novelnext Chapter 406 We'll revise it immediately!
Chapter 406 We'll revise it immediately!
Chapter 405 We'll revise it immediately!
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The core audience for the Spring Festival film season is mainly young viewers aged 18-35. They have extremely high requirements for the narrative coherence of science fiction films and have very low tolerance for fragmented and disjointed editing. A clear story is their primary requirement for watching a film.
Audiences have significantly higher expectations for the portrayal of female characters. Flat, one-dimensional female protagonists are prone to controversy and negative reviews. Complete character arcs and independent personalities are more likely to evoke empathy and positive feelings from the audience.
[The main viewing scenarios during the Spring Festival are families and friends, so the tone of the films needs to be consistent. Comedy gags that are unrelated to the plot can easily disrupt the audience's immersion and trigger negative reviews.]
Domestic audiences are highly tolerant of the sound and visual effects details of domestically produced science fiction films, but have zero tolerance for audio-visual asynchrony or jarring special effects shots. An immersive viewing experience is a core plus.
A series of conclusions came to mind, and Chen Xun felt more confident.
He looked at Guo Fan and pointed out the core problem directly: "The problems with the film are also very obvious. The current rough cut is too much like a spliced-together trailer. Many plots are incomplete and the scenes are too fragmented. Just as the audience gets into the mood, the camera cuts away, and they can't immerse themselves in the story at all."
"Was it to reduce the runtime by cutting out a lot of transitional scenes and side quests?"
Guo Fan nodded with a hint of helplessness: "We initially cut a version that was more than three hours long, but we were afraid that theaters wouldn't give it screenings, so we compressed it down to two hours. A lot of transitional scenes and subplots were cut. We knew we had to cut, but the editing team was inexperienced, and the more we edited, the more chaotic it became."
"It's not your fault."
Chen Xun waved his hand: "There is a lack of mature science fiction film editing teams in China. Hollywood science fiction film editors have been training with the industry system for more than ten years. Our team is learning and editing at the same time, so it is inevitable that there will be flaws, which is normal."
He paused, picked up a pen, and wrote down his suggestions for revision one by one in his notebook, along with practical solutions: "First, address the issue of narrative coherence. The deleted transitional scenes don't all need to be added back, but key time and space transitions must be replaced with complete transition shots."
"For example, when the scene changes from the underground city to the surface, or from BJ to Sulawesi, these major scene transitions should not be abruptly cut. Instead, simple map animations can be added to clearly mark the location of the Earth, the distribution of the engines, and the route of the main characters' team. Combined with timestamps and brief narration, the time and space logic can be explained clearly, so that the audience will not feel confused."
The editor in the back row suddenly had a flash of inspiration, immediately grabbing a pen and frantically taking notes, muttering repeatedly, "That's it! Add map animation! How come I didn't think of that! That makes all the sense!"
"Secondly, there's the issue of the characters' emotions."
Chen Xun emphasized, "The current version's characters' emotional development is too fast, and the editing is too rushed, making it difficult for the audience to immerse themselves in the story. The most obvious examples are the father-son relationship between Liu Qi and Liu Peiqiang, and Han Duoduo's growth storyline, which are both too thin."
He looked at Guo Fan and said seriously, "The conflict between the father and son cannot be explained by just a few lines of dialogue. We need to add details, such as Liu Qi finding videos of himself and his father when he was a child, or Liu Peiqiang staring blankly at his son's photo in the space station. These detailed shots don't need to be too long, just a few seconds are enough, but they can make the father and son's relationship grounded, so that when Liu Peiqiang sacrifices himself in the end, the audience's emotions can be brought to the forefront."
"And Han Duoduo."
When Chen Xun mentioned Han Duoduo, Zhao Jinmai sat up straight in the back and listened intently.
"The current Duoduo is just a little girl who follows along. She didn't participate in any decision-making in the early stages, but suddenly she stood up and broadcast globally at the end. It's too abrupt, and the audience finds it hard to empathize with her. They might even think that this character is useless."
"We must preserve more of her growth storylines. During the early rescue phase, let her participate in decision-making. For example, let her think of using the knowledge she learned at school to repair the equipment, or let her take the initiative to comfort the trapped classmates. Let the audience see her growing from a rebellious little girl step by step."
"A broadcast ending like this is more convincing."
Zhao Jinmai listened from behind and nodded repeatedly.
Guo Fan's pen never stopped: "That's the point! We were always trying to compress the runtime, cutting out all these details, but we ended up losing the soul of the characters!"
Xin Zhilei sat beside him, watching Chen Xun methodically break down the problem and provide solutions, and her admiration grew even stronger.
The more she learned about Chen Xun, the more attracted she became to him.
After watching the rough cut, she felt the film was beautiful and stunning, but couldn't pinpoint what was good about it or what its problems were.
Chen Xun, however, saw through the core problem at a glance and provided a perfect solution.
She never dared to dream of having such control over a film.
"Also, pay attention to maintaining a consistent tone throughout the film."
Chen Xun continued to point out the problems: "The core of the film is the patriotism under disaster and the hope in desperate situations. The forced comedic scenes are too awkward. For example, the lines of the main character have nothing to do with the plot. The audience has just been caught up in the tense rescue scene, and then suddenly there is an awkward joke, which immediately takes them out of the story."
"It's not that humor can't be included, but rather that humor should be integrated into the character's personality."
"For example, the contrast between Captain Wang Lei's tough exterior and soft heart, and Liu Qi's witty yet reliable personality, these characters' inherent humor will not interrupt the narrative, but will make the characters more vivid. Forced internet memes and awkwardly funny lines should be removed as much as possible to maintain the consistency of the film's tone and ensure that the audience's immersion is not compromised."
Guo Fan slapped his thigh hard, his face full of regret: "We were worried the film would be too heavy, so we wanted to add some comedic elements to lighten it up, but it backfired! Change it! Delete it all! Do it your way!"
"Finally, there are the details of the sound effects editing."
Chen Xun softened his tone: "In some scenes, the audio and video are out of sync, and in key scenes such as the frozen Shanghai and the space station, the ambient sound is severely lacking."
"For example, when a transport vehicle is driving on ice, there is only the sound of the engine, without the sound of wind or the subtle sound of the ice cracking. The immersive feeling is gone immediately. Also, the low-frequency sound effect of the engine starting is not deep enough and cannot support that epic feeling."
He looked at the sound effects team: "In Hollywood sci-fi films, sound effects account for half the credit."
"You can contact the sound effects team at China Film Group, or even my sound effects collaboration team in Hollywood, to complete the ambient sound and detailed sound effects, and fix all the audio-visual synchronization issues. Even if it takes more time and money, we must make sure the immersive experience is complete, so that when the audience goes to the cinema, they not only watch the picture, but also listen to the story."
The lead sound designer immediately stood up and nodded vigorously: "Don't worry, Mr. Chen, we will definitely make the necessary changes! We'll connect with your team right now."
Chen Xun finished explaining all the revision suggestions in one breath.
A burst of enthusiastic applause erupted in the screening room.
All the main creators stood up.
They spent months studying the film, feeling that something was wrong, but they couldn't find the root of the problem.
Chen Xun's words were like a veil being lifted, laying out all the problems and solutions before them.
Guo Fan stepped forward and grasped Chen Xun's hand tightly again, his voice choked with emotion: "Chen Xun, thank you! Thank you so much! Your words have completely revitalized our film! Without you, we would have taken so many detours!"
"Don't mention it. I'm also an investor in this film and a member of the crew."
Chen Xun smiled and shook hands in return: "If the film can be made well and Chinese science fiction films can truly stand up, that's more important than anything else."