Bright Era of China Entertainment

Chapter 608 Discussion and Exploration
The young couple read the script and read the lines while observing the filming of other actors and teachers, also waiting for their roles to come.

Unfortunately, the results of the subsequent filming were somewhat unsatisfactory.

Their good start seems to have failed to get off to a good start.

"Special effects movies have no acting skills at all." In Chu Xuan's impression, many directors at home and abroad have criticized special effects movies.

Some directors are just jealous. They can make so much money watching commercial blockbusters, and they feel a little twisted in their hearts.

Some directors insist that the core of performing arts lies in performance due to different concepts. However, the emergence of special effects breaks this concept and allows the audience to no longer only focus on performance when watching movies, which also makes some directors rebuke.

Some directors see commercial films as having too great an impact on literary and artistic films, and they are simply looking for trouble when they cannot compete.

Then, a group of foreign special effects film directors fought back.

"Special effects movies are indeed not about acting, but acting is an indispensable part. Literary films are more about expressing reality or social humanity in the past, and the role of special effects movies is to lead people forward." This is a film master, Si Pilberg's remarks.

According to Chu Xuan's understanding, special effects movies require acting skills but do not rely on acting skills. Compared with literary and artistic films that only reflect the present and the legacy of the past, special effects movies allow the audience to look forward to the future.

Spielberg seems to be saying that the prospect and discussion of the future are more meaningful than the reflection of the present and the past in literary films.

To a certain extent, it satirizes a director who can only make literary films but doesn't know how to innovate and is still a fool.

Finally, in the past two years, the world-class director Cameron made a summary.

"The actor's performance in a special effects movie is not just about the individual actor. The actor's performance must be emotionally connected to the special effects scene. This is fundamentally different from the actor's performance style in art films."

"From the perspective of acting requirements, the actor's performance level is not high, but even if a master actor is asked to participate in the shooting of a special effects movie, he may not be able to do it."

Chu Xuan only understood it from the perspective of performance. He believed that Cameron's views were fair and very unique.

The core difference between actors' performances in special effects and non-special effects film and television dramas is the issue of emotional connection.

In special effects film and television dramas, actors need to have an emotional connection with the scene.

In non-special effects film and television dramas, actors need to have an emotional connection with themselves.

For example, in "The Condor", the touching scene where he and Liu Yifei finally meet in the cave.

What is truly touching is when he meets Liu Yifei. The real emotion comes from him and Liu Yifei and has nothing to do with the scene in the cave.

In any scene, the meeting between him and Liu Yifei can be equally touching and move the audience.

But in special effects film and television dramas, the emotional demand for scenes is a bit high.

For example, elves are very familiar to European and American audiences. If you see an actor playing an elf in the forest, it will naturally resonate with the audience immediately.

It is not impossible to change the forest to other scenes, but it is far from the elves appearing in the forest to give the audience a better emotional connection point.

This is the emotional tendency and emotional demand for scene construction in special effects movies.

For actors, they must present a state and mental outlook that fit the scene.

Only in this way can the audience have a sense of immersion and believe that the story is happening based on the world view of the film, thereby giving back various resonant emotions.

This is also the key point for actors to perform in special effects blockbusters, and it is also the reason why Tang Jili cursed.

"No, no, no, no!"

"What the hell!"

Tang Jili was very angry. He thought that Chu Xuan and Liu Yifei had made a good start and today's filming would go smoothly.

However, the reality of the situation slapped him hard in the face, and he had shot four scenes at [-] o'clock in the evening.

Only four games a day!

He wanted to scold his mother for this efficiency.

This is also seriously inconsistent with the ten scenes in the shooting plan.

The entire crew was silent, and the actors on the set didn't dare to say anything for fear of offending Tang Jili.

The studio was very quiet. Tang Jili wanted to continue to put pressure on the actors, but seeing how exhausted the actors in the camera were, he couldn't bear it: "Stop it, go back and get in shape for me! Here you go. You guys spent a few days adjusting the time difference to prepare, what kind of things are you going to perform!"

