The meeting on the cruise ship is the first preparatory meeting for the new movie. The main purpose is to let the crew members get to know each other. After all, this drama is a big project.

Chen Chong had been secretly informed before, keeping John Woo, Sammo Hung and others in the dark, not pretending to be mysterious - he needed to obtain permission to take pictures of the outdoor scene at Kangle Building first.

Kangle Building is a landmark building in Hong Kong and has the title of "the tallest building in Asia". To shoot a sensational movie in Hong Kong, it is the first choice. As Luo Weiming said, the tenants of Kangle Building are mostly world-class companies and institutions. If you make a messy movie that blows it up without permission, it may cause commercial and legal trouble.

Kangle Building is a property of Land Land Group, which is also a subsidiary of Jardine Mahjong. Jardine Mahjong is the first of the four British-owned overseas banks in Hong Kong. It has a significant impact on Hong Kong's politics and economy. This kind of giant doesn't want to be provoked by Shen Chong, and it can't afford to be provoked by this kind of giant.

Without permission, the movie could not be filmed, so Chen Chong kept his mouth shut before and didn't reveal anything. After he returned from Taiwan, he finally received a reply from Jardinet. The interior set in the movie must not be the same or similar to the internal structure of the building, and he must pay a Hong Kong dollar image usage fee of 1 million Hong Kong dollars.

It turns out that people are afraid of being famous and pigs are afraid of being strong. When they become famous, people want to take a bite everywhere, but Chen Chong didn't hesitate and paid the money quickly - anyway, the Land Group will soon have big trouble, and then add to the point of taking the blame and take it back twice as much.

In fact, in his memory, there are many big scenes, but there is a reason why "Die Hard" is very troublesome to produce in Hong Kong.

For Chen Chong, filming is not just about filming, nor is it for box office. It is the current focus to maximize the level of the entire Hong Kong film industry or the Chinese film industry.

The movie "Die Hard" has a very good creativity, creating an action movie mode in which ordinary heroes fight against a group of thugs in a small and closed space. This mode is particularly suitable for Hong Kong movies.

Hong Kong has a small area and cannot shoot large scenes. It is the mainstream of Hong Kong movies. At the same time, the smaller the space, the more it can show the charm of the Hong Kong movie's signature - kung fu movies.

At this time, Hong Kong action movies were still stuck in old-style traditional martial arts films and kung fu boy films in the late Qing Dynasty and early Ming Dynasty. With the acceleration of the modernization process, these two types of movies have become outdated and become increasingly unpopular. Urban fashion action movies are the mainstream in the future, and Hong Kong has severely lacked talents such as blasting, speeding, gun props, etc.

"Die Hard" has all the elements of a modern urban action movie, including explosions, gunfights, and high-tech. Moreover, the scenes of this movie seem spectacular, but the cost is not high. The total budget is only 10,000 yuan, and Bruce Willis spent 5 million yuan alone.

The scene is not small and the cost is not much. It shows that the various explosion scenes in the movie have a mature implementation plan in Hollywood. Because it is mature, it is cheap. This plan is what Shen Chong really wants, so he spent a lot of money and asked Orwitz to help and recruit so many behind-the-scenes staff. Moreover, he recruited more in Hong Kong, with more than 200 people. The only ones attending the meeting on the ship were just a few of them.

Hong Kong movies have always been known for their favorite following the trend. As long as his movie can be sold well, follow-up works will surely sprout like mushrooms after a rain. A large number of filming opportunities will allow various behind-the-scenes staff to quickly improve their level and narrow the gap with Hollywood.

The "Tiger and Dragon" that Chen Chong wants to film just borrows some core creativity. As for the character setting, plot content and specific environment of the movie, they all need to be recreated based on the background of the times and the actual situation in Hong Kong.

Movies are something that is very closely integrated with pop culture. A movie that may be a box office hit in the RU era, but may be ignored in the 1990s.

