On February 5, 2019, the movie "The Wandering Earth" was released in mainland China on the first day of the Lunar New Year, earning a box office of 4.688 billion yuan, and was also rated as "opening the first year of Chinese science fiction movies". Four years later, the sequel "The Wandering Earth 2" is still selected to be released on the first day of the Lunar New Year.

In the early hours of January 29th, Guo Fan, the director of the series, posted a message in Moments to congratulate the film on reaching 2.4 billion at the box office, "Thank you 45.01 million people for going to the galaxy with Xiao Poqiu!" A day later, the box office figure exceeded 2.6 billion.

In the early morning of January 29th, director Guo Fan posted a post in Moments with pictures, "Thank you, Li Bingheng, for your love for Xiao Poqiu!"

In line with the hot Chinese film market during the Spring Festival, "The Wandering Earth 2" is continuing to write its own legend. It is believed that with the wave of return to cities after the festival, this Chinese sci-fi production, which should be enjoyed on the big screen, will welcome more audiences in first-tier and provincial capital cities.

Shi Chuan, vice chairman of the Shanghai Film Association and professor of the Shanghai Theater Academy, said in an interview with The Paper that ""The Wandering Earth 2" shows the path of self-salvation of a community with a shared future for mankind from three different perspectives: political diplomacy, scientific approaches, and engineering practice." Road, also achieved a breakthrough in the domestic sci-fi genre at the three levels of sci-fi scene, sci-fi philosophy and sci-fi poetry.”

"The Wandering Earth 2" Poster

"Sci-fi scenes require abundant imagination and solid execution, which is fully convincing in the creation of the space elevator scene; science fiction philosophy is reflected in the debate on the nature of digital life and civilization, which requires more in-depth research. Reflection. There is a "cosmic sociology" mentioned in "The Three-Body Problem", the core of which is that survival is the first need of civilization. It can be compared with the discussion of digital life proposed in the plot, and it is worthy of in-depth debate. The creation of science fiction poetry Relying on feelings and minds, the Chinese people's nostalgia for family affection and the attachment to family and country feelings must also be able to derive a new universal civilization discourse. In short, after the two "Wandering Earth", domestic science fiction The door of the film has finally been truly opened!" Ishikawa said.

Before the release of "The Wandering Earth" in 2019, Director Guo Fan tested the finger bones.

Before the release of the two "Wandering Earth", journalists from The Paper were invited to director Guo Fan 's studio (for details, see: Interview 丨 "Sense and Emotion" by Guo Fan, director of "The Wandering Earth" ) for an exclusive interview. In the past four years, Director Guo Fan's studio has also undergone a relocation, and the current resident is in a cultural and creative park in Beijing. Not only Guo Fan, the studios of directors Lu Yang and Rao Xiaozhi also live next to each other in the park. Before the premiere of "The Wandering Earth 2", the reporter came here for the first time.

A wall for visitors to the studio. The live photos of the studio in this article are all taken by The Paper reporter Wang Zhengtu

The logic and algorithm of "writing forward"

"What we are doing this time is the 'prequel' of the first episode. When "The Wandering Earth" is re-screened in 2020, the story of the sequel has basically been written." Guo Fan said that the year "The Wandering Earth" is set is 2075 , and this time "go to the premise".

The interior decoration of the studio is clean water cement industrial style

"The logic of 'Writing Forward' in "The Wandering Earth 2" is how can we have the ability to build so many engines to escape with the earth? This is a very real problem. In order to cope with global warming, human beings must It was chattering endlessly. Imagine that to build such a large-scale engine group on the surface of the earth, it is possible to reach a very unified consensus." Guo Fan said.

How can this consensus be reached? The Chinese diplomat played by Li Xuejian in the film cheered up with a photo of a prehistoric human femur fossil during his speech: "15,000 years ago, a broken thigh was fatal, and we could only wait to be eaten by wild animals in place. The femur is healed, which is the symbol of the birth of human civilization. Because after he was injured, someone treated his wound, someone provided him with water and food, and someone protected him from the attack of wild animals. Unity continues the fire of civilization.”

"The Wandering Earth 2" studio photo

The old drama bones are reasonable on stage, which also shows that the subsequent joint actions in the film are the result of negotiations under the framework of the coalition government. "In fact, what we want to express is that in the face of such disasters, human beings need solidarity, which is also reflected in the real world. The theme of this film is to talk about how human beings unite together." Guo Fan said.

Seeing that there were only the paper reporters and staff of The Paper in the reception room, Guo Fan opened a pack of cigarettes.

