Rebirth of Chinese Entertainment, the Diary of a 95 Flower

"Acting director Jiang Yang brought us drinks, breakfast, steamed buns, fried noodles, and extras, as well as featured extras!"

Gulnazar's two assistants carried styrofoam boxes into the film set.

Those extras who hadn't gotten a scene all got up and swarmed over.

The announcement at 4:30 AM: Breakfast consists of a sugar-free steamed bun, a tea egg, and a cup of sealed soy milk.

There's no fragrance like the one Jiang Yang arranged.

Every extra gets a role, not to mention the actors who are part of the production crew.

With better food, everyone worked with more enthusiasm.

Even Zhong Shujia got a breakfast, drinking hot pumpkin porridge: "This Jiang Yang is quite good at getting things done. Everyone remembers him after just one breakfast. But why is he using Gulina's assistant instead of his own?"

In the RV.

Gulnazar, still sporting the makeup and styling of Xu Yourong from "Fighter of the Destiny," sat in a chair.

I chatted with Jiang Yang about the plot we had just acted out.

Looking out at the film set, Gulnazar, holding her script, said the same thing to Jiang Yang: "Jiang Yang, you really should hire an assistant."

indeed.

As business grows, it's impossible to do everything myself.

Chao Yuexi and the others definitely can't do it.

Who should we assign?

I just explained the key points of this scene to Gulnazar and let her think about it for a while.

If Gulnazar can understand it, that's good; if she can't, then he'll have another daughter.

He used the same "fatherhood technique" that he first taught Chao Yuexi and Wei Haocun.

He combined this with the makeup skills he learned from young actresses, and it always worked.

Jiang Yang sent Bai Lu a message: ["Come to Hengdian and be my assistant."]
"Okay, boss, let's go."
Bailu sent another message: ["Um, just one more question, do assistants get a raise?"]
Jiang Yang typed: ["You're dreaming. Being an assistant allows you to gain experience, which money can't buy. It's priceless. You should adjust your mindset and treat the company like your home."]
Bai Lu replied: [“I can spend my own money whenever I want, but can I spend the company's money?”]
Why are you so disobedient?

It's like the company hired a seasoned veteran.

Jiang Yang sent a message: [“Hurry up and come on set to learn more.”]
"Film set? Are you joining the film crew?"
"Of course! Did you think I was asking you to be my personal assistant? You'd expose all my private life then!"
[“I’m leaving right now. Money doesn’t matter. Um, Jiang Yang, do you have any enemies on set? I’ll get some dirt on them for you.”]
Jiang Yang replied: ["Just don't cause me any trouble, otherwise you'll become my dirt!"]
Gulnazar looked out of the RV and saw her assistant serving breakfast to Jiang Yang: "Jiang Yang, it feels a bit strange to have my assistant doing your work."

"How strange."

"It's like you're the one who did it to me."

"Nazha, speak properly and stop making inappropriate jokes all the time. This is a film set, aren't you afraid of it getting out?"

"What are you afraid of? It's just the two of us here."

Gulnazar didn't look in Jiang Yang's direction; she kept her head down, looking at the script.

Little by little, I tried to immerse myself in the character's emotions.

Frowning sometimes.

He sighed from time to time.

In the end, I couldn't get into the female lead's emotional breakdown about separating from the main character.

"Jiang Yang, I still can't get into the emotions the director wants."

"Then let's hold off for now."

Jiang Yang was doing her makeup in front of the vanity mirror.

I chatted with Gulnazar in a casual way.

After the breakfast outside was served, some actors' costumes had wardrobe malfunctions, and the linings couldn't be covered up, so the prop master had to use a stapler to fix them up.

Some of the extras were talking about who Coach Jiang was, saying that he even bought breakfast for them and thanked him.

Some extras scoffed, saying, "What's there to thank? Their income is definitely higher than ours. Why should we thank them? They should be treated this well every time."

