Japanese Entertainment: From special effects actor to action superstar

Chapter 269: Horrifying Use of Lenses
Nara, film set.

The makeup artist held Yakushimaru Hiroko's shoulders and carefully applied makeup to the little girl, applying a layer of makeup with slight dark circles.

At this moment, Yakushimaru Hiroko was wearing a pure white kimono. Gu Ming didn't know the specific style of the kimono, but it seemed to be a "yukata", pure white, which did not have a good symbolic meaning.

"But I heard that people wear white kimonos at weddings too!"

"As for the Shiromuku, there are people like that, but I don't think anyone would wear a kimono to a wedding these days."

The makeup artist responded with a nod, finished the makeup, looked in the mirror, and nodded with satisfaction.

It seems that her craft is quite good.

Yakushimaru Hiroko looked at herself in the mirror. Her makeup didn't look scary. Rather than being horrible, it looked more like a haggard face with a hint of gloom.

Gu Ming suddenly said, "Lower your gaze a little, and be more focused."

Yakushimaru Hiroko lowered her eyes as she was told, staring at the bottles and jars half-empty in front of her, her fingertips resting on her drooping furisode, looking indescribably melancholy and sad.

Gu Ming crossed his arms and couldn't help but admire the scene.

"There's sad music playing, and she looks melancholy. Just keep it that way. Makeup artist, apply another layer of lip gloss. Make her lips appear blood red and her face pale. The contrast should be more pronounced. In short, it should be obvious at first glance that she's not human, but absolutely not scary."

Gu Mingde said that this child's acting ability is quite outstanding. In terms of acting skills, it is probably several times better than Gu Ming.

It turns out that talented children are different from those without talent.

When the makeup artist finished the makeup, Gu Ming became more and more satisfied.

This was pretty much the effect he wanted.

Yakushimaru Hiroko tried hard to raise her head and look at Gu Ming.

"I don't understand. If it's a ghost, why does it want to appear to be something that can't scare people?"

"Horror films are meant to scare people, but what we're shooting isn't a horror film. Furthermore, the character you play, Himuro Kirie, isn't just a ghost; she's also a crucial part of this story. As a sacrificial offering, she bears a huge responsibility that doesn't belong to her. The intense regret after losing everything is enough to overwhelm even a grown man."

"So, instead of portraying her terrifying side, it's better to completely downplay that."

Lin Zhengying's zombie films always mix in many different elements, such as resentful female ghosts, weddings, and so on.

Among them, the more classic ones include Ghost Queen Wang Xiaofeng, Red and White Wedding Ceremony, etc.

The influence of these lenses cannot be extended to European and American countries, but they are popular in Asia.

Later, Koreans loved zombie movies very much, and many works of the same type contained similar tribute scenes.

These female ghosts are always resentful and lovable, and one of them fell in love with Uncle Jiu.

Lin Zhengying liked to shoot "The Two Worlds", but Gu Ming did not agree with that approach on this point.

Since there is affection, humans and ghosts can of course be together, and foxes can also be together. This is recorded in many books in "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio".

Seeing that she had finished her makeup, Gu Ming was not in a hurry to shoot.

Film is required for shooting, and film is very expensive.

"The script is here. Try to understand Himuro Kirie's emotions first, and then we can start filming."

After saying that, Gu Ming turned around and went outside to prepare the set.

There are not many scenes in the film where female ghosts appear, but they are all crucial.

First of all, when the foursome entered the mansion, they were targeted by the female ghost. Because one of the foursome, Arina Hashimoto, had a strong sense of inspiration, she was able to sense the other's presence.

At this moment, the female ghost, Kirie, cannot frequently emerge, as she remains trapped. A villainous Onmyoji, Sora Aoi, of the Jiuju School, played by Michiko Nishiwaki, is plotting to sacrifice the protagonists to free Kirie and utilize the intense resentment within. However, they unexpectedly discover that while they thought they had apprehended four petty thieves, they have also stabbed Laos, revealing a genuine Onmyoji like Ken Shimizu.

Just when Aoi was forced into a desperate situation, the guide of the four-person group, Yamagata Ken, did not listen to the advice, but accidentally lifted the seal and released Kirie...

In short, it’s a short ninety minutes but packed with content.

Leaving Yakushimaru Hiroko to process his thoughts and feelings, Gu Ming changed into his costume and went outside the mansion with the others.

At this moment, Nakajima Haruo was wearing a red windbreaker, gloves, a hat, and a lot of bags, looking like a real tour guide.

He plays the tour guide, Ken Yamagata, in the four-member group.

"We're here. This is the 'Ice House' you were looking for. It was just recently cleaned out. How is it? Is the environment pretty good?"

Hashimoto Arina nodded in agreement, speaking some literary lines.

"With cherry blossoms in bloom in spring and blanketed in snow in winter, this courtyard embodies the subtle spirit of Eastern aesthetics!"

Kato Ying nodded in agreement, and echoed repeatedly, like a humble bootlicker.

Shimizu Kensuke shook his head, frowning and looking worried.

"Look at this courtyard, it's deep and filled with resentment. Many people must have died here before. How could they live here?"

"Shimizu-kun, you're such a bummer! This is clearly a very wabi-sabi garden!"

As they talked, they walked into the courtyard as if jokingly.

“Wow, there’s also a dry landscape!”

The ancient dry landscape garden is really rare for people living in the city. Even Ken Shimizu couldn't help but cast his eyes over it.

Gu Ming looked outside the venue. Jissoji Akio raised his hand and made an OK gesture, and asked the four people to stand on the dry landscape side and speak some lines to each other.

Later, he would gradually zoom out the camera, separating the two from the shoji door. On one side was the quiet dry landscape garden of Xuanwa, and on the other side, a shadowy person appeared.

Himuro Kirie just stood there, her brows lowered, exuding a coldness.

The camera will eventually fixate on a patch of flowers, and it looks like there is a third party watching all this, secretly observing and controlling the entire situation.

Then, the scene changes and it will be evening and sunset.

It is both a transition and an atmosphere rendering, because this dark red color often represents danger and hidden murderous intent, giving people a strong sense of unease, thereby creating the uniqueness of this place.

As he took the photos, Jissoji Akio felt that it was inexplicably easy.

Don't even say it.

This design is like a punch to his heart!
Gu Ming was too embarrassed to say it.

It will definitely hit the spot! Because this design language is designed specifically for Jissoji Akio's preferences.

He likes to use third-person perspective, rear-end shots, symmetrical images, Noh aesthetics, etc., he was born to make horror movies!

Gu Ming thought about not filming The Grudge anymore.

Chiaki Konaka, known as the 'Tetsuo Kinjo of the Heisei era', collaborated with Takashi Shimizu on The Grudge.

Even if he had a living Tetsuo Kaneshiro here, it would be better for him to have time to directly match them up and set up a party.

Tetsuo Kinjo and Akio Jissoji, a high-end version of The Grudge!
(End of this chapter)