This actor has something

Chapter 469 Certainty and Uncertainty
Those who are close to Zhu are close to those who are black.

Looking at Ning Hao, who was holding his phone and not telling the truth, relying entirely on jokes to appease the other party, Lu Yang felt that Ning Hao's current state was very similar to He Daqi.

A famous director is like an invisible little circle in the entertainment industry, a fact that Lu Yang now understands all too well.

Even so, every time he was preparing for a movie, Ya Yue would take care of the casting for him. He didn't have to conduct the auditions himself; he only needed to select the actors who fit his image of the character from the final list. Gradually, he also formed a small circle of friends.

In a society where personal relationships are important, you can't simply avoid them. When you're working together, if you feel you get along well or have a particularly good conversation, you'll inevitably start to look at the other person differently. So, if you're preparing to make a movie again, would you give the other person a chance to try?
If Lu Yang, who doesn't have much say in player selection, is in this situation, then Ning Hao is even worse off.

Ever since they learned that Ning Hao was going to start a new film crew, people have been calling in droves trying to pull strings.

What is Ning Hao's current status? This guy is a complete dark horse. Since he rose to fame, none of his movies have grossed less than 100 million yuan. He even knocked Zhang Yimou down with a flurry of punches and took the top spot on the charts.

Therefore, anyone who dares to ask him for a favor must have some status and be too embarrassed to show their face. It's not easy for any of them to refuse, so they can only laugh it off.

To put it bluntly, even the roles in Ning Hao's production team are highly sought after by Ya Yue; how many can possibly be handed over to outsiders?

However, some people passed Ning Hao's test without examination. After all, everyone has a white moonlight in their heart, right? For example, Ning Hao's white moonlight is Huang Bo.

This guy has been using Huang Bo relentlessly. Anyone who didn't know better would think Huang Bo had given him some kind of big gift. So much so that whenever Ning Hao was preparing for a film crew, his first thought was always to check the script to see which role was suitable for Huang Bo.

He Daqi had made fun of him about this a few days ago, but Ning Hao pretended not to hear and looked indifferent. Or perhaps he had become immune to He Daqi and knew that he was no match for He Daqi in gossip.

"So after all this work, you've only secured one role, the Japanese translator, and Huang Bo is going to play it?"

"I've mainly been organizing the script and researching materials lately, and I haven't put much thought into the actors at all. Now that I've almost finished organizing it, I'm starting to think about the characters."

Ning Hao was writing something while lying on the table. Even when He Daqi dragged a chair to sit next to him and asked him a question, Ning Hao did not stop writing. He replied a few words without looking up, his mind completely focused on the notebook in front of him.

He Daqi glanced at it and saw that he was connecting the characters' storylines. He thought it was unnecessary. When it comes to filming, how can actors think about these things? They rely purely on the rhythm of the moment. Of course, this is just some of the insights that He Daqi, who became a movie star through the system, has. It is not the understanding of other normal actors.

He also took out a notebook from his bag and started flipping through the scripts for the variety show "Infinite Challenge" in the video library.

Believe it or not, the two of them were huddled together at a table, writing and drawing, making it look like they were in a study session. Behind them was Lu Yang, who was doing post-production work on a movie, holding a laptop and frowning in deep thought.

"Sigh!" Ning Hao nudged He Daqi with his elbow after finishing writing.

"what?"

"Are you really not going to play the lead role in 'Jinling Photo Studio'? Young, handsome, and with great acting skills, this role is practically tailor-made for you. Since you wrote this script, you must have put yourself into it. Why don't you want to act in it now?"

Ning Hao felt that the lead actor in his new movie could still be salvaged, so he wanted to keep pestering He Daqi to see if he could bring him back as the lead.

Putting everything else aside, just getting He Daqi to play the lead role guarantees at least a minimum. His large fan base will boost the early box office. Not to mention, He Daqi can also spend money on ticket subsidies. Ning Hao was also very envious of the resources that Zhang Yimou got when Painted Skin was released.

Unfortunately, he miscalculated. He Daqi's script was entirely plagiarized. He never even considered that he would choose to play the lead role just because of his passion for creating the script.

This kind of thing is perfect for promoting your own artists.

Thinking of this, He Daqi stopped writing and turned to look at Ning Hao.

"You know I poached two entertainers from South Korea, right?"

"I know, I've seen him once before. Just by looking at his appearance, you can tell he's suited for the entertainment industry."

"Which of them do you think is more suitable to be the lead in the movie 'Jinling Photo Studio'?" He Dayi asked, twirling his pen with his finger.

"Are you kidding me?" Ning Hao's eyes widened in surprise.

