Ning Xiu Lian should be 43 years old this man who appeared next to her looked to be in his early 30s, sunny and handsome, like a fitness coach.
This is the feeling he gives people.
This age difference is hard not to make people think too much.
Lu Yanhe and Chen Ziyan looked at each other.
Chen Ziyan whispered, "Fortunately, she was alone when you greeted her just now."
Lu Yanhe whispered, "I was wondering why she was alone. Didn't she bring any entourage with her?"
"Her entourage is probably all outside. The production company of Happy Days wouldn't be so generous as to buy first-class tickets for her entire team."
For actors, attending a film festival is not something they can just do.
It's not that simple.
The round-trip expenses and local accommodation and food are not cheap.
Some people are of course more generous and let their own team bear the cost. For example, in Lu Yanhe's case, he also knew that "Road to Glory" was originally a small crew of an art film and the budget was stretched.
Some actors, because they are not famous themselves and have little money, can only rely on the crew to pay these expenses.
In China, if you have the opportunity to participate in film festivals, you will generally not be short of funds.
But in foreign countries, even in small countries, actors who have won the Best Actor Award find it difficult to return to their place of glory after several years, and can only raise money to afford their travel expenses.
"They are so close, they must be lovers." Chen Ziyan whispered to Lu Yanhe.
Lu Yanhe nodded.
Chen Ziyan: "This news has not been exposed, otherwise it would definitely cause heated discussion."
The two were talking in a low voice, when suddenly, Ning Xiulian and the man beside her stood up and walked towards them.
"Let me introduce you to Gu Zhao, my boyfriend." Ning Xiulian generously introduced him to Lu Yanhe and Chen Ziyan, "He's also an actor."
"Hello." Lu Yanhe shook hands with the man named Gu Zhao.
Gu Zhao seemed a little excited and thrilled, with a light in his eyes as if he saw an idol.
This surprised Lu Yanhe a little.
He was a little hesitant. Could it be that Gu Zhao looked at him like that?
Lu Yanhe couldn't be sure about this, so he looked at Chen Ziyan for help.
Chen Ziyan asked: "Sister Xiulian, did Gu Zhao also star in "Happy Time"? "
Ning Xiulian nodded and said, "He plays a role in it. You can see it when it premieres."
Gu Zhao took out his mobile phone and asked, "Yan He, can I add you as a friend? I like the drama you acted in very much. I am your fan."
Lu Yanhe was flattered and nodded, saying yes.
The two people added each other as friends.
Ning Xiulian said to Lu Yanhe: "Yanhe, if you are involved in any film or TV drama projects that are suitable for him, please introduce him to others. He is an excellent actor."
Naturally, Lu Yanhe said yes without hesitation - Lu Yanhe was already very familiar with this kind of polite words.
What Lu Yanhe didn't expect was that the four of them were actually sitting side by side, next to each other, with an aisle in the middle, so Lu Yanhe and Chen Ziyan were together, and Gu Zhao and Ning Xiulian were together.
Long-haul flights.
Lu Yanhe prepared a book and a U-shaped pillow for himself.
Chen Ziyan is holding a tablet computer in her hand.
She said she had a dozen scripts and proposals to look at.
Lu Yanhe felt overwhelmed when he heard this.
But this is Chen Ziyan's basic work. She is now in charge of three artists, Lu Yanhe, Wen Minglan and Tu Song. Each of their work, no matter how big or small, must be reviewed by her, and she will nod before signing the contract.
After reading for a while, Lu Yanhe felt sleepy and prepared to lie down in his chair to sleep.
Turning his head, he suddenly saw Gu Zhao unscrewed his water cup, took a sip, and then brought it to Ning Xiu Lian's mouth.
Ning Xiu Lian didn't even take the cup of water, she just took a sip.
A little water leaked out.
Gu Zhao immediately wiped it off with his hands.
The posture between the two of them is really intimate.
Lu Yanhe retracted his gaze, suppressed his surprise, and thought, respect.
-
In fact, in the entertainment industry, there are quite a few couples with a big age gap.
When you reach a certain level, it is not uncommon to see men looking for women, women looking for men, or even more chaotic situations.
It’s just that these things are usually kept secret in a small area and won’t spread out.
