The Best Director

The spacious and clean living room was elegantly and simply furnished, and the bright sunlight streamed in through the window. Wang Yang and Jessica sat on the wooden sofa watching television. Although “Fantastic Four” was in production, Rachel McAdams still took the time to make an appearance at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival for publicity. After catching up with the three of them, who hadn’t seen each other in a long while, at the event, the couple visited Rachel’s place the next day. Speaking of which, they realized that after so many years of friendship, they seldom had the chance to visit her home,

“I don’t remember how long it’s been since last time, but ever since Boom! A thunderclap, it has always been broken.” Holding a plate full of fresh and juicy fruits, Rachel walked into the living room from the kitchen, replying as she took a glance at the TV, “I’ve been too busy, and I always forget to call someone to fix it.” Jessica was a little surprised, “That’s dangerous, oh right, are you using a surge protector?” Rachel placed the fruit plate on the coffee table, sat down, and while fixing her golden hair on the forehead, she shook her head, “I don’t think so?”

Listeing to the Emerson television making a noisy static sound, with the screen flickering from time to time, Wang Yang became increasingly irritated. Popping a grape into his mouth, he suddenly burst out angrily, “No, that’s unacceptable! It’s a heinous crime not to have a perfectly working TV, not just for a TV buff, but for an average viewer too! I can’t imagine if it goes out right when the game is on the line, about to shoot the winning shot. I would probably smash the TV to pieces.” Jessica imagined it for a moment, then took in a deep breath, “I’ll try my best to restrain myself.” “Game seven of the finals, third overtime, Lakers VS Pistons!” “Then smash it!”

Wang Yang cared about the condition of the TV as soon as he entered the living room because he knew Rachel was a faithful “Prison Break” viewer. With the fall season fast approaching, starting on the 27th of this month, “Prison Break 2: The Escape” continues on NBC channel Monday 9:00 PM to 10:00 PM, while “The Big Bang Theory” is on Thursday 8:00 PM to 8:30 PM, taking over the slot of the concluded “Friends.” How could one watch it on this TV?

But it seemed he had forgotten something. Seeing this couple more anxious than herself, Rachel laughed heartily, her dimples showing on both cheeks, “It’s alright, I’m going back to Los Angeles soon.” Wang Yang snapped back to reality, “Yes, that’s true.” Rachel appeared to catch his drift and assuredly said, “Don’t worry! No matter how busy filming gets, I’ll definitely watch ‘Prison Break’ and ‘The Big Bang Theory’ on time to boost the ratings.” She then turned to Jessica with a smile, “Oh right, which episode of ‘The Big Bang Theory’ has his guest appearance? I want to see how terrible his acting is.”

“Rachel, I can hardly believe it either!” said Jessica, proudly patting Wang Yang’s shoulder, “But honestly, his acting has shocked me, he hasn’t wasted the teachings I gave him.” Wang Yang rolled his eyes, “Thanks a lot for that,” he then smilingly replied, “The second episode, where I’m acting as myself in a restaurant.” Rachel nodded with interest, “Oh good! I’m really looking forward to it, I’ll make a special note to watch the second episode.”

Wang Yang, who had been eyeing the TV for a while, stood up with a determined face, rolling up his sleeves and walking towards the TV, “I can’t stand this! I feel like I can fix it.” Both women stood up, puzzled and surprised yet delighted, “Yang, I didn’t even know you could fix TVs, what did you find wrong?” Rachel squinted with curiosity yet posed a bigger question, “It actually still works… Yang, do you really know how to fix it?”

“Haha! You both underestimate me, have you forgotten that I’m a University of Southern California student? Forgotten my major?” Wang Yang stood in front of the TV, touching and poking around the machine while seriously saying, “Film-and-Television-Production! I studied how to produce televisions! Now, tell me, can I fix it?” Upon hearing this, both Jessica and Rachel burst into laughter, knowing he can’t.

