Chapter 1678
: Traveling Together
"There's a type of girl who rejects you before you even open your mouth."
A few days later, Zhang Yuan was looking at the script in the library of Hebei University of Technology.
This narration line was also his job, and the subject he was describing was the female protagonist, Su Mei.
He glanced at Du Juan, who had changed into an old-fashioned white floral dress and put on light makeup.
She is suitable to play this role.
Simply put, he's both arrogant and grumpy.
This type of woman is likely to become the "ice queen" in the eyes of many boys during their school years.
Zhang Yuan's attitude towards this type of woman is either to ignore her or not to bother with her at all. Who the hell would he give the time of his time?
Alternatively, we could forcibly overthrow him and give him a severe lesson until he achieves Ahyan.
In reality, if a woman is cold to you, it means she is simply not interested in you, or she doesn't even care about you.
When she meets someone she admires or even looks up to, she becomes incredibly gentle and warm.
Du Juan is very suitable for playing this seemingly aloof and proud role, because she herself has this side to her.
She's usually quite aloof; she smiles, but doesn't talk much.
However, when filming with Zhang Yuan, they chatted and laughed, which was noticeably warmer than usual.
When casting actors, Chen Kexin tries to choose those who can resonate with the characters.
For example, Deng Chao himself has an arrogant and stubborn side. When he was a teenager, he had a falling out with his family and ran away from home to dance and sing in nightclubs in the south.
Tong Dawei, on the other hand, is a down-to-earth person who takes good care of his family.
His wife, Guan Yue, is also an actress and a teacher at the Beijing Film Academy. Back then, Tong Dawei pursued her, but she wasn't interested in him.
This guy was a male best friend in disguise, who had been lurking around for several years before finally winning him over.
There really are people who would do something as outrageous as having a male best friend.
As for Zhang Yuan... he transcended the typical selection criteria for actors.
However, Chen Kexin also saw his own company and businessman side, which is similar to the character.
Are you ready?
"I'm fine," Zhang Yuan replied to the director's question.
He turned to look at the azalea.
These days she has filmed some solo scenes without lines, plus some long shots of her mixed in with crowds.
This is the first time I've faced the camera with the male lead.
How are you?
Are you nervous?
"A little." Her smile was somewhat stiff.
"Don't be nervous, remember what I said in the previous meeting."
"Su Mei doesn't actually love Chen Dongqing."
"At first, I just thought this person was hardworking and ambitious, and I had a good impression of him."
"Later, I couldn't stand his persistent pestering anymore, and I also needed someone to accompany me, so I agreed to be with him."
Actually, Zhang Yuan was keeping it to himself.
In his understanding, Su Mei not only relied on Chen Dongqing temporarily, but also used him as a blood bank.
After graduating, he stayed on as a teacher at Peking University to support her studies and exams.
Finally, they took the SAT, used it, and then kicked it aside.
A typical sign of bad breath.
Just like those women who rely on their boyfriends to support them and stay at home full-time to study for the civil service exam, only to immediately complain that their boyfriends are not good enough for them as civil servants after they pass the exam.
He didn't want to belittle the character too much, fearing that someone like Du Juan, who wasn't a professional, wouldn't be able to accept it.
Hebei University of Technology specially closed off a corner of the first floor of the library for the film crew to use.
The production team recreated the look of the 80s, a time when libraries would turn off their lights early and not stay lit all night.
Some students would secretly study at night.
Back then, there were no rechargeable LED lights; flashlights used large batteries and yellow bulbs, which poor students couldn't afford to spend every night.
Then we have to light candles.
Zhang Yuan felt that lighting candles in the library was unreasonable; if the teacher found out, he would be severely scolded.
This place is full of books, and they're all flammable.
But Chen Kexin said that this is where the male and female protagonists first met, the beginning of their love, and the candlelight is romantic.
Zhang Yuan remained silent, but accepted it.
