I’m a Director, I’m Not Bad

"Did you really spill the beans?"

My wife's voice on the other end of the phone was full of speechless emotions.

Xu Xin responded helplessly:

"Yeah. I just said it casually...I reacted and quickly covered it up. But...Sister Bingbing blushed."

"..."

Yang Mi was really speechless.

But for this kind of thing...there's nothing to blame.

It was just a gaffe.

What's more, it's a fact.

So he comforted:

"Okay, okay, just keep it tacitly, don't worry about it so much. How much did you drink?"

"It's okay. It's only half a pound. I basically feel nothing."

"What were you talking about?"

"The chat was quite pleasant. Director Xie was a very nice person. I didn't show off in that situation. I just acted like a junior. According to three movies a day, plus some repeated viewings with controversial opinions, I It will probably be over in a week at the latest. I will go back then."

"Yeah. Okay~ Let's go to bed early~"

"Kiss the baby for me."

"I know~"

After hanging up the phone, Xu Xin yawned lazily.

It’s almost time to go to bed!

Start work tomorrow!

…

Early on the morning of the 20th, at 8:30, Xu Xin stepped into the screening room on time.

But he found that someone arrived earlier than him this time.

Chen Kexin was sitting on the sofa in the corner, reading a manuscript in his hand.

Hearing the noise, he looked up and met Xu Xin's eyes.

"Director Chen."

"Haha, Xinzi!"

Many more affectionate terms came out of his mouth.

Xu Xin nodded and walked over:

"Why are you here so early?"

"I just came here from Xiangjiang yesterday. I have been busy with movies these days and I haven't had a good rest. In addition to the long journey, I fell into a deep and long sleep after the meal, so I came here earlier."

While talking, Xu Xin sat next to him.

Chen Kexin directly handed over the information in his hand.

"This is……"

"I just asked someone to print out some of the later reports for Partners."

"What about the later production of the movie in Xiangjiang?"

"right."

"When will it be finished?"

"It will probably be next year."

"All right."

Xu Xin nodded regretfully.

The casting of "Partners" was done by Chen Kexin himself. The three people chosen were Huang Xiaoming, Deng Chao, and Tong Dawei.

Although this film is an investment from the Northwest Circle, it follows the route of the Hong Kong Circle. As for the name, it is neither correct nor smooth. But Chen Kexin felt that Deng Chao was very suitable for the role of Meng Xiaojun and invited him to star in it. The other party agreed. And Tong Dawei himself is from the Shanghai circle, so naturally he has nothing to say.

Only Huang Xiaoming...

Ever since Yang Ying got together with him and took the blame for him... maybe it was because he set up his own studio independently that his attitude began to become ambiguous.

To put it bluntly, these two people were "ambiguous" with each other, and the clear line between the Beijing Circle and the Northwest Circle began to blur between them.

He came to play "Partners", and Yang Ying went to play "Tai Chi 1: From Scratch". This film was cast by Huayi.

Quite outrageous indeed.

But it was a scene that Xu Xin was happy to see.

A win-win situation.

Yang Ying's popularity after her movie "Gong Lock Heart Jade" was there. She was "hidden" in the northwest circle, and Hua Yi came out to fish for her.

Xu Xin doesn't know if Huayi will get involved when the studio's equity is unfrozen next year after the three-year contract expires. After all, this kind of thing is definitely a sure profit regardless of the disgusting northwest circle and the income from supporting a big flower.

Both sides have benefits and both have their own agenda.

That's how balance appears.

And if possible, Xu Xin hopes that the movie "Partners" can add another fire to his senior brother's career. After all, the hotter the fire, the better it will be for Yun Tu.

It's just a pity that the progress of this movie is indeed a bit slow, and I'm afraid it won't be released this year.

But there is nothing you can do. The normal incubation time for a film project is one year, but there are many projects that take two or three years. It depends on the director’s style and level of detail.

In this regard, Chen Kexin obviously has his own pursuit.

The two chatted for a while about "Partner", and people arrived one after another.

Xie Fei still arrived at the time of 9 o'clock.

It seems that "being on time" has become a habit.

