Cai Zhizhong's image in the media in recent years is that of a silver-haired old man who is proficient in traditional Chinese studies, especially in Buddhism, has no material desires, and works all day. But in fact, he is still very naughty, loves to tell stories, has his likes and dislikes, and is not afraid to express. He talked to us about Lin Huaimin, Sanmao, Gu Long, his house in Hangzhou, his hobby for movies, and, of course, comics and animation.
Last April, Princeton University Press held a press conference for Cai Zhizhong's "The Illustrated Library of Chinese Classics" series of books at Page One in Beijing. The set has now been published in two volumes, The Analects, The Art of War, and later The Way of Nature. "My set of comics is cosmopolitan. Why? Because Eastern philosophy and Chinese philosophy have universal value. Today is a global single market, and enterprises in any country need to know the strategy of Sun Tzu's Art of War; they need to know Confucius's doctrine of interpersonal relations, the way of loyalty and forgiveness; they need to know how Taoist doctrine advocates unity with nature, harmony with others, and harmony with one's own heart. At the press conference, Cai Zhizhong briefly talked about his work.
The Analects, comics: C.C. Tsai, translated by Brian Bruya, edition: Princeton University Press, 2018
Cai Zhizhong's set of "Illustrated Chinese Classics" is an English translation of his comic series based on ancient Chinese classics. His ancient classic comics such as "Zhuangzi Says - The Sound of Nature", "Lao Tzu Says - The Whispers of the Wise" and "Confucius Says - The Ding-Da of the Benevolent" were successively launched by Sanlian Bookstore as early as the end of the 1980s, and were widely praised by readers and sold more than 10 million. Many readers of the triptych version have become parents, and they talked to Cai Zhizhong at the press conference about their plans: buy the English version and read it with their children, so that children can understand the ancient Chinese classics and learn English.
Cai Zhizhong has published two autobiographies in mainland China: "Comic Cai Zhizhong - The Legend of Cai Zhizhong's Half Life" by Sanlian Bookstore in 1995 and "Genius and Master" by CITIC Publishing House in 2016. In these two autobiographies, Cai Zhizhong has a detailed description of the birth of this series of comics based on ancient Chinese classics; the latter autobiography talks about Cai Zhizhong's experience of studying physics for ten years since 1998. So when the Beijing News reporter interviewed Cai Zhizhong, he focused on his personal contacts, the details of some things he did not talk about in his autobiography, and the work he is currently working on.
Written | Kou Huaiyu
The origin of the bird
Beijing News: I saw that Qian Wenzhong posted a picture of your cat on Weibo.
Cai Zhizhong: Oh, yes, we are going to spend 500,000 yuan to buy his cat, and he doesn't sell it.
Beijing News: Spend 500,000 yuan to buy his cat? Do you like his cat a lot?
Cai Zhizhong: No, we plan to spend 500,000 yuan to buy his cat, and then tell him to eat cat hot pot, and then sell the cat back to him for 5 million, hahaha.
Qian Wenzhong Weibo released Cai Zhizhong's painting of his cat - Dong Dong.
Beijing News: When you sign the sale, you often draw a small bird when you sign the contract. I wonder what the bird means to you?
Cai Zhizhong: I'll tell you a story.
I was very red in 90, 91, and 92, and there was a long queue [when I signed it]. Usually it is from 9:30 to 12:00, or 1:30 to 5:00. I know that it takes 36 seconds to draw a small zhuangzi and sign again, so you can only sign 100 people in such an hour, so you can only sign 200 people in one morning. I had the triad stand behind 200 people and not let more people line up.
But the people in the back were reluctant to go, and when it was twelve o'clock, the staff of the Triptych was followed by a large number of people. He said: "Teacher Cai, these things are not allowed to be lined up, they insist on being lined up." Everyone was very worried, because I might get up and leave. I said, "In this way, only sign, don't draw." Then everyone says "Be well!" ”
The triad let go, and when the first person came, I signed it, and he whispered, "Please, please, please "Then I looked at him and drew a bird in the signature. When the people in the back saw it, they said, "I'm going to paint birds too," and I said, "Okay!" ”
This is the origin of the bird.
