Chapter 1120 1115 Freedom

Chapter 1120 1115. Get comfortable

"Director Xu, then... can you help me finalize this project first?"

"You mean take these settings and submit them first?"

"Yes. As long as it can be finalized, I will have a plan in my mind... How many people are interested in "The Wandering Earth" in the past few months?"

"I don't know."

Xu Xin shook his head honestly.

He really didn't know.

But...

He looked at Guo Fan's eyes full of desire and asked:

"Have you thought it through? This story... According to your progress, even if it is faster, it will take at least one or two years. Do you plan to fight it to the death?"

Hearing this, Yang Mi also nodded:

"My suggestion is that you might as well take advantage of the tail end of youth films and shoot another one. After all, the market is just right now."

"No more."

Guo Fan shook his head like a rattle:

"I really can't shoot anymore. If I shoot again... I feel embarrassed. I just want to shoot science fiction... I want to shoot this!"

In fact, his tone is really childish.

And Yang Mi saw this and stopped talking.

As for Xu Xin... he was quite calm.

After all, as a director, he could understand Guo Fan's current "dilemma" under the prosperous situation in the eyes of outsiders.

After thinking for a while, he nodded:

"Do you have an electronic version of these things?"

"Yes!"

Guo Fan's eyes lit up.

"Send it to me now."

"Okay!"

Guo Fan quickly fiddled with his phone.

A moment:

"Sent it, Director Xu."

"Yeah."

Xu Xin looked at the email on his phone, thought about it, and directly added a title.

[First version of the script of "The Wandering Earth", director: Guo Fan, co-author: Xu Xin]

After the revision, he showed it to Guo Fan:

"Is this okay?"

Guo Fan's eyes could no longer be described as joy, but surprise!

He naturally knew what kind of impact Director Xu's move would bring.

"Yeah, yeah! Okay, yeah! That's it! The best!"

"Okay."

Xu Xin nodded and sent it directly to Qi Lei.

Then he found Qi Lei's WeChat and sent a voice message:

"Brother Qi, I actually rejected this version of the story for The Wandering Earth, but the story is acceptable. Send it over there first. Guo Fan wants the project to be finalized first. If it can be confirmed, he can feel at ease to create. Let's work hard on this aspect. He has a lot of ideas."

Qi Lei replied quickly:

"Okay, no problem, I'll send it over tomorrow. I'll let you know if there's any news then."

"OK."

The chat between the two ended here.

And Guo Fan felt like a fish finally back in water, and suddenly breathed a sigh of relief.

"Director Xu, thank you!"

"Don't thank me yet, it's not certain whether it can be finalized. Even if it is, you have to come up with a qualified story..."

"Yeah, I understand...then when the time comes...if the light chaser really needs it...can I...also..."

"..."

Xu Xin's mouth twitched.

Yang Mi couldn't help laughing:

"Can you lay a good foundation first? Why are you in such a hurry?"

"Hehe..."

Guo Fan couldn't help grinning again:

"Sister Mi, if there is a heroine..."

"..."

Now it was Yang Mi's turn to be speechless.

For no reason, the couple felt absurd at this moment.

We seem to have gotten into a big trouble...

At this time, the door was pushed open.

The waiter brought the cold dishes.

The dishes were served.

"Let's eat."

Xu Xin quickly changed the subject.

The three children opposite actually understood.

This script was made from a novel called "The Wandering Earth".

Although the story is not clear yet...

But...

Maybe there is a role that suits them?

At this moment, the three people had the same idea in their hearts.

...

That night, the news that Yang Mi, Xu Xin and others had dinner together in Hengdian spread like wildfire.

Whether it was the couple, Guo Fan, or Nazha, Lu Han, Guan Xiaotong... their news was dug out by netizens.

Others were fine.

The most important thing is Lu Han...

Inexplicably, the news that EXO member Lu Han defected to the Northwest Circle began to brew in the circle...

As for the truth, no one clarified it.

Xu Xin and Yang Mi didn't care about this.

Their fans didn't care either.

Instead, Lu Han's fans... felt inexplicably happy.

They felt that Lu Han was appreciated by Xu Xin, and they would be able to see our brother on the screen more often in the future.

And Lu Han didn't clarify it.

In the end, this matter was forgotten as time passed.

And it's not over yet.

On September 3rd.

A piece of news suddenly appeared in the circle.