Occasionally, one or two such incidents would pop up and cause a huge uproar.
Emotional relationships are the eternal gossip core of the human group.
-
The second time they came to Venice, they were not in a hurry, so they did not go to Lido Island as soon as they got off the plane. Instead, they strolled around Venice together first.
There are many small shops here with many interesting things.
Lu Yanhe took a fancy to a pair of masks and planned to buy them as gifts for Chen Siqi.
Lu Yanhe stayed at the official designated hotel of the Venice International Film Festival, Hotel Excelsior Venice.
Lu Yanhe lived in an exquisite suite, Chen Ziyan had a separate room, and Zou Dong and Wang Biao shared a room.
Lu Yanhe's team paid for the three people's food, clothing, housing and transportation, and he did not ask the "Road to Glory" crew for reimbursement.
Ning Xiu Lian and her friends also stayed in this hotel.
Because of the film festival, the streets of Lido Island are now full of people, and the bustling crowds have swept away the usual tranquility.
After Lu Yanhe and his friends checked into the hotel, they had the rare opportunity to wander around the island before the film festival opened, mingle with the crowd, eat, drink, and try various snacks.
Although he would occasionally be recognized by some fans, most of the time, Lu Yanhe could still walk among the crowd like an ordinary person.
"I think it would be great if we could have a film festival like this in China someday," Lu Yanhe told Chen Ziyan. "Although the four major international film festivals have their own characteristics and are different, the atmosphere is very good and everyone is discussing movies. Sometimes, I think that international film festivals are just like that. They are not 100% fair. There are tendencies and prejudices, and there are many games and business rules. They are not as pure as I imagined. But every time I come to the film festival, I will still put all these aside. No matter what, there is a place that brings together so many people from all over the world at one time just for a common thing like movies. This atmosphere is very touching."
Chen Ziyan nodded and said, "It's not that we don't have film festivals in our country, but the cultural heritage and influence are indeed not as good as those in foreign countries. They have decades or even hundreds of years of tradition, while we are just starting out and haven't established a network of relationships yet. Film festivals are very dependent on connections. You can see that some people at major film festivals are willing to communicate and contact you because you represent Chinese-language films - at least in their eyes, you are representative in this way. They hope that you can become their direct descendant and come often. When we hold a film festival, domestic stars can certainly shine, but you have to... If you run an international film festival, you can't just do it yourself, right? You have to invite some foreign filmmakers, right? But if you rely on some connections, you can invite them this time, but what about the next one? They now treat our film festival as a sideshow, and it's not even as good as the one in South Korea, which at least runs very steadily, holding it every year without fail, and trying every way to keep going. Here, we fish for three days and dry the net for two days, the holding time is not fixed, the organizer is not fixed, and the organizer is not fixed. They have an artistic director for a film festival for decades, but we don't have such a person."
Lu Yanhe couldn't help but sigh when he heard this.
“Indeed, we are updating and replacing too quickly. A film festival is a network of relationships, and the departure of a generation of helmsmen means a reshuffle.” Lu Yanhe agreed very much with what Chen Ziyan said.
In the domestic film industry, why do Directors Association and other related organizations still exist and play a unique role in the industry even though they have no authority or rich resources? In fact, it is a similar meaning. In addition to the brokerage companies, there is an organization within the industry that brings everyone together so that they are not like a pile of loose sand. When holding some industry activities, their power can be used to gather the power of the entire industry.
People themselves are a resource, and networks of relationships are even more so.
The status of each film festival's artistic director in the industry often corresponds to the status of the film festival in the world film scene.
At night, there is an occasional cool breeze on Lido Island.
Lu Yanhe can see many filming teams on the road.
They should be celebrities from various countries, posing in various styles in the night scene.
Chen Ziyan saw it and said, "I didn't arrange any such work for you this time."
In the first one or two years after Lu Yanhe debuted, he had a lot of similar filming work to increase his exposure.
During the newcomer stage and rising stage, continue to increase your visibility as quickly as possible.
Now Lu Yanhe has both fame and popularity, but he himself doesn't really like this kind of filming work, so Chen Ziyan will give him fewer jobs.
Lu Yanhe smiled and said thank you to Chen Ziyan.
Chen Ziyan: "I'm thinking about whether I should try to get you some international productions."
