1980 My literary era

In 1993, under the strong promotion of Tian Congming, the country embarked on the road of film reform. First, it loosened the restrictions on studios and distribution companies in various places, and decentralized the exclusive film distribution power of China Film.

Then in 1994, the Ministry of Radio, Film and Television instructed China Film to introduce 10 so-called "blockbusters" to stimulate the domestic film market.

Frankly speaking, foreign films, especially Hollywood films, are highly industrialized, but there are also bad films in Hollywood. The collapse of domestic films in the face of imported blockbusters over the past year cannot be entirely attributed to them.

The 10 blockbusters imported into the country were all carefully selected from thousands of movies around the world. Even if the scope is narrowed to Hollywood, can they still not make 10 good movies a year? ?

Foreign monks can recite sutras, not because all foreign monks can recite sutras, but because the monk who comes here can recite sutras!

However, the tragic reality and bleak market have broken down the psychological defenses of many domestic filmmakers. They can no longer even rationally understand this survivor bias, and they are afraid of foreign movies and even Hollywood blockbusters, and talk about them with a stern expression.

Many of them were knocked out of the shadows, and even developed a paranoid hostility toward commercial films, and despised them.

As the leader in formulating policies and promoting reforms, the Ministry of Radio, Film and Television is not just a high-level commander. They have already thought of things that film practitioners can think of.

Imported blockbusters can stimulate the market, but they can also cause panic.

Whether it is investment capabilities, market control or internal management of the company, domestic studios cannot compete with highly commercialized foreign production companies. How can they focus entirely on independent reform and innovation of studios? Woolen cloth?

As early as March last year, the National Film Bureau Working Conference was held in Changsha to discuss the market prospects and development of domestic films.

At the meeting, the Ministry of Radio, Film and Television clearly proposed the requirements of the quality strategy, which should be specifically quantified as the "Ninth Five-Year Plan", that is, during the "Ninth Five-Year Plan" period, 10 films will be produced every year, and a total of 50 quality films will be produced in the five years. Come.

And what are the specific standards for this quality film?

In fact, there is no fixed standard, but one thing is certain.

That is to be able to withstand the pressure of imported blockbusters. This does not mean that they must beat imported blockbusters head-on at the box office, but at least they should be able to go back and forth and keep the face of domestic films.

The ideal is very full, but the reality is very skinny.

The 9550 Project did not become an inflection point for high-quality Chinese films, and the Film Bureau's pressure on various studios did not translate into motivation for high-quality films. Instead, it became a misunderstanding in creative concepts.

After the Changsha Conference last March, studios across the country quickly adjusted their creative themes, and a large number of biopics depicting heroes and models of the era were rushed into production, becoming a hot topic that everyone is chasing.

Because production costs are low, many films are gradually released within two or three months.

But this has turned into a new disaster in the history of Chinese films. All domestic films released during this period have not achieved high box office, let alone high reputation.

It lost both box office and reputation, and was both embarrassing and eye-catching.

Liu Jianzhong, the director of the Film Bureau, is now doubting life, which is why he actively introduced the film "Life is Beautiful" after hearing that it was adapted from Lin Weimin's novel some time ago and won several awards in Cannes.

Although it is foreign-funded and produced abroad, it is adapted from the work of a domestic writer after all. It is better to introduce this film than other purely imported blockbusters, right?

In the past few days, "Kong Fansen" jointly produced by Yan Film Studio and Shan Film Studio has been launched in major theaters across the country.

This film can be regarded as the last biopic produced under the influence of the Changsha Conference last year. Many previous films have all failed. If the film "Kong Fansen" hits the market again, it will not only face the film bureau, but also the film bureau. It may also be a heavy blow to the domestic film industry.

Therefore, after "Kong Fansen" was released, unit bookings and group tickets appeared. The box office trend of "Kong Fansen" finally made everyone breathe a sigh of relief.

But that's all, because when the two studios produced this film, it was estimated that there were 60 million D members in the country, and the average ticket price for watching movies now is 2 yuan. No matter what, this movie can still get 1.2 100 million yuan in box office results.