This led to the scene where Du Juan is reading by candlelight late into the night, and Chen Dongqing, played by him, is so engrossed in his reading that he bumps his head on the bookshelf, making a loud noise that displeases the female lead.
It was precisely because only the two of them studied at night that the female protagonist developed feelings for someone as hardworking as herself, thus laying the foundation for their romance.
The female lead, Su Mei, has a slight appreciation for Chen Dongqing's efforts.
The scene about going to the library late at night is based on a true story!
As his classmates said, Lao Yu was not only unsophisticated in college, but also a bit sleazy.
The so-called "sleazy" does not refer to someone with bad character, like the perverts in Japan.
His poverty and inferiority complex manifested in distorted behavior.
Poor students have their fans, but sleazy people have no fans.
So while his classmates were finding partners both on and off campus, Lao Yu gave up on dating after several failed attempts to confess his feelings.
Set a goal for yourself: read 800 books during your four years of university!
Setting goals is easy, and anyone can brag.
I also said I wanted to earn a small fortune before I turned 30.
But between saying and getting, there is also doing.
Old Yu really did it!
Not 80 books, but 800!
Even a brief visit is remarkable.
Most college students are born to play Dota, and they may not even see eight books besides textbooks during their entire college years.
Such high achievers often demonstrate extraordinary perseverance and ability during their studies.
Jun'er was the same; after entering the school, he set a goal for himself to complete four years' worth of credits and all courses within two years.
He did just that, completing his graduation project in his junior year with an antivirus software he designed himself, which is why he was noticed and recruited by Qiu Bojun of Kingsoft.
Extraordinary people do extraordinary things; none of these big bosses are ordinary people.
Zhang Yuan thought to himself, "If I were a woman, I would worship anyone who could read 800 books in college."
But people are ultimately judged by their appearance. For example, while Bao Qiang's appearance was more suitable for the role, we still needed to find someone good-looking.
After filming the first take, Zhang Yuan watched the playback and shook his head.
"Don't look at me when I make a noise."
"Don't look at me like that," he said to Du Juan.
Being too lazy to pay attention to this guy is what it means to be aloof; it means rejecting him before he even opens his mouth.
"You see, that means you're attracted to me, which doesn't fit the character's personality."
Chen Kexin nodded in agreement, saying that what she said made sense.
Our male lead can not only film, but also mentor other actors, making his job much easier.
After filming a few more scenes, we finished get off work and called it a day.
He invited Deng Chao and Tong Dawei to have a late-night snack together.
"You can't do it this way," Chao complained after they arrived at their destination.
"You don't eat it yourself, but you make us eat it all the time."
"Are you trying to harm someone?"
"Yeah, I've gained weight recently," said Tong Dawei, his male best friend, rubbing his belly.
"The food in Tianjin is plentiful and delicious; I want to try it all."
Zhang Yuan took a roll from the boss.
In Tianjin, it's called "big pancake roll with everything." You can put fried skewers, grilled skewers, and all sorts of other things inside, plus a thick sauce, grilled gluten, and stinky tofu. You wouldn't trade it for a county official.
Tong Dawei also took a roll and started eating.
People feel happy when they eat, especially when they eat something delicious. When they are in a good mood, many people will laugh and hum a song while laughing.
This is a human instinct, commonly known as enjoying a delicious meal.
Don't underestimate this simple dish of fried skewers wrapped in a flatbread; it's precisely this mixture of carbohydrates, meat, and sugar that's most satisfying.
The more junk food it is, the happier I am to eat it.
Humming is fine, as long as you're happy.
But when Zhang Yuan heard the tune Tong Dawei was humming, he smiled knowingly and asked a question.
"Brother Dawei, what are you humming about?"
"Ah...oh." Tong Dawei looked up and reacted for a moment.
I hum a song unconsciously, without even realizing it.
"Hey, I don't know either. It's just that lately, after filming, I keep hearing this song on the radio in malls and supermarkets. It's pretty catchy." "I don't know where it came from."
