The Best Director

The main hall of the Toronto Convention Center was bustling with groups of sci-fi fans, young and middle-aged, sitting and resting on chairs, standing and discussing with laughter, all waiting to enter the venue. The 61st World Science Fiction Convention was being held in this eastern Canadian city from August 28 to September 1, lasting five days, during which the 2003 Hugo Awards would be presented, and at this moment, it was an exhibit for science fiction visual products.

Having returned to Los Angeles from the sunny Bahamas less than two days ago, Wang Yang had come to the cool Toronto, where T-shirts had been replaced by jackets. Seeing a few enthusiastic movie fans calling out to him, Wang Yang approached them, escorted by two tall bodyguards, and took out an autograph pen to sign their unopened collectible DVDs of “District 9.”

The young movie fans smiled and congratulated him, “Congratulations on your successful proposal.” A bespectacled white girl laughed and said, “I wish you and Jessica a happy marriage.” While signing, Wang Yang nodded his head in thanks, “Thank you, we will.”

The sci-fi enthusiasts who had come to this exclusive event had a certain degree of fanaticism, and having received their DVD signed by Amazing Yang, Bliss, a white youth wearing a red jacket with a hood, was overjoyed. Best Director’s signature from a sci-fi Oscar – his trip was truly worthwhile! Thinking about this, he asked, “Amazing Yang, when will you make another sci-fi film? What’s the fun in making those commercial films?”

Another white youth, a bit larger with golden curly hair, Garrison, strongly agreed, saying, “I bought the collectible edition of ‘District 9’ and watched it three times; but ‘The Hangover’ and ‘MIT-21-TEAM’ standard editions, once is enough for now.” Of course, some fans only watched “District 9” once but watched the others several times. However, the bespectacled girl Maggie also nodded and said, “I prefer heart-shaking sci-fi, Amazing Yang, do you have any new plans?”

Everyone naturally knew what kind of pace Amazing Yang had, and he had already finished shooting “The Devil Wears Prada” back in June.

“Soon! I promise you’ll know very soon,” Wang Yang smiled and said, promising that during the upcoming exhibition, he and Joss Whedon would announce the “Firefly” project, kicking off the official promotional work for the science fiction film.

Bliss and the others immediately looked excited and eagerly asked, “Are you saying you’re going to make a sci-fi film? What kind of genre? The future?” Garrison remembered some past news and exclaimed excitedly, “Oh! I’ve heard you wanted to make sci-fi with spaceships, interstellar voyages, right?” Bliss questioned further, “Will it be like ‘Star Wars’ or ‘Star Trek’?” Wang Yang chuckled, “Yes, ships roaming the universe… I can’t say too much.”

“Wang Yang, the Hugo Award won’t go to you!” At that moment, a middle-aged white man who had just noticed Wang Yang came forward excitedly. Dressed in a black shirt and jeans, he was a bit overweight with a shaven head, yet kept a beard, and his loud cry drew the attention of the people nearby, “George Lucas should get the Oscars! Kubrick, Ridley Scott… Spielberg, George Lucas! The Oscar shouldn’t go to you, you’re just a kid!”

Both bodyguards were immediately on alert, standing in front to block if the chubby man had any intention of attack, but this kind of verbal lashing from fans generally stopped there. Wang Yang whispered, “That is OK,” as he continued to meet the autograph requests of the fans who crowded around him.

No matter the award, they are but a testament to the times and shouldn’t be regarded as an absolute measure of greatness. Winning an Oscar did not mean he had surpassed the likes of Stanley Kubrick and others, who were influential in the science fiction film world without having won; but once you’ve won it, you’ve won it.

“I suggest you say that to the jurors!” The newly autographed Bliss spoke dismissively to the chubby man, “We don’t care about what the Oscars do, ‘District 9’ is a classic film!” Maggie also became a bit agitated, raising her voice, “Sir, who are you? Whoever you are, have some manners, please!”

“Boo—hiss—!” The chubby man blew a few jeers with both thumbs down, glaring at Wang Yang who hadn’t looked over, and he went on sarcastically, “You and ‘Star Wars’ are just a toy! All you know is how to do is viral marketing! Can you even make a movie! Can you make a sci-fi film!? Kid, roll back home! Don’t even think of taking away the Hugo Award!!”

“OK, all signed!” Wang Yang smiled and nodded to Maggie and the other fans, putting away his autograph pen, turned, and looked at the chubby man before leaving with a confident, determined smile, “Buddy, I can make films, and I can do publicity. Plus, I’m here to win awards, haha… bye!”

After that, Wang Yang headed into the main hall of the venue first, followed by his two bodyguards. The chubby man was still cursing and pointing at his back, “You can’t compare to ‘Star Wars’, the Hugo Award won’t go to you…” Bliss and the others found it amusing; Maggie exclaimed with excitement, looking around at her friends, “So cool! He’s Amazing Yang, finally met him!”

