Chapter 754 It’s Hard to Find Young Chinese Actors

"Not yet." Wu Tianmin put down his chopsticks and looked at Fang Minghua:

"You also know that it is easy to find adult actors but difficult to find child actors, especially for this movie, which features a child around ten years old as the protagonist. It takes not one but several, and it takes time to find the right one."

"In fact, the main difficulty is still concentrated on the role of Ruifang, and it is even more difficult for a Chinese girl." Zhang Yimou took over the conversation and continued:

"The US side intends to adjust the script and replace the Chinese girl with an English-American girl, so that the difficulty will be less."

"Yes, Mr. Michael Barnason discussed this issue with me privately." Wu Tianmin picked up the chopsticks and picked up the meat while saying: "But I didn't give in. How to change the script before finding one?!"

Fang Minghua knew that the filming mechanism in Hollywood was different from that in mainland China. It adopted a producer-centered system. The producer had great power and control over the film above the director.

The producer controlled the entire production process: arranging the budget of funds, negotiating and signing contracts with the main creative staff, approving the production budget, and supervising the completion of the film production and the final profit distribution after sales, etc., and the director was relegated to the second position.

"After we sign the contract with the US tomorrow, we will immediately start preparing for the filming and will definitely discuss this issue." Wu Tianmin said at last.

It was almost seven o'clock after eating hot pot. Everyone wanted to go shopping again, but Wu Tianmin was worried about the train back to Burbank, so he urged everyone to go back quickly.

"Why rush? Anyway, you will stay here for several months, so you have time to go shopping!"

The next morning, in the conference room on the 16th floor of the Warner Bros. headquarters building, the two sides held a brief signing ceremony. Tony, vice president of Warner Bros. Pictures, and Wu Tianmin, deputy general manager of Shengshi Film and Television, signed their names on the contract on behalf of both parties, and warm applause rang out in the conference room.

Fang Minghua was also invited to attend the signing ceremony as the screenwriter of this film.

After the brief signing ceremony, the next step was to enter the specific work of filming, mainly for the producers and directors of both sides to discuss, and Fang Minghua, who mainly involved some explanations and instructions on the script.

Of course, there was also a Chinese translator.

"This movie involves many scenes in the magic world, including schools and castles. We decided to use the following three methods to solve it." The speaker was the producer Michael Barnason, a middle-aged man with glasses and slightly curly black hair.

"First, we use miniature models. We can fully achieve our goals by using architectural principles and illusions."

"Second, we use Computer Graphics, or CG for short, which has been widely used in Hollywood."

Michael Barnason said, looking at the three Chinese people.

These things are already commonplace in Hollywood, and they are mainly told to Chinese colleagues.

Wu Tianmin knows English, and the translation is mainly prepared for Zhang Yimou. Both of them listened very seriously.

"The third is real-life shooting, which is the most commonly used method. Gothic-style buildings described in the script also exist in the real world. Gloucester Cathedral and Durham Cathedral in England are relatively good shooting locations. Of course, we will further confirm it based on the script, ensuring both authenticity and shooting costs."

Zhang Yimou and Wu Tianmin nodded frequently.

As a movie with a strong European and American style, these preliminary preparations are mainly done by the American side.

"The specific model and post-CG will be made by the team's professionals. We only need to test the production effect. Okay, gentlemen, let's discuss a more urgent matter now, which is to choose the right actor." Michael Barnason said at last.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I recommend a suitable young actor who can play the role of Harry Potter. His name is Haley Joel Osment," Spielberg said immediately.

"Haley Joel Osment? Is he the actor who played Forrest Gump as a child in the movie "Forrest Gump"? "Michael Barnason asked.

"Yes, it's him. His performance in the film is eye-catching. Here is his information."

After that, he took out several documents from his briefcase and distributed them to everyone.

Fang Minghua took it and looked at it. It was all in English:

Haley Joel Osment was born on April 10, 1988 in Los Angeles, California, USA. In 1992, he played the great-grandson of Edward Asner in the TV series "Thunder Alley". In 1994, he participated in his first film "Forrest Gump", and won the Young Star Award for Best Performance and the Young Artist Award for Best Performance in Film under Ten Years Old for this film. "

In the information, Spielberg's evaluation of him is: Most child stars rely on being well-behaved to please the audience, but Haley Joel Osment is not like that. He relies on his feelings for the role and shows his sincerity.

It seems that the evaluation is quite high.

"Now, the focus is still on the role of Ruifang in the script." Spielberg continued: "It is difficult to find Chinese child stars. According to my understanding, there are no such children in the United States."

"There is no need to have child stars. You can also let those little girls with acting talent in this age group audition. I have taken this approach in several films in China." Zhang Yimou, who had been silent, spoke up.

Naturally, he spoke in Chinese, and the translator next to him immediately translated it into English.

Spielberg glanced at this somewhat silent middle-aged man.

Although he looked down on his Chinese counterparts, this man was an exception.

He had to give some respect to this plain-looking man who looked like the legendary Chinese Terracotta Warriors.

He was the best director in China, and he had won many awards!

"Mr. Zhang, don't forget, this is America, where can we find a suitable Chinese girl with acting talent?!" Spielberg deliberately emphasized the word "Chinese".

"We can go back to China to find one!" Zhang Yimou said.

"OK, I don't deny that there are such girls in your country, but can she speak English? Can she deeply understand this script with a strong British and American style and the role of Ruifang? In addition, communicating with the other actors is also a big problem."

Zhang Yimou was silent. This was indeed a problem.

It's okay for adults, but for a child.

"Let's put it this way, Michael Barnason, Mr. Spielberg," Wu Tianmin spoke, speaking fluent English but with a bit of a weird pronunciation: "You guys are looking for it in the United States, aren't we going back to China for the Spring Festival soon? We'll go back and look for it, and try to meet the script requirements as much as possible."

"OK! We'll also advertise in the newspaper to recruit qualified young actors to audition, but I remind Mr. Wu and Mr. Zhang that time is limited. If we can't find a suitable Chinese girl in February, we'll revise the script and replace the role of Ruifang with an English-American girl!

Michael Barnason said at last.