When Ji Li saw the title of the movie, he immediately became interested.
He took time to check out the "God Slayer" series directed by Xu Cheng during the New Year's Day holiday this year. It can be said that the first three films in the God-killing series, "The Fox", "Kui Niang" and "The Flower Demon", ushered in a new climax in Chinese mythological films.
Whether it is the plot of the story itself, the portrayal of the actors' acting skills, the composition of the shooting scenes, or the excellent post-production, it can be said that it has achieved all-round development and strived to do its best.
Therefore, it is not surprising that their box office can steadily win the championship in the current period.
At that time, how many female stars were fighting for the role of the heroine directed by Xu Cheng?
For a series of movies that have a movie-going base, as long as the acting is above the passing line, it will definitely take your career to a higher level.
Of course, Director Xu Cheng also has strict requirements on the actors' acting skills.
The heroines chosen for the trilogy are all talented actresses.
"The original trilogy all focused on the 'female protagonist' theme. I didn't expect that the fourth part, 'The Evil Monk', would have a male protagonist." Yu Fuya sat on the sofa, with interest in her eyes.
Casting auditions are conducted in secret within the industry, with companies and agents vying for the few available audition spots.
After Yu Fuya learned the news, she immediately used her connections to contact director Xu Cheng's team and got an audition spot for Ji Li.
Of course, there is also a synopsis of the film's characters.
She knew that no matter how good the film team was, Ji Li would always pay the most attention to the quality of the work itself.
"The complete script and plot will not be revealed for the time being. Why don't you take a look at the character outlines first? But I think Director Xu Cheng's script shouldn't be too bad. With Yuzhu in front of him, he won't easily ruin his reputation." Yu Fuya analyzed.
I heard that the script writing of "The Demon Monk" and its predecessor "The Flower Demon" were carried out at the same time. On the contrary, the former was revised and polished repeatedly until now before the plan to start the project was made.
It is said that it is difficult to make a series well. A director as big as Xu Cheng dares to prepare to start the fourth part. He should be very confident in the shooting technology and the script.
Ji Li nodded, his eyes dropped, and he couldn't wait to scan the character album that Yu Fuya brought.
The story of "The Demonic Monk" revolves around the male protagonist "Chen Yi".
During the Great Barbarian Period, the world was torn apart.
Wars broke out everywhere, demons and ghosts appeared everywhere, the world was in a difficult situation, and the world was divided into four categories: humans, gods, demons, and ghosts.
It is said that humans and gods can be distinguished, and Buddhas and demons can be recognized.
But there is one person who is difficult to identify whether he is a human, a god, a ghost, or a monster, because he kills people, slays monsters, and collects ghosts. It is rumored that he even killed immortals.
The evil monk Chen Yi, his whereabouts are unclear.
I heard that he was born into wealth and was originally a holy monk.
But in the year when Chen Yi ascended to heaven and was conferred a title, he personally killed all the people in the country and secretly used blood as a sacrifice in exchange for his own path to becoming a god or Buddha.
But on the day of his canonization, his sins were discovered by God's house and he was sent back to the mortal world.
From then on, he no longer worshipped Buddha. Instead, his hands were filled with evil blood. He sucked human blood, swallowed demon beads, killed ghosts, and extracted spiritual meridians. He did evil things but chanted Buddhism.
It is said that Chen Yi has lived for no less than a hundred years.
Some people say that he has an abominable face, more terrifying than a monster, while others say that he has a handsome face and uses his beauty to cheat and kill people.
In fact, no one has ever seen Chen Yi’s true face.
Apart from Shintoism, there is a widely circulated saying in the other three religions: the one who can see Chen Yi's true appearance must be at the moment of death.
…
When Ji Li saw the background introduction in the first half, his eyes became more interested.
He likes such villain-like roles, which are quite interesting and contradictory.
Moreover, based on his many years of experience in reading scripts, such a male protagonist must have a little-known truth about his life.
As expected, as soon as he turned the page, he saw the character's background content -
In fact, Chen Yi was the legitimate prince born to the former queen of Su Dynasty. From the moment he was born, auspicious rain fell for seven consecutive days, solving the worst drought in Su Dynasty in a hundred years.
This was because of one incident. The whole country was sincerely grateful for the arrival of the prince and believed that he was a blessed man.