Inside the venue, there were a few early guests scattered around, with staff members setting up something on the stage at the front, and the big screen for projection was still pitch black.

“HEY, Joss,” Wang Yang called out, waving his hand in greeting as he spotted Joss Whedon sitting across the aisle. Wearing a brown shirt and jeans, Whedon glanced over at the sound of his voice and got up, walking over, “Yang!”

Joss Whedon was nominated for a Best Short Form Presentation for directing the “Waiting in the Wings” episode from Season 3 of the TV series “Angel”, and his creation, the “Conversations with Dead People” episode from Season 7 of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”, was also on the nomination list, although specifically it was the director Nick Marck, The Producers Jane Espenson and Drew Goddard who were nominated. His attendance at the convention was not only due to the nominations but also because of “Firefly”.

Although the Hugo Awards were known as the “Oscars of the science fiction world,” literature was the protagonist and visual media the supporting actor, with not as high media attention; not all nominees would attend unless there was a publicity plan. Others, like Steven Spielberg for “Minority Report” and Chris Columbus for “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets”, were absent.

“Yang, congratulations to you and Jessica,” Joss Whedon smiled as he approached, offering his good wishes, and Wang Yang nodded with a smile, “Thanks! Oh, I’ve been in such an excited state these past few days, like never before.” He thought about how he felt since the marriage proposal, adding, “You know, the whole world seems different now, like I’ve given myself a clear signal in life; she’s the most important person.”

Married for many years, Joss Whedon naturally understood his feelings and chuckled, “If you’re thinking like that, I have no worries for you two.” Wang Yang couldn’t help laughing a few times and shrugged, “Of course! It’s just that I suddenly have different understandings and feelings about a lot of things. I think they’ve deepened. Before, I used to feel the family mostly from the perspective of a child, and think about other family roles rationally, but now I’m about to become a husband myself. Ha-ha! Good thing I’m not the one acting…”

“Family can change a lot,” Joss nodded, knowing that life’s transitional phases bring a lot of new feelings for directors and creators, and it further matures their thinking. As they spoke, they walked toward the front row seats, and Wang Yang mentioned, “Joss, these past few days I’ve had some new ideas about Mal…”

After securing the screenplay for “Firefly”, Wang Yang had been thinking about how to bring it to the big screen and make the story and details more captivating. The main storyline was clear, from when the Tam siblings boarded the Serenity to Mal and his crew exposing the Alliance’s pacification program—the challenge was in connecting the dots and deciding what to keep or cut. As his current workload lessened, Wang Yang planned to schedule the preparation work, and he had already invited Daniel Wu to gain weight for a screen test, to which Wu readily agreed.

Soon enough, the sci-fi enthusiasts and reporters entered the hall, and the auditorium that could hold hundreds of people immediately became full. After rounds of applause, today’s visual media showcase began. Following some clips from nominated films, Wang Yang, the biggest name in attendance, took the stage to introduce some of the visual effects technologies in “District 9”, like how the Prawn’s transformation from a 3D model to seemingly real life and motion capture techniques…

Next was an eagerly anticipated segment for science fiction fans and “District 9” enthusiasts, as well as a key promotional highlight for the convention organizers; unreleased footage from “District 9” that hadn’t appeared in the theatrical release or the DVD was shown on the big screen. Besides protagonist Wikus leading the MNU team in the eviction work in District 9 and the inhumane experiments in the MNU secret lab, there was an alternative ending.

These clips were abandoned during post-production editing, firstly to accommodate the film’s runtime for the theatrical version; secondly, if added, the MPAA would have likely rated it NC-17 for its extreme brutality and disgust. The raw footage, without music, sent chills down the spine, and it left the audience in dead silence.

“Up next, we have a program that is, yes, very popular with everyone! He’s been a star for ten years, our very own superstar, the Prawn who does magic…”

The big screen showed a dazzling stage, and an announcer in a black suit holding a microphone hysterically shouted, “Please welcome—Christopher Foersten!!” As his voice echoed, thunderous applause rang out and the red curtain on the stage slowly rose. All the well-dressed, beaming audience members clapped their hands, showing respect yet also a smug anticipation for the spectacle.

“%##*•!” A Prawn dressed in a ridiculous clown suit, dragging long chains on his feet, came to the front of the stage. He bowed to the human audience below, his eyes brimming with laughter as his antennae humorously wiggled about.

“Ha-ha-ha-ha—!” In the midst of human laughter, the camera zoomed in on the Prawn’s eyes, growing larger, the mirth clearly fading, until they were as cold as a corpse’s. A sharp whistle suddenly pierced through, and the footage ended.

