"What award do you want to win for "The Prestige"?"
Sitting in the small office, Da Mi Mi asked Zhang Hao with great interest.
Zhang Hao was combing Da Mi Mi's hair with a comb. He teased Da Mi Mi's hairline and said jokingly: "Mi Mi Mi, your hairline is a bit dangerous!"
"Oh, I hate it." Da Mi Mi slapped Zhang Hao's mischievous hand away: "People are asking you about something serious!"
"What I'm talking about is serious business!" Zhang Hao had a smile on his face, but when he saw Da Mi Mi's expression turned serious, he instantly returned to seriousness: "It depends on the situation, this year's Golden Rooster, Golden Rooster and Horse Awards have to be signed up."
In fact, this year's Golden Rooster Awards are held every two years, so Zhang Hao is very likely to be shortlisted for two consecutive works.
Originally, Cai Runping suggested that she concentrate on winning prizes for "The Magic" and not sign up for "Genius Gunslinger".
After thinking about it, Zhang Hao decided to nominate "Genius Gunslinger" for the Golden Rooster Award.
This is mainly for Da Mi Mi, who is his girlfriend after all. In addition to business achievements, Zhang Hao will also help with some awards matters.
"I don't have much hope of winning an award this time, but it's good to get a nomination. I will polish my acting skills and get a Best Actress trophy in the future." Zhang Hao put down his comb and tied Da Mi Mi into a ponytail.
Da Mi Mi held Zhang Hao's hand and said, "How about I say forget it."
"Why forget it? Your performance in "The Genius" was very good. If you don't get an award, you can get a nomination. It's an encouragement to young actors!" Zhang Hao said with his eyes wide open.
Da Mi Mi chuckled: "Looking at the way you talk, you are so old-fashioned. If you don't know better, I would think you are a veteran cadre!"
Zhang Hao curled his lips and said, "What are you talking about? I am young director Zhang Hao."
The conversation was divided into two parts. Andy, who was far away in Hong Kong Island, studied at a funeral parlor for half a month, and also learned to play the cello every day, which made Andy's wife think that Andy was mentally ill.
However, Andy didn't tell her, and Tianwang's wife was a little worried after going back and forth, so she called a close friend to come over and have a look.
"Hua Zai, I heard that you often go to the funeral parlor recently. Why are you going there?" Fa Ge came to Hua Zai's house as a guest when he was free.
Andy said: "This is not a film directed by Zhang Hao from Mainland China, so I will be more prepared."
"You are talking about the director of "The Magic"? His movie was released on Hong Kong Island these two days, and I went to see it." Fa Ge sighed a little: "How do you think the brains of young directors today are growing? How can they think?
Such a wonderful story?"
"Yes, I happened to have this opportunity to collaborate, so I took it," Wa Jai said.
"Oh, then his play is related to the funeral parlor, so you go to the funeral parlor every day?" Fa Ge asked again.
"Yes, I thought it was a horror movie at first, but Director Zhang communicated with me on the phone a few days ago. He has a very good story and the script will be given to me in two days."
Since Andy was not sick, Fa Ge was relieved and left without even staying for dinner.
Andy skipped dinner as usual and went back to his study to practice the cello.
Jin Shijie, who was far away in the treasure island, also received an invitation from Zhang Hao. He was still a little surprised. How did a mainland director get his name and come to act in a play with him?
Later, I learned that it was recommended by Li Xuejian, and Jin Shijie suddenly realized it.
Jin Shijie and Li Xuejian met once when the drama "Secret Love in Peach Blossom Land" was touring in the Mainland.
So Jin Shijie accepted Zhang Hao's invitation without much hesitation.
Within a few days, the script for "The Undertaker" was given to Wa Jai, Jin Shijie, and Zhou Xun.
Zhou Xun read the script with gusto and became very interested in Zhang Hao.
I really don't understand why a director who is so clever can come up with such a tender and tender story.
