What can Chinese filmmakers pay attention to in Cannes?
After many years, at the just-concluded 76th Cannes International Film Festival, many active Chinese faces finally appeared. In the world's largest film trading market, filmmakers from China are making their voices heard to the world.
The global promotion plan of Chinese youth films, sponsored by the Wu Tianming Youth Film Special Fund of the China Film Foundation, selected four films, "Umbilical Cord", "Where to Grow", "Walking on the Moon Alone" and "Roof Football", which landed on the film market at this year's Cannes Film Festival. This not only helps the four works have more opportunities to meet audiences around the world, but also is a precious moment for the main creative team to establish exchanges with international filmmakers. A number of forums and exchanges with different themes recorded the unique perspectives and industry experiences of outstanding filmmakers at home and abroad.
The same topic may have been discussed countless times in many domestic film festivals and exhibitions, but the background of Cannes international exchanges still bursts out a different spark, and these contents may also bring certain enlightenment to the development path of domestic practitioners and the development direction of the industry.
Young filmmakers have difficulty in financing, and the whole world is the same
Domestic venture capital activities have blossomed everywhere, largely because of the number one problem of helping young filmmakers solve financing difficulties. Without a convincing market masterpiece or entry into the system, this is undoubtedly the biggest mountain stuck in front of young filmmakers, even in the United States, where the film industry is very mature.
Julie Sharbutt, a screenwriter, director, and actor from the United States, mentioned that young American directors often complain about how difficult it is to find financing, and that dilemma has changed over the years: "The way it used to be to put all your heart, money and talent into a feature film and make it your stepping stone is now that you have to prove yourself to be a great storyteller many times." ”
So, in addition to relying on some local government incentives for filmmaking, young filmmakers in the U.S. often need to self-finance and build and maintain relationships with potential investors time and time again. A popular saying in the U.S. is, "To find your first independent film, it's a good idea to make friends with dentists, who usually have disposable income and are a bit bored." ”
Venture capital opportunities are not out of the question, but the competition is particularly fierce. Director and producer Jacqueline Elyse Rosenthal said that in the United States, it is more difficult for young directors to find similar venture capital platforms and funding support. "For example, if we participate in a writing competition, there are a lot of competitors, and we may win two or three of these competitions to get 100,000 dollars." Jacqueline mentioned that she once shot a short film and sent out about 400 personalized emails to raise money. In her philosophy, although such work is very cumbersome and embarrassing, it is worth it because it is the beginning of an interactive relationship, "We need to have a network of our own relationships. ”
For domestic creators, at least various venture capital activities or support programs give talented young directors much more opportunities to enter the system. Qiao Sixue, the director of "The Umbilical Cord", mentioned, "In the past, you needed to knock on the door to ask for funds, but now there are many venture capital platforms for young directors to choose from. Post-80s directors sold property to make their debuts, and now there are many experienced production companies that have grown with us, which is very helpful for us. ”
Of course, there are still many limitations in these support methods, such as the neglect of jobs other than directors. In the view of producer Huang Maochang, the training of young filmmakers is the part that is not enough attention in China at present, "How a young filmmaker starts to learn, and then brings the film to Cannes, producers and directors with an international perspective are equally important." ”
At the same time, international co-production is also a feasible path for young directors, but it has not been paid enough attention to yet, Huang Maochang said, its disadvantage is that it will take a long time, "so I don't recommend every young director to do this." However, for some projects, it is better to cooperate with different countries and go to international distribution, which is also helpful for entering foreign festivals. ”
Therefore, in terms of cultivating new talents, although there are more and more platforms and opportunities in China, it is still necessary to expand more paths, cover more types of work, and improve the possibility of funds coming from all walks of life.
At the Women's Forum, I hope that there will be no women's forum in the future
Women are increasingly represented in the film industry, not just in China but around the world.
Isabella Blake-Thomas, a well-known American actress and producer, mentioned that in the United States, more and more women on the set are taking on various positions, "Although it is not ideal, in the past 15 years, I have noticed that this situation has changed significantly." ”
In France, there are also more and more female crews, and this depends on local welfare policies. Vanessa Djian, a producer from France, revealed, "When 50% of your crew is women, you can enjoy tax rebates and get more funds, which has brought a big change to the French film industry." ”
Several young Chinese filmmakers mentioned that in China, whether it is classmates in film and television schools or finalists in venture capital activities, the proportion of women is visibly increasing.
