The Best Director

After setting the release date for “The Pursuit of Happyness,” Flame Film made the announcement to the media and the fans that it would premiere across North America on May 20th! At the same time, a batch of new stills was released on the official website, showing Will Smith hugging his son in tears, chatting with the real Chris Gardner, and Wang Yang shouting through a megaphone, among others; there were also behind-the-scenes tidbits, like how many extras in the movie were actually homeless people; and how Chris Gardner and Jessica Alba made cameos in the film.

The excitement of the fans for the Smith family’s full mobilization hadn’t cooled down much when the filming was completed, and the movie would be available to watch by next summer! Seeing Will Smith’s utterly changed appearance in the stills only increased the fans’ interest, yet when they expressed their anticipation on the official website, they also had many questions. Would this biographical drama, announced in August and slated for release the following May, be made in such a short time and at such a breakneck speed, really turn out to be a good film?

Having doubts and topics meant the film had high levels of attention, which was a good thing, much better than yelling into the void with no one responding. But how to convert their interest into the drive to enter the cinema? That, of course, relied on publicity.

The publicity plan for “The Pursuit of Happyness” was discussed repeatedly by Wang Yang, Mark Strong, Distribution Manager Simon Willis, and others; they decided to focus on a hard marketing approach, plastering posters on advertising spaces such as city bus stop billboards, and a month before release they aimed to line up media and television appearances for the cast and crew, as well as the Smith family, to promote the film on various talk shows, following the traditional publicity method.

Wang Yang started his career with viral marketing, and naturally, he wouldn’t overlook this strategy for the film. How could a biographical drama use viral marketing to captivate more interest? The key lies in the person “Chris Gardner.” Nobody would be interested in a biography of an ordinary housewife, whereas people are drawn to well-known public figures and their legendary stories and lives.

Therefore, it was crucial for Chris Gardner to become a celebrity, for his life story to be well known, ideally, a household name. The more famous he became, the greater the audience’s interest in the biographical film. Fortunately, Chris Gardner was not only good at investing in stocks, but he also had a talent for writing and was very keen on composing his autobiography, claiming to have “completed more than half of it” within a few months.

Wang Yang’s idea was to have Chris Gardner release his autobiography. If it became a bestseller, Chris’s fame would snowball instantly, and the attention brought to the namesake film ‘The Pursuit of Happyness’ would surge.

If it were just about selling books, that wouldn’t be viral marketing; Wang Yang’s plan was for Chris Gardner’s autobiography to be published in two parts. The content of the first part is what he has written so far: his childhood lacking fatherly love, his adolescence spent living with an uncle due to the absence of parents, his belief in venturing out to join the navy and serve, becoming an intern doctor, and after retiring, moving to San Francisco to work in a medical lab. In 1981, by a twist of fate, he met the man in the red Ferrari and decided to change careers…

The rest of the story? That’s for the second part, but you could watch the movie first by then because it will already have been released. At the end of the first part of the autobiography, there would be a myriad of Chris Gardner’s photographs, information about “The Pursuit of Happyness” movie, Chris’s comments on the film, including photographs and interviews with Will Smith, Wang Yang, and other cast members; buy one get one free, even offering a free movie poster from “The Pursuit of Happyness,” which showed Terry Smith’s head resting on Will Smith’s hand, the warmth between father and son unmistakably evident.

This was a new type of viral marketing; its success hinged on whether Chris Gardner’s autobiography would sell and become a bestseller. Wang Yang had read Chris’s manuscript, which was very moving and profound, definitely a worthy book to savor; the quality of the book was not an issue, so what remained was the intensity of its promotion and the publisher’s packaging, among other things. Of course, this work was the responsibility of the distribution staff like Mark Strong, Simon Willis, and others. If all goes well, Chris Gardner’s autobiography would officially hit the market in March.

Wang Yang also had his own work to do, which was the post-production of “The Pursuit of Happyness”. He had to finish the post-production before April, starting with proper film editing, then moving on to sound recording and score composing, color grading the film with Valerio Festi, and eventually beginning the promotional efforts.

With post-production looming, the crew added two more critical members: an editor and a music composer. For the editor, Wang Yang was inclined to collaborate once again with Margaret Goodspeed. Their previous cooperation on “High School Musical” had established a strong rapport. Margaret’s editing style is both clear and delicate, making her very suitable for the movie’s style.

As for the music composer, Wang Yang didn’t have an immediate candidate. David Lawrence? His music style is very light and has a hint of childlikeness, which is most suited for school movies, but not for “The Pursuit of Happyness”, which sometimes requires lightness and other times needs sorrow. Therefore, he had to look for a different music composer; besides, David Lawrence was already busy with the score for “High School Musical 2”.

