I Forged the Myth of the Ancient Overlords
Chapter 247 - 247 246. Cultivate Film Talent_1

Chapter 247: 246. Cultivate Film Talent_1 Chapter 247: 246. Cultivate Film Talent_1 “The Madman’s Mouth” set for May Day!

This news was a bombshell for the media, who had been idle after the Qingming Festival.

“Domestic Horror Movie Director Lu Ban’s New Release Scheduled for May Day”

“He’s Back! That Man Returns With His New Film!”

“Domestic Horror Film Paragon Lu Ban’s New Work to Premiere on May Day, Hot Topic Analysis”

“In-depth Article to Help You Understand the Universe of Lu Ban’s New Work”

Reports like these were everywhere, with many people now focusing on Lu Ban.

Some were looking forward to the new work, others hoped to see Lu Ban fail, and the gleeful naysayers thought national cinema was beyond salvation, spreading negativity all around.

Lu Ban himself was oblivious and even went to watch a movie.

He attended the premiere of his half-apprentice Ye Cheng’s film, a horror piece called “No. 9 Huangmei Street.”

Jiangcheng Cinema, the premiere was sparsely attended, with only a handful of fans of the starring actors and journalists, lacking any real excitement.

The arrival of Lu Ban, however, suddenly sparked some enthusiasm in the originally subdued atmosphere.

Seeing Lu Ban, journalists flocked to him for interviews, even sidelining the film’s main creative team, which was quite awkward.

“Director Lu, why did you decide to attend the premiere? Do you think this movie has a lot of educational value for you?”

“Could you tell us about some highlights of your new movie?”

“Director Lu, are you attending the premiere of a similar film at this time because you participated in its production?”

“Some say ‘The Madman’s Mouth’ will set another box office record. What do you think of this, Director Lu?”

Facing the journalists’ serious or baited questions, Lu Ban did not respond. He just pointed to the main creative team that had been left aside.

“I’m just here to watch the movie. You should go interview them.”

He then took his seat and did not entertain any more questions from the journalists.

Some journalists initially wanted to forcefully sit next to Lu Ban to continue their questioning, but for some reason, they all left disgruntled. By the time the film started, they hadn’t managed to speak with Lu Ban again.

“No. 9 Huangmei Street” was the classic haunted house film.

The protagonist’s elderly relative dies, leaving behind a house, and the greedy relatives enact a drama of palace intrigue within its walls. However, they didn’t expect the house itself to be haunted, leading to each avaricious relative’s death, until only the kind-hearted protagonist remains.

A straightforward script, though perhaps a bit too straightforward.

As an experienced horror movie director, to Lu Ban, such plots and scenes were absolutely “immune” to any effect.

Moreover, the acting was off-putting, the production value of costumes, makeup, and props was low, and the most criticized scene was when, after the eldest brother died, the sister-in-law and the second brother played out a passionate scene in front of his memorial, a prime example of selling sleaze at a wake.

As for Ye Cheng, he played the role of the eldest brother’s son, a death-seeking rich kid, which he pretty much played to type. Although his general acting skills left much to be desired, his performance in the several ghost-seeing scenes was quite impressive, capturing the essence of fear, which pleased Lu Ban.

Perhaps because Lu Ban had watched the film, it managed to gain a bit of attention among the myriad of mass-produced horror films, with slightly more viewers.

In just a couple of days, “No. 9 Huangmei Street” even managed to get a glimpse of the tail end of the box office charts.

Reviews of the film were generally negative, but Ye Cheng’s performance was notably the only aspect that received praise.

“This movie is boring, not scary at all, the acting is so awkward, it’s hard to imagine why Lu Ban would want to watch it.”

“I just can’t get the hang of that intense scene between the elder sister-in-law and the second brother at the wake—Director’s imagination is indeed rich, but it seems like it’s misapplied.”

“You’ve got to admit, that older brother’s son has some decent acting skills, especially in the scenes where he encounters ghosts. It really carries the essence of Lu Ban’s movies.”

“I think the biggest contribution of this movie is the discovery of Ye Cheng. He seems to have a natural talent for horror films, and he might become a great success in the future.”

“Is there a possibility that we went to watch a horror movie, but Lu Ban took it as a comedy to unwind?”

By the end of April, Lu Ban received a call from Ye Cheng.

“Director Lu, I’m really grateful to you. My acting skills have been recognized. Although the movie didn’t do well at the box office, I’ve got a lot more film companies contacting me.”

Ye Cheng sounded quite happy. After all, breaking into the acting industry was his dream, and now that his acting skills had been praised, he must be pretty thrilled.

“That’s really good.”

Lu Ban was happy for Ye Cheng as well.

“Exactly, but there’s one issue.”

As Ye Cheng spoke, his tone fell a bit.

“What’s up?”

“It’s these film companies—they all want me to do horror, to play the lead. I’m not supposed to be someone who specializes in this genre, right?”

Ye Cheng said helplessly.

“It’s okay. Being good at one genre can make people remember you. Look at some actors—they’re remembered for just one or two roles their entire life. Specializing in horror could be very promising too.”

Lu Ban consoled him.

With the horror film market opening up, actors like Ye Cheng who are good at horror will definitely start to gain attention—that’s what Lu Ban believed.

As the premiere approached, Lu Ban was far from idle; he made his way to Jiangcheng City Mental Hospital.

He wasn’t there to seek treatment.

Ye Cheng’s situation had inspired Lu Ban.

Lu Ban felt that with the popularity of horror films, the requirements for horror film directors, screenwriters, and actors would also grow. Compared to common films, horror requires more specialization, and such talent is harder to find.

Relying solely on Lu Ban’s own efforts, who could put out a movie every several months, wouldn’t be enough to truly make the whole world accept those eerie entities and gradually change their perceptions. It would require the effort of all humanity.

Lu Ban always believed in the people’s perspective of history; he was just a participant in this tide. Real history needed to be created by the masses.

Therefore, the growing demand for horror movies among the people and the backward production of horror films emerged as what Lu Ban considered the main social contradiction.

To resolve this contradiction, Lu Ban needed a manual that could guide the production of horror films, one that would help educate and nurture new talent in the horror movie industry.

Like Ye Cheng, increasing one’s acting skills through personal experience of horrifying events was primitive and outdated, with low efficiency. Lu Ban needed industrialized production standards.

Hence, he came to the Jiangcheng City Mental Hospital for research, hoping to seek help from the patients to refine his theory of horror film production.

Although Lu Ban did not publicize this visit, considering “The Madman’s Mouth” was about to be released, those media journalists naturally grasped at straws and didn’t miss a beat of Lu Ban’s movements.

Quite a few journalists had already got wind of this.

They prepared to come to the mental hospital to interview Lu Ban.

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