Chapter 657 Visiting the Set
Liu Teli ultimately declined the role in the film "Home Alone".
Although it was regrettable, Lu Yanhe was not too surprised.
The idea of casting Liu Teli came about quite suddenly. In fact, it would have been a pleasant surprise if an actor like Liu Teli had agreed to star in "Home Alone."
Lu Yanhe told Chen Yin and the others about Liu Teli's decision.
Chen Yin posted a "sighing" emoji.
But less than a second later, Chen Yin said: What if we invite Teacher Jiang Jun to perform?
Lu Yanhe was taken aback.
Jiang Jun?
Why didn't we consider Professor Jiang Jun before?
Whether it's "The Seventeen Floors," "The Squid Game," or Xing Butou in "My Own Swordsman," Jiang Jun's roles are always positive, well-rounded, and possess a certain mature masculine charm.
Therefore, casting him in "Home Alone" was something Lu Yanhe had never even considered before.
This is something that exists in Lu Yanhe's blind spot.
However, Chen Yin's suggestion made Lu Yanhe think that it might not be a bad idea.
If he were to play the role in "Home Alone," it would be a similar surprise to Liu Teli playing the role, representing a significant image subversion for the audience.
But the question remains: will Jiang Jun actually perform?
He believed that if Lu Yanhe personally invited him, Jiang Jun would definitely agree.
But what about Jiang Jun's inner thoughts?
Lu Yanhe had no idea what Jiang Jun would think.
Liu Teli is an actor who demands a lot of himself, and so does Jiang Jun.
It's not easy for anyone to get to where they are today.
Unless absolutely necessary, Lu Yanhe doesn't want to use personal connections to force someone to film a movie they don't want to film.
Lu Yanhe thought for a moment and said to Chen Yin: "Send the script to Teacher Jiang Jun and see his opinion. Don't mention me."
Chen Yin: Understood.
Chen Yin clearly understood the meaning behind Lu Yanhe's last three words.
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The script that Jiang Jun received did not have Lu Yanhe's name on it.
In addition, not much information about the script for "Home Alone" had been leaked, so Jiang Jun was unaware that the script was written by Lu Yanhe.
He actually quite liked the script after reading it because it was very interesting and had a fairytale-like humor.
However, the characters of these two bumbling thieves were too stereotypical, and he felt they offered no challenge.
Jiang Jun asked Chen Yin, "Do you have any other actors in mind for this role?"
Chen Yin understood what Lu Yanhe meant, so he said, "I'm looking at other actors, but since you've worked with Linghe a lot, I'll give you the script to take a look at first."
Jiang Jun said, "Actually, I quite like this script, but the character of this bumbling thief is the same from beginning to end. It's basically just a performance with no personality. I'm worried that the audience might not accept my portrayal of this character."
When Chen Yin heard Jiang Jun say this, he roughly understood what he meant.
Chen Yin smiled helplessly to himself.
Indeed, judging solely by the script, although it is good—and everyone can see that—the main character is a child, and the two bumbling thieves are so distinctive, like the kind of consistent villains you only see in fairy tales. For actors like Liu Teli and Jiang Jun, who are already famous and have aspirations for acting, it's not very appealing.
Chen Yin also relayed Jiang Jun's feedback to Lu Yanhe.
Lu Yanhe: "Sure enough, this script isn't actually that appealing."
“The main issue is the subject matter.” Chen Yin didn’t want Lu Yanhe to think his script wasn’t that good because of this. “They are both good actors and they can read scripts. Their feedback is that the script is good, but they also know that the core of this movie is not these two bumbling thieves, but the child. Therefore, the movie’s appeal will inevitably be much smaller.”
"Yes, that's right." Lu Yanhe nodded. "If there's really no other way, then I'll just have to film it myself."
Chen Yin: "If you're willing to come and film, that's the best option."
“Believe me, if a young person my age were to make this film, the age gap between the old and the young would be much smaller,” Lu Yanhe said. “The clash between a precocious child and an older but foolish person requires that age difference.”
Chen Yin: "If all else fails, then we can only grit our teeth and use less famous actors, take a gamble, and bet that this movie can still do well at the box office even without stars."
