Written by: Beijing News reporter Zhou Huixiaowan
The Feng Xiaogang I saw because of the movie has really been absent for a long time.
Since the release of his film "Only Yun Knows" in December 2019, he has not brought new film works, rarely given interviews, and rarely updated social media for almost four years. Finally, on March 2 this year, the movie "Loyal Dog Hachiko" starring him was announced to be released that month, and he forwarded the news and wrote four words "Long time no see".
Feng Xiaogang, who has not been seen for a long time, returned to the big screen because of the movie "Loyal Dog Bagong", and he was interviewed by the Beijing News and talked about the changes over the years. Photo by Beijing News reporter Guo Yanbing
It was precisely because of this moment that Feng Xiaogang appeared in front of the camera of the Beijing News. Asking him to say a brief hello to the readers of the Beijing News, he narrowed his eyes, "Hello old friends, I haven't seen you for a long time", telling the origin of his relationship with this newspaper, and also opened this interview.
Between words, Feng Xiaogang was still as calm and indifferent as usual, and he put away his sharpness and edge, as if he had realized a lot of confusion in the past. As director Xu Ang said, in the crew of "Loyal Dog Bagong" let him meet another Feng Xiaogang, "a very relaxed person, very warm, not cold at all." He is particularly dedicated and repeatedly accompanies the dogs' performances. It is probably this "sincere persistence" that allowed Feng Xiaogang to stand in this position. Asked if he has changed much over the years, he attributed the answer to "adaptation": "In the past, when you shot something and others had any bad comments, you would be a little angry and want to debate with the other person, but now I think it's a natural thing." Because this is an era of pluralism, everyone has the right to comment, whereas in the past only a few people had the right to have a voice. In the Internet era, as long as there is an Internet, whether it is in a small town in Guangxi or in the mountains of Guizhou, you can quickly express your opinion. So when a work comes out, there are all kinds of sounds, and I am comfortable with all these disturbances, and I am relieved. ”
He with his "eight tubes"
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Release the goodwill "Loyal Dog Hachiko" is "just needed"
The day that Feng Xiaogang finished his role in the movie "Loyal Dog Bagong" was the saddest day in his entire filming period.
He walked around the set, looking at the dogs, reluctantly, and whether the other party understood or not, he followed them and said something. Reluctantly, he didn't know how to express it, but he just hoped that these dogs could finally find a good home. Fortunately, in the end, Big Yellow (the dog actor who plays the eight tubes) followed the dog trainer, he was happy for this partner in the play, and naturally did not forget to tell the dog trainer - "raise it well and take good care of it".
The title of "dog lover", Feng Xiaogang did not allow it. He has always believed that dogs are quite familiar with humans, as long as you are good to it, it can feel your liking; If you are afraid of it, it can also feel it; When it encounters someone who specializes in killing dogs, it will scream when it sees those people. Dogs are very intelligent and very true animals. Like the character Chen Jingxiu in the play, Feng Xiaogang also has an indissoluble bond with the dog: a long, long time ago, there was always a stray dog wandering outside the window of his house, looking for food. At that time, the children of Feng Xiaogang's family were still very young, and his wife Xu Fan, like Li Jiazhen, played by Chen Chong in the film, was full of fear of dogs, one was afraid that the child would be bitten by the dog, and the other was to see the dog nervous, and even jumped to the chair in fear.
The movie "Loyal Dog Bagong" tells the story of Chen Jingxiu's family and the dog Bagong played by Feng Xiaogang, and in real life, Feng Xiaogang also had a "lost".
Xu Fan and Feng Xiaogang discussed and decided to find a security guard to drive the dog away, but they were worried about how the other party would "handle" it. Feng Xiaogang recalled that even though Xu Fan was very afraid of dogs, she wanted to protect every life, which eventually prompted her to overcome her fear and decide to adopt the dog, "I really like dogs, but at home, you have to take care of your family's feelings." When Xu Fan took the initiative to say that he wanted to adopt, I was very happy and named the dog Didi. Maybe because you have wandered around, you have been chased and beaten, you are afraid of life, and you only dare to follow you when you see people. I haven't heard it call for months when I arrived at my house, so I had to slowly take it to adapt. Later, it became familiar, and finally had a sense of territory at home, you created in the house, if someone came, it would remind you, and it would also help you watch the house and send things. In the blink of an eye, it was 16 years. Every time I go out filming, I worry that I won't see it when I go back, and I always ask. But unfortunately, it left us on the third day of the Lunar New Year this year..."
