As of January 22, the movie "The Annual Party Can't Stop" was released for 25 days, and the box office exceeded 952 million yuan, becoming the film with the highest box office and the most viewers since New Year's Day in 2024. Maoyan shows that 23.984 million people have watched

As of January 22, the movie "The Annual Party Can't Stop" was released for 25 days, and the box office exceeded 952 million yuan, becoming the film with the highest box office and the most viewers since New Year's Day in 2024. Maoyan shows that 23.984 million people have watched the movie, and 419,000 people on the Douban platform gave it a high score of 8.2. It is called the "ceiling of domestic comedy movies in recent years."

The film was written and directed by Dong Runnian, starring Dapeng , Baike , Zhuang Dafei , Wang Xun , Sun Yizhou and others. It tells the story of the fitter Hu Jianlin (played by Dapeng) after the group laid off employees. By accident, he was transferred to the headquarters. The human resources manager Ma Jie (played by Bai Ke), who knew the inside story, helped him conceal a series of absurd events in order to protect his job, and won the "99% overlap between virtual and reality" and "direct attack". Hitting the emotional pain points of workers” and other praises.

Dong Runnian was the screenwriter of films such as "Old Paoer", "The Cook, the Actor, the Ruffian", and "The Flower of the Heart". The inspiration for "The Annual Meeting Can't Stop" came from a middle school class reunion before 2017. At that time, he discovered that some classmates working in the Internet industry used a set of weird and vivid terminology, and he became very interested in this - these "Internet companies" What kind of social phenomena can be reflected behind "language"?

Dong Runnian realized that going to work is an important part of life for everyone, and "office workers" are a group that accounts for the majority of the population, and comedy is just a way to record life rationally.

He believes that comedy is naturally highly popular, but there is actually a threshold for understanding. People who watch it need to have logic, empathy, and an understanding of the principles of things, so that they can laugh. Appreciating more comedies can also improve people's ability to understand and accept life.

Dong Runnian. Picture/Jiupai News

[1] The movie was shot live in the Changsha Wanda Plaza office building

Since May 2017, we have wanted to make "The Annual Meeting Can't Stop". The script got into trouble a few times in the middle and we stopped to write. Other scripts. In September 2022, the final draft will basically be finalized. The original story of

is very different from what is presented to you now. When it was first written, the script was mainly about a young man facing the risk of being laid off. In order to keep his job, he hoped to perform well at the annual meeting and win the appreciation of the chairman. It was more like a young man forming a group and then finding like-minded people with him. It’s a story about people participating in the annual meeting program together and passing the test again and again.

In order to present the real workplace environment, we conducted one round of interviews in 2017 and 2018, a second round of interviews in 2020, and a third round of interviews in 2021. Throughout the interview process, we found that the workplace psychology of ordinary people has undergone subtle changes. So when I first finished writing the first version of the story, I felt a little unsatisfied, because the depth and breadth of my workplace experience could not be expressed in the first version of the story.

In 2017, although the employees of major Internet companies we interviewed also discussed the issue of layoffs, they felt that they were still relatively open-minded and not so nervous. They talked more about where they could go and what they would do if they stopped doing this job. work. At that time, everyone wanted to resign and start a business. They were not so afraid of losing their jobs, but still full of hope for the future.

But when we interviewed again in 2020 and 2021, we obviously felt that we were also facing the topic of layoffs, and everyone was getting more and more nervous. Layoffs have become a social news topic. Therefore, we use the group's large-scale layoffs as an important background of "The Annual Meeting Cannot Stop". Under this kind of pressure, our story can naturally lead to absurd situations.

In the film, Hu Jianlin (played by Dapeng) first entered the company and was received by Ma Jieke (played by Bai Ke). Picture/Interviewee provided

Ridiculous stories need to be constructed with more realistic scenarios. During the filming, we restored the real workplace bit by bit from content to visuals to all aspects.The entire movie was shot live in an office building on the first floor of Changsha Wanda Plaza. At that time, we rented a rough room on the first floor and built it based on the offices of many large companies we had inspected before, ranging from the floors and walls to every desk. On the office supplies, we have studied the details.

Several of our leading actors have also had similar workplace experiences. Dapeng worked at Sohu before and did not leave until 2018. When we were talking about Hu Jianlin, Dapeng said, I know the major Internet companies very well.

In addition, we also interviewed some traditional companies in the early stage. Later we found that the things people complained about were generally speaking in two directions.

One is unfair. Everyone is saying that they have done a lot of work, only to be taken credit for by colleagues who are better at flattering and reporting, or that their boss takes a picture lightly and says something in the upper-level leader's report, and the credit goes to him. Sorry, I worked hard for a long time, but I didn't get anything.

