On April 20, the 56th Cannes Film Festival announced the shortlist, among which Lou Ye's "Purple Butterfly" and Wang Xiaoshuai's "Second Brother" were shortlisted for the main competition unit. Three Chinese-language films, "Uniform" and "Incense" produced by Shengtang Film and Television (Hong Kong) Co., Ltd. and "Robinson Crusoe" by Wanwan Film, were shortlisted for the Un Certain Regard section.
Because Lou Ye's "Purple Butterfly" has not passed the review, the French producer of "Purple Butterfly" simply submitted "Purple Butterfly" as a French film. As a result, "Purple Butterfly" occupied the main competition unit. The quota for Chinese and French films was filled, so the vacant Asian quota was successfully filled by Wang Xiaoshuai's "Second Brother", making two Chinese-language films appear in the main competition section of this year's Cannes Film Festival at the same time.
This has rarely happened in the history of Cannes. Unless a great director like Zhang Yimou or Director Chen is invited to participate in the exhibition, and there is another Chinese-language film that is particularly outstanding, it is possible that more than two films will appear in the main competition. Chinese movies.
Generally speaking, compared to Berlin and Venice, which are relatively friendly to Chinese-language films, the Cannes Film Festival, the most important of the three major European film festivals, has always been stingy with Chinese-language films.
Of course, this kind of inside information was revealed by Juliet Schrammaker and Zeng Jia of MK2.
Wang Xiaoshuai's "Second Brother" was produced in the name of Fang Wanwan Films, while "Uniform" and "Incense" followed Chief Jia's sexy tactics and were produced in the name of Hong Kong films.
As a result, none of the five shortlisted Chinese-language films are nominally produced in mainland China. However, everyone knows that except for "Robinson Crusoe" directed by Lin Zhengsheng, which is a pure Chinese Gulf film, The remaining four films are all works by mainland Chinese directors and actors.
I have to say this is quite embarrassing.
But the media doesn't care about these, and they all have eye-catching headlines such as "Five Chinese films shortlisted for Cannes", "Cannes Film Festival shortlist announced, Chinese films win big", etc.
And when the nomination list was announced, everyone found that the two films shortlisted for the main competition unit, "Purple Butterfly" starring Zhang Ziyi and Li Tang; "Second Brother" starring Li Tang; were shortlisted for the Un Certain Regard unit, all produced by them. Shengtang Film and Television (Hong Kong) Co., Ltd.
Hong Kong doesn't matter. Isn't Shengtang Film and Television Li Tang's company?
Good guy, except for an authentic Wanwan movie, he turned out to be a part of the other four shortlisted movies! All of a sudden, reporters from the media came to visit in droves.
"Everyone must wear a mask, have their temperature taken, and the venue must be disinfected..."
Zeng Jia's shouting could be heard outside the door. Li Tang, who was sitting in the room, smiled apologetically and said to Han Binjiang, who was sitting opposite, "The noise is really big now and everyone is very nervous."
Han Binjiang shook his head and said: "The disease is so severe now that it can kill people. I don't dare to run around now. Every time I go, I have to take my temperature before disinfecting. Now I heard that white vinegar and isatis root are all in the market. And empty.”
"This can only play a preventive role. If you really need to use it, nothing will work. You can only rely on yourself to carry it..."
In fact, there were reports on infectious diseases as early as the beginning of the year, and Li Tang naturally thought of the 2003 pandemic. It’s just that the epidemic seemed to be more severe in China and Southeast Asia. In his previous life, he was still in middle school, because at that time, the United States did not have much influence.
Because he had never experienced it in China in his previous life, and the previous news reports were all about hello, me, and everyone, and even minor accidents were under control, so like most Chinese people, he didn't take it to heart. It wasn't until two senior officials were dismissed a few days ago that the alarm suddenly sounded, and everyone became nervous.
Han Binjiang is also here for an interview. As Li Tang's friend, he naturally comes first served. After asking a few general questions and feeling that they could write a decent report, the two sat and chatted, ranging from the hottest infectious disease at the moment to conspiracy theories about whether the United States was causing trouble.
There are really too many examples of this in Hollywood movies, and with the skills of Americans, maybe they can actually do this kind of thing.