Cai Zhizhong signed on the triptych version of the "Ghost Fox Fairy Monster" series "Banqiao Thirteen Ladies Flower Girl" brought by the Beijing News reporter, "Is it good to sign the bird? After painting the bird, he wrote another word "Buddha".
Beijing News: But your autobiography, on the cover of your own a piece of grass, there is also a bird on it.
Cai Zhizhong: That's because I smoke, and they say you can't draw cigarettes.
Cai Zhizhong's self-portrait (partial) on the cover of "Comic Cai Zhizhong - The Legend of Cai Zhizhong's Half Life".
Beijing News: So you often came to the mainland in 90, 91 and 92?
Cai Zhizhong: I had to come two or three times a year in those years. The main thing is that I have to come to the book fair every year. The third session is in Shanghai, the fourth session is in Guangzhou, the fifth session is in Chengdu, and I have all three of them. Wow, your three words (Kou Huaiyu) are a bit old.
Cai Zhizhong created a dharma statue on the spot and gave it to reporters. Giving paintings to reporters seems to be Cai Zhizhong's habit. The Global Times reporter who interviewed before the Beijing News reporter and the Curiosity Daily reporter who interviewed after the Beijing News reporter were both given a painting.
Lin Huaimin is a deadly idealist
Beijing News: You and Lin Huaimin are old friends, right?
Cai Zhizhong: We have known each other for a long time. I joked that I had hugged Lin Huaimin and hadn't slept yet. There are many kinds of friends of mine: they have met, they have changed their business cards, they have eaten, they have had wine— good friends will drink together, two bottles of wine, a plate of peanuts.
I am the 23rd Ten Outstanding Youth (Note: referring to Taiwan's "Ten Outstanding Youth of the Republic of China", the 23rd is 1985), he should be the 21st winner (Note: In fact, Lin Huaimin won the 15th award in 1977). At that time, Shi Zhenrong (note: acer's boss) was also a winner, and we worked together to promote a cultural organization, often meeting in Shi Zhenrong's office.
Lin Huaimin smoked fiercely, just like me. When Xu Boyn, who was the boss of Xinxiang, got up to give a speech, I knew he had been talking for a long time, so he said, "Teacher Lin, I'll take you to see a good place," and then I went to the stairwell to smoke a cigarette, and after smoking a cigarette, he was going to go back, and I said, "At least half an hour."
There is a better place in Taiwan than Hong Kong and the mainland, and we have a group of idealists who have no food to eat. Lin Huaimin had no money and no house in his life. It is all up to TSMC (Note: Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd.) to support his Cloud Gate dance set for 1.2 million yuan per year.
I attended the funeral of Gu Long and Sanmao,
I thought I would die at the age of 48
Cai Zhizhong (picked up a sanmao anthology): You see, this is Sanmao talking about me.
Beijing News: Well, this time I also re-read the preface written by Sanmao in your "Liezi Says".
Cai Zhizhong: Right, right, that's this one, you see how good I look from Sanmao.
I started to know her, she was a big writer, I just painted "The Drunkard" in Singapore's Lianhe Zaobao; she used to go back to the Sahara, and then I became an animation director, and I won the Golden Horse Award, the highest box office record ever; then I got the "Top Ten Outstanding Youth", and then I became the number one on the bestseller list.
Best-selling books should be really good to sell, and only a few people have really sold well: Long Yingtai, I, and Jimi, and before that, of course, Gulong was really red.
Cai Zhizhong's co-directed "Colorful Cartoon Old Master" won the Best Animation Award at the 18th Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival in 1981
Beijing News: Didn't you say that the last martial arts novel you painted was Gu Long's "Absolute Double Glory"?