Although Zhang Hao vividly captured the love between father and daughter in "Manslaughter", everyone is more concerned about the plot of the battle of wits and courage.
The subsequent "Genius Gunman" and "Lethal Magic" basically continued this thought process and created certain Zhang's suspenseful plots.
But "The Embalmer" completely abandoned the genre that Zhang Hao was good at. This time it brought such a special story. Zhou Xun believed that Zhang Hao wanted to transform.
Any ambitious director will not be limited to one or two themes, but will try a variety of themes. Zhang Hao can be considered a very ambitious director.
then:
"I've accepted this film, help me negotiate it, and I'll give you the salary," Zhou Xun said.
The agent nodded, indicating that he understood, and went to talk to the producer Liu Hao.
"The Embalmer" is independently invested and produced by Haotian Studio, and China Film and Bona have agreed to distribute the film.
I originally wanted to get involved, but for an award-winning literary film, the investment scale was not large, and Haotian Studio could fully afford it, so no other companies were allowed to participate.
Zhang Hao has now had three successful films in a row and has a certain amount of capital. The script of this film is also good.
In addition to Andy Jin Shijie and Zhou Xun, powerful veteran actors Xi Meijuan and Ni Dahong have also joined the cast.
Well-known veteran actor Wang Fuli also introduced his son Wang Xiao, and after a brief audition, he also joined the crew.
There is also Mai Mai, who once again collaborated with Zhang Hao, playing a little girl, but she didn't have many scenes.
The confirmation of a role inevitably involves various human relationships. As long as it does not affect the filming and there is normal casting, Zhang Hao usually has to give face.
The lineup of Andy Lau and Zhou Xun this time is also quite interesting. Although it is a literary film, the media is still paying close attention to it.
But "The Embalmer" is very low-key. Apart from the announcement of the cast on Haotian Studio's Weibo, there is no other action, not even a launch press conference.
The title of the film was revealed on Weibo, "The Embalmer", which also caused a lot of speculation from the media and netizens.
"What is an undertaker?"
"It's the funeral parlor that collects the corpse, carries it, puts makeup on it, etc. It's very spooky."
"I'll go, does Director Zhang want to make a horror movie?"
"It looks like it, but doesn't it mean there can't be ghosts?"
"Who knows? Let's see and tell."
No matter what the outside discussion is, "The Embalmer" has entered the preparation period. All the actors have gathered in the capital to learn some relevant knowledge about the Embalmer.
Zhang Hao also held repeated meetings with the director of photography, art director, lighting director and others to determine the tone and art style of the film.
The shooting location was set in Hualin, a small town in the northeast. There are hills and hills in the back and endless plains in front. This was the location that Zhang Hao decided on after a long period of research in the name of traveling.
When a film crew comes to Hualin for filming, the local government certainly attaches great importance to it because it is also a publicity opportunity for their city, so they give the green light all the way and provide a lot of convenience.
Even a local funeral home in the city coordinated and lent it to the crew for filming without charging any money.
After two or three years of training, Zhang Hao's team cooperates very well and completes their duties according to their duties, and a steady stream of information comes to Zhang Hao.
Because Guo Fan is already independent, Zhang Hao still needs an assistant director to help him.
In fact, there can be many assistant directors. For large production crews, there may even be more than ten assistant directors. Sometimes, executive and assistant directors are regarded as assistant directors.
But when people below call me, they always call the director directly.
Just like the unspoken rules of officialdom, no one likes to be called deputy.
Compared with the complicated personnel struggles in the officialdom, the crew is relatively simple. There is an absolute rule, that is, the director is the boss of the entire crew.
Especially for a well-known director like Zhang Hao, his control over the crew cannot be compared to that of a novice director.
Knowing that Zhang Hao was looking for a suitable assistant director, Ning Hao specially called Zhang Hao and recommended one of his subordinates.
"Junior brother, this Song Yunhui has been working with me since "Green Grass". I heard that you are short of manpower, so I will introduce him to you." Ning Hao said on the phone.