However, the reality is that even though many domestic units have booked the movie theater, the movie box office still did not reach the ideal state, and it ended with only 36 million box office.

Of course, at this time, "Kong Fansen" had just been released for a few days, and the final box office had not yet been released.

However, Tian Congming and Liu Jianzhong of the Film Bureau have already made a rough judgment on the box office trend by collecting feedback from theaters in various places, and they are pessimistic.

"... Judging from the current situation, we still overestimate the concepts and execution capabilities of studios in various places. Is it right to expect them to make the concept of "Project 9550" a reality and expand it? realistic.

This situation is often no longer an individual problem, but a problem for the entire industry. "

When Tian Congming said this, his face was calm, showing a sense of frustration. He looked up at Lin Weimin.

"Your Chinese Film Company's "Party A and Party B" last year was very good. In the past few years, Chen Peisi's comedy movies were actually also good. Comedy movies are inherently commercial and have certain competitiveness in the market. .”

Seeing that Lin Weimin was silent, he continued: "I have also read the synopsis of the film "See You or Be Parted" that you filed for this year, and it follows the same path as "Party A and Party B". This idea is right. But you can't put it into perspective. All the energy is completely focused on genre films. If we want to become bigger and stronger, we cannot compete with imported blockbusters just by relying on genre films."

Lin Weimin couldn't stand Tian Congming's brainwashing and retorted: "Stop, stop, stop, we didn't say we wanted to compete with imported blockbusters."

"There are 10 imported blockbusters a year. You guys are making too many movies. Can you avoid them?"

Tian Congming's words caused Lin Weimin to fall into silence. He changed the subject, "Don't talk about this first. First, tell me how to 'not shoot for nothing'?"

Tian Congming really suspected that Lin Weimin was born in the year of the dog, and when he smelled it, he stopped talking. He had been talking for twenty minutes, and Lin Weimin still remembered what he just mentioned.

He had no choice but to lean into Lin Weimin's ear and whisper a few words.

As the distance between the two grew further, Lin Weimin's expression finally softened, and he even smiled a little.

"Wouldn't it be over if you said so earlier?"

When Tian Congming heard this, he felt a blood boil in his chest. You kid didn't even give me a chance!

"How's it going? Is it okay to make a big movie this time?"

Lin Weimin pondered for a moment and said: "The theme you decided on is fine, but we have to agree, and the content may not completely match."

"Why?" Tian Congming was puzzled.

"It's certainly okay to use next year's big event as the theme. But for movies, the first thing we have to consider is the content, not the composition.

If we talk directly about "return", it will most likely involve the changes of the past half century. It is difficult to shoot a big scene with this kind of content, unless it is a war scene. But do you think our war scenes can be compared to those Hollywood blockbusters? "

After Lin Weimin said this, Tian Congming fell into thinking.

Imported blockbusters entering the country not only have an impact on the film market and undermine the confidence of film practitioners, but most importantly, these films have whetted the appetite of domestic movie audiences.

Some domestic war films are not bad-looking, such as "Armageddon", which is a classic among classics.

But compared to the "Chinese-style war movies" that are "righteous and peaceful", Hollywood blockbusters with fast pace and realistic special effects can better mobilize the adrenaline of moviegoers. They are used to seeing all kinds of exciting scenes and shots in Hollywood blockbusters, and then watching many domestic wars The film's lens scheduling and special effects will inevitably cause some discomfort.

The audience's appetite has been nurtured, which is indeed a problem.

"Then what do you think?" Tian Congming asked.

Lin Weimin tapped the dining table, which made Tian Congming's heart beat, and his eyes were full of hope when he looked at him.

"Let's make a costume blockbuster! Distance creates beauty, and compared to the scene scheduling and special effects production of war scenes, the difficulty of costume war scenes is much lower, and the financial requirements are not that high."

"What about the content? What content was shot?" Tian Congming asked.

"After the six countries are completed, the four seas are one."

