Chapter 517: Chapter 394: The Bloom of Art
"Sister Lan, I know, and I felt the same as you did. When I heard her idea, I also thought it was unreliable, very unreliable. But after I read the script she wrote, I just... Do you know that feeling? That strong desire to act in it."
Zhou Yun called Zhou Lan, and as expected, Zhou Lan gave her a lecture.
Zhou Yun also knew that Zhou Lan had a point.
If she were Zhou Lan, she would have scolded herself too.
From a rational perspective, she shouldn’t have entertained Xue Qin’s words.
But... everyone has their impulses, and Zhou Yun couldn’t control hers. Especially since Zhou Yun felt that Xue Qin’s idea was worth the risk, worth taking a gamble on.
"Sister Lan, I also shared with you how Xue Qin wants to shoot the film, and you can feel it too, right? It’s a really good story. Especially because this story is completely about Xue Qin’s own mental journey during this time. A play like this would definitely have her own style. Trust me, I’ve followed her for a while now, and trust my judgment, she is definitely a talented director, and I’m willing to take this risk with her."
"At first, she wasn’t that nice to you."
"Creative people sometimes have a bit of a temper, and I’m willing to bear with it," Zhou Yun said. "And now, her attitude towards me is not like it used to be. I can guess why she was like that before, but that has nothing to do with me personally. There’s no fundamental conflict between her and me. Sister Lan, I really want to act in this play, truly. Trust my judgment, I knew as soon as I heard her talk about it, that this film, if made, will not be worse than ’Falling Leaves.’"
Zhou Lan said, "Isn’t this just a melodramatic story fit for an eight o’clock TV slot? I don’t see what’s so good about it."
"Isn’t drama just high-level melodrama?" Zhou Yun said. "Look at Pedro Almodovar’s ’Volver.’ Is there anything more melodramatic than that? But it’s so well done. And the Indian film ’Andhadhun,’ I’m not saying it’s a classic movie, but we both saw and liked that movie, didn’t we? Sister Lan, I never think that movies have to fit one mold. Not everyone is Ang Lee, and not everyone is Wong Kar-wai."
Zhou Lan let out a long sigh.
"And—" Zhou Yun pulled out her trump card, "there’s a very important character in the movie that I think we could leave for Wang Jing."
Wang Jing, another actor under Zhou Lan.
Initially caught up in conflict with Xu Siyao, she caught the attention of both Zhou Lan and Zhou Yun and was signed under Zhou Lan.
Under Zhou Lan, Wang Jing’s opportunities visibly escalated several notches, and even VX gave her the title of a brand ambassador.
Although Zhou Yun and Wang Jing had never shown off sisterly affection in public, everyone in the circle knew that if anyone was to be considered Zhou Yun’s disciple or ’sister’ in Chengqian Entertainment, it would definitely be Wang Jing.
Zhou Lan fell silent for a while, then asked, "Are you talking about the role of the protagonist’s girlfriend?"
"Yes," Zhou Yun said.
"Wang Jing is almost twenty years younger than You Jiang."
"Is it rare for a forty-year-old man to have a girlfriend in her twenties?" Zhou Yun said. "Wang Jing has never acted in a film before; this opportunity is rare, and the role has so much potential. Don’t you want to let her try?"
"Don’t try to fool me, Zhou Yun. Don’t think I don’t know what you’re planning. Are you just thinking that this way, I will definitely agree to let you act in this unexpected, newly-conceived play?" Zhou Lan’s words were still harsh, but Zhou Yun could tell that she was tempted.
Although Xue Qin is not a big-name director at the moment, whether someone is talented and has the potential to make it big in the future is something that those with eyes can see.
After all, the truly blind are in the minority; most people are just pretending to be blind.
And Xue Qin has the backing of Shi Luoqi and Chen Zian, two major supporters. She lacks neither talent nor mentorship what she lacks is experience, is time.
If Wang Jing can also build good relations with Shi Luoqi and Xue Qin, she might get other opportunities in the future.
As for whether this film could succeed?
Zhou Lan’s mindset has always been like this: every film carries the risk of failure; even at the level of Steven Spielberg, not every film is successful. When they pick projects, they just choose the one that seems most promising, the best-looking one.