The Best Director

On the other side, the set manager Geoff sighed and said, “Yang, I’m very sorry, but no matter what, I won’t go. My family worries about me leaving home to work, my wife and children; for them, I can take no risks.” He apologized again, “I’m sorry!”

Alright, I can understand, then there’s nothing we cando,” Wang Yang helplessly covered his forehead and nodded, “OK, let it be then, bye!”

More than two weeks had passed since the 9/11 incident, and America had already lifted the terrorist attack alert. Planes resumed flying, the fires at the World Trade Center ruin were still burning, debris continued to be cleared, and the faint hopes of rescue efforts still persisted; life, too, continued, and the whole country seemed to have returned to its original order.

On the 14th, Wang Yang was invited to a confidential brainstorming discussion at the Creative Technology Institute at the University of Southern California. Attendees included Michael Bay and a host of other directors known for their expertise in explosive crime movies or their imaginative prowess. They discussed with the Department of Homeland Security and counterterrorism experts. He suggested a method of a terrorist attack, “anthrax powder assault, where terrorists would drive a large truck filled with anthrax powder across several different cities in a short period, dispersing it into the air, exposing the urban population to the virus.

Upon hearing this scenario, people from the Department of Homeland Security looked grave. Other bold and crazy ideas from Michael Bay and others left the agency officials remarking at the end of the meeting, “Thank goodness these directors aren’t terrorists.”

On September 21, the “America Salutes Heroes” fundraising gala took place, with all major American television networks collaborating on the broadcast and 156 countries worldwide airing it simultaneously; Flame Movie Company later donated twenty million dollars. On September 19, the U.S. military dispatched fighter jets to the Persian Gulf military base, ready to begin military action against the Taliban and Al-Qaeda in Afghanistan at any moment.

Although Wang Yang had thoroughly read about war history and understood the military, he never had a good impression of war; there are no true winners in war, whether it’s the Taliban or the American forces. Life continues, movies continue, but both life and movies don’t exist in a vacuum. The effects of 9/11 and the impending war are inescapable.

The biggest shadow 9/11 left on people was airplanes, terrorists, personal safety; Hollywood felt the same. Almost all A-list stars with salaries of ten million or more, including superstas like Tom Hanks, Tom Cruise, Julia Roberts, Jim Carrey, Will Smith… a countless number of stars, as well as major producers and directors, made it clear in unison that for the time being, they would no longer be flying abroad; they would only like to stay in the country.

The highest-rated CBS reality TV show, “Survivor,” season four, originally planned to be shot in the Middle East, now naturally had to be cancelled because the entire production team, actors, and staff gave up high salaries, not wanting to risk their lives in the Middle East. But it’s not just the Middle East; even Canada and Australia have been listed as unsafe places now. All film and television crews are suffering from safety crises, and Africa, where “District 9

is set? It ranks second on the “most unsafe” list, right behind the Middle East.

Therefore, nearly half of the “District 9″ crew that had been assembled beforehand said to Wang Yang that they would either change the shooting location, or they would drop out.

The on-location shooting in the African slums was extremely important for the effect of the movie. That sense of reality is something that miniatures and partial sets could not compare with; to build a full-scale set in Los Angeles would undoubtedly be absurd, and such a huge expenditure was also beyond what Flame Movie Company could afford. Wang Yang would not change the plan to shoot in Africa, so the only option was for them to drop out.

Fortunately, those who had opted out were so far only from positions such as set manager, rather than core crew members. These positions could still be replaced by those willing to go to South Africa for hefty sums of money; however, the crew’s key positions could not afford losses, or it would be fraught with trouble again. After noticing this trend, Wang Yang immediately contacted key team members one by one, promising security arrangements, and even increased their pay.

Despite this, some members, including a sound mixer and a lighting technician, were determined to leave; and on the side of the visual effects team from the graphics engine, some people wanted to quit as well… Some work had to start over, while at the same time they had to continue to soothe the emotions of the existing members to prevent them from suddenly leaving, regardless of the contract termination fee.

