The Best Director

“Wang Yang’s new project, another cool girl’s story, ‘Sweetheart’…”

In the early morning, on the lush front lawn, Jessica glanced at the latest Entertainment section of the Los Angeles Times in her hands, her heart skipped a beat, and she blurted out in surprise, “Honey?” She had not yet fully unfolded the newspaper when she ran towards the backyard garden, calling out, “Yang, Yang!”

She hurried to the backyard, where she saw Wang Yang still on the small basketball court, playing passionately with a “thump, thump, thump” sound. Approaching the court, she waved the newspaper in her hand and excitedly asked, “Yang, are you making a new movie? ‘Sweetheart’, why didn’t you tell me? What kind of movie is it?”

“Huff, huff… You saw it?” Wang Yang stopped, breathing heavily. He smiled as he wiped the sweat from his forehead and walked towards her with the basketball, saying, “It’s a musical drama, focusing on dance, specifically street dance.” Seeing that she seemed unfamiliar with the details, he continued, “Jessica, I won’t be directing ‘Sweetheart’. I’m just the screenwriter and producer. Did the paper mention that?”

“Oh! Let me see.” Jessica was momentarily stunned before she began to read the extensive interview on the newspaper, following him as she asked, “Why not direct it, do you have other plans?” Wang Yang tossed the basketball under the sycamore tree, turned back to look at her, and spread his hands helplessly, “Hey, sweetheart, why does everyone ask that? You know I’m going back to the University of Southern California to study.”

Jessica flashed her pearly white teeth and rolled her eyes upwards with a laugh, “Because you are the amazing Yang.” Wang Yang laughed as well, playfully nudging her head, “To you, I’m just Little-Young.” Jessica chuckled, then continued to read the interview. Besides writing the script, Yang was also producing and overseeing… It was still his movie. She eagerly asked, “Yang, is there a role in the movie for me? Can I play that cool girl?”

“Hmm, even though I’m not the director, but as the producer and one of the casting directors, I still have some decision-making power, let me think…” Wang Yang put on a thoughtful frown and slowly walked over to the wooden table in the garden to take a few gulps of mineral water.

Seeing the troubled look on his face, Jessica couldn’t help feeling dejected. Was he going to let Natalie play the part again? Recalling Natalie’s brilliant performance in ‘Juno’, and reading Yang’s praise on the paper, “Natalie is one of the most outstanding actresses born in the ’80s in Hollywood today, her talent is incomparable, and working with her is a pleasure,” Jessica felt an uncontrollable competitive spirit well up inside her.

Jessica closed the newspaper, her gaze serious as she looked at him, “Yang, you should see my acting now, I can handle roles more challenging than ‘Gabriela’!”

Wang Yang looked deeply into her eyes, filled with a yearning, a desire for recognition and praise, the very reason he made this movie for her. Not joking anymore, he snapped his fingers and laughed, “I remembered, there is a role I reserved just for you! The character’s name is Sweetheart.” Jessica, stunned, said, “Sweetheart?” Wang Yang smiled and said, “Yes, the leading lady.”

“Oh! Sweetheart…” Jessica nodded silently, her brows furrowed as she said, “You mean, the main character in ‘Sweetheart’ is also called Sweetheart, like ‘ Juno’, and you want me to play her? Are you sure?” Wang Yang nodded emphatically, “Yes, you’re absolutely right. This movie is designed specifically for you—who else but you could be Sweetheart? So, what do you think, Sweetheart? Interested?”

A film designed for me? Jessica felt her heart constrict, a sensation that often overcame her ever since she fell in love. She exhaled, nodding and smiling non-stop, “Um, of course! I’m very interested.” With that, she couldn’t help but throw herself into his arms, and Wang Yang wrapped his arms around her, kissing her lips.

After they embraced and kissed passionately for a while, they walked into the house hand in hand. Jessica swung their clasped hands and asked, “Yang, what’s the story of ‘Sweetheart’ about?” Wang Yang thought about the ideas he already had in his mind and said, “I only have a rough idea of the script’s story and characters, and the film’s style and tone right now. The first draft will take at least a month to complete, and then we can start assembling the crew. It’s about…”

Sweetheart is a beautiful and kind girl, who grew up in a traditional, conservative Catholic family, but she has always had a passion for rock and street dance, two things that didn’t fit her identity. After graduating high school, she secretly arrived at the legendary city of dance, a mecca for all dancers. In this city brimming with passion, there were dancers of all sorts, along with a dance competition that represented the highest honor for dancers.

