Chapter 170: Filming a New Character
Chapter 170
"Good morning, Director Li."
"morning."
After having breakfast, Lin Yuan took out his lines for today's scenes to read. Li Xinjin had arrived at the set earlier than him and was talking to the assistant director. Lin Yuan didn't look closely and continued to focus on his own work.
After filming "Up to the Clouds" for some time, Lin Yuan finally found something he was satisfied with about the show—he didn't have to get up early to do his makeup.
This means Lin Yuan can sleep for an extra hour.
Originally, he was supposed to need makeup because the director thought he was too fair-skinned and wanted to darken his skin. But recently, with the hot weather, Lin Yuan has been exposed to the sun and wind on set every day without using sunscreen, so he naturally got a shade darker.
Now I don't even need to put on makeup.
Lin Yuan himself was overjoyed, but his agent, considering his idol image, couldn't be happy at all—Lin Yuan was dragged away to participate in business activities during the few holidays the crew of "Ascending to the Clouds" had.
You can't exactly endorse a skincare line for a beauty product with a dark, tanned face, can you?
Lin Yuan, however, adapted well to this.
Lin Yuan also took on an extra job for himself.
The story begins with his last musical, "Jin Ge," which was a great success, touring for many shows and even undergoing several cast changes, demonstrating a very rich talent pool.
To commemorate the 100th performance of "Jin Ge" on tour, Lin Yuan was invited to play the sorcerer once again.
The production team didn't expect Lin Yuan to agree, but to their surprise, Lin Yuan actually agreed right away.
After all, Lin Yuan's busyness is well-known in the industry. He is invited by many film crews and earns countless sums of money in no time. Given Lin Yuan's busyness and status, he can completely disregard the "Golden Spear" film crew.
Anyway, Lin Yuan is currently mainly involved in the film and television industry, and his reputation in the musical theater industry will not hinder his development.
Rehearsals for "Jin Ge" require at least two days, and Lin Yuan asked director Li Xinjin for leave, which was successfully granted.
The filming of "Up to the Clouds" is gradually getting on track.
After finishing the college entrance examination, Yang Ji was admitted to his ideal university.
Universities should be oceans of knowledge, but in those days, the library storage, facilities, and living conditions of universities could only be described as rudimentary.
The biggest difference from today is probably that there was a group of energetic and book-loving students, and teachers who were wholeheartedly dedicated to imparting all their knowledge to them.
The script used time manipulation techniques, but all the important details were emphasized.
Yang Ji remains the main character in the photos. He reads under the lamp, visits the airplane that the school painstakingly acquired, bites his pen, calculates formulas with an abacus, browses for books at bookstores outside the school, participates in choir performances, and has meals together...
When portraying the character Yang Ji, Lin Yuan always felt that he was a living, breathing person.
In fact, every character created by a screenwriter is a living, breathing person; the difference lies in whether the actor can bring them to life.
Zhang Cheng, the screenwriter of "Ascending to the Clouds," is a very skilled writer and storyteller. In addition to being a screenwriter, he has also published his own novels.
He recently lent Lin Yuan several books, including a memoir that mainly talks about the daily lives of college students in that era.
Despite the scarcity of resources, university life in those days was richer than it is now, and students had closer relationships with each other.
Because students are guaranteed a job after graduation, there is no need for backstabbing or infighting among them.
Describing from the perspective of someone who experienced it firsthand is naturally better than Lin Yuan's fabricated imagination. The screenwriter did this to help Lin Yuan get closer to the character's emotions.
After all, scripts are always dry and concise, with the text being extremely brief.
The first scene we filmed this morning was about classmates working together to solve a difficult problem.
Lin Yuan is already in place, and the actor he works with the most scenes is actor C.
That is, actor C, who only briefly appears in the story of A and B.
AB's character and Yang Ji were not in the same university, so her screen time gradually decreased.
C is different; his role runs through Yang Ji's academic and career paths, and he is one of Yang Ji's closest friends.
