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Four lines intersect and three “successes” grasp the youthful creation code of “City of Youth”

Four lines intersect and three “successes” grasp the youthful creation code of “City of Youth”



 

Urban inspirational drama has always been a popular creative theme in the film and television industry. The protagonist survives in the cracks, breaks through adversity, and the process of chasing dreams reaches an emotional resonance with the audience, forming the effect of “I am in the mirror”, constantly attracting the attention of the audience . But how to turn rhetoric into practice and show passionate youth to the fullest is the biggest test for this type of drama.

Recently, “City of Youth”, which was screened on CCTV-1 and broadcast simultaneously on Tencent Video and iQiyi, adopts four story lines, integrates “city-sincerity-cheng” and focuses on electricity, technology and other cutting-edge fields, while highlighting the youthful discourse, it also shows the possibility of change in the urban inspirational drama itself.

Four lines intersect

Draw a picture of Pengcheng youth struggle

Urban development and personal struggle are the core propositions of urban inspirational dramas. The protagonists selected for this type of drama must be both universal and typical to become the epitome of the audience. At the same time, the story must not only closely follow the theme of inspirational struggle, but also need to extract the essence from the tedious struggle process, presenting an ups and downs. The plot changes, and personal struggle needs to be integrated with the progress of the times, social development, and urban construction, all of which test the narrative of urban inspirational dramas.

And “City of Youth” sets four main lines, integrating the three generations of old, middle-aged and young people, electric power, artificial intelligence, government functional departments and other groups. While describing the struggle journey, it reflects the relationship between people and the times, society, and the city mutual achievement.

The director said: “We tried to tell the story of the miracle creators in Shenzhen after the 18th National Congress through four groups of representatives of different age groups, identities, and industries, and portrayed a group of young people who dared to be the first. A poetic impression of the city.”

The end of Xia in the first line was the representative of the first batch of pioneers who came to Pengcheng. He founded Aoli Company, starting from the initial battery OEM, and gradually transformed into the research and development and production of new electric power materials. Regardless of shareholders’ objections, she insisted on independent research and development of transformers with Dr. Nie Zinc, a returnee, and strived to master technological autonomy.

Like Xia Mo and Dr. Nie, the company founded by Fang Yuanjian and his two friends seems to be in a good position, but they are also facing the problem of core technology being stuck. Driven by his dreams and external technical constraints, he formed the Knights Alliance to develop humanoid biped robots, but under the pressure of the economy, he continued to struggle in predicament.

Xia Mo and Fang Yuanjian are representatives of young and middle-aged transformation strugglers. They are prosperous in their respective fields, but they still have old dreams that are unwilling to let them get out of their comfort zone and start a new journey of chasing dreams. Meng Meng and Zhuo Ye are representatives of young dreamers. Meng Meng’s family owns a century-old gold store in Macau, which is considered a leader in the industry; Zhuo Ye is the second generation of housing in Pengcheng, and his father is a well-known local charterer, with a wealthy family.

Both Meng Meng and Zhuo Ye want to get rid of the shadow of their parents and break out of their own world. But the two are also slightly different. Meng Meng already has a longing industry and is constantly striving for the goal, while Zhuo Ye is more confused in the face of many opportunities. He has tried in various industries, but has not yet found his way back. Zhuo Ye and Meng Meng form a control group, one is going forward for his dream, and the other is constantly trying and looking for love in society. Similar ages, different experiences and choices are also the epitome of most young strugglers who have just stepped into society.

The last line is the line of Jiang Nannan and Cui Jiangbei couple. The Enterprise Service Office where Jiang Nannan works provides assistance to enterprises within the jurisdiction, and the Science and Technology Innovation Committee where Cui Jiangbei works provides financial assistance for the creation of platforms for enterprise talents. It is this line that makes Xia Mo, Fang Yuanjian, Meng Meng and Zhuo Ye several Two seemingly disjoint individuals and irrelevant industries converge in one place, interacting and resonating with each other.

The Aoli company founded by Xia Mo is in Jiang Nannan’s work jurisdiction. Jiang Nannan took the initiative to help him investigate the negative public opinion in the society, and reported the company’s financial crisis to the Science and Technology Innovation Committee to help him ease the economic pressure and get out of the brink of bankruptcy.

Cui Jiangbei’s Science and Technology Innovation Committee not only provided Xia Mo and Fang Yuan with financial assistance, but also helped them reach a cooperative relationship, making the two parallel lines intersect. Later, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau talent incubation base jointly built by the Science and Technology Innovation Committee and the Enterprise Service Office attracted the interest of Meng Meng, a young man from Macau. Under the line of Cui Jiang and his wife, the four lines are related to each other, and the individual, the city, and the society are closely linked together, drawing a picture of the struggle of the youth in Pengcheng.

