The Best Director

Chapter 136: High School Musical, Goodbye!

Throughout July, Wang Yang had been busily spending his days in Vancouver, and by the beginning of August, the pre-production work for the “District 9” crew, such as sets, props, and costumes, had all come to a satisfactory end; what remained was waiting for the production to be completed. The special effects team had already created a 3D full-body image of the Cimex species and Christopher Foersten and his son, which made him very pleased, although the alien spacecraft and mech suits still required more time.

Once the work in Vancouver was mostly settled, he returned to Los Angeles. Aside from preparing the photography equipment needed for the start of filming, finding stuntmen specialized in explosions and car stunts, finalizing some minor role actors, and discussing promotional plans with the distribution department for “District 9,” he also had to follow the “Sweetheart” crew for a few days of filming and attend the premiere of “High School Musical 3.”

As the final part of the trilogy, “High School Musical 3” had a production budget of $35 million, the highest of the series, with a hefty $20 million publicity budget. On August 3rd, it officially hit 3,175 North American cinemas, with the premiere taking place as well.

In the packed movie hall filled with upbeat and enthusiastic music, young people on the big screen laughed and danced freely, leaving behind the beauty of youth. When the final scene ended, and the credits began to roll, thunderous applause erupted in the auditorium. Cast members, guests, media reporters, and adoring fans, everyone clapped and cheered; there were also whistles and fans shouting, “Tom, Troy!” “Jessica, Rachel! Please keep acting!” “Yang, magical Yang, please make another high school musical!”

At the back of the audience seats, the young fans all stood up, their faces beaming with smiles, some waving their fists, others shouting with cupped hands, their voices suddenly growing in unison: “What team?! Wildcats! Wildcats!” Most of these fans were in high school, and when they first watched “High School Musical 1”, they were still in middle school, while those who were high schoolers back then had long since moved on to college. It can be said that the “High School Musical” series accompanied them through the most beautiful time of their youthful lives.

In those times, perhaps they suffered the worst wounds of their lives, which years later might seem trivial, or they might regret it for a lifetime; they would also have the most delightful memories, which would always make them laugh whenever thought of. They were old enough to think like adults but still too young to be completely independent, ready to make life-impacting decisions and fully capable of falling deeply in love.

Listening to their applause and shouts, Wang Yang smiled and clapped vigorously, feeling truly honored. He looked around at the familiar and now more mature faces of Jessica, Rachel, Zachary, Tom-Willin, and felt as if he’d returned to April 28th, 1999—a day he would never forget. He looked at Jessica beside him, wearing her white evening dress, and said with a smile, “It’s over.”

With a sweet smile on her face, Jessica gazed at the rolling credits on the big screen and nodded, “Yes, it’s over.” Her heart was filled with emotion, recalling many things. She had been 17 when she heard that Yang was making a musical, had auditioned, and won the lead female role, joined him, went to Salt Lake City to shoot… and then she had a wonderful 18th birthday.

She couldn’t help but wonder, what if she had foolishly chosen “Idle Hands”? Both her acting career and life would have taken a different path, turning her into someone else, wouldn’t it? Who knows, but now she was incredibly happy and content. Watching his smiling face, Jessica also smiled and tightly held his hand, determined not to let anyone or anything destroy her happiness!

When the scrolling credits had come to an end, the logo of Fire Flame Films lit up on the big screen, and applause broke out once again. Sarah Schulman, Wang Yang, and all the main actors stood up smiling, “Thank you, thank you!

In the midst of the bustling scene, the premiere of “High School Musical 3 officially came to a close. The movie series that had stirred up a global dancing fervor and was hailed as “saving the high school musical” and “pioneer of the new age youth idol movie” had reached its conclusion. That night, in 3,175 cinemas across North America, many young fans responded to Fire Flame Films’ promotional call with one final frenzy, singing and dancing in the theaters after the movie ended. Yet, after all the excitement, many couldn’t help but sigh at the passage of time.

The exiting audience members also talked to friends and partners about the film and the trilogy. The voices in all 3,175 cinemas were buzzing with opinions. Blonde Kayla smiled at her friend, saying, “The first one was the best, without Yang as the director, it’s just not the same.” She overheard several boys walking by, commenting, “Jessica is getting hotter. In the first one, she was just sweet, but now, wow, sweet and sexy…” ” what’s with these women…”

Rachel is so much prettier,

The curly-haired Caucasian boy sighed again, “What a pity. I just knew Wang Yang was an old fogy—the whole movie still doesn’t have a kissing scene!” Another blonde, chubby boy wondered, “Isn’t that a good thing he shot?” The white boy said with disdain, “Why are you so dumb? He must have instructed it, he’s the boss—who would dare not listen? Anyway, the absence of a kissing scene doesn’t affect anything.” The blonde, chubby boy said, “So it’s okay without it, the movie’s really good.” The white boy waved his hand dismissively and headed straight outside, “I don’t want to talk to you.”