Cai Zhizhong: Right.
Beijing News: Should it be 68 years at that time?
Cai Zhizhong: He was 46 years old when I met Gu Long (Note: Gu Long was born in 1938), and he was 20 years old when I painted "Absolute Double Glory" (Note: Cai Zhizhong was born in 1948).
Beijing News: So I didn't know him until I finished painting "Absolute Double Pride".
Cai Zhizhong: Yes, when I met Gu Long, he was 46 years old, and his face was full of old age spots.
We used to draw comics, and novelists would be happy. Because comics are more popular in the rental bookstore, comic books are on the right side of the entrance, and martial arts novels on the left. Cartoonists have relatively low incomes, and when a martial arts writer comes to Taipei to collect his manuscript fees, he will go to the comic company and say, "Hey, who is the one who drew my "Che Ma Cannon", I want to invite him to dinner."
Sanmao wrote Cai Zhizhong's "No Drunken Man", which was collected in her book "My Baby". "My Baby", author: Sanmao, edition: Beijing October Literature and Art Publishing House, September 2011
Beijing News: But since readers can read martial arts novels, why do people still choose to read comics based on martial arts novels?
Cai Zhizhong: Because of the low age from the beginning of reading comics, comics are good to rent martial arts novels. It's like you don't read my comics (ancient Chinese classics) first, and then read the original text.
Beijing News: Gu Long died at the age of 48.
Cai Zhizhong: Yes, I first saw Sanmao at Gu Long's funeral. I had known her for a long time, but we didn't want to meet, and the one she wrote about me was called "The Drunkard". I deliberately didn't meet her because I didn't know how to talk to her. I also have to write a note on my first date, (with a good list of topics on it), peek at the end of the first topic, and move on to the second topic.
Gu Long's funeral was in the first funeral home, and 48 bottles of XO were placed in the coffin. The last part of the ceremony was to visit the remains, and I went up to look at him and thought he looked so small in the coffin; Ni Kuang was sitting on the ground, with two bottles of XO on the side, already drunk.
At the door, her mother hugged me and said, "Cai Zhizhong, I ask you, Sanmao didn't commit suicide, right?" I said, "Of course not!" "Because she believes in Christianity, she can't go to heaven by suicide.
At Gu Long's funeral, Sanmao comforted Ni Kuang.
Beijing News: Sanmao wrote for a while that she wanted to sell the house, do you plan to buy it, and finally bought it?
Cai Zhizhong: She didn't sell it later. But one person ended up buying it, and he wanted to set up a museum for Sanmao. At that time, the house was very cheap, only 1.2 million yuan. She was on the fourth and fifth floors, and the fifth floor was illegal, but covered in concrete; all her "my treasures" were inside, including the urn I had given her.
Gu Long died at the age of 48, I went to his funeral, on that day I saw Sanmao for the first time; then Sanmao died at the age of 48, I went to the funeral, I don't know who saw me for the first time; I think I will also die at the age of 48 - so that the story can be continued.
Each of Lin Yutang's "Legends of China" is very good
Beijing News: At yesterday's press conference, you mentioned that this set of "pictures say Chinese classics" is universal. I immediately thought of Lin Yutang, because he wrote "My Country and My People", "The Art of Living", and so on, which also introduced Chinese culture to the West. I wonder if you have ever read Lin Yutang's book?
Cai Zhizhong: Yes, one of his books, my favorite one, is "Legends of China." "Chinese Legend" has a "jealousy", from the Song Dynasty a novel "Xishan a Cave Ghost", "Xishan A Cave Ghost" was later adapted by Hu Jinquan into "Legend in the Mountain", which simply made people vomit blood.