For example, the box office sales of "Die Hard" were related to the movie environment at that time - tough action movies represented by Stallone and Schwarzenegger have been flooding the market for six or seven years. In those movies, the protagonists were full of muscles, omnipotent, invincible, killing enemies like mowing grass, unscathed in guns and bullets, unscathed, monotonous, serious stereotypes, lacking realism, and the audience was already bored.

Just at this moment, Bruce Willis appeared. He had an ordinary appearance, an average figure, had a wife and a child, and encountered a midlife crisis. Fighting was also a trick of ordinary people. He would be injured, bleeding, and self-taught, which made the audience feel immersive and satisfied their expectations of changing their tastes. So he became a hit and made a big hit at the box office.

In 1979, Stallone's "The First Blood" had not appeared yet. Schwarzenegger was still playing a supporting role and had not become famous yet. At this time, a down-and-out policeman with a wife and children would be the protagonist. Will the audience buy it?

So Chen Chong changed the protagonist to a little policeman from the countryside of Lamma Island, and then arranged for him a dream lover working in the Kangle Building. This kind of fairy tale of a poor boy saving beauty and monopolizing the courtesan is loved by everyone in ancient and modern times, both in China and abroad, and will never fall behind.

When "The Legend of the Dragon" was filmed, it was the period when Japan's economy was the strongest. It claimed to buy the entire United States, which made Americans very disgusted. Therefore, in the movie, terrorists robbed the Japanese and made it very exciting for the audience to watch.

The important thing about Shen Chong investing in the filming of "The Legend of the Dragon" is that this drama was released in cooperation with Jiahe. Two years ago, Jiahe jointly invested with Japan's Nikka Film Company to establish Japan's largest theater chain and has thousands of cinemas.

With the capacity of traditional film markets such as Hong Kong, Taiwan and Southeast Asia, it is difficult to recover costs, so it is necessary to explore the Japanese and American markets. Otherwise, with the extremely commercial atmosphere of Hong Kong films, let alone someone following the trend, they will be laughed to death as a sucker...

Therefore, the target of the robbery by terrorists in the film was changed to British without hesitation. Anyway, there are many British people in Hong Kong, which is very reasonable, and the British film market is too far away from him and does not need to be considered.

In addition to the background of the times, the actual conditions in Hong Kong must also be considered.

For example, the emergency mechanism of the Hong Kong police encountering a sudden crisis is definitely completely different from that of the United States. The plot of the original work that satirizes bureaucratic police and profit-oriented journalists must also be revised based on the reality of Hong Kong.

For example, the helicopter cannot be parked on the roof of Kangle Building, but it faces the sea. The terrorist's escape plan must be changed.

There are many things to consider in this way. Chen Chong was too busy and had no time to think about the details and write the script. He only wrote a plot framework, defined the identity of the protagonist, the origin of the terrorist, and the basic context of the story. He was not mature enough overall, so when he was in the meeting, he did not talk about the script straight to the point, but first threw out a gimmick of "blowing the Kangle Building", which scared people and created an atmosphere of "I want to invest in big productions" to deepen everyone's impression.

As for the details of the script, after the meeting, Chen Chong handed over the task to John Woo and Chen Xinjian.

John Woo was playing RN independent production in the 1960s. Later, he joined Shaw Brothers and became Cheung's favorite and trusted disciple. He worked as an assistant director for several years, and then went to Jiahe to film for seven or eight years. It can be said that the director's skills and shooting experience have almost been honed. All he lacks is an opportunity to get ahead.

John Woo is a rare director with a big scene in Hong Kong. He has always been praised for his grasp of the rhythm and control of urban action movies. Moreover, when he first filmed an urban action movie, he made "The True Color of Heroes". He is very talented. He has also tinkered with scripts in many movies in the future, such as "The Detective" which has a similar theme to "Die Hard", which is one of the screenwriters.

Even though I know I am a great talent, why should I watch him wasting his time? Anyway, if "The True Color of Heroes" is slapped away by a butterfly wing, it can still be remedied. But at the golden age, John Woo wasted for six or seven years, and the loss to Hong Kong movies would be too great...

So this time, Chen Chong specially took him out of Jiahe and served as the director of the movie.