"Before "The Wandering Earth" was released, when we were doing interviews, you smoked this. At that time, you could say that you would quit smoking after this is over." The reporter also took out a cigarette.

"Don't believe what you say when you are young and ignorant." He smiled wryly at the reporter.

A graffiti on the exhibition board in the studio, "Design Lion: When I'm upset, I'm in trouble."

"Talking about the actors this time, Mr. Li Xuejian hasn't acted for a long time, so we all know his physical condition. But seeing him in a Chinese tunic suit addressing the coalition government, we will all be moved. It is said that the foreign ensemble performers at the scene will also stand and applaud him?" the reporter asked.

"Mr. Xuejian struggled to speak, and he has a lot of roles this time. During the speech, most of the foreign actors on the scene couldn't understand what he was saying, but after Mr. Xuejian finished speaking, the audience stood up and applauded spontaneously. This is not the plot in our script. His acting charm does not need to be achieved through language, his aura and sense of faith are enough to impress anyone. The role played by Mr. Li this time is to highlight a sense of faith, which is relatively abstract Yes, but he completed this abstract performance very well." Guo Fan replied.

"The Wandering Earth 2" Wu Jing character poster

What about Wu Jing? Liu Peiqiang had already sacrificed in the last episode, and when he saw his scene in the trailer, one could guess that it was a prequel.

"Brother Jing has a lot of literary dramas this time, but the action dramas are the embellishment of his role. This time we want to talk about how Liu Peiqiang grew up, his growth process and the joys and sorrows of love. There is also a technical issue involved. The "Wandering Earth" series is a chronological story, which involves the continuous advancement or advancement of the year, and the characters also change from young to old, and their appearances have obvious changes."

"To put it bluntly, it is a 'face-changing' that replaces the whole face. There are five or six methods in the world, and I am not very satisfied after reading it. Our visual effects director Xu Jian, this time 80% of the artificial intelligence DeepFake is used. Algorithms (to complete). For example, we found the video data in Jing Ge’s debut novel "Kung Fu Boy Breaks the Passion", and after training and calculation iterations, it vividly presented his appearance at the age of 21." Guo Fan said.

Where is Andy Lau? "He will also involve the issue of 'face changing' in the movie. Hua Ge is an idol in the growth stage of the post-70s and 80s. In addition to using artificial intelligence for his (facial) processing this time, we also hired some artists He does manual restorations and tries to make fans and moviegoers feel familiar."

"The Wandering Earth 2" stills, Liu Peiqiang and Tu Hengyu pass by

Da Nation Heavy Industry and the product logic of "internal structure"

Looking back on the past, in 1998, "The End of the World" starring Bruce Willis and "Clash of Heaven and Earth" starring Morgan Freeman successively entered the mainland, cultivating the first batch of audiences of this type of film in China. In the consumer atmosphere of "doomsday culture", Liu Cixin's short story "The Wandering Earth" was published in a certain issue of "Science Fiction World" in 2000, which was earth-shattering.

XCMG ET120, also known as "Steel Mantis"

"This time we also involved some landmark buildings on the earth being submerged by natural disasters. In addition to the landmark buildings in New York, Paris, Beijing, and Shanghai, there are also some relatively unfamiliar places in previous movies such as Columbia and Iceland. We want to be more comprehensive. From multiple angles to show the impact of natural disasters on human society." Guo Fan said.

With the success of the previous film, is it easier to find investment and sponsorship this time?

"It's not about people taking the initiative, it's just based on the plot design, everyone cooperates with each other. I especially want to mention Xugong Group. The UEG Earth United Government machinery and equipment in the movie all come from us, a leading enterprise in China's construction machinery industry. The Iron Mantis used in our filming is a realistic version of 'Transformers'. During the whole filming period, we saw a lot of real sci-fi in XCMG, and saw the real big country heavy industry." Guo Fan said, everyone cooperates together In the process, the realization of film imagination is closely related to the real economy and industrial manufacturing capacity of the country itself. "In addition to heavy machinery, including the production of some meticulous and precise electronic components, we already have a very strong production capacity. It's just that we didn't have a suitable opportunity to apply it to the film before. Use it."