"A Cave Ghost in the West Mountain" is a classic novel form, that is, except for the male protagonist, the rest are all ghosts. Later this model made a lot of movies, like the two brothers in Quentin Tarantino who ran to Mexico, and the whole shopping mall (shopping mall) was a ghost story; then there was an Indian director who reversed this model, that is, a ghost, he was in the human world, but he didn't know that he was a ghost.
I will talk about "A Cave Ghost in the Western Mountains" to you: there is a Xiucai, who went to Beijing to catch the exam, did not pass the exam, and arrived in Hangzhou on the way back, close to homesickness. "It's so faceless!" He wanted to settle down here and go to the exam in the second and third year.
There are two villages there, the West Village is where he teaches, and the East Village is where he rents. There is a lake next to the house in the East Village, as big as the West Lake; there is a stone tower in the West Village. At this time, there was a matchmaker who said, "You should marry a wife." "There was a family living next door to him, and the father went with his mother and daughter to join him, and on the way the father died, so they had to settle here. When I went on a blind date, it seemed that the girl was a showman, not bad, and got married.
After getting married, he went to Nishimura every day to teach, and one day he forgot to take something, and when he came back, he found that his wife looked completely different, and quarreled with a little girl fiercely, and he wondered how his wife had become so fierce; the little girl's skirt was wet. He hurried in the door to get his things and left in a hurry. The little girl caught up with him and said, "Your wife is a ghost." He said, "How is that possible?" "The little girl said, if you sneak a mirror at night, you will see it." He looks in the mirror at night, Ouch! His wife is a ghost, and his wife's mother is also a ghost.
Frightened, he ran to the place where he was teaching, found that it was full of ghosts, and then quickly ran to the restaurant, found that the restaurant was also full of ghosts, and finally he was frightened. When I woke up the next day, I found a cemetery on the east side and a cemetery on the west side.
This is a classic story to the extreme. Hu Jinquan later adapted this, and I was angry, and a good story was made up by him.
Beijing News: Do you think Hu Jinquan did not shoot well?
Cai Zhizhong: It sucks. If you look at Lin Yutang's book, this story is called "Jealousy.". Lin Yutang's book Oh, each one is very good.
Director Hu Jinquan's "Legend in the Mountains" won four awards at the 1979 Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival for Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Art Design and Best Sound Effects.
Beijing News: Do you have any contact with Nan Huaijin?
Cai Zhizhong: No. I saw his son in Hangzhou on October 1, 2017 – he was already dead by then – and I asked his son, what are you doing now? His Hong Kong business is quite big, he said he is giving a speech now. His eldest son looked gentle, like a scholar.
The Hangzhou Municipal Government gave me two master buildings
Beijing News: Your current studio is in Hangzhou, I don't know what opportunity I went to Hangzhou at that time?
Cai Zhizhong: From 1998 to 2008, I spent 10 years in retreat and 40 days studying physics. I used to open an animation company, and after I got out of customs, I first bought an animation company in Guangzhou and bought 70% (shares).
One day, Wen Shaolun, chairman of the board of directors of Huang Yulang's comic company Hong Kong Jade Dynasty , (Beijing News: Wen Zhaolun? No, it's Wen Shaolun, who is also very good-looking, and almost caught playing "The Last Eunuch in China" — he was very good with me. At the end of the Year in 2009, more than three months later, he called me and said, "Teacher Cai, have you ever been to Hangzhou?" I said, "No." He said: "There is a Xixi wetland in Hangzhou, do you know?" I said, "I don't know." He said: "Xixi Wetland has a lot of master buildings do you know?" I said, "I don't know." He said: "Hangzhou leaders want to send you a master building, are you willing?" I said, "I'm willing to send both." "It turned out to really get two, hahaha.
Our home is the most beautiful xixi wetland, building A. Our house has a private lake, a private marina, the house has 1300 square meters, the whole is about 5000 square meters.
Beijing News: Yes, I see some reports saying that it is 950 square meters.
Cai Zhizhong: That's the inside of the house, I said (1300 square meters is) even the balcony, the second floor balcony is very large, the first floor balcony is bigger.