Lu Yanhe: "The best solution is to find an actor like Liu Teli or Jiang Jun who can act and carry the box office. The second best solution is to change the character and have me and another person act in it. The worst solution is to give up the star-studded lineup and the big release date, and go for the route of a low-budget dark horse."
Chen Yin: "We need to finalize this as soon as possible; filming will begin next January."
"Let's try to find one more time," Lu Yanhe said. "The latest deadline is December. If we still can't find one by December, then I'll play the role."
Chen Yin: "Okay."
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People working in the film and television industry all share a common feeling: of all the difficulties, none are as difficult as those related to acting.
Finding the right actors is a huge challenge from the start. The better the actors, the harder they are to hire. Lu Yanhe is one of the hardest actors to hire, as he himself is in that group.
Every year, a large number of scripts are sent to him, Chen Ziyan, and even directly to Chen Siqi.
Looking back, there are very few domestic films he acted in that have nothing to do with himself or Linghe.
He has only starred in three films: Late Spring, The Road to Glory, and Burning Fire.
In terms of the sheer number of roles he takes on, the proportion is actually very small. Because he is well aware that there are too many factors he needs to consider when making decisions as an actor, Lu Yanhe was actually quite accepting of Liu Teli and Jiang Jun's decision to decline the role in "Home Alone".
However, after Jiang Jun learned that the script was written by Lu Yanhe, he immediately contacted Chen Yin and told him that he would make time for him if needed.
Chen Yinlai asked Lu Yanhe how to reply to Jiang Jun.
Lu Yanhe said, "Forget it, Teacher Jiang Jun has already refused before, which means he doesn't really want to act."
After Chen Yin told Jiang Jun, Jiang Jun then called Lu Yanhe.
Lu Yanhe explained why he wrote the script and his thoughts on the two bumbling thieves.
“It’s not a role that absolutely has to be played by any one actor. If different actors play the role, the role will be adjusted. But it’s definitely better if the actor has the passion to perform.” Lu Yanhe said, “In my opinion, this movie is one that the actors can truly enjoy performing in order to produce a good performance.”
Jiang Jun: "This script is really good. It's one thing after another, turning all sorts of pranks into ways to deal with bumbling thieves. It reminded me of when I was a kid, and I often had similar ideas."
Lu Yanhe said, "However, Mr. Jiang, if you have time later, I would still like to ask you to make a cameo appearance in one or two scenes. We still want to release this movie in a more popular time slot, so we need some star power."
Jiang Jun immediately agreed.
"no problem."
"Home Alone" is a family-friendly movie that can be released in any time slot, but the best time slot is the Chinese New Year.
It's just that it's too difficult to get into the Spring Festival film season; they might not be able to get a ticket.
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At the end of October, Yan Liang finished filming "Chinese Paladin" and almost seamlessly joined the cast of "Dragon Inn".
As a result, because he got quite tanned while filming "Chinese Paladin," the makeup artist started applying makeup to him as soon as he joined the crew. In the end, the resulting look really did make him look like a "eunuch" at first glance.
Lu Yanhe went to visit Yan Liang at get off work and couldn't help but laugh when he saw Yan Liang's appearance.
In fact, Yan Liang himself had a rather heroic appearance, but after his eyebrows were painted and his skin was whitened, he did look a bit more effeminate.
At first glance, he bears a striking resemblance to the version of Donnie Yen that Lu Yanhe watched.
Liu Bige is truly amazing.
He built a real-life replica of the Dragon Inn in the desert and filmed the movie on location.
As soon as Lu Yanhe entered, he couldn't help but take many photos.
"This scenery is really well done."
Liu Bige: "It cost a lot of money, but Longyan was very generous this time."
“You’ve made so much money with ‘Late Spring’ and ‘Even Faking Death Is Not Enough.’ If they’re not generous to you, they’re not worthy of being a top film company in the industry,” Lu Yanhe said. “Moreover, this film, in terms of both its subject matter and cast, is aiming for a box office of over 500 million.”
"Hmm." Liu Bige nodded. "But filming martial arts movies is really tough. Why don't you come and help me film for a few days so I can get some sleep?"
"Please, leave me alone. I finally get a break, and I came to visit the set. You want me to do your work? Have some decency," Lu Yanhe said disdainfully. "Do you guys have any pressure to meet deadlines?"
