Rebirth of Chinese Entertainment, the Diary of a 95 Flower

"Teacher Haochun, we're about to start filming." The assistant director, holding a megaphone, came over to Liu Haochun to remind him.

"Was my performance just now not up to par?" Liu Haochun asked.

"No, she acted exceptionally well!"

The executive director praised it.

Of course, what he said was against his will. Otherwise, Zhong Shujia wouldn't have called Liu Haochun over to watch the playback during the rehearsal and let Liu Haochun figure out how to express the emotions more intensely while keeping his expressions from being exaggerated or over-the-top.

That was a rather tactful way of putting it.

Anyone in the know will understand immediately; it's basically saying that Liu Haochun's acting was poor.

It's just that Jiang Yang is here, so I'm only giving Jiang Yang face.

Otherwise, when will we see the director call Jiang Yang over to watch the playback?

After filming Jiang Yang's scenes, Zhong Shujia would usually only say one word: "Cut!"

Sometimes they'll add two words before it: "Perfect! Pass!"

The executive director then smiled at Liu Haochun and said, "Teacher Haochun, your emotions, lines, and eyes were all on point during the rehearsal. It's just that the lighting over there wasn't adjusted properly. I'll go talk to the lighting technician and get the lighting right so it doesn't affect your performance. You can adjust it again."

"Okay, sure," Liu Haochun replied.

I spent two months on the film set.

I've heard Chao Yuexi and Wei Bailu talk about things on set quite a bit in private.

Of course, I could understand the subtext of the executive director.

That line, "You acted so well," was like a soft thorn—it didn't hurt, but it made her feel uncomfortable all over.

During rehearsals, when Zhong Shujia asked her to watch the playback, her face in the camera was as stiff as a sheet of paper, her emotions were superficial, and her eyes were empty, unable to capture any of the nuances of the performance.

Where is it in place?
It's just that they benefited from Jiang Yang's influence; no one wanted to publicly break off relations.

"Haochun, relax. It's the last scene. We can film it as many times as we want. I'll cover for you. No one will dare to scold you." Jiang Yang, holding the script and dressed in Qiushan Jun's costume, called the makeup artist over to touch up his makeup and smiled at Liu Haochun.

"Ah."

Liu Haochun nodded.

I actually wanted to say, "I can accept being criticized, you don't need to protect me," but in the end I didn't say it.

The executive director pretended to chat with the lighting technician for a few minutes.

Then, a team leader is assigned to adjust the positioning of the extras.

A moment later, the assistant director, holding a megaphone, was heard yelling at an extra with a stern face and a harsh tone: "You extra, the one by the tree! Yes, you, can't you stand up straight? Didn't you learn military training when you were in school? Can't you understand human language? Do you have to get angry? Damn it!"

He was about to continue cursing.

Suddenly, Jiang Yang said, "Keep your voice down."

The executive director immediately realized that he had disturbed Liu Haochun and quickly said:

"Oh, okay, sorry, sorry, Teacher Jiang, I'll go talk to them."

Bai Lu has arrived now.

I bought a bag from a makeup artist and hung it around my waist.

She couldn't stay idle, so she learned from the makeup artists on set how to apply makeup to the actors.

Once she learned how to do it, she took over the makeup touch-ups for Chaoyue, Haochun, and Xiwei on set.

They used only high-end cosmetics and asked Jiang Yang to reimburse them, to avoid the possibility that some of the brands used in the makeup team were counterfeit and bad for the skin. It was all Jiang Yang's instruction.

During this time, Jiang Yang has gotten quite a bit of information about Bai Lu's makeup skills.

“Chaoyue, listen to that. Is that executive director even speaking human language? He's cursing at the extras, but he's all obsequious to our dog boss.” She moved closer to Yang Chaoyue.

"Shh, keep your voice down," Yang Chaoyue whispered.

Yang Chaoyue sat on a small stool, propping his chin up with his hand: "Isn't he just like you? Timid and submissive in real life, but a fierce attacker online."

"Haha, people should be arrogant when they need to be, and cowardly when they need to be," Bai Lu laughed. She had long since seen through the coldness and indifference of the people in this place.

The executive director was insincere and evasive towards the lead actor.

He was stern and harsh towards the extras.

This is just the most common scene on set; it's perfectly normal.

People are divided into different classes, and face is only given to those who have influence.

She then said, "Chaoyue, tell me, if we hadn't signed with Jiangyang's company, what would we be doing now?"

"What else can I do? I'm still at that textile factory in Shanghai, connecting yarn and changing roving. I might be eating braised pork trotters for lunch today, and when I get back to the workshop, I'll get yelled at by my supervisor again."

Yang Chaoyue spoke in a nonchalant tone.

But a sense of lingering fear crept into my heart.

I know that feeling all too well.

The roar of the machines in the workshop drowned out everything. Fingers repeated the action of joining hands hundreds of times a day, and the calluses from the coarse yarn still left their marks on their fingertips.

The supervisor's scolding and the current executive director's yelling are essentially no different; both are the harsh criticisms that those at the bottom cannot escape.

"And you, Bailu?"

"I?"

Bai Lu thought about it.

Looking into the distance, one could see extras being reprimanded by the executive director.

The extra was given a designated spot, but he didn't want to stand there because there was a puddle, and his boots would get wet.

The White Dew solar term is quite clear.

If there's a puddle where she's standing, she can just move to another spot.

Extras are not suitable.
.
I overheard the assistant director yelling: "Team leader, what's wrong with your people? If they can do it, they can do it; if they can't, they can't even get the extras' positions right. You just cut the scene and move on to another location, making everyone wait for you!"

Hear the words.

Bai Lu's smile froze for a moment, then relaxed again: "If I hadn't met Jiang Yang, I might be that extra right now, already arguing with the executive director."

Yang Chaoyue was stunned: "No way, Bai Lu, you're so good at handling things on set, you've added everyone on WeChat, you're really good at building relationships, you can even argue with people?"

"That's because everyone knows I'm one of Jiang Yang's people. I only get along well in the crew because of Jiang Yang. If I were an extra without any connections, who would care about me?"

Bai Lu continued, "If you push me too far, my mind will go blank, and I'll start swearing too."

If she hadn't met Jiang Yang, being an extra wouldn't have been a big deal.

That's how we've always gotten by.

But basic respect is essential.

Don't let yourself lose the courage to speak out and keep it bottled up until you're cornered, where you either have to back down or explode.

Just finished.

Suddenly, one of the extras in the distance shouted, "Damn it! What the hell are you talking about? Do you even care about the little money we give you as extras? I can't do this, I'm leaving, okay?"

Done.

He casually tossed the spear to the ground.

He strode heavily, then turned and walked away.

The executive director and team leader were stunned for a while before they reacted: "How did he take the costume and the wig? The costume costs three thousand and the wig costs two thousand... Quick, quick, bring him back and leave the costume. He's a newcomer, it's his first scene. The little bit of salary we deduct from him isn't even worth the cost of the costume! Damn, newcomers really dare to do anything."

Everyone turned to look.

"That was really enjoyable to watch," Bai Lu muttered softly. (End of Chapter)