Film-and-Television-Production is indeed a major in movie and television production, but this “Television” does not refer to its meaning as a TV set.

“I’ve found the problem, just needs this.” Although Wang Yang had never really learned how to repair a television, he did have some folk household expertise. He lifted his palm and forcefully smacked the back of the TV, bang, bang, bang! Jessica listlessly lowered her head, while Rachel gaped. Wang Yang chuckled as he slapped, “Sometimes, that’s all it takes. The parts inside get jumbled up, a few good smacks put them right back in place.” Bang, bang, bang! The frequency of the screen flickering increased.

With a magnetic snap, suddenly the TV screen went pitch black, without power or image. Rachel scratched her cheek, “Looks like it didn’t work.” Jessica looked towards Wang Yang and stuck out her tongue with a communicative gesture, “Looks like it didn’t work.” Furrowing his brows, Wang Yang stared at the screen. Could his luck be this bad today? He checked the power socket and found no issues, so he raised his palm again, “Looks like it didn’t work… Let’s try a few more smacks.”

Bang, bang, bang! Bump, bump, bump! The television wobbled from the beating, “Yang, perhaps using Kung Fu would be better?” “Yes! Honey, since it’s come to this, use Bajiquan!” “OK! Winner-Winner, Chicken-Dinner, Ha!…”

After a thunderous bang, the living room fell silent. The TV sat skewed on the cabinet, silent and without an image. Rachel scratched her cheek again, “Looks like it didn’t work.” Jessica maintained her tongue-sticking pose, “Looks like it didn’t work.” Wang Yang stared at the dark screen for a while, then suddenly turned around and walked away, “I can be sure of one thing, it’s broken!” The two women exchanged glances with a peculiar expression and followed him out of the living room.

As they walked, Jessica pressed her hand over her chest, apologetically saying, “I’m very sorry, Rachel. Uh, Yang still hasn’t graduated from USC…” Rachel laughed, giving her a little push, “Would I mind?” Jessica replied with a laugh, “Of course you wouldn’t.” Then they heard Wang Yang’s voice from the garden, “Wow, Rachel, you have so many bikes!” With a smile, Rachel loudly responded as she walked away, “Yes! Would you guys like to take a spin?” Jessica was quite interested, “But I can only sit at the back, I can’t pedal yet.”…

Although Rachel’s neighborhood wasn’t downtown, during TIFF in the city, the sight of Wang Yang and his wife along with Rachel boldly cycling and enjoying the breeze wasn’t surprising when captured by paparazzi and featured on gossip media websites and magazines.

Time flew by, and the trio didn’t stay until TIFF’s conclusion on the 18th; they had already returned to Los Angeles. The People’s Choice Award at this edition of TIFF ultimately went to “Hotel Rwanda”, with United Artists & Lionsgate making quite an impression. Many films found distribution deals, with Sony Classics snagging “Being Julia”; Lionsgate acquired “Bad Education” and “Across the Sea”… Firefly Films also garnered many a trophy, purchasing some films to expand its library for bundle rental and sales, while the outright purchase of “Crash” for 20 million US dollars was for much more.

In contrast to the production cost of 6.5 million, the buyout fee of 20 million had already earned the producers such as Cow Eye a pre-tax profit of 13.5 million! A return on investment of 207%! Could there be anything to complain about? With a 15% global box office bonus, it would take a staggering 80 million to earn an additional 11 million over a 9 million offer plus bonuses.

It wasn’t that they lacked confidence in “Crash”, but business and the film’s substantive meaning are two different things. Almost every rational theory, formula, and speculation told them that a 20 million box office for “Crash” was normal, 30 million would be a dark horse, 50 million a miracle, and 80 million a phenomenon.

Since “Miracle Man” Magical Yang was so optimistic and had said he would “think it through carefully”, Paul Haggis was willing to try the bonus scheme. However, CEOs and board members from other production companies like Cow Eye didn’t want to, as greed could kill a company. Although history told them never to doubt Firefly, what if they were to set the precedent? They weren’t the deep-pocketed Firefly Group, it was time to cash in!

