Translator: ChuRen/ YuQiChen
Qingshan Film City
“Good morning, Wei-ge”
“Good morning, Teacher Wei.”
“Have you had breakfast yet, Teacher Wei?”
The film crew of “The Former Site of Magnificence” started working early. This film is directed by the famous domestic director Ren Zheng, with the screenplay by the gold medal writer Yao Lei, a Republic of China espionage film.
Even though they had been filming for over two months, the crew members still greeted Wei Tingxiao with excitement and enthusiasm when they saw him.
Many of the crew members and extras in this crew are fans of Wei Tingxiao.
Fortunately, Wei Tingxiao was to be the lead actor in this film. How could they miss the opportunity to interact with their idol?
At first, they were a bit hesitant, considering the reputation of Wei Tingxiao, the big movie emperor, and afraid of offending him.
After some interaction, they discovered that the Movie Emperor Wei was different from the cold, decisive image he usually portrayed on screen. He was an extremely approachable actor.
No wonder so many people liked him.
As the filming progressed steadily, more and more crew members and young actors bonded with Wei Tingxiao.
Some even treated him like a brother, like they had known each other for a long time.
The atmosphere on set was very harmonious and lively, often filled with laughter.
“It’s not early anymore, almost noon. What’s for breakfast? Let’s just have the catering lunch from the crew.” Wei Tingxiao, who attracted attention wherever he went, joked.
“Hey, Teacher Wei, isn’t your scene in the evening? Why are you here in the morning?” a crew member asked.
“No big deal, just taking a stroll, and I felt like having the catering lunch. Is that not allowed?” Wei Tingxiao replied with a mischievous grin, causing the people in front of him to be momentarily stunned.
A movie emperor who loved his work, treated the crew like family, had a good personality, achieved a certain level of success, and still remained true to his original intentions. He often flashed his stunningly handsome face and made jokes. Who wouldn’t be charmed by him?
Everyone sighed inwardly, wondering who in the future would be perfect for Movie Emperor Wei.
Wei Tingxiao thought to himself, it was better to stay on set than to be nagged by some old fossil at home.
Every time he returned to Jing City to film, he was forced to attend family gatherings at the old residence, which often ended in a hasty and unhappy manner.
Being alone was peaceful.
“Hey hey hey! You, the one playing the idle young master, it’s your turn to go on stage, don’t dawdle!”
The distant loudspeaker’s roar was piercing, crossing through one filming area and reaching the set of “The Former Site of Magnificence”.
Qingshan Film City was quite large. During peak times, it could accommodate over 70 production crews simultaneously. There weren’t clear boundaries between each crew, and some scenes were even shared. During busy times, it was bustling with activity.
Wei Tingxiao leaned against their crew’s car, chewing gum, and pointed with his chin in the direction of the voice, “Which crew is next door?”
“You mean this side next door? Oh, they’re filming a period drama. I went over to take a look the other day; it’s just a low-budget web drama.”
The assistant director, hearing Wei Tingxiao express curiosity about another crew, couldn’t help but chat a bit more.
He rubbed his chin, pondering, “The name of the show seems to be called… called… something?”
“I know, I know! It’s called ‘The Rebirth of the Scheming Prince and His Stubborn Princess’, adapted from the second part of the ancient trilogy by the online writer ‘A Pot of Dog Blood’!”
Wei Tingxiao: “…”
The assistant director’s assistant kindly answered this question for him, seeming quite knowledgeable about the original work.
Assistant Director: “Ah, yes, that’s the name, it’s too long, I can’t remember it.”
Wei Tingxiao: “…”
Was that name for real? It sounded truly melodramatic. Wei Tingxiao felt like he was falling behind the pace of fast-paced modern trends.
He usually didn’t pay much attention to other crews’ situations, but the neighboring director had an overly booming voice.
That voice drilled straight into his ears, impossible to ignore.
The director with the booming voice was currently reprimanding an actor. Which newcomer was having such bad luck?
“Hey hey hey! You’re entering too quickly! You’ve already gone off-screen, buddy!”
“Hey! You’re back on screen, why can’t you hold onto the camera? Face this way!”
“Expression, expression! Pay attention to your expression! Isn’t it all written in your script? You need to be a playboy, arrogant, arrogant, and a bit obscene if possible.”
Hearing this, Wei Tingxiao could hardly hold back.
He couldn’t help but cover his mouth, glanced at the assistant director beside him, and the look in his eyes spoke volumes.
He wanted to slip away.
The assistant director waved his hand, “Sneak in, sneak out, don’t attract attention.”
Wei Tingxiao put on a black baseball cap and a mask, whispering to himself, “I’m just a passerby, you can’t see me, you can’t see me.”
The Movie Emperor Wei was quite adept at invisibility through the power of perception. Fully disguised, he indeed blended in with the staff in the crowd.
From the Republic of China set to the period drama set, it was only a few steps. The scene changed, as if crossing hundreds or thousands of years.
No matter how romantic the scene, it couldn’t withstand the director’s scolding, instantly breaking the atmosphere.
“Take it again! Back to your original position! Move faster! We’re on a tight schedule!”
After being scolded by the director for half an hour, the unlucky newcomer Yan Shu was sweating on his forehead.
He never expected that just three lines of dialogue would take so long to shoot.
The character Yan Shu was supposed to portray was so different from his own persona, making it challenging for a well-mannered gentleman like him to play the role of an idle young master. Yan Shu had to break his usual habits.