Hangzhou leaders are very kind, like Secretary Zhao Hongzhu, he is the secretary of the Zhejiang Provincial Party Committee, when he comes to Taiwan, he will definitely eat with me - of course, not me and him, and Governor Lu Zushan, then of course, there is Wang Guoping, Wang Guoping is the most powerful person in Hangzhou construction, almost comparable to Su Dongpo, he doubled the West Lake, so I came to Hangzhou.
I went to Hangzhou for the first time on April 27, 2009, then the second time was on June 5th, and then I settled in Hangzhou on September 29th, which is now equivalent to ten years after entering Hangzhou for 5 months.
Beijing News: So your company in Guangzhou sold?
Cai Zhizhong: No, I brought it here. Because the conditions in Guangzhou are very bad, mainly because local leaders do not pay attention, they pay more attention to people like Ding Lei (like that), NetEase.
I'm painting 108 dishes of Hangzhou,
I also want to paint "Food List with the Garden"
Beijing News: The comic Hangzhou Gang Dish you mentioned yesterday 108 dishes, will it be launched in May this year?
Cai Zhizhong: May 15th, Zhiwei Hangzhou Asian Food Festival.
Beijing News: So when is your "Suiyuan Food List" planned to be launched?
Cai Zhizhong: I should continue to do it. You see that the "Suiyuan Menu" has 326 dishes, but it is mainly the first half, and the first half talks about a lot of dietary rules, which is the essence. It is obvious that Yuan Ming is a person with a high IQ, he is comparable to Ji Xiaolan, northern Ji Nan Yuan. He wrote "Zi Bu Shu", "Zi Bu Yu" is one of three classic Chinese novels, "Liaozhai La", "Reading Wei Caotang Notes", "Zi Bu Yu".
I think "Suiyuan Food List" is one of the few books worth publishing in Chinese culture for three thousand years, it is the most powerful to talk about food, he did not write earlier that someone had written recipes before, like Li Yu's "Idle Love And Occasional Mail", he tried to do it, (found that those recipes are basically) hearsay. Yuan Ming is very similar to Li Shizhen, Li Shizhen spent 25 years writing the "Compendium of Materia Medica", if the beginning and tail are counted as 27 years, he has to taste and try every one.
Cai Zhizhong's "Suiyuan Food List" has begun to write, and the picture shows the image of Yuan Ming in his pen. In Cai Zhizhong's view, Yuan Ming can be described as a god of food, and unlike Li Yudao's hearsay, Yuan Ming is a foodie who will do it himself.
There is also Yuan Ming in Nanjing to open a fine restaurant, he every table to see the scenery is very beautiful, the fee is very expensive; then his female disciples are particularly many, female disciples should be entertained, the ingredients are precious, must be very expensive.
He sold two best-selling books, one for "Suiyuan Food List" and one for "Zi Mu Whisper".
"Suiyuan Food List", author: Yuan Ming, edition: Guomai Culture | Sanqin People's Publishing House, 2017
Beijing News: Speaking of which, you really haven't touched the theme of food in Chinese culture before you comics.
Cai Zhizhong: Yes, and I have drawn a diet, I will definitely eat and drink spicy in the future, hahaha.
Beijing News: But will you worry about this and your previous image in the media, that is, eating two steamed buns a day...
Cai Zhizhong: I still eat porridge and tofu milk, so I don't eat any exquisite food. Like bird's nest – I haven't eaten bird's nest in my life – if someone asks me to eat it, I have the choice not to eat it. It should be Ji Gong said, the food is only seven inches (Note: refers to the throat, neck of this section), do not spend a lot of money, spend a lot of time for these seven inches, because to the stomach is stool.
If you want to paint the theme creation, it will be red
Beijing News: You mentioned yesterday, on the topic of drawing, are you not as good as some Japanese cartoonists?
