Chapter 50 Question [VIP]

Chapter Summary: A Very Unexpected Answer

Director Xu Kuan was somewhat taken aback when he saw Mu Zhi walk in after changing into her costume.

However, no comments were made regarding Mu Zhi's outfit.

"This is the script for the audition."

Mu Zhi walked over and took a piece of paper from the director.

The contents written on the paper: Zhou Can, who has returned to the age of 17, attends her high school reunion 10 years later. She reunites with Qin Heng, her husband from her previous life, who is now just her first love and high school classmate. The two meet again after 7 years apart.

The dialogue consists of only one line: "Long time no see."

But this line carries the female lead's feelings for the male lead across two lifetimes.

It is both heavy and light.

“You have a total of 10 minutes, including the time for rehearsing.”

After Xu Kuan finished speaking to Mu Zhi, he turned to Song Yuanliang and gestured for him to come forward and act with Mu Zhi.

"Hello."

"Hello, Teacher Song."

Before the second audition, agent Ji Binghe gave Mu Zhi a briefing on Song Yuanliang's information.

23 years old, a child star, a professionally trained actor, has two works aired so far: the male lead in a short online drama and the third male lead in a police drama.

An artist under 1MDB Media, whose works have made a small splash, and who is considered a relatively unknown artist.

The scene between Mu Zhi and Song Yuanliang is very simple.

She stood still as Song Yuanliang walked over step by step. When he reached her, he greeted her.

She responded, and the two shook hands.

it's over.

Perhaps in Song Yuanliang's view, this scene was not difficult and was too simple.

After the two rehearsed their lines twice, Song Yuanliang said, "That's about it. The main thing is that you need to grasp the character's emotions and try to find the feeling of the character more."

His eyes revealed a hint of impatience and disdain.

Mu Zhi saw through it but didn't say anything. Even without this co-star, she could still perform the scene well even if she was acting with thin air.

We won't force people to do things they don't want to do.

After acting opposite Song Yuanliang for two minutes, he looked down at the "exam questions" on the paper and thought for two minutes.

I went to the restroom during the remaining 6 minutes.

It took exactly 10 minutes to get back.

The second audition is about to begin, and the two actors have taken their positions.

The performance began with the director's command, "Action!"

Xu Kuan stared at the camera screen and noticed that Mu Zhi got into character in a second.

As Mu Zhi watched Song Yuanliang walk towards her, their eyes met briefly, and a mix of emotions surged within her, causing her eyes to redden.

"Zhou Can, it's been seven years since we last met."

A sense of profound regret lingered in their hearts.

But for Zhou Can, today's meeting was like meeting strangers, a choice she made to be reborn. Seeing the man she once loved as much as her life, to the point of losing herself, reminded her of her dark and hopeless life in her previous life.

Now, she lives a free and happy life.

Let the past fade away like a wisp of smoke.

She is determined to move forward.

After a flurry of thoughts, Zhou Can smiled, extended his hand, and softly greeted, "Qin Heng, long time no see."

"Card."

"Thank you both for your performance."

After the audition, Song Yuanliang sat back down in his seat.

Director Xu Kuan looked at Mu Zhi and asked her a question.

"If you were to play 'Zhou Can,' to what extent would you put in the effort to ensure the character's completeness and brilliance?"

A moment of silence.

Mu Zhi answered frankly, "If I pass the audition, I'd like to see the script first."

It means reading the script before making a final decision on whether or not to take the role.

Everyone present changed their expressions upon hearing this.

Director Xu Kuan was stunned.

Before Mu Zhi, two other auditioning artists were also asked this question by him.

The answers were all similar, showing "full sincerity," such as guaranteeing to set aside one or two months to study the character, not going out to participate in activities during filming to focus on playing the role well, and hinting that the team would put in a lot of effort to cooperate with the production company in marketing and promotion.

Unexpectedly, Mu Zhi said she might not accept the role and would need to see the script.

A very unexpected and interesting answer.

Ji Binghe: ...You're really bold.

But Mu Zhi spoke these words with a calm expression, without a trace of arrogance, giving the impression that:

That's how she considered it; the script was very important to her.

As a seasoned actress with several years of experience, Mu Zhi believes that the most important factors in making a film are the director and the script. The director of "Back to 17" is a newcomer with an unknown level of directing ability, so the script naturally becomes the most important element.

She only heard a story outline and came to learn more out of interest. But without seeing the script, knowing nothing about the story or the characters, she couldn't possibly talk about "how I can play the role well."

Moreover: "As a new actor, once I take on a role, whether it's studying the character and doing a series of preparations before filming or during the filming process, I have the responsibility and obligation to do my best to play the role well."

However, a successful production requires the concerted efforts of the entire crew; it's not something that can be done by the actors alone.

Telling a good story is an important responsibility of a director.

After hearing this, the director Xu Kuan, who was mentioned, smiled and touched his nose: "What you said makes perfect sense."

She stood up and walked over to Mu Zhi and Ji Binghe, explaining the audition results: "After all the actors have finished their auditions, the production team needs to hold a meeting to discuss them. We will call you tomorrow to inform you of the audition results."

Mu Zhi shook hands with him to express her gratitude for coming to audition.

Mu Zhi and her agent Ji Binghe walked out of the audition room.

Minmin, who was waiting anxiously outside, quickly stepped forward and asked with concern, "Sister Zhizhi, how did the audition go?"

Ji Binghe also asked, "Are you confident?"

Mu Zhi: "Yes, there is, but let's wait for good news."

