Chapter 109 These extras are pretty good!
In Qinghe Ancient Town, Liu Yu's team wasn't the only one facing these problems.
He Yan and Liu Yu were also complaining during dinner that evening. She looked at the steamed shad that had just been served, but had little appetite. She poked at the tender fish meat with her chopsticks and sighed, "Sigh, it's all fish, but the fish at Song Sao Fish Restaurant is just so much better!"
Liu Yu said expressionlessly, "Don't even think about it, you can't get a date with them anyway."
He then realized that many regular customers at Song Sao Fish Restaurant had to make reservations about a month in advance. He had already used Lu Xiaoqi's private room before, and felt embarrassed to keep taking advantage of her, so he found another restaurant in the ancient town.
To be fair, the dishes are pretty good, and the business is quite good, but it's missing something compared to Song Sao Fish Restaurant.
Liu Yu looked at her suspiciously: "Don't tell me you're so depressed because you didn't get to eat at Song Sao Fish Restaurant?"
He Yan isn't someone who's particularly fond of food.
She hardly eats anything!
He Yan sighed, "Ugh, don't even mention it. The production has been moving at a snail's pace these past few days. It's driving me crazy."
Liu Yu chuckled: "What's wrong? Did your male lead get stuck in a scene?"
The male lead in this drama is a popular actor, but his acting skills aren't particularly good.
"No, not really. They did a pretty good job this time," He Yan said fairly, putting down her chopsticks. "It's mainly the extras. You know, Director Tang has high standards. He wants to capture that realistic, down-to-earth feel of ancient street life. But the extras we found weren't good enough. Either they looked too modern, or their walking posture and eye contact were wrong. As soon as the camera panned over them, Director Tang would yell 'cut,' saying it didn't feel right and ruined the atmosphere. Just a few street scenes took several days to work out, and everyone was pretty down."
Liu Yu clicked his tongue: "Is Director Tang treating this drama like a movie, trying to polish it up?"
He Yan leaned back and rubbed her temples: "That's good, it'll produce a high-quality film. It's just that the filming here might have to be postponed."
Liu Yu comforted her, "It probably won't drag on for too long. Your production team won't agree to this kind of daily pay."
He Yan: "...I can understand Director Tang. Although those scenes didn't have many shots, they were very important. It's just that he asked the extras to feel like they were living here, which is too difficult. Professional extras are a bit better, but it's really hard for ordinary extras to meet that requirement, and it's not just three or four people."
Liu Yu picked up a piece of shad with his chopsticks, his gaze casually sweeping across the flowing river outside the window before returning to the small restaurant. Just then, a woman dressed in a simple cotton summer dress and with her hair in a simple bun passed by on the opposite bank of the river outside the window.
"Fourth Sister!" Someone waved, and he saw the embroiderer from the textile workshop running over.
Huang Si Niang turned around and said, "Li Niang."
"Going home?" Li Niang affectionately took Huang Si Niang's arm. "Let's go together. I haven't seen you for a while."
"You're just too busy..."
The two left together.
"What are you looking at?" He Yan asked curiously.
Liu Yu's gaze followed their departing figures, and a sudden inspiration struck him!
"Wait!" He abruptly put down his chopsticks, his eyes shining brightly as he looked at He Yan. "He Yan, is your production crew being a bit blind to its own shortcomings?"
"Huh?" He Yan was confused.
"It's so close, yet so far away!" Liu Yu excitedly pointed out the window, then pointed in the direction the waiter had left. "The kind of person Director Tang is looking for, isn't there a perfect one right here in Qinghe Ancient Town?!"
He inexplicably felt that many of the staff in Qinghe Ancient Town seemed to be living in ancient times.
Just like the weavers and embroiderers in the textile workshop, even when dressed in modern clothes, their every word and action carries an ancient charm. He guessed that it might be because they had been restoring traditional culture for a long time, which had made their temperament antique.
He Yan was taken aback, then, following his train of thought, she suddenly realized: "Your suggestion is a bit bold..."
She'd spent the entire month here, interacting with even more people in Qinghe Ancient Town than Liu Yu, so she understood this feeling better. Hearing this, she only gasped slightly and immediately picked up her phone:
"I'll talk to Director Tang about it..."
