Chapter 127: Taking Down Wu Ershan, Party, About "Painted Skin"

523studio Film Studio.

The door was not closed.

Looking at the golden studio plaque in front of him, Wu Yuan stretched out his hand to push the door and walked away.

The studio was not big, just the size of an ordinary two-bedroom and one-living room apartment.

A man in his early thirties wearing glasses and a mustache was sitting in front of the computer, tinkering with something.

"Brother, what are you doing?"

"Hey, why are you here?" Wu Ershan stood up in surprise, "How come you have time to come to my place?"

Wu Ershan knew Wu Yuan.

It was not that he met Wu Yuan after he became famous in recent years, but that he knew this junior brother when Wu Yuan was just a freshman.

In 1998, Wu Ershan founded this personal studio [523studio], which mainly shoots some pure art works such as installations, short films, and performance art.

Young people start their own businesses, and they don’t have much money. They often go back to school to ask junior brothers for help, calling it social practice.

Of course, there are also salaries.

During the summer vacation of 1999, Wu Yuan worked in his studio for two months, helping Wu Ershan.

It is worth mentioning that although Wu Ershan is from HHHT, he grew up in the military compound and is a real Beijing circle. That is why he has the ability to open a personal studio after graduation and still run it, and he is still playing art works.

It can only be said that there are really few people who can learn directing these days who have a bad family background.

Wu Yuan's family background is the worst. His two generations are from the Beijing Film Studio, and his family also has a courtyard house.

If Wu Yuan hadn't interfered, Wu Ershan would have prepared a movie himself next year, acting as a screenwriter, director, and producer, and shooting his debut work "Soap Opera".

And he won the "International Film Critics Award" at the Busan International Film Festival and the Best Director Award at the Geneva International Film Festival in Switzerland.

Being a producer, it means that the filming funds for this movie were obtained by himself!

It can only be said that Wu Ershan is very good at making money and is a promising director.

But since Wu Yuan is here, Wu Ershan's future will naturally be different.

"Brother, why can I come to you?" Wu Yuan sat down opposite Wu Ershan, took out the script from his briefcase and handed it to him.

"Of course I want you to make a movie!"

"Are you looking for me to make a movie?" Wu Ershan widened his eyes and took the script in surprise.

He is a director who has not yet made his debut, and he can get a director job from Wu Yuan?

Is this not a dream?

Wu Ershan has a very clear understanding of his junior brother.

Although four years ago, he was just a summer worker in his studio, but now he is an internationally renowned director.

In terms of awards, he has won the best director at the Berlin Film Festival.

In terms of box office, he is a Hollywood star. All domestic directors put together, the box office is not as high as his.

Such a top director's movie, is it something that Wu Ershan, a new director, can touch?

Wu Ershan took the script with some disbelief and opened it to take a look.

"The Butterfly Effect"

"A dream of going back to the past to change one's fate."

"Outline: ..."

"Characters: ..."

He read the content carefully.

No matter what Wu Yuan thought, as a director, he would definitely want to see the script first.

Wu Yuan was not in a hurry. He went to the water dispenser to get a glass of water and waited for Wu Ershan to read it slowly.

The reason why he asked Wu Ershan to shoot "The Butterfly Effect" was because he saw his talent. ׺°”˜˜`”°º×

Yes, Wu Ershan is a very talented director.

You can tell by looking at his resume.

After shooting an independent film "Soap Opera" in 2004, he did not shoot his next film until 2011, a martial arts comedy "The Blade".

The box office of "The Blade" was not good, with only more than 20 million yuan sold, which can be said to be a flop.

But then he immediately took over the filming of "Painted Skin 2", and from a martial arts comedy to a magic movie, he succeeded and sold more than 700 million yuan at the box office.

After that, Wuershan took over another "Ghost Blows Out the Light: The Lost Tomb", which sold 1.6 billion yuan at the box office, and immediately started the "Investiture of the Gods" trilogy with a cost of 3 billion yuan.

In terms of resume, Wuershan has actually only made four movies. Compared with other big directors, his resume is extremely thin!

But with the accumulation of four movies, he can make a large-scale mythological epic movie.

This shows that his directing talent is very, very high.

And his talent in commercial films is very outstanding.

To say that there is a director who is more talented than him, Wu Yuan can only think of Guo Fan.