[Xu Xin entered the field of science fiction movies, or planned to shoot Liu Cixin's short story "The Wandering Earth"]

This news made the fans of the writer Liu Cixin happy again...

But in fact, Xu Xin also learned about this news from the news.

The fact is that the people of China Film reacted much faster than he thought.

He just sent the story and sketches prepared by Guo Fan, and it was approved in less than a week.

Even the news that China Film agreed did not come faster than this news.

After he saw the news, Qi Lei informed him that China Film Group asked him to sign the contract.

But the problem is... they informed him, but not Guo Fan.

He clearly wrote Guo Fan's name before his own in the email.

But the news Qi Lei got was that Xu Xin was only asked to go.

Xu Xin would not go.

He quickly asked Qi Lei to explain the situation to them.

Even if the movie was made, Guo Fan would be the main director, and whether the dual director system would be implemented was another matter. He would participate in the work of "The Wandering Earth", but he would more likely serve as a producer or artistic supervisor.

He really didn't expect that the people from China Film Group would act so quickly... It was as if they were afraid that he would run away.

It was a bit of a misunderstanding.

So he quickly explained it.

Then... China Film Group seemed to pretend not to see it, and just wanted Xu Xin to go over.

However, Qi Lei didn't let Xu Xin worry about it.

This kind of thing requires mutual consent. It was explained in the email that Guo Fan was the director and the person who cooperated was Xu Xin.

As for how to cooperate, regardless of whether we mentioned it or not, it is not fair for you to try to put Xu Xin on this work right away.

You said it was "cooperation", but you only notified Xu Xin and didn't notify Guo Fan, which is definitely not right.

There is room for discussion on this matter, and there is a lot of room.

So he gave Xu Xin a reassurance pill and told him not to worry about anything, and the factory would be responsible for the discussion.

Of course, these things were not told to Guo Fan.

It hurts his self-esteem.

The idea given by Qi Lei, when Guo Fan asked, was "news hype", and China Film was still reviewing it.

Anyway, before the result of this matter was concluded, Guo Fan must have been kept in the dark.

So, in the following time, Xu Xin suspended the work of the crew and flew directly to the United States.

The promotion period of "John Wick" is about to begin.

...

"Xu, we haven't received her response to the several scripts we sent to Yang. Did she say anything?"

This time when Xu Xin returned to Los Angeles, Lao Qian came to pick him up in person.

And he drove the car himself.

After getting in the car, Lao Qian went straight to the point and asked.

"She plans to take a break for a while. I'm sorry, George."

"...Ah?"

Lao Qian was surprised:

"Rest?"

"Yes."

Although she couldn't tell the truth, Yang Mi had already thought of an excuse in advance:

"She hopes to have some time to settle down..."

Everything is about art.

Tell everyone "I don't make movies for money, but for art."

This excuse can almost be said to be the most suitable excuse for lazy people.

Not only in China, but also in Hollywood.

So, Lao Qian was speechless, but he didn't show any incomprehension.

It's just a pity.

Obviously... she could become an Asian actress promoted by Hollywood.

Now the global box office of "LUCY" has exceeded 200 million US dollars.

Although it is not a hit, it is a foregone conclusion that it will sell well.

But choosing to take a break at this time... It's really not wise.

But there is no way. In the value system of the old Americans, this kind of thing is purely a personal choice. You can dislike it, you can not understand it, but you must respect it.

So I can only give up.

Xu Xin said no more.

The following schedule was also filled with various intensive promotional activities...

Xu Xin stayed in the United States for a week, and then returned to China with Keanu Reeves.

He also stayed in China for a week.

Then, he returned to China, and Keanu also returned to the United States to continue promotion.

It has to be admitted that Paramount's promotional strategy is still quite obvious.

The two promoted together first, and then returned to their respective home courts. Although Goethe Xu was the winner of the last Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, in terms of influence, he is definitely not as good as Keanu in the United States.

And by the same token, in China, Keanu is not as good as Goethe Xu.

The two first merged into one and then split into two to promote this new work.

As for other countries... the videos that should be recorded have been recorded, and the rest will be left to fate.

So, time flies, September 25th.

The crew of "Master" restarted.

All Xu Xin's promotional activities have ended. For him, whether "John Wick" is good or bad, it has completely become a thing of the past.

As he spent more and more time in this circle, he seemed to be more and more Buddhist about the box office and awards.

In fact, it was not just him, but also Yang Mi.

