[Global Times Special Correspondent Yang Liu] On June 15, the movie "Dog Formation" directed by Guan Hu, with Liang Jing and Wang Zhonglei as chief producers, and starring Peng Yuyan and Tong Liya, was released (pictured stills). Just last month, the film won the best film in the

[Global Times Special Correspondent Yang Liu] On June 15, the movie " Dog Formation " directed by Guan Hu, with Liang Jing and Wang Zhonglei serving as chief producers, starring Eddie Peng and Tong Liya , was released (stills As shown in the picture). Just last month, the film won the best film in the official "Un Certain Regard" section of the Cannes International Film Festival. The film tells the story of Erlang (played by Peng Yuyan), who was just released from prison on parole and returned to his hometown. He was forced to join a private dog hunting team and rescued a stray black dog. One person and one dog redeemed each other and gained the courage to start again. Recently, "Dogs" director Guan Hu, producer and chief producer Liang Jing, and lead star Eddie Peng were interviewed by reporters from the Global Times, sharing the behind-the-scenes stories of the film and their experiences and insights from participating in the Cannes Film Festival.

The foreign judges were shocked

Global Times: How did you feel when you won the award at Cannes? What do you think impressed the judges about the film?

Guan Hu: I think if you do something to impress someone, then it is not done well. I was very lucky to be able to make this movie this time. I didn’t think about the future prospects when I was filming. Just like Liang Jing said, as long as you listen to your inner voice and do what you like, success or failure will come later. If someone likes you, you will be happy.

Liang Jing: The entire film has few close-ups and no close-ups, and is objective and calm. Even the death of the black dog in the end is shown from a distance. I think this is a sign of the director's maturity. He no longer cares about sensationalism, but calmly talks about a person's peaceful life.

Peng Yuyan: I also saw the whole film for the first time in Cannes. I cried in the first five minutes of watching it, and a lot of emotions emerged. Thinking about living with Xiao Xin in the past few years, I took my mother to watch this story in Cannes. ..."Dogs" is a very honest movie. Sincerity is penetrating and can be spread in different cultural backgrounds. Knowing that I won the award was another touching feeling. Cannes is a very dreamy place for me. 13 years ago, I was moved by "!" "Axin " went to Cannes to promote. At that time, I told myself that next time I would show my work to filmmakers around the world. Thirteen years later, I really came. Many people thought it was my first time acting and said, "You are only 24 years old. That's great." I thought, "That's great. Actually, I am 42 years old."

Global Times: What are your other feelings about this trip to Cannes?

Guan Hu: As the film market matures, cultural exchanges are indispensable, and we must learn from each other's strengths to offset weaknesses. A platform like the Cannes Film Festival gives film practitioners a special sense of honor, and you will feel that overcoming any difficulties is worth it. This is a kind of power that will encourage practitioners to continue to persevere. This is our deepest feeling this time.

Liang Jing: I really didn’t expect to go to the Cannes Film Festival. I’m very happy. Our country is getting stronger and stronger, exporting more and more culture, and international film festivals are increasingly recognizing Chinese films.

Eddie Peng: Once, we talked with a foreign judge about the scene in the movie where more than a hundred dogs appear on the mountain. The judges thought we shot it with CG, but I explained that it was all real shots. The foreign judges were shocked and couldn't believe that each shot was taken dozens of times. After attending the premiere, I was walking my dog ​​on the side of the road. Europeans and Americans who had watched the movie would shout "black dog!" Everyone didn't care about skin color, language and culture, and talked openly about their feelings about watching the movie. Content about the rapid changes in society can resonate with them.

Animals are a mirror of humans

Global Times: Why did you choose the image of a black dog? How to understand the relationship between Erlang and Black Dog?

Guan Hu: When an animal becomes a character, I hope that it and the character are independent of each other, and even have a confrontation. This is the case with the black dog in the movie. It is not easy to tame and can run very fast. I like the way it feels as sharp as a knife. Erlang and Heigou are two lonely others. They try to contact each other in desperate situations, comfort each other, and stimulate another ability of life.

