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"Decryption" is a movie that does not seem so "Chen Sicheng" at first glance.

After the commercial success of works such as "Detective Chinatown", "The Accidental Murderer" and "Gone Girl", Chen Sicheng's films have been labeled as suspense. However, the story of "Decryption" does not take place in Southeast Asia, nor does it have the constant plot reversals that the public is accustomed to. Instead, it tells the story of a genius who decrypts modern and contemporary stories.

Even Chen Sicheng himself finds it difficult to describe "Decryption" with a single genre. As for the suspense label that the outside world is used to, he said in an interview with Jiemian Entertainment, "I have never established any label for myself."

If we look at it from a long-term perspective, from "Beijing Love Story", "Detective Chinatown" to the current "Decryption", Chen Sicheng is indeed a cross-genre creator. A few years ago, Chen Sicheng once talked about his favorite director Kubrick, who made 14 films in his lifetime, each of which was different. "I particularly respect this kind of director, and I don't want to stereotype myself."

In the eyes of the media and practitioners, Chen Sicheng has always been a trader of commercial genre films with strong industrial attributes. In addition to the high box office return rate of the film, it is also because in the past few years, he has been expressing the importance of IP development to the outside world and trying to expand the commercial dimension of the film. After realizing the serialization of many films, he once came behind the scenes to promote the training plan for young filmmakers.

In recent years, there has been a discernible shift in Chen Sicheng's style.

Last year, the film "The Third Brigade" produced by Chen Sicheng was released at the end of last year. This film was adapted from a true story. In an interview, screenwriter Zhang Ji mentioned that Chen Sicheng insisted on letting him help him pull back. "In the past, he played the genre to the fullest and also achieved huge box office success, so this time he insisted on returning to the basics, even more extreme than what I pursued."

"The Third Squadron" poster source: Douban

"Decryption" undoubtedly includes more new attempts. Chen Sicheng believes that this film carries "many thoughts that he wants to express and hope to get answers to." When adapting the film, Chen Sicheng chose to let the protagonist Rong Jinzhen die brilliantly. "A genius should die brilliantly. He should be more legendary. He has fulfilled his destiny in this world. It is enough for him to burn to the extreme."

This change has not left the market. The box office in the first half of this year fell by 9.1% year-on-year, which has made many filmmakers anxious. In Chen Sicheng's view, the attempt of "Decryption" is to provide new viewing content for the audience from a macro perspective. "We want everyone to know that China can also make movies that are not inferior to Hollywood in audio-visual experience. Such movies are worth going to the cinema to watch."

Of course, genre innovation is not without risks. The 2022 film "Mozart from Outer Space" features middle school students as the protagonists, which is very rare in domestic films. Chen Sicheng once hoped to use this method to bring back elementary school students, middle school students, and college students who have been away from the cinema for a long time, and to find new opportunities for IP development, but the film's final box office was only 223 million yuan, and its reputation was not very ideal.

This year's summer market is very fragile, and the audience's enthusiasm for watching movies has not been activated, which undoubtedly compresses the trial and error space of the film. When "Decryption" was released on August 3, the first-day box office did not exceed "Catching Dolls", which had been released for many days, and Douban's score has now reached 6.7.

In the communication before the release, the unknowns of the market and the uncertainty of genre innovation were discussed. However, Chen Sicheng told Jiemian Entertainment, "Some people think that I am relatively successful and have made some profitable movies. If even I don't try, who will?"

The following is an exclusive interview between Jiemian Entertainment and Chen Sicheng, with some content slightly edited and abridged.

The Projection and Extension of the Creation of "Decryption"

Jiemian Entertainment: When did you become interested in the project "Decryption"? Why did you want to do this project at that stage?

Chen Sicheng: In 2020, Chinese Film Group came to me with the script of "Decoded" written by a Canadian screenwriter. I read the original work very early and was moved by the content of the book, but "Decoded" was not my priority at that time, because we were already in the preparation stage of the movie "Ball Lightning". However, due to some sudden force majeure, we were unable to complete the actual shooting in Russia, so the project was suspended.

After that, I started thinking about the "Decryption" project. The Canadian screenwriter's script was more genre-based, even a bit thriller-like, which was completely different from the final movie style that everyone has seen now, and it was also inconsistent with the original novel by Mr. Mai that I had read. So I re-read the original novel. The story of the ups and downs of individuals driven by fate in that era touched me very much, and also allowed me to extract the theme of "Everyone is a unique code, and this life is a process of decryption." This sentence ignited my desire to create, which can be regarded as the original intention and emotional perception of the creation of this movie.