"Ah?" Lu Yanhe was stunned.
"Although the domestic film and television environment has improved, you can still become a star even if you don't go abroad to get gilded, but how should I put it? After a trip abroad, your status will be different." Chen Ziyan said, "After all, you have reached the point in China where you can't move up and can only slowly accumulate experience, so it's better to go abroad to expand your territory. You have a foundation here. "Friends" and "The 17th Floor" were well broadcast on Maxine, and you have a good reputation at international film festivals in the past two years. You still have the capital to fight for roles overseas at this time. Another thing is that if you play supporting roles in overseas film and television dramas now, people won't be too disgusted, after all, you are so young and have played so many supporting roles in China. But when you grow up to Shang Yongzhou's level in China, if you play supporting roles in overseas film and television dramas again, with the current domestic public opinion orientation, some people may directly say that you are self-deprecating."
Lu Yanhe took a deep breath, thought for a moment, and said, "If there is a suitable role, I can play it."
"Well, of course, you still have to maintain your status. Basically, I won't let you take on any TV series." Chen Ziyan said, "You can refer to the route we planned for you at the beginning and work hard to get your face in the films of various big directors. The amount of roles is not important, the main thing is to show your face and your status."
Lu Yanhe thought about it and nodded, "Okay."
Although Lu Yanhe is a very idealistic person, he has one good point: he is not stubborn and does not suffer from literary problems at critical moments.
If Lu Yanhe said at this time that he didn't want to act so utilitarian, Chen Ziyan would be speechless.
In the acting business, if you want to reach the top position, utilitarian operations are absolutely necessary.
-
On the opening day, Lu Yanhe walked on the red carpet wearing a piece of clothing from the brand he endorsed, perfectly fulfilling his role as a tool.
Director Fu Kai and Shang Yongzhou have not arrived yet.
The screening of Road to Glory was scheduled for a week later. Shang Yongzhou came four days later, and Fu Kai came even later.
Lu Yanhe walked the red carpet alone and went to the Film Palace to watch the opening film.
When he came out of the Film Palace, he learned from Chen Ziyan that the domestic Internet was in an uproar.
Lu Yanhe asked what happened.
Chen Ziyan said: "Ning Xiulian and Gu Zhao walked the red carpet together for "Happy Time". They held hands on the red carpet and kissed in front of the camera, directly making their relationship public."
Only then did Lu Yanhe react.
"Are you so awesome?"
Chen Ziyan nodded, "You should also know how much controversy the age difference between the two of them would cause in China."
Lu Yanhe: "Actually, I might get scolded for saying this. Although I always say that love transcends age, with such a big age gap, I myself feel a little...unacceptable."
"It's human nature." Chen Ziyan nodded in understanding, "But you must not let this slip in front of the media."
"Yeah." Lu Yanhe nodded.
Lu Yanhe went back to the hotel and changed out of his formal suit into something more casual and relaxed. He was going to meet director Yu Qin with Chen Ziyan.
As the only director of a Chinese-language film selected for the main competition unit of this year's Venice International Film Festival, Yu Qin's schedule will be very busy in the future. So, taking advantage of the opening of the film festival, Chen Ziyan took Lu Yanhe to meet Yu Qin.
Yu Qin, like Wang Zhong before he won the Situl Award, is considered a "big director in the industry", but is not well-known in a broad sense.
Moreover, her fame was lower than Wang Zhong's because her output was too low.
For a person who last appeared in public several years ago, it is indeed difficult to be remembered in an industry where things are changing so quickly.
This meeting with Yu Qin was just a meeting.
There is no cooperation to discuss.
However, when Lu Yanhe and Chen Ziyan arrived at where Yu Qin and the others were, they happened to see Yu Qin and Ning Xiu Lian arguing.
"You suddenly did this and everyone's attention was on you two. The movie will be ruined by your news!" Yu Qin scolded Ning Xiu Lian angrily.
Ning Xiulian sat on the chair calmly and said, "Director Yu, the matter is not as serious as you said. Why make a big deal out of it?"
"Am I exaggerating? You and Gu Zhao held hands and kissed on the red carpet. Why didn't you tell us about this in advance? Now the domestic Internet is full of news about you and Gu Zhao, and everyone is talking about you two. Do you know that this will bring great public pressure to the movie?"
