34 Chapter 34
◎Poke◎
Before the audition, Zhang Li practiced his acting skills again.
This time, the twin female supporting roles are more challenging than the role of Concubine Li in "Legend of Li Wan".
The name of the script is "The Battle of All Things", which is an ancient martial arts TV series adapted from a famous novel.
In addition to the most basic literary scenes that are difficult to play, twins also need to shoot a lot of martial arts scenes.
Naturally, if the actresses auditioning have similar acting skills, the audition team would definitely prefer to use those who are good at fighting scenes.
Fortunately, the original body also cherishes the job of an actor. In order to better develop in the entertainment industry, she has been working very hard to practice various skills since college, from civil and martial arts to horse riding, archery, dancing and cooking. It is not at the professional level, but it is more than enough.
Zhang Li inherited the original body's memory and quickly picked up the martial arts skills again.
To better embody her character, she reread the novel and reviewed her past life memories, finding similar roles to reference. Under the company's specially hired martial arts instructor, Zhang Li meticulously practiced the weapons described in the novel and agreed upon by the twins before filming began.
"Fighting scenes are different from regular martial arts. Martial arts emphasize strength and speed, and both strength and speed are essential. But fighting scenes are more about art. You don't have to be absolutely superb. As long as you add techniques at certain points, like this... this... and then the camera captures it, it's perfect..."
Under the guidance of the martial arts instructor, Zhang Li, with his intelligence and hard work, quickly grasped the essence, attracting admiring glances from the other party.
After training for a period of time, the audition for "The Battle of Vientiane" finally arrived.
This audition was held in a theater. Unlike the audition team for "Legend of Li Wan", they did not specify the roles and did not decide on the twins' weapons.
So this audition was more difficult and more unpredictable than that one.
According to the novel, Zhang Li knew that the number of people auditioning was small, but all of them were very talented. The fact that the female lead successfully stood out from the crowd was largely due to her choice of weapon and the right role.
In addition, the crew's final requirements are - beautiful enough, suitable enough for ancient costume styling, slim enough, and able to perform fighting scenes well.
Don't think these requirements are shackles on actors, or that the aesthetic of thin, fair, and beautiful exacerbates actresses' anxiety, as some people online suggest. We should diversify our aesthetic standards. In fact, the vast majority of people prefer to see thin, beautiful actresses. As long as they are healthy, it doesn't matter if the actress is a little thin.
For this audition, Zhang Li even controlled her waistline.
Soon, Zhang Li, accompanied by Cheng Yu, arrived at the audition location at the appointed time.
This time, unlike last time, I encountered opponents coming from behind as soon as I entered the theater. When I arrived, the theater entrance was empty.
It was not until Zhang Li followed the staff's instructions and arrived at a huge drama hall that he discovered that the venue was brightly lit and the audition team was already auditioning other roles.
"Excuse me, are all the actors who auditioned for the roles of twins here?" Cheng Yu specifically asked the staff.
"There are three of them now. They've already gone backstage to change their outfits. You're the third from the last."
"Thank you." Zhang Li and Cheng Yu both thanked him, and then walked to the back of the stage under the guidance of the other party.
Zhang Li is the third from the last, which means there are two more people behind him.
This audition is not open to the public. The audition party only gives specific places, and the others are freely allocated by the invited companies or studios to give the opportunities to suitable actors.
Zhang Li's audition opportunity this time did not originally belong to Lingman, but was obtained through the exchange of resources between Wangshi Studio and other entertainment companies.
When Zhang Li arrived backstage, he found that there were several rows of seats in the huge dressing room, and it was bustling with people, all doing their work.
Because it takes a long time to style ancient costumes, there are some other female supporting roles that appear before the twins.
Some of them are almost dressed up, while others are still putting on makeup, braiding their hair, etc.
In order to audition, many actresses with short hair have to get hair extensions first.
Because there were so many people, Zhang Li and Cheng Yu couldn't tell the actresses around them apart. The other party was also focused on themselves and didn't pay much attention to the newcomers.