The Su Dynasty believed in Buddhism and Taoism. The most famous Buddhist temple in the dynasty, 'Shoushen Temple', was said to be the passage connecting the realm of gods and the mortal world. The four great leaders and eight great elders inside had already left their mortal bodies and were servants sent by the gods and Buddhas in heaven to stay in the human world.
When Chen Yi was sixteen years old, Abbot Lingtong, who had been in seclusion in the Shoushen Temple for a long time, suddenly came out and went straight to the palace, saying that he had received the will of God and wanted to accept Prince Chen Yi as his disciple.
He said that if Chen Yi converted to Buddhism, he would be able to join the ranks of gods in the near future and save all living beings.
When the Emperor and Empress of Su Chao heard this, they suppressed their reluctance and agreed.
After all, how could a few decades of being an emperor on earth be as important as attaining enlightenment and ascending to heaven? For the sake of my own son, I have to give up no matter how reluctant I am.
This is for Chen Yi's own good, and also for the future people of the Su Dynasty.
Chen Yi was indeed a man of spiritual roots. After being brought into the Buddhist sect, he practiced with all his heart. In one year he gained wisdom, in two years he mastered the Dharma, and in three years he achieved the highest level of Buddhism.
In just ten years, he personally killed and liberated many demons and ghosts, and became the most famous monk in the Su Dynasty.
Of course, this is inseparable from the lavish worship and publicity given to the emperor and empress of the Su Dynasty.
Chen Yi is outstandingly good-looking and has a gentle and elegant temperament. Women all over the world love and admire him, and men are jealous of him, but they have to admit his ability to slay demons and are willing to worship him devoutly.
When Chen was eighteen years old, Abbot Lingtong told him that the time had come and that according to the instructions of the gods, he was willing to help him escape from his mortal body and bones and attain enlightenment to become a god or Buddha.
Chen Yi thought he had achieved it through years of hard training, but he did not expect that on the day he ascended to heaven and was conferred a title, he would learn the news that "war has brought disaster to the country and the old dynasty will be destroyed."
Abbot Lingtong told him that if he wanted to be among the gods and Buddhas, he must have enough devout faith.
Heaven is the key, and hell is the earth.
The power of the devout prayers of the people when they are about to die is enormous. To use the whole country's strength to help one person become a Buddha is what the Su Dynasty should do for this former prince.
After all, if Chen Yi had not been born eighteen years ago, the Su Dynasty might have been destroyed by the drought.
It's not just Chen Yi; other gods and Buddhas also ascended to positions in this way.
The so-called compassion for the world turned into ruthlessness and callousness in the end. The seemingly respected Buddha's light was actually covering up the raging blood.
Which gods and Buddhas save all living beings? They are nothing but a group of lowly species that regard mortals as ants!
Chen Yi tore the so-called "conferring robes" into pieces. His behavior angered the group of high and mighty "gods and Buddhas", and they joined forces to suppress him.
Chen Yi, who had just gained the power of national faith, was seriously injured and had also hurt many gods and Buddhas. He took advantage of the chaos to sneak back to the mortal world and vowed never to set foot on this dirty land again.
In order to cover up this fact, other gods and Buddhas fabricated a lot of false information and spread it to the human world. In addition, after coming to the human world, Chen Yi did do many things that violated the Buddhist "killing".
So, a hundred years later, Chen Yi had become a demon monk who was "shouting for war and killing" and "feared and dreaded" in the mouths of the four Taoists.
The beginning of the movie story begins here.
…
After Ji Li read the character's synopsis, his interest did not disappear.
Compared to the concept of "respecting God" in traditional mythology, the series "God Slayer" does the opposite. Although he hasn't seen the complete script yet, he is already looking forward to the subsequent plot where Qi Chen will slap the faces of the "Gods and Buddhas".
In addition, the true story of Chen Yi's past is definitely hidden in the plot of the script. For future moviegoers, there will also be a sense of enlightenment as the truth is slowly uncovered.
"How about it? Do you want to give it a try?" Yu Fuya asked, "This movie is tentatively scheduled to start shooting in early November, so we have plenty of time."
If it works, a big movie project will be confirmed in the second half of the year.
Moreover, there is still a gap of four to five months between the end of the trip and the start of filming of "The Demon Monk", so I can take on another movie with a shorter shooting period.