According to screenwriter Zhang Cheng, when he was conceiving the script for "Shang Qingyun", he considered inviting Lin Yuan to play the male lead, and some plot points were created with Lin Yuan as the male lead in mind.
Since the protagonist is Lin Yuan, Lin Yuan must have a close friend—this is an unchanging rule.
Lin Yuan: "?"
In short, from the screenwriter's perspective, this was essential.
There are very few romantic scenes in "Ascending to the Clouds". Yang Ji is focused on his career, so he needs a close friend who can support him and be supported by him.
Lin Yuan and his best friend are a perfect match.
Lin Yuan: "?"
To be honest, he himself didn't know about this.
When the production team was casting, this role was extremely competitive.
Both actor A and actor B participated in the fierce competition, but in the end, actor C's agency came out on top and broke through the encirclement amidst the fierce competition.
Everyone knows that in "Up in the Clouds", this character is equivalent to He Xun in "The Powerful Minister".
He Xun rose to prominence with his role as the emperor and has firmly established himself as a top-tier male actor in the drama industry. While his popularity hasn't been as tumultuous, He Xun has no shortage of acting opportunities.
His career path is more stable compared to that of popular actors; at least he has already established himself in the serious drama genre.
Actor C, whose real name is Liu Jingyi, is one of the most promising new generation actors in the industry. His agency is also giving him a lot of support. One of the reasons he was able to land an important role in "Shang Qingyun" is that his acting skills are slightly better than others.
Lin Yuan didn't talk to him much at first, since they had only just met and there wasn't much interaction between them. However, as their roles in the film progressed, Lin Yuan and the other man gradually became more familiar with each other.
After all, they are both main characters and see each other all the time, so it's not appropriate for them to pretend they don't know each other.
Liu Jingyi is two years younger than Lin Yuan, and their acting experience is similar. However, in terms of achievements, there is still a gap between them. At first, he didn't talk much, but after getting to know him, Lin Yuan found that he was a very talkative person.
At first, he didn't know anyone in the crew, so he had to keep it to himself.
After getting to know the other party, Lin Yuan discovered that he was a smart person.
Although he talks a lot, he would never reveal any key information about himself or his agency, only mentioning the less important things. Occasionally, he would also subtly inquire about Lin Yuan's whereabouts.
Lin Yuan would pick out a couple of things that he felt were unnecessary to avoid mentioning.
However, in his heart, he had already set up a barrier for Liu Jingyi.
The other party was too skilled—Lin Yuan knew he was destined never to be friends with him.
Lin Yuan's instincts would make him wary of him.
He didn't do it on purpose; it's just that once the other person gets close, his brain naturally goes on alert, and he becomes vigilant.
After going back and forth like this a few times, Lin Yuan felt a little tired.
He still prefers a more relaxed film crew, one where everything is open and transparent, allowing him to do whatever he wants.
Liu Jingyi didn't reveal any information about himself, but he had a lot to say about A and B, who had been causing a ruckus on set recently.
Lin Yuan understood; he could talk about anything that came up in other people's topics.
Liu Jingyi had worked with He Xun before, and the way he started a conversation with Lin Yuan was by talking about He Xun.
Lin Yuan discovered that although he was considered a fool by his agent, he could subtly discern whether other people's words were sincere.
Lin Yuan has a sincere way of dealing with sincere people, and he also has a way of dealing with those he considers insincere.
This is one of the reasons why Lin Yuan is able to survive in the entertainment industry.
"Not very familiar." — This is how He Xun defines his relationship with Liu Jingyi.
Yu Ying quickly came online: "Who have you been close to?"
"kangaroo."
"Kangaroos aren't people."
Lin Yuan: "...Could you talk bad about me behind my back?"
To say it openly and honestly, doesn't he have any dignity left?
The advantage of being the protagonist is that Lin Yuan doesn't need to please anyone, but he can only keep his distance from those who are overly enthusiastic.