During this special period, I saw too many helpless individuals, and suddenly I became particularly interested in the situation of a "genius" like Rong Jinzhen. I think from that moment on, the thinking about the relationship between the individual and the times has been influencing me, and may even accompany my future creative path.

Interface Entertainment: It is generally recognized that the original novel of "The Decoded" is difficult to adapt, including the original author Mai Jia who has expressed such a view. Did you consider the difficulty of this project at the time?

Chen Sicheng: It is because of the difficulty that it is worth challenging. I am willing to do something challenging. Just like a mountaineering enthusiast, what is the point if he does not conquer more mountains?

Our cognition determines our behavior. My understanding of life is that you can't take anything away except experience, so it is important to enrich your life experience. Movies are an important tool for me to expand my life cognition experience, so I am willing to try new things.

Interface Entertainment: What dimension of experience does this movie expand?

Chen Sicheng: First of all, it is extremely difficult. There are ten "dreams" in the story. You have to walk into the mind of a genius over a huge span of time. It also involves an unknown hidden organization like 701. These contents are not easy to shoot.

"The Decryption" is not a conventional type, and its style has never been seen in domestic films. It carries a lot of thoughts that I want to express and hope to get answers to. I am driven by my creative passion and am not constrained by too much experience in this genre. Through this exploration, I broaden my cognitive boundaries and stimulate my creative potential. The process experience is very happy and fulfilling.

Interface Entertainment: When did you feel that you could make this movie and all the conditions were ripe?

Chen Sicheng: When I was re-reading the novel and polishing the script, I knew I had to film it and bring those dreams and characters to life.

Text creation is very important. For many of the works I supervise, I will write the script at the end. After writing the script, the movie is almost finished in my mind. This is also the reason why I don’t shoot a lot of materials on the scene, and there won’t be a lot of waste materials in the post-editing.

This creative habit has been with me for a long time. I prefer to create with a single-camera (shooting) mindset, and this time with "Decryption", about 95% of the shots in the film were shot with a single camera.

Stills from Decryption Source: Official

Jiemian Entertainment: What are the key adaptations made to the original work? What do you want to express yourself in? What do you want to express and convey to everyone?

Chen Sicheng: There are many things that have been adapted, including dreams, because there are not many specific descriptions of dreams in Mr. Mai Jia’s novel. The novel can use enough blank space to give readers room for imagination, but the movie needs to convert text into pictures to show the audience.

The biggest adaptation in the movie is Rong Jinzhen's ending. I don't know if it's more cruel to let a "genius" die alone in a nursing home in a state of insanity like the original ending, or to let him return to his glory like the movie. But I think the ending of a genius should be more legendary. He completed his mission in this world, and it was enough to burn to the extreme, because he had already composed a brilliant movement of life with his extremely short life.

Interface Entertainment: At what stage was it decided that he would die brilliantly?

Chen Sicheng: When writing the script.

Interface Entertainment: Mai Jia said in an interview that this is the work that most faithfully restores his original work.

Chen Sicheng: Thank you Mr. Mai Jia for your recognition. We hope to use the film to restore the inner spirit of the novel and the power of the character Rong Jinzhen created by the author, further pay attention to the connection between the individual and destiny, incorporate thoughts on family and country feelings and Chinese characteristics, and present more three-dimensional content.

After I decided to do this project, I went to Hangzhou to communicate with Mr. Mai. This novel is his debut work, which took him 11 years to write. It is the work with the deepest personal emotions. I even think that he expressed his circumstances and life experiences through this novel, and it carries part of his self-projection.

Interface Entertainment: Will the movie reflect your own self?

Chen Sicheng: It is impossible not to have it. From the novel to the movie, we have exhausted ourselves in one field. This is a very important projection. I am just an ordinary filmmaker, but through this life, I am looking for the ultimate answer to life. Of course, we can only get infinitely close to the truth, but we can never reach the truth.

Interface Entertainment: Dreams are a very important part of movies. What kind of preparation process did we go through when choosing the specific intentions for dreams?

Chen Sicheng: As a screenwriter and director, I would have a general idea of ​​the direction of the dream setting at the beginning, and what each scene would look like.

Some scenes are very specific. For example, there is a clip that we worked on for a long time. After I finished writing the script, I had the image of a little man with a huge vortex underneath. But the visual effects were not good enough. After repeated attempts, I still couldn't achieve the expected effect. Later, I drew it directly, and everyone worked together to quickly complete the presentation of the shot.

