1RomanceEB Chapter 56 Company Location and New Projects
Chapter 56 Company Location and New Projects
When Director Wu left, his steps were much lighter than when he arrived.
He glanced back at Lin Ruiyang at the door, his lips moved, but he didn't say anything in the end. He just nodded to Liu Yibing, closed the door, and left.
The footsteps in the corridor faded into the distance, and the office fell silent.
The April snow of willow catkins outside the window hasn't stopped yet; a few pieces clung to the screen window, only to be blown away by the wind.
Liu Yibing didn't rush to speak. He rearranged the stack of manuscripts of "The Plot," tapped them on the table to align the corners, and then pushed them in front of Lin Ruiyang.
"Take the script back and read it. First, settle your own affairs."
"Thank you, teacher."
"No need to thank me." Liu Yibing picked up his teacup, but found the water had gone cold, so he put it down again.
"What are your plans regarding the company?"
Lin Ruiyang took the cup, added hot water, and put it back next to Liu Yibing.
"Let's get the staff in place first. One accountant, one legal counsel, and one administrative staff member. As for production, Li Ming has been working with Wang Hai for about half a year and is already familiar with the basic procedures, so let him handle that for now."
"Where is the office?"
"After looking at several places, we finally settled on the Kuntai International Building outside Chaoyangmen. It's a new building, only two years old. We had Fatty negotiate the price for one floor, about 300 square meters, for an annual rent of 80,000 yuan."
Liu Yibing raised an eyebrow.
"The space is indeed larger than what is needed now," Lin Ruiyang explained.
"One room each for finance and legal affairs, one open room for production, plus a meeting room and a reception area, 200 square meters is enough. The remaining 100 square meters are reserved for post-production and project preparation."
Since we're going to set up the platform, let's build it right the first time, so we don't have to move it next year.
That made sense, so Liu Yibing didn't ask any further questions. He only reminded Liu Yibing, "Have your legal department review the contract clause by clause before signing. These days, there are more pitfalls in some office building lease contracts than in screenplay copyrights."
"I've already made an appointment with a lawyer; we'll go talk tomorrow."
Liu Yibing leaned back in his chair, finally revealing a relaxed expression.
He examined the student in front of him. It had only been a little over a year, but the sapling had grown so fast that even he, the tree planter, felt he couldn't keep up.
"You've thought of everything more thoroughly than I have."
"I learned it all from you."
"Stop flattering me." Liu Yibing picked up his teacup, took a sip, and suddenly remembered something.
"Oh, by the way, there's something I need to tell you."
Lin Ruiyang listened attentively.
"You saw that girl named Yang Mi before the start of the semester, at the entrance of the Academic Affairs Office, the day I helped her with her paperwork."
Her family and I have some old acquaintances, and they asked me to look after her. This child did well in the art exam, ranking first in her major, and is now focusing on her academic studies for the college entrance exam in June.
"Once she starts school in September, if she has any questions about her major, please help her out."
The image of that face, not yet fully developed, flashed through Lin Ruiyang's mind.
"Bring what? Bring her to write a screenplay?"
"Take her to avoid detours. There are too many twists and turns in this industry. It's better to have someone knowledgeable give her some pointers than to let her hit a wall on her own."
"You're practically a well-regarded figure in the college now. If a younger female student asks you a question, you just need to answer briefly."
"And how's the preparation for your modern film in Hollywood going?"
"Everything is going smoothly. Once Fox has completed its preliminary preparations and all the applications involving location shooting have been approved, I will go there to start filming."
"Just handle it yourself. If there's anything you can't figure out, just tell me."
Lin Ruiyang nodded and said nothing more.
18th floor of Kuntai International Building.
The 300-square-meter open-plan room had just been cleaned. Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, the traffic on Chaoyangmenwai Street was like ants, and the sunlight poured in without any obstruction, illuminating the entire floor.
The fat man stood by the window and looked down for a while, then turned around and said, "Old Lin, I feel like we're starting to look like we're doing something really serious."
"We were just doing something legitimate."
Lin Ruiyang tossed him a bunch of keys: "Make a few for the office and the downstairs access control."
The company recruited several people in three days. Except for the accountant, who came from a state-owned enterprise, the others all had backgrounds at Beijing Film Academy.
A few days later, Lin Ruiyang went to China Film Group.
Han Sanping received him in his office.
The head of China Film Group looked more tired than when we last met, and his table was piled high with documents about the distribution of imported blockbusters.
"Ruiyang, you haven't had a moment's rest since you came back to China. I heard you even helped Chuan Factory solve a big script problem while you were back at school?"
Han Sanping lit a cigarette and looked at him with a smile.
"That's an exaggeration. I just happened to have read the original work and offered a couple of structural suggestions," Lin Ruiyang said modestly.
Han Sanping flipped through the post-production report for "A Separation" in his hand, remained silent for a moment before speaking:
"Originally, I wanted to ask you if you had any new projects suitable for the domestic market."
But then I thought about how you still have "The Devil Wears Prada" waiting in line in Hollywood, and Fox is keeping a close eye on you. If I were to keep you in the country writing your script right now, their executives would probably fly straight here to fight me.
He gave a wry smile and waved his hand dismissively, "Forget it, let's talk about big projects after you finish your work over there. With your reputation now, I'm not the only one in the country eyeing it."
Han Sanping's unintentional remark stirred something within Lin Ruiyang.
The phrase "major project" is like a pebble thrown into water, creating ripples that spread outwards in concentric circles.
From Venice to Berlin and then to Hollywood, he has been rushing forward like he's on the gas for over a year, without ever stopping to seriously think about what to film next after "The Devil Wears Prada".
But now is not the time to think about that.
"Senior, there's something I'd like to ask you for help with."
Han Sanping looked up at him.
"I wanted to add some Chinese elements to 'The Devil Wears Prada'."
It's not about forcing it on; it's about subtle, gradual influence—like a handbag that appears briefly in a shot, or a coat hanging on a hanger. Suzhou embroidery has a strong presence in the international haute couture scene; several long-established European workshops have hired embroiderers from Suzhou.
If we can connect with the resources, crafting one or two items using Suzhou embroidery from the key items will be much more effective than simply forcing a draw.
"Even when making an American commercial film, you can find a way to give traditional crafts a boost."
Han Sanping picked up the landline, dialed an internal line, gave a few instructions, and then hung up to tell Lin Ruiyang, "I'll have someone handle this. You don't need to worry about the rest."
Lin Ruiyang thanked him and got up to take his leave.
When I came out of the Central Motion Picture Corporation, it was already dark outside.
The traffic on Chang'an Avenue lit up a string of taillights in the gray-blue evening light, and in the distance, the outlines of the high-rise buildings under construction in the China World Trade Center were broken by the silhouettes of tower cranes.
In 2005, Beijing was a city under construction, with old buildings being demolished and new ones being constructed everywhere. The city, like him, was undergoing a radical reconstruction.
He walked along the sidewalk, his mind still racing—the new project.
He recalled a script that had been repeatedly returned among the pile of project reports CAA had sent him. He also remembered Liu Yibing's earlier words: "Once you've established yourself, remember to turn around and help those behind you."
And then there's Mai Jia. Besides *The Plot*, are there any other manuscripts Mai Jia sent?
He remembered that after "The Plot" in his previous life, Mai Jia wrote an even more profound novel, pushing the game of espionage to another extreme.
However, at this point in time, that story probably hasn't even been started yet.