The costume drama "Wind Rises Luoyang" starring Huang Xuan, Song Qian, Wang Yibo, etc. will usher in the finale on December 29, who is the ultimate boss behind the scenes? Did you guess that?
Before the end, Yi Xuejun interviewed ma Boyong, the original author of the play, without spoilers, to hear what the real "behind-the-scenes BOSS" said-
Scratch the point!
We talked about Ma Boyong's favorite Luoyang punch card land and ancient capital cuisine, as well as his portrayal of female characters, private reading trajectories, and small habits when writing.
Dear "residents of the gods", let's take a look!
Luoyang is a big romantic city
Yi Xuejun: This time the story is set in Luoyang, what is the most attractive thing about it? Which places in Luoyang are you most impressed?
Ma Boyong: The biggest feature of Luoyang is that it has a line of Luoshui running through it, which constitutes a trinity of architecture, people and water, which has an important impact on urban life and the humanistic elements contained in it. Soft edges and corners, moisturizing its charm, this is the most worth exploring and rendering the unique point.
I have been to Luoyang many times, and my favorite places are the Longmen Grottoes, the Luoyang Tomb Museum and the White Horse Temple, and I have also visited the tombs at night on Mount Yao. The most impressive thing is always the Lusena Buddha of the Longmen Grottoes, every time I go, I will sit under the Lushena Buddha, look up for a long time, and have written this viewing experience into the "Antiques Bureau Central Bureau". Regardless of religion, regardless of history, simply thinking that she is too beautiful is an aesthetic heartfelt touch, very pure.
Yi Xuejun: What is the appearance of Luoyang, the divine capital in your mind? Bad wells, Lianfang... Are there any historical sources for these? Ma Boyong: Probably because of its proximity to Luoshui, Luoyang City naturally has a romantic temperament that belongs to water. From "Roselle" to Tianjin Bridge, from peony flowers to Longmen Grottoes, everything is full of romantic colors, which makes me think of it every time I see it. Even the most famous delicacy is called water mat. In addition, many celebrities and historical legends in history have occurred here, and a romantic city with rich connotations has been built vertically and horizontally.
In order to conform to this impression, "The Wind Rises in Luoyang" adds a lot of dramatic imaginative elements. Some titles are derived from the real titles of history, such as "saints" to the emperor, such as "bad people"; some are based on historical imaginations, such as "Internal Guard", "Lianfang", and "Jing'anji". So it should be precise to say that it should be defined as a "historical legend" or a "historical deduction".
Female character settings should have independent pursuits
Yi Xuanjun: The Tang Dynasty was the most open and prosperous period in history, and the Wuzhou period was particularly special, what impact did this have on your portrayal of female characters?
Ma Boyong: Datang is a magnificent and magnificent dynasty, and it has a broad international vision. Its culture is full of diversity and self-confidence, which is worthy of repeated speculation and appreciation by our descendants.
The male and female emotional drama is really my shortcoming. Although I can't write feelings, I will definitely set up the female character as a person with her own independent position, independent pursuit, and non-attachment to male existence. Yi Xuanjun: The depiction of food in "The Twelve Hours of Chang'an" impressed everyone, and "Wind Rises in Luoyang" simply set the protagonist as a "food blogger". What is your favorite food? Ma Boyong: I went to visit these ancient capitals, and the most direct purpose of each time was to eat good food. When you have eaten and drunk enough, you will start talking about culture. The enjoyment of food is not in the quantity, but in the breadth, the more you come into contact with food, the more you will understand Russell's sentence "jagged polymorphism is the source of happiness".
Yi Xuanjun: Many historical novels are written about princes and generals, but your works are more focused on small people and are full of fireworks. Why did you choose such a creative path? Ma Boyong: It has something to do with age and experience. In the past, I would pay more attention to some technical things, funny passages, or unexpected expressions. In recent years, it has begun to turn to some historical thinking. The current perspective will also slowly sink, before may have focused on the emperor, the torrent of history, now began to pay attention to some small people and small things, and from small people can really see the motives behind the laws of history. A small person may be an exception, but a group of people who will have some needs of their own, and this need will slowly change history, and I will start with a smallest place.