Ning Xiulian raised her eyes to look at Yu Qin and said, "Shouldn't the crew thank me? This movie originally had few people paying attention to it, but now so many people know about it."
Yu Qin: "I would rather not have it known in this way by so many people."
Lu Yanhe and Chen Ziyan looked at each other at the door.
It seems they came at the wrong time.
The staff who received them looked embarrassed and smiled at them awkwardly.
Taking advantage of the temporary pause in the quarrel between the two, the staff immediately said, "Director, Lu Yanhe and Chen Ziyan are here."
Yu Qin and Ning Xiu Lian both looked towards the door at the same time.
The expressions on their faces were somewhat complicated. Ning Xiulian was the first to adjust her expression, walked towards the door, nodded to them as a greeting, walked past them and left.
Before Yu Qin could hide her anger, a forced smile appeared on her face.
"Zi Yan, Yan He, please come in." Yu Qin took two steps forward to welcome them, and then sighed, "I'm so sorry for making a fool of myself for you."
Chen Ziyan didn't respond. She smiled and said, "I haven't seen you for a long time. I'm very happy to see you come back with your work and compete in the Venice International Film Festival."
Yu Qin sighed, "I have indeed been away for too long."
"It's okay, we're all waiting for you." Chen Ziyan said with a smile, "Even if you've been away for so long, as long as you come back to film, who wouldn't pay attention? It's just that the director shot this movie too mysteriously, it came out like a bolt from the blue, and no one had heard of it before."
Yu Qin smiled and waved her hands, saying, "When I started filming, I didn't know if I could finish it. I might not be able to continue filming halfway, so I kept it a secret from the beginning. Everyone in the crew signed a confidentiality agreement and was not allowed to tell anyone."
"All crews should learn from your crew in terms of confidentiality. You do a great job in keeping secrets." Chen Ziyan smiled.
She turned the topic to Lu Yanhe.
"Yan He directed his first film last month and wanted to keep it a secret, but before filming even started, a lot of paparazzi smelled the scent and swarmed over." Chen Ziyan smiled and shook her head.
Yu Qin looked at Lu Yanhe with some surprise.
"Oh, you're a director at such a young age?"
Yu Qin doesn’t know yet.
Chen Ziyan said: "Because we funded this ourselves, we also wanted to give it a try."
Yu Qin was surprised. "Did you pay for the production yourself?"
"Yes." Chen Ziyan said with a smile, "It's the same reason you gave just now. Because it's his first time as a director, Yan He is nervous and worried that he will mess up, so he just does it himself. If he messes up, he won't blame others, and this way he will be under a lot less pressure."
Yu Qin asked: "How much did you spend on this film?"
"There is still the winter part that has not been filmed. It is estimated that the total cost of production will be about 20 million yuan." Chen Ziyan said.
Yu Qin gave a thumbs up and said, "Then yours is a big production. I spent 800,000 yuan to shoot "Happy Time."
"You paid for it out of your own pocket?" Chen Ziyan was surprised.
Yu Qin nodded, "Not many people are willing to invest in my movies."
Lu Yanhe was surprised.
He couldn't even imagine making a movie for 800,000 yuan.
Yu Qin seemed to have seen through Lu Yanhe's confusion. She smiled and said, "I am the director, photographer, screenwriter, and editor of this film. Directors like us who are used to being poor can only learn all kinds of skills by ourselves so that we can rely on fewer people."
Lu Yanhe suddenly felt a little ashamed.
He said, “Learn from you.”
Yu Qin shook her head. "Don't learn from me. I have no choice but to think this way. When making a movie, the smaller the budget, the better. So no film director with a small budget will be proud of it. Who doesn't want their movie to be of higher quality?"
Lu Yanhe nodded thoughtfully.
that's the truth.
Yu Qin laughed again, "Maybe I'll need your help to invest in my next movie, so don't turn me away then."
Chen Ziyan smiled and said, "How could that be?"
Yu Qin: "Then I'll take it seriously."
"You're serious." Chen Ziyan nodded. "I may not get much, but supporting you is a matter of course for me. There are only a handful of directors like you who insist on making art films in China. In fact, you can apply for the support fund of the Directors Association."