Winning the dance competition was Sweetheart’s dream, and naturally, she wanted to compete. But her rock attire that clashed with Hip-hop and her rudimentary street dance skills led to her receiving a cold shoulder from all the dance crews. The tenacious Sweetheart decided to form her own crew to enter the competition, but the real challenges began as she searched for teammates —she had to inspire and awaken the resolve to chase their dreams in those deemed “useless” by others, including the male lead, male supporting characters, and female supporting characters…

Once Sweetheart accomplished this, her understanding of dreams and dance deepened significantly, and after building a strong friendship with them, this odd, “useless” team practiced tirelessly every day, preparing for the upcoming competition. It was then that an opportunity suddenly presented itself to Sweetheart: a film director invited her to be the lead actress in a movie.

It was a path to stardom utterly different from that of a dancer, but Sweetheart ultimately turned it down to compete in the dance competition with her friends, chasing their shared dream.

In the end, after a series of fierce dance battles, they won the championship, claiming the highest honor for dancers.

The story isn’t complex, nor does it need to be. A decade later, it might seem cliche, but not now, and this is just a summary. Wang Yang clearly knew the positioning of the movie—it was commercial, avoiding the need for profound themes like ‘Juno’. What ‘Sweetheart’ needed was a captivating story, a group of charming young people, scenes, and music and dance that could fully engage the audience’s emotions, making them all “Step-up.”

As for the male lead, male and female supporting characters, and other team members, he already had some preliminary ideas, including a down-and-out man who was once a dazzling new star of street dance in the city of dance. However, due to an accident that injured both his hands, not only did he lose the competition, but his hands also lost their strength, preventing him from performing the challenging street dance moves and reducing him to “useless”. Under Sweetheart’s relentless “help”, he finally reluctantly pulled himself together and transformed, trying other dances that didn’t require the strength of his hands.

In Wang Yang’s initial thoughts, Michael Pitt was the perfect fit for the role- after staying up for several nights, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, he embodied the essence of decadence.

There was another character, humorous yet a bit vulgar and narcissistic, who also harbored some insecurity—a man who learned and mastered ballet from a very young age, but in a city that worships passionate dance, this became a reason for him to be mocked. He was the first one Sweetheart convinced to join after she smacked him on the head with her guitar. In fact, Wang Yang had someone in mind for this part, and that was Joseph Gordon Levitt; for some reason, whenever he designed this character, Joseph was the person who came to mind.

Sweetheart was essentially about a group of young people with strong individualities who, inspired by Sweetheart, formed an unconventional squad combining elements of rock, street dance, and ballet, and together, they took a shot at their dreams.

“Yang, the story sounds fun. What’s Sweetheart like?” Jessica asked with keen interest in the dining room, bringing over sunny-side-up eggs and prepared oatmeal to the table. Across from her, Wang Yang had taken off his jersey, revealing a muscular upper body; while putting on a T-shirt, he said, “Kind of like you—kindhearted, sweet, a bit scatterbrained, prone to tripping…” He smiled slightly and added, “But most importantly, she has personality.” Without a unique personality that teenagers love, even a character that’s well- acted and wins an Oscar would never become a trend; of course, the two aren’t mutually exclusive. Take Captain Jack, for instance, in his mind—the role was an absolute smash with teens, thanks to Johnny Depp’s invincible acting and the charm and personality designed into the character; and Juno’s popularity also came from her personality.

If Sweetheart was to be adored by teens and not overshadowed by the side characters filled with personality, she herself couldn’t be average, simply a “good girl.”

Wang Yang washed his hands and sat down. After a sip of oatmeal, he looked at Jessica across the table and said, “I’m thinking now that she’s a stubborn rock girl who likes street dance but isn’t a hip-hop expert, carries a big guitar, knows a little street dance… She’s a ‘biting off more than she can chew’ kind of gal, who, when aggravated, would hit people with her guitar…”

But how exactly to showcase her personality and charm depended on how she helped those lost “no-hopers.” It could not be through mere preachiness— absolutely not. Thinking of the kind of stories to write, how to smoothly link them together, giving each character their own personality-laden lines, highlighting Sweetheart’s enchanting charm… these were all things he needed to slowly consider and explore in the screenplay.