Before I could even make the call, my assistant called first, saying that we would continue filming those big scenes that were stuck the day after tomorrow.
He Yan: "He found the right person?"
Assistant: "It seems like they found some staff members from the ancient town and asked them to make a cameo appearance."
"knew."
He Yan hung up the phone, somewhat surprised: "Director Tang actually thought of this too..."
Liu Yu said smugly, "That's what you call great minds think alike."
Director Tang also felt that he was blind to his own shortcomings. He felt a bit irritable after finishing work today. He ate in the canteen of Zone 7—which was open to the crew during this period, and a group of people who were used to eating all kinds of takeout were extremely grateful and didn't want to leave. After eating, Director Tang originally wanted to take a boat to Zone 3 to check out the scenes, but he missed his stop and went to Zone 4 with the people on the boat!
The people on the boat knew he was a director who was currently filming in town, so they didn't stop him, assuming he was going to District 4 to find Miss Lu.
And so, Director Tang entered Zone 4 of Qinghe Ancient Town, which was not open to outsiders.
He hadn't even been inside when he scouted the area; Lu Xiaoqi said it was the staff accommodation area. Director Tang imagined the accommodation area would be like a courtyard housing many people, with a noisy feel reminiscent of old alleyways and hutongs. But to his surprise, when he entered Zone 4, he was greeted by a tranquil scene of everyday life in a Jiangnan water town.
Old Lady Xiang was sitting on a small stool in front of her courtyard with two other old ladies, sewing a pair of thick cloth soles in the last rays of daylight. Her movements were so practiced they were almost like breathing. They chatted as they worked, bursting into laughter every now and then.
Every now and then, dancers in elaborate costumes and makeup would pass by and nod to the elderly women.
"Getting ready to go to work?"
"That's right. Grandma, it's so dark, the light is bad and it will hurt your eyes. Let's wait until it's brighter tomorrow before we do it."
"I understand, I understand."
In the neighboring courtyard, carpenter Li was carefully planing a wooden board with a plane, the shavings curling and falling, emitting a pleasant woody scent. On the second-floor platform of a house, Wang Wei, dressed in a linen robe, was serenely watering several pots of orchids at the foot of the courtyard wall with a small copper kettle.
Several children were running around in the streets and alleys. Huang Si Niang, who had just returned home, came out of the house with a basin, poured water into the drain in the corner of the wall, and then called out, "Ali, be careful not to fall, don't run too far!"
"Yes, Mother!"
Director Tang stopped and stared intently.
He felt it was strange, and somewhat dazed.
The people here, regardless of age, exude an indescribable charm in their demeanor, gait, and even their choice of words and subtle habits, a charm completely different from modern urban life.
These details, like gentle streams, converge into a powerful and authentic aura that envelops this space, creating a subtle sense of alienation from the modern society in the distance.
"This..." Director Tang's pupils contracted slightly. Wasn't this exactly the feeling he wanted?!
The scenes he wanted to film depicted the young lives of the male and female leads, important anchor points in their lives that would be recalled from time to time after they left their hometown and experienced life's adventures and setbacks. Therefore, Director Tang hoped to create a more refined version of the scenes.
It's as if such a real, vibrant place truly exists in the world.
He was about to accept reality and just let it go if things got really bad, but things took an unexpected turn. It was just a chance encounter that gave him a glimmer of hope.
Just then, a clear voice rang out behind him: "Director Tang?"
Director Tang snapped back to reality, turned around, and saw Lu Xiaoqi standing behind him, a knowing yet somewhat helpless smile on her face. She clearly already knew he had wandered into this place by mistake.
"Mr. Lu..." Director Tang was a little embarrassed, as if he had been caught red-handed for peeping into someone's secret. "Sorry, I missed my stop."
Lu Xiaoqi shrugged: "It's okay, it's not a big deal."
Although there are secrets here, outsiders can't actually find them out. The reason she didn't let the film crew scout the location before was simply because it's a residential area, and filming there would disturb their normal lives.
She had assumed Director Tang would be interested in District Four, but she hadn't expected him to want to borrow someone from her, leaving her somewhat bewildered.
"ah?"
Director Tang was very excited. "President Lu, you are a genius! You have actually created an immersive ancient community! No wonder I feel that many of the staff in your ancient town have a special temperament. They live in this atmosphere every day, and they will become more ancient in nature. It is a great project! You have a vision!"