"We have inherited some experience, such as all the art setting and prop production process this time. Recalling the filming of "The Wandering Earth", the scenery props were completely a qualitative change. We didn't know it at the beginning. How to do it. For example, how to disassemble Wu Jing’s spacesuit in the film? It was completely during the shooting of the first episode, through learning and communicating with Weta Digital, and step by step to figure out the complete set of product production The process." Guo Fan said. "It's like making a mobile phone. At the beginning you have to model it, and then you can use new technologies, such as 3D printing, digital lathes, including laser engraving technology. This can be put into production line soon, which will greatly improve Greatly improve production efficiency." Guo Fan pointed to the poster of "The Wandering Earth 2" behind him, and the new domestic 191 assault rifle in Sha Yi's hand.

191 short automatic rifle

"All the 'real objects' are made by ourselves. Including the 191 rifle in the hands of Mr. Sha Yi, which is a standard weapon just installed by the People's Liberation Army. We read the information. After Hong Kong's return in 1997, the 95-type rifle began to be installed. It has been produced for more than 20 years and is still in use. In "The Wandering Earth 2", it is reasonable for the pilot played by Mr. Sha to use the 191 short rifle as a self-defense weapon."

"When we were filming "The Wandering Earth", we were studying why Hollywood blockbusters, ranging from heavy machinery to small firearms, are all so lifelike. They can't all use real ones, right? And we used to Why do the 'props' of the "props" look lacking in texture? There must be a way. You take this mechanical arm for example. When we put it in the first episode, we didn't know how to do it at all. Should it be carved with wood, but how can it be combined?" The enlightenment given by Weta Company is that the production of these props and sets involves not only the "outer structure", but also the "inner structure". The usual thinking is that the internal things cannot be photographed or seen by the audience. Spend money on internal things? And you can only show the real texture in front of the camera if you really treat it as a product to develop and produce. This is actually the thinking of productization. With an internal structure, it may not be the same as the real corresponding thing, but through the internal combination and installation, it is at least solid, and it has a complete appearance when it moves.”

"Another example is this space suit. At least it looks real in appearance. If the material and corresponding parts are replaced, it can be said to be real. This time all these props are made by ourselves and can be turned into real objects. All the props are made by ourselves, including all the sets inside. This is a great improvement.” Guo Fan explained, including the computer control behind the props, “In the first film, we still had one operator for each operator. It can be controlled by a laptop. But this time it can be integrated, which greatly improves the efficiency. With the upgrade of the scale and volume of "Wandering Earth 2", I encountered the same problem. I have experience and accumulation, and I can face many problems. For new problems, we have to start from scratch.”

Director Guo Fan operates the robotic arm

Guo Fan lit a cigarette and temporarily diverted the topic from the "high-tech" of film production. "You can't imagine that eating will be a problem this time. It wasn't a problem in the last one. A medium-sized crew has about one or two hundred people. (During filming) at noon, the crew will start serving meals. Everyone go It is a very common process to get a lunch box and start work after eating. But when the crew size reaches more than 1,000 people, we have a total of more than 20,000 staff members participating in the production this time. On the set, there are at most 2,200 people. If you want to put lunch at noon and turn it on in the afternoon, you will find that half of the people have not received their meals? This involves management issues, and we have never encountered such a problem before. It is like It is an enterprise, when you reach a certain scale, you must have corresponding institutional guarantees, system guarantees, and enterprises with tens of thousands of people also need cultural guarantees.”

Can you talk about cultural safeguards?

"We can't talk about culture yet. Through the question of food, you will find that we still have a long way to go to industrialize." In Guo Fan's view, mature companies only talk about culture. "What we are currently solving is the basic system problem. We are still at the stage of finding a solution to the problem. For example, in order to allow everyone to eat, we need to add a lot of food outlets to ensure that everyone can enjoy food in winter. You can eat hot food on the set. "The Wandering Earth 2" will start filming in 2021, and we have been filming for a long time, going through winter and summer, and it took more than a year."

"The Wandering Earth 2" studio photo

If you hear it, change it, overseas markets and "space elevators"

On December 14, 2022, a Weibo blogger posted an article on the leading trailer of "The Wandering Earth 2", pointing out that the vertical take-off and landing version of the J-20 in the film cannot take off on gravel ground. Just switch the tail nozzle angle to the level flight state directly. At noon the next day after the microblog was posted, Guo Fan appeared in the message area: "Thank you, thank you, let's change it quickly."

"I saw this Weibo by myself. I slapped my thigh and said, 'It's broken, I did it wrong!' Feedback from viewers and netizens, as long as we can revise it in time, we will definitely revise it. Jen in "Wandering Earth 2" 20 has been re-rendered. Including the Su-57 in the film, the previous one has a pitot tube. Experts can see that this is only a test prototype (sign), and the film should be a mature fighter , we also made changes.”