Before filming "The Wandering Earth", Guo Fan had only filmed a comic adaptation "The Adventures of Li Xianji" and a bloody youth film "My Deskmate".

Then, he produced the first domestic science fiction blockbuster "The Wandering Earth".

He jumped from a melodramatic youth film to a science fiction blockbuster, and succeeded.

Guo Fan's path to directing is even more exaggerated than the male protagonist in the novel.

But Guo Fan doesn't know where he is now, Wu Yuan can't find him, and he is too young now.

In comparison, Wu Ershan is more reliable.

After four years of training in the advertising studio, Wu Ershan can now try to direct a movie independently.

Although "The Butterfly Effect" is called a "science fiction film", the story is mainly about showing off the concept of science fiction, and it is not complicated to shoot.

It is not much more difficult to shoot than "The Night the Comet Came".

Wu Yuan has thought about it. Wu Ershan must be recruited to the Light and Shadow Times, and he must sign a director contract of at least eight years!

This "Butterfly Effect" is just a test for Wu Ershan.

After that, he will carry the banner of magic and fantasy movies of the Light and Shadow Times!

The "Painted Skin" series does not need Chen Jiashang to worry about, it is good to leave it to Wu Ershan.

In the future, the Korean "Along with the Gods" two-part series can be modified and let Wu Ershan shoot it.

These two series alone can make a lot of money for Light and Shadow Times.

After the filming of these two series, Wu Ershan's contract expired. If he still wants to do his own "Fengshen" series, then let him do it. At that time, Internet companies will also enter the market, and there are companies willing to invest in him.

Anyway, Guangying Times is not going to make the "Fengshen" series. The cost is 3 billion, and it makes my scalp numb just thinking about it. The pressure to make a profit is too high.

Instead of making the Fengshen trilogy, it is better to make the entire Xianxia universe.

After 2014, the post-90s generation has grown up. Compared with the old-fashioned Fengshen story, they are more interested in the fresh Xianxia and the flying swordsman.

The West has the Marvel Universe, and China can also make its own Xianxia universe!

But it is too early to think about these things now.

Seeing that Wu Ershan had almost finished reading the script, Wu Yuan said, "How is it, senior brother, is this script good?"

"It's pretty good, playing with the sci-fi concept of the "butterfly effect"."

"The male protagonist goes back to the past again and again to change his fate, so his life is constantly rewritten."

"After his life changed, he found that unexpected results had occurred, and the damage was even more serious, and things became worse and worse.

"Going back to the past is not such an easy and pleasant thing. On the contrary, due to the change of chance, it often causes human tragedies where things have changed and people have changed."

"The idea of ​​the script is very good, and the story is also very novel. It is different from the time travel movies that were common in the past."

"Where did you find the script? Did you write it yourself?"

Wu Ershan said a lot of comments in one go. Overall, he still likes this script very much. The core idea is good and novel.

Thinking of "The Night the Comet Came", Wu Ershan thought that this script was also written by Wu Yuan himself.

"No." But Wu Yuan shook his head and explained, "This is a Hollywood movie. I bought the domestic remake rights. ”

“Brother, I won’t beat around the bush with you.”

“I want to sign you to my company. I think you are a very talented and gifted director. It’s a pity for you to stay here shooting commercials.”

“I want you to direct this movie, The Butterfly Effect.”

“Not only this movie, the company will invite you to shoot many movies in the future. I believe you will become an excellent director.”

“How about it?”

“As long as you nod, the preparations for The Butterfly Effect will begin after the Chinese New Year, and we will strive to release it in the summer vacation next year.”

“Don’t worry about the investment. The company will bear all the expenses, and you will be responsible for shooting.”

“You can choose to take the box office share or the film remuneration.”

“If you take the box office share, I can give you 3% of the box office share for this movie. If you take the film remuneration, 500,000 director’s fee!”

“In addition, after you sign the contract with the company, the company will also give you a basic salary of 500,000 per year. ”

As a new director, Wu Ershan’s treatment is definitely not the same as Zhang Guorong’s, but this treatment is not bad.

Wu Yuan also wants to try to share the box office revenue with directors in China to see if he can attract a group of truly capable directors to join the company.