This is bad, and then it gets worse…” Wang Yang sighed, about to stand up and walk back inside, when his cell phone suddenly rang again. He looked at it and saw it was a call from Robert Downey Jr.; frowning, he answered with a laugh, “Hey, Robert, don’t tell me you’re dropping out and not acting! If that’s the case, no need for terrorists, I’ll kill you right now at your house.”

Downey Jr. chuckled on the other line, seemingly smacking his lips as he said, “No, I don’t plan that, nobody cares if I die anyway, if you’re not afraid, magical Yang, why should I be?” They both laughed for a bit before Wang Yang got serious, “Nobody is going to die; the slum we’re going to is very safe, and it’s only for a month. So why did you call me?” Downey Jr. replied, “I just wanted to tell you, if there’s anything the crew needs help with, let me know. Don’t forget I’m a producer too, I know a lot of people.”

Of course.” Wang Yang stood, walking and talking, “Just now, our location manager resigned, so I need a new location manager. Do you have any recommendations?”

But the impact of the 9/11 incident on the film industry was far more than just shooting location problems, with the first and foremost being the severe hit to box office sales. The week immediately following the event, from the 14th to the 20th, box office in America was still strong, with a 42% increase compared to the same period last year; however, during the second week, from the 21st to the 27th, as the possibility of the U.S. military initiating war grew, along with rumors of a second wave of terrorist attacks, cinemas suddenly became quiet.

The total box office for the week was only $56 million, a 15% decline from the previous week and $3 million lower than the same period last year. The debut music comedy starring the pop diva Mariah Carey, “Glitter,” met with a cold reception, garnering only $2.9 million at 1200 cinemas, thoroughly dousing the star’s cinematic dreams with cold water; the total box office for the top 12 films of the week was a meager $44-2 million, marking a new low since September 15, 2000.

Audience sentiments were unpredictable, but one thing the distributors were sure of was that horror violence films were now unwelcome. Some scathing critiques from media newspapers and online movie fans corroborated this, and horror violence films became targets overnight, prompting distributors to react by either withdrawing movies from release or postponing them.

These included the action thriller “Collateral Damage” starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, originally set to premiere on October 5th, the war film “We Were Soldiers” starring Mel Gibson… and the violent crime film “Gangs of New York” starring Leonardo Dicaprio, planned for the Christmas season, and Nicolas Cage with John Woo’s war film “Windtalkers,” and even the high- octane “Spider-Man”… Almost every film related to violence and thrillers was postponed to the next year with no definite schedule as of now.

Film company production schedules were naturally severely disrupted as well. Last year, Hollywood had about 68 new movies in preparation during the fourth quarter; this year, now, there were only 16 new movies in the works or about to start production, and among them, only one was violence-related, “District 9.”

Those Hollywood producers only have money in their eyes, they spare no expense and invest a lot of time and manpower to make some heart-pounding horror and violence films to attract young people and make their money, which is actually very irresponsible,” said the 76-year-old film master Robert Altman, who has been nominated for the Oscar for Best Director five times and Best Picture four times, in recent comments to the media: “Terrorists are merely learning from Hollywood movies. No one would come up with such acts of violence unless they had seen those movies.”

The rebellious old man, who always speaks his mind and is keen on criticism and mockery, mentioned Wang Yang by name: “I’ve noticed among directors there is a promising newcomer, Wang Yang, who wants to continue making his R-rated violent films, the only one right now. I don’t know what this kid is thinking, but I know he’s good at making money from his peers. If his new movie is just about making money, tell him for me, this is not the time to make violent movies, no one will watch them; right now he should make the warming, sunny movies he’s good at, guaranteed to make a lot of money.

Many online movie fans also expressed on the official website of Flame Film, Wang Yang’s personal website, and his blog that they did not want to see him produce horror violence films that make people uncomfortable. They hoped he could make a heartwarming movie like “The Pursuit of Happyness” or “Juno,” or at least something lively like “High School Musical,” but definitely not anything like “Paranormal Activity,” as they wouldn’t go to the theater for it.