"No, not at all. There's still plenty of time for filming," Liu Bige said. "When we were finalizing the actors' schedules, we mentioned that the filming time for this movie might not be short."
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The cast of "Dragon Inn" is arguably the strongest in Chinese-language cinema.
Shang Yongzhou plays Zhou Huai'an, Chen Bige plays Qiu Moyan, Liu Zi plays Jin Xiangyu, Zhou Yuning, the male lead of "Nine Yin", plays Cao Shaoqin, Yan Liang plays Lu Xiaochuan, and a group of other talented actors play other roles...
With director Liu Bige and screenwriter Lu Yanhe, this film is already considered by Longyan Film Industry to be one of the top film projects for next year.
This film is definitely going to be submitted to a film festival.
Although they may not make it into the main competition.
Of all the actors, Liu Zi suffered the most.
Tong Xiangyu, who shone brightly in "My Own Swordsman" and became an overnight sensation, was spotted by Liu Bige and invited to play Jin Xiangyu.
Not only did she lose over ten pounds, but she also had to learn martial arts moves to cultivate the image of a mature, charming, and feisty female boss.
When Lu Yanhe saw her this time, he felt that she had been drained of all her energy. If she was a somewhat womanly proprietress in "My Own Swordsman" before, she now had much less of that womanly air and more of the cunning and maturity of the martial arts world. Her demeanor always gave people a sense of ease and composure.
Lu Yanhe especially hopes that "Dragon Inn" can be well-made.
This is one of the most classic martial arts films in his mind. Even though it has not won any major awards, it has left an indelible mark on his memory.
Liu Bige's handling of "Dragon Inn" should result in a more textured visual experience.
He said, "The story itself is already very exciting. I don't want to use long takes. In this movie, I hope that every scene is fast-paced, with a sense of rhythm and action, and less of the long takes and slow motion of 'Late Spring'."
Lu Yanhe understood what Liu Bige meant.
"Actually, this film itself is not suitable for long takes. There are many characters in the same scene and a lot of dialogue. Using long takes cannot show so many perspectives and different reactions of the characters."
Lu Yanhe actually really likes the martial arts genre because in this genre, everyone's personality traits and emotional state can be magnified to the extreme without being perceived as unrealistic by the audience.
In everyone's mind, the martial arts world is a place of chivalry and vengeance, and the people in the martial arts world each have their own distinct characteristics.
Lu Yanhe didn't know how the movie "Dragon Inn" would be viewed in Europe and America, but he was very clear that as long as it was properly promoted and marketed in the Asian market, it would definitely do well at the box office.
The premise is that it's well-shot.
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After Yan Liang joined the crew, he trained with an action director every day.
But actually, he didn't have many action scenes in this movie.
But Yan Liang seemed to enjoy learning it very much.
He has really enjoyed filming action scenes ever since he was filming "Chinese Paladin".
Because it's cool, and it's also something he's good at.
Zhou Yuning, the actor who rose to fame with "Nine Yin Manual," also took good care of Yan Liang, often exchanging moves with him.
These weren't tricks they used in the movie; they were just something they did for fun.
Lu Yanhe and Zhou Yuning had a chance to chat after dinner one evening.
After Zhou Yuning achieved great success with "Nine Yin" and won Best Actor, he was still willing to play a villain in this movie. This is because the movie has a high production standard and he himself has high aspirations.
Zhou Yuning said, "I didn't expect to take on another martial arts film so soon, because there's going to be a sequel to 'Nine Yin,' and I didn't want to make another martial arts film to compete with it. However, I really like this script. If 'Nine Yin' is a large martial arts world, then 'Dragon Inn' is a small one. What I like most is that all sorts of people gather in one place, each with their own ulterior motives, and then a great battle is about to break out. I like this aspect of the script. From beginning to end, the movie takes place in this inn. I never leave. I've never seen this kind of close-quarters combat in another martial arts film script before."
Lu Yanhe smiled and said, "Thank you for being willing to act in this role."
Zhou Yuning: "Can you make it up to me by giving me a positive male lead role later?"
He seemed to be joking and teasing, but there was actually a bit of sincerity in his words.
(End of this chapter)
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