Chapter 224: Film Festival Frenzy

President, are we still inviting the three TV channels from Yan City, Eggplant, and Yun Province?

He finished speaking.

Bai Ming had turned to get to work when something occurred to him, prompting him to ask,

It’s already been agreed by the association that the film festival won’t invite the Longmen Inn crew or the artists from Haofang Agency, but the decision on these three TV channels is still up in the air.

Apart from Yun Province TV, both Yan City TV and Eggplant TV have significant clout – especially Yan City TV, whose steady hit of Legend of Swords and Heroes has solidly placed it in the top tier.

“Let’s drop these three channels. After all, this is a film festival! The main players are the cinemas and film crews.”

He lit a cigarette.

Ding Xiaoping waved his hand dismissively. “Yan City TV is out of the question. Ever since Eggplant TV and Yun Province TV broadcast the opening ceremony of the Mingsha Culture Forum, relations have hit rock bottom.”

What’s the point of inviting them? Even if we did, they probably wouldn’t send anyone.

The Director Association isn’t about to sink so low as to beg for favors.

“That works too. This is a film festival, not a TV festival!”

“By the way, put together a list of the artists and their affiliated organizations. We must confirm their attendance – no one wants empty seats with names on them.”

Ding Xiaoping added.

“It shouldn’t be an issue. After all, this is Long Kingdom’s film festival! The awards are highly prestigious, the judges are industry leaders, and this is a rare opportunity for exposure.”

Bai Ming was taken aback.

The Director Association might have its issues with Mingsha City, but the film festival itself is flawless.

“No! This year isn’t like the past; empty seats might have been acceptable before, but not this time. We can’t have the media twisting our film festival as one without any stars.”

Ding Xiaoping immediately waved his hand in agreement.

“Agreed!”

“Alright, let’s start preparing as discussed.”

“Understood, President.”

Moonset to Sunrise – Early Morning

In Mingsha City, Fang Hou had arrived early at the set of A Fantastic Journey. With him were Zhu Qiang and Luo Peng.

After meeting with them the previous night, both had agreed to come help out.

And that’s how this scene came to be.

“Mr. Fang, the script describes the Pansi Cave scene. Is it meant to resemble the one in Journey to the West, or what’s the vision?”

He glanced around at his surroundings.

Luo Peng inquired.

“The scene in the script isn’t overly complicated. It’s just that the cave entrance features a stone mechanism that looks interesting! As for the original text, there isn’t much description of Pansi Cave at all,

only mentioning that on Pansi Ling there’s a cave where Elder Tang, during his alms rounds, found stone tables and benches – nothing more.”

Mr. Fang responded immediately.

He had put a lot of effort into designing this scene, even revisiting the original text several times.

“Oh!”

Zhu Qiang nodded while Luo Peng folded his arms, deep in thought.

After a moment,

Luo Peng turned to Mr. Fang again and said, “Since it’s a cave, it has to be in a mountain. Doesn’t that mean we need a mountain for this set?”

“Theoretically, yes. But we can’t actually build a mountain! That would be a colossal project – not to mention the time constraints. More importantly, we’re in a desert zone; constructing a real mountain would erase the desert’s character.”

Mr. Fang nodded in agreement.

This had been his main concern. Digging a cave in the sand dunes is even less realistic. Besides the quicksand issue, even if we solved that, it wouldn’t capture the unique essence of Pansi Cave.

“We need to preserve the desert feel while still incorporating a mountain element.”

Luo Peng surveyed the level expanse of land nearby when suddenly a bright idea struck him.

“Mr. Fang, how about we build an artificial floating rock formation?”

He looked directly at Mr. Fang.

“What? A floating rock formation?”

Both Zhu Qiang and Mr. Fang were taken aback.

They hadn’t really heard the term used in real life before – it was something you’d typically see in video games or films with special effects.

“President Luo, you sure have bold ideas. A floating rock formation is definitely fantastical, but can we really build one with our current skills?”

Coming back to reality,

Zhu Qiang replied immediately.

“If we could pull it off, we’d probably have shown it off back in the Xianxia Zone during Legend of Swords and Heroes. How could we possibly take until now!”