Second, I feel very confused about the value of work. Although some people work in large companies, they feel that they are filling out forms and writing daily, weekly, and monthly reports all day long, without doing anything practical. They have to write five reports to describe something that can be said in two sentences. When writing, they become more and more accurate. I have doubts about what I am doing now, and question whether my work has any contribution to the group or society, and whether it can reflect my own value.

On the contrary, we met some technical workers during the interview. They have a particularly obvious sense of instant gratification and are more aware of the value of their work. Although some workers may feel that they do not earn much money, they believe that they rely on their craftsmanship to make a part, and then make other parts, and finally build a boat. When they see the boat launched, they feel very satisfied. .

I think this is a very interesting phenomenon, so it is also reflected in our film. Hu Jianlin, who comes from an old factory, does not earn much money, but he has the strongest self-awareness. On the contrary, young people like Pan Pan (played by Zhuang Dafei), who have been working in a large factory for a period of time, have no idea what they are doing every day.

[2] During the filming of the highlight of the annual meeting, the lead actor had a fever and filmed a video where he breathed oxygen

. There was a scene about counting heads. Many viewers reported that it was funny. This was because we had a workplace consultant who had been an HR director. During the preparation of the script, she said that in fact, the bigger the company, the more important the job of head count is for the human resources department. Because the company is so big, the leaders have no idea how many people there are and where the money is spent. .

has a famous saying: "The world is just a huge grassroots team." We have had similar experiences while working on this script.

In 2020, I saw a piece of news. In an office building of a large factory in Beijing, someone discovered a homeless man who had been living in the building for a month during a monthly health inspection, and no one found him. This incident particularly touched me. For a large enterprise like

, it is said to be the most strictly managed company at present. Usually, you have to swipe your card to enter the elevator and be questioned by security personnel for a long time. But even so, someone can actually sneak in, pretend to work there, not be discovered for a month, and still live comfortably there.

felt at that time that in fact, many of the things that people thought were rigorous, mature, and confident were superficial phenomena and were all fake. In fact, the back is riddled with holes and has many gaps. In the end, we put this segment on Zhuang Zhengzheng.

Wang Xun plays Zhuang Zhengzheng in "The Annual Meeting Can't Stop". Picture/provided by interviewee

There are many different types of comedians in the film, including actors from traditional Northeast comedy and actors from variety shows, and their comedy styles are also different. At first, I would also think about whether I need to harmonize everyone's comedy style.

But after talking to Dapeng and Baike, we all agreed that everyone in this play is a very real character, and the play is also based on real logic, so there is no need to deliberately exaggerate the comedy and forcefully tell jokes. The entire performance only needs to be based on realistic logic, allowing the audience to experience the life-like joy in the film.

also encountered some challenges during the filming.The biggest challenge was to shoot the climax scene of the annual meeting in the gymnasium. It was originally planned to take three days to shoot, and the schedules of all the actors were coordinated. However, the three leading actors, Dapeng, Baike, and Zhuang Dafei, all had fevers. The temperature was about 40 degrees, so in the end we had to split the shooting into two stages. The first stage took 3 days to shoot, and the second stage took 2 days to shoot.

In this part of the drama in the audience, when there are Thomas (played by Da Mu) and Zhuang Zhengzheng (played by Wang Xun), there is actually no chairman (played by Ouyang Fenqiang). When there was Chairman Xu Yunfeng (played by Li Naiwen), there was no Zhuang Zhengzheng, so many scenes had to be shot separately, using a lot of montage techniques.

The leading actors were not in good health at the time. We originally thought we would give them 7 days to rest, but after Dapeng and Baike finished filming the first scene, their heartbeats reached 160 to 170 beats a minute. We urgently gave them Adjusted the oxygen bag. But because singing and dancing are too physically demanding, they had to take oxygen after every shot. After finishing one shot, I watched the playback and found that Dapeng’s hand was broken and bleeding, and I wondered if it had hit somewhere. He said that when he was singing just now, his vision went dark and he was about to faint. In order to stay awake, he kept digging at himself and gouging himself. In several panoramic shots of

, Dapeng performs with his hands like this. Later, he "hard-talked" that this was an action designed for the character, because Hu Jianlin must be nervous in such a big scene, and this is a natural manifestation of nervousness. To be honest, the actors are really dedicated.

Wang Xun suddenly suffered from kidney stones before filming that scene. The day before, he was in so much pain that he couldn't stand up, so he had to go for emergency surgery. After the operation in the morning, he rushed over in the afternoon to shoot the scene in the gymnasium. In the scene, he had to run around, knock down Thomas, and fight with him. After taking one picture, I said this one is good, strike while the iron is hot, and we will do another one just like before. Teacher Wang Xun said that the director would wait for me for 15 minutes. I said what's wrong? He said the wound had opened and was bleeding. The scene at the

annual meeting was particularly exciting, and everyone really put in a lot of effort and expense to film it. I think that's how it is sometimes when making movies. The harder the environment, the more everyone faces such difficulties and challenges together, the easier it may be to use one's energy in one place and burst out this kind of power. That scene was particularly good, and "My Future Is Not a Dream" also left a deep impression on many viewers.