At the same time, the line of Jiang Nannan and Cui Jiangbei also adds some life-like and humorous neutralizing flavors to the hard-working and enterprising spirit that is emphasized in urban inspirational dramas because of their husband-wife relationship.

The setting of Cui Jiangbei and Jiang Nannan’s tiger mother and cat dad is presented in a very life-like way in the play. For example, in the 14th episode, the work of checking the children’s homework is kicked as a ball from father to mother, and then to grandpa and Grandpa, in the end, Cui Jiangbei succumbed to his wife’s deterrence, stopped his work and gave priority to taking care of the children; another example is that his grandfather and grandpa taught the children to speak Mandarin, but Jiang Nannan thought that her accent was the most standard, but when she spoke Mandarin with an accent It caused a roar of laughter. These plots neutralize the tension of the characters in the play who are busy running for their dreams, ease the narrative rhythm, add a touch of life to the urban inspirational drama, and narrow the distance with the audience.

The four story lines of “City of Youth” are presented side by side, narrated separately, and interspersed with each other. Moreover, the four lines are in the same rhythm and mood. During the same period of time, the characters in the four stories experience different ordeals at the same time, seek ways to break through adversity, gain a short respite, and fall into trouble again, and the cycle repeats. In the complicated stories, this form of “two flowers blooming, each showing a branch” clarifies the story line, and the interlaced forms of expression deepen the theme, and more comprehensively show the whole process of the protagonist’s dream pursuit and struggle.

 

Take off the “overlord” coat

Weaving an immortal dream that will eventually succeed

With a wealth of money, the ability to turn clouds and rain, and a sweet love, the “boss” who has a double harvest in the workplace and love seems to have become the main character in urban dramas. On the one hand, the inspirational story of the protagonist going through hardships, finally succeeding and embracing the beautiful woman does meet the audience’s psychological expectations; but on the other hand, the setting of his status may also have a “golden finger” situation, which makes the problem too smooth. Weaken the hardships of the struggle process. At the same time, the large social status difference will also make the protagonist and the audience centrifugal, making it difficult to form the same frequency resonance in thought and emotion.

For urban inspirational dramas, a satisfactory ending is of great significance that cannot be ignored, but more importantly, it lies in the description of the tortuous struggle process. The protagonist in “City of Youth” stepped out of his comfort zone, “fell from the altar to a mortal”, and opened a new story of struggle. For Mr. Xia (late summer) and Mr. Fang (Fang Yuanjian), “general” is not a superior title, but an adverb of degree, implying that “general” is in trouble.

At the beginning of the story, the background of the economic crisis is explained. Aoli, where Xia Mo is located, is in a predicament of shortage of funds and is on the verge of bankruptcy. Enterprise transformation, tail-end survival, parting ways, shareholders have their own ideas and hope to terminate R&D, but Xia Mo believes that only by mastering cutting-edge core technology can the enterprise not be controlled by others and the enterprise can be revived.

Similarly, the company formed by the three of Fang Yuanjian also opposed his development of a humanoid biped robot, thinking that his dream was a fantasy, and only paid a small fee for him to “play”. However, the three people’s company was terminated by the overseas company and went bankrupt due to improper advance payment.

Xia Mo and Fang Yuanjian not only bear the negative eyes of others and endure psychological pressure, but at the same time, they also encounter many obstacles in terms of money. After the successful transformation of Aoli Company, at the end of summer, it tried to increase research and development efforts to explore more core technologies, but was unanimously opposed by shareholders, and the laboratory promised to Professor Wei was not implemented due to economic pressure. Fang Yuan’s robot research and development road is like a banknote incinerator. He sold his car and real estate, took out all his savings and even took out loans, but he could only pay the tip of the iceberg for high research and development costs. The overlord clause that was signed lost a lot of money, and the situation was even worse.

“City of Youth” puts the protagonist on the road all the time, sets multiple obstacles such as economic pressure, psychological pressure, and emotional pressure, and unreservedly shows the protagonist’s history of struggle, blood and tears to the audience. The same dilemma faced by young people, this kind of growth story itself is the best emotional catalyst, enabling the audience to form a conscious identity and reach an emotional resonance.

This kind of resonance with young audiences is not limited to the similarity of the characters’ experiences, but also the youthful mentality shared by the audience and the characters in the play. “No one is always 18 years old, but someone will always be 18 years old.” The concept of youth contained in “City of Youth” is not only the young age of the actors and the young setting of the characters in the play, but is contained in every character. A young belief in chasing dreams.