“I’ve heard of it too, it’s everywhere,” Deng Chao chimed in; “It just started appearing out of nowhere recently.”
"It's everywhere on the internet."
"Yes, yes, sometimes when I go to sleep at night, all I can think about is that image in my head. I can't shake it off, it's so annoying." Tong Dawei shook his arm.
Seeing the two of them like this, Zhang Yuan smiled but said nothing.
They didn't know what kind of music it was, but they knew it themselves.
I recognized it immediately when I heard it: it's "Pacific Rim"!
The theme music of this movie is excellent; once you hear it, you'll never forget it!
It's tense, exciting, dynamic, and the melody is extremely memorable.
It belongs to electronic symphony, with the foundation of symphonic music, but with a large number of electronic music elements added.
It perfectly matches the grand, metallic feel of Pacific Rim, a film combining mechanical punk and a post-apocalyptic warfare.
The film deserves an 85 out of 80.
But this theme song definitely deserves a score of 95 or higher!
Because the composer of this piece is awesome.
Ramin Jawadi is an Iranian of German nationality.
Most people haven't heard of this name, but his works are familiar to countless people.
He composed the soundtracks for Iron Man, Westworld, Prison Break, and later the Warcraft movie and the Fallout TV series.
He also composed the grand and slightly melancholic theme song for Game of Thrones.
This person could theoretically be considered a student of Hans Zimmer, the king of Hollywood film scores.
A good teacher produces outstanding students; their skill level is indeed formidable.
This is Zhang Yuan's method of promotion besides online marketing.
Using theme songs for promotion is not new; it's done both domestically and internationally, such as in "Love Will Carry On" or Disney's "Frozen."
But usually, this kind of thing makes the singer famous, like when they cast Shakira in Zootopia.
However, Pacific Rim is an instrumental piece with no lyrics or singer.
Therefore, Zhang Yuan abandoned the traditional music promotion model and instead contacted Wanda and other large chain shopping malls and supermarkets, paying them to use the song as background music.
This song is incredibly catchy and has spread very widely.
For several years after the film's release, this background music was used extensively at comic conventions, esports competitions, and gaming expos around the world, to the point that many people were tired of hearing it.
But you can't deny that this song is incredibly catchy.
Just like Tong Dawei said, once you hear it, you can't forget it; it even plays automatically in your head when you go to sleep at night.
After the release of Pacific Rim, the way boys all over the world walk in shallow water has become the same.
They all imitate the movements of dangerous wanderers moving forward in the sea, and when doing such "foolish things," the music in a man's mind is definitely this piece.
I feel like I'm really tall and big.
This kind of brainwashing can spread from person to person, and it's also a form of viral marketing.
Shopping malls and supermarkets have adopted it, and other shops will follow suit.
It won't be long before they're all over the world!
Zhang Yuan didn't tell Legend that he secretly uploaded the theme song download file online.
Who would use it if it were charged?
It is true that the official version was pirated.
The music spread as quickly as his carefully cultivated "online rumors."
In addition to these, he also asked Legend for the original mecha model to make molds.
Before filming, director Guillermo del Toro had life-size, detailed models made for every mech that would appear in the movie, even those that only appeared for a second.
Zhang Yuan used these original molds to find a domestic factory and spent 500 million yuan to make hundreds of identical ones, which he then placed at the entrances of the largest cinemas in major cities as physical signs.
They also bought large-screen advertisements in the city centers of major developed cities, including Hong Kong.
Alternatively, you can look to Wanda Plaza. In the six largest Wanda Plazas in mainland China, including Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Chengdu, and Wuhan, there are mecha models that are over 10 meters tall, which are used to attract attention.
Wang Sicong listened to his plan and exclaimed that he was an expert and awesome.
He certainly thought it was a good idea, because it was helping the mall attract customers.
The ultimate goal is to bombard moviegoers across mainland China with information overload in a short period of time, from online to offline, from background stories to music.
We want them to be surrounded by this play wherever they go!