Cai Zhizhong: Of course, it's much worse. Japanese manga artists are very delicate, he has an assistant, he draws buildings and even glass very carefully, and the samurai swords are shining; but the point is not here. The point of the comic is not how finely you draw, but the content.
The Art of War, comics: C.C. Tsai, translated by Brian Bruya, edition: Princeton University Press, 2018
Beijing News: When you went to Japan in 1985, you were already a well-known cartoonist and a successful animation boss in Taiwan, so did you go to Japan mainly to hope that you would go to a higher level?
Cai Zhizhong: I want to draw a story comic.
I have an international outlook, (but) I can go a little faster than Ao Youxiang. I went straight to Hong Kong's Ming Pao and Oriental Daily. "Ming Pao" used Mai Jia of the new art city to paint "Bald Detective"; "Oriental Daily" used Hong Jinbao to paint "Fat Dragon Crossing the River". [These two works] I painted for two movie stars in Hong Kong.
Beijing News: You mean, specially created according to the image of the two of them?
Cai Zhizhong: Yes, because at that time, the most popular was not Shao and Jiahe, but the new art city, It was Mai Jia, Xu Guanwen, and Xu Guanjie.
"Oriental Daily" is the largest newspaper in Hong Kong, Ming Pao is the third largest newspaper, and the second largest newspaper is "Xin Pao". At the same time, Malaysia is directly reprinted, Malaysia of course does not pay royalties or writing fees, Malaysia's "Jianguo Daily", "Nanyang Shang Bao", "Sin Chew Daily" (all reprinted); then Singapore pays ah, Singapore Press Group. Sanmao writes about Huang Jinxi, chairman of the Singapore Press Group, and his wife (Note: Referring to the Huang Jinxi couple mentioned by Sanmao in the preface to "Liezi Says").
Huang Jinxi has four newspapers, the English version of the Straits Times, the Xinmin Evening News - newspapers are all first have evening newspapers and then there are daily newspapers, the evening newspaper is really important, I said the earliest time, because the evening newspaper can report today, and then there is the "Lianhe Zaobao", "Lianhe Evening News". Ao Youxiang and I both published in the Lianhe Zaobao and Lianhe Evening News, and there is a fee.
Beijing News: These stories are not enough for you (excellent)?
Cai Zhizhong: At that time, my four-panel comics in Taiwan could already earn 1 million yuan a year, but they were chicken ribs, tasteless, and it was a pity to abandon them. If it is not red, it will not be charming.
Beijing News: So in your opinion, "Skinhead Detective" and "Fat Dragon Crossing the River" are just to open up the Hong Kong market?
Cai Zhizhong: Yes, because it was popular at that time. In fact, the beginning of popularity is from Ao Youxiang, before the newspaper did not publish comics, think that comics are indecent, and later found out that the original adults also like to read comics, especially "OolongYuan", so our editor-in-chief said: "I can't understand what is good about your comic!" I said, "It's okay not for you." "Because then everyone watched the comics first and then watched the news."
Beijing News: So you think four-panel comics are not really something you want to do.
Cai Zhizhong: Yeah, that's not going to be a great cartoonist. So when I decided to be a great manga artist, I went to Japan, stayed, and learned Japanese. It's not that I worship Japan, but that Japan is the greatest manga kingdom in the world.
Japan was the first to do cultural and creative industries. The first, Dharma, made it tumbler by Japan 300 years ago; then "Thirty-Six Views of Fugaku", Katsushika Hokusai, is not simply painting 36 pictures of Mt. Fuji, but to see Mt. Fuji from different places; the other is Hiroshige Utagawa's "Fifty-three Times to Thekaido", Kyoto is the starting point, Edo is not counted, and there are 53 stations in the middle - you learn from here that the theme will be red and systematic.
Katsushika Hokusai, "White Rain On the Mountain of the Thirty-Six Views of Fugaku"
Beijing News: When Kodansha signed the contract with you, was "Zhuangzi Said" already published in Taiwan?