After the two auditions, although the director didn't show it outwardly, Mu Zhi could still sense from the way he looked at her and from some subtle expressions that he was satisfied with her audition performance.

However, judging from the expressions of some of the "judges," it seems they already have someone in mind for the lead actress.

The outcome of the audition depends on how much influence the director has.

Inside the audition room, a "voting" is underway.

Xu Kuan: "All the artists who auditioned have finished their performances."

"Everyone, please share your opinions. Which actor do you think has good acting skills and is suitable to play 'Zhou Can'?"

The screenwriter was called upon first to answer.

"I voted for Mu Zhi."

"She is Zhou Can at 17, and also Zhou Can at 27."

They gave Muzhi high recognition.

Producer: "Du Xixi".

"Yuanliang, what about you? You've acted with every female actress who auditioned."

Song Yuanliang exchanged a glance with the producer and replied, "I think Du Qianqian is more suitable. She is a mature actress with rich filming experience. We can quickly establish chemistry as a pair."

The last one to audition, Mu Zhi... although she had a good image and performed well on set, she was, after all, a newcomer.

On the surface, it sounds plausible.

Actually, Song Yuanliang had his own ulterior motives in voting for Du Qianqian.

When he landed the lead role in "Back to 17", director Xu Kuan made a special explanation regarding the billing order. The film is told from the perspective of the female lead, and it tells the story of Zhou Can's growth after being reborn, so she has a lot of screen time.

It's been clearly stated that whoever plays the female lead in this drama will be the top star.

He admitted that he was amazed by the acting skills of Mu Zhi, a newcomer.

But in this industry, is good acting really that important? Not at all.

As long as acting skills are good enough, star power, popularity, and fame can take precedence over acting skills.

He didn't want to be overshadowed by a newcomer and looked forward to working with Du Qianqian, who was a third-tier celebrity.

After listening, Xu Kuan also cast his vote.

"I voted for Mu Zhi."

That means it was a tie, 2 votes to 2 votes.

Xu Kuan said he needed to speak with the producer privately, and the editor and Song Yuanliang got up and left.

Only the director and producer remained in the audition room.

Before the producer could speak, Xu Kuan interrupted, "Brother Wang, you haven't forgotten the purpose of this audition, have you? The audition performances of these artists have all been recorded by the cameras. Why don't you replay them and see whose performance was better?"

"We went through all this trouble to set up this audition stage, aren't we just wasting our time?"

Sensing the displeasure in Xu Kuan's words, the producer looked somewhat embarrassed, helpless, and at a loss for what to do with director Xu Kuan.

The reason for this audition was that Xu Kuan was not satisfied with directly casting Du Qianqian as "Zhou Can".

"Hold an audition. If Du Qianqian's acting skills stand out among the auditioning actors, or if her acting skills are about the same as the others, then we'll cast her."

Producer Wang De looked at the audition list and thought Du Qianqian was a shoo-in.

Unexpectedly, Mu Zhi appeared out of nowhere.

As a businessman, he is concerned with making money and profits.

Between Du Qianqian and Mu Zhi, he certainly favored the former more, and the investors were definitely more confident in Du Qianqian playing the female lead.

So he realized that Xu Kuan favored Mu Zhi, and he voted for Du Qianqian during the voting process.

Producer Wang still tried to persuade Xu Kuan: "Judging from today's audition performance, Mu Zhi is excellent, and Du Qianqian's performance is also quite commendable."

"Du Xixi is playing the role; she's one of the new 'Four Little Actresses,' so she'll definitely have some appeal when the movie is released. This is your first film; if the story is well-told and the box office is good, then you, as a new director, can finally make your mark."

Xu Kuan smiled dismissively and said, "Du Qianqian and Mu Zhi are both newcomers to the film industry."

Du Xixi's acting skills are not very good, and her contribution to the film is like Schrödinger's cat.

Mu Zhi is currently an artist under Ji Binghe's management.

"The character Zhou Can is the soul of the story of 'Back to 17'. My evaluation of the auditioning actors today is the same as that of Mu Zhi, whether it is 17-year-old or 27-year-old Zhou Can."

The majority of the storyline to be filmed involves Zhou Can returning to his 17-year-old self, striving to get his life back on track, studying hard to take the college entrance examination, and getting into his ideal university...

He didn't mean any harm to the actresses, but when a female artist in her twenties plays a 17-year-old girl, wearing a fake short haircut to look younger, her eyes don't naturally exude maturity, but rather a sense of naivety, deliberately creating an atmosphere of "I am very girlish" in her performance.

Du Xixi doesn't understand, and is completely unsuitable for, this role.

In fact, actors are just one part of a movie.

Guangying Media's youth film series already has a very mature publicity and operation plan.

Upon hearing this, Producer Wang knew that Xu Kuan had already made up his mind and there was no going back.

New directors not only need to have talent to be recognized, but they also need someone to support them.

That's why he was able to land such a great project for his very first film.

Not everyone has this opportunity.

It's no wonder that Xu Kuan was chosen to direct the final installment of the Guangying Media Youth Series.

"Okay, you're the director, you decide on the actors."

Seeing that the producer had compromised, Xu Kuan pushed up his glasses and a pleased smile appeared on his lips.

"Thanks, Brother Wang."

[Author's Note]

Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 23:26:43 on June 3, 2022 and 23:22:00 on June 4, 2022!

Thank you to the little angel who watered the nutrient solution: 59547282 for 5 bottles;

Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!