory isn't what it used to be. I'm afraid I'll forget my lines if I don't review them several times."
.....
The first scene filmed was a scene between Zhang Guoli and Yan Danchen.
He plays a radio DJ, and she plays the "daughter" who comes to his door.
This scene is the starting point of the entire film; whether the emotional tone is set correctly directly affects the audience's sense of immersion later on.
Liu Yu sat calmly behind the monitor.
"start!"
Zhang Guoli passed with only half a pass.
Yan Danchen used two methods; the first one was too restrained in terms of emotion, while the second one was just right.
After Liu Yu called "pass," Yan Danchen glanced at him, her eyes showing a hint of relaxation after the initial tension.
Zhang Guoli patted her on the shoulder, "You acted well, let's do another take to make sure it's perfect."
Yan Danchen glanced at Liu Yu, who nodded, and she went back to her position.
Zhang Guoli will be doing a week-long promotional tour next month for Feng Xiaogang's film "Cellphone," which is about to be released.
He plays a role in it, although not the male lead, but he supports Feng Xiaogang's films every year.
After finishing work, Zhang Guoli asked Liu Yu for leave in a very polite tone: "Director Liu, I need to take a week off next month. I have to do promotional tours for 'Cellphone.' Don't worry, I'll finish filming all my scenes before I leave, so it won't affect the schedule."
Liu Yu said, "Teacher Zhang, please don't call me Director Liu, just call me Xiao Liu. You go and do the publicity, I'll wait for you to come back before filming your scenes."
Zhang Guoli smiled and waved his hand: "That won't do. Your schedule is set. I can't hold up the whole crew because of me. I'll hurry up and finish filming my scenes before I leave."
Before Liu Yu could say anything more, Zhang Guoli had already taken out his phone and started confirming the promotional schedule with his agent.
Looking at Zhang Guoli's earnest profile, he suddenly felt a pang of emotion. This old man, a good actor, a good person. It's just that his son is a disappointment.
For the three days leading up to filming, Liu Yu slept only five hours a day.
During the day, I filmed, and at night I went over the scenes for the next day with Zhang Guoli, Yan Danchen, and Yang Zi's parents.
Yang Zi plays Zhang Guoli's granddaughter, who is five and a half years old. She has a round face, big eyes, and speaks in a childish voice, but she gets into character as soon as the word "action" is called. She cries and laughs when she should, and is never stage-frightened.
Yan Danchen and Yang Zi got along very well on set. The two were like mother and daughter. After work, they would draw and eat snacks together.
Sometimes when Liu Yu passed by their lounge, he would hear laughter coming from inside; Yan Danchen was laughing, Yang Zi was laughing too, the laughter was mixed together, and it was impossible to tell whose it was.