Cai Zhizhong: Yes, the signing of the contract with Kodansha was 1988, and the publication of "Zhuangzi Said" in Taiwan was 1987. Because from talking to Kodansha to finally signing a contract, they are very slow to publish books. In particular, they have never succeeded in introducing foreign comics, and I am the only one (successful). Before the introduction of French heavy metal, painting robots, outer space, 3,000 copies can not be sold; and then the introduction of "Superman", "Batman", "Spider-Man", can not sell, because the culture is different. Japanese people's feelings are more delicate and tortuous, and for them, the good guys and bad guys in Spider-Man are too simple.
"Spring Dream of the Old Capital" made me come into contact with the "old Beijing style" for the first time
Beijing News: In a previous interview, you said that you liked a lot of things when you were young, movies, music, you just said that you didn't like Hu Jinquan's "Legend in the Mountains", then I don't know what directors or works you like?
Cai Zhizhong: Of course, Shaw's director Li Hanxiang. If we say that after the cultural exchange between the two sides of the strait, like Wu Tianming's "Old Well" -- Wu Tianming has also been to our home in Vancouver, Zhang Yimou's "The Big Red Lantern Hangs High", and Chen Kaige's "Farewell to the Overlord" are all very good, of course, "Farewell to the Overlord" is based on Li Bihua's novel. Later, Zhang Yimou and Chen Kaige's big trucks and big productions, I felt, wow, how to do this. Because Zhang Yimou's most powerful film must be very few people and deep feelings, like his later "Return". The Japanese favorite was of course Akira Kurosawa; americans like Spielberg, Lucas, Quentin Tarantino were later likes.
Beijing News: What about Hong Kong and Taiwan directors like that time?
Cai Zhizhong: I started watching Foreign films when I was 5 years old, and I went to see Shaw only after drawing comics with the Tainan gang. "Shaw's production must be a good film." The first time I went to see "Spring Dream of the Old Capital", hey, it's very good! The first time I came into contact with the "old Beijing style" was "Spring Dream of the Old Capital", "Zhang Dashuai, wearing riding boots, holding a horse whip".
Shaw's 1964 film "Spring Dream of the Old Capital" is adapted from Zhang Hexhui's "Laughing Cause", which combines the strength of Shao's directors at that time to restore the old Beijing style. In 1964, Tsai Zhizhong was 16 years old and had only been in Taipei for a year.
Xiao Fangfang and Chen Baozhu's "Burning Red Lotus Temple" and "Green Blood Sword", the two films watched together, after seeing it, they were dizzy. Because they all jumped from the doorway to the wall, "kiang, kiang, kiang" jumped from the wall to the roof, and "kiang, kiang, kiang" jumped from the roof.
Xu Ke's "New Shushan Swordsman" is not bad, "Dao Ma Dan" is good, because I am very familiar with him; I am also familiar with Wu Yusen. Taiwan and Hong Kong are very small, and those who should know each other will know each other, those who should become good friends will become good friends, and those who should make a vendetta will make a vendetta. Artists are more clearly divided.
Beijing News: What about Hou Xiaoxian's movie?
Cai Zhizhong: I haven't seen Hou Xiaoxian's previous movies, the first time I watched it was "City of Sorrows", "City of Sorrows" is not bad. However, when we talk about movies, we have to thank a person named Qiu Fusheng, and all the big directors on both sides of the strait are made by him. He gave Zhang Yimou 3 million yuan to shoot "The Big Red Lantern Hangs High", and the entire "Overlord Farewell" was also planned by him.
Cameron is also a deadly idealist
Beijing News: You mentioned in the interview that before going to military service at the age of 20, the Taiwan government cracked down on comics. Why?
Cai Zhizhong: At that time, comics were very popular, students loved to read them, and teachers and schools confiscated comics because they affected learning. Then there were editorials scolding comic book villains, so that students were addicted to it, and there was no literacy level, so the government began to censor comics.
