Guo Baochang:A Masterpiece Demands Hard Work,It\'s not for Fame or Gain.

Thirteen years ago, the masterpiece TV series Da Zhai Men (The Mansion) was a nationwide ratings winner and remains the classic benchmark work in Chinese TV series. Its director, Guo Baochang, will head this year’s STVF jury panels for TV Films/Mini-series and TV Series. Respected as “Bao Ye”(Senior Bao), the 73-year-old veteran artist, when asked during this interview about the status quo of the national TV series industry, responded firmly: “A masterpiece demands hard work, it is not for fame or for gain.”

Daily News: As head of this year’s STVF jury panel, how have you prepared?

Guo Baochang: In the past two weeks, I slept less than four hours a day and spent the rest of my time watching this year’s entries. There are 20 TV series, each of which contains over 40 episodes. Though I’ve tried so hard, to the point of getting dizzy when I go outside, two series still remain unseen. The reason why I worked so hard is simple. As I am head of the jury I need to get the hang of every entry. In all, the 10 shortlisted entries share an averagely bearable quality and have all improved in terms of tempo, story line advancement and innovation. However, there’s still a long way for them to go when compared with a masterpiece. For example, there are some déjà vu plots among those entries and, even in one work, a similar dramatic conflict would reappear again and again in some episodes.

Daily News: Which work has made an impression on you?

Guo Baochang: There is a German mini-series named My Forefathers which not only reflects the cruelty and harshness of WWII in depth but also depicts the losses and gains of common people in the war. I was then wondering why we Chinese TV producers could not accomplish such profound work about wars. There is also one work named My Father, directed by Wen Zhang. I really appreciated his artistic ideas. He created something new which is indeed different from others. Wen Zhang is, to my mind, a young man with rebellion, which, I believe, plays a crucial part in artistic accomplishment. Without rebellion, there will be no innovation and thus no art. As the renowned painter Qi Baishi said: "Those who imitate me will decline while those who learn from me will flourish." Marching on the same spot equals a lag behind. It is sad that nowadays most of the TV productions aim at economizing on costs and involve little work. Their actors are accustomed to conventional performances, their directors are confined to conventional skills and the cameramen are confined to conventional framing. With so many conventional practices, a masterpiece is thus hard to achieve.

Daily News: Nine of the 10 productions shortlisted in the TV Series section of this year’s STVF share the same subject of city life. What do you think of this phenomenon?

Guo Baochang: TV series are like goods, they follow the trend. In past years, TV series about historical stories, mansions, anti-Japanese war, and family relationships were very popular. As the subject of city life now prevails, many producers rush to this market for a leading position.
Daily News: After so many years, The Mansion series which you directed remains for Chinese producers the template of an elaborately created TV series. It seems to consist of good scripts and excellent acting skills that we now see only so rarely.

Guo Baochang: I sometimes ask my industry colleagues: “This is your product?” He may bitterly complain: “Brother, I have to make money!” It is the reality. As for me, I have devoted my life to The Mansion and it took me several decades to collect material. A good play can’t be written by staying indoors. I never thought of “fame and money” when I was shooting The Mansion. At the time, I felt that even death would be rewarding if I could just finish it, otherwise I might die unhappy. A masterpiece can only be created with such an attitude, by great effort and without a thought of seeking fame and money.

Daily News: There\'s been recent debate about the question of whether "a big shot can alter the script at will.” What is your opinion?

Guo Baochang: Anyone can rewrite a script on the condition that he is capable of doing it for a rational reason rather than private profit. It is not right for someone to change a minor character into a protagonist to highlight himself and make fame and money. When I shoot, I never stop rewriting scripts. The year before last, in a contract that I was about to sign, there was a term stating “The director shall not arbitrarily rewrite the script.” So I told the filmmaker: “You are so unwise! How could you let me direct the film but not allow me to rewrite the script? It is far from a good script.” The producer eventually deleted the term and expected me to improve the script, because he knew that I could make it better.
Daily News: The payment of domestic first-line TV actors remains high. What do you think about this?

Guo Baochang: I don’t think their payment is high, mine is too low. Directors earn much less than actors. Compared with the overseas big names at the same level, domestic first-line actors’ payment cannot be judged as being high. The main problem is the big income gap. It is common for actors who only earn 3000 yuan a month to feel under paid when they know others are earning hundreds of thousands yuan for a single episode.

Daily News: What do you think about today\'s TV series which tend to be made unsuitably longer or divided into too many episodes, many of them more than 50, even 100 episodes?

Guo Baochang: This is very complicated. For some TV series, the cost is high, so the 25 episodes may be divided into 40 to cover the expenses. Some scripts are simple and concise, but the director could play it well and make it longer. This is a good example. There are also some cases where this is done only for the sake of money. It may be only 25 episodes in the contract but is diluted into 40. My deputy director did this once and we never worked together again.

Daily News: What subjects are you particularly interested in shooting in the future?

Guo Baochang: I want to make The Mansion into a film. I also want to produce a film and TV drama on Mei Lanfang. This has been my dream since I was a student. I also want to shoot films about Chinese opera. There are not many directors in China who know films, TV drama and Peking Opera like me.