"No, I'm asking sincerely. Don't worry about their acting not being suitable during filming. I'll be there for a while and teach them how to act step by step. So, which one do you think is more suitable?" He Daqi said, while showing Ning Hao a group photo from his phone.

When Ning Hao saw that He Daqi was serious, his face immediately turned into a "囧" (a Chinese character meaning awkward or embarrassed), and he looked extremely worried.

After a long pause, he sighed and said, "If we were to choose normally, just by looking at their faces, we would know that Zhang Jiashuai is definitely more suitable to be an actor. However, the lead role in the movie 'Jinling Photo Studio' is more suitable for Lu Han. But we need to make sure the makeup and styling are done well, otherwise it will look out of place."

He Daqi was somewhat surprised by Ning Hao's choice. To be honest, in this situation where he had to choose between the two, he thought Ning Hao would choose Zhang Jiashuai without hesitation, but he did not expect Ning Hao to choose Lu Han.

But it's all the same, just choose whichever one you like. He trusts Ning Hao's judgment. After all, when filming No Man's Land, who could have imagined that Huang Bo's demeanor would change so much after shaving his head?

"Let's give the role of Lin Yuxiu to Yang Rong. Of course, if you have your own ideas, then go with your ideas."

“I don’t have my own ideas, but Sister Hua gave me a heads-up beforehand; she wants to give this role to Fan Bingbing,” Ning Hao said with a strange expression.

He Daqi smacked his lips, chuckled, and said, "I'll talk to Sister Hua and see if she can recommend someone else. It's really interesting. Fan Bingbing isn't even an actress from Ya Yue, but she's doing very well at Hua Yi. It's really kind of Sister Hua to still think about her so often."

Ning Hao shrugged and didn't say anything more.

He Daqi then got up and walked towards Wang Jinghua's office, intending to talk to her about the casting.

……

……

Bright sunshine, a handsome young man in a white shirt, unspoken emotions of youth, and the memory of a bicycle—none of these things have anything to do with summer in Beijing.

The real summer in Beijing is when you sweat profusely with the slightest movement, and the electric fan blows hot air so hard it feels like you're being dried out.

Being on set in this heat is unbearable; I feel like I could die.

He Daqi's arrival was like spring rain nourishing parched fields, not because he himself possessed any magic, but because he brought two refrigerated trucks with him.

He Daqi almost forgot about these two vehicles if he didn't ask about them. They were kept at Yonghui Qiming's place as ordinary trucks and were only driven a few times a year.

This situation is purely because He Daqi has too much money to burn. Just like his son and daughter's pile of toys, he bought too many things and doesn't even know the count. He only remembers when he needs to use them, and it seems like he bought them before.

A truckload of watermelons and another of ice water instantly cooled down the heat on set by a third. To be honest, in the sweltering summer, refrigerated trucks are quite useful. The temperature is adjustable, and you don't even need to set it below zero; five or six degrees is enough. He Daqi was currently enjoying a slice of chilled watermelon, and Zhou Xun beside him wasn't much better off.

"Actually, we usually don't work in the summer, and we don't work much in the winter either because it's too cold. Unless it's a scene of heavy snow in Northeast China, the director doesn't want to suffer like that. It's a pity that Old Zhang is a hardworking man who can't sit still for a moment. He insists on starting filming right away. Otherwise, postponing it for two months would be much more comfortable."

Seeing Zhou Xun's disheveled state, He Daqi could only apologize in his heart. Then, after a series of verbal sparring, the stainless steel pot became as slippery as if it had been coated with oil, and he easily threw it at Zhang Yimou.

"I remember you bought these two cars when you filmed the first Painted Skin movie, right? I was thinking recently whether I should call you to borrow one, but I was too embarrassed to do so. Luckily you brought the car when you came to make a cameo appearance, otherwise this summer would have been unbearable."

Zhou Xun didn't talk much with He Daqi about Zhang Yimou, and immediately changed the subject to the refrigerated truck, clearly just making conversation.

Since he couldn't stay with Old Zhang the Cricket, He Daqi had nothing to talk about with Zhou Xun. After exchanging a few casual words, he ate his watermelon and headed towards Lu Han and Zhang Jiashuai.

"Teacher He." X2
"How was it? Did you learn anything under Director Zhang?"

How are you supposed to answer that question?

Lu Han and Zhang Jiashuai repeatedly expressed that Zhang Yimou had taught them a lot and that they had made significant progress.

This is not just empty talk; Zhang Yimou is indeed quite good at teaching new actors.

Even for the sake of the quality of his own film, he cared a lot about Lu Han and Zhang Jiashuai.

Putting aside the acting issues, Zhang Yimou had to repeatedly consider the roles of the two characters in the script before finalizing them with a group of screenwriters.