Lu Xiaoqi: ......
She chuckled twice: "It's alright, it's alright. Making tourists truly feel like they've returned to ancient times is exactly what I want to pursue in the future."
Director Tang's assumption was purely accidental; she would feel a little embarrassed if she were to be praised further.
Director Tang felt even more remorseful after hearing this.
Exactly! He came to Qinghe Ancient Town to film because it's not only beautiful, but it also provides him with an ancient atmosphere, right? How come it's only now that we've realized that a large part of that atmosphere is actually provided by the staff?
I should have thought of that earlier!
It's truly a case of the blind being right under your nose!
He pressed Lu Xiaoqi if he could borrow people, and Lu Xiaoqi didn't object. She thought it was quite interesting: "However, many of our employees have to go to work every day... How about this, I'll ask them for their opinions and let those who are willing sign up themselves."
She shared the message in the group chat for Zone 4.
This group is full of employees she summoned. Everyone was very interested after seeing the message and the discussion was quite lively:
Chef Song wants a vacation: [I want to go! I can play the role of a restaurant owner myself.]
Li Guinian: [This sounds like a lot of fun. Are there any musician roles? If so, I'd love to try it out, but I'm worried I'll steal the spotlight...]
Xiang San Niang: [Don't I need to say any lines? Can I just be a passerby?]
Lin Baosheng: [When is it needed?]
......
Lu Xiaoqi was a little surprised; she hadn't expected everyone to be so enthusiastic. Well, it was certainly interesting to be able to watch the filming up close.
She really wants to go see it!
At four o'clock in the morning on the third day, before dawn, a large group of people had already gathered in Zone 3.
Lu Xiaoqi took a look and said, "Okay, most of the people from District 4 have come."
Of course, she also got up early for once, which was rare for her, so she couldn't miss such a big event!
Su Jun, who was standing next to me, frowned: "Did you get up early? Did you not sleep all night?"
Lu Xiaoqi felt instantly guilty. How could he have seen through her?
"I'll go back to sleep after I finish watching... no," she suddenly realized, "aren't you joining in the fun too? How about playing a rich young master strolling through the market?"
She'd definitely outshine that currently popular male lead. She'd just checked; that young heartthrob was just so-so in real life, not nearly as beautiful as Su Jun.
Su Jun refused.
He wasn't very interested in this. He was only here because he was now in charge of all these people, and he was afraid something might happen.
Lu Xiaoqi didn't want to be an extra; she just wanted to join in the fun.
Even Sister-in-law Song Wu came to join in the fun.
"Fifth Sister-in-law, are you really playing yourself?" Lu Xiaoqi teased her.
Song Wu Sao laughed heartily, with a hint of regret: "The director said there was no such role, and assigned me a role of washing clothes on the riverbank instead."
Let's wash them then. Who hasn't washed a few clothes by the river before? It's a way of reliving the old days.
Just then, the casting assistant director actually came over, heading straight for Su Jun, wanting him to play a cameo role as a wealthy young man who makes a fleeting appearance in the market, with a couple of lines. This caused the male lead's assistant to keep glancing over in their direction.
Lu Xiaoqi burst out laughing.
Su Jun: ......
He naturally declined.
The assistant director's attempts to persuade him failed, and he left regretfully.
Fortunately, apart from Su Jun, everyone else was very interested and cooperated with the crew's instructions to get dressed and styled.
While waiting, you can also whisper and discuss something:
"What dynasty does this clothing belong to?"
"I heard it's a fabricated dynasty."
"No wonder, otherwise it would be an overstepping of the bounds for commoners to wear such colors."
"Hey, we don't care about all that now, as long as it looks good. If we're talking about being particular, look at these street vendors we're playing. In the past, none of them dressed so well. Didn't they all have several patches on their clothes?"
People nowadays really can't understand the suffering of that time...
Zhu Cui also came to join in the fun.
After several months of recuperation and intensive rehabilitation in the hospital, she was able to move around normally, though she had to stop after walking only a short distance. At that moment, she and some other female extras took their assigned costumes and went into a large house to change and wait for their makeup to be done.
Extras don't need makeup, but they do need their hairstyles adjusted.
