Chapter 1719 - 837: The Deal

Chapter 1719: Chapter 837: The Deal

At the party hosted by the Korean Film Association, something happened that couldn’t be kept quiet. The next day, when Zhou Yun was on her way to attend a media meeting event, she ran into Carlo, who asked her about it.

Zhou Yun didn’t go into detail about what exactly happened last night. She simply mentioned that she couldn’t stand the person’s behavior, so she confronted them.

Upon hearing this, Carlo said, "Xiao Yun, you’re remarkable. You did something many people wouldn’t dare to do. I’ve heard from many people before that you’re a courageous woman, and now I’ve seen it for myself."

Zhou Yun smiled helplessly and said, "Carlo, I really hope I haven’t caused you any trouble."

Carlo: "Oh, trouble? Not at all. Although the Taikang Group is one of the sponsors of this year’s Berlin Film Festival, they won’t vent their anger at the festival over this matter. The incident itself was his own fault."

Zhou Yun: "So he was a sponsor of the festival, no wonder he’s so arrogant."

"Oh, Xiao Yun, he’s not the sponsor, the Taikang Group is. He doesn’t represent the Taikang Group." Carlo corrected Zhou Yun’s mistake with great seriousness.

Zhou Yun laughed.

"Alright, I understand."

This afternoon is the private screening of "Treasure."

After completing her work in the morning, Zhou Yun returned to the hotel to go over all the procedures for the afternoon with Zhou Lan.

The afternoon’s private screening will be hosted by her.

Ning Yao and Zhu Wenju will participate.

But since it is a private screening, there is no red carpet event, and no media coverage, it’s purely a screening for buyers.

This is the first time "Treasure" will be shown to its audience following the re-editing.

Zhou Yun hasn’t watched it yet.

There was too little time, and Zhu Wenju also wanted to keep some mystery.

Song Chi had originally agreed to come and help promote "Treasure," but "Cigarette" had a session added at the last minute in the afternoon, so he had to join the crew and couldn’t come.

Before the official screening, Zhou Yun briefly introduced to everyone in English what kind of movie it was, and then the screening began.

In the darkened space, only the light from the large screen cast onto everyone’s faces.

This sense of ceremony of watching a movie in the dark is the everlasting allure of the cinema.

The film begins with the silhouette of a woman standing under a bridge. On the bridge, cars are bustling, but below, there is only her, completely indistinguishable.

The camera slowly pushes in, revealing Ning Yao’s face on the big screen.

It’s a face without makeup.

Plain, with a few freckles. Compared to the image Ning Yao usually presents to everyone, she seems to have a purified simplicity on the screen, as if washed clean of all adornments.

She takes a cigarette out of her pocket, lights it, takes a puff, blows out a smoke ring, retrieves her phone, and coldly dials a number.

A man’s voice answers, "Hello, Treasure."

At this point, the shot ends, and the title appears on the big screen.

This revised beginning conveys a sense of solitary loneliness.

Zhou Yun was somewhat amazed by it.

Subsequently, the film’s opening surprised Zhou Yun even more.

Previously, Zhu Wenju had spent thirty minutes narrating Treasure’s childhood, which has now all been presented in a fragmented, fleeting manner. Around the three-minute mark, as "Director/Screenwriter Zhu Wenju" appeared, this segment about the past fades into darkness.

Lighting up again, it’s a city enveloped in heavy rain.

Ning Yao, dressed in a trench coat, holding an umbrella, rushed through the water among the crowd and into a skyscraper.

Straight to the point, entering the professional world of the film’s protagonist.

Busy, numb, constantly standing up, sitting down, like a mechanical routine.

Then, being called before her supervisor and harshly humiliated over last month’s work report.

...

Having watched the first thirty minutes, Zhou Yun was filled with awe.

Zhu Wenju had almost boldly and completely revised the film’s opening.

But it was done brilliantly. This film’s beginning, with a very plain yet very crisp style, sketches out Ning Yao’s character like a sketch drawing.

It’s more character-revealing than the version released domestically before, showcasing Ning Yao’s acting skills—unlike the previous version, which was filled with the director’s own nostalgia and emotion.