“Oh my god…” In the auditorium, a low buzzing started among the crowd, and “District 9” fans all felt an indescribable sensation. Bliss and others also awkwardly shifted in their seats. Maggie, who had cried last year at the theatrical release, sighed deeply, feeling her heart clench once more—it was undoubtedly Wikus as the Prawn. She shook her head, “This ending leaves no room for hope.”

Clutching the DVD in her hand and gazing at the Prawn on the cover, Bliss sighed, “Thank god that Yang chose the theatrical ending; otherwise, it would have been too horrifying.” Garrison spread his hands, “That ending would be torturing us, right?”

The film critics in attendance also felt a mix of emotions. With such a treatment, the story’s message changed completely. After ten years, Wikus hadn’t seen Christopher Foersten returning as promised in three years, but he stepped out of District 10. He chose to become a human’s clown, gaining a pathetic bit of freedom. Was this a compromise or a struggle? To remain isolated in the filthy District 10, living with the “fellow” Prawns, or to don the shackles and return to the “alien” human society on a beautiful, glamorous stage?

They wondered if this was content for “District 9 2”? Not the widely imagined Christopher Foersten arriving with a fleet, bringing doom upon humanity; instead, it involved Christopher Foersten breaking his appointment, and just like in “The Metamorphosis,” Wikus dies in agony and despair.

But many things shouldn’t be pushed to the extreme, as the public does have a threshold for what they can bear. The ending of “District 9” was already quite un-Hollywood-like. If this ending had been used in the theatrical release, the angry and despairing audience would have trashed it; film critics know this is why the wondrous Yang made the choice he did today.

With thunderous applause from the audience, Wang Yang and Joss Whedon walked onto the stage, and the clapping crowd turned a bit puzzled. What was Whedon doing following the wondrous Yang up there?

“Just now, you all saw one of the endings for ‘District 9.\'” The two reached the center of the stage, and Wang Yang took the microphone that was handed to him by a staff member. He then looked at the many faces before him and started to laugh, “Yes, we shot many endings. In addition to the theatrical version, the second ending for the standard DVD, the third for the collector’s DVD, and the one just shown, there are many more. We experimented with various effects… okay, actually it’s to add a selling point to the DVD and attract everyone to buy it.”

The audience burst into laughter, and Joss Whedon also glanced at him with a smile. Wang Yang shrugged and said, “Do I look like the Wikus from just now? Hi, humans!” Another round of laughter echoed from below the stage, and he continued with mock seriousness, “The fourth ending was originally meant to be included in the ‘Super Collector’s Edition,’ but now that you’ve seen it, you don’t need to buy it anymore. But no worries, it’s okay! Because if you want to see the fifth ending, please buy the ‘Ultimate Collector’s Edition.\'”

“Haha!” The self-deprecating humor made everyone laugh, but Flame Films had a great reputation in the DVD market for not engaging in such crazy money-making schemes. A film’s DVD updates were infrequent and slow, with each release offering surprisingly new and exciting bonus content and footage.

On stage, Wang Yang turned to look at the big screen and said with a smile, “But the theatrical version’s ending is still the best, the brightest, and the coolest, and it’s my favorite. Even if you’re in the darkest of places, you must maintain hope, right!?”

“Right!” Maggie and other movie fans shouted, clapping, and Wang Yang nodded and said thank you, then continued, “Shooting ‘District 9’ is a thing of the past, 1 year, 2 years ago. During that time, I often found myself in a rather pessimistic and depressive state, sometimes even feeling so irritable I wanted to hit people. Fortunately, I’m alive now and standing here without chains.”

A few spirited whistles erupted from the audience, similar to the clips shown earlier; there was also a voice from a plump man, “You talk too much, get off the stage!” But in order not to be escorted out by security, he didn’t dare shout too loudly or too ostentatiously.

“Maybe everyone knows, maybe not, but a few days ago I successfully proposed to my girlfriend, and now she’s my fiancée, and I’ll soon be her husband.”

“Congratulations!”, “Best of luck to you!” The audience instantly clapped their hands and voiced some barely audible blessings, completely drowning out the heckling. Joss Whedon too turned to offer his congratulations, and Wang Yang said into the microphone with a smile, “Thank you! This is of great significance to me, enough to change a lot, a lot of things. She makes my life 100% optimistic and beautiful. But what hasn’t changed is our love for science fiction movies.”

Laughing, he announced, “Friends, I will be making a new sci-fi movie with Joss Whedon!”

A chorus of exclamations erupted suddenly!

Sci-fi fans looked around at each other excitedly, Bliss and Garrison and the others couldn’t help but high-five in celebration, and then laughed heartily. The wondrous Yang was going to make a new sci-fi movie!! The reporters all lit up; this was news—the first director to win an Oscar for Best Director with a sci-fi film, the wondrous Yang’s second sci-fi movie! And with “the George Lucas of TV,” Joss Whedon!