If the audition for "The Demon Monk" was not successful, then they would not have lost out.
"Okay." Ji Li responded.
He needed a movie with a male protagonist that could carry the box office, and "The Demon Monk" was a good fit in every way. Of course, he still can't take the audition lightly.
Ji Li thought for a moment and asked, "In four days, I will be leaving for a new round of reality show filming. Will I have enough time for the audition?"
"It's still in time. If there's no problem on your end, Director Xu Cheng's team and I have confirmed it for the day after tomorrow."
This arrangement will not delay the reality show shooting the next day.
Yu Fuya remembered something and reminded him, "By the way, the first round of auditions is not about acting skills, but about your appearance."
Director Xu Cheng pays great attention to the appearance fit between the actors and the characters.
To put it bluntly, Chen Yi is a monk, and the actor's bald look should not only not distract from the role, but also make people feel beautiful, fairy-like, and have the Buddhist elegance and compassion at first glance.
Yu Fuya has never regarded Ji Li as a so-called "idol actor". When looking for roles, she does not care about the one-sided definition of him by the outside world.
As long as the role is good, she is willing to arrange audition qualifications for Ji Li and let him try more.
Ji Li nodded calmly.
As an actor, he should have played more roles of different styles and looks.
So what if I'm bald?
As long as the role is outstanding enough, it will still win the love of the audience.
Yu Fuya poked his cheek and teased, "You should take good care of your skin these two days. Although Chen Yi's behavior is demonic, he still looks like a fair and tender holy monk."
Both good and evil, both pure and lustful.
When Yu Fuya saw the character's adjectives, she secretly thought - this was like a character tailor-made for her Jili!
Ji Li laughed helplessly, "Sister Yu, I understand."
"Well, let the driver take you home early to rest. Rest well and recuperate at home tomorrow. I will pick you up to the audition venue the day after tomorrow."
"good."
…
Early on Saturday morning, Yu Fuya brought Ji Li to the location of the styling audition - Shimei Special Effects Studio.
The "Godkiller" series of films directed by Xu Cheng were all produced by their studio.
The venue was arranged in the Haishi Economic and Trade Building, and the entire twenty-first floor was booked. As soon as you enter the door, you can see a wide variety of special effects props.
From lifelike fake human skin, to "bloody" severed limbs and arms, to various monster models, the visual effects of this studio are top-notch in the industry.
The bald look in the movie is not common in the entertainment industry, and the male lead has to be a young actor. It's just an audition and the result is not yet determined, so it's naturally impossible for everyone to just shave their heads.
Therefore, the director team asked "Shimei Special Effects" to be responsible for the styling of this first round of auditions.
"Sister Yu, long time no see." A smartly dressed woman came out and greeted with a smile.
"Vivian, long time no see." Yu Fuya hugged her and immediately introduced her to Ji Li, "Ji Li, this is the boss of Shimei, Vivian. She is the top female styling special effects artist in our country."
"Hello, I'm actor Ji Li." Ji Li stretched out his hand and greeted Vivian.
Yu Fuya and Vivian are old acquaintances. It was she who used her connections to help Vivian get styling and special effects cooperation from several film crews.
For this, Vivian has always been grateful to Yu Fuya.
"Vivian, you have to give me some face this time and make our Ji Li look better." Yu Fuya said as they walked, "We still want to fight for this role."
"Sister Yu, look at what you said, how can I not take it seriously?" Vivian looked at Ji Li's face and concealed her unfinished words.
Since last week, their team has been responsible for the audition styling of one or two actors every day.
From well-known male stars to new comers, from those in their early twenties to those around thirties... people of all status and age groups in the circle have been tried.
I can only say that the bald hairstyle is really too challenging. It is more like a "magic mirror" than the crew cut, as it pursues the ultimate coordination of facial features.
No matter how good-looking some male stars look with their hairstyle, their flaws will be exposed immediately once they go bald.
Either the facial lines are too rigid, resulting in a lack of soft beauty, or the temperament does not match, making him look like a fool.
"What? Director Xu Cheng is not satisfied?" Yu Fuya asked in a subtle way.
Weiwei An took consideration for the sake of friendship and whispered, "Director Xu is mostly dissatisfied, but there was one person whose look yesterday looked pretty good. He was a newcomer from Jincheng Pictures, and his name was Zhang Ye."