Many entertainment media also analyzed and commented on the state of post- 9/11 cinema, generally believing that it would take at least 1-2 years for the market to return to normal, and even longer if there is a war.

The Cinema News” reported, “In this time filled with terror sentiments, audiences are mostly reluctant to watch violent movies, and film merchants are cancelling corresponding production plans one after another. It is worth mentioning that the miraculous director Wang Yang is continuing against the market trend, and film producers are happy to see his pioneering work; but what exactly is this guy thinking? Will ‘District 9’ be his Waterloo?”

Santa Monica, in the conference room of Flame Film Company. With a slap, Wang Yang put down the blue folder in his hand, which clearly listed some known information about the 16 movies currently being planned by all Hollywood film merchants, including genres like comedy, romantic love, campus musical, romantic comedy… He glanced at Mark Strong, distribution manager Simon Willis, production manager Sandy Pikes, and a few others on both sides of the conference table, and shrugged his shoulders calmly.

Yang, we are the only one, the only violent film, and it’s a big production with a cost of 100 million,” Mark Strong’s voice was somewhat heavy, and seriousness filled his eyes behind his glasses. Looking at everyone, Wang Yang chuckled and said, “Pretty cool, isn’t it?” Simon Willis and the others immediately laughed, and Mark Strong also smiled helplessly, “Yes, we always stand out. But Yang, you know…”

His face full of panic, he pointed to himself and said, “The current viewing mood is like this face of mine, 9/11 hasn’t passed, and for all you know, we might go to war tomorrow, people might die again.” He frowned and spread his hands without speaking, but the meaning was very clear: “Postpone ‘District 9’ for the time being. It’s not suitable for shooting now!”

Mark, gentlemen,” Wang Yang looked at them seriously one by one and said, “The incident on 9/11 was truly regrettable, but it happened, and we can’t just keep running away; what we need is reflection. And the story of ‘District 9’ is not just about violence…”

Mark Strong shook his head and interrupted him, “Reflection has to come at the right time, every need has to be timed, and obviously now is not it, not the stage for suppressed violence.” Simon Willis nodded in agreement, “The audience’s nerves are very sensitive and fragile right now.” Mark Strong added, “Even though ‘District 9’ won’t be released until at least next August, no one knows if the audience will have recovered by then. Even if the film is very, very good, we might end up not recouping the cost…”

Wang Yang slowly furrowed his brow listening as they all spoke at once, their words filled with concern for the market, the cost… Why should he care about those things? Couldn’t he just make a good movie? He suddenly shouted, interrupting everyone’s words, and said definitively, “There’s no need to say more, I’ll continue shooting! Guys, I can’t postpone it, everything is ready, everything!”

He took a deep breath, thinking about the preparations along the way, from May to almost October now, five months of effort, assembling the crew, in Vancouver… He said in a deep voice, “Nothing, no difficulty, will stop this plan, to hell with it, I won’t postpone!”

Mark Strong and the others looked at each other, and while they understood his feelings, they felt helpless. This boss was still only 21 years old, with the capriciousness of a young person, or you could say, the boldness of someone with no fear.

Gentlemen.” Wang Yang pursed his lips, looking at them and said, “I know this might damage the company’s interest. But what if ‘District 9’ really does make a loss? Will it lose a lot? The company won’t go under!” He glared at them with furrowed brows, “And who says it will definitely make a loss? Please, cheer up!” He clapped his hands loudly, encouragingly, “We can do it well, we can!”

Seeing that he had made up his mind, Mark Strong, who knew him well, could not help but smile wryly, and stopped trying to persuade him, saying, “OK, OK! Anyway, you’re the amazing Yang, and amazing Yang always brings miracles. If ‘District 9’ succeeds again, that would really be cool.” Everyone smiled helplessly, Wang Yang gave a reassuring thumbs up, then Mark spoke seriously, “Then let’s face the facts! Our promotion has to be done better now, it needs to change.”