In the past, she was always excited and looking forward to the box office of a movie on the first day, the single day, and the total box office... But the movie "Lucy" had already won 716 million box office in China, but she was still calm.

It was like something that happened naturally.

It happened, it happened.

So be it.

The couple was like this.

Obviously, other directors might have started to expect a good box office performance for the new movie at this time, but Xu Xin's crew had already started work and entered the second half of the filming of the movie.

On September 25, the movie "Master" resumed work.

On September 26, Song Chen arrived late.

After arriving at noon, she immediately found Xu Xin to apologize.

In fact, she had already asked Xu Xin for leave because she only arrived on September 26.

As a new generation of "Xin Girl", the moment she was selected, the starlight of the entertainment industry was destined to shine all over her body in an instant.

Although everyone still doesn’t know the quality of the movie "Master".

but……

Since the filming of the movie started, Song Shu's agent has been inundated with many business offers.

As soon as the film production stopped, Song Shu immediately started a series of business deals such as signing endorsements and attending events.

No one except herself knows exactly how much money she earned in these half a month.

However, some paparazzi who have already started talking to her estimate that in the past half month, she has made at least 7 figures in gold.

This is only counting her commercial moves, not those unannounced endorsements.

Miss Xin.

Just like the Mou girl back then.

At some point, it has become a high-level label that defines the value of an actress.

Xu Xin didn't care about all this.

To be honest, he was very satisfied with Song Shu's performance in "Master".

He has contributed his best in the crew, but he has no control over how the other party manages his own brand off-screen.

He won't ruin anyone's job.

She apologized and Xu Xin accepted.

Moreover, after filming started on the 26th, her condition was indeed not affected at all.

Not to mention that.

Soon, the filming on the 26th ended.

Xu Xin estimated that... at this rate, the movie should be almost on track after the October 1st holiday.

After finishing his work, at around 10 p.m., he said good night to his wife.

Turn off the lights and go to sleep.

And while he was sleeping, time passed by minute by minute.

When the pointer points to midnight.

"Quick Chase", which was hailed as "Xu Xin made a very cool commercial film" at the Silk Road Film Festival, has officially landed.

…

"John Wick" didn't make a great impression on fans at the Silk Road Film Festival.

It's not that it's not exciting, but because compared to the Silk Road Film Festival, which pays more attention to the "temperament" of film art, although commercial films can please the audience in terms of visual images and plots, they can give them two hours of popcorn. time.

But it's like eating Sichuan and Chongqing hot pot in a Western restaurant full of coffee flavor.

Both are dishes and both can be filling.

But...it will look very different.

The audience can understand that in order to make this Silk Road Film Festival more lively, Xi Film Studio has emptied its resources and produced a variety of works to feast the eyes of the audience, but... if we use the Silk Road Film Festival to judge , it obviously only deserves the qualification of "screening".

This is true whether it's the plot or Keanu's somewhat constipated and taciturn acting in it.

It is incompatible with the Silk Road Film Festival.

But if you put aside this film festival screening, in terms of the film, director, and actors, in the minds of many people who have watched this film, Xu Xin's Hollywood debut can be a fairly qualified score.

Therefore, in the comments on each film on the official website of the Silk Road Film Festival, you can often see the same comments from the audience:

"I don't know if the movie Xu Gou can please Hollywood audiences, but at least I find it very enjoyable."

There are many similar views. Everyone agrees that although this is a foreigner's film, the story is very suitable for China.

It's refreshing enough, and the various action scenes are exciting enough.

Hollywood doesn't force Xu Gou to make weird stuff just because it fits their market.

As for Xu Gou's first commercial film in the true sense, the unexpected filming made people feel "simple".

The fighting scenes are very cool and look very real. The light and shadow effects are created very well, and the characteristics of many dogs can be seen everywhere.

The story is not obscure and profound, it is very straightforward, but it does not mean to be muddled at all.

Anyway.

Recognizing the comments from countless viewers, apart from those who thought "this kind of film is not suitable for showing in film festivals" and critical opinions, other audiences gave him a lot of tolerance and recognition.

When it comes to Xu Gou, everyone only knows the genre films he makes, and his feature films are very good.

But the business field did not expect that he also gave a good answer on his first try.

It may not be amazing, and even the script and story are very cliché.

But, it is qualified.

Whether it's the story, the actors, the pictures, the rhythm.

There are no shortcomings, everything is above the passing line.