Fang Yuanjian and Xia Mo, who are middle-aged, still reveal a rush to step on the horizon, with the determination to give it a go for their dreams. They have excellent economic conditions, but they have stepped out of their comfort zone to seek a way to change and pursue the pure love in their hearts. Jiang Nannan and Cui Jiangbei are in functional departments, but they are not willing to repeat their daily life and seek innovation in their work. Cui Jiangbei also has the idea of ​​resigning and making a living. Professor Wei, an octogenarian, has been working for decades for research and development. He successfully joined Aoli and went through fire and water for his dream.

As the director of “City of Youth” said, “This is an era of success, and this is an era full of losers. You may have nothing here, but you can have everything here.” “The City of Youth” “City” explores the appearance and essence of “youth”. Age does not mean youth, and wealth does not mean success. When the heart gradually lost and the blood cooled down, it may be the day of failure when you grow old.

The Game of Conservation and Change

Burn a firework of warmth with sincerity

Conflict is an indispensable drama in the story, and the change of the plot is inseparable from the conflict. As Robert McKee puts it, “The events of a story create meaningful changes in the circumstances of a character’s life, expressed and experienced in terms of a value, and accomplished through conflict.”

Usually, the creators will set up pros and cons representing black and white, and carry out the hedging and collision of concepts such as justice and evil, selfishness and dedication, so as to express the drama of the story, attract the attention of the audience, and at the same time convey the creativity of the creator. considered correct values. However, the characters in “City of Youth” are not black and white, and there is no distinction between good and bad. Only relying on the collision of different viewpoints makes the story full of twists and turns and ups and downs.

The most obvious in the play is the game between conservatives and reformers. In the early stage of the story, the research and development of the transformer at the end of Xia was opposed by many shareholders, and only won the support of Wu Dong. The two partners of Fangyuan Ship believe that the development of humanoid biped robots is like a fantasy, and hope to conservatively sell machines produced abroad and develop steadily. This is the first time that the two concepts collide.

With the development of the story, Aoli successfully transformed, and at the end of Xia Xia wanted to expand the scale of research and development, but at this time, Director Wu changed from a reformer to a conservative, showing his psychological appeal for maintaining stability. This change in the concept of characters is more obvious in Jiang Nannan and Cui Jiangbei’s husband and wife.

In the early stage, Jiang Nannan was undoubtedly a representative of the reformist school. She was unwilling to repeat work numbly, and she was very enthusiastic and responsible for her career. But Cui Jiangbei is a representative of the conservative faction. He follows the rules and never goes beyond the rules. The two had a conflict because of Aoli’s support funds.

In this line, Cui Jiangbei has an obvious character arc. From the suspension of Aoli’s financial subsidies in accordance with the regulations in the early stage, to the flexible handling of the Cavaliers League subsidies, it reflects his change in thinking. In the process of constantly contacting strugglers, he also rekindled his dream of “entering the rivers and lakes” and the idea of ​​resigning. But this idea was opposed by his wife, Jiang Nannan prefers a daily life with a stable life security.

There is no right or wrong in the game of conservatism and change. The two respectively correspond to the “safety needs” and “self-realization” in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory. Through the collision of viewpoints and the reversal of the concept of characters, not only the characters are more three-dimensional, but also the connotation of the story is deepened.

Furthermore, the hedging of new and old concepts is especially obvious in humans and artificial intelligence, old employees and new employees. Fang Yuanjian and Xia Mo discussed the issue of humans and artificial intelligence during their first meeting. Xia Mo expressed concern that artificial intelligence will replace humans, which is why she resisted artificial intelligence.

Inevitably, conflicts occurred between the new employees who mastered advanced technology and the humerus veterans of Aoli. The new employees believed that the old employees could not keep up with the pace of the times and would eventually be eliminated. The old employees were also under pressure because of the momentum of the new employees. Unwilling. Through these two sets of plot settings, the series explores the alternation of old and new and the value of feelings.

Whether it is artificial intelligence or new employees who have mastered advanced technologies, they are all representatives of new forces. What is shown in this conflict is the emotional caring ability that artificial intelligence does not possess. “City of Youth” explores the frontier issues of “human and artificial intelligence”, and compares this to the relationship between newcomers and old people, and the future Concrete treatment of the topic, with the help of whether the end of summer is “docking the tail to survive” and the behavior of resolving the conflicts between old and new employees, it gives the answer that people will not be replaced by artificial intelligence, affirms the contribution and value of old employees, and deepens the topic at the same time, Express the creator’s warm humanistic care.

At the beginning of “City of Youth”, in the dialogue between Xia Mo and the seniors, it was mentioned that “Pengcheng, who abandoned you”. At this point in the story, the four story lines integrate “a city, a sincerity, and a group of dream chasers who will eventually succeed”, giving the answer that “Pengcheng will not be abandoned”, and once again echoing the urban inspirational drama At the core, a group of people weaves a dream, builds a city, sails against the tide of time…



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