On Thursday morning, Zhang Ran came to the Youth Film Studio and found the director Qiu Yuanxu.

Youth Film Studio is a film production institution affiliated to Beiping Film Academy, formerly known as the Experimental Film Studio of Beiping Film Academy, which was established in 1958. Its main task is to cooperate with the teaching plan of each department, and to be a place for all teachers to carry out creative practice, and to complete the film assignments and production practice of students in each teaching process.

In 1979, the Experimental Film Studio organized the filming of the color feature film "Sakura" and renamed it the Youth Film Studio of the Peking Film Academy. In the 80s, Qingying Studio successively filmed well-known films such as "Chen Hansheng Goes to the City", "Hunan Girl Xiao Xiao", "Natal Year" and other well-known films, which had a great influence in China.

In 1993, the Ministry of Radio, Film and Television issued the "Several Opinions on the Reform of the Current Film Industry Mechanism", and China Film Company no longer purchased and underwrote domestic feature films, and each studio was responsible for its own profits and losses. Various domestic film studios began to restructure, and the same is true for Qingying Studio. In the following years, in addition to the attention of "Red Cherry", Qingying Studio quickly faded out of people's field of vision, and the production of films decreased year by year, and last year there was no production of any movie.

Qingying Studio has a production scale of producing five or six films a year, with two sound stages, a full set of photographic lighting, scenery equipment, and dozens of well-trained professional technicians, but now there are no films to shoot, and they are basically idle.

Qiu Yuanxu is in his forties, with a Chinese face, tall, a little unkempt, his clothes and pants are sticky with dust, and his expression is full of tiredness, he doesn't look like the director of a film studio, but like a worker in a workshop.

Qiu Yuanxu was more enthusiastic about Zhang Ran, poured a cup of tea, and put it in front of him: "Xiao Zhang, how can you have time to come to our Qingying Studio? ”

"Thank you, Director Qiu. Zhang Ran picked up the teacup and took a sip, "I've watched a lot of movies from Qingying Studio before, and I've always wanted to come and see them, but I came over today without class." ”

The two chatted for a while, and they knew each other, and the topic also entered the main topic.

"Director Qiu, this is the script I wrote "Time Prisoner", please take a look. Handing over the script, Zhang Ran picked up the teacup and carefully observed Qiu Yuanxu while drinking tea. Huang Zhenyu said that Qiu Yuanxu was friends with him, and Zhang Ran didn't know if Qiu Yuanxu would get stuck in his own project.

Qiu Yuanxu did not refuse, took the script and looked at it carefully. There was no expression on his face, but he looked very carefully, and from time to time he turned to the front to compare the front and back.

Half an hour later, Qiu Yuanxu closed the script, frowned slightly, and fell into deep thought.

Zhang Ran felt that there was a way to do this, otherwise Qiu Yuanxu could have refused directly and asked, "Director Qiu, what do you think?"

Qiu Yuanxu looked at Zhang Ran, sighed and said: "This story is good, but Xiao Zhang, Qingying Studio is responsible for its own profits and losses, and now the market environment is bad, you shouldn't come to me." The year before last, our factory tried to shoot "The True Taste of the Chef", I thought it was a Hong Kong director, and there were Wu Mengda and Shi Xiaolong, the box office should be good, but the result was lost, and I lost millions, but now I haven't slowed down, where is the money to invest!

Zhang Ran felt that Qiu Yuanxu was not lying, he had watched "The True Taste of the Chef", this film was very badly filmed, but he didn't expect it to be cast by Qingying Studio, thinking that you have to be blind to cast such a film?

However, the film and television industry's pursuit of Hong Kong and Taiwan has always been particularly serious, not to mention superstars, that is, the third-rate stars of Hong Kong and Taiwan are superior to the mainland crew. Even more than a decade later, this phenomenon still exists. Like Ruan Jingtian and his ilk, they have neither appeal nor acting skills, but they are all starring in movies one after another, and many young students in China are obviously better in popularity regardless of their acting skills, but they can't get resources.

Zhang Ran didn't want to say these things, and he couldn't say to Qiu Yuanxu: "Director Qiu, you misunderstood, I didn't let our Qingying Studio invest." I plan to find a movie channel to make this film into a TV movie. You also know that it is very difficult to cooperate with a movie channel in your own name, but it will be much easier if you cooperate in the name of Qingying Studio. ”

Qiu Yuanxu's eyes lit up, yes, why didn't I think of this? This is a way!

As the director of the film studio, Qiu Yuanxu's political achievement is to make movies and run the Qingying Studio, and he was under a lot of pressure because the Qingying Studio didn't make a single movie last year. If he can't come up with a movie this year, then he, the director, is afraid that he will be the end. Now Zhang Ran's words showed him a way and gave him hope.

Qiu Yuanxu knew the contradiction between Huang Zhenyu and Zhang Ran, but now he was anxious, how could he have the heart to worry about Huang Zhenyu, and said with a smile: "Xiao Zhang, you are a smart person! I didn't expect you to hit the idea on the movie channel, the movie channel's TV movies have low cost and rough production, and many directors can't look down on it!"

