Chapter 542 Study (Two chapters combined) The script reading session was in full swing, and on the other side, Shang Yechu also began to adjust his acting style based on the discussion results.
The Celestial Ruler is not simply a god, but a more complex being. In the script, a group of scientists realize that human civilization is about to perish, so they create the "Celestial Ruler," the vessel of civilization, hoping that He can continue it.
This role demands a non-human quality, which is precisely the most difficult aspect to achieve. One cannot be as compassionate and sentimental as a saint, nor can one maintain a blank, expressionless face throughout. Shang Yechu discussed this issue repeatedly with Shao Guangji during the reading session. Other members of the production team also actively offered their opinions, but a consensus was still not reached.
Shao Guangji, a cultured man, offered four words: "both thick and thin."
It is profound because it embodies civilization; it is shallow because it lacks humanity and genuine social experience.
The original author, Ai Xiaodong, was a hands-off manager, only saying one sentence: "I don't know. In my imagination, He is just an old man."
The suggestions from other members of the crew were varied and mostly aimed at making things worse.
Lu Hongyi believes that Shang Yechu should portray the majesty of an emperor, or watch "Journey to the West" a couple more times and learn from those otherworldly immortals.
Russian actor Maxim said he could show Shang Yechu his collection of Tsarist and Virgin Mary statues for reference.
American actor Lucas suggested that Shang Yechu could watch more Hollywood movies and TV shows depicting God.
Nina Meyer said that her father had a friend who was a painter, who was unconventional (Shang Yechu subtly reminded her that he was "unreliable" or "neither fish nor fowl"), and she felt that the other person was quite unlike a human being. Perhaps Shang Yechu could learn from that kind of artistic temperament.
Shang Yechu himself believed that civilization was not simply about imperial power, divine power, and art. After all, civilization is created by humans; if it were just these three things, wouldn't people have starved to death long ago?
Aside from the issue of the lead actor, everything else is progressing smoothly. The reading session should be able to be completed smoothly within the expected timeframe.
Besides filming, something else is rather unusual. Recently, Weibo seems to have taken a drastic turn, constantly dragging her into the spotlight. Shang Ye Chu can appear on three or four trending topics in a single day. Things like "Ye Chu scolds fans," "Ye Chu's rumored boyfriend is too handsome," "Who gave Ye Chu the green dress?", "The director of Ye Chu's new film is a newcomer," "Ye Chu single-handedly carries Happiness Street's 2.5 billion box office," "Ye Chu acts like a diva," and "Ye Chu has such good connections with directors." It's a mix of positive and negative, seemingly positive but actually negative, occasionally mixed with some juicy rumors. This has kept Qingping Entertainment's PR department working non-stop, barely able to keep up.
Most of these trending topics are based on hearsay. But at this rate, netizens will eventually get tired of Shang Yechu. The young members are working day and night, and they're all exhausted.
Buying trending topics isn't free. I wonder who's so rich and powerful, constantly providing topics for Shang Yechu!
Even Ji Juntao was completely baffled by the matter. The company had investigated and found that the marketing accounts involved in these discussions included henchmen of Tianding Entertainment, lackeys of Guanjun Century, pawns of Meta Pictures, and some other opportunistic scoundrels. While Shang Yechu was gaining momentum, he wasn't a threat to the point of creating a frenzy of conflict. How could things have suddenly turned out like this?
Fortunately, this situation wasn't unique to one person. Besides Shang Yechu, several currently popular young male and female actors in the Chinese entertainment industry also lined up on the trending topics list. Even the most trivial and trivial matters were hotly debated. For a time, the trending topics list was filled with stars, giving the impression that the Chinese entertainment industry was on the verge of collapse.
Shang Yechu was well aware of this situation. It usually happens when a major scandal breaks out in the entertainment industry, requiring other celebrities to be dragged into the fray to divert attention. As a top star, Shang Yechu was naturally the most frequently targeted.
What kind of scandal, what kind of power, could drag so many people down with it?
These matters only briefly crossed Shang Yechu's mind before she crushed them with a single finger. "The Heavenly Emperor" was the most important thing in the world. She had already made a grave mistake by almost missing an entire script reading session because of those baseless rumors. To worry about these worthless trending topics now was simply asking for trouble.
After each daily reading session, Shang Yechu would hastily stuff herself with food and rush back to her room to study the play. She had memorized the script of "The Heavenly Emperor" perfectly. Every day, she would talk and talk, interpreting each line of dialogue over and over again in various accents.
The pronunciation of ancient Chinese is different from that of modern Chinese. Therefore, before attending the reading session, Shang Yechu had already intermittently studied a great deal of Old Chinese, Middle Chinese, and Early Old Chinese. Finally, he realized: commercial film stars can only speak Mandarin, so all his efforts were completely wasted.
Later, Shang Yechu focused her efforts on studying the expressions and mannerisms of ancient people. However, due to a series of events such as the filming of "Anna Doriya," the promotional tour for "Happy Street," and her breakup with Yang Huanyi, this effort was never able to be carried out systematically.
Frequent filming schedules and no downtime are certainly good things in the eyes of fans. But in Shang Yechu's own view, it is actually not conducive to improving her acting skills, understanding the characters, and immersing herself in the emotions. These things all take time.
"The Heavenly Emperor" is Shang Yechu's obsession across two lifetimes. To make this drama a success, Shang Yechu schemed against Shi Shan, spent all her savings, and even neglected Yang Huanyi during their most passionate love affair, never even wearing matching outfits with her, leaving behind countless regrets. If she fails to make this drama well, Shang Yechu might as well give up on life.
Therefore, Shang Yechu began to drastically reduce his rest time, dedicating every spare minute to the role.
103 had become accustomed to this, silently hypnotizing Shang Yechu every day to ensure her sleep quality. Managing, or rather persuading, Shang Yechu was more difficult than unifying the world, and 103 had long since given up.
Shang Ye Chu purchased numerous paintings and posters of all sizes. The content consisted entirely of famous paintings, sculptures, and photographs from ancient China, including genre paintings, depictions of daily life in the city, portraits of court ladies, Buddhist and Taoist deities, murals, and photographs. In addition, there were many calligraphy works by renowned artists. He instructed his assistant to hang these paintings throughout the room, leaving no trace. Even the mirror above the washbasin was adorned with a painting of Nuwa bestowing a child.
In this way, Shang Yechu could see the images and postures of these ancient people at any time and study them.
These paintings made Shang Yechu's room eerily quiet, like a sealed place covered in talismans. One day, Nina Mel came to visit, just as the painting project was completed. Shang Yechu stood in the room bathed in a dappled, yellowish light, wearing a white bathrobe. The windowpanes were also adorned with paintings and calligraphy; sunlight stubbornly pierced through the paper, and five thousand years of splendor flowed over Shang Yechu, making her appear like an indescribable ancient god.
Nina Mel screamed in fright, thinking she had stumbled upon a fortune teller, and collapsed to the ground in terror. Shang Yechu had to use both hands and feet to comfort her for quite some time before she could barely calm her down. After that, Nina would occasionally try to have her fortune told by Shang Yechu, but that's another story.
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