The scenes being filmed are those of Gulnazar.

Naza has gone into the RV; everyone outside is resting.

Zhong Shujia gave Jiang Yang thirty minutes to coach Gulinazha's acting skills.

"Nazha, you just said that when you were in school, your dad often recited which ancient poem to you?" Gulina asked Jiang Yang.

"It's that saying, 'Realize that the past cannot be changed,' and then..."

Jiang Yang suddenly replied, "We know that those who come after us can be pursued."

Gulnazar tightened her grip on the script.

The mouth is slightly open.

I can't believe what I just heard.

Jiang Yang's voice just now wasn't his usual way of speaking.

The breathy sound at the end of the sentence has Xingjiang's unique nasal resonance, and the timbre is very similar to his father's.

He coughed slightly after speaking.

His father had pharyngitis and a habit of coughing.

Gulnazar's neck was taut as she slowly turned her head.

The first thing I saw was Jiang Yang's reflection in the makeup mirror.

Use contour powder to narrow the temples.

Narrow forehead is a common feature among men in Xingjiang.

Deep-set eyes.

There are creases around the eyes.

There are fine lines on my temples.

Thick eyebrows with high arches, and chapped lips.

He doesn't look exactly like his father, but he does resemble him by about 70-80%.

Especially the charm in their eyes.

"Nazha, do I look like your father now?"

“No, not at all. Chaoyue Xiwei and the others called you Dad, but I would never call you that.” Gulnazar laughed.

She understood that Jiang Yang was using his unique method to help her immerse herself in the character's emotions.

I had experienced that once before at Lemon Movies in Beiping.

"Guna, how have you been these past two years?" Jiang Yang asked softly, his voice tinged with Uyghur.

As Gulnazar laughed, she suddenly bit her lower lip.

Back home, my dad often called me by my nickname, one of which was Guna.

She put the script aside, feeling as if something had pierced her heart.

That number in my phone will never ring again.

Gulnazar tugged at the embroidery on her dress with her fingers and whispered, "I'm doing very well. I've been doing very well in the two years you were gone. I'm famous now, I'm rich, a lot of people know me, and I'm qualified to compete for the top spot in the company."

She turned away.

She tried not to look at Jiang Yang, her shoulders trembling slightly: "But you're not good. You haven't appeared in my dreams for a long time. If it weren't for the old photos and videos, I would have almost forgotten what you look like."

Gulnazar recounted the events that had happened to her over the past two years.

Jiang Yang did not disturb him.

This was the effect he wanted, but it wasn't enough.

Gulina slowly turned around, stared at Jiang Yang for several seconds, and didn't call out Jiang Yang's name: "Can you hug me?"

“Guna…”

Jiang Yang smiled and nodded.

Just as he was about to get up, Gulinaza came over first, squatted down, and lay on Jiang Yang's knees: "Actually, I haven't had a good time these past two years."

"how?"

"I……"

Gulnazar's voice choked with emotion.

"People online are criticizing me, saying I can't do anything and only rely on my looks to make a living."

"Every time I trend on social media, it's either for praising my beauty or criticizing my acting skills."

"I recently enabled commenting on Weibo, and sometimes when I wake up in the middle of the night, my private messages are full of people telling me to get out of the entertainment industry, saying they can't stand watching even one episode of my shows."

"I've made a lot of money, but I don't even have a single friend I can tell the truth to..."

"People around me smile at me, but I don't know if they're secretly calling me a 'pretty face'."

“I need to take medication every day to fall asleep… The doctor said I’m too anxious, but I’m afraid to stop.”

A stranger's casually typed words became the cause of the illness on a psychologist's diagnosis report.

She gripped Jiang Yang's sleeve tightly.

Like grasping at a straw.

"I know I'm not good enough for those big-budget productions."

"But I didn't dare refuse, afraid that if I did, I wouldn't have another chance."

"Sometimes when I'm on set, the director yells 'three, two, one,' and I start, my mind goes completely blank."