After the premiere of “High School Musical 3,” the cast and crew, along with their family and friends, all went to a hotel for a celebratory dinner. The banquet hall was bustling with laughter and conversation, or the enjoyment of food and drinks, as waiters moved back and forth in a lively scene. Wang Yang, holding a glass of wine, was discussing the commencement of filming “Sweetheart” with Annie Fletcher.

The preliminary preparations for “Sweetheart” had all been completed; the actors had practiced their dancing for several months and reached the requisite proficiency for shooting. If they ended up unable to perform certain complex moves, they’d consider using doubles to complete those scenes.

Wang Yang’s work as producer, apart from spending a few initial days and revisiting for half a month midway, was to oversee Annie Fletcher’s shot-by- shot screenplay, offering opinions and making revisions together. He had just returned to Los Angeles a couple of days ago, when he’d seen that draft of the screenplay and had the first discussion. Seeing Annie Fletcher, he said, “Annie, the shot designs don’t need to be so rigid and heavy; you’re being a bit too cautious now. But the cartoonish exaggerations don’t matter—when it’s time to be lively, it should be lively, young, enthusiastic, dancing, dancing!”

Annie Fletcher nodded earnestly and said, “I indeed have been… a little too cautious,” she said with a smile, taking a sip of red wine, somewhat helplessly adding, “This is my first time writing shot-by-shot, and when writing, I always wonder if this is okay or if that will be a mistake…”

Mm, I understand, but you need to relax!” Wang Yang gestured a stress-releasing motion, massaging his temples, and quietly said, “Relax your mind, cut away all those worries, annoyance, caution… all the extraneous, messy emotions, immerse yourself into the world of the screenplay, evoke the corresponding emotions within, and then you can create those brilliant, inspired visuals, not just ‘close-up shots,’ ‘long shots’…”

Annie Fletcher had a thoughtful look of realization on her face; Wang Yang paused, then smiled, “Let’s not talk about this anymore, we’ll discuss it tomorrow. Annie, relax, enjoy the party!” Fletcher smiled and toasted with her wine glass, “Sure, you too!”

Wang Yang toasted her as well and went to look for Jessica and the others. Soon, he spotted Jessica, Rachel, Zachary, and Girlfriends Eileen and Joshua standing together, laughing and talking. He approached, greeting, “Hello, everyone!”

Yang,” Jessica said with a sweet smile. Wang Yang kissed her cheek and, looking at Rachel’s smile and Zachary’s wide grin, asked, “What are you discussing?” Zachary cheerfully replied, “We’re reminiscing about some fun moments from the ‘High School Musical’ series, it’s been three years.” Jessica and Rachel both nodded, and Zachary’s eyes suddenly lit up, “I’ve got a new topic about this movie—what’s your most memorable moment? Ladies first! Leading lady Jessica?”

Everyone looked intrigued as Jessica spoke first. She tilted her head and pondered, “For me, my most memorable thing is…” She swung Wang Yang’s hand that she was holding and said with a toothy grin, “The scene where Yang and I played adversaries was so much fun!”

Pfffft—” Joshua made a farting noise with his lips before she could finish, making everyone laugh. Jessica glared at her brother, “What? You got a problem with that? But it’s true!” She looked at Wang Yang, who was laughing, then suddenly made a funny face, “You all know I’m the NG queen; I was always worried about hearing his ‘CUT’ before we finished, but it was just CUT, CUT, CUT…”

Seeing her disheartened expression, everyone laughed heartily. Wang Yang called out with a smile, “CUT! That Jessica, NO-GOOD!” Jessica couldn’t help but laugh, punching him lightly, then whispered mysteriously, “Why do I remember it so well? Because that time Yang got CUT by Sara so badly, he was almost losing his temper. I remember it clearly!”

Rachel and Zachary immediately nodded in agreement and laughed jokingly. Wang Yang, with a look of innocence on his face, furrowed his brow and said, “What? When did I ever get angry?” Jessica shrugged and said, “You have.” Rachel also laughed and said, “Yang, stop denying it.” Wang Yang coughed and pointed at her, “So Rachel, what’s your most vivid memory?”

Me?” Rachel laughed, not revealing the absolute truth but rather, the second thing that came to her mind. She said with a smile, “I remember your speech the most, when you stood on the stage, full of confidence and passion…” Realizing that this might not be the best to say, she quickly changed her tone, mimicking Wang Yang’s voice and clenched her fist, “Guys, let’s kick their asses hard!”

Jessica also laughed, “Yeah, I remember too, Jessica with her head in the clouds!” Wang Yang pushed her head with a smile, and Zachary nodded, “How could I forget? That speech was awesome.” At that moment, Joshua interjected, “Just like Hitler, my precious…”

Everyone looked at him with some confusion. Jessica said, “Josh, you were in Los Angeles back then, weren’t you?” Joshua gave her a look of puzzlement and said, “Don’t you know? Humans have imagination!” Everyone laughed again, and just as they were about to let the next person speak, Zachary suddenly saw Tom Wilkins coming over and called out, “Hey, Tom!”