[3] Everyone is a "screw" in a factory machine

At the beginning of the video, the scene of the factory and the big factory in the same era gave people a sense of separation. This is actually a set of montage shots. We thought Shows how the standard parts factory evolved into a large group, but the original factory was still left behind. On the one hand, it wants to show the development of our social economy. On the other hand, it also hints that Hu Jianlin, as a worker in the standard parts factory, feels a bit abandoned by the times.

Including the scene in the film where Hu Jianlin leads a group of middle-level workers to make hammers and says that we are all screws. Some viewers were puzzled and asked why the film thought the stable and self-sufficient working status represented by screws was a good thing. In fact, many migrant workers Will laugh at myself as just a screw.

This may be because I was born in the 1980s, and I feel that the screw spirit is the way we have always been educated and self-identified. At the level of the entire society, each of us is small, but indispensable and plays a fixed role. Just like in a factory, no matter how big a machine is if one screw is missing, there may be an accident that does not work properly. .

In the eyes of people of our generation, the screw spirit is not a self-deprecation, but a spirit of self-affirmation. It precisely affirms the role of each of us in the entire society. This role may be inconspicuous, but it is essential.

Hu Jianlin (played by Dapeng) in the video. Picture/provided by interviewee

Hu Jianlin and I are about the same age. People of our generation will accept two things: first, accept that we are ordinary people, maybe just an ordinary screw; second, we also believe that throughout the whole In the operation of the social machine, even an ordinary screw is indispensable.So for Hu Jianlin, it is indeed a very normal self-perception.

But maybe in recent years, young friends have been educated more on the need to express themselves and have their own value recognized. In fact, I feel there is no contradiction between this, it just means how we will express ourselves and acknowledge ourselves, just like the choice of these two songs in our film.

When Hu Jianlin was young, he sang "My Future is Not a Dream." This song encouraged young people to endure hardship, work silently, and work hard in order to gain a future. But the interesting thing is that the song does not promise that your future will be promotion and wealth, nor does it promise that your future will be rich. It just tells you that after you do these things, the future will be meaningful and valuable.

But in the end, when Hu Jianlin signed up for the show, he signed up for "superstar". This song is more in line with people's psychology today. People are not satisfied with just being ordinary people, but want to be a superstar in the spotlight. On the one hand, this shows the different mentality of each of us in the process of social development, and on the other hand, it also hints at the gradual changes in Hu Jianlin's heart.

The ending of the video is open-ended. The performance of Hu Jianlin and others at the annual meeting made the chairman change his opinion. Some viewers thought it was too idealistic. In real workplace life, they cannot wait for a "big man from the sky" to solve the problem. In fact, what the chairman said was "I will bring back those colleagues who should not have lost their jobs." But which ones should not have lost their jobs and which ones should have lost their jobs, perhaps the chairman himself has the final say. . These people at the

standard parts factory got their jobs back because they were indeed wronged. We also showed the endings of the three protagonists and those who actually committed the crime, but we actually left the endings of the others blank for the audience to figure out.

For example, what are the changes in the positions of Peter (played by Sun Yizhou) and Mark (played by Tong Monan). 95% of employees who were laid off will still lose their jobs if they come back. In fact, whatever the audience believes, they will make up their mind.

In the film, Sun Yizhou plays Peter. Picture/provided by interviewee

Interestingly, those who criticized this result as "idealistic" subconsciously hoped for such an ending. In a sense, he will transfer his dissatisfaction with reality to the ending of the movie. Just like what Tie Tie (played by Zhuang Dafei) said, if adhering to a bottom line and upholding justice is idealism, then the threshold of idealism is indeed a bit high. Low.

In reality, I hope that the audience will be touched in their hearts after watching this movie. It’s best that when he encounters some injustice again, he will think of those people in the movie who resisted. Do I want to resist? Even if the little fire in my heart is fanned a little, I think our movie will achieve a very good effect.

Some viewers will rethink the definition of colleague relationships after watching "The Annual Meeting Can't Stop". Maybe some elders will tell you that you should be careful in your words and deeds in the workplace, be wary of your colleagues, and not talk nonsense about everything. But I personally believe that colleagues can become friends.

We often say that whether you can be a friend with someone depends on what you have experienced together. It is precisely because our colleagues in the workplace get along with us every day and often experience problems together, so in the workplace, it is easier for you to see a person's personality and character.

For example, when you faced difficulties, what did you do to each other? When facing honor and interests, what do each other do? From these questions, it is actually very easy to see a person’s true nature. As long as you stay in a company for more than half a year, it will be easy to understand the personalities of your colleagues, which ones you get along with, and which ones you can trust.