Not long after, Zeng Jia came in.
"Brother, everyone is here, we can start."
"Okay, I'll be down in a moment."
Since the nominations were announced, there have been so many people asking for interviews. In addition, it is a special period, so we simply invited several influential and well-established media to come together and conduct a centralized interview. I have to be interviewed over and over again.
At this time, Han Binjiang also stood up to leave. He had already obtained the interview content in advance and would not join in the fun.
The interview location was arranged in the large factory building at the back, mainly to facilitate air circulation, and all reporters who came to interview took temperature measurement, disinfection and other measures, and were also required to wear masks throughout the process, taking preventive measures to the extreme.
Although the decoration of the large factory building is a bit crude, it is very clean, and a third of it is used to build a large rehearsal hall for the small-scale stage drama team that the company is about to form.
A total of more than 20 reporters from a dozen media came today, including journalists and photographers. All the machines and equipment have been set up. The seats are arranged relatively casually, mainly because they are spaced a certain distance apart from each other.
"Sorry, everyone, for keeping everyone waiting."
Not only Li Tang was interviewed by reporters today, but also directors Diao Yinan and Ning Hao. Li Tang had already chatted with them before. Compared to Diao Yinan's calmness, Ning Hao was still immersed in excitement. When he saw Li Tang, he kept thanking him and even attracted a sideways glance from Diao Yinan. There was clearly a feeling in his eyes that "you took pictures like this, it seems that I am too ignorant."
Diao Yinan's lack of words does not mean that he is not grateful. After receiving the invitation letter from the Cannes Film Festival, he immediately called Li Tang and said: Teacher Li, if you need my help in the future, , your words are welcome.
Therefore, compared to Ning Hao's extravagance, Li Tang was more willing to believe in Diao Yinan's sincerity.
The three people sat on the three chairs in front. The reporters faced them in a semi-circular arc, and the photographers on the periphery pointed their lenses at them.
The first person to ask a question was a cute-looking girl from Zhalang Entertainment Channel.
"I would like to ask Mr. Li, what do you think about the two films you starred in that were shortlisted for the main competition of the Cannes Film Festival, including the two films produced by your company that were also shortlisted for the Un Certain Regard section of this film festival? ?”
Although Li Tang and Gao Yuanyuan had some troubles with Zha Lang before because of the scandal. But after all, there are no eternal enemies, only eternal interests.
With the rise of the Internet, Zhalang, as one of the largest portals in the country, has surpassed most print media in terms of communication capabilities and coverage, so it certainly cannot be ignored, especially when the company is about to release a new film.
Therefore, this time Zhalang made an interview request, and the company gladly accepted it and even arranged for the first question to be asked, which shows the sincerity of the reconciliation, and the previous unhappiness will disappear.
"How are you feeling? Of course I am happy! When I heard the news, the first thing I felt was that I was happy for Lou Ye, Wang Xiaoshuai and directors Diao Yinan and Ning Hao who are sitting next to me at the moment."
The cute girl immediately asked: "Besides being happy, have you ever thought that you will win the prize this time?"
Li Tang smiled and shook his head and said: "Purple Butterfly and Second Brother are both films with strong directorial styles. I hope the films can win awards, but as for me, I never thought I would win. It’s also unlikely.”
Immediately, another reporter asked: "Mr. Li, you and Zhang Ziyi have collaborated three times in "Hero", "Purple Butterfly", including "Jasmine Blossoms" which is currently being filmed. Do you think she has a chance of winning? In addition, What do you think of her?"
As the most popular female star in China, Zhang Ziyi is bound to be the focus of media attention.
Li Tang pondered for a moment and replied: "I have just said that "Purple Butterfly" and "Second Brother" are both movies with strong directorial styles. It is impossible for actors to not have advantages in this aspect. In some movies, everything may be followed Actors leave, such as those in "Qiu Ju's Lawsuit". Of course, I don't mean that actors will not win awards. If an actor can win an award, I think it must be Zhang Ziyi. Her performance in this movie It will definitely surprise everyone. Well...let's put it this way, in my opinion, her performance in "Purple Butterfly" has completely got rid of the label that your media once labeled her as a girl-beater, and her acting skills have been fully display.”