When Yu Fuya heard this, her face stiffened slightly.
She had no objection to the hard-working newcomers, but she just felt a habitual physical aversion when she heard the four big words "Jincheng Pictures".
The three of them walked into the styling room.
Yu Fuya decisively changed the subject, "Vivian, thank you for your help."
Vivian responded with a smile, "No trouble."
The first step of this look is to create the 'scalp' - use Vaseline and vulcanized latex to create the appropriate thickness on the model, and then use setting powder to remove the dried fake scalp.
Ji Li sat down at the styling position, calmly waiting for the next makeup.
The styling assistant took some time to comb Ji Li's hair.
Vivian took a look and said decisively, "No need to fill it with cotton, it's fine, just put the fake wig on directly."
Because everyone's head shape is different, before sticking on the fake scalp, you need to use cotton or other soft items to fill in the "bumps" on the surface of the head.
However, Ji Li has a beautiful head shape, so this step can be skipped.
The staff used special white glue to stick the fake scalp on, then used cotton swabs to deal with the uneven hairline edges, and finally used a small brush to color the fake scalp to create the effect of slight hair residue.
This whole process took almost three hours.
Ji Li looked at himself in the mirror, who seemed a little unfamiliar, and was stunned for a moment.
Even though he played countless roles in his 'previous life', he never had such a bold and unique look.
Before he could speak, Vivian said expectantly, "Follow the staff to change clothes and try?"
So far, Ji Li has given her a very good impression, far better than the actors who tried out the styling before. I just wonder if this aura can hold up after putting on the costume of the legendary pure saint?
"good."
Ji Li took off his clothes and followed the male wardrobe assistant into the dressing room.
It only took a few minutes to complete the change of clothes.
The moment the door curtain was opened, exclamations from the surroundings rang out one after another——
Ji Li’s look as a holy monk is so amazing!
Instead of the traditional red and bright yellow robes, Ji Li wore a costume designed by the film costume team, which was specifically used for the first round of role auditions.
When the Su Dynasty was still in power, Chen Yi was both a holy monk and the noble crown prince of this country.
In order to reflect Chen Yi's noble and holy status, his robes are pure white. The clothes are outlined with gold thread, not with traditional patterns such as the conch shell, □□, and precious umbrella, but with a whole piece of Buddhist scriptures, which is gorgeous and shocking.
The distinctive jade-like buckle on the cassock outlines Ji Li's slender waist, making his figure appear more upright.
It took the costume team three full months to create this extremely gorgeous dress, and the production cost alone was as high as six figures.
You know, white clothes are actually very picky about skin color, but this white cassock with gold thread makes Ji Li's face look even brighter, which is a perfect plus.
Without the embellishment of hair, his extremely handsome facial features give off a fatal impact.
The light brown pupils shimmered, seemingly heartless yet affectionate, as if carrying a cold and gentle feeling of compassion for the world.
The brown mole on the bridge of the nose was faintly visible under the light, and the thin red lips were gently pursed, giving off a sense of temptation.
Vivian was stunned, and all her employees were dumbfounded.
She is clearly wearing the most holy robes, and her temperament is ascetic yet subtly alluring. This sense of contradiction makes people feel itchy.
This is Chen Yi in the script!
The young holy monk who can be admired by women all over the country, and who can make humans, demons and ghosts still worry about him after learning his identity as a "demon monk", perhaps only Ji Li's appearance is qualified!
They receive so many auditioning actors these days.
For many actors, their flaws are exposed just by their bald looks. After putting on the custom-made robes provided by the crew, they look greasy and mundane, which is simply a waste of the word "holy monk".
Some employees still couldn't hold back their praise and discussed quietly:
"Ahhh, Ji Li is so beautiful!"
"It's amazing. How can he pull off any look?"
"This should be the actor Director Xu is looking for, right?"
"Don't be too absolute. The demon monk's image is the core of the movie. It's a pity that Ji Li can't try it now."
…
Weiweian came back to her senses, with a hint of appreciation in her eyes, "Ji Li, according to Director Xu's request, you have to take a few photos and modeling videos now, is that ok?"
Their studio will send the actors' looks to the director team's email address. If Director Xu Cheng and the scriptwriter think the actor's image is suitable, they will unilaterally notify the actor's company and confirm the time for the second round of auditions.
"certainly."