Zhu Cui watched curiously as the makeup artists styled everyone's hair like an assembly line. Some were simply given a wig or a hair bun, while others required a bun and some accessories. The girls' hands were very nimble and never stopped moving.
"Do you need any help?" she couldn't help but ask as she stepped forward.
The young makeup artist stopped, looking bewildered: "Huh... are you talking to me?"
Zhu Cui smiled and nodded.
"No need, no need, we can do it ourselves." The makeup artist found it somewhat amusing and quickly declined. How could she dare entrust such an important task to an extra?
Zhu Cui was somewhat disappointed.
At this moment, another makeup artist noticed her own hairstyle, paused, and called out to her, "Wait, did you do your own hair?"
Zhu Cui touched her hair. She didn't know what kind of hairstyle to wear today, so she just casually combed her hair into her usual bun and put on a small silver hairpin. Although she hadn't officially started working yet, she still received a basic salary every month.
"It was indeed me who combed it. I used to... specialize in combing people's hair."
The three young makeup artists took one look and saw that her hair was indeed styled very well, requiring no adjustments at all, and she could go straight to her new clothes.
Makeup artist A glanced disapprovingly at makeup artist B and pulled her aside: "Don't make any plans on your own."
"What am I planning?" Makeup artist B glanced at the extras waiting for their hair to be done. "Look at all these people, when will we ever get around to it? What if the lead actors are finished before we're done? We'll get yelled at!"
There were about ten people in the makeup team. They were at the very bottom of the team. The other makeup artists didn't participate in the makeup work for the extras; they were all doing the makeup for the lead actors.
Hearing her say that, the others hesitated as well. Makeup artist B immediately called Zhu Cui over: "Then you can help us out, okay?"
Free help is always welcome.
Zhu Cui didn't care about the payment and immediately agreed: "Of course."
She saw a pile of things on the dressing table and was eager to try them out.
And so, Zhu Cui joined the makeup team as an unofficial member. The makeup artists initially only saw her as an assistant, but after a few minutes, they turned around and found that Zhu Cui was doing the work faster and better than them!
With nimble fingers, she fixed a hairpiece in two minutes and styled a hairstyle in five or six minutes, all while appearing to move with great ease.
The makeup artists exchanged glances: ...
So she's actually a teacher-level professional?! She seems even more skilled than the costume stylists they hired for their training!
After a while, a slightly serious voice sounded behind them: "What are you all gathered around looking at? How's the progress? The lead actors are almost done, the extras need to catch up!"
The person who arrived was the head of the makeup team, known as Sister Fen. She was about forty years old, dressed in neat black overalls, with a stopwatch and walkie-talkie hanging around her neck. Her sharp eyes showed that she was an experienced and demanding person in charge.
She had just finished the lead actors' costume fitting and came over to check on the progress of the extras.
She had initially thought these young girls wouldn't be able to handle it, but to her surprise, they had all done a pretty good job. Some of them even had their hair styled exceptionally well, prompting her to nod in approval repeatedly.
"Great job, you did a very good job today."
I found it strange; I hadn't realized they were at this level before.
Makeup artist A, being rather honest, whispered, "We've hired an assistant..."
Everyone's eyes turned to Zhu Cui.
Zhu Cui gave a shy smile.
After everyone was dressed and made up, they were all rushed to the set that had been prepared, waiting for filming to begin.
"Let's wait for the light." Director Tang glanced at the sky.
So the group of people just waited.
Everyone curiously examined their surroundings, and some couldn't resist taking a closer look—
“Young lady, the order of tying the ties on your ruqun is wrong.” Li Niang also joined in the fun. She was playing a maid, and when she saw a guest actress playing a rich young lady, she couldn’t help but step forward and help her adjust the dress while whispering a reminder, “You should tie this one first and then press this one down, otherwise it will easily come undone and won’t look good.”
She was very skilled and finished in no time, leaving the guest actor speechless.
A costume designer was standing right next to them, and his lips twitched twice.
Where did they find these clueless extras?
The key point is that the actors were right; they were indeed mistaken. Oh well.
"Everyone, listen to my instructions. As soon as you hear 'action,' immediately follow the movement I just taught you..." Finally, when it was time to start filming, the assistant director gave the new extras a series of instructions.