After he arrived, the staff showed the first movie.

"No Man's Land"

And two hours later...

As the movie ended, Xu Xin suddenly shook his head.

He finally knew why Ning Hao's film was killed.

All of them are villains...with no positive image at all.

What's better?

To put it bluntly, the police are incompetent, gangs are rampant, poaching is frequent, and there are lawyers helping to cover it up...

Black shops, selling sex, killing people and selling goods...

Plus that sensitive filming location...

Xu Xin estimated that if this movie could be released, Ning Hao would be in high demand.

As for winning the award...

To be honest, except for Yu Yan who deserves an award, the other roles on his side are a bit mediocre. Their characteristics are too distinct, but it is precisely because of this that they appear mediocre.

Because it is not created by the character himself, but given by the director.

Ning Hao tried too hard in this film and added too many ideas that should not belong to this film.

The character is given by him, not established by the character himself.

Too crafty.

But considering that this film was filmed in 2009, it is more or less understandable.

He narrowed his eyes slightly and dug out from his memory all the memorable or unsatisfactory aspects of the two-hour movie. After thinking about it all, he picked up the assessment book at hand.

Title: "No Man's Land"

【Award Recommendation】

[Best Picture Award], [Yes], [No]

[Best Director Award], [Yes], [No]

【Best Actor】……

He chose "no" for all other options, except for "Best Actress", he chose the "yes" option.

The others also acted similarly to Xu Xin.

Everyone is writing and drawing in notebooks, but no one is communicating.

This is only the first round.

The first round is the one that needs the least discussion.

The shortlisted films are recommended by public reviewers, but when they appear in front of the jury of the main competition unit, these films that have been reviewed many times by predecessors are all new.

Everyone only needs to give their most intuitive evaluation.

This evaluation is also a reference for myself, not a final vote.

In the final comment, Xu Xin wrote:

"The director used too much force and added too strong personal ideas. As a result, the entire script lost its previous style and was full of craftsmanship. The character was not established. The only bright spot was Jiaojiao played by Yu Ji. This He is the most full-bodied, least creative, and most solid character in the film."

This is his general evaluation of "No Man's Land".

After he finished writing, most of them, including Chen Kexin next to him and Liang Bingning on the left, also finished writing.

When Xu Xin looked up, Liang Binning was still stretching her head and looking towards him.

Sister Bingbing wants to see it?

Then just watch.

He handed over his notebook generously.

And Liang Binning naturally exchanged words with him.

Only then did Xu Xin realize that the overall evaluation between the two was highly consistent.

I chose No in other aspects, but Yu Qian was also left.

And her comments were:

"[Jiaojiao] is the only impressive character in this film. Huang Bo's death seems to be black humor at first glance, but in fact it seems to be deliberate. Even from the moment the mute son appears, It’s doomed. The emptiness under the skin of Lawyer Pan played by Xu Zheng is also very deliberate, and the final turning point is also unsatisfactory. - The whole movie feels uncomfortable and unconvincing. The black humor...the humor is gone, Just black.”

After reading the comments, he looked up and found Liang Binning looking at him again.

The two looked at each other and smiled.

Um.

The heroes see the same thing.

At this moment, he heard Xie Fei say:

"The next movie will be Xiao Xu's?"

The screening staff nodded quickly:

"Yes, Director Xie, it's "The Burning Sun" written by Director Xu."

"...Everyone, are you hungry?"

As soon as Xie Fei opened his mouth, everyone understood what he meant.

but……

It's already early 11 o'clock now.

Xu Xin thought for a while and said:

"Director Xie, including the opening and closing credits, my movie is two hours and 20 minutes in total. How about we watch it in the afternoon?"

Upon hearing this, Xie Fei thought for a while, nodded and said:

"Okay, let's do it in the afternoon. Remember to eat more at noon. It starts at 2 pm. Together with the third movie "One Flew Over the Nursing Home", it will take 4 hours. Don't be hungry by then. Call~"

Frankly speaking, the old man's joke is not funny.

But who would give someone a higher seniority?

Everyone laughed and nodded.

The morning review is temporarily over.

