Per reporter: Ding Zhouyang Bi Yuanyuan Per intern reporter: Zhu Peng Per reporter Per editor: Dong Xingsheng
More than 12,000 staff names, scrolling for eight minutes in the end credits, Yu Dong was full of emotions.
At the age of fifty and nearly thirty years since filming, Yu Dong, chairman of Bona Pictures, came up with a film with the highest investment, the longest preparation period and the largest crew in the history of Bona Pictures and even Chinese film industry, "Changjin Lake". On September 30, "Chosin Lake" officially met with the audience.
At this moment, "Chosin Lake" is not carrying the honor and disgrace of Bona Pictures.
With a quarter left in 2021, the total box office of the national film just exceeded 30 billion yuan, only half of what it was in 2019. The sluggish air has lingered in the industry for too long, and it is too much to need a grand and acclaimed blockbuster to pull the audience who is about to lose their movie habits back to the cinema!
During the epidemic last year, the national film industry was shut down, and the cinema did not know when to restart, as the founder and chairman of Bona Pictures, Yu Dong felt unprecedented pressure.
When the film market was so difficult, Yu Dong decided to shoot "Chinese Doctor", "Changjin Lake", "Nameless" and "China Pride Trilogy" to carry the "banner of saving the city". But just started to stop, just ready to release and rescheduled... Today, the heavyweight "Chosin Lake" finally came. As the producer of this film, Yu Dong accepted an exclusive interview with the reporter of the Daily Economic News.
Previously, on September 25, "Chosin Lake" held its premiere in Beijing Image source: Photo courtesy of Bona Pictures
<h2>With the team at the bottom of the pressure box, "make a classic that can still move the audience after fifty years"</h2>
After "Chosin Lake" was finalized again, many people felt that the rescue work of this year's film market had finally come.
The decision to restart the filming of "Chosin Lake" required a lot of courage for Yu Dong at that time. This war epic blockbuster, which was originally scheduled to be released in 2020, had to be stopped due to the epidemic. In October last year, "Chosin Lake" was restarted. In order to seize the progress of the construction period, the second-time "Changjin Lake" gathered three directors Chen Kaige, Xu Ke and Lin Chaoxian, Huang Jianxin as the supervising producer, and Wu Jing and Yi Yanqianxi starred.
"We can't afford to miss it." Yu Dong said. At that time, there was only one idea, and I must complete "Chosin Lake". "No matter what kind of changes will occur in the film industry in the future, since we have moved this theme, we must complete it." To this end, Boehner used all the team at the bottom of the pressure box.
The specific investment amount of "Chosin Lake", Yu Dong only said that "it should be the largest production in history". Why is it so expensive? Where is the focus? The script is 130,000 words long, and the preparation period alone is more than two years. The three directors led three major groups of people into the shooting, using super-large-scale military equipment, more than 100 kilometers of action design, more than 70,000 extras to participate, and the support of nearly 100 post-special effects production companies... he listed.
Stills of "Chosin Lake" Image source: Courtesy of Bona Pictures
Until May this year, with the stimulation of the Spring Festival stall, the tentacles of investors were also awakened, and the onlookers who had been inquiring about the news of "Chosin Lake" from various channels were finally persuaded by Yu Dong. Soon, the "national team" struck, and companies such as Bayi Studio, China Film Company and Huaxia Film successively pursued "Changjin Lake".
"Before leaving, my daughter asked me why I was fighting this battle. I know that if we don't fight this battle, we have to fight it in their generation. We fight this war so that they can not fight. This is a dialogue between Zhu Yawen and Wu Jing in "Changjin Lake".
Zhu Yawen played Mei Sheng, the instructor of the Seven Companies in "Chosin Lake", Picture source: Courtesy of Bona Pictures
This can't help but be reminiscent of the newsletter article "Who is the Cutest Man" published in 1951 documenting the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea: Dear friends, when you take the first tram in the morning to the factory, when you carry the plough rake to the field, when you finish a cup of soy milk and carry a school bag to school, when you sit quietly at your desk to plan the day's work, when you stuff apples in your children's mouths, when you take a leisurely walk with your lover, friends, Do you realize that you are in happiness? You may look at me in surprise: "This is very common! "But those who have returned from North Korea will know that you are living in happiness." Please realize that this is a kind of happiness, because only if you realize this can you understand more deeply why our fighters are fighting in Korea.
Punch away with one punch, so as not to have a hundred punches coming! The years are quiet because someone carries the weight for us. The victory won in the arduous War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea and the peace bought for future generations has not been forgotten by people in the past, nor should people now and in the future. In The heart of Yu Dong, "Chosin Lake" is not only filmed for today's young people, but also for young people fifty years later.
