As the seasons started to transition from autumn to winter, the film “Strong Yet Broken” finally premiered. Although its premiere couldn’t compare to the huge blockbuster-intended movies, it was still leagues better than most indie films. There was even a small red carpet event and select media representatives were also invited.
The majority of the people who waited behind the barricades to watch the red carpet event were the Black Stars. Their suits couldn’t be seen beneath their coats, but they still wore them nonetheless. It was like their uniform whenever they went out to support their Boss Iris. Joining their ranks were their new comrades, the Pandemonium fans. They also wore suits but their metal rock background was still apparent in their accessories, piercings and make-up.
Another distinctive group who attended the premiere consisted of the supporters of Guan Jintao, the famous blind Paralympian gold-medalist. The film was based on his late mother’s story. About half of them were persons with disabilities.
LX Productions already expected this, so they reserved the best place behind the barricades for the group. It was more spacious and even had portable heaters to make them comfortable in the cold weather.
The actors and actresses starring in the film weren’t really popular. In fact, most of them were total newbies. It was only Iris Long and Guan Jintao’s connections to the film that garnered interest for it. The anticipation for the film waned after Iris’ abrupt disappearance. Then the interest reignited once again when she returned and began promoting it.
Finally, the film’s production team and the stars began arriving. The crowd began to chatter in excitement. The media also started snapping photos.
First to arrive were the director, the executive producers (including the person Jin Liwei appointed to run LX Productions), and all the other members of the production team.
Then Paralympian Guan Jintao also arrived accompanied by his beloved wife. His fans cheered when they saw him. His wife led him to them. He took some time signing autographs and posing for photos with his fans. As a famous figure in the sports world, he learned to sign his name despite his blindness. After interacting with his fans, he answered some questions from the media.
Moments later, deafening screams and shrieks arose from the crowd. They saw JJ arriving together with a beautiful woman. The woman looked familiar. People gasped when they realized who it was.
It was Iris Long!
The diamond ring on her finger and the LX bangle around her wrist sparkled under the nonstop camera flashes.
“Boss Iris!”
“I love you, Boss Iris!”
“You’re so beautiful!”
She waved at her fans, making them scream even louder.
“Mr. JJ, you’re so handsome!”
“Marry me, Mr. JJ!”
JJ straightened his back and puffed out his chest after hearing some people screaming his name. He was pleased that they recognized him, the famous and award-winning music producer, JJ. Haha!
Like Guan Jintao, Iris spent some time interacting with her fans. She signed autographs and posed for pictures. She also saw some familiar people among the Black Stars such as Zhou Mei’er (CaptainBlackStar) and Ming Li (Little Phoenix). She thanked them for coming and even gave them hugs. Ming Li was so happy that she almost fainted.
“Iris, wow! You look so beautiful tonight! That dress is to die for! Who are you wearing?” The interviewer asked her.
“Thank you,” she replied before saying the name of the designer of her dress.
“There are so many reasons to congratulate you tonight. First and the most obvious of all is for the premiere of this movie ‘Strong Yet Broken’ which you’re actively involved in given that you composed its entire film score. So big congratulations for that! What a great achievement! How do you feel right now?”
“This is actually my first time attending a film premiere. There’s so much going on but I’m just enjoying myself and savouring this experience. I’m so excited to watch the film and of course to hear the music that I specially composed for it.”
“What’s it like to compose a film score? Was it hard? Easy?”
“Both,” Iris answered. “There were times that the music just flowed and it was very easy. Then there were also times that I had to struggle imagining what kind of music fits a certain scene the most. Those were the hard times. But regardless of the difficulties I experienced during the composition process, the excitement and the passion were strong inside me and they kept me going until I completed everything. This is a dream come true for me, so I was determined to do my best.”
“Impressive. Moving on to the second reason to congratulate you, today is also the release day of your soundtrack album. This is the third album you released since your first comeback a few months ago. Wow, Iris. You’re on a roll!”
“Thank you.”
After asking Iris a few more questions about her album and other future projects, the interview moved on to more personal topics. Of course, her engagement was the primary subject but Iris kept mum about her fiancé’s identity. The interviewer was unsatisfied by her answers, but he didn’t force the issue because the scary Mr. JJ was standing behind Iris.
The head of LX Productions greeted Iris with great respect. He was aware of her relationship with his real boss, Jin Liwei. After all, the production company was created solely to support her showbiz career.
The actors and actresses arrived next. Since most of them weren’t that popular, the attention showered upon them by the crowd and the media couldn’t compare to what Guan Jintao and Iris received earlier. Nevertheless, they still enjoyed the moment because they never expected that the indie film they decided to partake in would receive this kind of reception in the first place.
When everyone had arrived, they all posed together in a group photo. They didn’t really have any high expectations. “Strong Yet Broken” was still an indie film, after all. They were already happy receiving this much attention.
Before getting Iris Long involved in this movie project, the original producer never imagined that his film would have such a grand premiere night like this, complete with screaming fans and various media representatives attending.
He treated Iris as his lucky charm because after she joined the film production, they not only received overwhelming attention and interest for the movie but also financial assistance from LX Productions. Not to mention that Guan Jintao himself started showing his support for the film after listening to the cinematic version of “Phantom of Your Love” and the other soundtracks from the film score.
The producer asked Guan Jintao why he was suddenly showing interest in the film when the Paralympian ignored his previous attempts of communication.
“It’s because of the music you sent me,” Guan Jintao answered. “I could almost hear my mother’s anguish again when I listened to the music. With that kind of music, I think that you’ll do a good job in depicting my mother’s story.”
So in short, all the blessings raining down upon the film was because of Iris Long. This was what the producer thought. He could never thank her enough. Even if his film flopped in the box office, he would still be proud.
“Thank you for everything, Iris,” he made sure to tell her before they entered the movie theatre after the red carpet event.
He smiled, still feeling grateful to her.
As they entered the movie theatre, they had no idea that this moment was the start of their legend.
