He took out his little notebook, crossed off another item, and found only one left.
After a moment of thought, Chu Zhi added another entry: [Song for World Anti-Drug Day]. It counted as a public service project, so there would be no income from it.
"Alright, done. Five minutes of rest, more than enough to run up several flights of stairs." Chu Zhi stood up and called out, "Brother Liao, Director Li, let's keep going."
"Wait, wait, wait! Chu, Brother Chu, Jiu-yé!" Director Li Tedian groaned. "I'm not young anymore. I can't keep up. We just rested a few minutes. Give me some more time."
"Okay, okay. That's on me. Director Li, just let me know when you're ready." Chu Zhi only ever pushed himself, never others.
Li Tedian wiped his sweat. From two in the afternoon until past seven in the evening, they hadn't taken a real break. Who could withstand that?
Well, apparently, Teacher Chu could.
No wonder he had achieved so much at such a young age. Even robots needed to recharge, yet Chu Zhi just kept going. Who on earth could keep up with that?
Looking at the five music video shoots still on the schedule, Chu Zhi felt his head ache. He might call himself the Emperor Beast, always painting big dreams, but that didn't mean he had no preferences.
He didn't like acting, and he liked filming MVs even less.
"Music videos, my lifelong nemesis. When this album goes online, I'll cut down the MV count as much as I can!" Chu Zhi took a deep breath.
From the side, Niu Jiangxue suddenly asked, "Then how many music videos are you shooting for the English album?"
"..." Chu Zhi fell silent.
"Our English album can have fewer music videos," Niu Jiangxue continued, "and I have good news for you."
Chu Zhi always liked hearing good news. Nothing else mattered; he was simply too old in spirit to bear the stress of bad ones.
"Bubbles Under the Sky flopped," Niu Jiangxue said gleefully. "Netflix pushed it across all of Asia, but after only two episodes it was torn apart with criticism. People say it's unwatchable. Netflix wanted to replicate the success of My Love From the Stars with the same crew. What a delusion!"
Her dislike for the show was sky-high, mostly because of Netflix's promotional tactics.
The ads had trumpeted things like: "From the original creators of My Love From the Stars. More sci-fi, more tragic romance, a love as fleeting as bubbles." That alone had driven Niu Jiangxue to rally a few friends to spam one-star reviews on Netflix's app.
Bold Niu was famously vengeful. To confirm things herself, she even watched the show. Jo Kwon played the male lead, a genetically engineered soldier created in secret experiments.
That meant the character was omnipotent, emotionless, a cold-blooded killer. But through a series of contrived misunderstandings, he fell for the heroine. After just two episodes, Niu Jiangxue was overwhelmed by how absurd it was.
It was probably a case of "Chu Zhi aftereffects." Liu Taishi and the others thought that the more powerful the male lead looked, the more audiences would love him. Instead, the plot was full of holes.
"I think I've seen this show online before, but why is that good news?" Chu Zhi was puzzled. He hadn't paid any attention to it.
Niu Jiangxue explained the whole story with the tone of a gleeful little rabbit, practically bouncing with joy.
"Those so-called bubbles had a bit of black-red notoriety before. But now even that's been swallowed by our film's popularity."
In the entertainment world, attention was everything. At this moment, self-media accounts and short video bloggers weren't mocking Bubbles Under the Sky anymore. They had all turned to analyzing Chu Zhi. Countless film critics took to their columns one after another.
Today's Headlines: "They Always Succeed, Because Serious People Always Succeed."
"Director Wang Anyi has won with every film she's made: Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Awards, Shanghai International Film Festival's Golden Goblet, Tokyo's Golden Kirin, even Cannes' Palme d'Or.
Chu Zhi has never missed either. From his first album to his debut film, even stepping onto the global stage, he's achieved massive success.
Why? The answer lies in the behind-the-scenes footage. Director Wang had actors practice Peking Opera posture six months in advance. Costumes were checked down to each button.
Chu Zhi, though not a professional actor, lost fifteen pounds in a week just to better embody his role. I asked a nutritionist; that kind of weight loss is extremely damaging to the body.
We see their success, but rarely the effort behind it."
It was a very typical Today's Headlines review: not much depth, but catchy enough to pull in traffic. Especially since they included before-and-after photos of Chu Zhi's dramatic weight loss. Little Fruits were heartbroken.
Some even noticed half-second clips from the behind-the-scenes footage. In one, the assistant director told the set team to repaint props, while Chu Zhi was captured rubbing ointment on his bruises.
The movements from Peking Opera practice had left him battered.
The still image showed his slightly hunched back, ribs sticking out like ridges in barren earth. There wasn't even a couple ounces of flesh on him.