It is not imagination that opens "brain holes"
Yi Xuejun: Many of your works are building new stories in the cracks of history, is this "brain hole" a flash of inspiration, or does it rely on a large number of data research? Ma Boyong: For me, imagination is not the most important thing in writing. The most important thing is that you have a good grasp and get enough historical information. When reading, I didn't pay special attention, but I just said that maybe you read more, and you will have ideas. If you read deep enough, the probability of inspiration will increase infinitely. If I don't read books at all, I sit and think every day, how do I open my mind? I can't actually open it. Like my "Five Days of Two Capitals" that I came out last year, although there are very fictional elements in it, the historical logic is real. At that time, the people, what kind of horses they rode, what kind of roads they walked, and what the routes they took on the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal were actually found in the historical materials, and then on this basis, some interpretations and play were carried out. Therefore, the most important thing in writing is to have a reserve of knowledge, not just something that depends on a flash of inspiration. Yi Xuanjun: Which writers or works have had a great influence on you?
Ma Boyong: Lao She's language and Mark Twain's humorous style have all influenced my creations. Wang Xiaobo's "Bronze Age" has had the greatest impact on me, he has made the first time to integrate modern elements and absurd elements into the ancient background, creating a very magical but detailed fantasy world that makes people feel real. He influenced me too much on my tastes and values, and he said that I was living in the world, and I just wanted to understand some truths and encounter interesting things. The most influential is probably the Austrian writer Stephen Zweig, whose perspective on history is gorgeous and atmospheric. When I was in middle school, I read his "When the Stars Of Humanity Shine" and directly looked at my knees.
It's especially noisy to be able to write something
Yi Xuejun: In everyone's imagination, the work status of writers is often closed, day and night upside down, I heard that you go to the café to write from nine to five every day, why do you like this work rhythm?
Ma Boyong: I have to write in a particularly noisy place, and every day like work, I either go to a café or go to a friend's company to find a place, because I used to write at a workstation. This habit, which has been formed for a long time, requires that the surrounding area should not be too quiet, nor too noisy, that the entry into the world should not be too deep, that the avoidance of the world should not be too far away, and that it should be properly isolated from the world. I once tried to write at home, bathe and change clothes, wipe the computer desk spotlessly, light incense, put on music, everything was silent outside the window, rested my hands on the keyboard, and within two minutes, my hands were controlled by demons, holding the mouse and moving to folders such as "Movies", "Games", etc., or brushing the Weibo client, the evil voice repeatedly whispered in my heart: Brush to an hour to stop, stop, oh, pass, then brush to the next hour... Even if I started to be fierce, I had no distraction in front of the computer, but my mind was full of blanks, and I couldn't write anything. Home is home, writing is writing, and my subconscious mind and Ma Xiaoyi (Ma Boyong's son) have made them very clear.
Yi Xuejun: Your work is very popular, will this make you feel some influence in your writing? For example, consciously or unconsciously writing with film and television thinking? Ma Boyong: I will rule it out of this aspect and write it when I have the impulse. Because it's actually a principle that you write something that you can never pander to. Because there are many requirements from readers, your abilities as a person are limited. Normal logic is to write what's best in mind and then attract like-minded readers in the market. So there are rational judgments, but not to cater to the market, I think it is to filter the segments. Every time you create, there is actually pressure. However, the creation does not have to surpass the previous work, but it must be differentiated.
Yi Xuanjun: What subjects have you been writing about recently? What other era backgrounds are you interested in that you would like to dig into? Ma Boyong: These two years have been in retreat to rush the manuscript, it is a subject that has never been challenged before, it is very difficult, the preparatory work has been done for several years, and I hope that it can be published smoothly next year. I used to like the Three Kingdoms, and later became interested in the Tang, and recently I was stuck in the Ming Dynasty, and I will probably stay for a while at the end of the Qin Dynasty in the future. Every dynasty has its fascinating side and its ugly side, and this pluralistic complexity is the most fascinating.
Ma Boyong still has nearly ten works to be broadcast on the road
Which one are you most looking forward to?
TV series "15 Days of Two Capitals": Concept poster released in October 2020;
TV series "The Wind Rises longxi": directed by Lu Yang, starring Chen Kun and Bai Yu, in July 2021;
Movie "Dunhuang: Heroes of Guiyi": directed by Cao Dun, director of "The Twelve Hours of Chang'an", has been filed;
TV series "Daming Under the Microscope": directed by Pan Anzi, starring Zhang Ruoyun, Wang Yang, Qi Wei, Wu Gang, Fei Qiming, Gao Yalin, in November 2021
TV series "Lychee of Chang'an", "Daming Bookseller", "Youling Road": officially announced
Animated series "The White Nightcrawler of the Twelve Hours of Chang'an": Officially announced
Source Beijing Daily client · Art Bloom
Editor: Li Li
Producer: Zhou Nanyan
Process Editor Wu Yue