Today, as information push algorithms become more and more precise, multi-threaded instant information makes us feel like we are friends of time and know everything. But looking at the disagreements and even tears online and in friend circles, the large number of irrational and ineffective discussions is equally shocking.
Fortunately, we still have writers who are willing to write books. They try to share the knowledge and experience of different eras with people. Through their writing, the universal experience in history and tradition and the knowledge and ideas needed to face the future have been reflected since the two times. The ends converge towards the present and are overprinted into a book of wisdom, allowing the "fragments" to be brought together and communicated, allowing us to understand each other again.
The "writers" to be introduced in this article all have a common identity, that is, they are well-known filmmakers in the industry. Speaking of which, the main job of actors, directors, and screenwriters should be to let their works speak for themselves on the big screen (or screen). In the past, some celebrities published books, or found ghostwriters, or were accused of pretending to be Manchukuo, which is ridiculous. Won the appetite of many readers. But in recent years, the writings published by these filmmakers are clearly full of useful information.
"Cat Fish" "fills the narrative gap in literary Shanghai"
"Cat Fish" Author: Chen Chong Published by Shanghai Sanlian Bookstore in 2024
In July this year, actor and director Chen Chong's autobiographical prose work "Cat Fish" was published by Utopia· Published by Shanghai Sanlian Publishing House. Readers who have experienced the era of blogs and Weibo must be familiar with the writing style of this female star who has been in the movies for nearly 50 years.
On her 58th birthday, she used warm and casual words to reconcile with the years: "After breakfast, I went for a walk in the woods alone, letting the dappled sunlight shine on my face, between my brows, forehead, corners of my eyes and around my mouth. Wrinkles..." In 2018, after the death of the famous Italian director Bertolucci, she wrote: "Looking back, the production of "The Last Emperor" was like an eight-month wedding, huge, lively and chaotic, and I did The bride who has been married for eight months, is waiting every day for Bertolucci to lift the hijab and fall in love with me again..." There is not a word of sadness, but people can't help but get wet in their eyes.
Some people say that Chen Chong is a writer who was delayed by acting. As early as the early 1980s, she published her first novel "Female Star" in the literary magazine "Youth". My friend Jiang Wen in the circle is fond of this stream of consciousness novel and said bluntly, "I saw Chen Chong's writing earlier than her movies. Her writing comes from her sensibility and aesthetics, and her energy "It's more like her eyes and smile."
The origin of writing the non-fiction novel "Cat Fish" was a few years ago when the writer Jin Yucheng had dinner in an old house on Pingjiang Road in Shanghai. He heard that this place once belonged to Chen Chong. The ancestral house was later rented to someone else. He sent her photos to inquire about it, and the two started chatting about the ancestral house. As the author of the novel "Flowers" and the editor-in-chief of "Shanghai Literature" magazine, Jin Yucheng naturally has a keen eye for pearls. He strongly invited Chen Chong to write down these words recalling the past and serialize them in the magazine.
The content of the book "Cat Fish" includes many chapters published by Chen Chong in "Shanghai Literature", and has been supplemented and revised on this basis. The book totals 330,000 words and spans more than a hundred years - from the old childhood house in Shanghai to the home in San Francisco; from the crew of "Little Flower" in Girls' Generation to behind the screen of "The Last Emperor" and "The Sun Also Rises"; from the lives of our ancestors. From past events to the spiritual journey of three generations of intellectuals including his parents and elder brother... the content covers the stories of four generations of Chen Chong's family. Jin Yucheng believes that the publication of "Cat Fish", "Her people and events, especially the history of several generations of intellectuals, have filled the narrative gap in literary Shanghai."
After the book was published, Chen Chong explained the origin of the title, "' "Maoyu" is the Shanghai dialect of that time. The market sold a small fish that should have slipped through the net and was used to feed cats. It is pronounced as "maoyu" in Shanghainese. It symbolizes the past that has disappeared or is disappearing from memory, and will be included in the book. Just like my brother's magical cat-fish, he came back from the dead."
During the filming of "Tang Bohu Spots Autumn Fragrance", Cheng Peipei picked up the pen. In the 1960s and 1970s, Cheng Peipei was the master of Shaw Brothers' martial arts films. Hua Dan "Golden Swallow".For mainland movie fans born in the 70s and 80s, we will never forget her role as Mrs. Hua on the big screen, who, together with Mr. Star, transformed the strange poison with a smile into a must-have medicine for "home travel". What’s even more unforgettable is the green-eyed fox she played, with her sinister and sad eyes.