The 3D printed double-cockpit J-20 model displayed on the bookshelf

In the studio, there is a double-cockpit J-20 cockpit model on a bookshelf. According to Guo Fan, "This model is 3D printed. Before printing, we will produce some 'small samples'. What you see is just one of the 'small samples'. The J-20 fighter has already appeared in the first episode, and this time we will do it." Upgrade. There are too many details, especially the details of the engine. It is impossible for us to see the specific design and structure of this level of weapons. .”

The planetary engine model that appeared in both "The Wandering Earth"

The model of the planetary engine that appeared in both "The Wandering Earth" is placed in a wooden box. Guo Fan said that the second part has been upgraded accordingly,

"Because there are too many details in the design of the planetary engine, 20% of the first episode may be completed, let's take a look at it first. This time, add another 20% to 30%, and the details will be more realistic and shocking. Of course, if you want to be in the movie If you show how to build it here, it is another design and manufacturing logic.

space elevator

"Space Elevator" is also a highlight of "Wandering Earth 2".

"The concept of the space elevator was actually proposed and demonstrated by NASA in the early years, because it is much lower than the launch cost of the space shuttle. When it comes to the movie, we have to make it decent. First of all, Considering where it is built? Theoretically, it can only be built on the equator, and it must be built in the water. It must be in a floating state, which involves the investigation of relevant hydrology and meteorology. Upward, through special steel cables It will extend to 90,000 kilometers, and counterweights are needed during construction. The real effective distance is 30,000 kilometers. Including transportation and launch, it will greatly save costs under microgravity conditions. This is the basic design logic of space elevators. We This time it’s all about that logic.”

"Since the last movie, we have had a group of scientific consultants, whose job is to make various interesting estimates and calculations on the setting and direction of the plot. In science fiction movies, we must first talk about science, and the role of consultants is to help science fiction narratives It is close to science and provides suggestions on the rationality and logical self-consistency of the scientific and technological activities in the movie. You can pay attention to the design of the elevator car in the movie. Because both the space shuttle and the space elevator have to face the problem of passing through the atmosphere. It involves aerospace high-temperature-resistant materials, and ceramic insulation tiles are expensive and easy to consume, and they are disposable products.”

"We thought of a trick this time, which is to add an 'ice shield' outside the car. This is a bridge in Asimov's novel. He imagined installing an 'ice shield' outside the spaceship to resist space junk. Or the collision of a small meteorite. What appears in the movie is that a shelf is reinforced outside the car, and the inside is filled with water and quickly frozen to become an 'ice shield'. It can insulate itself, and at the same time, the ice vaporizes at high temperatures without pollution. Of course, this is just The ideas in our movies may one day be realized in the real world." Guo Fan said.

In the restroom of the studio hangs a poster of the Korean version of "The Wandering Earth," with the headline "The Last Project of Human Survival." There is also a recommendation from Hollywood film critics on the poster, "impeccable story, gorgeous visuals and unique imagination".

The poster of "The Wandering Earth" when it was released in South Korea hangs in the bathroom of the studio

"That's the poster of "The Wandering Earth" when it was released in South Korea. Actually, I didn't study the feedback from overseas audiences very carefully. I just read the briefings collected and translated by my colleagues. Unlike the feedback from domestic audiences and a large number of comments, I will Summarize it yourself, or reply directly at the first time. I pay more attention to the reaction and feelings of domestic audiences. In overseas markets, the real difficulty in going out is not what the audience’s feedback is, but how to let them see it first. That's the core issue."

"For example, the poster you mentioned, I am concerned about how many theaters it can be posted in South Korea? Where is it posted? How many times does it appear? I think our "going overseas" is still at the end Mainly overseas Chinese and overseas Chinese go to watch, how to let a large number of foreign audiences enter the theater, have not yet made solid preparations. Overseas distribution path, how to publicize, how to prepare corresponding posters and trailers accepted by local culture, etc. Materials? We didn’t prepare well before. We will try this time for “The Wandering Earth 2.”

On the table is Guo Fan's hand-painted comic "Little Nezha, keep going!", signed on 2019.8.13, was drawn by Guo Fan to congratulate "Nezha: The Devil Boy Comes into the World" for surpassing "The Wandering Earth" at the box office.

