In 2001, on an ordinary summer afternoon, 13-year-old Li Gen was doing his homework at home. The noise of cicadas outside the window made Li Yan a little restless, and he noticed that the atmosphere in his home was different from usual.
His father, Li Xuejian, has not been home these days, and his mother often goes out during the day, looking preoccupied.
Li Gan put down his pen and got up to ask his mother what had happened. His mother's appearance of wanting to speak made him even more worried, and when questioned, his mother told him with red eyes that his father was seriously ill and had been hospitalized in the hospital for more than a week.
It turned out that Li Xuejian was diagnosed with nasopharyngeal cancer and needed long-term treatment. This sudden bad news shocked and saddened Li Gan, who was still a child, and he begged his mother to take him to see his father immediately.
When he came to the hospital, Li Yan saw that his father Li Xuejian had lost a lot of weight, his face was pale, and he had shaved his hair for chemotherapy. His father, who is usually cheerful and strong, is now weak like a sick old man, and Li Geng's heart is like a knife, and he can't help but shed tears.
Li Xuejian comforted him that he only had a minor illness and would be cured soon. Li Gen knew that his father was strong, and nasopharyngeal cancer was one of the most dangerous cancers under the brain.
In order to work, Li Xuejian has to go to the set to film during the day, and then come to the hospital for chemotherapy at night. Li Gen persuaded his father to stop working and rest well. But Li Xuejian said that he couldn't delay the progress of the entire crew because of himself, and everyone counted on him for their work.
Looking at his father's desperate work, Li Gen silently swore in his heart that he must be a director, so that his father would not have to work so hard to film in the future.
Two years later, Li Xue was discharged from the hospital in good health and was able to return to work. Li Gen did not forget his promise to become a director, and after graduating from university, he mustered up the courage to propose to his father the idea of entering the film industry.
Li Xuejian did not object, but gave him a suggestion: you can learn Xi from the director in the crew first, and start from the basics, so that you can be solid.
accepted his father's proposal, Li Gen joined his father's crew filming at that time, starting from washing dishes and sweeping the floor, doing some chores. At the beginning, no one in the crew took him seriously, and Li Gen just worked silently, learning some basic processes from the director from time to time.
Although it was hard work, he felt that he was slowly growing.
A few months later, the director found that Li Gen was working hard and full of enthusiasm for filmmaking, so he began to ask him to follow him and teach some shooting methods and experience. Li Gen is very grateful to the director for his order, carefully taking notes, and understanding every step.
Even if he has to continue to do chores, he never complains, he just wants to gain more experience.
The days in the crew are very hard, and Li Gen often goes out early and returns late. But the time spent Xi with the director was very happy for him, and it was another step closer to his dream.
For one year, Li Gen was like a sponge absorbing knowledge, laying a solid foundation under the director's door, and storing valuable experience for him to become a director in the future.
In 2007, Li Gan passed the campus selection and obtained a one-year exchange opportunity in Japan. Before leaving, Li Xuejian did not prepare too much living expenses for him, but hoped that he could support himself abroad and work independently.
When he came to Tokyo, Li Jian first found a cheap rental house to live in. He found a Chinese restaurant in the Chinese area to work part-time, the owner and employees are mostly Chinese, and there is no barrier to communication.
The business of the restaurant is booming, and every time there is a meal, Li Gen has to shuttle quickly in the restaurant to receive an endless stream of diners. Although the work is busy, I get along well with the boss and employees, everyone takes care of each other, and the life is happy.
In his spare time, Li would spend a few extra hours in restaurants to earn living and tuition. Especially on weekends, I am busy from morning to night, and I am tired and have back pain at the end of the day. But seeing his hard-earned money, he felt happy and satisfied.
This year's overseas life, although hard, but also harvested the happy times in life.
Before returning to China, Li Gen specially invited his boss and colleagues to have a meal together. This Chinese restaurant adapted to him, and all the bits and pieces became precious memories of his life.
Unexpectedly, this year's overseas experience has also become a source of inspiration for his future film creation.
In 2013, Li Gen directed the first short film "One Night" in his life, hoping to be a blockbuster and open the road to a well-known director. However, the response to this debut film was mediocre after it was broadcast and did not receive much attention.
Li Yan was a little discouraged and confided in his father Li Xuejian about his feelings of loss.
Li Xuejian did not criticize him, but encouraged: "Son, everyone will not be too optimistic about the first work, so be mentally prepared." You are still young and have plenty of time to learn and Xi, and slowly grow into a good director.
Don't give up on your dreams because of one failure.
Li Gen listened to his father's words and fell into deep thought. Indeed, I have just embarked on this path, and my experience and vision are still very insufficient, and it is unrealistic to want to reach the sky in one step.
He decided to follow his father's advice and go back to enrich himself.
In 2016, Li had the dream of filming a film about his life in Japan. He began to lock up and work as a screenwriter, flying to Tokyo several times to relive the bits and pieces of that year with his old colleagues and bosses.
All the good memories become the nourishment of the film. After repeated polishing, the story script has become richer and more complete.
The failure of the first work did not break Li Gan, but made him more soberly realize that he had to put in more effort. He learned his lessons, continued to enrich himself, and approached his movie dream step by step.
Time flies, Li Gen has experienced the failure of his first work, and he has continued to enrich himself. Thanks to his tireless efforts, the story finally ushered in an upward spiral.
In March 2022, the movie "If One Day I Will Leave You" written and directed by Li Gen will be released nationwide. This film, which tells the story of the struggle and growth of Chinese students in Japan, deeply touched the audience and received wide acclaim.
After watching it, many viewers said that the movie truly restored the bits and pieces of Chinese students studying in Japan, which made people feel a lot of emotion after watching it, and they were impressed by those children who were struggling outside.
Li Gan, who wanted to make a low-key debut, did not expect his debut to become a double harvest of word-of-mouth and box office. The box office exceeded 100 million in the first week, and the praise was overwhelming, and Li Gan suddenly rose from an unknown director to a rising star in the limelight.
What's even more surprising is that this film also brought Li Gen a number of film newcomer awards, and successfully won the title of "New Director of the Year".
With the success of the first step, Li Gan's career is booming. As Li Xuejian's son, he did not rely on his father's fame to start, but relied on his own strength and efforts to break through a world in the film and television industry.
Starting from the most basic follow-up and miscellaneous, after the lessons of failure, continue to enrich yourself, and finally have a masterpiece. This kind of perseverance is worth learning from every filmmaker Xi
Li Gen has gone from an unknown little follower to a young director whose first work was a success, and his growth process is moving.
First, dreams take time to come true. From his first foray into the film industry to his official role as a director, Li Gen has gone through more than ten years of accumulation and waiting. In this process, he was not discouraged, but took one step at a time, slowly accumulating experience and vision.
This kind of perseverance and perseverance is what everyone with dreams needs to have.
Second, failure is not the end, but a new opportunity to learn Xi. Li Gan's first work failed, but he did not give up, but learned his lessons and continued to enrich himself.
Failure can only be used as a practice, not as a tombstone.
Third, self-improvement and self-reliance. Li Gen did not rely on his father's fame, but chose the most basic work to start with, relying on his own hands to gradually move up.
This spirit of independence is worth learning from Xi all.
Li's growth story is inspiring and conveys positive energy. His film career is just getting started, and the possibilities are endless. We look forward to Li Gen continuing to create films with warmth in the future, touching and purifying more people's hearts.