"Forget it, I can't bring myself to rob young people." Yu Qin said, "If I really need to find some money, it's not that I can't find it, but I'm just too lazy to lose face and ask for money. When the time comes to find money, I'm willing to give up my dignity."
Lu Yanhe heard the helplessness and open-mindedness of an old director in Yu Qin's words.
In fact, the movies directed by Yu Qin are not box office hits.
None of the movies she directed in the past grossed over a million in theaters, so it was simply impossible to recover the cost through box office revenue at theaters.
Generally, you have to rely on other channels to slowly gain some benefits.
Yu Qin asked Lu Yanhe about his future filming plans.
Lu Yanhe explained it briefly.
Yu Qin frowned immediately.
"Why is it either a sequel to a TV series or a commercial movie?" Yu Qin looked at Chen Ziyan, "Why did you let Yan He take on these meaningless roles?"
Chen Ziyan and Lu Yanhe were both stunned.
Yu Qin waved her hands, "I'm a person who speaks with integrity, so please don't mind. If Yan He was just a third-rate actor, I wouldn't say such offensive words. Do these plays give Yan He any room to perform?"
Chen Ziyan explained with a smile: "We will consider all aspects before accepting a role. We have reasons for accepting these two roles."
Yu Qin: "Okay, this is your consideration, but is Yan He interested in acting in my next movie? Now basically no star is willing to act in a low-budget movie like ours."
"Director Yu, you are exaggerating. Many celebrities are willing to come to international film festivals like you, even if there is no pay." Chen Ziyan said, "Yan He's acting criteria are not based on the cost, but only on the script and the role."
Yu Qin curled her lips and said, "Then the fact that he took on a film like 'Burning Fire' shows that his vision for scripts and roles is not that good."
Lu Yanhe was so angry that he didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
-
After leaving Yu Qin's place, Chen Ziyan said to Lu Yanhe, "You don't have to take Yu Qin's words to heart. She is just like that. Besides, she has always looked down on commercial and genre films. She has said on many occasions that these films are rubbish."
This is not to say that such a director is a bigot. Not every director who pursues film art can objectively face the existence of other types of films. In the field of creation, there is no first place in literature, and it is normal to look down on each other. It is nothing more than the difference between recognition and non-recognition.
Lu Yanhe nodded and said, "I didn't take it to heart."
Chen Ziyan asked: "If Yu Qin really wants you to act in a play later, will you go?"
Lu Yanhe looked at Chen Ziyan with a smile and asked, "Didn't you already answer this for me?"
Chen Ziyan: "I was just being polite. I'm curious, what will you choose?"
Lu Yanhe said: "Actually, it's just like you said. Look at the script, the characters, and whether they move me."
"But you've also seen that Yu Qin has a bad temper," Chen Ziyan said. "On the set, she would curse people directly. She's very aggressive."
Lu Yanhe said: "Yeah."
"Even so, are you willing to cooperate with her?"
"That depends on how much I want to act in the script she gives me." Lu Yanhe said with a smile.
Chen Ziyan gave Lu Yanhe a thumbs up.
After meeting Yu Qin, they had no other plans for today.
Chen Ziyan asked Lu Yanhe if there was any place he wanted to go.
Lu Yanhe said, "I saw someone recommend a place that shows films that have been included in the Venice Film Festival in the past few years. I want to go and see it."
Chen Ziyan said: "This is not my cup of tea, so I won't go. You can take Zou Dong or Wang Biao with you. I'll go back to the hotel."
"Are you going back to work again?" Lu Yanhe asked in surprise.
Chen Ziyan: "I'm just sitting around doing nothing anyway."
When it comes to workaholics, Lu Yanhe feels that Chen Ziyan is much better than himself.
Lu Yanhe said, "We're already in Venice, why are you still thinking about work? Let's go see a movie."
Chen Ziyan said: "To be honest, I don't really like many art films of this kind. For many award-winning films, I know why they won the awards and why they are good, but I just can't finish watching them."
When Lu Yanhe heard this, he couldn't laugh or cry.
"For someone like you who can really get into the movie and really like it, it means you really deserve to do this." Chen Ziyan said, "Every time I see these movies, I only have one thought in my mind: if the actors I brought in were to act in them, how well they would perform and what awards they would win."