The blue-eyed fox got mad
On July 11 this year, Zheng Peipei died of illness in the United States at the age of 78. From the many memorial articles, people learned that she was once an authentic Shanghai girl, and she went south to Hong Kong with her mother to make a living when she was 14 years old. Ma Junsheng, editor of Shanghai Sanlian Bookstore, wrote in an article commemorating Zheng Peipei: "Sister Peipei is from Shanghai. She left Shanghai when she was 14 years old. She has deep feelings for Shanghai. She can speak fluent Shanghainese and is very fond of Shanghai. She never forgets her old classmate from No. 3 Girls' Middle School and keeps in touch with her until her later years. She returned to the drama stage at Shanghai Metro City's "Shanghai Theater" and her only autobiography "Looking Back Seventy Years with a Smile" was also in Shanghai. After all, her 70th birthday was spent in Shanghai with her relatives and old friends. She once wanted to enjoy her old age in Shanghai. "
Zheng Peipei, author of "Looking Back at Seventy Years with a Smile", Life·Reading·New Knowledge. Published by Sanlian Bookstore in 2016
If you want to understand Zheng Peipei’s love affair with Shanghai and her legendary life, you have to mention her 2016 book "Looking Back at Seventy Years with a Smile". This autobiographical memoir completely records her seventy-year life experience, from birth, childhood, acting, marriage, to studying Buddhism and returning to the world. It can be described as ups and downs and colorful.
The most representative scene of receiving money from an inn fan in "The Drunken Man"
How did Zheng Peipei get involved with writing? Ma Junsheng, editor-in-chief of the book "Looking Back Seventy Years of Smiling", said that it was during the filming of her comeback work "Tang Bohu Spots Autumn Fragrance" in 1993, "The person who played the role of Mr. Hua at that time was Huang Zhan, a talented man from Xiangjiang. Mr. Huang's writing skills Yes, he did not forget to climb grids while filming. He told Sister Peipei that he supported his family by climbing grids. Sister Peipei also told him frankly: Uncle Zhan, can you teach me and tell me what to do. Write an article? Huang Zhan told her: Write with your heart! In this way, while waiting for the filming time, Sister Peipei also picked up the pen to write articles and developed the ability to write articles. On October 11 last year, the famous director Guo Baochang passed away in Beijing due to illness at the age of 83. Although he has passed away, the TV series "The Mansion Gate" directed by him in 2001 is still a topic that cannot be talked about. In addition to being fascinated by the majestic and ups and downs of the plot and the star-studded cast, the audience is also curious about the intertextuality and observation between this drama and Guo Baochang's own life experience.
Guo Baochang
In the midsummer of 2021, Guo Baochang published two books in succession at Life·Read·Xinzhi Sanlian Bookstore, "They Are All Big Roles" and "The Great Game: What's So Good About Peking Opera". If you are also a fan of the drama "The Manor", these two books are a must-read.
"They are all big characters" Author Guo Baochang Life·Read·New Knowledge Sanlian Bookstore published in 2021
"The Great Game: What's so good about Peking Opera" Author Guo Baochang Life·Read·New Knowledge Sanlian Bookstore published in 2021
Guo Baochang was sold into A wealthy family that has experienced many vicissitudes of life and has seen everything the world has to offer. Therefore, I am a member of the family, so I can write the story of the family. The group of characters presented in the collection of autobiographical essays "All Big Characters" are unforgettable: the legendary martial arts master who hides in the house and his dandy young master's apprentice; the young ladies who are elegant and beautiful in appearance but are distorted in the house; the simple, kind, and The grandmother who was timid in front of the daughter who was sold into a wealthy family and made a wife by herself; the extremely ugly servant who guarded the most beautiful daughter-in-law to do the most beautiful job, who was full of bad habits but was extremely kind and cowardly; The hidden guqin culture and guqin masters... In the author's opinion, they are all small figures abandoned by history, but they are big characters in life. For readers, it is not difficult to think of the genealogy of the characters in the TV series, and they also find footnotes and addendums in the book.
In addition to filming, Guo Baochang is obsessed with Chinese quintessence in life. He has a deep understanding of the stage, origins and anecdotes of Peking Opera, and is a senior fan. During the filming of "The Mansion Gate", he cleverly used elements of Peking Opera's gongs and drums. "For example, when Bai Jingqi was born, it was said that he didn't cry when he was born, he just laughed. When the name 'Bai Jingqi' was written with a brush, the soundtrack was 'Four Hits of the Head' - 'Cang, Cang Lingqi, Cang Lingqi, Cang' ! 'Four gongs (knocking sounds), which are used when the generals and main characters appear in Peking Opera. I used it on the name of 'Bai Jingqi', and used it on the birth of the protagonist. From the beginning of writing to the end of writing, the use of such gongs and drums emphasized the appearance of the most important characters in the play. "
Guo Baochang said that he started listening to operas at the age of five, and has been fascinated by them for more than seventy years. He has also studied them all his life, and he has become more and more popular in his later years. It is the greatest wish to "let young people understand and fall in love with Peking Opera". The book "The Great Game: What's So Good About Peking Opera" is, in a sense, his "aspiration". This book not only has the theoretical height to groundbreakingly explain the aesthetic essence of Peking Opera, but also has the popular characteristics of popularizing and spreading the beauty of traditional culture. It is a cultural work that is consistent with the elegance and elegance of Peking Opera.