“We might not be able to create a completely floating, dreamlike scene, but perhaps we can craft something that fits the Pansi Cave theme.”

Luo Peng moved to the work shed and grabbed a sheet of paper to begin sketching.

“Mr. Fang, take a look. We can use a construction method similar to Brother Hao’s approach with the Demon-Locking Tower.”

Within minutes, he had produced a simple design with swift strokes.

“This…”

As they examined the sketch, Zhu Qiang and Mr. Fang exchanged astonished glances.

If they could execute Luo Peng’s idea, this spot could easily become the next must-visit fantasy landmark.

“President Luo, with your brilliant ideas, why did we mess up with the Taoist temple then?”

After a pause,

Zhu Qiang couldn’t help but add,

“General Zhu, I was a bit confused back then too.”

Luo Peng scratched his head awkwardly.

“Confused? Your confusion has landed us in a huge mess. When the priest brings over the blueprint in a day or two, make sure you negotiate to avoid calling it Wuzhuang Temple! I’m really worried visitors will expect a real Taoist temple, complete with herbal trees and all! That’s a genuine temple meant for worship, not just a filming location!”

Zhu Qiang said with a hint of resignation.

“General Zhu, I’ll do my best. Since you both think this plan can work, let’s get in touch with a construction crew to assess its feasibility.”

Luo Peng replied in a low tone.

Deep down, only he knew what he truly thought.

Days turned into nights, and before they knew it, a week had passed. Originally, Long Kingdom’s entertainment scene was pretty calm – aside from chatter about Legend of Swords and Heroes, netizens were content with their celebrity gossip. But following a notice from the Director Association, a small ripple stirred across entertainment forums.

“The film festival is scheduled for July 20th in Ningshi, Qing Province?”

“Heh, if it weren’t for the Director Association’s reminder, I almost forgot about it.”

“Exactly!”

“Last time was a complete fiasco – we can’t afford another one this year.”

“Who knows? I even heard that there will be international stars.”

“Whether you try to crash it or not, I’m definitely not going. None of my favorites like Hu Xiao or Liu Fei will be there. So why should I show up?”

“True, with Haofang Agency’s artists not participating, the festival will lose much of its charm.”

“And the Longmen Inn crew isn’t attending either!”

“If the Longmen Inn crew is absent, then who will get the Best Action Film award? Wouldn’t other films look bad winning it?”

“Bad? You’re overthinking it!”

On online forums, netizens expressed mixed opinions over the Director Association’s sudden film festival announcement.

In reality – Haishi, Eggplant TV

After reading the online news, Cai An’s face twisted into a sneer. In previous years, the film festival organizers would notify their channel ahead of the official announcement, but this time, there was no warning.

That meant the Director Association had no intention of inviting Eggplant TV to send representatives.

“The Director Association really has a narrow scope, just as expected. Yan City TV and Yun Province TV weren’t invited either.”

Across the desk, the Channel Director fumed.

In his view,

Even though Eggplant TV has distanced itself from the Director Association, this film festival isn’t solely theirs – it’s a joint venture among multiple associations. This year, the Director Association is hosting,

but next year, it will be the TV Association’s turn! So it’s only fair to invite the three TV channels.

Otherwise, it seems like the film festival is just their personal project—no wonder there’s discontent.

If it were purely a Director Association project, he wouldn’t have uttered a word.

“Whatever, I’m curious to see what they manage to pull off for this film festival!”

Cai An shot another glance at his computer screen.

“Boss, should we stir up some buzz on our channel during this period? Otherwise, the Director Association might think Eggplant TV is too easy to control!”

After a pause, the Channel Director added,

“Since Eggplant TV wasn’t invited, if we create some buzz to steal the spotlight, you won’t have a say in it.”

“Buzz? No need!”

At that, Cai An immediately waved his hand.

“No need?”

The Channel Director looked rather surprised.

“Rest assured, things will get interesting in Mingsha City. Trust me! And don’t forget – Haofang Culture already announced a film and a TV series.”

Cai An stated with conviction.

“Ah? Boss, are you saying that Mingsha City isn’t really planning to hold the traditional cultural expo?”

The Channel Director was instantly stunned.