He Daqi previously stated that, if possible, the third installment of Painted Skin would revolve around Lu Han and Zhang Jiashuai.

So even though Zhang Yimou felt he wouldn't be making a third film, he still arranged the roles of these two characters very well.

The two actors had a moderate amount of screen time in Painted Skin 2, playing a pair of newly debuted demon hunter brothers. Their first appearance was a chaotic demon-hunting scene, where a small demon gave them quite a hard time. Later, they fought against a fox demon played by Zhou Xun and were badly beaten. Fortunately, a powerful figure came to their rescue, saving their lives. They then went to learn new skills from the powerful figure and essentially exited the storyline of Painted Skin 2.

Look how well it's arranged!

If they were to make a third installment, they could simply use this background to continue the story. For example, the characters could return after completing their training and want to have another go at the fox demon. Or, if Zhou Xun is too lazy to make a third installment, then a new demon could appear and start a new story with the two brothers.

It must have been tough on Old Zhang; he really put his heart into it.

After finding out the roles played by Lu Han and Zhang Jiashuai, He Daqi patted the two on the shoulder with a smile, offered a few words of encouragement, and then strolled over to Zhang Yimou.

"Director Zhang, what role will I be playing this time?" He Daqi asked with a smile.

This question only proved that He Daqi hadn't even read the script Zhang Yimou had given him, which made Zhang Yimou purse his lips in disapproval.

Fortunately, he had worked with He Daqi before and knew how amazing He Daqi's acting skills were, so he didn't care too much about it. It was just a cameo role, and for He Daqi, it was probably something he could finish without even putting in any effort.

"You are playing the reincarnation of Wang Sheng, but you don't recognize Xiao Wei anymore. By chance, you meet Xiao Wei again. After testing you a few times, Xiao Wei discovers that you are no longer Wang Sheng, so she turns around and leaves, never to be seen again."

"Okay, got it."

He Daqi agreed, but didn't continue chatting with Old Zhang, so he started wandering around.

He could vaguely see that the script Zhang Yimou had placed on the table and opened was not Painted Skin 2. After taking a closer look across the table, he seemed to see the words "Jinling". He immediately guessed that this was the script for The Flowers of War.

He Daqi secretly began to wonder, how could this old Zhang have so much energy every day, always wanting more than he has? Painted Skin 2 has only been filming for a short time, and he's already thinking about The Flowers of War.

Perhaps noticing He Daqi's gaze, Zhang Yimou remained expressionless, casually closed the script, put it in a drawer, and then, ignoring He Daqi, got up to call the crew members and begin arranging the set.

Between playing on his phone, reading scripts, and wandering around aimlessly, He Daqi chose to wander around aimlessly.

He and Zhang Yimou were on the same set, one after the other. While Zhang Yimou was arranging the staff, He Daqi started wandering around the film crew.

"Da Qi!"

Upon hearing the familiar call, He Daqi immediately turned around.

"Sister Hua, what brings you here?"

"Can't I come yet? Perfect timing, I have something to tell you, no need to call you again. Ning Hao's choice of Yang Rong for the female lead is fine, you chose Lu Han for the male lead, and Ning Hao chose Huang Bo for the other male lead, so you don't have any ideas about the supporting roles, right?"

He Daqi shook his head: "No, Sister Hua, you can arrange it however you like."

"That's fine then, it's settled. You can continue strolling around, I'll go chat with Director Zhang for a bit." Wang Jinghua nodded, said this, and turned to head towards Zhang Yimou.

You can vaguely hear the two talking about actors, and the words "The Flowers of War" are not very clear. He Daqi raised an eyebrow. It seems that Wong Jinghua has already started thinking about Zhang Yimou's next film.

As Wang Jinghua was talking, her phone suddenly rang. She took it out, glanced at it, and realized it was a call she needed to answer. So she gave Zhang Yimou an apologetic smile and picked it up.

"Signed? Great, I'm right next to Director Zhang, I can talk to him about it, nothing else to say first... Who?! Okay, I got it."

Wang Jinghua's voice was quite loud, so much so that He Daqi and Zhang Yimou couldn't help but glance at her, wondering what had surprised her so much.

He Daqi wasn't far from the two of them at that moment, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to vaguely hear their conversation.

After hanging up the phone, Wang Jinghua saw He Daqi looking over curiously. Without hiding anything, she waved and told He Daqi and Zhang Yimou what she had just heard as he approached.

Michael Jackson has passed away.

"Sister Hua, you also follow news from abroad?"

"No, that's not it. My husband and I had planned to go to Michael's farewell concert together. It was originally scheduled for the beginning of next month, but unexpectedly..."

(End of this chapter)