Feng Xiaogang's eyes were full of reluctance. For him, "Hachiko the Loyal Dog" is a story that belongs to dogs, about loyalty and companionship. This warm film tells the story of the emotions of a family and a dog, including those between family members. Releasing goodwill is the biggest effect of "Loyal Dog Bagong" that Feng Xiaogang believes, "In the past few years of the epidemic, everyone's mood has been very bad and very bad. Now are willing to watch some well-intentioned, warm movies, and take this movie out at this time, just in time. I also read the previous version, and then read the script they gave me, and I think that this localization is very good. I came from a painting background, and visually speaking, the shooting location was chosen in the scattered mountain city of Chongqing, which can shoot very strong theatrical characteristics. At the same time, this movie will definitely awaken those softness and kindness in people's hearts, and I think it makes sense to make this movie. ”
Non-professional actors
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A little less performance can cover up some ugliness
Throughout the film industry for decades, Feng Xiaogang has been switching different identities. As a director, he is regarded by the outside world as a quality commercial director who is good at grasping the pulse of the market, and this time, his identity has become a starring role. Although there have been the sixth master of the mighty side in the movie "Old Cannon", there is Du Yuesheng, the leader of the Shanghai Beach triad in "The Great Cause of Founding the People's Republic", and the arrogant crocodile gang boss in "Kung Fu"... But for Feng Xiaogang, acting always feels "not small": "I am not a professional actor, I am completely amateur." This performance is the same as when I played "Old Cannon" before, I said to director Guan Hu, I have my limitations, not the kind of actor who can be 'shaped' at will. Professionally trained actors can be shaped. I'm more afraid of this. For example, joy, anger and sorrow are a piece of cake for professional actors, you make him cry, he is 'okay, come on' in two minutes! You make him laugh, even if he thinks it's not funny, he can reflect it 'hahahaha'. I can't, you make me cry, I can only do it if I'm really sad, you make me fake smile when I don't want to laugh, then the performance may be very stupid and fake. So any performance, I ask for a real and natural response. ”
Feng Xiaogang smiled slightly, he said that he wanted to "hide" in performance, because he was not old enough to have an indestructible set of performance techniques and concepts, so he would reveal his thoughts on performance with the director, "I will tell the director, sometimes I can't laugh, don't laugh, let's see what other way to show happiness." All in all, I wanted to have less of an element of performance, so that it would cover up a little ugliness. In "Loyal Dog Hachigong", playing opposite Feng Xiaogang is a dog known as "born to act", he knows that the dog is the protagonist, and he is only a supporting role in the service of the movie. Before filming, he spent a long time with dogs to "desensitize", "Dogs are natural actors, their acting skills are unsurpassable, you need to follow its strength, have enough patience to get along with it, run-in, it can read your emotions, from your eyes, tone, can judge your love for it, know that you are not aggressive, it will also be friendly to you." ”
Feng Xiaogang prefers to call himself a non-professional actor, for him, all performances seek the most authentic and natural response.
Actor Chen Chong remembers that when the first script of "Loyal Dog Bagong" was read, Feng Xiaogang on the side always smoked, and she jokingly blamed him for smoking all the time. These small details suddenly made her find that the relationship with the characters in the play coincided, and in the film she played Chen Jingxiu's wife Li Jiazhen, and she would also "dislike" her husband, which is not good and that is not good, which is an indescribable tacit understanding. After filming, Chen Chong commented on this partner - he is full of kindness and love, there is nothing mean on him, he is a very sincere person, "He is very gentle and kind when he is with the dog." He is also a very good storyteller, and every time he mentions the people we know together and tells their stories, he is full of sincerity, and you can see that he attaches great importance to the friendship of the past."
