"I'd like to know, as a fellow animation director, what does Mr. Mu think of the animated film directed by Ji Xinrong?" Guan Junda asked as he clenched the pen in his hand, waiting to hear Mu Suxing's sarcastic remarks in order to get the heavy recommendation of tomorrow's magazine.
"Personally, I admire this animated film."
That's right, it's best to ridicule Ji Xinrong harshly, readers love to watch this kind of drama. It just so happens that the other party is the animation director who has been very popular recently because of the Harry Potter series... Wait, what is he talking about
Guan Junda raised his head in doubt and stared blankly at Mu Suxing, who looked calm and natural. After a while, he found his voice and said, "But I found in the questionnaire that the audience is generally not satisfied with "Grass and Trees" and is very disappointed with director Ji Xinrong. Is this proof that director Ji Xinrong has failed?"
The young man raised his eyes and glanced at him.
It was just a normal eye contact, but Guan Junda inexplicably felt that all his thoughts were seen through by the other party. This made him feel that the other party's eyes seemed to carry an unprecedented coldness. But the next second, Mu Suxing said gently and firmly: "No, I don't think this can be used as proof that Teacher Ji Xinrong has failed."
Guan Junda noticed that Mu Suxing used the word "teacher" when addressing Ji Xinrong.
"Teacher Ji Xinrong has already used five parts. His expression is calm and natural, and his tone can even be said to be solemn:
"In my opinion, the animated film Grass and Trees is actually a significant attempt by Ji Xinrong, an artistic animation director, to target the mass market. It has a considerable reference value for other animators. It is obviously biased to judge the success of an animated film only by its box office."
Guan Junda was speechless for a moment.
But Guan Junda was naturally unwilling to let him give up the big news in front of him.
Did Mu Suxing really have no complaints against Ji Xinrong? Guan Junda didn't believe it. The incident was not a big deal, but it was also not a small matter. However, it was a fact that both parties were unhappy. Mu Suxing also lost the subsidy from Xingning University of the Arts because of it, and even now has a mediocre relationship with his alma mater.
Thinking of this, Guan Junda was too lazy to hide it anymore. He said bluntly, "I heard that Mr. Mu and Director Ji Xinrong had a bad relationship over the script of "IS". Mr. Mu respects Director Ji Xinrong so much. Does it mean that Mr. Mu agrees with Director Ji Xinrong's original opinion?"
The malice in the other party's words was too obvious for Mu Suxing to ignore. But if he really kept a cold face at this moment, the report the next day would probably make up a story that was not what he said but what he meant.
Thinking of this, Mu Suxing suppressed his anger and said calmly: "The difference in ideas will not affect my fair judgment of Director Ji Xinrong's work. Just like the Eleanor Award, Director Ji Xinrong did not refuse to vote for "The Gift of the Magi" because of our personal conflicts."
He paused and said coldly: "Sorry, I have something else to do. I won't accompany you any longer."
After saying this, Mu Suxing was too lazy to pay attention to the reporters who were deliberately looking for trouble, and got into the car without looking back.
Guan Junda returned to the editorial office in a depressed mood. The more he thought about the interview script which was completely different from what he had planned, the more unhappy he became.
On the one hand, he didn’t get the interview he wanted, and on the other hand, it was Mu Xuxing’s attitude.
Most people who are good at interviewing are smart, and Guan Junda is no exception. In his opinion, although Mu Suxing did not say it explicitly, the indifference and depth in his eyes during his words seemed to be despising his petty behavior of flattering others.
Why pretend to be a good guy? He doesn't believe that Mu Xuxing doesn't have any resentment in his heart.
Guan Junda became angrier and angrier, but he could do nothing about it. Unlike Ji Xinrong, who is now popular among the public, Huaying and Mu Suxing are the treasures of the audience. If he really makes some unfavorable remarks according to his temper, Huaying's fans alone will be able to criticize him to death, not to mention that Mu Suxing himself has a not-so-simple background.
etc…
Got it!
His heart moved slightly, and when he looked at the interview manuscript on the table again, his originally gloomy face suddenly brightened up and revealed a thoughtful smile. The white light reflected on his malicious face, making it look even colder and gloomy.
He knew what to do.
Mu Suxing was naturally unaware of the resentment that the interview had accidentally caused. Even if he knew, he probably wouldn't have taken it to heart.
Having said that, after that day, Mu Suxing still found the magazine and found the other party's report.
Mu Suxing originally thought that the reporter's character would most likely explain it in a way that would add insult to injury, but he didn't expect that the magazine that day had no intention of exaggerating, and instead published his answer honestly. The author's words did not have the slightest intention of smearing him, but instead praised his behavior:
"We are used to seeing directors in the film industry fighting each other, taking advantage of others' misfortunes, and fighting tooth and nail for the box office. Director Mu Suxing is undoubtedly a clear cut figure among them. Considering the recent release of the Harry Potter movie, Director Mu Suxing is worthy of his status as the top animation director on Blue Star, both in terms of performance and magnanimity!"
After a quick glance, Mu Suxing almost thought he had read it wrong. However, when he read the entire article carefully, he did not find any innuendo in it. It seemed as if the article was speaking for him sincerely.
