Chapter 14: The First Test
"I'm sorry!" Xiao Ran quickly realized his mistake and immediately apologized to the girl. He doesn't have many merits, and it's one of them to change his mistakes. He raised his head slightly to stare at the girl who forgot to put on his clothes, and couldn't help but stretch out his fingers and nod a few times: "You better put on your clothes first!" I'll go out first! ”
The girl seemed to realize that she hadn't dressed herself yet, and she screamed reflexively, but fortunately, Xiao Ran had already been mentally prepared and was not hurt by this magic sound. It's not that he doesn't like women, and the girl isn't pretty, it's just that he doesn't shamelessly stay in the room and continue to look at other people's bodies as shamelessly as we imagined.
After a while, the girl came out. At this time, Xiao Ran looked at this blushing girl, in his opinion, beauty alone was obviously not enough to impress. The key is that it is a kind of bearing, or rather a temperament, a taste that is unconsciously displayed in gestures can fascinate him.
The girl in front of her is obviously not the kind that needs makeup, she is very fresh and lovely, and there is a sense of cowardice in her movements and demeanor. And there is a very unique gentleness, like a gentle trap.
Soon Xiao Ran learned that the girl in front of him was Yang Qi's sister Yang Wei, who was studying at the University of Hong Kong. Originally, he thought that this was Wei Wei, but Yang Wei quickly corrected him. Xiao Ran stayed for a while, and then felt that staying with such a girl was not as easy as he imagined, so he planned to go home.
Yang Wei looked very hospitable, and said to Xiao Ran with a shy smile: "Mr. Xiao, why don't you stay and eat, my brother must be happy to see you." ”
It's good that at least I can get to know a few more people! Xiao Ran thought so, he was considered unrelated in Hong Kong, and he had no friends. It's good that he can make a few friends, thinking of this, he nodded and said, "You better call me Ah Ran, it's good to meet your brother." ”
"I called you Ah Ran, then you have to call me Xiaowei!" Yang smiled slyly, showing the lively side of a girl on her delicate face.
In the following time, Xiao Ran asked Yang Qi about it, and only then did he know that both of their parents immigrated to the United States. Yang Qi and Yang Wei were reluctant to grow up in Hong Kong, so they didn't go, Yang Qi is currently running a small company, maybe the person who attacked him last night was sent by a business opponent.
"Ah Ran, what do you do?" Yang Wei was able to hide his curiosity before asking, which shows his patience: "I want to know, I guess it is definitely not easy for someone as outstanding as you!" ”
Looks great? Xiao Ran laughed at himself, he was convinced that with his current appearance, being an actor would never be a problem. But he obviously can't rely on that thing now, can he? Besides, there is no chance to star him.
"I'm just writing scripts or something!" Xiao Ran wanted to be proud, but when he thought that the script was plagiarizing the future, he lost that momentum. Looking at Yang Wei's expression, Xiao Ran knew what she wanted to say, and hurriedly added: "I only entered the industry a few months ago, and the script hasn't been made into a movie yet!" ”
"However, I think you're more like an actor than a screenwriter!" Yang Wei's expression was very strange, as if he was secretly laughing: "I think, Hong Kong screenwriters are definitely not as handsome as you!" ”
"Am I handsome?" Xiao Ran looked at the lively girl sitting not far from him, his heart couldn't help beating slightly, and he suddenly teased: "There are more screenwriters who are more handsome than me, such as Wei Jiahui is very handsome!" ”
What else can Xiao Ran do but smile bitterly? He originally thought that his appearance was more than enough to be an actor, but he never thought that he would never have a chance. Don't forget that Xiao Ran is a person in the 21st century, and he loves Hong Kong films very much, but he also likes those actors very much.
In this era, to be able to do things in the film industry, he naturally can't help but have a little extravagance, that is, to play on the same stage with those actors he likes. Of course, his current goal is to focus on the overall situation, and the idea of being an actor and having an addicted time is just a small wish.
Being teased by Xiao Ran like this, Yang Wei couldn't help but blush slightly, and her hands and feet didn't seem to know where to swing. Xiao Ran suddenly liked the girl in front of him, the girl now is not as complicated as the future, it is relatively much simpler, he likes this simplicity.
Fortunately, such an embarrassing situation did not last long, and soon, Yang Qi returned. Yang Weiying stepped forward to call his brother, then glanced at Xiao Ran, and entered the kitchen with a slight red face. When Yang Qi saw Xiao Ran, he came over warmly to greet him, chatted for a while, and soon became acquainted.
When it was time to eat, the three of them brought the dishes together, and Yang Qi said half-jokingly and half-seriously: "If I didn't have this sister, I'm afraid I would starve to death now." It's true, though, that she's really capable! ”
"Brother!" Yang Weijiao stomped her foot in disgust: "What nonsense are you talking about!" ”
The relationship between these two siblings is quite good! Xiao Ran thought in his heart, but he couldn't help but think of Xiao Han, and his thoughts were wildly imagining how good it felt to have a little sister like Xiao Han.