"Since he is the candidate recommended by senior brother, I will naturally not refuse. Let him come over tomorrow and have a chat. If there is no problem, it will be his." Zhang Hao naturally would not refuse Ning Hao's kindness.
"Well, I'll ask him to come over to see you tomorrow."
The next day, Zhang Hao and Song Yunhui met. He was a big man with a big beard, 1.9 meters tall, burly, and quite ferocious.
Song Yunhui doesn't talk much, but he is the kind of assistant director with strong execution ability. Zhang Hao saw that he was very solid in speaking and doing things, so he successfully accepted him and participated in the preparation of "The Encoffiant"
This is different from Guo Fan. Guo Fan also has strong execution ability and completed the tasks assigned by Zhang Hao very well. But Guo Fan also has many ideas. On the set of "The Magic", he also proposed many new ideas
Provided to Zhang Hao.
But now that Guo Fan has made his mark, "Shark Beach" is about to be released, and once he becomes a hit, he will become a hot emerging director in the industry.
Guo Fan also knew how this opportunity came about, so he was very grateful to Zhang Hao.
Logically speaking, Zhang Hao should take this opportunity to ask Guo Fan to sign a long-term contract with his studio, and then tie Guo Fan to death for his own use.
But Zhang Hao didn't do that. When Guo Fan excitedly expressed his willingness to sign a new contract with Haotian Studio, Zhang Hao told him not to make decisions emotionally.
"Lao Guo, I know you want to repay the favor, but please don't make impulsive decisions when writing." Zhang Hao comforted Guo Fan and said: ""Shark Beach" has not been released yet. If it is successful, you will definitely be very popular. You might as well think about it by then.
The conditions of other companies are for the sake of your own future.
If the box office is not good and no one wants you, it won’t be too late for you to come back.”
Guo Fan was even more moved: "Thank you, Director Zhang, for still considering me like this, but I have already thought about it clearly. Regardless of whether "Shark Beach" is a box office success or not, I will sign a new directorship with Haotian Studio."
contract."
"If you think about it carefully, I won't say anything more. We will continue to cooperate happily in the future." Zhang Hao smiled and shook hands with Guo Fan.
“A pleasure to work with.”
The hands of the two grown men were tightly held together, full of affection.
On Friday, August 5th, "The Prestige" will have its theatrical weekend. The film's box office has already reached 380 million, making it the highest-grossing Chinese film in the first half of the year.
The investors who participated in the investment were all happy, not only with the huge box office income, but also with the income from copyright peripherals.
Huayi, in particular, reaped rewards for its first investment in Zhang Hao's film, and even Mr. Wang began to like Zhang Hao.
There is no way, who doesn’t like a good director who constantly brings benefits to himself?
It's a pity that this director actually went to make literary films instead of commercial films, otherwise Huayi would have continued to participate.
Counting the generous return on investment, his assistant came to report with a stern look: "Mr. Lei, "Shark Beach" is released, and Mr. Jun invites you to go to the premiere with us."
Xiao Wang frowned when he heard this, and his good mood was instantly broken.
Originally, the project "Shark Beach" was made by Mr. Wang since he was not around. Since it was not a film directed by Zhang Hao himself, Mr. Wang withdrew from the investment.
That’s okay. The key is that Wanda Pictures jumped in like a dog that smelled a reply and invested in “Shark Beach.”
This is nothing, the most important thing is that after Mr. Wang came back from Hong Kong Island, he scolded Mr. Wang, which made Mr. Wang very unhappy.
"Isn't it just a "Shark Beach"? It's not a film directed by Zhang Hao himself. If we don't invest, it's nothing." Mr. Wang retorted.
Mr. Wang said earnestly: "Leizi, you need to take a longer view. Do you think it's just a movie? What you lose is that you will continue to invest in Zhang Hao's follow-up projects."
"We didn't say we won't continue to invest in his movies, but if we don't invest in this one, we will continue to invest in the next one!" Mr. Xiao Wang expressed his inner thoughts.