Tom, dressed in a black suit, came over, greeted everyone, and then looked at Wang Yang and Zachary, “Yang, Zachary, come with me for a moment.” He smiled at the girls and said, “I have some manly matters to ask them.” Jessica, Eileen, and Rachel all nodded, watching the three men walk away, then continued to chat and laugh. Joshua scratched his head and suddenly shouted, “Hey, why not me?”

The two followed Tom to the side, seeing that he seemed very nervous. Wang Yang asked, “What’s wrong, Tom?” Tom took a deep breath and looked around at the lively surroundings. With care, he pulled something out of his jacket pocket, “Guys, I’m planning to… propose to Jamie later.” He opened his palm, and a beautiful silver diamond ring quietly lay there.

Wang Yang and Zachary were immediately stunned, a proposal!? He blinked his eyes, looking at the ring, said, “Buddy, then go for it.” Zachary also nodded dumbly, “Yeah, go for it.”

But I don’t know if today is a good day. I don’t know if she’ll say yes…” Tom was still visibly nervous, his brow furrowed deeply, “You know this isn’t a movie, if she says NO, I might as well die! But I’m 24 now, I love her, and I just feel like it’s time, we should move on to the next stage of life…”

He took another deep breath, clenched his fists tightly, and said, “Seriously, I am really nervous right now. Is this the right moment? What do you guys think?”

Hmm.” Wang Yang wiped his forehead, also starting to feel nervous under Tom’s influence. After thinking for a moment, said, “I don’t know; I don’t have any experience with this.” He couldn’t help but chuckle before adding, “But the timing today, I think it’s pretty good. It may not be very romantic, but it’s happy. Tom, I think Jamie will say yes. What you have to do now is muster up the courage!” Saying this, he gave Tom’s arm an encouraging pat.

Tom nodded slowly, his expression turning serious, as if he had made a decision! Zachary also gave his other arm a few pats, laughing, “Tom, when you get married, I have to be the best man! I’ve wanted to be a best man for so long!” Wang Yang laughed, “Me too!” Zachary, still excited, said, “And the bachelor party! Where should we go to party? Las Vegas? Or…”

Wang Yang suddenly shushed him, cutting off Zachary’s words, and looked in the direction of a tall brunette Caucasian woman, “Tom, Jamie’s coming.” Tom looked backand tooka deep breath, then said to the two, “Brothers, I’m off!” Wang Yang and Zachary both gave him a high five and watched as he walked towards his girlfriend, Jamie White.

Tom walked up to her and started a conversation, not seeming in a hurry to pull out the ring. Wang Yang returned to Jessica and the others’ side, and looking over at Tom not far away, whispered, “Something big is about to happen.” Jessica looked over curiously and said with a smile, “Yang, what’s going on?”

Jamie!” Tom Willing suddenly called out loudly as he knelt on one knee and took a silver diamond ring out of his pocket. The surrounding crowd naturally understood what was happening and quieted down with smiles on their faces. Jessica’s eyes widened excitedly as she hugged Wang Yang’s arm and gasped, “Oh my God”; Rachel, Eileen, and the others were also very surprised, and Joshua exclaimed in awe…

Jamie White was both shocked and delighted, covering her mouth with both hands. Tom Willing, looking up at her passionately, said, “Jamie, meeting you, knowing you, and falling in love with you has been the most wonderful arrangement God has given me. From the first moment I saw you, I fell in love with you, and I knew, ‘She is the one to be my wife’…”

Joshua repeated the words softly, preparing to note them down to use them when confessing to Scarlett Johansson. Meanwhile, Tom Willing said no more but just looked into Jamie’s eyes and smiled, “I love you, Jamie. Will you marry me?”

YES!” Jamie’s face brightened with an extremely happy smile, and she nodded her head without hesitation, laughing, “I do!” Tom immediately let out an excited and joyful laugh as the crowd around them erupted into loud cheers, clapping and offering their blessings without end. Amidst the applause and well-wishes, Tom slid the ring onto Jamie’s left ring finger and stood up to kiss her.

Jessica clapped her hands vigorously, her face a mix of excitement and envy as she said, “Wow, marriage…” She turned to look at Wang Yang, then back at Tom and Jamie, and back at him…

Tom, Jamie, congratulations!” Wang Yang shouted with a smile, truly happy for them. He clapped his hands and said to Jessica beside him with a smile, “Tom’s female fans are going to be heartbroken.” He looked at the beaming Tom Willing and remembered that somewhat shy big boy from the New York audition three years ago… The chapter had ended, the ‘High School Musical’ phase was over.

Rachel was going back to university to focus on her studies for a while; Zachary was in talks for a role in a comedy movie; Tom was soon to enter the halls of matrimony; Jessica was about to shoot a new movie… The next stage of life was about to begin with Action.

Late at night, in the bedroom.

I do…” In her sleep, Jessica foolishly curled up the corners of her mouth and mumbled dreamily, “I do, Yang, I do…” Beside her, Wang Yang turned over and continued to sleep soundly.

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