"I know I didn't act well, but I don't know how to act better."

Speaking of the back.

Gulnazar's shoulders trembled and her voice quivered.

Looking up at Jiang Yang, she asked, "Am I particularly useless?"

"I used to think I was amazing, but now, I don't even dare to look in the mirror."

"I regret so many things. I regret not studying acting properly, and I regret not listening to you and staying calm."

"I even regret entering this industry."

Gulnazar's last words were choked with emotion: "Tell me, am I really that bad? I wish I had a chance to start my life over again, so I could make different choices in many situations."

Jiang Yang held Gulinazha's hand.

Gulina trembled slightly, but remained lying on Jiang Yang's knees.

He didn't look up at Jiang Yang.

He could hear his father's voice in his ear: "Actually, it's impossible for a person to be right every step of the way in life. If you make a wrong choice, you make a wrong choice. There are no wasted steps. Every step counts."

"Don't always belittle your past self. You were also standing alone in the fog, feeling lost and confused."

"If I could do it all over again, with my experience and mindset at the time, I would still make the same choice."

Hear the words.

Gulina tightened her grip on Jiang Yang's hand.

Eyelashes fluttered.

My vision was blurry.

She felt Jiang Yang gently stroking her back with his other hand.

It's like when I was a child, and my father would comfort me when I was in a bad mood.

He knew perfectly well that Jiang Yang was impersonating his father.

But I still hope it's true.

As she listened to Jiang Yang's words, Gulinazha's eyes gradually cleared.

Jiang Yang continued, speaking with a Uyghur accent: "We can't stand at our current height to criticize our past selves. To regret is to bully our past selves."

Finally, he mentioned the poem his father had told him when he was a child: "The past cannot be changed, but the future can be pursued."

"The error is not far off; what is right now is wrong yesterday."

"Knowing our shortcomings, we strive forward and head towards distant mountains."

Gulnazar's previously tense shoulders gradually relaxed.

She slowly loosened her grip on Jiang Yang's hand and instead gently grasped his sleeve.

Her face remained buried in Jiang Yang's knees.

My breathing became steady.

A slight upturn at the corners of his mouth revealed a relieved smile.

The confusion in his eyes was replaced by determination.

Now, at least I know where I went wrong.

Those people online who criticize their own acting skills are absolutely right.

But it will let those people watch, watch how I tear off the label of "vase" inch by inch.

“I’m only now beginning to understand the poems my father taught me,” Gulnazar murmured.

But when I was a child.

When my father taught me this sentence, there was another sentence following it.

Don't be afraid, even if the sky falls, Dad is here.

"Nazha, stop blaming yourself." The RV door opened, and Jiang Yang got up and walked out, turning back to look at Gulnazar: "Don't cry, I want to see you smile more, just like before."

Gulnazar suddenly looked up.

Through teary eyes.

She saw Jiang Yang waving at her.

My father is a liar. He promised he would always be by her side, and that he would hold up the sky if it fell.

I hate men who lie the most.

But she loves her father the most.

She knew that Jiang Yang was pretending to be her father, and she knew that Jiang Yang was guiding her to immerse herself in the character's emotional state.

But she still couldn't help but whisper, "Don't go, Daddy, don't go..."

ten minutes later.

Jiang Yang redid Gulnazar's makeup without the need for the crew's makeup artist.

The scenery in the green screen has been re-set.

"The scene was quiet; it was filmed!"

The executive director shouted through a megaphone.

The stagehands kept an eye on the area around the tent, preventing anyone from leaving. The lights inside were so bright that they would give away the people outside.

It didn't quiet down.

Two armored soldiers were sitting under the banner, chatting away.

The assistant director yelled in that direction, "Still talking! Still talking! You two under the big flag, do you even want your paychecks?!"

They won't actually deduct wages for not signing contracts.

It's just a scare tactic.