After hearing his preliminary ideas, Jessica nodded. From the information she had gathered, she understood that Sweetheart was a very “odd” girl, not straightforward and easy to control like Gabriela. This excited her; it was an opportunity for her to prove herself! She smiled and clenched her fist confidently, saying, “Yang, I will definitely give Sweetheart my all!”

Then, thinking of the ways Natalie had portrayed Juno, she secretly told herself, “Starting now, I’m going to delve into Sweetheart’s psyche.” Seeing Wang Yang nod with a smile, she suddenly remembered something, and couldn’t help feeling regretful as she said, “It’s a shame you’re not the director.”

“Jessie, I’ll be with you,” Wang Yang said warmly. For her, he was determined to write a good script for “Sweetheart” and also produce the film well. Although he wasn’t directing, he would still be very involved, including the director’s storyboard, the shooting group’s filming plan, post-production editing, and so on. As a producer, he wasn’t responsible for managing finances and logistics, just for overseeing the entire creative process of the movie.

In fact, as a director, they generally hate it when a producer who knows nothing pretends to know everything and pokes their nose into everything. Wang Yang, of course, knew and understood this very well, so the goal he set for himself was “to help, not control, and not to kill the director’s creative passion”. There was a balance to this, a good producer helps the director, a bad producer ruins the director; he hoped he could grasp that balance.

“Yeah! I can’t wait to play Sweetheart!” After a moment of regret, Jessica quickly recovered her high spirits. Wang Yang, biting into a tender poached egg, smiled and said, “Wow, I can’t wait to see you street dance either.” Imitating a Bollywood style, he twisted his neck and exclaimed, “Oh’ Lord, HOT!” Jessica rolled her eyes with a smile, feeling very sweet inside, yet chided with a laugh, “Yang, you’re really naughty sometimes!” Wang Yang spread his hands innocently and asked, “What? Why?” Jessica laughed, “You know why!” After breakfast, the two were affectionate for a while, then each drove away from home—Wang Yang to Flame Film Company for an important annual meeting; Jessica to the post-production dubbing work for “High School Musical 3”.

Looking at the road ahead, Wang Yang held the steering wheel and hummed a tune. Suddenly, his phone rang. He stopped the CD player and pressed his phone, saying, “Hello, good morning!” Then he heard Natalie’s voice through the earphone, bubbling with excitement, “Buddy, it’s me! I saw your new plan, and I want to play Sweetheart.” Wang Yang turned the steering wheel and laughed, “Buddy, I’m afraid that’s not possible, we already have an actress for the leading role.”

“What, so fast?” There was a pause on the other end, followed by Natalie asking loudly, “Who?” Wang Yang said with a smile, “Jessica.” Natalie snorted coldly, and her tone suddenly became very angry as she shouted, “OK! Good! Good! Bye!”

Hearing the “beep beep” that immediately followed, Wang Yang was momentarily stunned. What pill did she take wrong? Frowning, he thought for a second, realizing something was off. Why was Natalie so angry? She hadn’t even read the script… He shook his head with a self-mocking laugh. Oh please, do you think you’re irresistible? Maybe it’s just her “time of the month”.

Before he could ponder further, in less than a few seconds, the phone rang again. He pressed to answer, “Hello, good morning!” Through the earphone came Natalie’s laughter, “Yes, I’m back! So what’s the story like? Are you making this movie to get over the shadow of ‘Juno’? And for your beautiful girlfriend?”

“Smart! Exactly,” Wang Yang smiled. Stopping at a red light, he looked at a photo frame in front of him, which held a joyful picture of Jessica and him underneath the Eiffel Tower in Paris, and he said with a smile, “I’ve got to do something for her.” Natalie said with a laugh, “Romantic, very romantic! Buddy, why don’t you just direct it yourself?”

“I’m too calm,” Wang Yang stated, as the green light came on and he stepped on the gas, continuing, “That’s not the right mood for directing…”