Zhang Li was quickly assigned a dedicated seat and stylist.
These stylists often work with the crew and are experienced in their techniques. They know what kind of style is more suitable for what kind of actor.
If the other party is deliberately making trouble for you and designs something that is not suitable for you, unless you have the skills to modify it yourself, you can only accept it.
So basically, actors will not offend these stylists, and actors of lower status have to try their best to please them.
These unspoken rules are disgusting, but there is nothing you can do about it in order to compete for roles. Haven’t you seen that some actors who clearly passed the audition were replaced by others with connections?
Although Cheng Yu had managed very famous artists in the past, she was also familiar with these rules before she became famous.
So she prepared things early and slipped the gift into the stylist's hands when no one was paying attention.
When the other party opened it and took a look, his eyes lit up and his attitude towards Cheng Yu and Zhang Li suddenly became much more enthusiastic.
Then she called over a makeup artist with a very cold temperament and whispered a few words to her.
The makeup artist seemed very silent, and just said "hmm" after the other party finished speaking.
Then she came to Zhang Li's seat carrying her makeup box.
Only after seeing Zhang Li's appearance did the other party appear stunned for a moment, but she didn't say much. She nodded to Zhang Li silently and began to put on makeup.
The opponent's technique seemed rather immature. Not only Zhang Li noticed it, but even Cheng Yu gradually became aware of it.
She frowned and blamed the stylist in her heart. She thought that the stylist had obviously accepted bribes, so why did he choose such a makeup artist for them?
Before Cheng Yu tried to discuss with the stylist, Zhang Li suddenly pressed her arm.
Cheng Yu understood what was going on and immediately calmed down.
Sure enough, as the makeup was applied bit by bit, the makeup artist's talent was finally fully revealed.
Zhang Li's already extremely beautiful face became even more stunningly beautiful with no blind spots after the other party's careful modification.
Cheng Yu seemed to have discovered some treasure, and the way he looked at the girl was different.
After the makeup was done, the other person only said, "Come back to me after the performance."
Then she took her makeup case and left.
She called the stylist over, and after seeing Zhang Li's makeup, she praised her enthusiastically, "Ms. Zhang is so beautiful! Any hairstyle would be the icing on the cake!"
An actress who had just finished her styling heard this and looked in Zhang Li's direction. When she saw her face, she was shocked.
After calming down, the other party started to ask questions.
"Are you Zhang Li? I feel like you're even more beautiful in person than in the camera!"
"Thank you." Zhang Li smiled.
"By the way, which role are you auditioning for?"
"twin."
As soon as Zhang Li said this, he felt the other party breathe a sigh of relief.
"So this is the role. I auditioned for female number four, the little pepper."
"Your image is perfect for this role."
After hearing what Zhang Li said, the other party became obviously happy.
"Really? This is my first time trying out this type of role..."
She looked like she really wanted to chat with Zhang Li for a while, but a staff member came over and asked her to prepare.
So, the other party said hello to Zhang Li and left.
But as soon as she left, a familiar staff member brought someone over again.
"Miss Liu, please sit here."
As soon as these words were spoken, Cheng Yu, who had been lowering his head to reply to messages on his phone, sensitively raised his head.
Zhang Li also saw the person coming from the makeup mirror.
Sure enough, it was Liu Qingran.
Zhang Li looked into the other person's eyes through the mirror, and time seemed to stand still.
Liu Qingran's agent Fang Se also noticed it and looked at Zhang Li with caution, but when she saw this breathtakingly beautiful face, her expression froze.
She didn't know if it was her illusion, but she always felt that Zhang Li was becoming more and more beautiful, but also more and more dangerous, and posed a greater threat to her own artists.
Just as she was daydreaming, a stylist nearby recognized Liu Qingran and came up to her to show her courtesy.
"Is that Teacher Qingran?! Do you need a stylist? My skills are pretty good..."
Fang Se reacted and immediately declined: "Sorry, we brought our stylist and makeup, no need to thank us."
The casual words made the stylist who wanted to recommend himself feel a little embarrassed.