Knowing Yang Qi and Yang Wei's two siblings was purely an accident, but Xiao Ran didn't take it to heart. When he returned to the Nest, he began to think about how to make money again. He even gave the future film company a very good name, called "Phantom Pictures".
It's just that if you don't have money, you don't have this company. Without this company, Xiao Ran would not be able to make everything bigger. To put it simply, owning a film company is the starting point for really looking forward to the future.
His plan is quite simple, first build a multi-million dollar film production company, that is, a shooting company. When sufficient capital and fame have been accumulated, a production and distribution company will be established. If he can't control the distribution company and the production company, it will be difficult to control the future direction of Hong Kong, and he must do all this before the 90s.
Money, money! Xiao Ran had a dream this night, in which he grabbed flying renminbi and gold bars all over the sky, like the richest man in the world. When I woke up the next day, I was naturally extremely disappointed, so it can be seen that I must not dream of development, otherwise the huge contrast will harm people.
Since he doesn't need to stay on the set all the time, Xiao Ran is much more relaxed, anyway, many things have deputies to do. He took Deng Jingsheng, another screenwriter in "Police Story", very seriously, and Xiao Ran knew that the book in the dream was written by Deng Jingsheng. Regardless of the rest, just the good description of the details in the plot of Cheng Long's wrongs in the film can be called an excellent screenwriter.
Xiao Ran, who had nothing to do, walked around the street for a while, but felt extremely bored and confused, and didn't know where to go. In fact, he also knows what his problem is, he has a huge plan and a very high success rate, but he lacks a starting point now. He also has to be an honest screenwriter, not a film company.
This feeling of idleness is quite similar to Wei Dongling's helplessness, and he has also thought about whether he can write a dozen or twenty scripts crazy and sell them! In this case, the money he gets is about enough for him to make a movie. Make a movie, this is his chance!
The year 1985 did not belong to him, but to waiting and preparing. He had to endure until the second half of 1986, so that he could get a kick in the era when Hong Kong films officially took off.
On November 4, 1985, "Mr. Zombie" was finally about to be released, and before that, it was a three-day midnight test screening. There was an unconventional rule in the Hong Kong film industry in the 10s, that is, it was common for every film to be released for three days before it was released at midnight test screening.
This is the one rule that all filmmakers love and fear the most, wonder why? At the midnight test screening, the main staff of each film must be present to learn about word of mouth, usually the director and lead actors, as well as the producer.
This midnight show is the most unruly, if the film is not good, it will be pointed at the nose and scolded by the audience. If it looks good, it will usher in full applause and heartfelt admiration from the audience, and it will spread word of mouth. Therefore, in this era, even dull literary films, as long as the test screening has a good reputation, it can also have some box office.
This is where the future of Hong Kong cinema is far behind, and directors and actors are very afraid of this. Because in the midnight field, if the audience is not satisfied, it is still a trivial matter to scold a few words, and it is even possible to hit someone without taking responsibility.
Therefore, every director and actor always do their best to do everything well, so as to please the audience and escape the catastrophe of the test screening. As a result, when everyone was deliberately pleasing the audience, Hong Kong movies gradually became Hong Kong films with actors who were easy to understand and had an incomparably strong entertainment surname, and even the Hollywood films of that era were far inferior.
In Xiao Ran's view, this unwritten rule is both good and bad. The advantage is that it can urge filmmakers to work harder, which is a hundred times better than those actors and directors in the 21st century who only get paid and don't make good films. The downside is that the audience often dominates the creator's thinking, and once a film is a success, it will be copied by others. Xiao Ran believes that this is one of the reasons why the trend was rampant in the late 80s and early 90s.
As a screenwriter, Xiao Ran must go through this test no matter what. If he can come out of the cinema intact, and there is applause, then he has succeeded.
Under such a severe test, Xiao Ran knew that the box office of "Mr. Zombie" was 20 million, and it was impossible for him to be scolded by the audience, but he still couldn't help but tremble. Of course, at the same time, he was still very nervous, and the rules of the test screening room quietly disappeared in the post-ninety-seven era. It was always a great honor for him to be able to see the midnight scene that some directors hated and feared in their memories.
Staying in the cinema are Xiao Ran, as well as Lin Zhengying and Xu Guanying and other leading actors, as well as Situ Zhuohan, and director Liu Guanwei, and even Hong Jinbao came. Everyone is very nervous, the fantasy theme Hong Jinbao has not been filmed, but it is the first time that the zombie theme has been officially put on the screen, and it is still a question whether the audience will be left behind!
Xiao Ran's nervousness gradually calmed down, took a deep breath, and smiled slightly. His first time was almost entirely explained in this Golden Harvest Cinema in Kowloon, the first time he tried the midnight test screening, and the first screenplay film was released.
However, he is really not worried now, it is this "Mr. Zombie" that has collected 20 million and ranked among the top ten box office lists of the year. After that, it made zombie-themed films rage and became the target of major film companies, and when I thought of this, my heart was even calmer.
The film began, when the ninth uncle played by Lin Zhengying appeared on the big screen, Xiao Ran smiled slightly, this Lin Zhengying is a very good actor, but unfortunately he went early. He hadn't seen this film for a long time, and he admired it unconsciously......
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