Some are creative superpositions, such as turning Rong Jinzhen's best memories of her life into a part of the amusement park, turning pens into pirate ships, and turning teacups and teapots into carousels.

We thus found a fulcrum. If the password destroys the beautiful part of a person, then what is it? We visualize the beautiful part. After the chessboard, pen, and teapot are crushed and destroyed, you will know that although he won and cracked the password, many of his beautiful things were also crushed.

Interface Entertainment: Which dream are you most satisfied with?

Chen Sicheng: I am quite satisfied with everything. If you are not satisfied, you can continue to work on it and continue to explore. At least I have no regrets this time. The main creators and I will show you all our skills without reservation, hoping to bring the best viewing experience to the audience.

"Decryption" screenwriter and director Chen Sicheng Source: Provided by the interviewee

“The suspense label is a misunderstanding of me”

Interface Entertainment: The feeling given by "Decryption" is very different from Chen Sicheng's previous films. Is this a transformation for you, or the beginning of a new creative stage?

Chen Sicheng: As far as the creation of this film is concerned, there was actually no deliberate transformation. I don't know how much I will change because of this work, but I can indeed deeply feel my growth. When I am shaping the work, the work is also shaping me.

All the creators have invested extremely deep emotions and enthusiasm in this film. We are very excited and proud to have created the work "Decryption" together. It has brought us a different life experience and a new standard in cognition.

Interface Entertainment: You once said that when you worked with Liu Cixin, his works would broaden your thinking and hit the blind spots of your thinking and cognition. Did you have a similar feeling when making "Decoding"?

Chen Sicheng: Of course, if I hadn't done "Decryption", I wouldn't know what the code is, how much influence the code has had on the history of war and even human history. The original novel gave us a solid foundation in this regard. It's impossible for me to create a 701 out of thin air in a field I have never been involved in. This is beyond my scope of cognition. I can understand it by reading the novel, but this understanding is relatively superficial and emotional.

But the real creation is different. You must have a deep understanding of cryptography. You need to talk to scientific consultants, historians, and even friends and predecessors in the field of cryptography. This learning process is a unique advantage for creation. When we enter a new subject, we will open a new door.

Interface Entertainment: For the audience, the password is still relatively abstract. When creating it, do you think about how to make it concrete and restore it so that the general public, including users in the sinking market, can understand it?

Chen Sicheng: I think the ideal form of good literary and artistic works is to appeal to both the elite and the masses. Every audience will come to watch the film with different personal experiences. Those who understand history will watch history, those who understand movies will watch movies, and those who just want to be entertained will at least find the visuals shocking and beautiful.

The audience can choose to watch highbrow films and lowbrow films. But the creators cannot lower their standards, let alone film to please the audience.

Interface Entertainment: Do you think "Decryption" can appeal to both the elite and the masses?

Chen Sicheng: I don’t know, “Decryption” is a completely new genre.

Interface Entertainment: The suspense label of Chen Sicheng’s previous films hit the mass market more, and everyone will have such an expectation or perception of "The Decryption".

Chen Sicheng: I have never established any label for myself. Whether it is a juvenile fantasy adventure like "Mozart from Outer Space" or a realistic theme like "The Third Squadron", we have shot them all. I have never stopped exploring.

Maybe people will label me, but I think cognition and experience are the most important. Our cognition determines our behavior, and I will not stick to just one experience.

Interface Entertainment: Are you worried that the audience’s expectations will be disappointed after entering the cinema?

Chen Sicheng: Creation must not just stay in the comfort zone. Repetition may not be risky for the time being, but once the risk comes, it is irreversible. If creators only stay in their comfort zone, then Chinese audiences will gradually think that movies are just like this, and watching them in the cinema is the same as watching them at home, and the market will get worse and worse.

Only by constantly expanding new dimensions and letting the audience feel that there is something new to watch can innovation succeed. Therefore, innovation must have both risks and opportunities.

Some people think I'm quite successful, having made some profitable movies. If I don't try, who will?

Jiemian Entertainment: In the first half of this year, the media reported that the market was not very good, and the frequency of moviegoing has not returned to the previous level. What do you think of this problem? This may also increase the risk of genre innovation.

Chen Sicheng: We who make movies are also the ones who love movies the most. Now I know what I can do and what I can't do. I can only devote myself to the film industry. I would never be able to devote myself to or have such a high enthusiasm for any other industry.

