1991: The Era of Hong Kong Dramas

The Shaw Brothers acting training program has always been known as the Whampoa Military Academy of Hong Kong film and television.

In 1971, Run Run Shaw rented the garden villa of film star Wu Chu-fan and opened the first actor training class, systematically teaching acting, dialogue, dance, martial arts and hosting.

In the evenings, students are arranged to play minor roles, work as assistants, or take turns interning.

Later, it was changed to a year-round program, selecting a dozen or so people from over a thousand, with an elimination rate even higher than that of college entrance exams.

These people lived up to expectations, supporting half of Hong Kong dramas in the 1970s and 80s, and also supporting the golden age of Hong Kong films.

Until 1983, when the training program was taken over by TVB from Shaw Brothers, it was rarely mentioned. Compared to its past glory, its star power was somewhat dim.

Therefore, in 1983, the arts training program was officially changed from a full-time to a part-time program.

The 83 art training class, with twelve students enrolled, became the last glory of the art training class.

……

The final scene of "Dancing with My Love" has wrapped up filming.

Instead of going straight home, Lau Ching-wan went into a tea restaurant near the Clearwater Bay film set.

This is their strategic base for the 83 art training class. The shop is small, but it's packed with customers. The menus on the wall are yellowed, and the air conditioner is humming, but the cooling isn't quite enough.

When Liu Qingyun pushed open the door, several people were already sitting at the table in the corner.

"Here it comes!"

Tao Dayu was the first to wave, his voice loud and slightly hoarse: "Sit down, sit down, we've been waiting for you."

Lau Ching-wan took off his coat and squeezed into the booth.

Several glasses of iced lemon tea were on the table, and there was still half a pineapple bun left on the saucer, so it seemed to have been there for a while.

"What are you talking about?"

Liu Qingyun asked.

"Let's talk about auditions."

Michael Tao, quite pleased with himself, leaned forward and whispered, "I received a notification from the artist management department that I'll be auditioning for Wai Ka-fai's role tomorrow!"

"Oh, who is it?"

"The eldest of the four Ding brothers, Ding Xiaoxie!"

"And you?"

"I received the notification too."

Lan Jieying muttered to herself, "I think her name is Luo Huiling."

"I am Chen Taotao."

Long Bingji said from the side.

Liu Qingyun glanced at them: "That's not bad!"

"And you? And you?" Tao Dayu pressed, "I heard Wai Ka-fai personally called your name?"

"Where did you get such good information?" Lau Ching-wan laughed. "The audition for Fong Chin-bo hasn't been decided yet."

"It must be you!"

Tao Dayu slammed his hand on the table. "Wei Jiahui already called the roll, how could you possibly run away?"

Liu Qingyun smiled but didn't say anything.

The experience of getting the role was too magical to recount in detail, so I won't go into it.

Lam Kit-ying forked a piece of pineapple bun and stuffed it into her mouth, asking indistinctly, "Speaking of which, what is this movie about? The artist department only mentioned the producer's name and didn't say anything else, making it all very mysterious."

"A period drama about business warfare, spanning several decades."

Liu Qingyun said.

"Spanning several decades?" Tao Dayu's eyes lit up. "Looks like I can get in this time!"

"Why should I?"

Long Bingji was puzzled.

"Do you remember what the teacher said about me? He said I looked mature for my age, perfect for period dramas, able to play both young and mature characters!"

"Give me a break."

"Really!" Michael Tao said defiantly, "I had too few scenes when Producer Wai filmed 'Looking Back in Anger' last time, so I have to seize this opportunity."

"Oh no, I'm doomed!"

Long Bingji looked dejected and said, "I'm a comedic actor, so I don't look like I'm filming a business drama. I'd be better off playing a rich but foolish guy who gets ripped off."

"Then why don't you ask Sandra Ng to take you to film a comedy!"

"They're busy filming 'All's Well, Ends Well,' they don't have time to care about their old classmate."

Upon hearing this, the bustling tea restaurant fell into an eerie silence for a moment.

They were classmates from the same class, yet they are still struggling to survive in the cracks of TVB, desperately searching for a chance to make it big. Carina Lau, on the other hand, has already achieved success in both her career and love life. Not only is she in a stable relationship with Tony Leung, but she has also been nominated for Best Actress at the Hong Kong Film Awards for her role in "Days of Being Wild," and her prospects are excellent.

It's a pity about that mess that happened last year...

Sandra Ng has also graced the big screen, collaborating with Stephen Chow on numerous films and firmly establishing herself as Hong Kong's leading lady of comedy.

It's true what they say, comparisons are the thief of joy.