Simon Willis over there nodded, offering his opinion, “Hmm, blood and violence can no longer be mentioned. ‘District 9’ should be silent for a while now, to let everyone forget its violent image.”

Shift the media and public’s attention to the aliens,” Wang Yang said with a snap of his fingers, happy that they could support his decision. He had long considered changes to the promotion, saying, “I agree with staying quiet for a while, but not too long. Then we’ll announce that it’s a sci-fi movie with aliens, and ride the momentum to launch a few viral marketing websites.”

Hearing about the viral marketing website, everyone was a bit puzzled. Mark

Slant furrowed his brows and asked, “What do you mean by that?”

Wang Yang thought for a moment and then shared his idea, “That website is designed for viral marketing, to get movie fans and audiences to interact… Let me give you an idea, we combine it with Blogger to launch, and the goal of that viral website is to have everyone post an article about ‘District 9’ on their Blogger. Once we reach 50,000 or 100,000 people, it will reveal a concept image of an alien, and then launch the next viral marketing website.”

Seeing the thoughtful looks on everyone’s faces, he laughed and said, “It’s like a game, an event, but it requires a lot of people to play together. Everyone has to participate, getting their friends to join in. The more participants we have and the longer they participate, the higher their anticipation for the movie will be. It’s as if they’ve been involved in the making of the movie, growing with it, and they will walk into the cinema.”

Simon Willis, who was well versed in the ins and outs of distribution and publicity, lit up with excitement and praised, “If this kind of viral marketing is more than just saturation bombing, it’s a game… Wow! If this promotional plan succeeds, the box office in the first week after the movie is released will be very high…” Mark Slant also burst out laughing and said, “As long as the movie is good and the reviews are not bad, it will attract more people to go see it and greatly reduce their resistance.”

Wang Yang slammed the conference table with force, laughing, “That’s exactly my point! Viral marketing, viral marketing! We must do it well.” Everyone had smiles on their faces, regaining some confidence and fighting spirit. Mark Slant suddenly joked, “Hey! Yang, isn’t that viral marketing proposal also an advertisement for Blogger?” Wang Yang glared and shrugged, saying, “Maybe.”

Everyone chuckled, and Simon Willis proposed, “I have an idea. You know the 9/11 events, wars, those damn things are ours.” Mark Slant and the others hummed in agreement; Wang Yang guessed what he was about to say and asked, “Are you talking about the overseas market?” Simon Willis smiled and nodded, “This time, we should pay more attention to the overseas market.” Mark Slant also nodded immediately, laughing, “Right, I agree!”

Hmm…” Wang Yang frowned as if pondering something, and asked, “If ‘District 9’ were to have a global simultaneous release, how many countries could we reach?”

Simon Willis was taken aback; overseas markets generally lag behind by 1-2 weeks or even months. Occasional simultaneous releases happened, but only in a few countries, certainly not at a “global simultaneous” level. He thought for a moment and answered, “I think the majority wouldn’t have any issues, but some countries have different systems for reviewing and importing films, and may not be able to align with a simultaneous release.”

Guys, a global simultaneous release is a trend,” Wang Yang picked up his cup and took a sip of tea, then continued, “You know, as a movie fan, you always want to see the movie at the earliest possible time, not after everyone else has seen it. That’s terrible. But if it’s released simultaneously, everyone’s excitement to watch the movie would be extremely high!”

Everyone nodded in agreement, and Wang Yang smiled, raising his voice, “This time we’re going for a global simultaneous release, the United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, Mexico, China… We’ll go for as many as we can! The overseas viral marketing campaign should also be carried out simultaneously, the whole earth has to be involved, we’ve got to go big!”

Alright, alright!” Mark Slant raised his hands as if to surrender, laughing and sighing, “I had been thinking of persuading you to delay or cancel ‘District 9,’ but now we’re actually going to go even bigger, OK!” He clenched his fist and swung it forward, saying, “Let’s give the world a surprise!”

Haha!” Simon Willis and the others immediately laughed.