The number of employees has increased, and there will still be problems that male practitioners will not encounter in the process of working in the industry, such as the dominance of large projects, Vanessa said, "In France, when the artistic budget is high, there are not many female creators doing it, and the high budget is always reserved for male creators." ”
Not only that, but Vanessa also notes that a large number of projects are facilitated by networking through dinner with producers, directors and writers, and women may not have enough advantages to network under such traditional paths. So Vanessa holds a women's party every year during the film festival, "For example, the normal dinner party starts at half past eight, and in the first two hours, I only let female filmmakers into the venue." This wonderful bond between women can lead to a lot of energy and a lot of unexpected projects. ”
Or, the so-called topic of how to balance work and family, in the view of actor Yao Chen, this is completely unnecessary for male workers, "In our film and television ecological environment, when an actor has a child, it may not have any impact on his career, but will receive more praise, have a father's halo, and appear very responsible." On the other hand, actresses, when they return to the workplace after having children, people will pick on her changes in appearance, fat and ugly, etc., which may not be attractive to many people. This is a shift to a physiological perspective, not a spiritual one. ”
This is a topic that needs to be repeatedly mentioned in almost every female filmmaker forum, and it is also a big profile of the position of female filmmakers in the industry - to a large extent, the discussions in which male filmmakers participate are often degendered, while women's filmmakers forums cannot but talk about unique topics based on the situation of women.
Almost all the guests expressed that the biggest vision for the future development of female filmmakers is that there is no longer a need for such special topics and forums. Geng Zihan, the director of "Little White Boat", believes, "I think our current efforts, whether to make women's films or women's sports and forums, are all to make this topic no longer a topic." Ms. Yao said she hopes to attend a men's forum and hear them discuss how they can better understand women. Haiqing was even more blunt, "I hope that the term women's forum can be canceled." ”
In essence, the situation of female filmmakers in the film industry is already changing compared to before, but there are more hidden obstacles to overcome, from institutions, from ideas, from structures. After all, women represent more than just women, as Haiqing said, "Women are only the first to be seen, and there is an obvious imbalance." In addition to women, there are also vulnerable groups such as the elderly and children. If the first issue is not seen and not supported, a series of other questions will follow. ”
The horizons of international cooperation cannot be opened by individuals alone
Objectively speaking, although the domestic film market is still in the recovery period, the huge population base still supports its global box office potential, which is the part that many international filmmakers commonly mention and envy. Perhaps because of this, domestic film creators more often consider digging inward into the preferences of local audiences for films, and rarely study international audiences and international markets, and try to make creations that are also suitable for international communication.
Cedric Berrell, co-founder and executive director of Trinity Filmed Entertainment, pointed this out, "I think there are a lot of producers in China who know their home market very well, they do well and know how to do it, but they don't know much about how the international market works. ”
Specifically, for example, there are huge differences between domestic and foreign distribution models, and if you do not understand and adapt, international dissemination will inevitably be limited. Cedric analyzed that the release time in the Chinese market is very short, and he may not have heard its preview before the release. In the West, some films know they're going to be released before they even start shooting. "During the trailer and release, there are at least four weeks for the distribution company to find a suitable way to promote the film, and if they contact the film earlier, they will be given advice on distribution."
Of course, many times the sales performance of cultural products does not depend entirely on the means of sales, but also greatly related to the creation itself, how to tell the story that Chinese and Western audiences love to watch in the creation is a complex and long-term proposition.
In Ning Hao's view, emotion is the main reason for the barrier, "I always divide movies into left brain or right brain, whether it is more rational or more emotional." If there is a rational part, it can be better transmitted in different cultures. If it is more emotional, the barriers will be stronger, because the cultural perception is different in different countries. When I write stories, I intervene from an emotional point of view, but at the end there is a rational 'bridge' that will be seen by more audiences. ”
Ren Ning, the producer of "Roof Football", mentioned that although it is difficult to balance Chinese and Western audiences, there is a new possible path, "Now there are some screenwriters and directors who have studied abroad, have cross-cultural backgrounds, and make films after returning to China." Some of the stories they write may have cross-cutting elements. For example, the movie "Past Life" tells the love story of a Korean in New York. Is it possible that we can write similar stories and break down cultural barriers? ”
Such creators are not uncommon in China, but whether such a story will be written, and whether there will be investors and production teams willing to produce it, but there is a big question mark. In essence, the mastery of international vision cannot only rely on the transformation of individual directors, screenwriters or producers, but requires the entire industry to update its concepts in order to form a full-process international project incubation and pass on experience.
Ren Ning said that he expects a more systematic organization to emerge in international cooperation, "I have filmed abroad, and then when I come back, I will have friends ask about foreign resources, but they are all person-to-person, such as finding actors." Such a production industry is too private, and it would be better if it could be systematized. ”