Although the domestic film market is indeed very single now, and can only rely on box office and copyright sales to make profits, Wu Yuan is willing to share some box office revenue with co-directors.

Because the movies he chooses to shoot, I dare not say that they will all sell well, but the pressure of loss is definitely very low, which is unmatched by other film companies.

He has the confidence to share the box office revenue, and he is not afraid of losses.

3% of the box office revenue is a huge sum of money for Wu Ershan.

If the box office can reach 10 million, then he can get 300,000, If the box office is 20 million, it will be more than the salary.

Whether to be bold and take a gamble on the box office share, or to be safe and take 500,000, it depends on Wu Ershan's own choice.

Facing Wu Yuan's sincere eyes, Wu Ershan felt that it was really difficult to refuse this invitation.

What is his situation now?

An unknown little director, relying on a personal advertising studio he set up to make a living.

Now this junior brother who has risen to prominence wants to take him to make a movie and give him a hand.

Can this be refused?

Even if he saves money to make independent films, it doesn't have a future for Guangying Times to make movies!

The script of "The Butterfly Effect" is really good!

Junior brother can trust himself and give himself this opportunity, so he must seize it!

"Okay!" Wu Ershan gritted his teeth, stomped his feet, nodded and said: "Since junior brother trusts me, then a big man can't be a coward!"

"I'll take this movie!"

"What about the signing company?" Wu Yuan asked immediately.

"Sign! "Wu Ershan nodded vigorously.

Now he has no better choice than this.

"Okay!" Wu Yuan smiled brightly, and he had won another great player!

"You can choose the actors yourself. Although the company will send a producer, he will be the accountant. The crew's affairs will be based on your opinions."

Wu Yuan still advocates the investment method of Mr. Han. Since you choose to trust the director you choose, don't be too bossy and restrict the director's performance.

He doesn't like the producer-centered system in Hollywood.

Maybe it's because he is a director himself. He believes that whether a movie can be made well depends on the director, not the producer.

"Then it's settled."

"Come to the company to sign the contract tomorrow!"

After dealing with Wu Ershan, Wu Yuan's work is completely over.

The company's professional manager, this matter cannot be solved in a short time.

Now the outstanding elites in the film and television industry in the mainland are all one carrot one pit.

There is no unemployed talent with the ability and level to helm the era of light and shadow.

Although Wu Yuan has targeted several Asian production directors from Columbia, Universal, and Sony, it is not easy to poach them.

He still has to wait for the right time.

Fortunately, there is not much to do at Light and Shadow Times now. The crew of "Your Name" has been disbanded. The crew of "If Love" is mainly from Hong Kong Island. Light and Shadow Times only sent a producer with two assistants to follow the crew.

Before "The Butterfly Effect" started, there was nothing for Wu Yuan to worry about for the time being.

He can finally enjoy some relaxing and leisurely rest time.

Even when Director Feng invited Wu Yuan to attend the premiere of "Cell Phone", he declined.

He just wants to rest and play now!

The next day after returning to Beijing, Wu Yuan called all his friends to play mahjong.

In a blink of an eye, it is already December in the cold winter, and 2003 is about to pass.

However, his group of friends still look the same, with almost no changes.

"Let's eat at my place tonight?" Wu Yuan said while arranging mahjong: "I bought a lot of vegetables, let's have hot pot tonight."

"In this cold winter, it's suitable to eat some hot pot to warm up the stomach."

"30,000" Chen Kun, who was sitting next to him, threw a card without looking up, "Okay, do you have mutton hot pot?"

"All you can eat!"

"Hey, this is a good relationship, and the family can save a meal." Xia Yu smiled and shouted to Yuan Quan who was leaning against the door of the main hall: "Wife, we have a good meal tonight."

Yuan Quan, who was chatting with Zhou Xun while eating melon seeds, glared at him unhappily: "A hot pot makes you so happy that you can't find your way?"

"Hey, eating hot pot is nothing, but the hot pot invited by Director Wu is different." Liu Ye, who was sitting next to Xia Yu, said with a mean smile.

Xia Yu nodded, agreeing: "That's the truth!"

"This is the hot pot that Director Wu invited. Go out and ask, how many people can get this treatment?"

In fact, he is not familiar with Wu Yuan, nor with Chen Kun and Zhou Xun.

The main reason why he can get into Wu Yuan's circle of friends is Yuan Quan.