Not to mention that Liu Yifei complained about her "heroine" in an interview, which became a good story that supported the friendship between the two, but with a somewhat funny atmosphere.

In the more than one month window after the film festival, the discussion about the movie "John Wick" has actually never stopped.

There is even a summary of the text version of the plot.

"In the beginning, John Wick sacrificed his wife Liu Yifei. After his wife died, he raised a dog. As a result, he met a group of gangsters who fell in love with his car, but John Wick did not give it to him. The gangsters went to steal it in the middle of the night, and John was beaten. Fainted, the gangster killed his dog in front of him and took away his car, but did not kill John Wick. After he woke up from the coma, he began to avenge the dog. If you kill my dog, I will kill him. Your whole family.”

After the plot summary was released, many people who had never seen the movie thought it was nonsense...

After being verified by many viewers who have watched the film, everyone began to doubt whether the film is good or not.

After all, no matter how you look at it, the plot is too simple.

But... both the accused spoilers and the viewers who verified the authenticity of the story outline have made a guarantee:

"This is a film with no boring moments throughout the film."

So, many people have learned in the past month that Xu Xin has made such a film with a simple plot but a wonderful rhythm.

In fact, to be honest, it is very uncivilized to spoil the plot of a film in advance, and it will also affect the revenue of a commercial film.

But... maybe this is the reason why Xu Xin's first Hollywood debut? Audiences in other countries don't say anything, but the Chinese side is looking forward to it.

Maybe there is also a sense of patriotism and support for compatriots in it.

On the 28th, 0:36 am.

Qi Lei sent the premiere data of the film.

In fact, with the current status of Xiying, Qi Lei no longer needs to do this kind of work.

I have never heard of a second-in-command staring at the box office of a movie every day and staying up until the early morning.

But... as long as it is Xu Xin's film, Qi Lei always does this job.

Maybe it's because of superstition? Just like the leader of the overseas exhibition always asks Zhong Changyou to do it.

It seems that as long as Qi Lei sends the news, the box office represents an absolute "high".

And this time, this myth is still maintained.

Even when seeing the numbers sent by Qi Lei, Xu Xin, who stayed up all night, was stunned.

I said before that his expectations for the box office of "John Wick" this time were actually very calm. It can even be said that it is not an exaggeration to say that it is "calm and unperturbed".

There is no way, he has won all the honors, box office and awards he deserves in 8 years.

Movies have been made to his level... or in other words, in Xu Xin's heart, he no longer has the so-called obsession of "winning awards".

He has won the three major European awards.

Time: 8 years.

He also has an Oscar statuette.

Time: one movie.

People say that people become independent at the age of 30, but he is not yet 30, but... maybe it is his luck or fate. He has everything he should get and pursue.

Is he satisfied?

In fact, he is very satisfied.

But what he is satisfied with is external things, just like when he has no money, he wants to be rich, and after he has money, he wants status and other things.

When external things are completed, what he pursues gradually becomes internal.

He wants to pursue the film art in his heart.

The kind of pursuit that contains self-persistence and reduces compromise to the minimum.

Pursue self-satisfaction, environmental satisfaction, and even the satisfaction of great missions and great responsibilities.

This is what he wants to try.

For example, he also wants to shoot "Monster Hunt" now, because he especially wants to experience the peak of domestic special effects... what level he can achieve.

What kind of scenery is on the mountain on paper... he wants to see it in person.

For another example, he especially wants to try 3D now, and has even started to plan to use IMAX technology to shoot "Monster Hunt".

Or jump out of his comfort zone and have the courage to try more new things.

For example, the robotic arm at the Silk Road Film Festival.

These are what he pursues.

Box office, awards, etc., are no longer able to arouse his yearning.

But at this moment, he just stayed in front of his mobile phone, waiting for Qi Lei's news.

The reason is simple. The second-in-command of the factory, his friends, partners, and comrades personally sent him a message with congratulations. Naturally, he would not reply the next morning with a sentence "Ah, I saw it last night when I fell asleep."

So, no matter how many years have passed, as long as Qi Lei continues to uphold this tradition, he will stick to it to the end.

But he estimated that Brother Qi would not be able to hold on for many more years.

How old is he this year... In a few years, he will dare to stay up late when he is in his 50s or 60s?

Don't want to die?

So, this is why he insisted on waiting for news from his friends.

And his friends did not let him down.