There were more than forty extras on site. Since the message was not being relayed in time, directly threatening them was the most mindless but also the most efficient method.

The team leader ran over and gave a few words of advice, and the chaotic scene finally quieted down.

"Okay, three! Two! One!"

After Zhong Shujia finished announcing the countdown to the live shoot, he looked through the loudspeaker at the close-up shot of Gulnazar on the monitor and said softly, "Start."

There was a crane camera in front of Gulnazar filming close-ups of her facial expressions, and a slider camera next to her filming close-ups.

The blower roared. The blue smoke canister opened, and a large amount of blue smoke swirled around Gulnazar.

Her long hair flowed in the wind.

The scene depicts Gulnazar playing Xu Yourong, watching Chen Changsheng standing in front of the star array and being sucked in, while Xu Yourong is powerless to stop him. In the end, overwhelmed by emotions, she breaks down and cries.

Gulnazar was still immersed in the emotions she had just experienced in the RV.

"Enough smoke, okay, Nazha, look up," Zhong Shujia said, staring at the monitor.

The words fell.

Gulnazar slowly raised her head.

Zhong Shujia was slightly taken aback. He leaned closer to the monitor and clearly felt that Gulina's eyes were different from before!
His eyes had been dull before.

Now, her eyelashes trembled slightly, with tiny teardrops clinging to them, yet her eyes were unusually clear and cool.

Our gaze focused on the star chart array.

Quickly glance at the patterns on the astrolabe.

With reddened eyes, she searched for a way to save Chen Changsheng.

One hand was digging into the array patterns, while the other was forming a hand seal.

"Okay, Nazha, keep this pose and imagine Chen Changsheng sinking down in the center of the formation. Special effects will be added later."

Gulinaza stared at the center of the formation.

She didn't do as the director said; she imagined that Chen Changsheng, played by Lu Han, wasn't disappearing.

What flashed through her mind were the words Jiang Yang, playing her father, had said to her in the RV.

And Jiang Yang's departing figure.

She recalled the night she learned her father was about to pass away; she was filming on set.

I rushed home immediately.

In the end, I didn't get to see my father one last time.

Standing by the bed, I saw my father's cold hand outstretched.

It's like I've been waiting for her to come and hold my hand.

"do not go."

Gulnazar's eyes reddened, and her lower lip trembled.

"do not go."

Her anxious tone became choked with sobs, and she leaned forward, reaching out her hand into the air.

His gaze was fixed on the center of the astrolabe.

"Chang Sheng, don't go, come back!"

Just as Zhong Shujia was about to yell "Cut!", the take was over.

This performance was far superior to her previous ones.

Before I could shout, I suddenly heard a suppressed sob.

Looking up, Gulnazar was still reaching out towards the center of the star chart, her wrist trembling.

The tears kept flowing.

His eyes became vacant, as if he were not looking at the center of the star chart, but rather at a special effect version of Chen Changsheng.

The crying lasted for more than twenty seconds before gradually subsiding.

Gulnazar collapsed to the ground.

I stared at the center of the horoscope for a long time, then silently shed tears.

"Okay, cut! Nazha! That's a good take!"

"One take" does not mean that only one take was filmed.

The long shot, with the extras, needs another take.

A side-mounted sliding camera shot from different angles needs to be filmed in one take.

Finally, a close-up shot, including the reactions of the special guest characters, is taken, and another take is filmed.

Taking advantage of Nazha's good condition, they filmed four takes in a row, and the scene was finally done.

Previously, it would take until dawn to shoot, but now it only takes forty minutes.

"Okay, Nazha, you've worked hard. Go back to the RV and rest. Your scenes will start when the scene changes."

Gulnazar nodded slightly and thanked the director.

The assistant, who had been looking for the best angle to take stills, came over with a small electric fan and followed Gulnazar toward the RV. She whispered, "Gulnazar, you acted so well just now! The director said it was like you suddenly had a breakthrough."