Comments flooded in:
"Wu wu wu, Jiu-yé is serious about everything."
"These pretty boys really need to learn, stop relying on stunt doubles."
"That's too extreme, dieting like that. I eat only an apple a day and I don't lose this much."
"My impression of Chu Zhi has changed. So much effort, and not a single PR campaign announcing it."
Even for regular actors, having one work worthy of recognition was rare. Yet Chu Zhi, who was only dabbling in acting, now had a representative piece that could last a lifetime.
Plenty of stars were envious.
And some regretted. That included Sophia, Netflix's General Manager for Asia. The failure of Bubbles Under the Sky stood in sharp contrast to the success of Shiyi Lang.
She suddenly realized something: some stars' personal charm simply could not be replaced.
"South Koreans really love to exaggerate. Saying Jo Kwon's popularity was second only to Chu Zhi? Not even close." Some people failed, and even after realizing it was due to their own strategy, still tried to push the blame elsewhere. Naturally, Sophia began resenting the South Koreans.
Critics who had rushed to mock earlier also regretted it.
Before the film won the Golden Lion, many of them sneered: "Did Director Wang give in to traffic stars?" "Chu Zhi can't act, he's just a decent vase." "I'm disappointed in Wang Anyi." The harshest was a reviewer called [Old Xie Who Doesn't Watch Movies], who released a forty-minute video tearing it apart.
Now those people had gone quiet, some even swallowing their words and switching to praise.
Among academic circles in the film industry, feedback was glowing.
Take Jing Hua, for example. She had founded China's very first program in film theory during the 1980s, later became an associate professor at the Beijing Film Academy in the 1990s. She was no ordinary critic.
Jing Hua wrote a review on Douban:
"Historically, I preferred Xiang Yu the Overlord, because even without Consort Yu, he was still the Overlord. But in this film, I loved Consort Yu more. Without Xiang Yu, she became an even stronger character.
In Su Shiyi, I saw a different brilliance. Chu Zhi's acting faltered when performing against veteran You Quan, but his personal charisma filled out the role's complexity.
Su Shiyi embodies the film's hidden theme: life as a dream, one cannot live without obsession.
Any lesser actor would have made Su Shiyi unconvincing, but Chu Zhi gave me a surprise.
As Cinema Weekly in Italy put it: 'We all believe that Chu himself is an artist. Only an artist could so truthfully portray another artist on screen.'"
It was like Jacky Cheung back on Earth. People first called him the "God of Song," but even in acting, his skill was acknowledged.
Even though Chu Zhi had already had two smash hits before, many still thought of him as a vase. Not anymore. And while his role as Su Shiyi hadn't won Best Actor at Venice, domestic awards were sure to fall his way.
Chu Zhi riding on a parade float was big news by itself. Combine it with the buzz around Shiyi Lang, and the results were explosive.
During National Day, trending searches ranked first for patriotic propaganda pinned by Weibo and Douyin. Second place? Chu Zhi.
The first-week domestic box office was 770 million yuan. Though the curve of decline looked ugly, breaking one billion was guaranteed.
Counting overseas sales, the total had already surpassed one billion yuan. Guangzi Company hosted a celebratory banquet, and Chu Zhi made time to attend.
On the day it crossed one billion, even the stubborn [Old Xie Who Doesn't Watch Movies] admitted defeat:
"I underestimated Chu Zhi. As an actor, he's not as strong as a singer, but his talent is undeniable. Heaven itself seems to chase him with gifts.
Chu Zhi and Su Shiyi are deeply connected. Both are alienated from the world around them.
Su Shiyi is lost in his own world, obsessed with the value he finds in opera, blind to outside changes or even his own position. He was a pure idealist.
Chu Zhi's distance comes from depression and trauma. He protects his world too carefully, making it hard to integrate himself.
Director Wang Anyi made Chu Zhi, but Chu Zhi also made Su Shiyi.
I apologize again. Chu Zhi is a dedicated actor. Even in the staff credits, veterans like You Quan and Ge Zongfeng had their lines dubbed, but Chu Zhi used only his own voice. His perseverance is beyond my imagination."
It sounded convincing, and Little Fruits believed every word.
They even dug out "evidence" of their idol's alienation from the world: his blank stares at award shows, his rare genuine laughter in private.
Discussion about Chu Zhi itself boosted the film's box office, slowing its decline.
Investors at Guangzi were already thinking about future projects, giving the main creative team red envelopes. Chu Zhi's share alone was two million.
Calling October "Chu Zhi Month" would not be an exaggeration. On the 12th, the Strawberry Music Festival would kick off in Gui City.
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It seems My Love from the Star is a real Korean Drama?