"Mr. Ning, are you really willing to let me direct "Red Sorghum"?" Zhang Yimou asked excitedly.
"Not bad." Xiang Nan nodded, "But I only have one condition."
"What?" Zhang Yimou asked curiously.
"Shanshan will be the heroine." Xiang Nan explained.
Zhang Yimou was stunned for a moment, then nodded.
To be honest, as a director, of course he wants to choose the actress he likes so that he can express his ideas to the greatest extent. Using actors designated by others always feels like a propositional composition, and your hands are tied.
But having said that, he is now penniless and relies solely on Xiang Nan's support to become a director. Therefore, he basically had no bargaining power in front of Xiang Nan.
Xiang Nan asked him to use Cong Shan, but he could only use Cong Shan. Otherwise, if he wants to be a director, he doesn’t know how many years of qualifications he would have to wait for.
…
Because it was the first time for a Chinese filmmaker to win an award at three major European film festivals, the crew of "Old Well" enjoyed countless flowers and applause after returning home.
Cong Shan and Zhang Yimou appeared on the cover of "Popular Cinema" and were invited to give reports across the country. Wherever they went, they were praised, no less than the athletes who won the Olympic Games last year.
Later, "Old Well" won the Hundred Flowers Award for Best Film, and Cong Shan was also nominated for the Best Actress in the Taboo Hundred Flowers Award. Although he failed to win the award, he has surpassed most of his predecessors.
After Xiang Nan heard about it, he was happy for Cong Shan. Later, he notified Chen Guochang, the deputy manager of Xiangjiang Real Kung Fu Pictures, to discuss co-production with Yuexi Film Studio.
This collaborative movie is "Red Sorghum". It is invested by Zhen Kung Fu Pictures and filmed by Yuexi Film Studio. Director Zhang Yimou, heroine Cong Shan...
…
In March, "Spring is Not a Day for Reading" officially landed in American theaters.
This movie tells the story of the male protagonist Feili skipping classes and taking his girlfriend and friends to play in the city. At the same time, he battles wits with the dean and tries his best to ensure that he skips classes without being discovered by teachers and parents.
The tone of the story is witty and humorous, especially the male protagonist, although he is young, but he has seen through the world, and he can always say some sharp and righteous words, which completely pokes holes in the rigid education system of the United States.
As a result, it resonated with young audiences, so much so that imitating the male protagonist to skip school and imitating the male protagonist’s speech became a common practice on American campuses, causing countless parents a headache.
However, this also illustrates the success of this movie.
Therefore, "Spring is Not a Day to Read" has a high box office. In North America alone, it has sold more than 70 million US dollars at the box office.
And you should know that this movie, because most of the protagonists were newcomers, the production cost was less than 10 million US dollars, and it once again performed a box office miracle with a small gain.
Starring Nicolas Cage, Jim Carrey and heroine Mia Sara became popular and became idols in the hearts of countless teenagers.
As for Xiang Nan, his status is more consolidated, his reputation is more famous, and he is truly the number one person in Hollywood.
…
In March, Xiang Nan invested in several projects.
One is "Red Sorghum" and the other is "Cinema Paradiso" by Giuseppe Tornatore. When Xiang Nan was canvassing for votes at the Berlin Film Festival, he promised to invest in his new film, and now of course he must fulfill his promise.
One is "The Princess Bride." This is a movie released in 1987. The name looks like a princess movie produced by Disney, but in fact it is a spoof movie that satirizes the clichéd love story of a prince and a princess.
In the 1980s, Hollywood launched a craze for spoof movies. Movies like "Unprecedented", "The White-Headed Detective", "Police Academy", "Laughing Through the Iron Curtain", etc. are all of this type. Xiang Nan is going to star Mia Sara. With her beauty, she is absolutely qualified to play a princess.
One is "Growing Up", which tells the story of a little boy who makes a wish to a god and prays to become an adult overnight. As a result, my wish was truly fulfilled by the idol. But growing up is not as easy as he imagined...
This movie is a movie starring Tom Hanks in 1988. In the film, he successfully played a man who looks more than 20 years old but has a mental age of only 13 years old. Therefore, he was filmed for the first time. Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor.
There is also a movie called "Brilliant", which tells the story of a young man who pursues perfectionism. The puppet he produced suddenly came to life and became a beautiful woman with first-class appearance, figure and temperament.
With her help, the young man succeeded in his career and eventually married a beautiful woman, gaining career and love. This movie was released in 1987, and the box office and reputation were quite good.
Xiang Nan's three newly invested projects have also made countless people salivate.
There are many who hope to star in it, hope to invest in it, and hope to direct it.
Xiang Nan will hand over "The Princess Bride" to star Mia Sara, Keanu Reeves and Johnny Depp; "Grown Up" will star Tom Hanks and Kim Cattrall; ” starring Jim Carrey and Brooke Shields.
He had previously promised Brooke to arrange for her to play the leading role every two years. This movie "Beautiful" is just right for her. After all, in terms of beauty alone, she really has few rivals in Hollywood.
The preparations for the three projects then began one by one.
When Mia Sara saw that Xiang Nan really arranged for her to be the heroine, she became more and more convinced that she was his muse, and she naturally treated Xiang Nan better.
As for Tom Hanks, Jim Carrey and others, they naturally have nothing to say about Xiang Nan. They were all just small artists originally, with no fame, no background, and no connections.
It was Xiang Nan who mainly invited them to cooperate and gradually made them famous and popular. This kind of kindness is naturally worth remembering for life.
In fact, although Hollywood is a vanity fair, full of intrigues and intrigues, there is also a sense of humanity here.
…
In April, "Lethal Weapon" officially wrapped.
On the final night, Xiang Nan invited Halle Berry to his home as a guest.
"Actually, I fell in love with you from the first time I saw your photo." Xiang Nan smiled. "I think you have great potential to become popular, but I have to say that Hollywood is really harsh on black actors. If not With the support of noble people, your road will definitely be difficult."
In the 1980s, Hollywood wasn't that particular about getting things right. There are many movies that are all about white people. Even if there are black characters, they are either supporting roles, villains, or minor roles, and very few of them play serious protagonists.
Moreover, there are only so many roles, and there are so many black actors competing for them, so it is very difficult to get the upper hand.
Just like the supermodels of the 1980s, there can only be one black supermodel, so Tyra Banks and Naomi Campbell are at odds with each other.
"Charles, I know what you want to say, and I will rely on you from now on." Halle Berry said knowingly.
She knew Xiang Nan was right. For an African-American actor like her, with no connections, no background, and no money, it is difficult for her to get ahead. Just fighting for a role is enough to peel off your skin, let alone becoming popular.
Therefore, she urgently needs a partner, and Xiang Nan is undoubtedly the most suitable candidate.
Firstly, he means it, and secondly, he means what he says.