A sentence at the end of the novel and the critical point of digital life

The movie "The Wandering Earth" is adapted from the novel of the same name by the science fiction writer Liu Cixin, but audiences who have watched the movie understand that the movie presents more from the refinement of the world view in the original novel. The core of the story selected from the novel text of the movie "The Wandering Earth" is only one or two hundred words: when the earth passed by Jupiter, due to the disturbance of Jupiter's gravity, half of the engines that propel the earth's flight failed, and when the earth was about to hit Jupiter, In order to save the human beings on the earth (including his own son), Wu Jing plays the father of an astronaut who destroys the intelligent robot MOSS in the space station...

On January 29th, the microblog "@workership" of sci-fi writer Liu Cixin posted a post saying: The creators of "The Wandering Earth 2" are very similar to those characters in their own movies, driven by great courage and innovative spirit , pushing the planet of science fiction movies into the future.

"This time we extracted a sentence from the end of the novel "The Wandering Earth", 'I believe I will see the blue sky again, and the branches are full of flowers.' Mr. Liu actually provided us with an imagination of the world view and a very Chinese The core of the cultural story. If in the first episode, human beings fly with the earth, it is a kind of outward exploration. In this episode, I hope to explore the story in the 'inward direction'."

"But the 'inner direction' is almost inaccessible to human beings in the real world. The only known 'inner direction' may be black holes, but black holes are difficult to understand, and they are not below the thinking dimension of our world. So this time We actually use the 'inner direction' as a metaphor, of course, there will be a concrete presentation, which is related to death, the ultimate issue of human beings."

"The first scene of "The Wandering Earth 2" is a scene of burning paper. Liu Peiqiang's parents were both martyrs who died for the country. He and his master Zhang Peng burned paper to pay homage. This behavior may have been experienced by every Chinese. During the process, we will mutter to ourselves and communicate with the dead. But we don’t know what form it will be when we meet together if one day in the future we die too? The movie will present this situation through technological means. This kind of exchange is also our exploration of continuing the film in Chinese culture." Guo Fan said.

The artificial intelligence MOSS that was finally destroyed by Liu Peiqiang in the movie "The Wandering Earth" is obviously a tribute to HAL9000 in "2001: A Space Odyssey". In "The Wandering Earth 2", the predecessor of MOSS, the 550 series of intelligent quantum computers, will appear many times and play an important role. "The current quantum computer is indeed not what it looks like in the movie, but there may be one in the future. We have two considerations for the birth of this name: it must be something that the public has a certain concept of, but it cannot be called today's name, so we added An attributive, so that it will not be too unfamiliar to people, but it is a bit advanced." Wang Yuanzhuo, the scientific consultant of "The Wandering Earth 2", once made an introduction.

"A dark line in "The Wandering Earth 2" is to talk about how this machine grows." Guo Fan said. In his view, this is no longer a science fiction issue, but a realistic issue. "In the movie, we will put forward the concept of digital life-how long has it been since you opened your wallet in your life? If you can't find your mobile phone, you will be very flustered. These virtual, algorithmic things have become our The way of life we are accustomed to. It will eventually reach a critical point. For example, in the past two years, Musk is researching brain-computer interfaces, Zuckerberg proposed the Metaverse, and we can also see that quantum computers are developing at a high speed... When these Things are mixed together and gradually form a virtual world. The critical point is when everything is complete, we will face a choice, a very serious choice.”

There are no erased words and design drawings on the question board, and you can see related introductions such as the Gabon base that appeared in the movie, the site of the United Nations General Assembly, and the National Internet Center near the Bird’s Nest in Beijing

Audiences who have watched "The Wandering Earth 2" already know the "Heavenly Question" raised in the movie: If your life can last forever in the digital world and live with wind and rain, do you want to be willing? To risk all kinds of risks and accidents in the world, to live hard and earnestly?

That afternoon, Guo Fan said: "I believe that one day in the future, maybe in the near future, we will face the relationship between virtuality and reality very seriously and formally. The difference between this movie and Hollywood movies is that , it is no longer completely under a sci-fi theme, we have given an imminent scene, so that every audience can think about where to go. This setting is also related to a discussion we had with Liu after the first part Da Liu said that in his opinion, a meaningful sci-fi film should be a "documentary of the future". direction of this effort.”

"At the same time, in the past three years of the epidemic, some of my thinking will also be incorporated. For example, uncertainty, anxiety and insecurity, I think these may be related to everyone."

"Family portrait" hanging on a wall in the studio

One last question, has the third part started yet? "As usual. Let's talk about the next one after finishing this one."

The director still likes to say "we". Coming out of the studio, the wind is blowing in my ears, and there is a lot of traffic in front of me. Looking up at the night sky, the sky is full of stars.