And Chen Chong's participation became another motivation for Feng Xiaogang to play the male lead, he laughed and said that he loved to watch Chen Chong's movies in the army, "In the early 80s of last century, Chen Chong was already a well-known star, and I moved a little horse to watch a movie when I had nothing to do." From her fans, to playing two with her, how interesting this is! ”
The charm of creation
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To make a movie, you have to show passion, and when enthusiasm is gone, it becomes sin
In the years of hard work in the film industry, Feng Xiaogang confessed, "There will be times of excitement, there will be times of exhaustion, and there will be times of exhaustion and confusion." He often thinks that the charm of creation lies in breaking himself and breaking the creative habits he has. Although he has already received praise and recognition in those ways, he has always taken the praise of the outside world very lightly, because he knows it in his heart. This industry is like that, there are peaks and downhills. He has thought about what the ideal job would look like, and tried to find a more comfortable balance in the age group of 65 now, "If I don't shoot, rest, it seems okay, for example, I like to play, drink, chat, do these things every day, 365 days of 'professional play' is actually a bit boring." My ideal rhythm is to have a two- to three-month shooting period a year, focus on it highly, do another month or two of post, that is, there is a five-month struggle period, and the rest of the time can be lived easily and leisurely, which is particularly ideal. ”
"But, I know young people can't do that in this industry (laughs)." Feng Xiaogang explained, "When I come out of a film crew, sometimes I can rest for a day or two, sometimes I finish this crew today, and tomorrow I will enter another group." It can be said that their lives are completely tied to the chariot of 'shooting'. I see that they feel very hard, and even think that being so busy in the long run will not have a good effect. Because to make a movie, you still have to show enthusiasm. Throughout the year, you keep shooting, one after another, your enthusiasm is gone, and after that, shooting becomes a very sinful thing. ”
Feng Xiaogang, who is 65 years old this year, has been looking for a balance between life and work, and he believes that as long as it is working hours, he cannot deal with it. Photo by Beijing News reporter Guo Yanbing
How to balance busy work and longing for life, Feng Xiaogang has also tried to find it over the years, drawing a "seesaw" for himself, one end is "immersion" and the other is "empty". "The effort of physical strength, getting up early for a long time, eating boxed lunches... People of our age certainly can't do too much, but it's a bit boring to stop at all. In any case, I still want to express myself through film. So a 13-volume work like "Echo" is very suitable for me, and if you let me make dozens of episodes now, maybe I don't have that patience at all. Or, if the amount of shooting exceeds two and a half months, it is easy to slack, and it will be dealt with as soon as it is loose, which is not right. I don't deal with it during working hours, my requirements are very strict. ”
Feng Xiaogang has also recently watched several movies made by young people, and the popular "Umbilical Cord" and "More Than Endless" are all debut films of young directors, and the quality makes him feel excited, and he is really happy for the "great juniors". He also watched the movie "Keep You Safe" directed by Dapeng, which made him love it, the movie has a lot of funny places, but also has sincere emotions, the coat of entertainment is wrapped in a deep theme, about online violence and the director's attitude, so that Feng Xiaogang deeply empathizes with it. Not long ago, he met Dapeng and specially said to the other party, "This movie is very good, and I hope you will always insist on this kind of creation and keep shooting." ”
He believes that young people do not need the elders to constantly remind or take vaccinations, even if the latter has more experience than them, or has more experience of falling on the head, but these need to be experienced, realized, and perceived, "Before a person falls on the head, you tell him 'be careful', the other party is not aware, only when he really falls on the head, will understand." Let them experience, experience it in real life, so that there will be more profound perception. The world is theirs, there is no need for us old people to nag about everything. ”
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Listen to him
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Keyword: Feng's comedy is back
Feng Xiaogang once created a precedent for the Chinese film market "New Year file", the release of the movie "Party A and Party B", "Mobile Phone" and "Do Not Disturb If You Are Insincere", made him a frequent visitor to the New Year file, for a long time, people like to see "Feng's comedy" in this schedule. But in recent years, he was absent. Feng Xiaogang said that this is not intentional, and some works are not suitable for release in the New Year file due to the theme. But the creation of the film should not look at the schedule and be limited to the genre, for example, "Fang Hua" is also released in the New Year file, and the audience will not dislike it because it is not a comedy, so as long as the movie is good. For so many years, whether it is good or not, whether it is difficult or not, Feng Xiaogang seems to have long been accustomed to it, but he still has the desire to create, for example, he will shoot the comedy movie "Do Not Disturb 3" this year, which is what he needs, because the shooting process must be very pleasant, and he is also looking forward to the start of this movie.
