Huayu: Starting with Xiang Yu, the Hegemon of Western Chu

The day after Wang Bao was selected, Chen Mo received a call from Shen Yu.

"Have they found him?"

"Found him. He's an extra from Hengdian, from Shaolin Temple. He auditioned yesterday, and the director approved him."

There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone.

"An extra?"

"Um."

Are you sure?

"The director has already made the decision, what am I supposed to confirm? It's not like it's my movie."

Shen Yu did not ask any further questions.

Although she hadn't worked with Chen Mo for long, she had already figured out his temperament. He rarely vouched for others, so the fact that he had brought the person to the director meant that he was confident enough.

"Okay, so what are your plans for the next step?"

"I'll help Wang Bao hone his acting skills for two days. He'll be joining the crew the day after tomorrow. His delivery of lines is really bad, so he needs to practice. Otherwise, he'll slow things down when he gets to the set."

"You'll help him practice?"

"right."

Shen Yu remained silent for another second.

"Chen Mo, you've already been generous enough by helping people find roles, and now you're even putting in your own time to give them private lessons. What's your relationship with this Wang Bao?"

Chen Mo thought for a moment and then told the truth.

"It's nothing, we just met the day before yesterday."

"Then what are you after?"

Chen Mo leaned back in his chair, looked out the window at the sky over Hengdian, and thought for a while.

"When I was eighteen and filming 'Young Huo Qubing', I was criticized by the whole internet. Teacher Wang Zhiping helped me and led me into the Central Academy of Drama. Later, when casting for 'Legend of Chu and Han' was being done, it was Teacher Wang who fought for the opportunity for me."

He paused for a moment.

"This kid is a lot like me back then. He's talented but lacks connections. All he needs is someone to guide him. If I happen to meet someone, I'll lend a hand. If not, then so be it."

After listening, Shen Yu didn't say anything more, only saying "You should arrange your own time" before hanging up.

Chen Mo put down his phone and went downstairs to find Wang Bao.

Wang Bao lived in a rented room in Hengdian Town for 300 yuan a month. It was a one-bedroom apartment with a living room. The living room was piled with clutter, and the bedroom could only fit a single bed and a plastic wardrobe. Several pieces of paint on the walls were peeling off, and the window could not be closed properly, with a finger able to stick through the crack.

When Chen Mo arrived, Wang Bao was sitting on the bed reciting his lines, muttering to himself, with the A4 paper in his hand already worn and frayed.

"Let's go find a place to practice."

The two went to a small park next to the film studio and found a quiet patch of grass to sit down.

Chen Mo didn't teach anything complicated.

He taught only the most basic things.

"Do you even know what your biggest problem is when you're reciting your lines?"

Wang Bao shook his head.

"You're reciting words, you're reading aloud, but you're not speaking."

Chen Mo plucked a blade of grass and put it in his mouth.

"When the lines are on the tip of your tongue, all you can think about is what to say next. You're afraid of forgetting your lines or making a mistake. All your attention is focused on the lines."

Wang Bao nodded, agreeing.

"But what are lines for when you're acting? They're for communicating with your partner. When you say something, you have to wait for your partner's reaction. Their reaction will affect the tone and emotion of your next sentence. It's a back-and-forth thing, like boxing. You throw a punch, your partner takes a punch, and you have to see how they take the punch before you can decide where to throw your next punch."

Wang Bao blinked twice.

He knows how to box.

"So the first thing you need to practice now is to learn to listen, regardless of whether your lines are right or wrong."

"What are you listening to?"

"What did you hear your opponent say?"

Chen Mo asked Wang Bao to stand up, read his opponent's lines, and then let Wang Bao continue.

The first time, Chen Mo deliberately kept his tone very calm, and said one of his opponent's lines as if he were chatting.

When Wang Bao received the answer, it was the same old problem: his voice was stiff and unnatural, like he was reciting a text.

"Stop," Chen Mo interrupted him. "What was the tone of my voice when I said that just now?"

"...Flat?"

"Yes, I spoke very calmly, as if I didn't care. So, how would your Feng Yuxiu react if he heard his master speak to him in such an indifferent tone?"

Wang Bao thought for a moment.

"angry?"

"Why are you angry?"

