Chapter 246 Preparation
Just during the days when Gu Wei attended the Golden Globe Awards, the first-day box office figures for "Confucius" in China were also released.

The first-day box office of less than 10 million instantly made people in the industry speechless. It was so damn embarrassing.

Before it was released, people thought it was a domestically produced film, but with box office data like this, it’s not certain whether it can even break 100 million in the end.

That is because the box office fraud incident had just happened and no company was willing to go against the wind and commit the crime. Otherwise, according to past practice, the minimum reported box office would have to be more than 20 million.

Nowadays, film producers are embarrassed to give specific figures and can only report it as less than 10 million.

Netizens are not polite, saying things like "bad movie" and "money-making"...

There were all kinds of insults.

As a result, the director of "Confucius" is also very awesome, and may have been defeated by netizens, so he not only refused to admit that "Confucius" was wrong in historical facts.

He then turned around and started scolding the audience, saying that they didn't understand history and were like crazy people.

This completely offended the audience.

The box office of "Confucius" plummeted and was cut in half.

However, the official website of the Berlin Film Festival announced the second batch of films in the main competition unit of the 60th Berlin Film Festival.

"Three Shots Surprise" directed by Zhang Yimou appeared in the latest list, becoming the third domestic film to be shortlisted after Wang Quanan's "Reunion" and Ning Hao's "No Man's Land".

This is also the first time that Zhang Yimou has returned to the main competition unit of the three major European film festivals since "Hero" won the Berlin Film Festival in 2003. After years of immersion, Zhang Yimou once again appeared on the world stage with his film works.

Unfortunately, people had low expectations for "The Three Musketeers", and most people thought it was a bad movie that had no chance of winning any awards.

"To be honest, I'd rather look forward to No Man's Land, at least the movie is really good."

"Lao Mouzi is really too careless to use this movie to embarrass himself internationally?"

.........

After returning to China, Gu Wei chose the China Film Studio Shooting Base as the location for interior shooting. Firstly, the place is large and the equipment is relatively advanced in China; secondly, there is a large space with a green screen background.

"Boss Han, Director Gu has rented the largest studio, and Xingchen Films has brought in a lot of filming equipment."

In China Film Group, an assistant is giving a report.

"Well, Director Gu needs your full support."

"Okay, Director Han."

Although the domestic film market is constantly catching up with Europe and the United States in terms of total box office revenue, the gap between the domestic film industry and Hollywood is comprehensive, and industrial technology has been applied in Hollywood film production.

Han Sanping, who had some free time, took some time to visit the site and saw many machines that were not available in China.

"Director Han, Director Gu is busy. Do you need to call him?"

When the staff saw Han Sanping, they immediately came over and spoke.

"No, I'll just take a look. Those are all imported equipment."

Han Sanping pointed to a large area of ​​machines nearby and asked.

"Yes, these are..."

Listening to the terms spoken by the staff, Han Sanping felt a little emotional. The equipment was being updated too quickly and he was a little behind the times.

...

"The actors will join the crew at the end of the month to shoot interior scenes first. After that, we will start special effects production. The exterior scenes will be carried out simultaneously, and we will arrange personnel to scout locations..."

"How is the scene construction going on XZ?"

"It's almost done, and the workers are working overtime."

"Have the extras been confirmed?"

"China Film Group has made arrangements and we can join the crew at any time. They have also sent people to coordinate with us to ensure that the filming goes smoothly."

Upon hearing this, Gu Wei felt a little emotional. In terms of labor efficiency, China still has an advantage.

Unlike Hollywood, foreigners have days off when filming movies. Generally, filming starts at 8 am from Monday to Friday and must be finished at 8 pm. They also have to take a weekend off. Sometimes, when shooting night scenes, overtime pay is also required.

This was the case when Gu Wei was filming "The Day After Tomorrow" and "Interstellar", but this matter can be negotiated. If the price is right, you can take one less day off a week, but working non-stop without rest is something that foreigners, who have a tradition of strikes, will basically not agree to.

This also leads to the fact that the shooting period of many European and American blockbusters is very long. Unlike in China, women are used like men and men are used like animals.

If you meet a big director, actors have to be proactive. Working overtime is common. If you don't do it, there are many actors who are willing to do it. Unless you are a big star, you can only be obedient.

Gu Wei talked as he walked, surrounded by a large group of staff members, including several new directors hired by the company. This time they would learn with the crew.

"Director Gu, Director Han and the others are here."

When we arrived at the door of the studio, an employee with a work ID came up and said.

"understood."

After entering, Gu Wei saw Han Sanping and others surrounded by people, and there were people next to them pointing at the camera and saying something.

"Here you are. Judging from your posture, you are almost ready. When will the filming start?"

"Just in the next few days, let's shoot some of the domestic footage and see the results."

The traditional film shooting process is to continuously modify the film clips after they are shot, which is the so-called post-editing. If it is found that the filming is not good, it will be re-shot.

But this method is fine for low-budget movies, but it is not suitable for high-budget blockbusters.