Fortunately, Zhang Li and Cheng Yu next to her didn't seem to notice, which eased her embarrassment a little.
She nodded, exchanged a glance with Zhang Li's stylist, and walked away.
But what Fang Se said was not a lie. As the daughter of the Liu family, Liu Qingran signed with the best entertainment company when she first entered the entertainment industry, and was assigned the best and most complete team.
Her team has its own stylist and makeup artist, so of course she doesn't need anyone else to do it.
What's more, although Zhang Li is a real daughter, she is not recognized by the Liu family.
Thinking of this, Fang Se looked at Zhang Li and Cheng Yu, and suddenly felt that Zhang Li's threat was just that.
So she turned around and deliberately gave loud instructions to the team following behind her.
"Xiao He, put Qingran's two specially customized costumes in order, and An An and Xiao Rong will do Qingran's makeup and styling..."
Under her arrangement, Liu Qingran's team began to work in an orderly manner.
Zhang Li withdrew her gaze, but Liu Qingran kept observing her through the makeup mirror for some unknown reason.
Although Zhang Li's stylist also noticed something was wrong, he obviously valued his job more than anything else. He said something to Zhang Li and started combing her hair.
"Ms. Zhang, you'll be trying out two roles later, and there's not much time in between. I can only design a simpler one for you, so you can change it up later and change your temperament with the headdress..."
"Okay." Zhang Li said without any doubt.
When she saw her, she said nothing and did not make all kinds of requests like some actors. The stylist's impression of her was further improved.
However, when Liu Qingran and Fang Se heard their conversation, their expressions changed.
Because the audition group this time was different, the number of people who would audition was not fixed, and even Fang Se didn't know who Liu Qingran's competitors were.
But after listening to Zhang Li and the stylist, Fang Se and Liu Qingran were sure that Zhang Li was definitely one of them.
Thinking back to the last audition for the role of Concubine Li, with the same people and the same order of appearance, they thought Liu Qingran, who had the longest audition, would definitely get it, but in the end, it was snatched away by Zhang Li, who had only auditioned for a little over ten minutes...
Fang Se's heart tightened.
Liu Qingran even lowered his eyes to hide his uneasiness.
After waiting for a while, while the makeup artist was spraying the setting spray, Liu Qingran finally plucked up the courage to talk to Zhang Li.
"Zhang... Zhang Li, are you also auditioning for twins?"
Zhang Li didn't answer her, but looked at her through the makeup mirror with a smile.
After looking into her eyes, Liu Qingran felt even more uneasy.
After that, the two had no more conversations.
Zhang Li's stylist is very skilled and easily created a basic hairstyle for Zhang Li, with a flowing bun and bangs covering her temples, paired with fresh makeup, making her look somewhat otherworldly.
As the stylist worked on the hair, she praised him, "Ms. Zhang, you have so much hair, and it's in such good quality that you don't even need many wigs..."
"Thank you." Zhang Li smiled.
Fang Se, who was standing next to her, looked at her hair, then at her own artist, and couldn't help but pursed her lips. Taking advantage of the angle where no one was paying attention, she glanced at stylist Zhang Li.
-
After all the hair accessories were tied on, Zhang Li's hairstyle was complete.
"The costumes are here, Miss Zhang. Can I accompany you to choose some and put them on?"
Zhang Li stood up and followed the other party away.
Cheng Yu was also wary of Fang Se and Liu Qingran, fearing that their team might do something weird, so he stayed where he was.
Although Fang Se is also a gold medal agent of Yichang Media, no one knows that she has been imitating Cheng Yu's methods from the beginning to climb up step by step.
Although she was unwilling to give in, she was still a little less confident.
Liu Qingran didn't know the inside story, and when he saw Zhang Li leave, he relaxed.
But when Zhang Li put on the chosen costume and returned to his original place, Liu Qingran's breathing almost stopped.
Cheng Yu went up to him with bright eyes, "Perfect! Perfect!"
The bun specially braided by the stylist is indeed suitable for Zhang Li, or in other words, with Zhang Li's face shape, he can hold almost any hairstyle.