However, all these tasks would have to be postponed until January of the next year because of the long Christmas and New Year holidays approaching. Even if Wang Yang wanted to continue working, there would be no one to work with him—and besides, he wasn’t the Terminator T-800; he needed rest too.

On Christmas Day, the Staples Center arena was filled with the holiday spirit, and the fully packed stands were brimming with basketball fans clad in Lakers jerseys, Christmas attire, and kids wearing little red hats. Everyone had happy smiles on their faces, chatting and laughing with family and friends. On the court, the sizzling cheerleaders were also dressed in red Christmas vests and shorts, passionately moving their bodies in sync with the music playing in the arena. Today’s event was the NBA’s annual Christmas Day clash, Lakers vs. Spurs.

“Now, let’s welcome them with even louder applause…” As the DJ’s voice echoed, the lights in the Staples Center suddenly dimmed, sweeping around as the fans clapped and cheered non-stop. The lights then focused back on the court, and with a loud thud, the cheerleaders flicked their hair in unison, to which the DJ shouted, “Showtime!” Another song started, and the cheerleaders began to dance even more wildly than before.

Wang Yang and Jessica were seated in the middle seats closest to the court. He rested his chin on his hands, listened to the blasting music, and took a keen interest in the cheerleaders’ dance moves on the court. It was their first time watching a game together at the Staples Center. During the shortened 98-99 season from February to May, they couldn’t make their relationship public and rarely met, so naturally, they couldn’t just stroll in to watch a game; at the start of this season, he was again shooting a movie in San Francisco and only now could they have this date.

The two tickets had cost Wang Yang nearly 40,000 US dollars, and it took quite a bit of effort to get them. 40,000 US dollars could produce four “Paranormal Activity” films, but it was worth it. They were both die-hard basketball fans, and watching a Christmas game together was a real treat. Moreover, they could watch the sizzling cheerleaders up close—those athletic legs, waists like they had motors, those… Wang Yang silently gasped in awe; the visual impact was astonishing!

“Yang, enjoying the view?” Jessica nudged him teasingly. Wang Yang immediately came back to reality, glanced at her, and nodded with a smile, “Yes, there’s a shock factor to this scene. If it were just one girl dancing, it wouldn’t be as impressive; but with a dozen or twenty, um…” Seeing Jessica’s feigned frown, he too pretended to be helpless, covering his forehead and laughing, “Okay, just now I was just designing a dance scene in my mind. Now, I’m only looking at you.”

Jessica’s mouth curled into a smile, and she couldn’t help but laugh, leaning her head against his shoulder, “Go ahead, I don’t mind.” Wang Yang shook his head with a smile, “I don’t want to anymore.”

At that moment, the big screen above the arena displayed Tom Hanks in his black attire, along with his wife and son. The camera began to pan to the celebrities in the stands, capturing Denzel Washington, Leonardo, Halle Berry… When a beloved star appeared, many fans also burst into applause. Almost all of the stars captured by the camera were A-listers, and suddenly, the big screen showed Jessica in a blue plaid shirt and Wang Yang in a gray and white shirt.

There were quite a few claps as well. The two looked up at the big screen, Jessica revealing a toothy smile, her sweet face greeting the general direction of the camera; Wang Yang also smiled warmly. The camera lingered on them for two or three seconds before moving on to the next celebrity.

Soon, the extended timeout ended. With a “toot”, the game resumed, and players from the Lakers and Spurs left the bench to return to the court.

Wang Yang could clearly hear the friction of the players’ sneakers on the court and the “squeak, squeak” sounds it made. He could almost make out every word of the dialogues and trash talk between players like Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant, and Duncan. Then, looking at the excited Jack Nicholson on the opposite side and hearing the fans loudly chanting “Defense”… his emotions were naturally uplifted. Seeing Kobe assist Shaquille O’Neal with a powerful dunk, he couldn’t help but wave his fist and applaud, “Nice play!”

Jessica also clapped, looking at Wang Yang with delight, she said, “Yang, look how smooth the offense is now, the Lakers’ luck is coming! I think we can win the championship this year.” Wang Yang suddenly sighed, “You guys always have good luck; the Warriors Team doesn’t.” He laughed and looked at Jessica, “I also think the Lakers have a great chance this year, not just because of the OK combo but more importantly because of Phil Jackson—he is the Lakers’ greatest gain this year…”

As the two enthusiastically discussed, they watched the game on the court, clapping and cheering from time to time, completely immersed in the match. In the end, the Lakers did not disappoint them or any of the fans present, winning this Christmas battle with a score of 99 to 93 against the Spurs.

