Translator: 549690339
The next morning, on the set.
Today’s filming was a bit special because there was a journalist interview.
It was okay for TV dramas, but movies rarely entertained journalist interviews since there was worry they might leak something, or that there were too many people and too much chaos, which could disrupt movie creation.
But today was an exception, as it marked Director Wang Ju’s tenth work and his twentieth year in the industry. This was more of a personal interview, with the movie being a secondary consideration.
Even if it was incidental, with three top-stream actors in the movie, and Xia Siyu and Bo Yan having had a fight on WeChat the day before, the whole industry, both inside and out, knew about it. Although the altercation had been removed from the trending searches, it still generated a lot of buzz. To this day, Siyu’s Weibo and her followers’ square were still besieged. Being controversial over the years, she had not endeared herself to the general public, let alone have any die-hard fans. Bo’s fans attacked en masse, adding insult to injury to her already beleaguered Weibo square. Opening it revealed nothing but scolding; the few active fans stood no chance against the angry tide, like firecrackers thrown into a pit, detonating instantly.
Furthermore, today’s scenes were quite intense, with Siyu going one-vs-two in a fight.
This was simply a prime “evil woman vs. good people” storyline, something the journalists adored.
Especially since it took place after the fight with Bo the night before.
The interview van arrived, carrying all three protagonists. Witnessing the eager reporters, their faces filled with anticipation, Wang Ju suddenly had a twinge of regret. Why had he forgotten that he changed the script today to include such a contentious scene? Had he stuck to the original plan, it wouldn’t have blown up .
What could he do? They were all here, so they might as well shoot.
The lead actors had made up and were rehearsing their lines, while the reporters followed along, not to interview, but simply to shoot some footage on the side,
When the journalists arrived, Siyu didn’t bother to pay them any attention; she couldn’t even be bothered to greet them, choosing instead to sit on a deckchair, her legs crossed as she looked at her script.
Turning to look at the smiling Shang Feifei and the politely nodding Bo Yan
beside her, now that was the way to humbly and courteously kick things off. During rehearsal, the three leads stood together, with Director Wang explaining the progression and positioning for the upcoming scene: how to fight, how to handle the details, how to move forward and back.
There were no actual moves during the walkthrough, just a rough gesticulation to prepare for filming.
But just as they were about to start shooting, Siyu put down her script and in front of Shang Feifei, Wang Ju, and all the staff and journalists, asked, “Director Wang, are we going for real hits in the scene?”
Wang Ju was taken aback, and the reporters’ eyes were drawn to the unfolding drama. Real hits meant a slap across the face, not a gentle stroke or two, no holding back.
Real hits would hurt.
Wang looked at Siyu’s petit frame, thinking a woman wouldn’t have that much strength when hitting someone. He nodded, “Real hits.”
He then instructed Shang Feifei, “In the first few strikes as she comes at you, remember to hold back your tears, but in the last one, let them fall.
Remember, you must build up to tears at the beginning and make sure they fall in the end, got it? The camera will capture your facial expressions directly, don’t be afraid of looking ugly crying, the tears must drop.”
Feifei nodded. Siyu, on the other side, stretched her legs nonchalantly, did some chest expansions, twisted her neck, and finally cracked her knuckles
‘crack crack,’ kindly assuring him, “Don’t worry, Director Wang, she’ll cry..”