"'Shangganling' and 'Heroes and Children' are films of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea that have a profound impact on our growth, and they are still excellent today. So I was thinking that although I could make a good film without spending so much money, I had to choose the hardest road. We want to make today's young audience like, but also let the young audience fifty years later also like, this is a classic that can survive, when you hold such an idea to create, the film's production pattern, production concept, production method is completely different. ”
Before the release of "Chosin Lake", Bona handed over "Chinese Doctor", which is a film that truly shows the arduous fight against the epidemic. "We quickly gathered together to make such a movie, so that everyone can see so many people fighting for us in spite of themselves, let us cherish the present, cherish the people around us." Yu Dong said that the pressure of contemporary people's life is very large, the pressure of work, the pressure of mortgages, and the pressure of family expenses are very large... "But if this movie can give you a little comfort in your heart and give you a little courage to live, it is enough, it is enough, this is the responsibility of our filmmakers." ”
Stills of "Chinese Doctor" Image source: Courtesy of Bona Pictures
<h2>The main theme of the film market is already a sea of red, how can Bona do the main theme again? </h2>
"Chosin Lake", "Chinese Doctor" and "Nameless" constitute the battle of the main theme upgrade in Yu Dongkou. With the release of "Chinese Doctor" and "Chosin Lake", Bona Pictures, which is at the helm of Winter, played the third section of the "main melody movement" - "China's victory". Prior to this, Boehner had completed the "Mountains, Rivers and Seas Trilogy" ("Wise Tiger Mountain", "Mekong Operation" and "Red Sea Operation") and the "China Pride Trilogy" ("Decisive Moment", "Heroes of Fire" and "Captain China").
These six films brought Bona more than 10 billion box office, and also successfully laid the leading position of Bona's main theme commercial films in China. And the dripping stone is not a day's work, this movement, in the winter composed for nearly ten years.
At the end of 2009, Bona invested in the filming of "October Siege" set in the Republic of China and about a group of revolutionary righteous people from all over the world protecting Sun Yat-sen. The film showed the sacrifice of small people, and finally achieved nearly 300 million yuan at the box office, becoming the runner-up at the box office that year, and also won the best film at the 29th Hong Kong Film Awards.
It was an attempt by Yu Dong to enter the main theme of commercial blockbusters. In 2013, when Yu Dong began filming "Wise Tiger Mountain", the mainstream of the film market at that time was the film theme adapted from online novels such as fantasy and tomb robbery. Lead actor Zhang Hanyu once recalled that for this red classic theme, the big data company's prediction at that time was "not recommended to shoot".
Stills of "Wise Tiger Mountain" Image source: Maoyan Pro Edition
In that environment, Yu Dong still decided to shoot a 3D version of "Wise Tiger Mountain". The film draws on the production methods of Hollywood commercial films, changing the rhythm, context and routine of the main theme films in the past. "There was always a wall between the former main theme film and the market, and this time we opened a hole in the wall, which suddenly made young audiences feel refreshed by the main theme movie." The film grossed 880 million at the box office that year, setting a new record for the main theme of the film. ”
"Red Sea Action", released in 2018, became the champion of the Spring Festival file with a box office counterattack of more than 3.6 billion, and the wall between the main theme film and the commercial market was demolished by Bona, and the main theme movie can also be applauded and sold, and it is not a flash in the pan. From "Wise Tiger Mountain" to "Captain China", in 5 years, 6 films, more than 10 billion yuan box office, the main theme of commercial blockbusters has become Bona's signature.
But once and for all in the film industry does not exist, and once the vane of making money is raised, it will become a new Red Sea. In 2019, the main theme movie became the main theme of the market, from the "Wandering Earth" in the Spring Festival file to the "My Motherland and Me" in the National Day file, the main theme movie blossomed everywhere. Homogeneous competition is becoming more and more fierce and difficult, and then do the main theme of the film, Bona to take a new road. "In fact, Bona wants to do one thing for the industry - upgrade, the main theme of the commercial film blockbuster road we created, and then push forward to achieve genre breakthroughs, aesthetic breakthroughs and visual breakthroughs." Yu Dong said.
In Yu Dong's view, "Changjin Lake" will become a new benchmark for Chinese war films, and its coordinate significance lies not only in pushing the industrialization specifications of Chinese films to a new height, but also in the fact that Chinese films can calmly face large productions and large investments equivalent to Hollywood A-grade productions.
<h2>The bottoming out of the industry needs to be done by the head, and the biggest bottleneck is still the difficulty of financing</h2>
Last year, when Yu Dong decided to shoot the "China Victory Trilogy", what was in front of him was the reality of the long-term closure of cinemas and the serious loss of audiences. This year's Spring Festival file, "Hello, Li Huanying" sold 5 billion yuan and seemed to stimulate the market, but then the repeated epidemics poured cold water on the market.
