The Rise of Chinese Entertainment in 2008

At 6:20 p.m., Gu Ning drove to a hotel and, led by a waiter, went to a private room.

The waiter knocked on the door, and after receiving permission, pushed the door open and stepped aside to let Gu Ning in.

"Hello, Director Gu!"

Shu Chang and Liu Yifei stood up when they heard the knock on the door, and greeted Gu Ning with smiles when he came in.

"I was going to treat you to dinner, but you've gone to all the trouble," Gu Ning said with a smile.

"I'll be troubling Director Gu for taking care of things from now on, so it's only right that I invite him."

Shu Chang smiled and said, "President Gu, please have a seat and see what you would like to eat."

Gu Ning nodded upon hearing this, put down her handbag, took off her trench coat, and the waiter took it and hung it on the hanger next to her.

"Please sit down too," Gu Ning said with a smile.

"Um."

Shu Chang nodded, handed over the menu, and sat down with Liu Yifei.

Gu Ning ordered a few of her favorite dishes, then looked up and said, "You probably don't like drinking, right? Maybe we shouldn't have any alcohol?"

"Since Director Gu doesn't want to drink, then we won't," Shu Chang said.

"I'll order then, you guys order."

Gu Ning handed the menu back, and Shu Chang took it, added a few dishes, and then handed the menu to the waiter.

After the waiter left, Gu Ning took out the script, looked at Liu Yifei, and smiled, "Miss Liu, here is the script, please take a look."

"OK!"

Liu Yifei took the script and began to read it.

"Director Gu, I wonder when I can join the crew so I can prepare," Shu Chang said with a smile.

"Around the end of the month, the specific date will be announced in advance," Gu Ning said.

Shu Chang started a casual conversation with Gu Ning, and after about twenty minutes, Liu Yifei finished reading the script.

She hesitated for a moment, just about to speak, when there was a knock on the door of the private room and the waiter brought in the dishes.

After the waiter brought the dishes and left, Gu Ning smiled and asked, "Shall we talk while we eat, or after we finish eating?"

"Let's talk after we finish eating," Liu Yifei said after thinking for a moment.

"Okay, I'm hungry too, let's eat."

Gu Ning picked up the drinks and poured them for them, then started eating.

"Speaking of which, Ms. Liu and I are alumni, but unfortunately, when I entered the Beijing Film Academy, Ms. Liu had already graduated."

Gu Ning ate a few bites of food and smiled, "I've watched all the TV dramas that Miss Liu has acted in, and I really like them."

Shu Chang laughed and said, "So, does that mean Director Gu should call Sister Qianqian 'Senior Sister'?"

"What nonsense are you talking about?"

Liu Yifei gave her a reproachful look, then looked at Gu Ning and said, "Director Gu also said we're all alumni, so just call me by my name."

"Then I'll call you Consort Yi."

Gu Ning smiled and nodded, saying, "Could you sign a few more autographs for me later?"

"Director Gu, you wouldn't actually be a fan of Xixi, would you?" Shu Chang asked in surprise.

She had initially thought Gu Ning was just being polite, but Gu Ning's demeanor made it seem completely different.

"Not entirely. I'm not a fan of celebrities, I just like the characters she plays."

Gu Ning looked at Shu Chang and said, "I also really like some of the roles you've played."

"Thank you for your kind words, Director Gu."

Whether this is true or false, it sounds very pleasant.

As they chatted, the initial awkwardness between the three dissipated considerably.

Half an hour later, after finishing their meal, Shu Chang asked the waiter to bring a pot of white tea, and the three of them moved to the reception area to sit down.

"Consort Yi, you've read the script. Would you be willing to take on the role?" Gu Ning asked.

"Director Gu."

Liu Yifei straightened her hair and said, "It's not that I'm making excuses to decline; this role is simply not suitable for me."

"From the perspective of the role alone, it is indeed very different from the roles you have played before."

Gu Ning nodded slightly and said, "Don't you think the roles you play are a bit too similar? If you want to broaden your acting range, you need to play more different roles."

Liu Yifei was taken aback upon hearing this and seriously considered Gu Ning's words.

She has acted in only four television series and one movie so far.

Although the high ratings brought her great fame, many people also questioned her acting skills.

The most common criticism is that she always has the same expression when acting. The original author, Jin Yong, once publicly stated that she was "afraid of looking bad and dared not make any expressions" during filming.

Some even said she "refused to cry, only shedding a few tears," suggesting that she suppressed her emotional expression out of concern for her image, resulting in a lack of dramatic tension in the character.

"This isn't just a problem for you; many actors experience it."

Gu Ning continued, "To break out of that mold, you have to play characters with different personalities, and they have to be very different from the characters you've played before."

He wasn't exaggerating; many actors in the industry reach their peak right after their debut, and then there's no more success.

The impression is that all the roles she plays have the shadow of the previous role, or are even worse than the previous one.

The reason for this is not because her previous acting skills were particularly good, but because she was so well-suited to the role.

Someone whose acting skills were originally only a 6 out of 10, barely passing, but the role they played was very suitable, and they performed at an 8 out of 10 level.

The audience's impression of his acting skills has also been greatly enhanced.

When casting, directors, without interference from capital, will prioritize the suitability of the role.

This suitability involves selecting actors who have played similar roles.

After becoming famous, actors often lack sufficient awareness of their own acting skills and unconsciously continue to act in the same way they did before.

This results in the plot being different, but the overall feeling being the same.

This is like a person who always wears the same style of clothes; even if the styles and colors are different, the overall style remains the same.

It's stunning at first glance, but you'll get tired of looking at it after a while.

To wow people again, you have to change your style.

"Sisi, I think Director Gu makes a good point."

Shu Chang said, "The characters I play are all different, so I don't have this problem."

"That doesn't count. You just act a lot, taking on any role you can get," Gu Ning couldn't help but complain.

"Haha~"

Upon hearing this, Liu Yifei couldn't help but burst into laughter at Shu Chang's embarrassed expression, revealing her gums.

Gu Ning strongly suspects that the reason why Liu Yifei's smiles seem restrained and that she doesn't dare to laugh out loud when she's acting is because of this.

Although her showing her teeth slightly detracts from her beauty, doesn't that smile make her seem more down-to-earth?

"Sissi!" Shu Chang glared angrily at Liu Yifei.

"Okay, okay, I won't laugh anymore."

Liu Yifei quickly suppressed her smile, but then burst out laughing again.

"Haha~"

"Sissi!"

Shu Chang cried out in embarrassment and reached out to tickle Liu Yifei.

"Changchang, I was wrong."

Liu Yifei laughed as she dodged, but out of the corner of her eye she saw Gu Ning watching them with a half-smile. Her face flushed and she said, "Changchang, stop fooling around. Director Gu is still here."

That's too formal. You can make a fuss all you want; I love watching.

Of course, he only thought it to himself and didn't say it out loud.

Upon hearing this, Shu Chang sobered up a bit and stuck out her tongue, not letting go of Liu Yifei.

Liu Yifei straightened her clothes, her face slightly flushed, and said, "I'm sorry, Director Gu made a fool of himself."

"It's alright, I think your expression and posture just now were very suitable for this role."

Gu Ning smiled and said, "Would you like to give it a try?"

Liu Yifei hesitated and said, "Since Director Gu has put it that way, I'll give it a try. I can work for free, but if I really can't do it, Director Gu can just find someone else, okay?"

"Can."

Although there's not much guarantee, it's still worth it to have Liu Yifei show her teeth in the movie.

After all, a fairy descending to the mortal world is still very attractive.