Author: Yang Wenjie
The TV series “Ordinary Road” starring Guo Qilin and Jin Chen is currently on the air. This is the third time screenwriter Chen Tong has created a TV series from the perspective of a professional lawyer, but it is completely different from the elite atmosphere in the previous “Divorce Lawyer” and “Elite Lawyer”. “Ordinary Road” focuses on newcomers who are new to the workplace. With faith in their profession, these young people have survived the long process from assistant to trainee lawyer. The “ordinary road” is actually a picture of the survival of migrant workers in real life.
Why write such an “atypical” lawyer’s workplace drama? What kind of thinking does “Ordinary Road” want to convey to the audience? Chen Tong said in an interview with a Beijing Youth Daily reporter that this is also a question she repeatedly asked herself when creating: “Young people have moments when they are particularly afraid of being mediocre throughout their lives. They hope that they will be different and become leaders in the industry. Flower applause , The pinnacle of life… But for most people, it is good to be an ordinary person and let their family members and relatives live a solid life. If they can help others, it is already very meaningful. This may be What this drama wants to say is also the lyrics of the theme song of this drama: Ordinary is the only answer.”
Sneak into the law firm to experience the ideal and brilliance of “trainee lawyer”
Beiqing Daily: The “temperament” of this drama is completely different from your previous works such as “Divorce Lawyer” and “Elite Lawyer”. Can you reveal the original intention of “Ordinary Road”?
Chen Tong: The protagonists in this play are all young people, lawyers who have just stepped into the society, and their working and living conditions are very different from the mature lawyers who have achieved fame in some previous plays. When I was interviewing at the law firm, almost all trainee lawyers would be asked a question during the interview: Why do you want to study law, why do you want to go to law school? Most young children will say that because I have the original intention of being a lawyer, I hope to defend justice and maintain fairness.
Later, during my interviews, I found that most of the trainee lawyers were under a lot of pressure, and their salary did not match the workload. At that time, there was a joke that I heard in the law firm. I always thought it was a joke. Later, I found out that all the jokes also came from life: If you hire a nanny, you get 6,000 yuan a month; if you hire a driver, No one will do it for you without 4,000 yuan; but if you want to hire a (lawyer) assistant, you can serve you tea and water for 2,000 yuan, drive you, and do case studies for you…
When I was pretending to be an intern in a law firm, I learned that there was a young lawyer whose instructor took him to a case, and the family members of the client would call the child every morning as soon as he woke up, and kept calling until 90 o’clock. After the child had been busy all day, the client called him again before going to bed at night. He was very hard during that time. They are really a group of people with ideals and brilliance, otherwise it would be very difficult to survive the process from assistant to trainee lawyer-that process requires you to believe in the future and have a firm belief in your career.
Beiqing Daily: You have previously participated in the creation of family emotional dramas such as “New Marriage Era” and “One Servant, Two Masters”. After that, you “transformed” and created lawyer workplace dramas such as “Divorce Lawyer” and “Elite Lawyer”. What are the different standards?
Chen Tong: To be precise, “Ordinary Road” is more like a lawyer’s life drama. Most people may not have litigated much in their lives. Many of us understand lawyers from film and television works, and some may be from European and American film and television works. But in fact, the legal systems of various countries and regions are different. They are of the adversary type, and there are juries. We are not such a legal system. Our lawyers can only sit and defend. It is impossible for lawyers in European and American film and television dramas to walk around and perform in court.
The small lawyers I wrote about are all “newcomers” who haven’t even obtained their trainee lawyer certificates. It is impossible for them to get in touch with such big cases. Most of the time what they do is to check for omissions and fill in vacancies, or to help barristers as assistants. In the law firm where I “practice”, all I come into contact with are cases involving ordinary people.
There is another background. The creation of “The Ordinary Road” happened to be the time when the “Civil Code” was promulgated. Most of the “Civil Code” is about ordinary people’s family problems, divorce, labor disputes, inheritance and so on. For ordinary people, property division, inheritance, etc. are very important, so he must find someone he trusts very much. If he does not trust you, no matter how professional you are, he will not entrust it to you.