Chen Xinjian has been a police officer for 9 years, serving as a criminal investigation department, a instructor in police training school, and a instructor in detective training school. In 1974, the hostage-taken incident occurred in the Mong Kok Baosheng Bank. He was the on-site commander and had experience in dealing with actual big scenes. After resigning from the position of superintendent, he wrote several scripts of good quality, such as "Jumping Ash", "Jiali Coffee", "Inside and Outside the Wall", which were all popular and had a win-win box office reputation.

He was responsible for writing the police's reaction and internal conflict stories after the accident at Kangle Building were the most appropriate.

And the martial arts movements are naturally taken care of by Sammo Hung himself - Chen Chong chose him as the starring actor, not because he is loyal and loyal, but because he is one of the most creative martial arts directors in Hong Kong.

In 1977, Sammo Hung made "Monkey Sande and Milk Pound Six", which set the forefront of kung fu comedy films...

In 19RU, Sammo Hung filmed "Ghost Fighting Ghosts", which set the forefront of the fantasy comedy...

In 2019, Sammo Hung filmed "Beware of Little Hands", which set a precedent for Hong Kong fashion kung fu films...

In addition to creating a new genre of Hong Kong action movies, he also achieved great results in his martial arts guidance. For example, in 1978, "Mr. Praise and Finding Qian Hua", was considered a textbook for Wing Chun, and the future "Al+Shadow", "Five Fortune Stars" series, "Ip Man", etc., are all extremely innovative and sense of the times.

Chen Chong was determined to use this "The Legend of the Dragon" to innovate Hong Kong's current moves and long fighting styles, so he chose Sammo Hung, who can fight and design, as the starring actor - Jackie Chan is fiddling with "People's Deal", and Yuan Biao is too immature.

Sammo Hung has a simple face, a fat figure, and a grassroots atmosphere. Moreover, because he is from a family of performing arts, he is one of the best acting skills among a group of kung fu stars. He has won the Academy Awards and the Best Actor at the Asia-Pacific Film Festival, which also adds a lot of points.

Of course, whether it is John Woo or Sammo Hung, they are still too immature at this time, and there are too many employees coming to Hollywood, so they will definitely not be able to control it, so Chen Chong specially hired Gary Kurz to join.

Gary Kurtz is one of George Lucas's favorite producers. He participated in the production of "American Style Painting" and "Star Wars". He also worked as an actor in "The Godfather". After the filming of "Star Wars" was completed, he left Lucas' team and planned to develop alone.

After Chen Chong got the news from Orwitz, he immediately sent him an invitation to serve as the executive producer of the new movie. Many scenes in "Star Wars" were shot in the studio, but they were larger and more complex than "Die Hard". Chen Chong hoped to use his rich experience to create a big atmosphere - most of the shots of "Die Hard" were shot in the studio with interior scenes on the set. If they were not handled well, it would be easy to show off or be too petty.

In addition to this movie, Gary Kurz will also be the production department manager of Oriental Charm. Chen Chong is preparing to use him as his teacher to establish a mature film producer system in Hong Kong.

In the Hong Kong film industry, there was a profession of production, but it was very chaotic and irregular. Except for Jiahe, the producers of other companies were all fake producers who sold dog meat under the guise of sheep.

In Hollywood, the producer is the master of a movie and has the right to decide on all matters of filming, including what kind of script to shoot, hiring directors, photographers, actors, managing filming funds, reviewing shooting funds and controlling the entire process of filming. After the shooting is completed, the producer is also responsible for the filming, marketing promotion and promotion of the film. In short, the producer's work starts before the movie script and ends after the movie is released.

Because of the outsourcing satellite system, Jiahe's producers have similar functions to those in Hollywood and are fully responsible for filming movies, but few people with this qualification are qualified.

At Shaw Brothers, the producer's job is only responsible for arranging the factory period and outdoor venues, as well as controlling expenditures. As for the content, budget, and choice of directors and actors, it is all decided by the company.