Mu Xuxing recalled the scene during the interview that day and raised his eyebrows.
Judging from the interview that day, the reporter didn’t seem to be a broad-minded person…
He thought about it and read the article in his hand again. He found that there was indeed no hidden secret in it, so he didn't take it to heart anymore.
It is worth mentioning that when most articles were aimed at criticizing Ji Xinrong, this article, which openly exaggerated and secretly excused Ji Xinrong, still successfully diverted the attention of some people and slightly reversed the originally one-sided public opinion.
"I think what Xingxing said makes sense. After all, Ji Xinrong is just a commercial animation failure, and this is only the first one. Isn't it too early to ignore his previous works and criticize him?"
"A third-rate animation director said that Grass and Trees is not as useless as some people say. Although the script is not very good, the storyboards and colors of director Ji Xinrong are still excellent. I will never be able to learn them in my lifetime. [Lie down]"
"Honestly, if you hadn't exaggerated it so much before, the deceived passers-by wouldn't have reacted so strongly. Forget about whether Ji Xinrong deserves to be the number one in animation. If we really want to say, the number one should be Mu Suxing, right? His last work is still No. 1 at the global box office."
"Becoming a fan of Muxu Xinglu, this is the demeanor of a first-rate person!"
…
With the previous introduction, the rest of the comments deviated from the focus and turned to praising Huaying and him, while Ji Xinrong, the person involved, was left aside.
Mu Suxing frowned slightly as he looked at the increasingly exaggerated, even exaggerated, public opinion.
"Could this be the legendary color as black as powder?" Wen Feihang looked puzzled.
"No," Mu Xingxue threw the magazine back on the table and said bluntly, "This is flattery."
Mu Xingxue said: "The success of Harry Potter is there. Now, praising the works is equal to political correctness for netizens. It will arouse a lot of resonance in any forum platform. In this way, if he wants to annoy you, the only way left is to flatter you."
After he said that, Fang Lian also reacted: "In other words, if Ah Mu makes a mistake, Ji Xinrong will be our lesson? Damn, it's just an interview, isn't this guy too petty?!"
"More than that," Wen Feihang added, his expression also somewhat ugly: "This guy is exaggerating too much. If it's just this time, it's okay, but over time..."
If the title of "No. 1 in animation" can be determined purely by the box office, then that would be easy to do, but the problem is that there is no such saying in the industry! In the short term, one or two articles of this kind are nothing, but over time, what will these words make the real bigwigs in the animation industry think
At the same time, in the suburbs of Xingning City, on one of the floors of an office building.
"Mr. Xu, unfortunately, according to the analysis report of our investment department, we believe that your animated film may be difficult to make a profit in the current film market, so we have decided to withdraw the original 5 million investment."
A sweet but emotionless female voice came from the other end of the phone, but it was cold to Xu An's heart. He thought of the three years of hard work and the less than half-finished production progress, gritted his teeth and said, "Can I talk to your investment manager? This movie is really..."
He wanted to say something else, but the person on the other end of the phone had no interest in listening. The woman's voice was still gentle, but she seemed not to hear what he said, and interrupted him without saying anything: "I hope we can have the opportunity to cooperate again in the future." Then there was a "beep".
The call was hung up.
Xu An took a deep breath and turned around to look through his pile of documents. After searching for a while, he called a phone number and said, "Manager Chen, I have an animated film..."
"Sorry, Tianning Group has no intention of investing in animated films for the time being."
The man paused, then dialed another number: "Manager Ye..."
A long sigh came in response.
"Lao Xu, why are you doing this?"
Xu An just felt a bitter taste in his mouth and didn't know what to say for a moment.
"It's not that I don't want to help you. You know the market for animation. If it's 3D animation, it's better. Taking advantage of the tail end of Harry Potter, there might be a chance to make a profit. But 2D... Do you know what people are saying now?"
Without waiting for Xu An to answer, Manager Ye continued, "I know it's stupid to sentence a 2D animated film to death because of the success or failure of a movie, but the problem is that the people who have the money to invest and can decide whether to invest are just a bunch of idiots. You know what the situation of animated films is, let alone at this juncture?"
Xu An said nothing.
He kept the same posture the whole time. When Manager Ye was talking, he just stared at the sky outside the window in silence, with an almost dazed look on his face.
"You sold your house, you don't want your car anymore, you quit your job - I heard you were an old employee of Huaying when they were making "IS"?" Manager Ye asked, "Forget about yourself, but you have to consider your family's quality of life, right? Do you really think it's worth it to go through all this trouble for a movie?"
Xu An didn't say anything.
I don't know when the phone call was disconnected, and it was getting dark outside. There was no light in the room, and the man's face was hidden in the shadows of the evening, and his expression could not be discerned.
He lowered his head and slowly stood up from the chair.
The documents on the table collapsed with his movements, and large and small pieces of paper scattered all over the floor. He stayed there for a long time before he remembered to clean up the room. Just as he bent down, a business card that he had collected at some point slipped out and landed lightly in front of him.
He blinked slowly.
The orange light of the setting sun fell on the card in front of him, casting a warm glow on the slightly immature black handwriting. What was written on it was…
—Muxiuxing.