Lu Yanhe had no choice but to nod, "Okay, okay, then I won't persuade you anymore, just go back to work."
-
Lu Yanhe asked Wang Biao and Zou Dong if they were interested, and if they were not interested, they didn't have to accompany him.
Zou Dong said directly: "I'll go with you to see it, Wang Biao can go by himself."
Wang Biao immediately puffed out his chest, with an expression that said, "Brother Lu, I'm going too. I want to be influenced by art. Normally, I can't watch these movies by myself, but the environment is different when I sit in a movie theater. When I was resting, I went to the theater near my home to watch an art film called Under the Ice."
Lu Yanhe didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and said, "If you don't like it, don't force yourself."
"As your assistant, how can I have no appreciation for movies? It would be embarrassing if I told anyone about it." Wang Biao was very aware of being Lu Yanhe's assistant. "Really? After I watched Under the Ice that time, I took a special note when I got home."
Zou Dong and Wang Biao both went, and Lu Yanhe followed the navigation on his phone to find the film museum where the screening was taking place.
There were quite a lot of people queuing up at the door to buy tickets.
"So many people?" Wang Biao looked at the long queue in front of him in surprise.
Lu Yanhe said: "It's okay, let's wait in line for a while."
There are quite a few Asians here.
Lu Yanhe had just been in the queue for a while when someone recognized him and came over to greet him with surprise.
"Are you Lu Yanhe?" The person who recognized him for the first time should be a foreigner. Although he spoke Chinese, his Chinese pronunciation was clearly a very "foreign" one.
"Hello." Lu Yanhe nodded with a smile.
"Wow, it's really you!" The other person was a little excited and took out his phone, "Can I take a photo with you?"
"Of course." Lu Yanhe nodded.
Normally when everyone wanted to take a group photo, Lu Yanhe was usually busy with his schedule. Today, since everyone was queuing here, Lu Yanhe agreed to take the photo without refusing anyone.
This surprised many foreigners who didn't know who he was, and they curiously asked others who he was.
Yan He and his friends bought a package ticket - a package ticket for two shows. As for what movie will be shown, they don't know, and they won't be notified in advance, just like opening a blind box. This kind of blind box-like viewing experience is the first time for Lu Yan He.
After entering the screening room, by coincidence, Lu Yanhe ran into Ning Xiu Lian and Gu Zhao who were also there to watch a movie.
"What a coincidence." Ning Xiulian looked at him with some surprise, "I didn't expect to meet him here."
Lu Yanhe didn't expect it to be such a coincidence.
"Teacher Ning."
"Don't call me teacher anymore. I'm not a teacher." Ning Xiulian waved her hand. "You and Chen Ziyan went to see Director Yu just now. What did she say to you?"
"We just chatted casually." Lu Yanhe said.
Ning Xiulian asked: "Didn't she complain about me to you?"
"No." Lu Yanhe shook his head. "It was mainly about complaining about the role I took on later."
Ning Xiulian curled her lips, "She is like this, she never cares what others think when she speaks, she just says what she thinks."
Lu Yanhe didn't know how to respond to this.
Gu Zhao put his arm around Ning Xiulian's shoulders and said, "We were wrong for not telling her in advance."
"It's just between the two of us, why should I tell her in advance?" Ning Xiulian said confidently, "No matter how much people talk about it, it's not about her. It also brought so much attention to the movie. I don't understand why she is so angry."
Lu Yanhe kept his mouth shut and said nothing.
There was only one voice in my head that kept shouting: Don’t tell me, don’t tell me, I don’t want to hear it.
Ning Xiulian told Lu Yanhe: "Try not to work with Yu Qin in the future. She is too paranoid. I really regret filming this movie with her."
Lu Yanhe smiled awkwardly.
What was even more embarrassing was that Ning Xiu Lian and Gu Zhao were sitting diagonally in front of him.
Not long into the movie, Ning Xiu Lian and Gu Zhao suddenly started kissing in the dark theater.
Others may not be able to see it clearly, but this scene happened in front of Lu Yanhe, and the outline of the kissing posture was too clear.
It was so clear that even Lu Yanhe couldn't ignore it.
Lu Yanhe had a hunch that although he had just met the two women from "Happy Time", they were probably not easy to deal with. (End of this chapter)
