Chapter 413: 412: I'll Wait for You at Home (5)

As for Qin Baizhou? Did he ever take him seriously? No.

Xia Siyu was originally his girlfriend, his wife, and now the two of them had taken the most crucial step forward. Qin Baizhou? He hadn’t even held Xia Siyu’s hand. How could he be of any significance!

But even though he didn’t take Qin Baizhou seriously, Qin Baizhou took him very seriously. While a group of actors was discussing the plot, Qin Baizhou suddenly spoke up, “If the script is detailed to this extent, what happens if there are last-minute changes? This film is Director Sun’s first attempt at directing. I’d like to know how much control Director Yu will have inside? I understand that Director Sun comes from a photography background, and having a photography background can make the shots look very pretty. However, this is a film, not a collection of landscape photos. Has Director Sun considered how to grasp the plot and the characters? After all, for a film, the plot is the thread, and characters are the soul. All other artistic elements are incidental. Also, in Director Sun’s script, I see a lot of critical elements. Not to mention whether such things are convenient for censorship. Film is art, not meant for criticism, nor is it for exposing some reality. Perhaps those are secondary, but more importantly, it’s a way of expression. I wonder if Director Sun will overemphasize criticism and ideology, and in doing so, lose sight of the original intention of storytelling?”

Qin Baizhou’s words, in fact, hit right at some of the current issues.

Many filmmakers, on their first directorial endeavor, seek to capture the bizarre scenes from their minds without considering how the finished film turns out or whether the audience can understand it at all.

Of course, he acknowledged that some new directors indeed have talent and produce films with great imagination. But most who pursue stream of consciousness and montage, with various edits and the gimmick of single-shot technique, end up shooting something that doesn’t even convey a complete story.

The audience, left bewildered, gives low scores, and the box office suffers. Then filmmakers blame the audience for not getting it, dismissing them as “this generation of audience is no good”. Don’t they see what they’ve created, incomprehensible even to themselves, and then blame others for not appreciating it?

Xia Siyu accepted such a low fee, spent six months grinding on a movie, and he, of course, was not at ease. What if, in the end, there were neither awards nor box office success, and even the reputation was ruined—could the producers afford that loss?

Bo Yan’s recent provocation had indeed made Qin Baizhou a bit uneasy. And considering that Sun Wujiu was recommended by Bo Yan, and his film was funded with Bo Yan’s help, even deceiving Xia Siyu into joining, he knew well enough how many films had been ruined by directors’ whimsical performances. Since you’re aiming for critical acclaim and awards, then you must stick to that standard rigorously. Anything less would be unsatisfactory.

Xia Siyu might be easy to talk to, but he wasn’t, and so, naturally, he had to look out for Xia Siyu’s interests.

Indeed, directors have significant authority, but it also depends on the circumstances. For example, Wang Ju, Yu Fenfei, not only do all the actors have to listen to them, but even investors have to give them some respect and can’t just insert anyone they like into the cast.

However, for a new director like Sun Wujiu, who is facing big names like Bo Yan and Xia Siyu, you can imagine how much say he has. It’s possible that everyone in the crew listens to Bo Yan.

Qin Baizhou was known as a “smiling tiger”, and when fighting for artists’ interests, he could be quite aggressive. But when it came to matters unrelated to interests, he was always very generous.

But this time, his slight loss of control was because of Bo Yan.

Bo Yan’s line, “Wait for me at home tonight”, felt like an execution delivered in the open!