In this year's Spring Festival file, a realistic online movie "Diary of a Fortune", in addition to the unique comedy elements of director Song Xiaobao, also explored the serious problem of going out to work, which caused a lot of resonance and opened up ideas for the expression of the reality of online movies.
On October 21, also a comedian, the same serious issue outside of comedy was discussed, and director Liu Zhihuan's "Asian Dance King" broke the farce image in the audience's impression, with a "fairy tale" story of the elderly chasing dreams, for the current "standing" can not get up, or do not want to "stand" young people, a burst of heart-strengthening.
The lead actor Liu Xiaoguang broke the label of Zhao Si and once again showed the performance skills of comedians, in addition to the comedy bridge, the sincere performance of several scenes such as the revelation of true feelings after drinking, "anti-climax" and climax, all of which made this famous comedian with rural themes have a deeper expression worth looking forward to.
As the founder of everything, director Liu Zhihuan has been deeply involved in the film and television industry for many years, during which time he has served as the chief producer and producer of many films. This time, he personally directed the tube and created "Asian Dance King", one is from Liu Xiaoguang himself, who has cooperated many times, and the other is from his past professional experience.
After the film was launched, we talked to this "cutting-edge director", although he had achieved great success in the field of music before, but this time as a film director, Liu Zhihuan regarded it as the "biggest challenge".
Therefore, the creative process is actually the process of constantly overcoming difficulties and challenging himself.
Make a storytelling comedy
Mention Liu Xiaoguang, everyone's first impression must be Zhao Si, who seems to be honest in "Country Love", but is actually quite careful.
Since the launch of "Country Love 2", the vivid human settings, the facial features of the twitching corners of the mouth and the cramp-like magic dance have not only made Zhao Si's role in the play more and more heavy, but also let everyone know Liu Xiaoguang behind the role.
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Especially in recent years, the "Country Love" series has been sought after by young audiences, and dramas and roles have attracted more and more attention, and even launched a blind box of characters, forming a cultural phenomenon.
Liu Zhihuan, who has cooperated with Liu Xiaoguang before, is also well aware of Liu Xiaoguang's performance ability, and understands that he has different understandings of performance in addition to "Zhao Si", so he opened the creation road of "Asian Dance King" according to his image and characteristics.
There are characters and then there are stories in the film, the protagonist's personality must be distinct, otherwise it is difficult to drive the development of the story. But this is not a challenge for Liu Zhihuan, in his words: "When he goes to that station, this character will naturally become." "So what bothers you is actually the story itself, and the practical meaning outside the story."
Stills from "The Asian Dance King"
For Liu Zhihuan, who directed the film for the first time, since he had to spend his mind and effort to do one thing, he certainly could not float on the surface, so the surface of "Asian Dance King" was a retired old man, in order to let the dancing injured grandson overcome the psychological obstacles, pick up the old arms and legs, learn street dance, and finally stand on the "Asian Dance King" arena, igniting the story of all fans and audiences.
But the core of the movie implies more thinking by Liu Zhihuan: "Zhao Yongyong, played by Liu Xiaoguang, as the only adult male in the family, encourages his grandson to regain confidence with his actions, and tells his daughter to lead by example, even if life is hard, but also have hope and shoulder responsibility, which is the real meaning of this movie." ”
Therefore, although the film's cast is composed of northeast comedians, Liu Xiaoguang, Jia Bing, Wen Song and other people also have many hilarious scenes in the film, but whether from the story or the characters themselves, "Asian Dance King" is a more realistic inspirational movie.
To this end, in addition to Liu Zhihuan, the actors have not spared no effort. The director recalled: "The fourth brother (Liu Xiaoguang) has lost his heart. During the whole shooting process, he was very dedicated, and his grasp of the role was also very accurate, and I believe that the audience who has watched the film can feel it. ”
As for the specific details, Liu Zhihuan added, "In the audition scene, the fourth brother fell off the stage in order to show Zhao Yong's nervous state, his leg was injured, his waist twisted but still insisted on finishing the filming; and Zhou Siyu's rain scene, that day was particularly cold, one was filmed, all the actors were frozen straight, I think it can be temporarily closed, the fourth brother ran to ask for another shooting; and in the final, the fourth brother's line interpretation of the large section, I believe that many people who have watched the film can feel the sincerity and cry for it." ”
Admittedly, the energy of the film itself, combined with the performances of the actors, together forms an inspirational story wrapped in the cloak of comedy.
Not preaching, not absolute, but more shocking.
For example, the role of mj (Michael Jackson) imitator played by Chinese Song, in addition to the reason why the director pays tribute to Mj, it is more to show persistence, sadness, and nostalgia for the golden age. As for the bridge setting of the characters who are ugly and forced to step down, it is actually a sigh of the changes in the dance era. Another example is Wu Youyou, played by Mu Tong, who is at the node where the dancers alternate between the old and the new. Although he is called og by the dancers, he is actually plagued by factors such as age, injury, and outdated dances, and gradually gives up on himself.