On the set, An Zhijie and other actors did not dare to show off their dignity and left the scene silently.

Only Chenglong showed no concern and patted their shoulders to comfort them: "It's okay. It's my first time filming such a movie. I'm not used to normal. Go back and have a good rest and think about it."

To comfort the actors, he rushed to the director team without stopping.

Taking the water from the assistant, he took a sip and asked, "Is it still a matter of status?"

Tang Jili asked the monitor to play it back and said, "See for yourself."

Chenglong leaned forward and looked at the monitor screen.

Tang Jili turned sideways, faced the director team, and said: "Look at the scenes today. They are not difficult, but the actors performed them too hard. This is wrong."

Director of Photography Lu Yang nodded, hugged his right arm with his left hand, and held his chin with his right hand: "The scene is a special effects scene. It depends entirely on the actor's brain and imagination. If the idea is not imagined, the performance will not be combined. The actor's presence is very important." Make a play.”

Chu Xuan said: "Actually, as Cameron said, actors in special effects movies must have an emotional connection with the scene. If the emotional connection is in place, the performance will be right. If the emotional connection is not in place, no matter how good the acting is, the show will fail."

He leaned on the chair, crossed his legs, held the script in his hands and put it on his knees.

Liu Yifei also crossed her legs, leaning on Chu Xuan's left body, and rested her raised right elbow on Chu Xuan's left shoulder.

She and Chu Xuan stayed in the studio all day, thinking that they could still perform a few scenes today, but the scenes in the middle delayed too much time, causing them to perform a scene that got off to a good start, and then it became a full day. Theatergoers.

In addition to learning something, she and Chu Xuan also saw the problems that arose.

It's just that when the actors appeared on the set, they didn't have a sci-fi feel that fit the worldview of the script.

In other words, there is no sense from the actors that this is a science fiction film.

You can see martial arts and regular action movies, but it doesn't have a sci-fi feel.

"Yes, that's what Cameron said, no emotional connection was established." Tang Jili nodded repeatedly and said: "Look at Hui Yinghong's scenes, their individual acting skills are completely adequate, but no matter how they act, it doesn't feel right. This It’s not the acting and performance direction that a science fiction film should have.”

Chenglong straightened up in front of the monitor, turned around and crossed his arms and said, "The so-called emotional connection is more about imagination and belief."

"They can't imagine what kind of world it is like under the world view of "At the Battle of the City", and how people survive in such a world view."

"If these two points are not in place, the characters and scenes will be out of place."

Hearing what Chenglong said, Chu Xuan suddenly thought of a movie in his memory, "Shanghai Fortress".

The situation of this movie is just as Chenglong said, the actors' performances and the presentation of the special effects scenes are incompatible.

In short, the actors perform their performance, which has nothing to do with the scene, causing the audience to be entertained every minute.

How to combine your performance with special effects scenes is also the performance direction that domestic actors are least good at.

Compared with those foreign actors...

Chu Xuan thought for a while and said: "What the elder brother said makes sense, but it is difficult to do it. Each actor has a different way of thinking. Let them imagine a one-to-one environment and scene according to the script and put it into it. Everyone will be able to There is a discrepancy.”

"Hollywood blockbusters are well shot, but I don't believe those actors can really imagine the corresponding scene when faced with a piece of green cloth."

"Before the post-production special effects are produced, even the director cannot imagine the whole picture. At most, it is just a frame."

The teachers on the directing team nodded. Although they have scene composition in their hands, the composition is composed of lines, which tells you what this area is and what that area is.

Before the special effects were produced, no one could imagine what it would look like.

"So I think..." Chu Xuan said: "In addition to the basic sense of belief, it is also a matter of adaptation. The actors and teachers have never filmed such a full special effects scene movie. It is normal that their every move is not well integrated with the scene. This You can only take the time to experience it.”

"Yes." Chenglong also thinks so. It is the first time to make such a movie. No matter how much preparation you make in the early stage, it is of little use. Without the experience of actual performance, everything is in vain. This requires a certain amount of adaptation time.