"Really."

Gulnazar smiled slightly.

"Really, the director even said, 'Where did Teacher Jiang go? We want to talk to her.'"

The assistant was excited and wanted to continue the conversation.

I could tell from her keen senses that Gulnazar was in a bad mood.

It's like being immersed in the role, not yet detached from it.

This is the first time I've seen Nazha like this.

It's not that Nazha used to be able to break character instantly, but rather that she never really got into character.

His acting was consistently stiff.

"Jiang Yang is in my car. Go tell the director that Jiang Yang will be there in a bit."

"okay."

The assistant ran towards the director.

She's a young girl, and she's the on-set assistant that the company assigned to Gulnazar.

She wasn't used to not having a personal assistant.

I don't want to have no privacy at all.

After all, the person I am in private is different from the person I am on camera.

They order takeout, leave their clothes lying around, ride roller coasters at amusement parks, look up gossip online, and even curse the Chinese national football team as utter garbage.

Open the RV door.

I saw Jiang Yang sitting inside, scrolling through Weibo.

She still maintains the same makeup and styling that resembles Nazha's father.

"Jiang Yang, the director wants to see you."

"Okay, I'll remove my makeup."

Jiang Yang got up to walk towards the makeup removal area, but was suddenly stopped by Gulnazar: "Wait a minute."

The RV door closed.

The windows have privacy film applied.

Jiang Yang felt something soft against his back.

Gulnazar pressed her cheek against Jiang Yang's back and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Nazha?"

"Let me hold you for a while."

Gulnazar lowered her head, her forehead resting against Jiang Yang's back.

Breathing through the fabric of her clothes, she felt a warmth: "When we were filming just now, the director asked me to imagine Lu Han. Actually, I imagined my father. He was lying there, just like that day, reaching out his hand to wait for me. I didn't get to see him one last time, which is the regret of my life. No matter how much money I make, I can never make up for it."

Gulina tightened her arms around him, her throat bobbing slightly: "Actually, your makeup doesn't resemble my father at all. No one can make up to look like my father. But let me hug you for a while, Jiang Yang, just for a little while."

Jiang Yang sighed.

You can tell that Gulnazar really got into character this time.

They haven't gotten out of character yet.

He was the one who helped Nazha get into character.

We can't just leave it like this.

He turned around, stretched out his arms, and pulled Gulnazar into his embrace.

He watched as Gulnazar's tears soaked his shoulder.

Jiang Yang gently placed his palm on the back of Gulina's neck and whispered to comfort her, "Nazha, if your dad could see you today, he would be so proud of you."

Hear the words.

Gulnazar seemed to want to say something, but her lower lip trembled and she didn't say it.

She had a lot to say to her father.

But Jiang Yang was ultimately just impersonating his father; he wasn't his real father.

Gulnazar swallowed the words she wanted to say.

I don't know what I was thinking.

A sobbing sound came from his nose.

Her eyes reddened again, and she grabbed Jiang Yang's collar with both hands, letting out a few suppressed sobs.

"If you want to cry, just cry it out. You'll feel better after you cry."

Jiang Yang gently patted Gulinazha's back and softly comforted her.

Gulnazar shook her head, veins popping out on her forehead.

But she still couldn't help but cry out, "I'm actually under a lot of pressure."

Done.

Suddenly, she broke down in tears: "I really miss my dad. I never thought that after growing up, I wouldn't have a dad anymore..."

Gulnazar's knees buckled and she slid down, only managing to stand up after Jiang Yang supported her under her armpits.

Calm down Gulnazar's emotions.

After removing my makeup, I got out of the RV.

Outside, they're filming scenes with extras.

Extras need to walk back and forth, and need to draw their swords and lie dead.

One of the guys was lying down and fell asleep, snoring, when the team leader woke him up.

Jiang Yang went to the monitor and waited until the current scene was finished before saying, "Director, you wanted to see me?"