Zhang Ran has made rougher micro-films, how can he not watch TV movies, and said with a faint smile: "The road has to be walked step by step, the food has to be eaten in one bite, and the steps are too big to tear the eggs! I want to make a movie directly, but who is willing to invest in me! If I can make a TV movie, I can finally have a work, and when I attract investment in the future, I can take out the work and show it to investors, this is my work, and people will have a bottom in their hearts when they see it!"

Qiu Yuanxu nodded in his heart, this Zhang Ran is a down-to-earth person, don't say that teachers like Zhang Ran, that is, many students in the directing department are above the top, thinking that they are artists, they want to make a great work, they want to become masters, and such shoddy things like TV and movies often can't get into their eyes, but such people often can't shoot anything: "Xiao Zhang, you are a smart person, although TV and movies are rough, they are also movies, and they can hone their skills!"

Zhang Ran agrees with this very much: "Yes, film is a craft work, the director is a craftsman, if a director does not hold the guide tube for a long time, the person will be abolished!"

Qiu Yuanxu raised the script in Yang's hand: "The movie channel likes rural films, martial arts films and comedy films the most, but they will also support unpopular themes." Your script is a science fiction story, the subject matter is relatively rare in China, and the story is also wonderful, and the movie channel will definitely accept it! You are studying acting, do you plan to play the role of Cao Lin yourself?"

Cao Lin is thirty-three years old and has a daughter, Zhang Ran's image and temperament do not match, he shook his head and said: "I am a director major, I am more interested in being a director, and I hope to direct this film by myself." To be honest, there are a few scenes in the movie that require CG special effects, and domestic directors who understand this can't say that they don't have it, but there are really few who can surpass me. It is difficult to get the desired result with the least amount of money for someone else to shoot. ”

Qiu Yuanxu understood why Zhang Ran came to him: "This is a bit troublesome, after the movie channel agrees with the script, it will generally give the designated director." If you insist on choosing your own director, then you have to bear 50% of the risk of your own upfront investment, that is, you have to pay for it yourself. ”

Zhang Ran had already thought about this: "I am going to ask Mr. Zheng Dongdong to be the producer, I think he is willing to support the younger generations." With him as the producer of the film, the quality is guaranteed, and the movie channel should have nothing to say, and will allocate money to us!"

Qiu Yuanxu nodded, Zheng Dongdong was the director of Qingying Studio before, and he was willing to support young directors, and he was a member of the film review committee, and the movie channel also had to give him face, asking Zheng Dongdong to be the producer was a good move: "This is a good way, but what are you going to do with the rest of the funds?"

Zhang Ran stared at Qiu Yuanxu and said seriously: "This is really troublesome, so I hope our Qingying Studio can provide support." The TV movie shooting cycle is very short, it can be completed in more than ten days, plus the post-production, it will definitely be completed in two months. When the movie channel completes the review of the finished film, it will pay the remaining 50% according to the contract. I'm just borrowing money from Qingying Studio for two or three months, it won't take too long, so there shouldn't be any problem, right?"

Qiu Yuanxu shook his head with a wry smile and said: "Xiao Zhang, it seems that you are not very clear about the process of acquiring films by the movie channel, the purchase price is evaluated by the movie channel, and the passing standard is 4 points." If it is 4 points, then the movie channel will be executed at the price of the contract. If the score is less than 4, the cost will be deducted from the shooting party. It's their people who score the films, and it's not up to them to decide how to score them? Many film companies will be severely lowered when they go to the movie channel to sell films!"

Zhang Ran frowned and said: "We are from Nortel, and seniors like Teacher Zheng Dongdong are in charge, so they won't deliberately give low scores, right?"

Qiu Yuanxu shook his head with a smile and said: "Now the people of this world are broken, there is only money in it, what can't be done for money? I want to help you with this, but I am really powerless, our factory has hundreds of thousands of dollars, and this money has to be used for the senior students of the directing department and the photography department to shoot homework, if the movie channel lowers the price by then, and the money can't come back, how can I explain it to the school?"

Zhang Ran was speechless, Nortel's students didn't shoot on film until their senior year, while schools in the United States basically used 16mm film to shoot homework in their freshman year, and 35mm film to shoot homework in their sophomore year. Lack of practice is an important reason why new directors in China have not been able to come out in recent years.

Zhang Ran originally planned to get 50% for the movie channel, and then the Qingying Studio advanced 50%, but now he can only find another way: "Okay, I'll figure out the remaining 50% of the funds myself, but this film is to cooperate with the movie channel in the name of the factory, I need a certificate from our factory!"

"Okay, I'll give you an official letter!"

Qiu Yuanxu picked up the pen, opened an official letter with a brush, stamped it with the official seal of Qingying Studio, and handed it to Zhang Ran.

"Thank you, Director Qiu. Zhang Ran glanced at it and put away the official letter, "I'll go to the movie channel now, and I'll come to you when the script is reviewed." ”

"Your project is the only project of Qingying Studio this year, come to me at any time if you need anything!"

Hearing Qiu Yuanxu say this, Zhang Ran smiled: "Director Qiu, I won't bother you!"

"Okay, there you go!"

Qiu Yuanxu looked at Zhang Ran's back and fell into deep thought, he very much hoped that Zhang Ran could succeed. If the film "Time Prisoner" could be filmed, his pressure would be much less. It's just that the market environment is so bad now, and it's not easy to get hundreds of thousands of investments!

(Thanks to the "readers who love novels" for rewarding, asking for collections, asking for recommendations!)