Movies are my belief. I can't watch it die. I am willing to ignite everything.

From a macro perspective, I keep trying new creations for the film industry that I love, and I want to show the audience something new. This is also the reason why we put so much effort into the audio-visual of the movie "Decryption". In addition to the new genre, it also has a new audio-visual experience.

We want everyone to know that China can also produce movies that are as good as Hollywood in terms of audiovisual experience. Such movies are worth going to the cinema to watch, rather than watching them on the small screen at home. The shock brought by the big screen is irreplaceable.

So filmmakers are all defending the word "film". I don't know how much we can achieve, but we will do our best.

Interface Entertainment: In film creation, are there moments of inspiration outside the framework?

Chen Sicheng: Some things were determined before filming, but I think the sparks created by collision and friction during the filming process are particularly interesting.

I would like to share with you two moments during the filming of "Decryption". The first one was when filming at Schiess's house, art director Ma Xiaofei temporarily added a bird to the scene. I thought it was a good idea, and it also foreshadowed the fate of Schiess and Jin Zhen, trapped like a bird in a cage. It was also because of the art design that I decided to add two shots of Jin Zhen through the cage.

Another scene is a dream scene on a train, where Jin Zhen meets a walrus. It was a coincidence that after the props on the set threw some fish on the ground, visual effects director Wei Ming found that the fish were arranged like a six, which inspired us to arrange it more like π. This was an on-site performance that I did not have a preset during the creative process, but I felt it was particularly good in the actual execution.

When I was preparing for "Decryption", I read a lot of articles about scientists calculating π. I suddenly thought that Jin Zhen had to calculate this π in the end. Was he pursuing the boundary between reality and virtuality? He couldn't tell the difference between dreams and reality, which made him more suspicious of whether this world was real. So we put this into the hidden clues.

Stills from Decryption Source: Official

On history, young audiences, and AI

Jiemian Entertainment: Back to the history part, the mainstream commercial films now shoot a relatively long dimension of Chinese history, and rarely show people's life. You are showing such a long span of history. How do you make the selection? What do you want to convey through history?

Chen Sicheng: Which moments to choose and which moments to use for transition are purely technical issues. "Decryption" has the medium of "dream" as a connection, which makes the creation relatively easy to handle. For example, after an interview with the elderly Xiaomei, the footage of "Red Lantern" will be used to show the time span while showing the different ideological levels of that era.

If the audience is familiar with the 1960s and has a clear idea of ​​what China and the United States were like at that time, (they will understand) that using such a lens can fully display different ideologies and historical changes.

Because there are ten dreams, I can present them more freely, but I also need to extract the complex and implied shots and texts in a very concise and simple way within the limited length of the film.

Interface Entertainment: Dreams would be a better support.

Chen Sicheng: Yes, this dream made me feel freer.

Jiemian Entertainment: What do you think we need to convey or learn from this period of history? For example, at the beginning, the character Xiao Lili explained the concept of home and country.

Chen Sicheng: We must learn from history and reflect on some issues. At the same time, we must also praise the efforts behind the scenes. Most importantly, we should give some warmth to let everyone know that the country needs to be defended. Let everyone know about those real, unknown heroes in all walks of life. Rong Jinzhen in "Decryption" is a fictional character, but he is the common incarnation of those unknown heroes behind the scenes. None of them is fictional.

(Optional) Image description

Jiemian Entertainment: This year, the industry is also worried that young people don't like to go to the cinema. How do you view the problem of the average age of moviegoers rising year by year? Do you think "Decryption" can attract young people?

Chen Sicheng: I don’t know whether I can attract young audiences, but I am trying my best. I hope that through our efforts we can attract young people to go to the cinema to watch movies.

I am an audience myself, and I always create with the audience's mentality. I make movies that I think are worth watching in the cinema. I can only motivate myself and improve myself. There is no better way. I also accumulate through my works one by one.

Jiemian Entertainment: AI has been discussed a lot recently. You said before that you are not very anxious about AI. Has your judgment changed now? Is AI mature enough to be applied in the film industry?

Chen Sicheng: I don’t think we need to worry too much about AI, which is based on big data models. Big data is more powerful than humans in terms of information acquisition, but lacks the ability to recreate. I have always believed that Internet information has no value. People are unlikely to look up information from one or two hundred years ago, but they will read stories from one or two hundred years ago. Therefore, narrative is the unique value of humans, and we must believe in ourselves.