After hearing Wei Lan's words, Yang Xingyuan was stunned for half a minute before he reacted and was hit by huge ecstasy.
He held the red panda's paw helplessly: "Of course."
The man in his thirties couldn't help but feel his eyes turn red. He couldn't help but confirm again: "Is it really me? Director, are you sure you didn't make a mistake?"
"Yes, I've decided it's you." Wei Lan said affirmatively.
"Thank you, thank you..." Yang Xingyuan realized his loss of composure and tried hard to calm down, constantly thanking Wei Lan.
Yang Xingyuan felt that he was very lucky, but he didn't know that Wei Lan also felt that he was very lucky.
Yang Xingyuan's appearance and temperament meet the requirements of this role, and perhaps due to his own experience and hard work, he is able to play himself in this role. Coupled with his already very good acting skills, the effect achieved is far more than just one plus one. Apart from some details and methods that need to be improved according to the character's experience, even if Wei Lan spent tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of dollars to hire an actor to play this role, the effect that can be achieved is no more than this.
From the two auditions just now, Wei Lan has confirmed that this plain-looking man in front of him is the perfect choice for the leading actor in his movie.
"You're welcome. I'm looking forward to working with you, too." Wei Lan waited for Yang Xingyuan to calm down before continuing to discuss other issues with him. "The male lead has been decided, and the female lead has also had a schedule. The filming will start next week. You can ask the studio manager for the script and confidentiality agreement later... Is there any problem with your schedule?"
Yang Xingyuan said hurriedly: "No, I can come here anytime."
"Okay." Wei Lan looked at him, and suddenly asked another question awkwardly: "Another point, the pay is like this..."
Funds are tight now, so Wei Lan feels a little embarrassed when talking about his film pay.
She has always been fair in her work and has her own standards for judging the level of roles and acting skills. If the investment is sufficient, even if Yang Xingyuan is basically worthless now, she thinks the lead actor's salary should be between 500,000 and 1 million based on the actor's performance.
Wei Lan said with some difficulty: "Because you are not well-known, our film investment is not large, and it is a science fiction film...so in terms of salary, I may not be able to give you too much."
"Well, director, you say." Yang Xingyuan responded, his expression didn't change much. He had a role to play and he was the male lead. Deep down, he even felt that it didn't matter if he didn't get paid. As long as the crew could provide him with food and accommodation, he would be satisfied.
For grassroots actors like Yang Xingyuan who have dreams of acting, the scary thing is not that they can't make money from filming, but that they will never have the chance to play a role with more important parts in their entire life.
Wei Lan looked at Yang Xingyuan's expression, thought about his performance just now, and said, "How about this, I can give you two pay plans."
"One plan is to give you a salary of 100,000 yuan directly."
Wei Lan knew that this remuneration might be considered fair and reasonable from the perspective of market conditions or investors, considering Yang Xingyuan's net worth. However, Wei Lan was an independent film director who made many films in his previous life and had his own standards. Now he could only squeeze the actors' remuneration and felt a little guilty.
If Yang Xingyuan performs well in the movie, Wei Lan plans to give him a red envelope after the movie's release and the funds are recovered.
"There is another option." Wei Lan continued, "It's 50,000 yuan for the film, plus the last 1% of the film's profits."
"You can go back and take a day to think about it, and then tell the studio manager." Wei Lan said, preparing to exit the director's machine.
"No need, director." Yang Xingyuan suddenly called Wei Lan to stop him, and looked at her sincerely and gratefully: "I choose the second option."
Yang Xingyuan's idea was very simple. It was a great joy for him that the director gave him this opportunity. If the movie didn't make money in the end, it would definitely be his responsibility. He felt embarrassed to take 100,000 yuan at the beginning.
But after hearing this, Wei Lan chuckled: "Okay, you are very smart."
After leaving the actor cabin, Yang Xingyuan finally realized what Wei Lan meant by his previous words.
The director seems to be very confident that the film will not lose money but will make a lot of money.
Forget it, don’t think about it anymore. No matter what, he will try his best to play the first and possibly the only leading role in his life.
…
Another week passed, which was used to coordinate the supporting actors' schedules and also for the male and female protagonists to familiarize themselves with the script.
Wei Lan has the contact information of both actors, and both leading actors have a good work attitude.
Needless to say, Yang Xingyuan would write a short essay on time every day to analyze the characters, and would bring his summary and his own doubts to Wei Lan for revision and discussion.
What Wei Lan didn't expect was that Su Yining, who he thought was difficult to deal with, was unexpectedly serious, but the reason was a bit speechless.
"Look at the fifth line of the third paragraph of the script... At this point, what tone should I use to read this line?"
Wei Lan replied: "Just be plain, like describing something common sense, like what color the clothes you are wearing are."
"Okay, listen to me recite the previous paragraph first, and see if there is anything wrong." The voice of Su Yining reciting the lines was then heard from the other end of the phone.
Wei Lan didn't expect that she was just concerned about Su Yining's progress in understanding the role last time, and she has been entangled by him since then. Every day she feels like a teacher checking the recitation of primary school students. She rubbed her eyebrows and listened: "Okay, you continue to familiarize yourself."