"Here comes Jiang Yang. You've been keeping a low profile. You got Nazha into the zone in just half an hour."

Zhong Shujia laughed and said, "Xu Xiao'ou and I are old friends. I used to know her when I was in Hong Kong. She's in Beijing right now, working as a producer and not coming to the set. But when you were coaching Nazha's acting, I talked to her on the phone. She told me to trust you, and now I really trust you."

"Let Nazha do it herself. I guess this scene would have taken a long night to film. Now we can probably change locations this afternoon, and everyone can relax."

Zhong Shujia didn't ask Jiang Yang how he trained Nazha's acting skills.

This is a signature skill of every performance director.

Some acting teachers make money by running acting training classes using this trick.

He continued, "To be honest, I really want to see you act. Why don't you be a special guest star? I'll sign you up right now."

"Director, I have a role in this film," Jiang Yang said.

"What?"

Is he both a performance coach and an actor?
This young man.

Zhong Shujia brought over the script, carefully compared it with the list, and saw Jiang Yang's name.

He plays the role of Akiyama-kun.

Recalling the stills of Qiushan Jun, with his ancient costume, sideburns, and high ponytail, I couldn't immediately match them with Jiang Yang in front of me.

The main director who participated in the script reading with the actors was Kong Lingda.

This was the first time he had met Jiang Yang.

"You're playing Akiyama-kun?"

Zhong Shujia took out the call sheet for the next dozen or so scenes that had been arranged.

There is a scene with Akiyama-kun.

The original schedule was for a little over ten days later.

However, with Jiang Yang's guidance on Gulnazar's acting skills, the time could be shortened by almost half.

If we include Lu Han's performance as well, we'll soon see Jiang Yang's performance.

The extras' positions have all been arranged.

Filming resumed.

The process went smoothly. After all, the extras were just background figures, so there was no need to shoot close-ups and therefore no special effort was required.

Zhong Shujia also looked up Jiang Yang's information.

I watched some clips of Jiang Yang on the show "A Little Reunion".

I even watched the segment where Jiang Yang was an extra on "Go Fighting!"

Not enough.

She then asked Xu Xiaogou for a video of Jiang Yang and three girls from her company, along with the audition video.

I was deeply shocked.

The main highlights of this drama are Lu Han and Gulnazar.

But now, Zhong Shujia has another thought in her mind.

I wonder how Jiang Yang will perform in this role.

In a drama featuring two popular celebrities, a true acting talent with great looks joined the cast.

There's a high probability that it will actually retain a large number of casual viewers.

When it was lunchtime, Zhong Shujia called Jiang Yang over again.

The two sat in the tent, enjoying the cool breeze coming from the air conditioning vents.

"To be honest, Jiang Yang, your temperament is very similar to that of a friend of mine in Hong Kong."

"Really? Who is it?" Jiang Yang asked with a smile.

Leslie Cheung.

Jiang Yang trembled upon hearing this: "Director, what have I done to deserve this..."

“The younger generation is truly formidable,” Zhong Shujia said to himself in Cantonese.

“I have connections and resources at TVB, and I also have my own studio. I film one or two movies in Hong Kong every year.”

Zhong Shujia crossed her legs, pointing her toes at Jiang Yang, and tentatively asked, "Are you interested in filming in Hong Kong?"
-
PS:

Yang Chaoyue: "Thank you to the potato chips tycoon for feeding me an Oscar statuette... Before I met Brother Yang, I felt unworthy of many things. Now that Brother Yang is backing me up, I dare to say 'I'll try' about those things that used to be very difficult for me. If I fail, I fail."

Thank you to the kind-hearted Big Onion for the 3 monthly votes.

Thank you to reader 20200420160949245 for the two monthly tickets.

Thank you to LlenWake for the 28 monthly votes.

Thank you to Popeye for the 10 monthly votes!

Li Bai knelt in gratitude.

Please vote with monthly tickets! (End of Chapter)