Wu Yuan is familiar with Yuan Quan, and he is familiar with several actresses in the 96th class of the Central Academy of Drama, otherwise it would be impossible to invite Zeng Li and Qin Hailu to play their debut works.

So this couple can appear in Wu Yuan's yard.

Xia Yu also licked it a little bit.

But Wu Yuan can still accept it. He really needs such a funny person in his circle of friends.

"Hey, what is Sister Zeng Li busy with recently?" But when Wu Yuan thought of Zeng Li, he hadn't seen her for a long time.

"Li'er is very busy now." Yuan Quan said with emotion: "Since she starred in your movie, her acting career has finally opened up."

"Now she is successful in both TV series and movies. After the hit of "The Beauty and the Talented Man", she has been overwhelmed with acting jobs."

"I contacted her a few days ago, and she was still filming in Jiangsu and Zhejiang."

"Is that so." Wu Yuan nodded, played a two-tube card, and said: "I still owe her the leading role in a movie."

"When I was in Sitges, I promised her that I would ask her to play the leading role in the next movie."

"But more than three years have passed, and there is still no sign of this."

"Hey, are all you directors like this?" Xia Yu also laughed: "Director Jiang praised my good acting when he filmed "Sunny Days" and said that he would ask me to act again in the future."

"As a result, ten years have passed, and nothing has been waited for."

Chen Kun shrugged: "Director Jiang has been banned from directing for five years. He will be lifted in two years. Maybe he will find you then."

Wu Yuan smiled but said nothing.

He didn't know whether Jiang Wen was fooling Xia Yu, but he certainly didn't fool Zeng Li, he just hadn't found a suitable role for her.

But after signing Wuershan, he had an idea.

After Wuershan finished filming "The Butterfly Effect", he wanted to make the "Painted Skin" series.

By that time, it was almost 2005, and the domestic film market was barely starting to take off, supporting movies with box office revenues of over 100 million yuan.

"The Promise" could sell 179 million yuan!

Although I feel a little sorry for director Kai Ge, if "Painted Skin" was released before "The Promise", it would feel good to have the first taste of this first domestic fantasy and magic movie.

"The Promise" sold 179 million yuan, so it's not too much for "Painted Skin" to sell 200 million yuan, right?

Otherwise, once The Promise ruins the reputation of Chinese fantasy movies, it will be difficult to make the IP of Painted Skin.

Rebuilding is much harder than destroying.

If he were to film Painted Skin, Wu Yuan would definitely not ask Zhao Junqi to play Peirong.

He thinks Zeng Li would be a good choice to play Peirong.

Our Li Jie also looks like a good wife and mother, and she is much more professional than Zhao Junqi. She can put on any disfigurement makeup she wants, and she will never have any objections.

As for you saying that Xiao Wei is the heroine?

Our Painted Skin 1 has two heroines, right? The publicity is definitely correct!

"I actually have a heroine that I want to invite Sister Zeng Li to play." Wu Yuan said with a smile: "But it's not my own play, it's a play that the company will produce later."

"It will probably start shooting in the second half of next year or the first half of the year after."

"Not only Sister Zeng Li, but also Sister Xun is my invitation target. You two can play the dual heroines."

"And my business?" Zhou Xun pointed at herself in surprise, put out the cigarette in her hand, walked to Wu Yuan, put his shoulder and asked: "What movie, tell me in detail."

"Have you seen "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio"?"

"Yes."

"Do you know the story of "Painted Skin"?"

"Yes."

Wu Yuan glanced at her: "It's a movie adapted from the story of "Painted Skin". You play a person wearing a painted skin. The vixen seduces the general played by Kun'er, and Li Jie plays Kun'er's original wife. "

"You two have a love triangle in a magical world."

"We'll talk about the details after the script is finished."

Chen Kun, who was thinking about which card to play, heard his name and raised his head in surprise: "Is there anything else for me?"

"Yes." Wu Yuan nodded: "You are the most famous actor in our mainland. Who else can play the leading role if not you?"

As he spoke, he drew another card and smiled happily: "Win!"

"Give me money!"

"All the same color, win!"

"Haha, it looks like I'm going to win back the money for the hot pot tonight!"

The next chapter is still about a thousand words away, and it will be posted before 24:00.