That's how people are; it's just that they know people who are even more "i" than themselves, which makes them seem less "i".
In short, Lin Yuan and Liu Jingyi got along well in the "Ascending to the Clouds" crew. Filming proceeded normally, and although Liu Jingyi gradually became more enthusiastic, he didn't make things too difficult for Lin Yuan when they were acting together.
The other person always performs their part well.
That's enough.
In Lin Yuan's eyes, the other party was a qualified actor.
Today's scene depicts a problem being solved, and everyone is immersed in a joyful atmosphere, only to soon learn that the West had already solved this problem long before them, and not only solved it, but also put it into practice.
The more knowledge college students acquire, the more they realize the enormous gap they face. Whether it's the precision and accuracy of materials or simple calculation ability, reaching or even surpassing it is an incredibly difficult task.
Even with such a large gap, everyone in this classroom wore an expression of defiance.
Everything started from nothing; they were just a little slower.
The camera remained focused on Lin Yuan, slowly expanding outwards from him. His gaze fell on the teacher on the podium, and the teacher happened to look at him at that moment.
The teacher's eyes were full of encouragement.
Lin Yuan clenched his fist tightly.
The rising sun shone on Lin Yuan, making his features even more rugged. His standing angle, his indomitable gaze, and his passionate, all-consuming spirit were all captured in this shot.
Although Yang Ji was a passionate person, his passion was not reflected in shouting slogans, but in taking concrete actions.
He has a way of infecting people.
Li Xinjin generally does not provide guidance to Lin Yuan before filming, nor does he suddenly call a halt during filming.
Lin Yuan's acting skills are widely recognized.
However... in the Yang Ji he portrays at this moment, Li Xinjin seems to have truly seen a young man like him more than 40 years ago.
Those people's youth was probably what Lin Yuan looked like right now.
Lin Yuan's performance can be summarized as being grounded and realistic.
This kind of down-to-earth and hardworking young person is exactly what the script of "Ascending to the Clouds" wants to portray.
On Lin Yuan's other side was Liu Jingyi. Li Xinjin was generally satisfied with his performance. After all, "Shang Qingyun" was just a TV series, not a movie where every frame had to show artistic effects. Liu Jingyi's performance was already acceptable.
However, the difference becomes very obvious whenever the other person acts alongside Lin Yuan.
Liu Jingyi played the role of Sun Bo, while Lin Yuan became Yang Ji.
It may seem like just a few words, but the difference is enormous.
If the two are not in the same frame, the distinction won't be so obvious.
It's not that Liu Jingyi acted badly, but rather that Lin Yuan acted too well, almost too well.
The most frightening thing is that this is not an effect achieved by Lin Yuan's extraordinary performance, but just his usual level.
Li Xinjin would never allow Lin Yuan to lower his standards and cooperate with Liu Jingyi.
"What should we do?" Zhang Cheng looked at the director.
"Let's leave it at that for now, at least he won't be acting out of character," Li Xinjin said with a smile. "It's just that your 'best friend' plan is going to fail."
The term "close friend" naturally carries a hint of intention to create a romantic pairing, otherwise so many people wouldn't be vying for the role of Sun Bo.
However, the existence of a CP (couple pairing) usually only occurs when both parties are of similar skill level.
The difference in acting skills between Lin Yuan and Liu Jingyi means that their deep friendship will not be so easy to move the audience.
The audience may not be interested.
Lin Yuan is probably indifferent. Whether it's creating a romantic pairing or just casual flings, it won't affect his career. He's a top-tier star, and there's no room for doubt about that.
The situation might be different for Liu Jingyi.
The other party probably wants to quickly increase their popularity with "Ascending to the Clouds".
A male actor's youth is equally precious. He is only two years younger than Lin Yuan, but two years ago, Lin Yuan already had two hit dramas, "The Powerful Minister" and "Major Cases", and a Golden Wing Award for Best Supporting Actor.
Liu Jingyi has nothing yet.
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Author's Note: It's here!!! [doge emoji]
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