Although the hair accessories on the bun look a bit cheap, they are still exquisite. The bright yellow headbands hanging at the ends of the hair on both sides and falling from both sides are the finishing touch.
Although it is a bit modern, she is wearing a bright yellow outfit with a veil and belt, exquisite retro boots, and a corset at the waist. She looks like a female knight in ancient costume who has walked out of a painting, with a fairy-like air and a bit of free and easy style.
Even Liu Qingran's expression changed, and the others were no exception.
Fang Se was originally afraid that Zhang Li's face would steal the limelight from her own artist, and when she saw that she looked even more prominent in the costume, her expression became even uglier.
Zhang Li and Cheng Yu ignored other people's reactions, just tidied up patiently and waited for the staff to call them.
Over there, Liu Qingran's makeup had already been done. Perhaps the makeup artist felt the pressure and tried her best, even painting an exquisite flower ornament on Liu Qingran's eyebrows.
But after a careful comparison, he still couldn't suppress Zhang Li at all.
The hairstylist also braided a very delicate bun for Liu Qingran that he had specially researched for her, but compared with Zhang Li's formal hairstyle, it inexplicably looked a bit tacky.
Fang Se already had a bad feeling in her heart, but she was unwilling to admit defeat, so she asked the team to take Liu Qingran to change clothes.
Liu Qingran came back after changing and everyone looked at him.
The same white women's suit, with intricate embroidery in gold thread, is obviously expensive. It is beautiful, but why does it feel like something is missing?
This feeling is like a high-end fashion piece from a big brand, but when you put it on, it doesn’t look as good as the one you buy wholesale from Taobao.
Fang Se's face almost turned black.
She also noticed that the clothes prepared by the audition team were actually more suitable than the ones they had specially customized.
But now, asking her to lose face and tell the staff to find another suitable set of clothes for Liu Qingran was even more painful than slapping her in the face.
However, Zhang Li knew that she did not appear in the original novel. Fang Se had deliberately observed the makeup of other actors and found that the clothes of the audition group were not bad, so she discarded the custom-made clothes she brought with her.
But unfortunately, the staff arranged them next to her, so that Fang Se's attention was all on her. She also told the others loudly as a warning to her that they had brought their own custom-made clothes.
The result is that we are now in a difficult situation.
This kind of mentality is really unlike the golden agent who is in charge of everything in the original book.
Feeling that his influence seemed a little too great, Zhang Li lowered his eyes and a guess came to his mind.
So, when the auditions for the supporting roles in front of them were over and the staff asked the actors auditioning for the twins to follow them out, Zhang Li, who was closer to the inside than Liu Qingran, went ahead and just blocked the way of Liu Qingran and others.
Fang Se was already holding her breath, and when she saw Zhang Li trying to squeeze out first, she wanted to say something to her, but was stopped by Liu Qingran.
Knowing that Zhang Li would ignore her, Liu Qingran didn't say anything.
But this time she guessed wrong. Zhang Li came to talk to her on purpose.
She deliberately moved closer to Liu Qingran and Fang Se, and spoke in a voice that could only be heard in a small area.
"If I win again this time, you won't tell my family about this and have them all come out to call me out and force me to give you the role, right?"
It was Fang Se who decided to notify the Liu couple and Liu Shuyi and ask them to help grab the role. Because she knew that Liu Qingran would never agree to do so, she had been hiding it from Liu Qingran.
She never expected that Zhang Li would stab her without paying attention.
Fang Se looked at Liu Qingran nervously.
Sure enough, Liu Qingran was stunned when he heard Zhang Li's words.
"You...what do you mean?"
Cheng Yu had been following Zhang Li, and when she saw Liu Qingran acting like this, she thought she was pretending.
Cheng Yu, who was already indignant on Zhang Li's behalf, snorted coldly, "Don't tell me you don't know that your good 'parents' and 'brother' deliberately tricked our Ah Li out and forced her to give up the role of Concubine Li."
Cheng Yu didn't lower her voice like Zhang Li.