"First day box office of "John Wick": 117 million!"

This is the first one.

The second message:

"You have surpassed the 110 million first-day box office of "Tiny Times 3" and become a new milestone in the box office record of 2D movies directed by domestic directors."

The third message:

"Congratulations!"

The fourth message:

"Hahahahahahaha!"

"..."

Looking at the four messages sent by Qi Lei, Xu Xin was silent because no one was talking next to him.

After reading these messages again in silence, he got off the bed, walked out of the bedroom and came to the balcony.

"Click."

In the darkness, the light flickered.

"Hiss~~Hu..."

In the balcony of the hotel, the smoke was swallowed by the darkness.

He looked at the lights of thousands of houses under his feet, which were much sparser than in the first half of the night, but still flickered brightly.

After taking about three puffs of cigarettes, he replied to Qi Lei:

"Received."

And gave a guarantee:

"Unfortunately, this time it is a collaboration between Paramount and Nifeng. If there is a sequel, directly pull in Yuntu."

The script that Liu Momo bought was from Nifeng North America.

It is indeed not related to Yuntu.

Qi Lei also knew.

"Haha, good! Go to bed early. I guess the news about the movie will be everywhere tomorrow. This is also good. The news will be popular and it will add another boost! Next, let's see how North America is doing."

"Well, you should go to bed early too. Good night."

"Good night."

After finishing the chat with Qi Lei, Xu Xin supported the balcony railing with his arms and continued to look into the distance.

So... before him, the first-day box office record of Chinese-language movies was on Yang Ying's "Tiny Times 3"?

No wonder Yang Ying is so popular now without the resources of Cloud Atlas. You can see her everywhere...

But isn't the reputation of that movie said to be very explosive?

Why is the box office still so popular?

According to this statement... it's a bit of a loss to go against the wind.

What was the final box office of the movie?

The first day was so high, so the box office should not be low...

He is obviously in the circle, but at this moment, his knowledge points seem to be worse than ordinary audiences.

However, it is still a pity.

If this movie is a Chinese-language movie, it would be even better.

Because it is invested by Paramount and Nifeng, his movie is considered an imported movie, so the current box office record of Chinese-language movies is still "Tiny Times"...

While thinking about it, suddenly, WeChat rang.

Yang Mi:

"Have you slept?"

"? Why aren't you asleep yet?"

"Waiting for the first day, I just got up to take the child to pee, and then I saw the message from Brother Qi. Congratulations! I guess you will definitely be on the hot search tomorrow."

Seeing his wife's words, Xu Xin replied:

"Talk on the phone?"

Then he took a few puffs of cigarettes and returned to the house.

Just after washing his hands, Yang Mi called.

"Hello, aren't you sleepy?"

"Not bad, how about you?"

"Not bad, mainly because the child doesn't go to school tomorrow, and I don't have anything to do... Great director, how do you feel now?"

The first half of the sentence is still about an old couple, but in the second half of the sentence, she suddenly started to be coquettish.

Xu Xin chuckled:

"Ha~ First of all, I must thank my wife..."

"Yeah, that's right, behind every successful man there is a woman."

"Secondly, I want to thank my wife."

"Get lost, I'm chatting with you, please move your tongue away from my butt."

"Ah~ You're really dirty."

"Hehe... Do you want a child?"

"Of course I do, but I'm almost done here. I guess it will be after the National Day, no later than the 10th, and I will definitely be able to go back."

"So soon?"

"Is this soon? If it weren't for the promotion, it might have been finished this month... The filming plan for this movie is only one month. Oh, yes, I remember, the movie is over After that, I may have to stay in Shanghai for a few days first…”

“I know, Qi Ge told me that she has started trying on the costumes for Monster Hunt these two days…Are you sure you want to rush like this? This is non-stop…”

“It’s not non-stop, the preparations will take at least one or two months, and it should be ready around November. Although the weather is cold…but it shouldn’t be a big problem. I promised Nuan Nuan that I would give the children a family-friendly movie during the summer vacation, and Lao Wang is still waiting eagerly, so the sooner we finish the filming, the sooner it will be done…Please understand me, you’ve worked hard this year…”

“Well, it’s okay, I just don’t want you to be too tired…”

The high box office of John Wick seemed to have become a passing cloud at this moment in the night.

The couple’s midnight conversations were not full of affection.

But between the lines, it was full of care and consideration for each other.

Extraordinarily sincere.