This director only directs blockbusters.

The photography test was arranged in a dilapidated warehouse in Huairou.

Chen Lei led a group of people in three days in advance to tinker with the place. The walls were painted with cement gray, the ground was piled with broken bricks and steel bars, and a blower was set up in the corner. When it was turned on, it made a loud noise and the dust made people squint.

When Yang Ning arrived, Chen Qiming was already setting up the machine.

"Director Yang." Chen Qiming patted the black camera next to him. "ARRIFLEX D-20, (released ahead of schedule due to plot requirements), just released, obtained through connections by China Film Group. Fully digital, 4K resolution."

Yang Ning squatted down to take a look. The machine was heavy, with sharp lines, like a lump of iron.

"What about the testing plan?"

"Three scenes." Chen Qiming counted on his fingers. "The first scene is static light and shadow—simulating the soft light of Lin Xue's healing technique."

The second event was dynamic focus tracking – Lu Ran's parkour.

The third scene was a large-scale simulation—using a blower to blow away debris and create the texture of dust.

"Where are the actors?"

"The stunt double we found is already made up."

Just then, the warehouse door was pushed open.

Old Xu led a man in; he was tall and thin, with blood-stained makeup on his face and wearing a distressed tactical vest.

"Director Yang, this is Xiao Wu. He graduated from Beijing University of Technology and has been doing parkour for six years."

Yang Ning nodded: "Let's begin."

The first test was a soft light test.

Chen Qiming placed a softbox above the actors' heads, with a layer of white gauze underneath.

"open."

The light shone down, filtering through the white gauze and casting a warm glow on the actors' faces.

Chen Qiming stared at the monitor: "Increase by half a gear."

Assistant adjusts lighting.

In the scene, the "wounds" on the actor's face softened under the light; the bloodstains were still there, but they had a strange sense of sanctity.

"Stop," Yang Ning said. "This light is too clean. The apocalypse doesn't require such finesse."

He walked over, grabbed a handful of dirt from the ground, and sprinkled it onto the white gauze.

Fine dust fell softly, dancing in the beam of light.

"Film again."

This time it's right—the light is still soft, but it has impurities and a grainy texture.

Like sunlight filtering through ruins, barely perceptible, but real.

Chen Qiming whistled: "Awesome."

The second parkour game.

The warehouse had a makeshift obstacle course—a wall made of stacked scrap metal drums, a horizontally tilted shelf serving as a log bridge, and a two-meter-high platform at the end.

Xiao Wu warms up by stretching his legs, his eyes focused.

"Action!"

Xiao Wu rushed out.

The first step is to step onto the metal bucket, use the momentum to climb onto the wall, flip over to land, and roll to dissipate the force. The movements are completed in one smooth motion.

Chen Lei carried the camera and filmed, with the lens close to the ground, creating a strong sense of breathing.

When they reached the log bridge, Xiao Wu didn't slow down. He ran across the narrow iron frame, his toes barely touching the ground. He swayed a little but didn't fall.

In a final sprint, he leaped onto the platform and turned around—

Yang Ning shouted, "Stop!"

Xiao Wu jumped down, panting.

Chen Lei rewound the footage and played it back.

In the footage, dust explodes underfoot, and steel bars glide past the edge of the lens, creating an overwhelming sense of danger.

"The focus is a bit off." Chen Qiming pointed to a spot, "Here, the focus shifted by half a second when he turned over."

"That's the kind of ethereal feeling I want," Yang Ning said. "When people are working their hardest, the world just shakes."

Chen Qiming paused for a moment, then smiled: "I understand."

The third dust test.

The blower was turned up to its highest setting, blowing a mixture of shredded paper, flour, and fine sand.

The warehouse instantly became filled with smoke and dust.

The actor stood in the wind, squinting, his hair and clothes shaking violently.

Chen Lei brought the camera closer, the lens almost touching the actor's face.

Dust particles landed on the lens, one by one, and were clearly visible.

"Great!" Yang Ning clapped his hands. "The texture is perfect!"

The test ended at 3 PM.

A group of people, looking disheveled, sat on the steps outside the warehouse eating boxed lunches.

While eating, Chen Qiming swiped his tablet, categorizing and labeling the materials he had just collected.

Yang Ning's phone vibrated; it was Han Shanping.

"How did the test go?"

"It's done," Yang Ning said. "The photographic style is set—dirty, real, and with a sense of breath."

"Okay." Han Shanping paused for a moment, "There's something else. My niece, Han Duoduo, studies physics and just returned from studying abroad."

She's really interested in your film and wants to join the crew to learn. Could you arrange a spot for her?

Yang Ning raised an eyebrow: "Chairman Han, this isn't a school."

"I know," Han Shanping said calmly, "but she's not an ordinary student."

Master's degree from MIT, specializing in fluid mechanics and optical imaging.

"Didn't your movie have lightning effects? She knows about that."

Yang Ning was taken aback.

"Let her come. She'll report for duty tomorrow."

After hanging up the phone, Old Xu leaned over and asked, "Who was that?"

"Han Dong's niece was shoved in here to study."

"Damn, it's someone with connections." Liu Yong exhaled a puff of smoke. "How's the arrangement?"

"Let's see." Yang Ning threw the lunchbox into the trash can. "If they really know the technology, we'll use them as a special effects consultant. If they don't, we'll just give them a sinecure."

"clear."

Back in the office that evening, Yang Ning had just sat down when there was a knock on the door.

"Enter."

A girl came in. She had short hair, a round face, wore black-rimmed glasses, and carried a backpack; she looked like a high school student.

"Hello Director Yang, I'm Han Duoduo." Her voice was clear and bright. "My uncle asked me to come and see you."

Yang Ning sized her up: "Studied physics?"

"Yes, I graduated with a master's degree from MIT. My research areas were fluid mechanics and computer graphics."

Han Duoduo took out her laptop from her backpack, swiped it a few times, and handed it over.

"I read your description of the Purple Heaven Divine Thunder in your script and have some thoughts."

The computer displays a 3D simulation animation.

A bolt of lightning struck the ground from the clouds, and the resulting plasma spread out in a tree-like pattern, with tiny arcs of electricity flickering in every branch.

"You wrote 'lightning is like a dragon' in your script, but the actual shape of lightning is closer to fractal geometry." Han Duoduo pushed up her glasses. "I did a simulation based on an actual atmospheric electrical model. Take a look at this—"

She zoomed in on the details. Inside the plasma were countless tiny vortices, intertwined and then instantly disintegrating.

"The release of energy in real lightning is chaotic, beautiful, but also destructive and irregular."

If the special effects are too neat and precise, they will look fake.

Yang Ning stared at the animation for a long time.

"You can do special effects?"

"No," Han Duoduo said honestly, "but I understand the principle."

I can tell the visual effects team what the real phenomenon looks like, and then they will translate it into visuals.

Yang Ning looked up at her: "Why did you come to the film crew?"

Han Duoduo blinked: "Because I like movies. And—" She paused,

"I think your film might change some things."

"Change what?"

"The attitude of domestic films towards science fiction and special effects," said Han Duoduo.

"Everyone thinks special effects are just about throwing money at it, but I believe that special effects are first and foremost science, and secondly art. I want to be a part of that process."

Yang Ning smiled.

This girl is interesting.

"Okay." He stood up. "Report to Liu Yong tomorrow. Technical consultant for the special effects team, 8,000 yuan a month, interested?"

"Damn!" Han Duoduo's eyes lit up.