mijobooks Chapter 315 What kind of general leads what kind of soldiers!
Chapter 315 What kind of general leads what kind of soldiers!
Chapter 314 What kind of general leads what kind of soldiers!
As the morning mist dissipated in Atlanta, a group of Chinese people, looking hurried, poured out of the airport exit.
Guo Fan, who was leading the group, carried a backpack that was half his height and moved with the speed and urgency of the wind.
Behind him were the core creators of "The Wandering Earth".
Director of Photography, Art Director, Head of Visual Effects, Production Manager —
The group consisted of eight people, each carrying a laptop and a camera.
Even their suitcases were filled with a list of problems encountered during the filming of domestic science fiction films. From the moment they landed, their eyes shone with barely suppressed excitement.
From receiving Chen Xun's confirmation call to getting a visa, booking flights, and landing in Atlanta, it took them less than three days.
"Director Guo, slow down! Teacher Chen Xun's car is just ahead!"
The production manager pulled Guo Fan back from nearly crashing into the luggage cart, and was both amused and exasperated.
But he wasn't much better off himself; he had already raised his camera and was snapping photos of the Marvel Studios shuttle bus in the distance.
Guo Fan stopped in his tracks and immediately spotted Chen Xun standing by the car. He rushed over, grabbed Chen Xun's hands tightly, and said in a trembling voice, "Teacher Chen Xun, we're here! We've really troubled you so much!"
"What's the trouble? We've been looking forward to your arrival for ages."
Chen Xun smiled and patted him on the shoulder. Looking at the group of creators who were still full of energy despite their bloodshot eyes, he was deeply moved: "You must be tired from the journey. Get in the car first, we'll go straight to the set. Director Gu En is already waiting there. He specially canceled his script reading this morning just to receive you."
The group boarded the van.
As soon as the car entered the gates of Marvel's Atlanta filming location, everyone inside fell silent, pressing their faces against the windows and staring intently out the window.
The standardized photography studios are lined up one after another, clearly numbered, and the material transportation routes are planned perfectly.
Props workshop, costume workshop, special effects makeup room, motion capture studio —
The area is clearly divided into zones, and the work schedule is displayed on the notice board at the entrance, down to the hour.
Even the material trucks traveling on the road follow fixed routes without any chaos.
This is not a makeshift, workshop-style film set like those set up by domestic film crews, but a film industry system that has been operating for decades.
The car was parked in front of Studio One.
Director Gunn was already waiting at the door with the production manager and visual effects supervisor.
Upon seeing Chen Xun get out of the car, Gu En immediately greeted him with a smile, first giving Chen Xun a hug, and then turning to Guo Fan.
He extended his hand and shook it warmly: "Director Guo, welcome, welcome! Chen told me about your science fiction project, it's truly remarkable!"
"The entire set is open to you today. You can go into whichever studio you want to watch or talk to whichever department you want. My team is on standby at any time."
He wasn't just saying that for show.
Everyone knows that Chen Xun is the absolute core of the Guardians of the Galaxy series. Marvel has already finalized plans for the third and fourth installments, all of which are relying on Chen Xun to continue playing Star-Lord.
Let alone just opening the set to friends for learning, even if his team followed him throughout the entire filming process, Gunn would never utter a single word of objection.
Guo Fan was flattered and quickly returned the gesture with both hands: "Don't worry, our team will absolutely abide by the rules on set and will not affect the normal filming preparation work. If there's anything we can do to lend a hand, please don't hesitate to ask, we'll do our best!"
"No need to be so polite, Chen's friends are our friends too."
Gunn smiled and stepped aside to make way: "I'll take you inside to have a look. Our set has just been built, so we can chat about it."
Push open the door to Studio One.
A deafening gasp of amazement instantly erupted from the mouths of the "Wandering Earth" team.
In the huge studio, a 1:1 scale replica of the Milano spaceship stood before everyone.
From the dense array of buttons in the cockpit to the aged metal scratches and bullet holes on the hull, and then to the rest cabins and weapons depot inside the spaceship.
Every detail is made to be extremely realistic.
Even the anti-slip patterns on the floor are designed to fit the logic of spacecraft operation perfectly, without the slightest carelessness.
The art director froze on the spot, frantically pressing the shutter button with his camera, muttering repeatedly, "My God—it's all solid metal set construction, not foam board—!"
Guo Fan was so rooted to the spot that he could barely move.
He reached out and gently stroked the spaceship's metal hull, his fingers tracing the aged scratches, lost in thought.
Chen Xun chuckled inwardly.
In his previous life, when Guo Fan was filming "The Wandering Earth," he traveled all over the country to factories in order to build the real-life sets of the transport vehicles and underground cities.
We had to talk ourselves hoarse before we found a manufacturer willing to cooperate. Just the button layout for the cockpit alone took the art team dozens of sleepless nights.
But the Marvel in front of us not only built an entire spaceship 1:1, but also perfected every single detail.
Even the weight of the spacecraft and the hardness of its materials underwent professional mechanical calculations to ensure safety and realism during filming.
This is the mature film industry system of Hollywood.