“Firefly Films pays a whopping 20 million for an exclusive deal on ‘Crash’, aiming for a Christmas release to hit the awards season.”—Yahoo Entertainment. This was the biggest deal to come out of TIFF and naturally became huge news. Firefly Films was now essentially launching “Crash” with a production budget of 20 million, which certainly drew the attention of many movie fans and enthusiasts. What was so captivating about this low-budget film to warrant 20 million? Moreover, according to Yahoo’s reveal, Firefly was in negotiations with North American theater chains to schedule a massive release at the end of the year.

It must be said that $20 million is a number that Jon Philaimer, the Weinstein brothers, and others all fear. They admit they don’t have the audacious courage of “The Black Hole”; the game was played too large for them.

After the somber mood of the three-year anniversary of 9/11 had passed, America welcomed another highly anticipated entertainment awards event. The day after the TIFF wrapped up, the 56th Emmy Awards were held at the Shubert Theatre in Los Angeles on September 19.

The Emmys are to television what the Oscars are to film; all nominated works must have been broadcast on cable or network television between June 1 of the previous year and May 31 of the current year, and must have been viewed by at least 51% of the audience nationwide. The awards include both regular and technical categories and are divided into Primetime Emmy Awards (presented by the ATAS in Los Angeles), Daytime Emmy Awards (presented by the NATAS in New York), Sports Emmy Awards, Science & Engineering, News & Documentary, and Regional Emmy Awards.

The awards ceremony, broadcast live by ABC on the evening of the 19th, was for the Primetime Emmy Awards, with a total of 31 categories—it was indeed dizzying to watch all the awards being handed out.

Last year’s Golden Globe sensation, the freshman series “Prison Break,” garnered four nominations out of nine drama categories: Best Drama Series, Best Actor in a Drama Series (Wentworth Miller for Michael Scofield), Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series (Robert Knepper for T-Bag), and Best Writing for a Drama Series (Wang Yang).

Wang Yang attended the awards ceremony alone with the “Prison Break” team because the whole event required walking the red carpet, dealing with media reporters, sitting through the entire night at the theater, and the after-party… Not to mention Jessica, who was ill, even a healthy person might suddenly collapse, so for health reasons, she did not accompany him as she had for nearly every award ceremony in the past. Instead, she sat at home, chatting with her mother who came over to keep her company while watching the television screen where host Garry Shandling cracked jokes, occasionally seeing her lover’s face, and watching the awards being presented one by one.

“Prison Break! Prison Break! Prison Break!”

“And the Emmy for Best Drama Series goes to… ‘The Sopranos’! On HBO!”

On the TV screen, the cast and crew of “The Sopranos” excitedly celebrated their victory, while Wang Yang, Jerry Bruckheimer, and other contenders clapped and congratulated them. But in front of their screens, “Prison Break” fans were swearing in disappointment. Resting against the sofa like someone who had fainted, Jessica didn’t want to watch the ceremony anymore—all four nominations had come to naught! The news spread quickly online, and in no time, curse words from all over the world popped up. How could “Prison Break,” such an amazing series, lose to the “dreary” “The Sopranos”? Had the ATAS judges lost their minds?

“The Sopranos,” “Arrested Development,” “Angels in America,” and “Miracle” respectively won for Best Drama, Comedy, Miniseries, and Television Movie; James Spader from “The Practice” won Best Actor in a Drama Series, and Sarah Jessica Parker of “Sex and the City” beat out Jennifer Aniston and others to finally win Best Actress in a Comedy Series… Although fans held differing opinions, especially with the high hopes for “Prison Break,” the results did match the analysis and predictions of many film critics and media beforehand.