Seeing that Deng Chao and Tong Dawei had been successfully brainwashed, Zhang Yuan was quite satisfied.
My plan was very successful.
Indeed, there's no such thing as a bad thing when you spend money.
As long as the IT department doesn't come after me, I dare to turn the world upside down in China's internet industry.
Previously, relying on personal hype and high popularity could only support films with box office revenue of around 100 million.
It will be difficult to go any higher.
Even with super intelligence, it's almost impossible to achieve a billion-dollar box office by cheating.
So Zhang Yuan's superior intelligence told him that he should use his super strength.
Throw in 8000 million, and force will overcome all obstacles!
Seeing that the plan was going smoothly, I was in a great mood.
Food tastes even better now.
Deng Chao and Tong Dawei were both surprised to see that he was also very happy, but they didn't know what was wrong with him.
"Hard work, hard work, a lot of trouble."
Just then, a few people suddenly came in from outside the shop, heading towards him, while muttering something under their breath.
Upon meeting, they greeted each other with a greeting, knowing they must be from the martial arts world. Zhang Yuan quickly put down his food, recognizing that they were people from the performing arts troupe.
"You're too kind. And who are you two?"
Zhang Yuan looked up and saw two people, one tall and one short, one fat and one thin.
The fat one weighs nearly 300 pounds and has a completely bald head.
He's so thin he looks like a leaf that's just flown by; he probably weighs only a hundred pounds.
"We are crosstalk performers."
Zhang Yuan knew that the world of crosstalk was full of strange and unusual characters, and even Guo Degang's side had no shortage of such people.
"Meeting an old friend in a foreign land." Zhang Yuan stood up and clasped his hands in greeting.
"If you two don't mind, please sit down and have a bite to eat with us."
"You're too kind." The two said politely, but their actions were anything but polite as they sat down.
The fat one almost squeezed Deng Chao and Tong Dawei out.
His filming in Tianjin has already made the media, and many people know about it.
When the people from the performing arts industry saw him, they came looking for him.
"Unfortunately, I really don't have time to perform crosstalk, so I've only got the title." He said, trying to lower himself.
I'm in the crosstalk business, but I don't perform it, so we're not that close.
Think things through before you speak.
He took precautions in advance.
"Oh dear, what kind of saying is this? 'A teacher for a day is a father for life.'"
"We all acknowledge the Hou family's crosstalk skills, so who would dare not acknowledge you as a descendant of the Hou family?"
“Yes, that’s a big name in our industry,” the thinner one chimed in, giving a thumbs up.
“Please accept this. If our late teacher knew that everyone thought this way, he would surely be watching from beyond the grave.”
Zhang Yuan replied with a smile, sensing that the other party was trying to get closer to him and defuse his predicament.
No one is smarter than those who perform traditional arts; this is the profession with the most bad people.
This isn't just Zhang Yuan making things up; everyone from Teacher Guo to Brother Qian, and even Mr. Yuan Kuocheng, agrees with it.
They all experienced being squeezed out by their peers.
Liu Wei, who played Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, is the nephew of Mr. Ma Sanli and the apprentice of Mr. Ma Jingbo, Mr. Ma Sanli's cousin.
In Tianjin, it is said that everyone admires Ma, and the Ma family's crosstalk performances hold an extremely high status.
However, Liu Wei was still bullied and couldn't continue working in the folk art troupe, which is why he switched to acting.
That tells you what kind of people work in this industry.
Tianjin is also a nationally renowned hometown of traditional Chinese performing arts, especially crosstalk.
Therefore, Zhang Yuan was particularly wary of those who deliberately came to his door.
How do you want to do it?
Whether it's professional expertise or slang, I'm not afraid.
But he never anticipated...
"You two may speak frankly, what brings you here today?" he asked with a friendly smile.
Unexpectedly, the fat man and the thin man looked at each other and then suddenly stood up.
Then... he knelt down before him! (End of Chapter)