The 62-year-old Zhao yong appeared, but inspired Wu Youyou (Mu Tong), mj imitators (Wen Song) and other people struggling for life, in the face of difficulties, the owner of the bun shop (Jia Bing) helped, they saw the motivation from old Zhao, and saw hope for each other. "The result is important, but the process is more important, this is life." Liu Zhihuan concluded.
For the Northeast comedy that has long been labeled as "pretending to be stupid and shouting", there is an urgent need for film and television works that show the real life and simple nature of the Northeast people, so the emergence of such works as "Fortune Diary" and "Asian Dance King" is just right.
Liu Zhihuan said emotionally: "We have always wanted to make a comedy that is sincere. I hope to use a film to show the simplicity and kindness of the northeast people, and tell a story well and seriously. ”
Judging from the results, Liu Zhihuan's ingenuity was not in vain.
Emotion is the "trunk" of the movie
Before composing "Asian Dance King", Liu Zhihuan was more well known as a musician.
As early as 2006, he founded and served as the music director of Dystar Culture Company, producing songs such as "Summer", "Waiting for You Every Day", "If", "Who is the Mountain Cannon", "You Are My Pride", "Happy" and so on. In later film and television drama works, you can also hear his original works such as "Wait" and "Code" produced for movies and TV series.
Therefore, whether it is entering the film industry later, or acting as a director now, it is a relatively large cross-line challenge.
Director Liu Zhihuan
However, when he was a student, Liu Zhihuan's daily life was to hold a paintbrush in class, play the guitar after class, watch movies before going to bed, and observe and understand each art form. In addition, music and movies are all ways to express emotions, and they are all storytelling. Being a director is naturally not a whim.
And for Liu Zhihuan, film is a synthesis of all art, which can show a story more completely and comprehensively. Therefore, since I started my career, the idea of trying to create a work as a director has become more and more intense.
Therefore, even if the first time as a director is a bit busy, but with love, from the idea of the story, the creation of the script, to the storyboard, shooting, Liu Zhihuan is enthusiastic in every creative link, enjoy it.
However, it may be that the challenge is not big enough, Liu Zhihuan added code to himself on the subject matter: "I am not used to following the rules. Challenges can actually bring me enthusiasm. Just like the theme of street dance, there is no reference case in recent years, which is a challenge in itself. So in the early days of shooting, we did a lot of homework and found the field very dynamic and fascinating. ”
But unexpectedly, the vitality and charm increased the difficulty of shooting, and sometimes in order to present a good dance, the crew even had to shoot a big night. Speaking of this, Liu Zhihuan expressed his gratitude to the actors: "The street dancers are very dedicated, which makes me see the purity of the street dancers, they interpret the spirit of street dance very well, and this street dance spirit is exactly what the film wants to reflect the most." ”
With the blessing of street dancers and Yu Bin, the vice president of the China Street Dance Association, the audience can feel the sense of underground street dance in the final of the film. As a director, Liu Zhihuan also "hollowed out" his previous professional experience, inviting his brother Break (Deng Qing) and gold medal music producer Yan Xiaonan to produce more than 20 pure hip-hop music, interludes and other soundtracks, trying to fit and blend with the storyline.
In fact, as a debut, it is easy for the director to focus on visual or auditory wonders and ignore the expression of stories and characters.
But Liu Zhihuan knows that although the film incorporates popular elements such as street dance, the tone is an emotional and delicate story. What touches people's hearts is the real family affection: "I don't want to use too many dazzling dance elements, but I want to convey this ancestral emotion in a simple way." I hope that the audience can find their own warmth, or their own persistence and hope in "Asian Dance King". ”
So even if he has the ability to enrich musical attributes, the music and dance in the film are more like "branches and leaves", and the narrative is the "trunk" of the film. This most realistic shooting method not only presents the main theme clearly, but also pays the greatest respect to the actors involved in the project.
Conclusion
At the end of the interview, we asked about his plans for the future.
Although I have experienced great winds and waves before, this relatively fresh experience, Liu Zhihuan said: "Creating a film is not a process of escaping difficulties, but a process of overcoming difficulties, which is also a baptism for my artistic career." ”
Out of reverence for the film, Liu Zhihuan did not even dare to take the director as a profession, talking about the future, he is more in the outlook: "Of course, there is a suitable script and directing, and it is a very pleasant thing to learn while directing." As for the subject matter, as long as it has meaning and power, I am willing to try. Like the only light in the night, giving people a glimmer of hope and yearning, that is enough. ”