According to the survey of "Movie Age", more than 70% of independent film companies in Hong Kong are the bosses themselves as producers, the bosses are the accountants, and relatives and friends do drama and scene notes. (Note)

Generally speaking, in Hong Kong, producers are dispensable and not valued, and their salary is very low, usually only a few thousand yuan.

Moreover, many people don’t understand that the boss can do everything in the work of the producer, so why do you have to hire a producer and waste money and pay?

You should know that movies are very professional industries, and most of the bosses who invest in filming come from other industries. Apart from each other, professional producers need to coordinate between the boss and the director. Only in this way can the movie be filmed smoothly and the expected profits are achieved.

For example, when an outsider invests in a movie, he knows what he knows in addition to saving money... Whether the movie theme is good, the director level is good, the actors' popularity, the film market in Southeast Asia, etc. It is difficult for a professional to figure out whether it is not a professional.

Investing in movies is all about making money, and you can’t figure out anything. How can you make money?

If investors lose one piece, social funds will be withdrawn in large quantities and the film industry will be sluggish. If investors are too strong and try every means to save money and cannot guarantee the quality of the film, the film market will be sluggish.

Therefore, a mature film industry should be divided into five modules - investors, producers, directors, actors, and behind-the-scenes personnel.

A high-level professional producer is the lubricant in the film business process. It can ensure that investment is rewarded and the quality of the film can be maintained without affecting it. Its role is very important.

However, after the rise of New Art City, a freak was created in the Hong Kong film industry - the producer.

The producer is a mixture of investors and producers, with the power of the whole, and is the real and only core of a crew.

As we all know, any organization must not be too concentrated in one person. There was a prime minister in the Han and Tang dynasties in China, and there were cabinets in the Ming and Qing dynasties. They were all bridges between the emperor and the officials. The producers combined the emperor and the prime minister, which greatly eroded the director's rights. Therefore, there was constant conflict between the two, and if one was not handled well, it would cause losses to the entire movie.

In this regard, Tsui Hark is a living example. He first fell out with John Woo, but lost the box office in "The True Color of Heroes 3", then fought with King Hu, and "The Smiling and Proud Wanderer" also lost money.

Of course, the birth and development of producers are also related to the special environment of Hong Kong films.

The Hong Kong market is small and talented, so the scale of film companies is relatively small. As the saying goes, a small boat is easy to turn around. The producer combines the boss and the producer, and can quickly respond to the market and chase the wind and film, which is very efficient.

However, it is precisely because of this that the producer has high requirements for professional quality. If he is not careful, he will lose all his money and lacks flexibility. For example, Huang Ying, the "Ghost King" who wrote "The Legend of Silkworm Change" and "Shen Shengyi" series, was a producer who invested in zombie films. The market trend has passed, and he is still infatuated and was eventually beaten to death by usury at home.

Moreover, the production is only suitable for small companies, not large groups.

Shen Chong has more and more businesses, and it is impossible to take care of every drama like now. It is imperative to cultivate professional producers who can pack all the work of the crew in one-stop.

Not only that, Shen Chong has greater ambitions. He hopes that after these professional producers mature, they can go out and start their own businesses and start companies. He does not need to unify the world. What he needs is a large number of competitors who can conquer cities and territory in the whole world. Anyway, with the profoundness of Chinese culture and the huge capacity of the Chinese film market, no matter how many film companies can afford it, the bigger the cake, the more he can share.

So he reorganized the production department and demoted Zeng Lizhen to an ordinary producer, allowing her to learn from Gary Kurtz, because in the past few dramas, she was nominally a producer, but in fact she was a high-level drama business. The script was selected by Shen Chong, the budget was determined by Shen Chong, and the distribution was planned by Shen Chong. She was just an executor and did not produce a movie completely independently.

However, Gary Kurz is a newcomer and does not understand the market conditions in Asia, so Shen Chong is the producer of this "Die Hard". He is the executive producer, responsible for managing the staff recruited from Hollywood and communicating with John Woo and others.

In the future, Shen Chong will gradually let go and only focus on the most worthy movies. As for ordinary investments, they will be left to professional producers to do.

Notes from "Hong Kong Light and Shadow Century"
Chapter completed!