“Prison Break” introduced a revolutionary rhythmic form of storytelling, unmatched in its thrilling intensity—at least for now. However, it lacked depth in meaning, hence it was also lacking in awards. Whether the second season will change its pace to delve into the emotional aspects of human nature or continue its singular focus on suspense remains to be seen during this fall season, with the results coming next September.

Meanwhile, the detractors found a prime opportunity for mockery. Jeffrey Westhoff, in his blog review of the Emmy awards lineup, sarcastically wrote, “It seems my concerns were unnecessary, thank God. NBC’s influence isn’t strong enough to manipulate the Emmys, although it did fool us last year at the Golden Globes. I am pleased to see that ATAS made the right choice; there’s no room for ‘Prison Break,’ a show that teaches people how to commit crimes, on the Emmy stage—it should be canceled.”…

If natural disasters could render Westhoff’s mockery negligible, the world is far from peaceful. Recently, the tropical storm “Jenny” has devastated the region of Haiti, claiming over 3,000 lives and leaving the northern cities in floodwaters. It is the most severe storm since Hurricane “Mitch” caused more than 9,000 deaths in Central America in October 1998.

Should there be any credence given to the Mayan prophecy of the end of the world in 2012, the surging patterns of storms reaching new peaks for the first time in over eighty years might well be a sign. As people of immense wealth, Wang Yang and Jessica naturally feel obligated and responsible to support and participate in charitable events. Even if some of these dinner parties are insincerely social, they indeed help many in need and raise awareness of the disasters.

As the end of September draws nearer, with the new fall season premiering on the 27th right around the corner, there’s new progress in the works at Flame Film. After days of negotiations, finalizing details of pay and bonuses with the management teams one by one, Flame finally signed a 1+1 contract with two of the most important members of the “Furious Cars” creative team—director Justin Lin and screenwriter Chris Morgan. They are obliged to produce “Furious Cars 2” and 3 for Flame within five years, with “Furious Cars 2” slated for release in the summer of 2006.

On the other hand, the “The Hangover Part III” team of Paul Feig, Philip Stark, and others have also happily signed a 1+1 deal with Flame. They are set to create the next chapter of “The Hangover” for the summer of 2006, along with another new R-rated comedy.

What will this R-rated comedy be about? Flame Film hasn’t started the project nor have they solicited script ideas from familiar screenwriters like Philip Stark and Steve Oedekerk. However, another grand comedic plan has quietly entered the stage of inquiry. Wang Yang’s conversation with Stephen Chow at the Toronto Film Festival was not just for laughs—he does have plans to produce, aiming to bring Stephen Chow and Jim Carrey together in one movie! But what kind of film could allow both to showcase their comedic talents, foster a “bromance” chemistry, and meet their demands for a “big production”?

Wang Yang had an idea already; he thought remaking Bruce Lee’s classic “The Green Hornet” would be a good choice. In fact, according to the information from the 2011 version of “The Green Hornet,” Columbia, which later acquired the film rights, had invited Stephen Chow to direct and play KATO, but he withdrew entirely because of creative differences, and Jay Chou stepped in. Moreover, the new “The Green Hornet” was a mess in every aspect.

However, there were many hurdles to this plan. Stephen Chow and Jim Carrey seemed tired of comedies. Were they to pick up their iconic roles from “The Tricky Master” and “The Mask” to reach new heights once again? Their attitude toward Flame’s hilarious action-packed superhero film was tentative. Also, could Flame Film obtain the movie rights from the family of “The Green Hornet” creators George Trendle and Fran Striker? Most importantly, was this plan feasible? These questions needed time to yield results, but they were moving forward.

Of course, Wang Yang wasn’t the one to execute these tasks; apart from showing sincerity in initial contacts, he stepped back, scarcely finding time to bask in the sun and practice yoga with Jessica. He not only needed to assist with the publicity work just before the premiere of “Prison Break 2” and “The Big Bang Theory,” but he also had to oversee the post-production of “Firefly.” (