“On the bar” with the divorce case?Explore the possibility of a peaceful breakup
Beiqing Daily: “The Ordinary Road and Divorce Cases Are on the Row” rushed to Weibo’s hot search. Many cases involved in this drama are related to the end of relationships. . Why are so many stories written about divorce?
Chen Tong: There are many divorce cases in the play, because there have been many large-scale divorce “car accidents” over the years. I think why people who used to love each other so much no longer love each other, and they have to tear up so ugly? What can lawyers do if they are involved? Especially now, divorce cases generally require mediation first. During the mediation process, as a lawyer, should you incite the client’s inner hatred, or let him accept this matter slowly, in a relatively beautiful way? The status is broken up, and after breaking up, they can still be relatives in the future. In particular, many divorced couples still have children (bonding), at least both parties can still get along as the parents of the children.
Divorce has been written by many people, including many differences in our team. Everyone thinks that you don’t love her anymore, your husband doesn’t love you anymore, and it’s over if you leave. Why don’t you want to leave? What kind of attitude are we conveying? I asked myself many times about every detail in the play. At that time, some people said that Qin Xianglian’s husband was betrayed in “The Case of the Beauty”, and in the end Qin Xianglian would not get a divorce. Is that really good? Why did the person you once loved turn into such a big hatred when you stopped loving them in the end? Whether it is possible for everyone to break up peacefully in the end was discussed many times in these places. In law firms, many lawyers do not like to accept divorce cases. The lawyer told me that all divorce cases must go through mediation first, and it is impossible to get a divorce without mediation, so the lawyer will persuade his clients, just like what Du Feiyu said to Sun Jianye in the play, you no longer love She’s gone, but can you keep “breaking up and seeing character” in the end for a person you loved deeply. You have to do your best, with the greatest sincerity, and as much as possible, so that she can accept this matter.
The idea of the finale comes from Guo Qilin’s rewriting of a draft that is better than all the original versions
Beiqing Daily: You mentioned that because Guo Qilin played Pan Yan, you specially watched many cross talk works by him, and perfected the characteristics of this character according to his personal style. Can you share the story of the cooperation process?
Chen Tong: Let me thank Teacher Guo Qilin grandly. At the end of our story, I wrote several versions of the finale. Our team is also relatively young, and everyone did not come up with better ones, but the director was not very satisfied. It has been in such a cycle. The play is almost finished, what should we do at this time? I am very anxious, and the team is also brainstorming and making suggestions.
At this time, I happened to go to the crew to visit the set. Teacher Xiao Guo told me his vision for the ending. I thought it was very good at that time. According to his idea, many actors were needed, including the father in his play, but at that time, the actor had actually finished filming and could not write any more, and then he said that I would go find my father. So I feel very grateful to him, so I also re-wrote the draft of the finale according to his vision. Everyone is more satisfied with this draft and thinks it is better than all the original versions.
Young people don’t give up the world to people you despise
Beiqing Daily: In recent years, there have been a lot of industry dramas targeting “the growth of a rookie in the workplace”. How do you think the creation of such themes can truly reflect the difficult upward path of young people in the “volume era”, not just rely on “golden fingers” ” and “open”? Does the role of Pan Yan have any bright spots that can be further explored in the later stage?
Chen Tong: I don’t think I’m writing about a rookie’s promotion. In fact, I’m writing about ordinary people. For example, Shu Yinan, from his eyes above the top and pretentiousness to the end he is no longer afraid to be an ordinary person, willing to be a person who truly loves life, this is his character arc.
When I was an “intern” in a law firm, I realized that no matter what kind of profession I am engaged in, every generation is young and has original aspirations, but not all people can become the person they want to be in the end. There is a saying “Don’t give up the world to the people you despise”, and it is probably such a kind of self-loyal character that particularly impresses me. (Yang Wenjie)
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责编：刘冰雅 ]