After a short silence, Lung Ping-kei broke the silence with a smile: "Alright, let's not talk about them, let's talk about ourselves. I heard Wai Ka-fai's salary for this movie was kept very low."

"How many?"

"I don't know the exact figures, but it's definitely lower than usual. What do you say, are you going or not?"

"What kind of question is this?"

Tao Dayu said incredulously, "Who wouldn't want to be in Wai Ka-fai's movies? Don't even mention the low pay; people would fight over them even if they weren't paid. Besides, with the current job market, it's good enough to even have a movie to film."

That's true. The stock market crashed this year, and GG's revenue dropped significantly. TVB is cutting budgets across the entire station. In the past, an actor could appear in six or seven dramas a year, but now it's considered good if they get two.

Some film crews even stopped production, leaving actors to wait at home, wasting their time.

"you do not say,"

Yammie Lam leaned back in her chair and sighed, "I only filmed one movie in the first half of the year, and the rest of the time I'm just sitting around doing nothing. If this continues, I won't even be able to pay the rent."

She originally had a great hand, having collaborated with Tony Leung and Andy Lau, and had already stepped into the film industry.

As a result, he became arrogant, refused to renew his contract with TVB, and was consequently sidelined for five years.

Now that he's made a comeback, he no longer enjoys the same glory as before.

"So I agreed right then and there."

Tao Dayu said firmly, "Money doesn't matter, as long as there's work to do."

Lung Ping-kei nodded. "Who among us from this generation didn't go through this? We're just grateful to have any roles to play, what are we being picky about?"

The group chatted amongst themselves, but Wu Qihua remained silent from the beginning.

He sat against the wall, chopsticks in his hand, head down, seemingly lost in thought.

The lights in the tea restaurant shone on his face, flickering on and off.

"Old Wu, why aren't you saying anything?"

Tao Dayu asked, "You received the notification too, right?"

"Received it." Wu Qihua looked up, smiled, and said, "Ding Wang Crab."

Lau Ching-wan read the script and nodded, "It suits you quite well."

Ng Kai-wah is young and handsome, with fox-like eyes, and a look that is both righteous and wicked, which certainly fits the temperament of the third son of the Ting family who is a lawyer.

Why do you seem preoccupied?

Tao Dayu asked again.

Wu Qihua paused for a moment, then hesitated before saying, "Producer Leung... he contacted me too."

There was a moment of silence on the table.

"That play, 'Human, Ghost, and Fox'?"

"Um."

Ng Kai-wah nodded. "It's a film produced by Leung. The pay is decent, and the role is significant—the third male lead."

Upon hearing this, the expressions on the faces of the group became somewhat subtle.

Leung Ka-shu's dramas offer high pay, high exposure, and are major productions; under normal circumstances, no one would hesitate to take such a role.

But the problem now is that Wai Ka-fai is also looking for people.

Leung Ka-shu or Wai Ka-fai, that is the question.

"What do you think?"

"I asked softly."

After a moment of silence, Ng Kai-wah finally spoke: "To be honest, I'd rather go to 'The Human, the Ghost, and the Fox.' Producer Leung said that this drama is aimed at the TVB Anniversary Awards, so the exposure won't be low. And..."

Wu Qihua paused for a moment before continuing, "I heard that this time Producer Wai isn't working with Tsang Kan-cheung, but rather with a new screenwriter who has never written anything before."

There is only one anniversary drama, and Lawrence Ng has more faith in the lavish production "Human, Ghost and Fox".

Lau Ching-wan fell silent.

He believed in Huo Sheng, but he couldn't decide someone else's fate; he could only gamble with his own life.

The others remained silent; they had no choice whatsoever.

In fact, Ng Kai-wah's current caution is not without reason. Just last year, he was tricked into signing a contract to star in a movie called "The Treasure of the XX Group," which was a huge success, grossing 20 million at the box office.

He became famous, but he was labeled as a "Category III film lead actor" from then on, so he was extremely cautious about choosing roles, afraid of making another mistake.

"Ugh."

After pondering for a long time, Wu Qihua made up his mind, "I'll go to the Human, Ghost, and Fox sect."

Tao Dayu, ever outspoken, asked, "Doesn't that mean we're going to fight each other?"

After these words were spoken, there was a moment of silence at the table.

"Human, Ghost and Fox" and "The Greed of Man" are clearly in competition. After all, there can only be one anniversary drama, and there will be success and failure.

Ten years have passed. Some of my classmates have become movie queens, some have countless film offers, some have disappeared from the public eye, and some are no longer with us.

Who knows which path is right?

The workplace is made up of countless choices, and making the right choices can lead to advancement and ultimately to the top.

Wrong choices lead to constant setbacks, ultimately resulting in a fall into poverty.