Interview with young filmmakers: Young filmmakers must have their own mission and responsibility

Beijing, November 1, 2014 (Reporter Song Li) On January 26, 2014, Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, president of the people, and chairman of the Central Military Commission, braved the freezing cold of more than 30 degrees below zero to visit and comfort the officers and soldiers in Shubian, and listened to the officers and soldiers tell the story of the "Acacia Tree" on the spot. After listening to the story, Xi Jinping was very moved and instructed to take good care of the relatives and children of the martyrs. What is this "acacia tree" story that pins on the life-and-death love of border guards and military sisters-in-law?

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In 1984, when Li Xiangen, the commander of the Triangle Mountain Border Defense Company, led a patrol, he suddenly encountered a flood, and Li Xiangen was swept away by the rushing river to save his comrades. His wife, Guo Fengrong, rushed to the army with her 2-year-old son in her arms, waited bitterly at the place where her husband had disappeared, and cried for 3 days and 3 nights without waiting for her husband to return. So she planted a sassafras pine next to the post where her husband was stationed to mourn, and every year after that, she came to the post to take care of the "acacia tree" and visit the border guards stationed here. In 2010, Guo Fengrong fell seriously ill, and before she died, she instructed her son to "after I die, please scatter my ashes in the Halaha River, and I will be with him forever." In accordance with the old man's last wishes, the family scattered her ashes into the Halaha River where her husband sacrificed, and accompanied her husband to guard the border pass forever.

On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the party, the movie "Watching the Acacia Tree" adapted from this true story will be released in more than 900 theaters across the country on November 20, in order to praise the generations of border guards and their families for selfless dedication and noble feelings of defending the country, calling on the society to form a strong atmosphere of respecting military sisters-in-law, so that more people can see the greatness of military sister-in-law, understand the hardships of military sister-in-law, and pay tribute to those military families who have paid silently and without words behind the peace and security of the country and the quiet years.

Before the release of the film, a reporter from China Youth Network interviewed the chief producer of "Watching the Acacia Tree", a member of the All-China Youth Federation, and a member of the Standing Committee of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Youth Federation.

The chief producer of "Watching the Acacia Tree", a member of the All-China Youth Federation, and a member of the Standing Committee of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Youth Federation. Courtesy of the interviewee himself

A "starting from scratch" re-departure: with the support of spiritual belief, always believe that you can do it!

Warm, a Mongolian girl born in the Horqin steppe, graduated from the Communication University of China majoring in film and television editing. After graduating from university, she worked as an editor and director in the "Music Tribe" column of the Chinese Satellite TV Channel of Inner Mongolia Radio and Television Station. As a party member, she served as the deputy secretary of the general branch of the Inner Mongolia Radio and Television Station, the secretary of the inner Mongolia Satellite TV League branch, and a member of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Youth Federation. In 2013, Warm decided to go to Beijing to develop. In the eyes of many people, the bold decision to give up stable jobs and development prospects to go to Beijing is very challenging. Especially for a girl, from a relatively comfortable environment and state, to a brand new city to open up the world, not only means that everything returns to zero and starts from scratch, but also has a lot of practical difficulties.

At that time, many friends around me left Beijing to return to their hometowns, and their warm hearts also played a retreat. Later, I thought about it, not only can I not go back, but also cherish the time to forge myself, and better contribute to the grassland hometown that has been haunting my heart.

"It took me almost three years to buffer the psychological gap and adapt to the new environment. Faith and spiritual support are really important, and you have to believe that you can do it. With such a belief, warm persevered. During this time, she spent all her time outside of work studying, pursuing a master's degree at the University of Hong Kong to achieve academic upgrading, and combined with hands-on practice, she had a deeper understanding and understanding of film and television creation.

"If you think every day that I can't do it, I can't do it, the will will be slowly consumed." 」 In fact, it is not enough to have a firm belief, but also to put it into action. Warm said, "If you want to do something, there will be many difficulties in front of you." It mainly depends on whether you dare to overcome and challenge. As General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized at the opening ceremony of the training class for young and middle-aged cadres at the Central Party School, 'young cadres should improve their ability to solve practical problems' and 'if they want officers to be able to do things'. ”

A "little girl" big feeling: this is a good Story of China that is worth spreading

In 2019, a friend recommended the "Acacia Tree" story to warm. After digging deeper, I was deeply touched and decided to form a team to start shooting. Although she has served as a producer at CCTV International Television Corporation and participated in the production and launch of many main theme film and television works such as "Town Justice", independent filmmaking is still a huge new challenge for her.

"Why do you suddenly want to make movies? Do you want to make a little niche movie?" You haven't made a movie, can you make it?" ......

Voices of doubt filled her ears. If everything had been weighed in terms of pros and cons, the film might not have been born.

Being able to persevere must be related to feelings.

"Military feelings, professional feelings, hometown feelings... And the more romantic feelings of feeling that I am responsible. "Warm jokes.

From childhood to adulthood, I felt the spirit of Chinese soldiers, which made Warm better understand the persistence of soldiers and military sisters-in-law.