"Because Feng Yuxiu is a bastard of Wudang, and his master speaks to him in this tone, he will feel that his master does not take him seriously."

"Yes, then do it again with this feeling."

Wang Bao took it again.

This time it was much better. My voice was louder, and my tone was fiery. Although it was still a bit stiff, at least it had warmth.

"Okay, let's do it again."

Chen Mo changed the tone of the same line, this time with a sigh, like a utterly disappointed old man making his final plea.

Wang Bao was stunned for a moment, because the same words sounded completely different coming from Chen Mo's mouth.

He thought for a few seconds and then answered.

This time, his voice lowered, lacking the anger from before, and filled with hesitation and struggle.

Chen Mo nodded.

"You see, with the same lines, but different tones from your opponent, your reaction will be different. That's what listening is all about. You first listen to what your opponent is saying, let it go through your mind, and your reaction will come naturally. You don't need to act out it."

Wang Bao nodded as if he didn't quite understand, but there was one quality about him that made Chen Mo feel at ease.

This person is not afraid of repeating things.

Chen Mo changed his tone five or six times for the same line, making Wang Bao repeat it five or six times. Wang Bao was never annoyed. He listened carefully and repeated it seriously each time. After finishing, he would mutter to himself, "I think the last time was not quite right. Can we do it again?"

After practicing for more than an hour, Chen Mo taught him a second thing.

"When you're in front of the camera, you need to control your facial expressions."

"What do you mean?"

"Your facial expressions are very expressive when you talk. You grin when you're happy and frown when you're unhappy. This is fine in daily life, but it goes too far in front of the camera. The camera magnifies every detail on your face several times over. If you frown slightly, it looks like you've been twisted on screen. If you grin slightly, it looks like your mouth is about to split to your ears on screen."

Chen Mo stood opposite him and gave an example.

He first made an "angry" expression using his usual facial expressions, with his brows furrowed, the corners of his mouth turned down, and his whole face contorted.

Then he repeated the same emotion in front of the camera, his eyebrows twitching slightly and his mouth barely changing, but the look in his eyes was completely different. A chill seeped from the depths of his pupils, making him look ten times more ruthless than the exaggerated expression from before.

Wang Bao was stunned.

"Can you see the difference?"

Chen Mo's expression returned to normal.

"In front of the camera, seven parts of the performance depends on the eyes, two parts on micro-expressions, and one part on the body. Your eyes are very good and bright, which is enough, but you have to learn to speak with your eyes and not let the other parts of your face steal the show from your eyes."

Wang Bao nodded vigorously, as if he wanted to nail every word Chen Mo said into his brain.

The two practiced from morning to afternoon, only eating two rice balls they bought from a convenience store in between.

When filming wrapped up in the evening, Wang Bao's delivery of lines wasn't exactly a complete transformation, but compared to the audition the day before, he was noticeably more relaxed. At least it no longer felt like he was reciting a textbook, and he even delivered a few lines quite naturally.

Chen Mo knew that this was the limit of what he could do in a day, and the rest would have to be honed by Wang Bao on set.

"Are we practicing again tomorrow?" Wang Bao asked.

"Practice it out again tomorrow, and you'll be joining the crew the day after tomorrow."

Wang Bao nodded, put away the A4 paper that he had almost worn out from flipping through it, and turned to walk towards the rented room.

He took a few steps, then stopped and turned around.

"Brother Mo."

This was the first time he had called Chen Mo that.

"Um?"

"You taught me all this, how can I repay you?"

Chen Mo looked at him and smiled.

"If you portray Feng Yuxiu well, then you've made up for it."

Wang Bao stood there, opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end he didn't say anything. He nodded heavily, turned around and walked away quickly.

Chen Mo watched his figure disappear around the street corner, took out his phone, and sent a message to Xu Zhinian.

"I helped him with his basic acting skills, and he's doing better than he did on the day of the audition. Please bear with him once he's on set."

Xu Zhinian replied with a voice message, rattling off a long string of words.

"Okay, okay, I get it. You're his mentor, his benefactor, his life guide, alright?"

After listening, Chen Mo replied with two words.

"Idiot."

He put his phone back in his pocket and looked up at the night sky over Hengdian.

There were hardly any stars in the sky; they were all obscured by the lights of the film studio.

But he knew the stars were there.

Whether you can see it or not, it's there.