Liang Jing: I was quite surprised when the director said to use this kind of dog.But after reading the script, I understood that Erlang and Black Dog were both labeled. It seemed that only it could complete the task. Especially after meeting Peng Yuyan, I felt that they were too similar. Later, Peng Yuyan also adopted this dog. dog.

Peng Yuyan: When getting along with the black dog, Erlang felt that he could live in the present like an animal, as long as he had enough food for every meal and company. This was the power that allowed Erlang to start over. After filming "Dogs", I adopted three dogs from the crew. The dogs are very pure and direct, and I learned a lot from them. In fact, human beings used to be very pure, but now we are too busy to listen to the intuition in our hearts. I would like to share an interesting experience. Before going to Cannes this time, I asked a pet communicator to have a "dialogue" with Xiao Xin. He said he didn't want to go and had finally found a happy home. He was afraid that he would return to an uncertain environment. Later, he said that he could go with me anywhere, and he knew that he might go on stage to win a prize. Now Xiao Xin is the "Light of the Chinese Dog".

Subtracting from the performance

Global Times: What is the biggest challenge during filming?

Guan Hu: The most difficult part of is the group play with dogs. The nature of animals determines that they "can't stay". Sometimes we take the dogs for training two months in advance, but once there are more people in the actual shooting, the dogs will become scared. , they need to be allowed to adapt for another four or five days. But as long as you have patience, you will eventually get it done after trying again and again, and there are often unexpected surprises.

Liang Jing: We built a kennel on three acres of land, which can accommodate more than 100 dogs. We have a team of nearly 20 to 30 people to train the dogs, walk the dogs, feed the dogs, and have beauticians. There is a particularly difficult scene, the scene where Erlang meets the black dog for the first time. Erlang urinates against the wall and then leaves. The black dog smells the smell and pees on the same spot again. It has to be filmed in one shot, and two shots are taken every day with the same sunlight. Three pieces, which took nearly twenty days to shoot.

Eddie Peng: Erlang is different from my past roles. He is a "aphasic person". When I was reading the script, I was wondering why he barely speaks? How to express emotions without sound? Later, I discussed with the director that the most important thing is to listen to what others say and then give a true reaction. It's just that the actor I'm playing with will be very "painful". Normally, people breathe when they talk, but this time it's like they're acting with an animal. I don't know how I will react, so I need to control the rhythm myself.

Global Times: Share the behind-the-scenes story.

Guan Hu: When was casting Erlang, Liang Jing mentioned Peng Yuyan. I felt the same as many viewers, thinking, "Isn't this a handsome guy?" But later I found that he has a very wild energy. , before he made other movies, he almost became a professional gymnast, and now he is a professional motorcyclist. He must be persistent and ruthless to be able to train hard for every movie. Peng Yuyan has always been polite and gentle, and everyone who works with him feels comfortable.

Peng Yuyan: This shooting made me find the feeling of making movies many years ago. We lived in a place with poor signal and concentrated on creation every day when we got up. At the beginning, I would consciously design small movements, but later I found that the performance traces were heavy, and only the feelings and reactions on the spot were the most real. There was a scene where I had to catch a dog. By the time I had taken more than 40 shots, I had been exposed to the sun and was unconscious. I reacted completely by intuition. When the director saw it, he said, "You're in a hurry." But this is in line with the state of the character, that is, living in that place very realistically, even if your scalp is peeling due to the sun, you must listen and feel it carefully, and "forget" that you are performing.

Global Times: Have you considered the box office pressure?

Liang Jing: Producers and directors are always at odds. Producers need to consider financing, box office, and the future market. At the beginning, I would discuss with Guan Hu, "There have been several commercial films in the past, and we are about to move up. Do we really want to make such a movie at this stage?" He said, "Isn't this a move up? "After an in-depth discussion with him, I decided to support him without hesitation.Supporting him is also supporting myself. I also like literary films. This type of work must be made regardless of the market response, because I think these are expressive films that can make people think. Regarding the box office, I will happily accept any result.

Eddie Peng: We don’t think about the box office issue and let nature take its course. This film was a personal challenge for the director, which I found very brave and happy to be a part of the journey. Playing the role of Erlang and becoming a family with three dogs is already the best gift for me.