For example, some scenes that require physical explosions are basically non-repeatable. Even if they are modified with special effects, it is very expensive, so in general, a visual dynamic preview is required.

When filming "Interstellar", there were a large number of preview clips. These operations have become popular in Hollywood, especially after the rise of special effects blockbusters.

"Director Han, what's the matter?"

Gu Wei was a little curious. Logically speaking, it was the end of the year and the other party should be very busy.

"The General Administration has organized a meeting about Avatar. I came to talk to you."

When talking about this, Han Sanping has mixed feelings. On the one hand, if the movie box office is high, China Film will earn more. On the other hand, the box office is too high, which is not conducive to the development of the domestic film industry and is too detrimental to morale.

"Uh..." Gu Wei was speechless. These people were indeed idle. They had no business to do but were constantly having meetings.

"Boss Han, I'm busy!"

Pointing to the side, Gu Wei said hurriedly.

"You have been specifically asked to attend. They want to hear your suggestions. It's tomorrow morning at 8 o'clock. Don't forget."

After saying that, he left with his assistant.

...

After returning to the company, as soon as I entered the office, Ning Hao asked me to knock on the door and come in.

"I'm back. Where's Yifei?"

"I'm resting at home!"

This guy has been obsessed with drama recently and has been hanging out with Xu Zheng a lot. I heard that he even went to the Shanghai Theatre Academy to watch a few drama performances a while ago.

"Are you free tonight? Let's get together and celebrate for Yifei. She's nominated for a Golden Globe, that's incredible."

"It's really unfortunate. Aunt Liu arranged a family dinner and even called me."

Gu Wei said cheerfully, and then continued:

"Let's do it some other time. Then I'll invite Huang Bo and the others to get together again."

"Okay, you decide the time."

After the two chatted for a while, Ning Hao left first. Gu Wei looked at his watch, put on his coat, pushed open the office door, and walked out.

"Senior, are you here?"

Gu Wei received a call from Liu Yifei as soon as he got into the car and started the engine.

After arriving at the villa, Gu Wei saw Liu Yifei wearing pink cartoon pajamas and slippers. She looked sleepy and probably had just woken up.

Liu Yifei doesn't wear any makeup at home, but she still looks very pretty without makeup.

"It's so noisy on the phone, Senior, what were you doing just now?"

Liu Yifei asked confusedly.

"The car window is open, so it might be the sound outside."

Looking at the young lady in front of him, Gu Wei sat directly next to her, and Liu Yifei leaned on his shoulder naturally.

Liu's mother cooked dinner herself, and there was a large table of dishes, which was very sumptuous.

"Why don't you eat anymore? Don't you have an appetite?"

Seeing that Liu Yifei had taken a few bites of vegetables and hadn't eaten any staple food, Gu Wei asked with concern.

"We're going to start filming soon, so we need to stay in shape."

The young lady looked at the table full of dishes and swallowed unconsciously.

Hearing this, Gu Wei stopped talking, picked up the bowl and started eating.

Fortunately, I am not an actor, it would be too hard.

After dinner, the two ate fruit while watching the news online.

"Senior, take a look at this report."

Liu Yifei suddenly spoke loudly, and Gu Wei picked up her phone and started looking at it.

Online, according to media reporters' reports.

Zhang Ziyi has confirmed that she will withdraw from the Hollywood film "The Secret Fan", in which she served as producer and the leading role, and the role will be taken over by Li Binbin.

The film's producers announced the latest news, including the casting information.

As soon as the news came out, many actresses sighed secretly, saying that they reacted too slowly and missed the opportunity.

"She's also going to star in 2012!"

Liu Yifei next to him was a little confused, knowing that Gu Wei would not choose an actor who had multiple roles to play.

"It's just a cameo role, there are only a few shots, if we're quick we can finish shooting it in a day."

Zhang Ziyi was replaced this time, and netizens speculated that it must have a lot to do with the "ink-throwing incident".

Of course, she vehemently denied it and even clarified the matter when facing a reporter's interview.

"The shooting schedule of The Grandmaster was tight and director Wong Kar-wai was very demanding."

"I'm injured and can't take care of both at the same time."

"We should treat the 'ink-throwing incident' and other incidents with a 'firm and kind heart'."

Zhang Ziyi reacted quickly, giving various reasons and explaining things over and over. As for whether netizens believed it or not, that was another matter.

At the same time, Li Binbin became the envy of people in the circle. The lesbian theme and Hollywood production made it look like it was destined for awards.

"Sis, whether you can enter Hollywood depends on this time."

Li Xue put in a lot of effort to get the role this time.

Hearing this, Li Binbin's eyes were filled with ambition and desire. The opportunity had finally come, and it all depended on this time whether he could seize it.

No matter what, he must not be worse than Zhou Xun. The relationship between the two is about to reach a freezing point, but Wang Zhonglei means that Zhou Xun plans to leave the company. Huayi Company also helped to successfully get the role this time.

"From now on, you will be the top actress of Huayi, and the company's resources will be given priority to you."

The combination of Hugh Jackman, Li Binbin and Jun Ji-hyun has caused quite a stir in the circle.

.........

(End of this chapter)