Dialogue with Lu Chuan: Looking for inspiration from his wife and children; Zhou Xun dubbing "God helps"
People’s Daily Online, Beijing, August 12 (Reporter Yan Li) On August 12, 2016, a natural film — — "We were Born in China" was released nationwide. At the premiere of the film, People’s Daily reporter interviewed Lu Chuan who had just returned to Beijing from other places.
The light black suit is Lu Chuan’s favorite interview standard. It is low-key, natural, steady and restrained. He is not shy and talkative as expected. When talking about his favorite movie, he will instantly enter a state of "telling stories all the time". He told reporters that in this movie, he is constantly growing and learning, and his cognition of life and death and family has become more deeply understood with the passage of time.
In 2004, the documentary film "Hoh Xil", based on the Tibetan antelope on the grassland, immediately triggered a heated discussion in the circle. Twelve years later, Do not forget your initiative mind, Lu Chuan, chose the latest film genre — — Nature films tell the public about their own changes. "Nature films are a kind of films between documentaries and feature films. They tell an emotional story belonging to human beings by using the method of cross-editing after accumulating a certain amount of materials by panoramic shooting without changing the basic life trajectory of animals."
For the smooth completion of the film, from 2013 to the first half of 2016, Lu Chuan traveled to Wolong, Zhalong, Xianghai and other nature reserves, and he enjoyed editing and arranging the returned materials every two days on average. In the writing of the script, Lu Chuan also integrated his feelings for his wife and children, his attachment to his family and his observation of social practical problems. This is not only a movie with him, but also a dialogue with his heart through light and shadow.
After the unveiling: It is a real version of Zootopia.
The film "We were Born in China" tells the interesting family stories of three rare animals: China’s treasure living in bamboo forests in Sichuan — — The smiles and tears of the giant panda, the beautiful mother and daughter, and the daily gathering and parting; Mysterious creatures living in seclusion in snowy plateau — — The Snow Leopard Dawa family, how to survive in adversity is difficult and difficult; Climbing in the dense forest of Shennongjia to amuse the urchin — — The golden monkey Taotao was neglected because of the appearance of the "second child" at home. After leaving home, the prodigal son turned back to his inspirational story. "This is completely different from the first version I wrote at the earliest. It is time for me to slowly pull out these three most human clues from the constant editing of the material library and finally connect them in series." Lu Chuan introduced.
Although due to the cost, Lu Chuan had to give up the Siberian tiger, the Asian elephant and the baiji, which he originally planned to choose, but the mother who followed the snow leopard for 18 months left him with the biggest surprise. "When I saw the injured snow leopard Dawa, who challenged the yak several times bigger than herself in order to feed her children, my heart was sour and I immediately realized that I was going to tell a story about love and being loved."
In order to photograph these creatures in nature at close range, five film crews from BBC try their best to get in touch with the subjects. They will squat in the dug bunker for a week. They will put on fake panda skins and climb to the tree to "get close to" the little panda. They will even risk their lives, while the Snow Leopard family is out foraging, and get into the cave to place a hidden camera … … "They are really desperate", and this professionalism has given Lu Chuan great pressure and courage. It has become a common practice that "the script is overthrown and re-edited every two days".
According to Lu Chuan’s own words, "It is a real version of Zootopia". In this real animal world, there are joys, tears, warmth and sad parting. "These animals, like people, will have babies and start families. They will give their children what they think is best, and do their best to raise them and protect them, even if they are black and blue, or they are not understood … … These true feelings have a strong resonance with us human beings, and they are also the place that touched me the most … …” Lu Chuan said with emotion.
Expose the details: Zhou Xun dubbing is an interesting story, and Zhou Gongzi is "dishonest"
In the first half of 2016, the final edition of "We were Born in China" was edited, and the film was finally edited into 79 minutes from 350 hours of material. One of the producers of the film, the Disney producer, told Lu Chuan that their films should be humorous except for bloody scenes. How can these wild animals be obedient and "funny"? Lu Chuan was a little embarrassed, and finally the subtle script and funny lines solved all the problems.
The dubbing of the film was done by Zhou Xun, a famous actress in the Mainland. Lu Chuan joked that Zhou Xun was a "storyteller". Although it was the first time to cooperate, in fact, because they both like wild animals, they have been "close friends" for a long time. "Xiao Zhou’s voice is particularly unique and her recognition is quite high. Therefore, we wanted her to try it at first, but I didn’t expect her to be particularly serious and soon integrate into the role. In order to find the feeling of these animals, she will stay in awe.
In reality, Zhou Xun, who has dubbed documentaries such as Home and Water, actually knows quite well. It took only three days to complete the dubbing of the whole movie, and what impressed her most was the dialogue full of online buzzwords. "All the paragraphs were written by the director, and I just added some of my own feelings." What makes "Duke of Zhou" most emotional is the scene of the weak mother of Snow Leopard lying in the snow and dying. "This is the cruelty of reality and the great place of maternal love. Looking at the growth of children, I have done my best."
The same scene has different meanings for Lu Chuan. "I actually hope to draw people’s attention to wild animals. Although we have taken many precious shots this time, in real life, the living conditions of these animals are already very bad. The living space allowed for them is also shrinking. They are friends of human beings, so we also call on everyone to really cherish them."
Talking about growth: that golden monkey is who I used to be
When I first started this film project, many people thought that Lu Chuan was crazy. The filmmakers knew that animals, children and water were the most difficult subjects to shoot in the film industry. For this so-called "nature film", the action track of shooting animals should not be changed soon, and animals should not be fed to achieve the goal of shooting. "I want to try a new genre and don’t want to repeat myself. I made a film because I like it because it can let you see a lot. Therefore, Lu Chuan undertook this film project without hesitation, and it took three years to shoot.
From the snow leopard to the giant panda to the golden monkey, Lu Chuan said that he saw his familiar figure in every animal. Lu Chuan feels that the story of Snow Leopard is a kind of feedback from his spiritual world, and the intimate feelings from the mother panda and the little panda let him see the shadow of his wife and children. "In the past three years, the film has continued, and my child is slowly growing up. I will be very contradictory. On the one hand, I hope he can grow up healthily and quickly. On the other hand, I am somewhat sad to think that he will leave us one day."
As for the golden monkey, Lu Chuan said with a smile, "It’s very much like me when I was young." "When Taotao was close to his father, his father pushed him away, and he was so hurt … … When he reached the rebellious period and chose to run away from home, it was stubborn and unruly. When he returned to his family, he dared to take responsibility and got understanding and acceptance from his parents, everything was so familiar … …”
"This is a very special film, which reflects the life of human beings through these animals. It is a story about life and death. In China people’s minds, death is not the end of life, but another beginning. Nature keeps going round and round, and we want to explore this theme through a film. I hope audiences all over the world can understand this China philosophy, which is the significance of my filming." Lu Chuan finally said.