Just when Mai Miao Records was making a lot of money, Xiang Nan went to Berlin with the crew of "My Father and Mother" and "That Dog" to attend the Berlin International Film Festival held on February 9th.
The crew of "My Father and Mother" is led by Zhang Weiping and Zhang Yimou. Because they had money, they brought along a relatively complete crew, including Sun Honglei, Xiang Nan, Zhang Ziyi, and all the leading actors.
The crew of "The Mountain That Man That Dog" didn't have much money, so originally only the producer Kang Jianmin, the director of Xiaoxiang Film Studio, and the director Huo Jianqi went to Berlin together.
Although Xiang Nan also went, he took the spot in "My Father and Mother". Accommodation and air tickets were also provided by Zhang Weiping, which saved a lot of money.
But in fact, Xiang Nan did not save any money. Instead, he gave two extra dollars so that Teng Rujun and Gao Yuanyuan could follow them to Berlin.
It was not easy to travel abroad in those days, especially to participate in film festivals abroad. It was not easy to see the world, gain experience, and even use it to create hype.
Xiang Nan wants to sell Teng Rujun a favor. Tang Wei is about to apply for Chinese opera, and he hopes Lao Teng can help give him some advice. As for Gao Yuanyuan, Xiang Nan wants to use the film festival to help her improve her sense of presence.
Gao Yuanyuan started working as an advertising model in 1996 and became popular with her fresh, beautiful, pure and natural image. After that, he starred in films and TV series such as "Love Malatang", "Unable to Find North", "The Story of the Intern" and so on, so he is not considered a newcomer.
But in fact, her status in the entertainment industry is basically outside the fifth tier, with little fame and few fans. It wasn't until she filmed "The Legend of Heaven and the Dragon Slayer" in 2003 that she became slightly famous.
Xiang Nan wanted to help her open up the situation early, and it would not be in vain for her to fight with him.
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"My Father and Mother" and "That Man, That Mountain, That Dog" took the same plane to Berlin.
At the airport, Xiang Nan naturally also met Zhang Ziyi.
However, the two looked at each other and neither chose to speak to the other.
After these few months of thinking, Xiang Nan roughly understood what Zhang Ziyi was thinking.
She was willing to be with him in the first place simply because he was more famous, more connected, and more promising than her at that time, so she was willing to be with him.
But then she joined the crew of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon". The film has an investment of over 100 million and is directed by internationally renowned director Li An. It has high hopes of being a box office hit and winning awards in the future.
As one of the leading actors, she has a promising future, so she alienates herself. Combining her personality traits and her emotional experience, Xiang Nan believes that this guess is quite close.
In this case, Xiang Nan simply let go.
Anyway, there are so many beautiful women in the world that he really can't commit the crime of hanging from her tree.
So when he saw Zhang Ziyi again, Xiang Nan did not go up to say hello. Instead, he chose to sit with Gao Yuanyuan and share a box of strawberries with her affectionately in front of Zhang Ziyi.
Let her know that it is not impossible for her to live without her, and she will live a happier life!
Sure enough, Zhang Ziyi's face turned a little dark when he saw this scene.
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Then the group took a flight to Berlin.
Because Zhang Yimou is a great international director, his arrival quickly attracted the attention of the media, and they focused their cameras on him.
Xiang Nan, Zhang Ziyi, Sun Honglei and others who followed him naturally also took advantage of it, and their faces were exposed in the international media. But having said that, it is still far from becoming internationally famous.
Xiang Nan is very self-aware of this.
On February 9th, the Berlin Film Festival officially opened. The film festival lasts for eleven days and ends on the 20th. It is worth mentioning that Chinese actress Gong Li serves as the chairman of the jury of this Berlin Film Festival, which is good news for Chinese films.
After the opening on February 9th, "My Father and Mother" and "That Mountain, That Man, That Dog" were screened in the exhibition area, and quickly attracted the attention of the audience and film producers.
Because "My Father and Mother" has Zhang Yimou, it was the focus of everyone's attention from the beginning.
Although Huo Jianqi, the director of "The Mountain, That Man, That Dog," is somewhat famous in the mainland, he is unknown internationally. Xiang Nan, Gao Yuanyuan, and Teng Rujun also found no such person, so they received much less attention.
However, both films received extremely high reviews after they were screened.
"Although the film tells a rural story from a long time ago, the character's state after encountering love is the same as that of the audience, so it has been universally resonated."
"The story is set in a space that is almost isolated from the world. The beauty of the natural environment adds color to the love of the film. Whether it is the scene, story, performance or even the soundtrack, Zhang Yimou is more technically mature as a director."
People commented on "My Father and Mother".
"The film has beautiful scenery, strong human touch, strong artistic quality, simple plot, slow pace, and the tender affection between father and son and the harmonious coexistence between man and nature, which moved the audience deeply."
"Watching this film reminded me of my childhood. Moreover, the family composition in this film is the same as ours, with a father, mother and children working hard for their careers... I really hope that men will watch this film."
"Among the many scenes in this film, one scene is particularly touching: when the father and son stood on the ridge for a while, the son released a paper airplane, and the airplane slowly slid in the green valley. The airplane was made of folded letter paper It represents a delicate yet powerful force that can touch people who are alienated from their hearts. This picture is like a beautiful poem that can be seen."
""The Mountain, That Man, That Dog" is a deeply touching Chinese film. The seemingly ordinary objects in the film are pieced together to create incredible beauty."
People commented on "That Mountain, That Man, That Dog".
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Because the film received very good reviews, many film producers expressed interest in "The Mountain, That Man, That Dog." Among them, film producers from Japan and South Korea are the most excited.
They share the same origin with Chinese culture, so they have the deepest understanding of the ideas expressed in the film. They believe that the true feelings conveyed by the film are in sharp contrast to the increasingly weak concept of family in their own country. Therefore, it is necessary to buy it and release it, so that people can reflect on themselves and regain their lost feelings.
Huo Jianqi was naturally very happy about this.
He always regretted causing Xiang Nan to lose money. Now, finally, a film producer is coming. Although the price they paid was not high, at least it was enough to repay Xiang Nan's capital.
This made him breathe a sigh of relief.
On February 20th, the Berlin Film Festival concluded successfully.
At the awards ceremony held that day, "My Father and Mother" won the Silver Bear, the Grand Jury Award. And "That Mountain, That Man, That Dog" was not in vain, it won the Special Jury Prize. As a result, it becomes more popular with film producers.
In the end, its overseas copyright was sold for a total of 2.4 million US dollars, which was a huge profit compared to the investment of more than 2 million yuan.