In this scene, the female lead encounters the playboy son of the Jing’an Marquis at a tavern and is stopped and harassed by this young master.
Harassing a respectable lady in public would land one in jail during the Ming Dynasty.
Although he knew it was acting, Yan Shu couldn’t get past that hurdle in his heart.
It was difficult for him to portray the dissolute and frivolous nature of a playboy while delivering his lines.
At the beginning, the camera angles weren’t right, and the director stopped a few times. Now that the positioning issue was resolved, the director was saying his expressions weren’t up to par.
Ah, why was acting more difficult than singing and dancing…
Yan Shu’s confusion about this world deepened a bit more.
Not far away, Wei Tingxiao, perfectly blending in with the staff, caught sight of the familiar figure and was slightly taken aback.
It’s that kid who couldn’t afford to eat hot and sour noodles that day… Tsk.
He’s still in the same industry? Which company is he from?
Wei Tingxiao only took a few glances at the filming process and knew that the guy must be filming for the first time.
The awkwardness and nervousness of the guy on set, along with being scolded by the director, left him completely at a loss.
It was common for new actors to experience this, and those who couldn’t handle the pressure would only deteriorate further after being scolded.
Yan Shu was indeed a bit nervous, but facing the current task at hand, he chose to complete it seriously.
The assistant A-Liang saw Yan Shu continuously being scolded by the director and felt uneasy.
As a newcomer himself, he could empathize with Yan Shu’s feelings at that moment. Hesitating for a while, he ran over to the director and said, “Director, sorry to interrupt, but this is Xiao Yan’s first time filming. Could you let him get into the feel of it first and shoot others first? Is that okay?”
Although A-Liang knew it wasn’t his place as a personal assistant to interfere with the director’s decisions, at this moment, he felt an inexplicable strong urge to protect the young actor.
With so many people on set watching, he couldn’t bear to see his own guy being treated unfairly.
The director, tired of scolding, coughed a few times and impatiently agreed, “Let him rest for ten minutes. Don’t say I didn’t give him time, ten minutes is quite long!”
“Thank you, Director!” A-Liang bowed excitedly.
He then grabbed a bottle of water and ran over to Yan Shu, saying, “Have some water, conserve some energy, and strive for a successful scene later.”
“Thank you, A-Liang.”
Yan Shu took the bottle of mineral water from him, took a few sips, not daring to drink too much to avoid needing the restroom later.
The nobleman’s attire he was wearing wasn’t very convenient for using the restroom.
Looking at the embroidery on his clothes, Yan Shu felt that it couldn’t compare to what true nobles wore. The patterns woven by modern machines lacked a bit of soul.
He could easily do embroidery at this level. He wondered where the costumes of this crew were sourced and tailored from. Were they short of hands over there?
If he ever left the entertainment industry in the future, he would pursue embroidery work. It would definitely be more of his forte than acting and singing and dancing.
Lost in thought, the director soon began calling him to resume filming.
The ten-minute break allowed Yan Shu to calm down, no longer feeling as flustered as before.
“Click! This one is good, keep it! Let’s try again!”
Yan Shu nodded and tried again.
“Click! Better than the previous one! Keep going!”
The director had certain expectations for his work. Although Yan Shu was a newcomer, he felt that the guy could do even better.
With such a handsome face, if his acting skills improved slightly, he would definitely be a hot commodity in the industry in the future.
Yan Shu followed the director’s instructions and continued to deliver several good takes.
Reviewing Yan Shu’s performance on the monitor, the director rubbed his chin, furrowed his brow, and muttered, “Why do I still not feel like he’s portraying an idle young master properly? Is it because of his expressions?”
“Perhaps his inherent temperament just doesn’t suit being extravagant. I don’t know where you found this kid to play the idle young master. If you gave him a refined gentleman role, he would probably excel in it.”
Suddenly, a deep male voice startled the director, who was mumbling to himself. When he looked up, he saw the face that appeared in various popular TV dramas.
He stuttered for a moment, “Wei… Wei…”
“Shh.” Wei Tingxiao stepped forward and made a hushing gesture. “I’m filming next door, just here to say hello. I’ll leave in a moment, won’t disturb you.”
The director’s expression instantly brightened. “No disturbance at all! I welcome your visit!”
This was the Movie Emperor Wei Tingxiao! Willingly visiting their poor crew made the director feel like they were shining brightly.
Afterwards, the director leaned over and whispered, “I didn’t choose this newcomer. Longfeng sent him over, and I couldn’t refuse! Ahem… Well, you should understand the ins and outs of this situation. In this industry, many directors like me have little control over casting. The best I can do is try to make the project as good as possible.”
Wei Tingxiao, of course, understood this well and didn’t delve into the director’s topic. Instead, he approached it from a different angle, saying, “You’re shooting a light comedy with a bit of absurdity. If he were to play a regular idle young master, it might come off a bit mundane. Don’t you think… the current slightly contrasting approach fits the tone of your show better?”
The director was awakened by Wei Tingxiao’s words. Yes, they were filming a silly comedy, so why worry about deviating slightly from the norm?
Yan Shu’s slightly green arrogance actually worked better than a straightforward portrayal of obscenity.
Realizing this, he looked gratefully at Wei Tingxiao. “It’s all thanks to you, Teacher Wei!”
“!!!” Wei Tingxiao couldn’t help but want to cover the mouth of the loud director.
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