Wen Wen has been a choreographer and director at Inner Mongolia Radio and Television Station for 10 years, and this experience has laid a solid foundation for her to make films. "This job has fostered my judgment about things and my professional values. Let me be more inclined to tell every good Story of China. ”

Moreover, "the story of the acacia tree takes place in Inner Mongolia". Letting more people know about this touching story that happened in her hometown has become one of her motivations for making movies.

Along the way, I firmly believed: I don't think about what to do if I can't do it, but I think about how to do it

Everything was ready for the pre-film preparations, and the remaining problem was that there was no money.

What about investment? This is the first "economic problem" encountered by Warm. "At that time, I contacted some classmates to borrow money, and they were willing to borrow money from me without interest, and the film finally had a start-up fund." Later, some classmates and good friends were touched by warm feelings, and they supported the film in the form of investment. Even when it comes to booting, warm "heart is all drumming, because there are too many unpredictable factors in filming, you may face a break in the capital chain at any time, and you always have a few IOUs in your hand." ”

After that, when filming, it encountered the peak tourist season in Arshan, and the cost was several times higher than expected; Before the killing, the heroine suffered a serious car accident... This is undoubtedly a huge test for the warmth of making a movie for the first time. In the process of the birth of the movie, the warmth encountered one surprise and fright, and the five flavors were mixed and unforgettable.

Especially the car accident that happened in Arshan, she still has palpitations in her heart. At that time, the film was about to be completed, and when the main creative team was preparing to move to the last shooting location, an accident occurred. Zhu Yan, the actress Nonili, had a serious car accident on the way to the airport, and the commercial vehicle he was riding in was scrapped on the spot.

"Hearing this news, I didn't believe it was true, I was heartbroken, scared, worried, guilty..." Warm said, "Zhu Yan is very strong." Thankfully, she recovered well and the post-reshoot went well. ”

Accidents do not give people a chance to breathe, the heroine is absent, and the pace of film production cannot be stopped. Warm and the main creative team adjusted the plan in time, modified the script, and changed a shooting of the original script. The meeting between two military sisters-in-law with different era backgrounds is transformed into a dialogue of letters that transcend time and space, but it presents a more meaningful fragment.

Today, the movie is about to be released, but the warmth still can't relax, because with it, it is the "graduation test" of the box office.

"You spend so much money on this movie, be careful that no one watches it on the theater line, and it is adrift." "If you can't make money, what are you doing filming it?" One real problem after another has become the pressure that Warm is facing at all times.

"I'm prepared for the worst." Warm smile, "What if no one buys a ticket?" What should I do if I am in debt? There are those possibilities, but they certainly can't be abandoned now. I will try to do my best. ”

If the fish and the bear's paw can be obtained at the same time, it is a beautiful thing, but if "the two cannot be combined", it is necessary to weigh a trade-off. As a young filmmaker, Warm believes that when economic and social benefits conflict, economic benefits should serve social benefits. "'Watching the Acacia Tree' is a work where social benefits are paramount." Warmly told the China Youth Network reporter that this film has been listed by the Political Work Department of the Central Military Commission as a "key film of the army celebrating the 100th anniversary of the founding of the party", and has been listed by the Propaganda Department of the Party Committee of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region as a key project for the creation of major theme literary and artistic works in the autonomous region (2019-2022), and for two consecutive years (2019 and 2020) it has won the Outstanding Film Wenrong Award at the National Defense and Military Film Festival.

An unforgettable spirit: young filmmakers must have their own mission and responsibility

"Everyone has an acacia tree in their heart, but what about yours?" In the film, the heroine, Nonorie, asks another young military sister-in-law in the letter.

During the filming of the film, Warm also constantly pondered what is the "spirit of the acacia tree".

"The love of a border guard is: put on that uniform, he belongs to the motherland, no longer belongs to any one person." In a warm view, the "Acacia Tree Spirit" is the firmness of keeping and looking. The new era gives every young person many opportunities to be different from their parents, and with it comes the responsibility and mission entrusted by the times.

Media people, members of the All-China Youth Federation, producers, filmmakers, this young man's "social identity" is quite a lot. For her, every identity means a mission and responsibility. "Young filmmakers must have their own mission and responsibility." Warm said that next, she and the creative team plan to shoot a film about the dream of spaceflight in Alxa, Inner Mongolia.

Warmly said that after the release of "Watching the Acacia Tree", the main creative team plans to invite soldiers, veterans and military sisters-in-law to watch it for free. For more than 30 years, the Triangle Mountain Steel Outpost has stood on the edge, and the "Acacia Tree" has flourished in the wind and snow. The "Acacia Tree" not only pins on the attachment of a military sister-in-law to her sacrificed husband, but also on the thoughts of comrades-in-arms for the old company commander, and it is also a perfect interpretation and vivid epitome of the emotional life of those military sisters-in-law who guard the national peace and people's security and have a good year of quiet years.

Source: China Youth Network