Feng Xiaogang will start filming the movie "Do Not Disturb 3" this year, and choosing comedy is also the state he needs more at this stage. (The picture shows the movie "Do Not Disturb 2")
I miss the feeling of making comedy. In the past, I made some [comedy movies], which were called New Year films, and the market feedback was also very good. But then again, as a director, you always shoot something of one type and have aesthetic fatigue. Therefore, I also hoped to keep making changes, and then I made some "other films", such as "Rally", "Tangshan Earthquake", "1942", "Fang Hua", "I Am Not Pan Jinlian", etc., these different types of films keep my creation fresh, plus there are some things that I have not touched, which is a challenge for creation.
To be honest, I think I'm lucky to have the opportunity to try something different. Because many times creators are easily kidnapped by the market, everyone always says, "You shoot this, this box office is more; You get this, this is popular", as a result you are tied to this "chariot" and cannot get off and off. The reason for restarting "Do Not Disturb" is because I think that "the market always needs comedy", not that Feng Xiaogang's comedy is always needed, and so many directors have achieved success in comedy. My choice of this year seemed like the right time, and because I hadn't made a movie in years. So, as soon as you start to make (movies), I think it's better to choose a more relaxed and fun genre.
Readme: Feng Xiaogang
Keywords: Directing an online drama is "under the fan"?
The previous hit TV series "North and South" and "Echo" allowed the audience to see the identity change of Feng Xiaogang in recent years. Compared with being a director, he is a producer and directs online dramas, based on the stereotype of "big screen first", the outside world will think that this is a "mortal" behavior, how does he view this statement?
In recent years, Feng Xiaogang has served as the director and filmed the TV series "North and South" (top) and "Echo" (bottom).
I think so, the filming of "North and South" and "Echo" was also affected by the epidemic. The epidemic has changed many people's viewing habits, and many viewers have begun to get used to watching movies and television works at home and on TV. There are also many movies on the playback platform, unless visual effects blockbusters like "Avatar" and "Star Wars" need to rely on the big screen and audiovisual effects, but the general feature film, you are quite comfortable watching at home. Pour a cup of tea, pull open a can of beer, light a cigarette, even if a call comes, "snap" to pause the image. But watching it in the cinema, you miss a big plot when you go to the bathroom. I believe that it is not a luxury to have a large 60-inch TV at home now, and the stereo can also have stereo. And I know that many large foreign companies, such as Netflix, Apple, HBO, are producing movies broadcast on the Internet and TV, which provides a great stage for many directors and screenwriters who like to create.
If you think about it, it's really a little inconvenient for you to have someone dedicate a few hours to the cinema, the cost of the round trip, and sitting in it and not being able to make a phone call. Now everyone's time is becoming more and more autonomous, you want to watch something shot on a platform at home, in fact, you can wait for the work to finish, watch it for an hour before going to bed, and then watch it again tomorrow, which is more in line with modern people's viewing habits.
There is also that sometimes a long novel, you compress it into a movie, you have to throw away a lot of more interesting details, but a ten-episode drama happens to be a long novel, each character can be presented relatively full, three-dimensional, has its history, but also has its space.
Oral description: Feng Xiaogang
Keywords: catering to the market or staying true to yourself
Making movies is a passionate investment for Feng Xiaogang. Being here, he can feel the great changes that the Chinese film industry is undergoing. As a practitioner, he understands that feedback from the outside world is inevitable, whether he wants to be true to himself or to cater to the market, and he believes that the criterion for finding balance in contradictions is "heart". At the end of the interview, asked him "why there are not so many classics in this era", Feng Xiaogang gave his opinion.
When faced with a choice, the first thing is that you have to be worthy of your heart and ask yourself whether you like this thing or not. If you don't like it, even if others tell you that "the market will be hot and will be very popular", but your emotions will not be invested, and even it will turn into a task-based shoot, which is not good. Any work, first of all, must be moved by yourself, and then it is possible to shoot it and move others.
Nowadays, there are really not so many classics, I think it is probably related to the atmosphere, such as the current Internet, it is easier to "button the hat". But in essence, it is quite far-fetched, and it will arbitrarily judge what kind of problems exist in a work, and it is not good and scary to always hold on to the problem. Many creators will be worried about this, so they will find the safest and safest way to create, and everyone's vision will become narrower and narrower, and it will be over. Because everyone is crowded into safe passages. I think this phenomenon should be changed, and it should be more inclusive and relaxed to provide a generous creative atmosphere.
Oral description: Feng Xiaogang
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