novellhall Chapter 16: This is very strange
Chapter 16: This is very strange
Hengdian.
Qin Palace.
Filming for "14 Blades" is still ongoing.
Wei Yi held a rolled-up script in his hand, tapping it lightly against his palm. He looked like a college student who had just finished class, not at all like a director.
Zhang Jiani hid behind the crowd and witnessed the whole scene clearly.
Her doubts deepened.
She was standing not far away when Wei Yi was explaining the play, and she overheard a bit of it.
To be honest, if it were her speaking, she felt she could also give a decent explanation.
He might even be more logical and professional than Wei Yi.
After all, she had formally studied acting theory.
But why...?
This is really weird!
"Next match! Ready!"
The clapperboard rang out crisply.
Zhang Jianni took a deep breath and suppressed the distracting thoughts in her mind.
It was her turn.
She carried a tray, head down, and slowly walked into the "palace" according to the designated route.
The scene is simple: a maidservant brings tea to a prince who is in a bad mood and says, "Your Highness, have some tea and rest."
Then the prince refused.
Then the maid withdrew.
Zhang Jianni walked up to the emblem, just about to speak.
"etc."
A clear, crisp voice rang out.
Zhang Jianni's heart tightened, and she looked up.
Wei Yi was standing next to the monitor, his gaze fixed on her.
"Director Wei?" Zhang Jiani asked nervously.
Wei Yi walked over and looked her up and down.
"Are you from Beijing Film Academy?" Wei Yi asked.
"Yes, Zhang Jiani, from the 03 vocational college class." Zhang Jiani answered quickly, her attitude respectful.
Wei Yi nodded, without saying much, and pointed to the tray in her hands: "You're holding that tray very steadily."
"Huh?" Zhang Jiani was taken aback.
"You're playing a young maid who's just entered the palace. You're afraid when you see the prince, who's of noble birth, in a bad mood."
Wei Yi spoke calmly, as if he were saying the weather was nice today, "Don't let your hands shake, but make sure the tray isn't level. Don't let your eyes wander, keep your eyes fixed on the ground, and don't let your voice tremble. Hold your breath."
Just these few sentences.
Gone.
Zhang Jiani blinked.
Is this over?
This is way too easy!
It's even a little...watery?
She couldn't help but think to herself: Isn't this just a basic, prescribed scenario? I know I should be scared, do I really need to be told this out of the box?
No wonder Li Ya was puzzled and unconvinced.
That's it?
Zhang Jianni is now somewhat dismissive of Wei Yi.
Although that's what she thought to herself, she still replied crisply, "Okay, Director Wei, I understand."
Wei Yi waved his hand: "Come on, try one."
Zhang Jiani adjusted her breathing and changed her position.
Following Wei Yi's instructions, she loosened her grip slightly, causing the tray to tilt subtly.
When she reached the emblem, she didn't dare to look up, staring at the tips of her shoes.
"Your Highness, please have some tea and rest."
The voice was very low, with a hint of cautious probing.
After saying that, she took two steps back and turned to leave.
"Card!"
Wei Yi called for a stop.
Zhang Jianni felt a little uneasy, unsure of how well she had acted.
She secretly glanced at Zhang Li behind the monitor.
Director Zhang was staring intently at the monitor screen, his eyes gleaming, muttering to himself, "Interesting, interesting..."
"Passed," Wei Yi's voice came through. "Next."
Zhang Jianni breathed a sigh of relief and stepped aside.
She felt that her performance in the scene just now was just average, a little better than usual, but definitely not amazing.
That's it?
And judging from Director Zhang's expression, he seems quite satisfied?
Completely baffled, she had no choice but to retreat to a corner to wait her turn.
At that moment, the lighting technician leaned over and whispered to his assistant, "See? Don't you think there's a problem?"
"Is there a problem? What's wrong? You acted really well." The assistant asked, puzzled.
"You don't understand."
The lighting technician, a seasoned veteran, squinted and savored the moment, "It's precisely when the acting is quite good that there's a problem. That last moment, even though it only lasted a few seconds, that sense of 'fear' was somewhat real. It wasn't acted fear; it was genuine fear. Especially the tilt of that tray—it made you hold your breath, afraid the tea would spill."
"What kind of question is that?"
"The problem is that they acted too well! If one person acts well, it might just be that they had a great performance that day. If two people act well, it could just be that both of them performed well."
"But everyone acted so well, isn't that a problem?"
"Okay, that makes some sense."
Zhang Jiani listened in stunned silence.
really?
Why didn't she think she acted that well?
She just did what Wei Yi told her to do.
For the next half day, Zhang Jiani watched from the sidelines.
The more she looked at it, the more eerie it seemed.
Wei Yi's explanations of plays don't actually involve any profound or mysterious theories.
He almost never uses technical terms like "subtext," "mental image," or "top mission."
He talks about plays as if he's having a casual chat.
"At this moment, you're thinking that this meal might be your last, so you'd better eat quickly."
"Don't cry now. It's more heartbreaking to see tears welling up in your eyes than to see them fall."
"If you smile right now, the happier you smile, the more uncomfortable the audience will feel watching."
It's all in plain language.
Sometimes, Zhang Jianni even felt that Wei Yi's explanations were not as detailed as their acting class assignments.
The strange thing is that any actor who has been mentored by Wei Yi seems to transform completely the moment filming begins.
The previously dull extras suddenly became energetic and spirited.
The supporting characters, who were initially lacking in emotional depth, suddenly unleashed an astonishingly infectious energy.
Actors of Ma Yili's caliber deliver performances with even more depth and nuance under Wei Yi's guidance.
Even some minor extras, or even corpses lying on the ground.
His arrangements and language were also very orderly.
The feeling was as if Wei Yi held a bunch of invisible threads in his hand, and with a gentle pull, the actors were possessed by the characters in the play.
"Is this some kind of mystical art?"
Zhang Jianni stood in the corner, watching Wei Yi, who was being fawned over by everyone not far away.
She suddenly remembered what her senior brother Li Ya had said earlier.
"I even suspect that the guy might have used a spell on the actor."
Looking at it now, it does seem quite similar.
Otherwise, how can we explain this completely illogical phenomenon?
The explanation was so simple, even crude.
Why is the effect so good?
Is this the legendary "simplicity is the ultimate sophistication"?
Zhang Jiani didn't understand.
She really doesn't understand.
Actually, it's not just her who doesn't understand.
Director Zhang, who was in charge of all this, is now somewhat bewildered.
He originally did it for the sake of the Beijing Film Academy and his friends.
It was Wei Yi's exceptional talent in photography that sparked the idea of bringing Wei Yi under my wing and nurturing him.
After training him for about ten days, I felt that the kid had a good foundation, and there happened to be a relatively simple scene to film today.
He just wanted to let this kid try his hand at it.
This is a test.
That's when the problem came up.
This kid...
He seems to have talent in more than just photography.