As soon as she said this, almost everyone around her heard it.
Although there were fewer people in their row, there was another actor further in, who was also auditioning for the role of twins.
She was originally walking towards this side, and after hearing Cheng Yu suddenly release such explosive news, she looked at Liu Qingran with alertness.
It seems that Liu Qingran and Zhang Li auditioned at the same time, and the role was won by Zhang Li, so Liu Qingran's family deliberately threatened Zhang Li to give the role to Liu Qingran?
If this is true, then those of them who auditioned with Liu Qingran, if they pass the audition, won’t they also be forced by the Liu family like this?
Why bother auditioning then? Couldn't Liu Qingran just have the Liu family buy the role?!
How could Liu Qingran not feel the other actor's gaze on her?
“I really didn’t know this was happening…”
Feeling her genuine helplessness, Cheng Yu seemed to understand the truth.
She looked at Fang Se next to her and said, "Since it wasn't you who did it, then it must have been someone else who did it."
Liu Qingran also understood and turned to look at his agent in disbelief.
"Sister Fang?..."
"Qingran, there's a reason for this. I'll explain it to you when we get back. The most important thing right now is the audition..."
She knew Liu Qingran's simple nature too well. She suspected that Zhang Li had deliberately dropped this bombardment of information! Zhang Li wanted to disrupt Qingran's thoughts so that he could easily take on the role of the twins!
It was a pity that she had forgotten this aspect, and Zhang Li’s conspiracy succeeded!
Seeing Fang Se's anxious look, Zhang Li curled his lips slightly, then exchanged a glance with Cheng Yu and walked away.
-
Although Liu Qingran was very angry at Fang Se's self-willed behavior, he tried his best to restrain himself and calm down after Fang Se repeatedly reminded him that "the audition is important."
The actors auditioning for the twins were gathered by staff and then led to the audition panel.
This time it was the usual format, with the producer sitting in the middle and the director, screenwriter and others sitting on both sides.
The six actors who auditioned drew lots in front of them.
"The twins are two characters. The kind one is in front, and the cruel one is in the back. You will audition in order and then change into your costumes. The order of the second audition will be the same as the first."
After the explanation, everyone started.
But this time the draw seemed to be against Liu Qingran, after the result came out.
There were two actors in the front, Zhang Li was third, Liu Qingran was fourth, another actor who heard them talking was fifth, and another one was sixth.
The first person to go on stage for the audition will do so, while the others will sit in the audience and watch.
Zhang Li sat down calmly.
Liu Qingran clearly told herself not to think too much, but her thoughts kept drifting to what Zhang Li had just said.
She inexplicably thought of the incident in which the heroine of "Sea of Green" was verbally abused by the previous crew member. As she thought about it, her thoughts could not stop.
After thinking for a long time, perhaps the defense mechanism in her mind was activated, at the critical moment she remembered what her mother said, '... She did such a vicious thing, you don't owe her anything...'
Liu Qingran bit her lip and soon calmed down completely.
But while she was preparing herself mentally, the two actors ahead of her had already finished their audition.
All the twins wanted was a smooth and polished look, so naturally their image wouldn't be too bad if they came to the audition.
Although these two actors are not as pretty as Zhang Li, they each have their own characteristics and can easily bring out their own strengths.
The audition team only required two sets of scenes, and they chose one literary scene and one martial arts scene.
Both actors performed well in the literary scenes, but their performance in the martial arts scenes was a matter of opinion.
In the eyes of ordinary people, martial arts dramas have stunt doubles, and many difficult actions are performed by stunt doubles. As long as the actors do not perform particularly poorly, they can be considered to have passed.
Sure enough, when the audition team members saw this, they showed an "okay" look on their faces.
After the performance, the two actors went backstage to change their looks.
Next it was Zhang Li's turn.
When they were drawing lots backstage just now, the audition crew didn't notice Zhang Li because the lighting was dim. But as soon as Zhang Li came on stage, everyone in the audition crew's eyes lit up.
【Author’s words】
Happy Children's Day~[laughing][laughing]
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