Because the heroine played by Su Yining had a lot of lines, and she herself was bad at memorizing, so after getting the script, while other actors were studying the psychological emotions of their characters, she was the only one memorizing the lines in advance, and she was still memorizing them right after she joined the crew. Under such circumstances, it is no wonder that she has not figured out any acting skills after acting in so many dramas. If she wants to broaden the depth of her role, it takes her more time than others.
"Ah? Do you want to continue familiarizing yourself? I think I have memorized it." Su Yining was originally happy that she had memorized a complete line, but then she heard Wei Lan asking her to continue familiarizing herself.
Wei Lan: "Yes, keep getting familiar with it, until I tell you the previous line, and you react instinctively like one plus one equals two."
Su Yining was willing to work hard to prove that Wei Lan's choice was not wrong, and memorizing lines has its advantages. What she needed in her movie was the effect just mentioned.
"Is this necessary for filming?"
"Yes, this is required for filming." Wei Lan said seriously.
"Okay..." Su Yining sighed, "I'm going to memorize the lessons. Bye."
After hanging up the phone, Wei Lan smiled slightly. After a few days of contact, she had more or less figured out Su Yining's temper. She was a bit like a noisy elementary school student. She was most likely to get angry when she didn't know what to do.
At this time, as long as there is a person with enough authority to tell her what to do and give her a focus, she will be obedient.
But in reality, because of Su Yining's appearance and temperament, few people dare to play this role, which can easily lead to an unhappy ending for both parties.
This is also the reason why Wei Lan did not hand over this spot check to Su Yining's agent or assistant, but took time out every day to cooperate with her. Of course, another reason is that Wei Lan wanted to establish his authority in Su Yining's heart and let her get used to listening to him, so that it would be more convenient for subsequent filming.
A week later, in early October, Chen Yuanhang's "Star Wars (Part 2)" held a grand press conference. All the leading actors gathered, and Chen Yuanhang sat in the middle, answering questions from reporters on the scene about the movie. When talking about the box office expectations for this blockbuster, he answered with high spirits: "This time we have assembled the strongest team, the production cost is 100 million higher than the previous one, and the box office expectation is more than double the first one."
This press conference attracted widespread coverage from online and print media, covering all major news platforms. It was a huge hit and unparalleled at the time.
At about the same time, Wei Lan's film officially started shooting in Studio No. 3.
Wei Lan did not hold any opening ceremony. One reason was that she could not meet other crew members due to her appearance. Another reason was that her crew was currently unknown and the only well-known member, Su Yining, could only bring negative attention. At the moment when filming just started, it was better not to stir up a lot of controversy to undermine the morale of the actors.
Negative marketing is not impossible, but good steel should be used where it is needed most. When the movie is almost completed, it is the time for Wei Lan to create some news.
On the first day of filming, there was no requirement to complete any major scenes.
The main task is to finalize the makeup for the leading actors. Movies are different from TV dramas. When audiences watch movies with a hologram in a cinema, the viewing effect is more refined and there are more viewing angles that can be adjusted in terms of distance and height. Therefore, movies have higher requirements for details than TV dramas. Wei Lan has to be as meticulous as possible to achieve no blind spots.
The holographic world has opened up a special dressing room, a place that is beyond the director’s conscious reach, where actors can change their costumes.
Makeup is even easier, just like the mapping work of computer 3D modeling, the director can complete it with just one thought. In fact, the actors' costumes can be done in the same way. However, for the purpose of privacy protection, after the Actors Guild applied to the federal government, all holographic shooting equipment must now be equipped with a changing room.
While Wei Lan was constantly trying out makeup on Su Yining's face, she glanced at Yang Xingyuan, who seemed honest and humble not far away.
Asked the red panda in front of him: "There are no emotional scenes between me and the male lead, right?"
Wei Lan was puzzled: "Didn't you read the script?"
Su Yining: "I have only memorized 73 pages, and there are still 42 pages left to memorize."
My goodness, it seems like she was just reciting each chapter from the beginning like a textbook, without even reading the entire script.
Wei Lan answered her speechlessly: "No, why are you asking this?"
Su Yining breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Fortunately there isn't one. If there were any emotional scenes with the male lead, I might not be able to act well."
"..." Wei Lan looked at Yang Xingyuan who was not far away. This distance was enough for the other party to hear their conversation clearly.
Su Yining was born into a wealthy and beautiful family and had been blessed with favorable conditions since childhood, which gave her a kind of innocence that comes naturally from being a pampered beauty.
She was telling the truth, she was really worried that she wouldn't be able to act well.
Just saying it directly makes people think too much...
Seeing Wei Lan looking at him, Yang Xingyuan gave her an awkward yet polite smile.
Look at Su Yining who has no idea what he did, and then look at Yang Xingyuan who heard it but seemed not to hear it... Wei Lan really thinks it would be better if the emotional intelligence of these two people could be equal.
She made a note in her little notebook: When the film is finished and released, Su Yining must be held down and she must not be allowed to speak easily.
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