Beijing News: Is this the end of the 60s?
Cai Zhizhong: On May 1, 1966, our company closed on this day.
Beijing News: At that time, the government asked the comic company to close its doors?
Cai Zhizhong: No, I asked to be sent for trial, but the trial was there for three months and ignored you. Whether the one submitted for trial is 300 or 600 blocks, there are A rounds of reviews and B rounds of reviews. Then the A round changed "mo" to "mo", and the B round changed "mo" to "mo", in short, it was boring. The publisher knows that the government does not allow publication at all, so it does not do it directly.
Then I made up all the lessons I should have learned in my three years as a soldier, and my books are still there, what color science, illusion art, Western art history, Chinese art history.
Beijing News: You mentioned in your autobiography that you went to a TV station after military service and began to do animation. So is it said that the government suppressed manga, but allowed animation?
Cai Zhizhong: At that time, Taiwanese animation was all oem for Japan, and there was no animation film or television of its own. At that time, the Japanese set up a company in Taiwan called Shadow People (Note: referring to the Shadow Man Cartoon Production Center), and the investor was Japan Dentsu News Agency. Dentsusha is the largest advertising agency in Japan, one of the largest advertising agencies in Japan is Hakubundo and the other is Dentsusha.
Beijing News: You have cooperated with the mainland in recent years, such as "Wusheng Guangong", "Kung Fu Shaolin Temple"...
Cai Zhizhong: "Kung Fu Shaolin Temple" has not yet been filmed. I don't really want to complain about that, but now the situation is very bad, and there are at least 8,000 animation companies. I also teach a master's class at the China Academy of Fine Arts, and the animation illustration department is the most pitiful. Entering the animation company began to have a monthly salary of four thousand yuan, and it would be good to be able to do eight thousand yuan, the game company could have eight thousand to twelve thousand at the beginning, and IT began to have ten thousand.
"Wusheng Guangong" should be released in July. Last night there was one of my disciples, the deputy general manager of Wanda, and sitting next to him was the release he helped us introduce. One of his most recently successful films is Get Out, Tumor King. That low cost, sold six hundred million well, very successful.
"Wusheng Guan Gong", directed by Cai Zhizhong, will be released this summer.
Beijing News: You also cooperated with Tencent in the Dunhuang-themed "Wind And Sand", what was the situation of cooperation at that time?
Cai Zhizhong: I was the chief consultant of Tencent's animation platform for 13 years and 14 years, and they are not going to be an animation platform. The animation platform is still losing money to this day, and I also bought "One Piece" with Japan in the middle, spending tens of millions, or the income is not good, I see Migu seems to be not good. Be sure to change the way you do it. Therefore, this year's animation festival (note: referring to the 2019 Hangzhou International Animation Festival) We are going to explore the past and future of the animation industry. Because today the technology is enough - you go to see "The Legend of the White Snake" or "Big Fish and Begonias", but the writers and directors always have problems, and this year's anime festival will have to be reviewed.
The director of "Avatar" is very remarkable, he began as "Alien" (Note: referring to "Alien 2", Cameron is the director, or co-writer), and later wrote "Terminator" (Note: Cameron is the director and co-writer of "Terminator 1" and "Terminator 2"), shooting "Titanic" broke the box office record of "Gone with the Wind", and "Avatar" broke the record of "Titanic".
He loves to dive and makes a lot of documentaries. You go to see him shoot "Titanic", originally for example, 20% dividend, and director fee, and then shoot too long to shoot overspending, he said director fee I don't want; and shoot, the money is not enough, he said that the dividend is not wanted, the last dime did not earn.
Also a damn idealist.
Kou Huaiyu, a special correspondent of the Beijing News, wrote |
Edited by | Qin Dansi; Zhang Ting
Proofreading | Zhai Yongjun