Lin Weimin spit out these six words.

Tian Congming immediately understood, "Qin Dynasty? Ying Zheng?"

Lin Weimin nodded.

After getting an affirmative answer, Tian Congming thought again and asked: "'Unification' seems to be a bit off topic."

"It depends on how you say it. Emperor Zhou divided the kingdoms into feudal states, and coming to the First Emperor is actually considered a 'return'."

"It's far-fetched." Tian Congming commented.

"You think it's sour when you ask for food!" Lin Weimin couldn't help but sneered at him.

Tian Congming glared at him angrily, and finally decided to endure the humiliation and asked, "Is there no other suitable content?"

"Yes, there are. For example, previous dynasties have regained lost territory. It fits the theme of return." Lin Weimin had a subtle smile on his face.

Tian Congming immediately understood his connotation. What has always been emphasized is the united front and great national unity. Where did the lost land recovered in ancient times come from?

This subject matter is not acceptable.

While Tian Congming was thinking, Lin Weimin said: "The First Emperor unified the six kingdoms, with the same writing and the same track, and his momentum lasted for generations. It is difficult for other historical events to have such momentum."

Tian Congming couldn't help but nod when he heard this. What he said was indeed correct.

"As long as the story of a blockbuster movie is smooth enough and self-explanatory, it's enough. What really needs work is the production level."

Lin Weimin's words made Tian Congming frown. He wanted to refute, but he thought of all the Hollywood blockbusters he had seen. Apart from the exciting plots and realistic special effects, the story was indeed not that strong.

"Stories are still important." Tian Congming emphasized.

"I didn't say it wasn't important, it's just that it's not that important compared to the production level. After all, in addition to watching the story when watching a blockbuster, the audio-visual effects are more important."

Tian Congming couldn't help but nodded when he heard this. Unknowingly, he had been convinced by Lin Weimin.

After a moment, he frowned and looked at Lin Weimin, "You kid, I'm afraid you've already thought about shooting something like this, right?"

Lin Weimin flatly denied it, "Don't talk nonsense! I'm doing this all to help you. Do you understand what it means to be smart and quick? What is the spring of literary thoughts?"

There was a bit of disdain in his eyes. As smart as Tian Congming was, he was determined not to believe Lin Weimin's lies.

But these are not important to him, let this kid make up nonsense, as long as his goal can be achieved.

"To make such a large-scale film, you need to find a good director." He looked at Lin Weimin and his meaning was very clear.

"Yimou just wants to change his career now. His film "Speak Well" will be finished soon. We can leave this film to him."

"Can he do it?"

"How about you choose a director?"

Lin Weimin blocked Tian Congming's mouth with another sentence, his expression was bitter, this hozen!

"Okay, let Zhang Yimou take the lead. How big is the investment scale? Can your Chinese literary society handle it on your own?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Weimin immediately climbed up the pole and said: "How can we do it alone? Don't we need your help to coordinate more?"

"Then let Yan Film Studio and China Film Group participate? Of course, you will still be the main force."

"You've thought it through, then I'll take care of the matter later."

Tian Congming also had a relaxed smile on his face, "Then I'll leave it to you!"

"You are welcome and serve the leader!"

Lin Weimin had a humble attitude and a smile on his face.

Seeing the confident expression on his face, Tian Congming couldn't help but probe: "It seems like you already have an idea of ​​what kind of story you want to film, right?"

Anyway, after the conditions were negotiated, Lin Weimin had no scruples and said relaxedly: "We have some clues."

"Tell me about it?"

"Well..."

Lin Weimin started to tantalize people again. Tian Congming glared at him bitterly and smiled slyly, "It's not convenient to disclose the content, but I can tell you the title."

"Have you thought about the title of the film?" Tian Congming was surprised and his face was full of surprise.

The title of the film was based on the content. As soon as Lin Weimin said that he was "quick in thinking", it was self-defeating. This kid must have planned it in advance.

Tian Congming was too lazy to talk to him, "What is it called?"

"Hero!" Lin Weimin whispered two words.