He was not optimistic about the "Shark Beach" project and Guo Fan, a newbie, but he didn't like Zhang Hao's personal style. Mr. Wang had to admit that Zhang Hao could always make movies that seemed to be losing money and sell them well.
Who knew that Mr. Wang would be even more angry: "Do you think it will be so easy to come back after you quit? Needless to say, China Film Group is a national brand. What about other companies, Bona, Wanda, and even Enlight Pictures? Which one is not eyeing it?
I even heard that Ma Yun also wants to develop the entertainment industry and plans to establish Alibaba Pictures, and his goal is to go straight to Zhang Hao."
The Wang brothers are still quite powerful in the entertainment industry, but they are nothing in front of Ali and Wanda. They can crush them to death with just one finger.
I heard that Ma Yun privately admired Zhang Hao more than once, and even founded Alibaba Pictures because Ma Yun watched Zhang Hao's movies.
Ma Yun was a bit disgraced later on, but in 2011, he was an out-and-out business tycoon.
Such a person is interested in Zhang Hao, a young director, so why does Mr. Wang push Zhang Hao out?
What the King always values is not the success or failure of a movie, but the people behind the movie.
"Shark Beach" is a film that Zhang Hao co-wrote and served as a producer, and the starring role is still great.
Anyone with a discerning eye will know at a glance that this is a film project made by Zhang Hao to flatter his girlfriend. Although the director Guo Fan is a newcomer, who doesn't know that Zhang Hao trusts Guo Fan very much.
Not investing in "Shark Beach" at this time may appear to be a distrust of Guo Fan, but in fact it is a distrust of Zhang Hao.
What would Zhang Hao think? And there are so many investors eyeing it.
Mr. Xiao Wang, however, was a little disapproving. He thought it was enough for the company to have Feng Dapao, and there were several Hong Kong directors who had gone north to cooperate, so they could completely ignore Zhang Hao.
It can only be said that the two brothers had considerable differences on the issue of Zhang Hao.
At this time, when attending the premiere of "Shark Beach", Wang always wanted to repair the relationship with Zhang Hao. But Xiao Wang was obviously not happy, so he seemed extremely resistant.
Compared with Mr. Wang's haze, the person in charge of Wanda Pictures was very concerned about it. On the eve of the release of "Shark Beach", they continued to communicate with Wanda Cinemas.
"I said, Lao Zhao, this is a project that our big boss attaches great importance to. You must pay attention to the convenience of theater arrangement."
"I'm sure, I've already made arrangements for them to be in the best theaters and at the best time periods to ensure the filming rate of "Shark Beach"."
"That's good. Thank you for your support. I'll treat you to dinner when the movie becomes a big hit at the box office."
Wanda Pictures is actually the largest investor in the movie "Shark Tank", so naturally they don't want the film to be a box office hit, and they don't want the 10 million yuan to go down the drain.
After reconciling this matter with the theater company, the person in charge said with a smile on his face: "Why are you here, Mr. Cong?"
Cong Shao said: "My dad is very concerned about the premiere of "Shark Tank". He was originally going to come in person, but he went to the UK on a temporary business trip, so he sent me to come and have a look."
"Oh, of course we will do our best on this project that the big bosses are concerned about. Don't worry, there will definitely be no problems." The person in charge assured.
"Well," Mr. Cong nodded and asked, "Well, will Director Zhang Hao attend?"
"Of course, this was filmed by his subordinate Guo Fan, who is also the film's producer. And the star of the film is also his girlfriend, so of course she has to come to the stage," the person in charge replied.
"That's good, I've wanted to talk to him for a long time." A trace of excitement flashed across Shao Cong's face.
It was too difficult to do it. I finally couldn’t hold on and stopped today. But don’t worry, I’m adjusting my condition and try to continue to do it tomorrow.
In addition, the update time will be changed to 8pm. Today I will post a chapter of 4,000 words. Please support me.