Hu Jianlin (played by Dapeng), Pan Pan (played by Zhuang Dafei), and Ma Jieke (played by Bai Ke) are a trio of good colleagues. Picture/provided by interviewee

At the beginning, it was very necessary for anyone in the workplace to have a sense of self-protection.But when we gradually understand and trust someone after several rounds of working together, I feel that we can become friends. There is no need to deliberately keep a distance from colleagues because of fear of what will happen in the future.

I think people are group animals. Once you find someone you can trust each other, it will bring you a very strong sense of happiness and satisfaction. It will also directly affect your mood at work and your love for this job. degree.

[4] Domestic comedy has developed from disenchantment and deconstruction to the stage of providing common imagination

I am from Tianjin. I have been listening to cross talk and watching sketches since I was a child, and I have been influenced by a lot of comedy. I like Tianjin TV Station 1's column drama "Yang Guang's Happy Life" very much. The opening song has a famous line called "Those who have no money can be happy and happy." This classic shows the living conditions of Tianjin people. In fact, this It's also a "comedy" state for me.

For me, comedy is a way of observing the world and life, and an attitude towards life. Everything can be a comedy. Everything you face can be viewed through a comedy lens.

In real life, we are afraid of difficulties and pain, but when you look at these difficulties with a comedic attitude and laugh about it, you will be less afraid of it. You will gradually feel that in fact, these are nothing, the pain is short-lived, and it can even be something you can joke with others. In the future, you will have more courage to truly face it, gain more strength, and have more Wisdom to solve these problems.

Life needs to go on, life needs to go on. Comedy is a way to give people strength to continue living.

Dong Runnian attended the red carpet at the closing ceremony of the 2023 Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Film Festival. Picture/provided by interviewee

According to my observation, in recent decades, the nonsensical approach of Stephen Chow’s comedies has had the greatest impact on us mainland comedians. His approach to postmodernist structuralism is very obvious, making people disenchanted with "authority". After the rise of the Internet, many comedians will deconstruct some things. Originally, everyone has a deep-rooted understanding of a common cognition, so breaking people's inherent cognition will produce some unexpected and reasonable laughter.

The Internet has developed for more than 20 years now. In fact, almost everything that can be deconstructed in our real life has been deconstructed. In the Internet age, every individual’s thoughts are highlighted, and the collective common understanding is being disintegrated.

But I think this cultural phenomenon and cultural cognition have another reincarnation. When everything is dismantled, everyone will actually long for a newly established common understanding. Because our human society is essentially constructed by the common imagination of a group of people, we all have a common imagination about our origin, spirit, morality, and future, which is very important.

According to my observation, our country’s film and television creations have begun to enter into this common imagination again. This is precisely why I think realistic films have become more and more popular with audiences in recent years. For example, "I'm Not the God of Medicine" and "Life Events" both reconstruct our understanding of the greatest common denominator as Chinese people in various dimensions and levels, that is, what should our morality be like? What should our future look like? What is the injustice we are fighting?

The movie "The Annual Meeting Can't Stop" is actually trying to do this. The comedy part of the film is wrapped up in this attempt to build a common imagination. The common imagination we want to build is actually to explore how to seek fairness in the workplace.

I saw some comments saying that after watching the movie, they suddenly felt a little energetic and felt able to face work again. To me, this is actually a particularly good compliment for us.

In 2023, we also filmed a talk show-themed workplace web drama "Unpleasant Courage". It tells the story of a female white-collar worker with a pleaseable personality who rediscovered herself through talk shows and resisted the challenges she encountered in the company. A story about all kinds of injustices and getting true love.

We have also placed the workplace background of this web drama in the Zhonghe Group. It is a story that takes place in the publicity department and marketing department of another department. It has been completed and is now in post-production. We hope to see you all this summer.

During the road show this time, many viewers expressed their hope for a second film, including our leading actor, who also talked to me about it. Although I don’t really want to repeat my own creation, I do cherish this work very much.

During the creation and filming process, we all experienced many happy moments together. After we met again and ran the road show together, we were like a family again, which was very happy.

The main creator of "The Annual Meeting Can't Stop" attended the closing ceremony of the 2023 China Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Film Festival. The first one from the left is Dong Runnian. Picture/provided by interviewee

Now we are also seriously considering making a sequel to "The Annual Meeting Cannot Stop", but there is no story at all yet. I am a very curious person, and I especially hope to try something new after each work is completed. Previously, I was mainly promoting the creation of a science fiction film and an action film, which were also areas that I had never tried before.

hopes to create some movies that can bring fresh, exciting and fun experiences to the audience more than "The Annual Party Can't Stop".

Jiupai News reporter Zhou Yuhe Beijing report

Editor Wan Xuan Wu Di

[Source: Jiupai News]

Copyright belongs to the original author, pay tribute to the original