Chapter 0377: The Birth of a Banned Film

Zhao Fusheng naturally knew nothing about acting, but fortunately he had seen the original film, so he could answer most of Jiang Wen's questions.

For a perfectionist with an almost stubborn personality, having someone aptly articulate the situation he envisioned in his heart was undoubtedly a very pleasant thing.

Just like Jiang Wen at the moment, he found Zhao Fusheng pleasing to the eye no matter how he looked at him, because the script Zhao Fusheng wrote was almost exactly the mode of expression he wanted.

In a daze, Jiang Wen felt as if he were discussing film with another version of himself.

Unconsciously, if someone hadn't finally come to find Jiang Wen to discuss the next day's shooting, he probably wouldn't have let Zhao Fusheng go, showing every sign of wanting to talk all night.

But Zhao Fusheng was determined not to give this guy any more chances.

Are you kidding? A few more chats and the little he had in his head would be drained dry.

Fortunately, there was still shooting the next day, so Zhao Fusheng didn't have to worry; he could just treat it as a sightseeing trip.

Less than thirty kilometers north of Qianxi County town was the Panjiakou Reservoir. To reach the filming location on the mountaintop, one had to take a boat first.

Zhao Fusheng stood on the boat. The water surface shimmered with a piercing cold, enveloping the surrounding hilltops. The river stretched wide and the clouds hung low. Though the place was vast, it was desolate with only a single cold hue.

This place was originally a barren mountain, but when Jiang Wen arrived, he found it quite suitable. He paved a few roads, casually built a few shabby houses, and thus created a "Japs' Village."

Watching Jiang Wen shoot a film was undoubtedly a torturous experience. Zhao Fusheng saw with his own eyes that, to make the characters' appearances more realistic, that guy Jiang Wen rolled on the ground in clean clothes.

All because he had written in the script that the characters wore gray, dirty, shabby clothes.

"This is someone who truly loves film," Zhao Fusheng thought to himself as he watched Jiang Wen constantly explaining the scenes to those around him, even personally demonstrating the roles and characters for some actors.

Anyone who is dedicated to their craft deserves respect.

Jiang Wen was like that, Yuan the Great Druid was like that, and even an ordinary person was the same.

The filming went on for most of the day, and Zhao Fusheng sat there idly the whole day, behind the camera, silently watching, occasionally sidling up to Jiang Wen to listen to him explain the scenes.

The crew was curious about who this young man was. He was accompanied by Jiang Wen's assistant Zhang Hua, and every time he approached Jiang Wen, they noticed that the usually irritable Old Jiang would explain the scenes more meticulously, as if afraid the other wouldn't understand.

If not for the huge age gap between Zhao Fusheng and Jiang Wen, and their completely different looks, they would have thought this guy might have some connection with Old Jiang.

As it turned out, the masses had vivid imaginations. Soon, rumors spread that Zhao Fusheng was a new actor pushed in by an investor, or the son of an old friend of Jiang Wen's, here to learn the ropes.

Jiang Wen didn't explain, and Zhao Fusheng was unaware. The only one who knew the truth, Zhang Hua, was so busy with crew affairs that he barely had time to touch the ground, let alone deal with this.

Finally, after a day's shooting, Zhao Fusheng was shocked to find that Jiang Wen had only shot a dozen or so shots.

"Damn, Old Jiang, are you trying to be Wong Kar-wai?" Zhao Fusheng looked at Jiang Wen helplessly and said in confusion.

"Wong Kar-wai?" Jiang Wen was taken aback, then curled his lip: "We're familiar, but if you say that, I'll definitely sue you for slander. Are you kidding? I'm not as unreliable as him, okay?"

"Heh..." In response, Zhao Fusheng let out a sneer that was almost mocking.

In Zhao Fusheng's impression, among the entire Chinese-language film circle, the directors who gave producers the biggest headaches, Jiang Wen and Wong Kar-wai, could definitely rank in the top five.

Generally, when actors worked with Wong Kar-wai, if they didn't perform well, he wouldn't say a word, just wave his hand with his sunglasses on: "Retake!" It was even said that when Actor Liang was shooting his film, Wong Kar-wai gave him only one line of dialogue and had him act for several minutes.

Can't act it out?

No problem. Shoot it whenever you figure it out.

Thus, Wong Kar-wai often took years to make a film, torturing the production company to death. After all, once a crew was assembled, every day spent real money, and actors' schedules had to be adjusted. But Wong Kar-wai's dawdling skill was truly speechless.

In fact, many actors, while shooting his films, had time to shoot other movies, which showed his pace.

Jiang Wen was fast, but he spent money recklessly. With a budget of fifteen million for a film, Jiang Wen could spend twenty-five million. In his own words, if you're not willing to invest in making a film, then why make it at all?

Seeing Zhao Fusheng's expression, Jiang Wen knew the guy was looking down on him. But thinking about his past track record and recent spending, Director Jiang felt he didn't need to argue with an outsider.

"Want to make a cameo?"

During dinner, Jiang Wen suddenly proposed to Zhao Fusheng.

Zhao Fusheng chuckled and decisively shook his head: "No."

"Come on, it's your own script. Just a cameo, what's there to be afraid of?" Jiang Wen urged with the air of earnest advice.

Zhao Fusheng shook his head again: "Not interested. I've never been interested in acting."

"Alright, if you don't want to, forget it." Jiang Wen had just mentioned it offhand, not really expecting anything.

"By the way, do you think our film will pass censorship?" Jiang Wen blinked and asked Zhao Fusheng.

Zhao Fusheng hesitated, then honestly said: "By current standards, it's definitely hard to pass. Domestic release will be very difficult. But honestly, you could submit a censorable version to the authorities for domestic release. As for overseas, well, you can do whatever you want."

That was the only way. In real history, Jiang Wen didn't give the SARFT officials any face. When submitting for review, he sent the version he had edited himself, cutting out all the anti-Japanese scenes from the novel. This infuriated the higher-ups, who directly rejected it. Then Old Jiang got stubborn, sent the film overseas for exhibitions, and inadvertently won several awards. While gaining fame, he was subsequently blacklisted for years.

Speaking of which, the fifth and sixth generation directors in China generally had this hobby: casually making a banned film, then being blacklisted for a few years before continuing to make movies.

As if not having made a banned film meant one wasn't a qualified director.

And Zhao Fusheng, this time, witnessed firsthand the birth of a banned film director, Jiang Wen.