In this joyous Christmas, Wang Yang received countless gifts and blessings from friends. He also played the role of a dutiful Santa Claus, distributing his blessings and presents. A few days later, New Year’s Day followed closely, with 1999 about to become history and the year 2000 arriving. There was no apocalypse, no terror king descending from the sky; a new millennium was about to begin.

Several days earlier, various media and film magazines had already launched special issues, summarizing the film history of 1999- This year, “Shakespeare in Love” won Best Picture at the 71st Academy Awards, Stephen Spielberg once again received the Best Director for “Saving Private Ryan”… This year also saw the birth of countless other outstanding films, “American Beauty,” “The Green Mile,” “The Sixth Sense”…

This year, “Star Wars” returned to the big screen after a 16-year hiatus. Despite many reviews expressing “disappointment,” “Star Wars Episode I” still effortlessly stirred a storm worldwide, with North American box office earnings of $430 million and global earnings of $924 million. As for science fiction films, “The Matrix” brought about an unexpected shock; North American box office earnings of $170 million and global earnings of $460 million were undoubtedly a huge success, and the world and theories it presented drove countless sci-fi fans crazy.

“Ranked fifth in North America’s annual box office is ‘High School Musical’ with $201 million,” the Los Angeles Tinies commented: “It sparked a global campus musical frenzy. Its soundtrack CD was the best-selling film soundtrack CD of the year. It led the revival of campus youth films and musical films. That 19-year-old young man created a miracle once again, proving once more his magic.”

In Empire magazine’s annual feature on Wang Yang, they wrote this: “The achievements of this magical director are beyond imagination. At 18, he created the wonder of ‘ Paranormal Activity’, at 19 this year, the miracle repeated itself with ‘High School Musical’. He has already amassed a global box office total of 700 million US Dollars, thus becoming the youngest billionaire and the most outstanding director under 25 in Hollywood. His popularity among young people is sky-high, and even after the ‘superhero’ incident where he was embroiled in an intentional injury case, his popularity rose rather than fell. Is this yet another miracle?”

“However, his madcap plans and actions in the second half of the year can’t help but cause some worry,” Empire magazine commented at the end: “If his acquisition of Blue Sky Studios for one billion US Dollars is seen as a long term investment, then plans for ‘Juno’ and ‘The Pursuit of Happyness’ seem to indicate he might be getting a little overheated? Of course, we had the same thoughts when he was filming ‘High School Musical’. But this time, due to the lack of a suitable actress for ‘Juno’, he turned around and shot ‘The Pursuit of Happyness’, a biographical drama, bringing in the struggling Will Smith, and Smith’s family. What is he really aiming for? Can his ‘The Pursuit of Happyness’ create magic again? How far can he go in this new millennium? There are many questions, and maybe we will have answers very soon.”

New York’s Times Square is currently packed to the brim, almost too crowded to move. Despite it being early in the morning, this city that never sleeps is brilliantly lit, with skyscrapers twinkling in all sorts of lights, and all the tourists on Times Square are looking up at the digital clock on the building ahead, their faces beaming with smiles, participating in a joyful countdown: “60, 59, 58…”

Wang Yang and Jessica stood among the crowd, both dressed in gray coats and wearing black gloves, holding each other’s hands tightly, also looking up at the clock with smiles, counting down loudly with everyone else. As the seconds ticked away, there were just 10 seconds left until the year 2000! The counting on the square grew louder and louder, and the two became more and more excited: “to, 9- 3> 2,1! Happy New Year!”

“Yay!” Along with everyone’s loud cheers, a giant crystal apple gradually descended from the main building and colored confetti suddenly rained down from the sky, twirling down, heralding the arrival of the year 2000!

“Happy New Year!” The two looked at each other and smiled, then hugged and kissed passionately.

All around the square, people were either hugging or dancing with joy, the noise was deafening, but it filled the air with immense happiness. After a long while, feeling the phone buzz in his pocket, Wang Yang let go of Jessica, but she continued to kiss him enthusiastically as she had never done before. Wang Yang had to gently push her away to break the kiss.

“You’ve bitten my lips,” Wang Yang wiped his lips and said to Jessica with a frown, but he laughed out loud; Jessica laughed proudly, her eyes brimming with happiness and sweetness. Wang Yang took out his phone and answered, pressing it tightly to his ear, “Hey, Michael? Oh, it’s too noisy here, buddy, I can’t hear you clearly!” Jessica helped him cover his other ear with a laugh, and Wang Yang, looking at the crowded people around, shouted, “Anyway, happy New Year, Michael!”

Just as he hung up the call, the phone rang again. He looked at the screen and answered with a smile, “Hi, Rachel, happy New Year! I’m at Times Square, it’s too noisy here, I can’t hear you clearly…”