And when it was past 1 p.m. and a few minutes before 2 p.m., Xie Fei stepped into the screening room again.

This time, the old man's silver hair was a little messy.

It looked like he had just woken up from his lunch break.

And just when the staff wanted to ask if the movie should start showing, Xie Fei, who had not yet sat down, suddenly asked Xu Xin:

"Xiao Xu. How would you rate this movie?"

Xu Xin said directly without any hesitation:

"Director Xie, this movie is by far the best movie I have ever made. However... I will not express too many opinions on this movie."

Everyone understood what he meant.

After all, it is a film made by the judges, so suspicion must be avoided.

Xie Fei nodded:

"Okay, okay. Let's get started~"

As soon as the screen went dark, on the player, the movie that got the dragon mark directly without cutting it started playing.

Everyone looked at it very seriously.

You can even say that you can't take your eyes off it.

Not to mention anything else, the name "Xu Xin" alone represents a kind of... very different kind of dominance in the past two years.

The box office is high and it can win awards.

However, he is still very young.

The name "genius" has been ruined by others.

And every time this director brings a new work, people... especially those in the industry will have a sense of "how has he improved again?"

Now, this is another new film, and it has been confirmed as the opening film before the festival.

This gold content... is self-evident.

And now, everyone, including Xie Fei, is eager to watch it and see what is so magical about Xiao Xu's movie.

Then……

More than 2 hours later.

The auditorium was as silent as death.

Liang Binning blinked quickly and suddenly said to the projectionist:

"Rewind the movie to the black and white chase scene at the beginning."

She was a little unsure if she had discovered a plot hole or if she had overlooked something.

After hearing his words, the projectionist rewound the movie.

The sound of running and gasping came again in my mind.

As the camera shook, a few seconds later there was a "pop" sound, and the sound of something heavy falling into the water was heard.

"Is this the real murderer?"

Hearing her words, Xu Xin nodded:

"right."

Liang Binning couldn't help but complain:

"...You are too careless in laying out your foreshadowing, aren't you?"

Xu Xin chuckled and joked:

"Maybe it will make the audience come back for a second time. Earn another box office~"

Of course he was joking.

But at the same time... everyone honestly admitted that this film... is really not fake at all.

There is no half-heartedness.

It has all the necessary elements.

Whether it's the director's, the actors', or even the script...

It’s really addictive!

Even though the movie has ended now, everyone still has a feeling of unfinished business.

This is true even for professional filmmakers like them. It can be predicted that when the movie appears on the big screen and in front of all audiences...

What a shock it would be!

And because Xu Xin had already said before that he would not rate the film or participate in the selection to avoid suspicion, everyone was silent now, and he naturally could not speak.

All I saw was that everyone lowered their heads and began to grade and write comments seriously.

After waiting for a short while, Liang Binning handed her review book to him.

Xu Xin glanced at her unexpectedly and took it.

The result is completely two extremes from the morning's "No Man's Land".

"No Man's Land" was selected for everything except "Best Actress".

In this movie, except for "Best Actress", everything was selected.

Whether it's the director, screenwriter, or actor, all of them have been recognized.

Criticism:

"I give Liu Zhishi 85 points in this movie. But his performance of 85 points is the worst in this movie. Other than that, I have nothing to say."

Keep your words short.

There are even some "targeted" poems.

but……

Look at the four words "nothing to say".

Xu Xin knew that this was the highest praise the Tokyo movie queen could give to this film.

He handed the notebook back to Sister Bingbing and gave her a fist in a joking manner.

Then I heard a sigh:

"well……"

Xie Fei sighed and murmured as if talking to himself:

"This may be the most impressive domestic film I have seen in the past ten years."

As he spoke, he turned his head.

His eyes fell on Xu Xin's face.

Xu Xin thought he still had something to say to him, so he leaned forward slightly and pretended to listen.

But this fourth-generation director didn't say a word.

Just looking at the youthful face in front of me.

So young.

To use an older adjective, this baby has red lips and white teeth.

What a handsome young man.

As for this young man, Xie Fei was filled with only one emotion.

"The future life is to be feared."

I'm old.