From art design to set construction, we have a complete supply chain, a professional team, and standardized processes.
Without the director having to personally handle every detail, a near-perfect result can be delivered.
"We spent four months building this spaceship. The art team and the industrial design team worked together. Every design had to go through engineering calculations to ensure that it could bear weight, move, and even complete the flipping action in the script during filming."
Gunn explained with a hint of pride, "All the interior buttons correspond to real functions. Actors can operate them without acting against thin air, allowing them to get into character to the fullest extent."
As Guo Fan listened, he frantically took notes in his notebook.
The pen tip glides across the paper, writing densely, not even letting a single punctuation mark go unnoticed.
He looked up at Chen Xun beside him, his eyes filled with shock and undisguised envy: "Teacher Chen Xun, you film in such an environment, it's so enviable."
Domestic science fiction film production is still in the stage of trial and error, with very few professional science fiction art teams, let alone a complete industrial supply chain.
Chen Xun has already reached the world's top science fiction film industry and become the absolute core of this top-tier IP.
Chen Xun smiled and patted him on the shoulder: "Once your 'The Wandering Earth' is filmed, we can build an even more impressive set than this."
"These things aren't innate; they're all built step by step. This time, feel free to learn or see whatever you want, and ask whatever you want. I've arranged everything for you."
Before he could finish speaking, Gunn chimed in, "That's right! Our art department, photography department, special effects department, and action choreography team are all here today. Whichever department you'd like to speak with, I'll have their manager come over immediately."
"It's not just about looking at them; we can also provide you with our technical processes and engineering documents for reference, as long as they don't involve Marvel's core secrets."
These words caused an uproar throughout the entire "The Wandering Earth" team.
They originally thought that being able to get into the film set and catch a glimpse of it from afar would be an incredible stroke of luck.
Unexpectedly, we were able to directly connect with Marvel's core team.
They can even obtain technical process documents.
This wasn't just a visit and learning experience; it was practically a top-tier, one-on-one training course for them!
Guo Fan immediately realized what was going on and assigned tasks to the team: "The art team will follow Marvel's art director to observe the entire process of set construction and prop design, focusing on learning the integration of industrial design and art!"
"The photography crew went to find the director of photography to learn about camera positioning for virtual shooting and lighting logic for green screen shooting!"
"The visual effects team and the visual effects supervisor went to the motion capture studio to learn about the real-time preview system and scene building using the UE engine, and to clarify all the problems we encountered before!"
"The production team followed the production manager to learn about the entire project management process and supply chain management, seeing how others control costs and timelines!"
Guo Fan quickly made arrangements.
The entire team instantly got to work.
Everyone, carrying laptops and cameras, quickly dispersed to various corners of the set, following the heads of their respective Marvel departments.
Without the slightest stage fright, his eyes were filled only with a thirst for knowledge.
What kind of general you are, what kind of soldiers you will train!
For the first time, Chen Xun had a concrete understanding of this sentence.
Even the Marvel staff developed a liking for these earnest Chinese people.
Some people initially thought that these outsiders would disrupt the work.
Unexpectedly, they remained quiet throughout the entire process and did not disturb the normal work at all.
They would even offer a helping hand when they saw staff moving things or setting up sets, saying in broken English, "We can help!"
Take a break at noon.
The head of the special effects team specifically sought out Gunn, smiling and saying, "Director, Director Guo's team is so professional. Their questions are all spot on; they're not amateurs at all. They really want to make a science fiction film."
Gu En smiled and shrugged, glancing at Chen Xun, who was looking at storyboards with Guo Fan not far away, and understood.
A project that Chen Xun values is certainly not something to be taken lightly.
Guo Fan, meanwhile, was squatting in the prop warehouse, staring at rows of unused filming equipment, his eyes shining like light bulbs.
He pointed to a motion capture camera that was almost brand new and cautiously asked Chen Xun, "Professor Chen Xun, after you finish filming with this equipment, will it just sit idle?"
Chen Xun couldn't help but laugh at his begging appearance: "Don't worry, I already saved some for you!"
Since deciding to bring Guo Fan in, he had already discussed it with director Gunn and Marvel.
When filming the first Guardians of the Galaxy movie, a lot of equipment was obsolete or idle.
The second installment had a large budget and invested in a lot of new equipment, so the old equipment was phased out.
Chen Xun simply decided to pay for it himself.
Marvel, in order to do Chen Xun a favor, decided to give it to him for free.
"This motion capture system, along with the lighting equipment and green screen, will all be packed up and shipped back to China for you after filming, without you having to spend a single penny."
"We'll keep all the steel and sheet metal left over from building the spaceship, as well as the graphics workstations that the special effects team discarded."
Guo Fan jumped up instantly, grabbed Chen Xun's hand, and was so excited he could barely speak: "Teacher Chen Xun! You—you are truly our savior! I don't know how to thank you enough! These things can save us at least tens of millions in costs!"
He was previously worried about the cost of equipment.
A top-of-the-line motion capture system in China can easily cost millions or even tens of millions of yuan, which is simply unaffordable for a film crew whose budget is already stretched thin.
Chen Xun solved his biggest problem with just one sentence.