"Extreme subtlety, reaching the vastness" of the tome "Dream"
During the China Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Film Festival last year, director Yin Li's new book "Dream" premiered in Xiamen. "The appearance of the book is bound in a widescreen format, with a close-up of the director's eyes, carving out the image of a keen observer. The book contains 2,158 pictures and more than 868,000 words. The book is 11.5 centimeters thick and weighs 6 kilograms." To put it bluntly, it is definitely the most important book among filmmakers in recent years.
"Dream" Author Yin Li Published by China Film Publishing House in 2023
Just as the six words "Extremely subtle and broad" appear at the beginning of "Dream", when flipping through the book, many people discovered this director's work for the first time. Versatility, diligence and productivity. The book breaks through the structure of traditional books, uses the twenty-four solar terms as a chronological sequence, and divides the content. It uses Gengzi's one-month diary as the main clue, and uses a unique montage technique and stream-of-consciousness method to spread out his decades of artistic career. Years of writing, film, television, painting, and photography are connected in series to show what an artist thinks, thinks, and feels in the magnificent changes of the times.
Inside pages of "Dream"
Yin Li recalled that the gestation and germination of this book happened during the epidemic. "On January 23, 2020, when I learned that Wuhan was under lockdown, I stayed at home and kept a diary for a month. The content of this book can be described in one sentence, 'One month of Gengzi, 40 years of reform.' Here we want to be grateful for the great era, which has created this generation. We use fragments of words to weave together the career we are engaged in, the work we love, and the friends we have made friends with. Many people are reading this book. We will definitely feel the same. It leaves us with a common memory and a common mental journey."
Yin Li signed on the newly released page. Photography: Wang Bowen
2020 is the 30th anniversary of the release of the movie "My September". This masterpiece, which has a Douban score of 8.7, has long been hailed as the top domestic children's film after the reform and opening up. At that time, Yin Li talked about his understanding of children's films, "It is not only a subject matter, strictly speaking, it should be a film style. We can talk about our thoughts on life through children's films." Feelings and understandings. The view that children's films are classified as "pediatrics" itself seems a bit childish. Children's films do not mean that they are the result of the creator's "children's thinking", nor are they given to the creator because of their specific subject matter. Making inferior products as an excuse. People's disdain for children's movies often reflects the stagnation and one-way nature of our thinking, and also largely reflects the creator's own shallow understanding or even ignorance of the objects they want to express."
"My September" movie poster (1990)
"My September" set setting
How to write a good script? He teaches you step by step to cross the threshold
In the domestic contemporary screenwriting circle, Shi Jianquan is a master level Exist. Just to mention the film and television projects in the past thirty years, the movie "The Devil Is Coming" directed by Jiang Wen and the TV series "Travel Without Regrets" directed by Yin Li are both written by him, which shows that he is willing to do so. To teach everyone this skill, this book "Writing a Good Script - Screenwriting is a job for smart people to do stupidly" released by the Commercial Press in August this year is in front of you. Whether you want to explore the background of past classic stories Audiences and young people who are interested in writing screenplays should not miss it.
"Writing Good Scripts: Screenwriting is a job for smart people and hard work" Author Shi Jianquan Published by The Commercial Press in 2024
"As long as you have other skills to make a living, just do it. Don’t be a screenwriter. Let me tell you, the screenwriter's job is to dig out a piece of meat pie from the flat ground. Do you think it is difficult to dig out a hot and fragrant Xianghe meat pie from the hard asphalt road? "In the opening chapter of the book "Write a Good Script - Screenwriting is a job for smart people to do stupidly", the author Shi Jianquan wrote this.
is well aware of the hard work here. Shi Jianquan has no endless theories in this book, no He only writes about his half-life experience, skills and insights in "actual combat". For example, in his opinion, one or two pages are enough for the story summary of a movie. Next, his explanation is even more detailed. What is this concept? "That is, A4 paper, small 4-size fonts, standard blank lines, spaces, write the name of the movie at the beginning, you can also use a larger font size, and then a list of several main characters, generally not more , a movie is enough to have three or four main characters, and a TV series can only have five or six at most. Start writing your story below. One and a half to two and a half pages are enough for a movie, and only two or three pages for a TV series. You need to tell your entire story clearly within these pages!"
faced Shi Jianquan also gave his own insights on the impact of AI and chatgpt on the industry: "If an investment boss is not a heartless type and invests tens of millions, he will still choose people, even if he uses chatgpt to write several pages of stories. , he also has to find professionals to help him take another look, because in the end it is humans who make the judgment and choice. chatgpt is an intelligent dialogue system based on big data. What is data? Data is the past and will always be the past, plus algorithms are also the past. So its creativity is also a kind of conformity. But the cruelty of this thing is that it will deprive many young screenwriters of the opportunity to exercise. Young screenwriters have to start by writing a shapeless outline, a step that will soon be replaced by machines.
Those who spoke so earnestly, no wonder Director Yin Li said when writing the postscript for this book, "Today, when all colleagues and junior students are potential opponents, except for my own son, who can tell you from the bottom of my heart and teach you how to move forward?" Lift your right foot to cross the threshold? Master Shi is kind. "