“Yang will direct, and we will co-produce and write the screenplay.” Joss Whedon raised his microphone, his smile filled with excited anticipation, finally ready to conquer the big screen, to enter the movie industry! He started from the beginning, “A few months ago in New York, I found Yang, and I said, ‘I have a script that’s perfect for you!’ And then we instantly clicked. Yang is an incredible guy; he expanded the entire script, with astonishing ideas and settings, and we had a great concept.”

“For the visual imagery, I saw a few of his concept drawings, and they were very, very awesome!”

Joss Whedon emphatically strengthened his tone, it wasn’t flattery or hype, it was genuine admiration from his heart. Looking at those concept images brimming with atmosphere, he grasped how to blend rugged western style with eastern elegance; in line with the script’s contents, even just looking at the concept images, he was moved. The wondrous Yang completely understood his thoughts and had even more marvelous ideas.

He believed this would undoubtedly be an incomparable classic in the realm of science fiction! Thinking of all this, Joss Whedon spoke with certainty, “I’m extremely excited for the production of this movie to kick off, it’s crazy, unbelievable!”

Despite the enthusiastic applause that erupted from the audience and the sci-fi fans who were stirred up with excitement by Joss Whedon’s words, they couldn’t help but harbor a sliver of doubt—was it truly as good as he said? But it was customary for every movie to tout its own merits; no one would start off by saying, “I’m going to make a terrible movie!”

“Thank you, thank you, Joss! You’re making me blush here, is it really that impressive?” Wang Yang said with a chuckling frown, embarrassingly unmasked, causing the audience to laugh quietly. Joss Whedon nodded with a smile, “Indeed, I’m an honest person.” Wang Yang continued with a smile, “Alright then! The movie is called ‘Firefly,’ and today we’ve brought one of its concept artworks for everyone to enjoy, thank you!”

The two of them walked off the stage, and the big screen behind them instantly displayed an image, one of Wang Yang’s recent concept art pieces. After years of learning and hard practice, his artistic skills had improved by leaps and bounds. Coupled with the team’s graphic art enhancements and coloring, the artwork was pretty enough to be featured in a gallery.

The top part of the image showed a vast expanse of azure sky, and to the lower right lay a desolate and open cliff with the vast expanse of yellow earth below. A simple, battered small spacecraft was perched atop the cliff, and it seemed that several people were standing on the edge of the cliff, looking up at the sky with military salutes. The sky was full of small spacecraft taking off, their blue and red flames jetting towards the outer cosmos.

“Wow! Such a beautiful concept art, what is this about!?” Bliss exclaimed with wide-eyed excitement. Just from this one image, he knew the movie’s scenes would be grand! Anxiously, he said, “It’s not a trick, is it? Will it really be shot this way!? Oh my god, the amazing Yang can’t be writing checks his body can’t cash!”

Other sci-fi enthusiasts felt their blood boiling with excitement coursing through their veins! So many ships! So many crew members! It looked like this wasn’t going to be like ‘District 9’ with its Earth setting, nor a solo performance by Wikus. The amazing Yang was truly going to play among the vast stars this time! Garrison was equally captivated and exclaimed in awe, “Wow! The scene looks like the Loess Plateau. What kind of style is ‘Firefly’? What’s the story?!”

“I don’t know!” Maggie adjusted her glasses, breathlessly saying, “I think it’s definitely going to be fantastic! Just look at this… For some reason, this image feels very tragic. Maybe it will be as earth-shattering as ‘District 9’…”

People had already whipped out their cameras to take photos without regard for etiquette, but the reporters knew there was no need to rush. Since the amazing Yang had announced this new project ‘Firefly,’ based on his attitude toward promotion, its official website would surely come online soon, possibly as early as tomorrow. This concept artwork would absolutely be freely downloadable from the official website, and it would also provide screen wallpapers with different resolution ratios.

But they also hurried to jot down this news, afraid they might forget it, because for the science fiction film industry, this was definitely a bombshell! It was explosive news! Just look at the surrounding sci-fi fans, their faces twisted with joy!

“The amazing Yang and Joss Whedon team up to launch a new sci-fi piece, ‘Firefly,’ fabulous concept art, ambitious grand scenes…”

The reporters’ pens flew across their notebooks, as new words continued to be added, “The George Lucas of television,” but more importantly, the film industry’s monster, an Oscar Best Director—what would a sci-fi film resulting from their collaboration look like?

PS: On the first day of the adjusted update schedule, I am an hour late, for which I am terribly sorry! However, I hope everyone will cast their votes to surge back up the recommendation list. Thank you! ^0^(To be continued, for further updates, please visit . More chapters are available, support the author, support genuine reading!)