"Don't worry, we know."
"Just pretend you're browsing a market, easy!"
The assistant director nodded after listening, but he was actually quite nervous inside. Was it really that simple? This group of people were all completely new and had never acted before... He was against the idea, but Director Tang insisted.
Why!
The actors are in place.
The script supervisor claps the clapperboard: "Action!"
The people outside the venue quieted down.
Lu Xiaoqi took a spot next to Director Tang and saw the footage on the monitor.
The camera slowly pans across the street.
Sister-in-law Song and several other women from Xiangjia Village were washing clothes by the river. They picked up the garments, soaked them, rubbed them, and beat them – their movements were fluid and practiced, clearly those of experienced washerwomen. They were exchanging pleasantries, seemingly genuinely concerned about whether their clothes would be clean enough for the day.
It's... very real.
The assistant director's furrowed brows relaxed without him even noticing, and even Director Tang, who was standing next to him with his arms crossed, showed a hint of surprise in his eyes.
It's so natural.
The camera shifts to the market.
Most of the extras playing the street vendors were employees of Qinghe Ancient Town, and it wasn't their first time working with a camera. Liu Chan and the employees in the social media department were used to having a camera pointed at their faces from time to time.
In addition, the set design really brought back memories of the old days. The group of people were not too nervous and got into character just like that, as if they had really returned to the state of going to the market and setting up stalls to make a living.
The man selling steamed buns kneaded the dough, stuck the buns into the pan, and fanned a non-existent fire with a palm-leaf fan, all in one smooth motion. He even unconsciously called out a shout. The old woman selling silk flowers was played by Xiang Laoniang. She sat on a small stool, her fingers unconsciously twirling the fake flowers as if checking for loose threads, her eyes looking kindly at passersby. Her demeanor was so natural that she didn't need to act at all.
There were also people going to the market, just like everyone else. Some hurried along, as if rushing to do something; others strolled leisurely, hands behind their backs, stopping at each stall, picking up items to weigh and examine them, their eyes and subtle expressions showing complete immersion in the experience.
Her walking posture and demeanor are impeccable.
Two villagers, pretending to be acquaintances, met on the road and exchanged a natural bow and nod, leaning slightly forward. A maidservant performed a curtsy to a distinguished guest and led her into the shop; these gestures were all fluid and full of ancient charm.
"This..." The assistant director was speechless, and couldn't help but whisper to Director Tang, "These extras are amazing!"
This doesn't look like the first time at all! The positioning, the form...
He even saw a villager playing the role of a peddler carrying a load on a shoulder pole. Because the weight on both ends of the pole wasn't completely balanced, he subtly turned the pole slightly around on his shoulder as he walked, adjusting his center of gravity, and continued on his way.
Another old scholar, dressed reasonably well but with a disheveled air, walked up to the paper and ink stall. He first bowed respectfully, then picked up a roll of antique-style paper from the stall. He habitually rubbed the edge of the paper with his fingers, then looked at the texture against the light. His brows furrowed slightly, as if he were judging the quality of the paper. Finally, he shook his head slightly and put the paper down with a hint of regret.
These details feel natural and authentic.
He Yan, who had also squeezed in, exclaimed in amazement: "Some professional actors can't even design such details."
Lu Xiaoqi struggled to hold back her laughter.
Unexpectedly, Wang Shifo also joined in the fun. That action just now was probably genuine; after all, having seen so much fine paper, it's normal for him to look down on the antique paper props used by the film crew.
Director Tang didn't say anything, he just stared intently at the monitor.
He was initially quite worried, since being natural in real life doesn't guarantee being natural on camera, so this was a gamble. But to his surprise, the extras he found on short notice not only didn't drag the team down, but actually performed exceptionally well, giving the scene incredible vitality and credibility.
This is so much better than the previous scenes we filmed!
Little did he know. For these extras, there was no need for acting; it was simply a matter of reliving their ingrained daily lives on this unfamiliar stage!
"Cut!"
Director Tang finally called "cut".
"Great! Excellent!" He rarely smiled, and even led the applause twice. "The extras are doing a fantastic job! Very realistic! Keep it up! Let's get this one done!"
There was a moment of silence, followed by the sound of staff members exhaling in relief.
It's finally over!
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