""Purple Butterfly" is currently participating in the exhibition as a French film. It is said that it is due to the delay in passing domestic censorship. I would like to ask Mr. Li, do you think "Purple Butterfly" will eventually be released in China?"
Oops, someone finally asked a sensitive question.
"I can't give an accurate answer to this question. I only know that the film "Purple Butterfly" has been in post-production since it was completed in August last year. Director Lou Ye has put in a lot of effort on it. "Purple Butterfly" is a very powerful work that maintains Lou Ye's own characteristics and advantages. I felt heavy after watching the rough cut, but I didn't know what to say. I like this kind of impactful work. works. For actors, we have fulfilled our respective responsibilities very well. It is enough for me to do my duty. What I enjoy is the learning process. In fact, from this level, it does not matter whether I participate in the competition or win an award. The movie itself is an honor for all involved. Of course, I especially hope that such a good movie can meet the domestic audience."
"Teacher Li, may I ask..."
Well, in the hour-and-a-half-long interview, most of the questions were directed at Li Tang. Of course, to be polite, some reporters asked the two new directors sitting next to Li Tang what they thought.
Ning Hao was as excited as ever and talked endlessly about his thoughts and creative process. Of course, he also praised Li Tang a lot and tried his best to express his gratitude to Teacher Li.
When they arrived at Diao Yinan's place, this guy simply said: "I want to go to Cannes to watch the movie, and then I'll see what the response to "Uniform" is when it's screened there. It doesn't matter if I get it or not!"
…
"Brother Li, thank you. Teacher Zhang is really good. I still had a lot of questions about the script. After he helped me explain it, these problems were easily solved. And he also taught me a lot of details about acting, which made me suddenly I found that I really didn’t know anything about acting before, it was all by accident.”
Listening to Gao Yuanyuan's confession on the phone, Li Tang secretly complained in his heart: Only you know!
When I was filming "Toward", thanks to the experience of the photographer Zhao Xiaoding, I tried to use close-ups and close-ups when shooting her, just like she usually shoots commercials, just pose a beautiful pose. It would probably be too much for her to film some scenes with more intense emotional conflicts.
"Okay, then hurry up these two days, you will report to the crew the day after tomorrow. Oh, you also need to pay attention to your health, and try to stay at home and don't go out if you have nothing to do." Li Tang couldn't help but be concerned.
Fan Xiaopang is currently filming "One Meter of Sunshine" in Shanghai. He originally planned to go to UC to film at the end of the month. However, during this period, there was also an epidemic in UC, and it was said that the situation was quite serious. The main reason is that there are many immigrants from Hong Kong, who were all brought there, so the original filming trip to the University of Massachusetts had to be postponed. Moreover, the current situation in the capital is also very serious. Uncle Fan and Aunt Zhang are determined not to allow her to return to the capital at this time and let her stay in Shanghai with peace of mind.
It didn't affect Teacher Jiang. She recently finished shooting "Plum Blossom Files" in Chengdu, so she went directly back to her hometown in Chongqing.
As for her ex-girlfriend, now she has successfully entered the Hong Kong circle with the support of Huayi Brothers. After filming "Mobile Phone" directed by Feng Xiaogang, she flew to Hong Kong non-stop to film the film "Mobile Phone" invested and starring Michelle Yeoh. The action movie "Flying Eagle" is also being filmed in the TV series "Dynamic Heroes" co-produced with Aaron Kwok.
At present, the epidemic situation in Hong Kong is the most serious, which is quite worrying. Li Tang called her several times in succession. Fortunately, the crew is a relatively closed environment and there are currently no cases of infection around him.
"Well, I understand. Brother Li, you don't know that I accidentally caught a cold two days ago, which scared me to death. Fortunately, I didn't have a fever, otherwise I wouldn't have dared to call you." Gao Yuanyuan smiled on the phone road.
Li Tang quickly asked: "So what's going on now?"
"Hehe, it's just a common cold, it's gone."
"Then you take good care of yourself these two days, and then ask your assistant to help you prepare some more masks, alcohol, disinfectant, etc... Oh, by the way, I will come to pick you up when I leave the day after tomorrow."
There’s a lot going on today, so I’ll try to do two updates tomorrow!
(End of chapter)