"David, take him to the studio next door." Vivian called the studio's exclusive photographer.
David rubbed his hands and excitedly led Ji Li to the next door.
After shooting the "monk" actor for so many days, David thought he was already aesthetically fatigued, until he saw Ji Li, the other person's look completely suited his aesthetic point!
marvelous!
A group of employees followed over and watched Ji Li take modeling photos.
People who work in the film and television styling circles always have a picky and sharp eye.
Seeing everyone's reactions, Yu Fuya knew that Ji Li's look was half successful, and her tense heartstrings finally relaxed. "Vivian, is this one from our family okay?"
"We think it's good, so how can we say it's useless? We can't make the decision." Vivian said honestly, "The decision-making power of this movie still lies with Director Xu."
As soon as he finished speaking, a steady questioning voice sounded behind him.
"What decision is mine?"
Yu Fuya and Vivian turned around, both showing surprised expressions.
"Director Xu, how come you have time to come here today? You should have told me earlier so that I could pick you up in person." Vivian said politely.
"I came here to do some personal business nearby. I heard from your assistant that your studio is nearby, so I came up to take a look." Director Xu Cheng explained simply.
He looked at Yu Fuya on the side, a look of surprise flashed across his brows, "Ms. Yu?"
"Director Xu." Yu Fuya nodded, "I just contacted your team the day before yesterday and brought my artists to try out a look."
Xu Cheng thought for a moment and asked, "The actor named Ji Li?"
"Yes."
"Where are the others?" Xu Cheng showed a hint of interest.
"In the studio next door." Weiwei and Yu Fuya looked at each other and took the initiative to lead the way. "Director Xu, shall I take you there?"
Xu Cheng nodded and followed.
Yu Fuya stared at Xu Cheng's back, her heartstrings tense again.
Unexpectedly, I accidentally met the director himself when the show was almost over?
I hope Ji Li’s strength and good luck can continue to bless him and bring him new good news.
…
Inside the studio.
The shutter clicks kept clacking, and David became more and more excited as he took more pictures. He looked at Ji Li in the camera and felt so hot that he was almost sweating.
So beautiful!
Too lustful!
So pure!
David's heart was pounding. If the Chinese were not usually reserved, he would have wanted to shout out loud how beautiful Ji Li was.
In fact, the director team had stipulated that each actor could only take ten photos, but David couldn't help but take no less than a hundred photos for Ji Li.
"That's enough." David paused and adjusted the camera's recording function. "Take a few more steps, turn forward and backward, and strike some poses."
The purpose of recording the video is to show the actors' body movements to the director team.
Before Ji Li could respond, the crowd dispersed in surprise.
Ji Li looked in the direction of the voice and discovered that the person leading the group was a middle-aged man. He had his hands behind his back and his eyes hinted at a scrutiny.
Yu Fuya was standing behind the other person on his left side, silently reminding him of his identity with her lips.
——Director Xu Cheng.
Of course Ji Li recognized him, he is one of the four biggest directors in the Chinese film industry.
He quickly regained his composure and took the initiative to bow and greet, "Hello, Director Xu, I'm actor Ji Li."
Xu Cheng nodded, the smile on his face slightly widening, "I know Xiang Sui'an in The Time Lobbyist. I've seen your movie. If the promotion before the release was stronger, I'm afraid the box office champion during the New Year's Day holiday would have changed hands."
As a competitor at the same time, Xu Cheng watched the full version of "Time Lobbyist" privately. If he had to say which actor had left a deep impression on him, it would be Ji Li in front of him.
"The director is overrated."
Xu Cheng didn't let Ji Li move, but walked around him on his own, then smiled in appreciation, "Your plasticity is beyond my expectation."
At this moment, Ji Li no longer resembled Xiang Sui'an at all. Instead, the warm and gentle feeling all over his body resembled that of Chen Yi in his youth.
However, this alone is not enough.
The core story of the movie is about the 'evil monk' Chen Yi, who has a completely different sense of evil from the 'holy monk' image.
For him, appearance is important, but acting skills are more important than appearance.
Xu Cheng was a very efficient director, and since Ji Li's appearance suited his taste, he simply extended a formal invitation.
"Are you free next Friday? Second round of audition. Act out a script excerpt for me."
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#Just wait, Jili’s image as a demon monk is both evil and seductive!
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