The epidemic in 2020 pressed the pause button on the film industry, and after a 6-month winter, the originally ambitious Boehner had to worry about survival. "Last year was the toughest year for filmmakers, and Boehner wasn't entirely spared." Yu Dong said that as a film group integrating investment, distribution, cinema management and cinema projection business, Bona Cinema has a small income during the epidemic in 2020.
Director Chen Kaige Image source: Courtesy of Bona Pictures
In order to save himself, Yu Dong increased the online sales of Bona Film Library on the one hand, and pleaded with landlords and developers to reduce rent and reduce rent for the theater. "Through this incident, I have a special feeling, in addition to the country's bailout policy, entrepreneurs help entrepreneurs in times of crisis, which also reflects the resilience of China's economy from the side."
In the face of difficulties, it seems safer to retreat from the enclosure, while facing difficulties requires harnessing risks and opportunities.
Yu Dong said that such a large investment, it is impossible to say that there is no worry, but in this process, we have tried our best to deal with it. "Now don't worry, after the shooting, everyone is very satisfied."
In Yu Dong's view, the effective recovery of the film market needs to be pulled in both directions. The market recovery depends on the head content, and the production of the head content depends on the head company to withstand the pressure and come up with a "hard dish" of heavy investment. "Everyone lost confidence and began to recycle the funds, and this time Boehner was going against the trend." Launch the biggest project and use the ultimate production to mobilize the confidence of the film market to bottom out and the confidence of the demand for movies. ”
When it comes to the biggest bottleneck in the development of individuals and enterprises, Yu Dong said that financing is still difficult.
"I actually have a lot of ideas, I want to shoot a lot of subjects, but what we really encounter is the financial difficulties, we are now relying on the development of our own funds, it is not enough to meet the needs of enterprises to become stronger and bigger, we really want to become a world-class enterprise, we need the support of the financial system." Simply using its own box office recycling to operate and operate, the company still does not do much, or there is no way to compete with the six major companies in Hollywood. ”
"In recent years, due to various negative events in the film and television industry, all sectors of society have also looked at this industry with colored glasses. Now is the most difficult time in this industry, according to incomplete statistics, in recent years, few film and television industry in the A-share listing. Yu Dong said.
Stills from Operation Red Sea Image source: Cat's Eye Pro
<h2>Half a year old, I still want to make a hundred more movies</h2>
In the past 10 years, when the film industry was booming, Yu Dong felt that it was not difficult to make movies, until the epidemic made him find that film companies began to regard survival as the first priority, and he felt that the industry was too difficult to get to where it is today. As the leader of Bona, Yu Dong wants to lead the company through the cold winter and win.
Shooting the "China Victory Trilogy", Yu Dong must not only have the determination to think and dare to do, but also do a good job as a family. "Stay in the green mountains and win the future." Yu Dong said, "Being a boss is not the same as being a producer, the boss is not spending money, the boss has to calculate the account, where the money comes from, you have to prepare the bullets and silver for the team behind your back." ”
The final part of the "Victory Trilogy," "Nameless," tells the story of underground CCP members during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and will be directed by Cheng Er. In 2016, "The History of the Demise of Romanticism", which brought together a number of powerful actors such as Ge You, Zhang Ziyi and Asano Tadanobu, made this director with a very personal style known to more audiences.
Yu Dong revealed that "No Name" should have started filming in April, but because Cheng Er revised 13 drafts of the script, it was officially launched in August and strived to be released within the year. Compared with the directors of the other two parts of the trilogy, there is a certain distance between Cheng Er's past work style and commercial blockbusters, but Yu Dong is looking forward to it. "Cheng Er will have his style, and what we have to do is to convert his style elements into elements of commercial films, which is the most valuable attempt he has made with Boehner this time."
Yu Dong and Cheng Er Image source: Maoyan Pro Edition
Whether it is the theme or the genre, Yu Dong has never stopped trying to make movies, and he really can't stop, the "Victory Trilogy" has not yet been completed, and he has a new filming plan. During the filming of "Chinese Doctor", Yu Dong came into contact with Academician Zhong Nanshan and was moved by his story, so he wanted to make a "Biography of Zhong Nanshan", a film about how individual life closely collides with the times, and how to see the epitome of the times from individual lives. Yu Dong said: "The doctor profession is a worldwide theme, and I want to make a pure humanistic film. ”
Born in 1971, Yu Dong is 50 years old this year. As the old saying goes, "Fifty and knowing the Destiny of Heaven", Yu Dong once planned to retire at the age of 50 and return to film school as a teacher. But now, he feels that this point in time is too early, and he hopes to do more things for the film industry and make more good movies when he is young and powerful, because he feels that now is the best time for his resource ability, thinking ability, learning ability and mental state.
He said that a good movie is like a sermon, conveying a spirit, and it is the mission of literary and art workers to use movies to arouse everyone's courage to challenge difficulties. At the end of the interview, Yu Dong said that he hoped to maintain his good health so that he could make another 100 good movies.
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