"Other than that, it's just a performance..." Chu Xuan paused: "How should I put it?"

He frowned and thought for a while: "Looking at the story structure from a three-act perspective, take the non-special effects movie "The Condor" as an example. The whole story line is that Yang Guo was taken in by Xiao Longnu, and the two went through many stumblings and finally came together. It constructs the entire story of "The Condor"." "This main line of the script is in line with most domestic film and television dramas. The core point is that the story tells people."

"But if we take... "Resident Evil" as an example, it starts with the beehive leaking biochemical drugs, then the Umbrella Company conducts experiments on humans around the world, and finally the heroine rebels against the Umbrella Company."

"The main line of this script is not mainly about people. It is mainly about a world view and an alternative science fiction civilization, which in turn reflects people."

Liu Yifei, Tang Jili, and Chenglong listened quietly and analyzed in their minds with the directors and teachers.

Chu Xuan summed up the difference between non-special effects film and television and special effects film and television very well. The former talks about people, while the latter talks about the world view, and then talks about people in this world view.

Why is there this difference?

Whether it is urban dramas or martial arts dramas from non-special effects films and TV shows, the world view is ready-made and can be imagined by the audience, so there is nothing wrong with starting directly from people.

Most of the worldviews in special effects films and television are fantasy. If the worldview is not explained clearly, the audience will not be able to understand it, and it will be useless no matter how good the person explains it.

This difference is obvious, but how to distinguish this difference in the movie?
"What Xuan Zai said is interesting." Tang Jili took a sip of the mineral water, tightened the bottle cap and said, "One is about people, and the other is about worldview."

"If this difference is reflected in the actors, then what we see should not be the emotions of the characters themselves, but people's emotions towards things."

"We also need to see the emotions about the world from the actors."

Everyone was thoughtful, and Tang Jili continued: "In the world view, people are microcosmic, and the worldview is macroscopic; human emotions are microscopic consciousness, but the emotions of the worldview are macroscopic presentations."

He thought to himself: "Then how can we express a macro-emotional presentation of the worldview through performance?"

Liu Yifei lowered her eyebrows. She suddenly thought of "Resident Evil".

She feels that the heroine Alice is in line with Tang Jili's statement that the character itself has no emotions and is just a micro-consciousness under the world view, but this character has a macro-emotional presentation of things generated by the entire world view.

For example, the choice he made when facing the Red Queen, his words and deeds when facing Weeks...

The Red Queen and Wicks are the core components of the worldview.

These two compositions give Alice, who seems emotionless, a complex perception of things.

These complex senses are conveyed through the screen, giving the audience the feeling of a science fiction blockbuster.

But can these be presented through performances alone?
"Mirror movement?" She muttered subconsciously.

Tang Jili, who was thinking, looked up and glanced at Liu Yifei: "Moving the mirror..."

"Good idea." Tang Jili thought of a solution to the problem and looked at the director team: "Go back and think about a few sets of shots together."

"One shot is given to the scene so that the audience can tell at a glance that this is a science fiction world."

"One shot goes from the scene to the actor, using the blessing of the scene to establish an emotional connection with the actor, so that the audience will feel accustomed to it at a glance, thinking that this actor is living in this science fiction world, and there is no sense of violation."

"One shot gives details, whether it is the behavior of the actors or the detailed props in the scene, they must fit in with our science fiction world."

"How to give the camera, whether it is a panning shot, a rolling shot, or one shot to the end, we should discuss it carefully when we go back and figure out what to do."

Tang Jili stood up and said, "That's it, let's go."

The crew was still cleaning up in the studio. Chu Xuan, Liu Yifei and the teachers got up and prepared to return to the hotel.

"Your three-act formula is all-encompassing, okay." Tang Jili patted Chu Xuan on the shoulder.

"It's just nonsense." Chu Xuan shook his head.

"Sissi reminded me that it's not just about watching the actors perform, but the presentation of the world view in the shot is the most important thing," Tang Jili added.

Liu Yifei smoothed her hair, smiled and said nothing, took Chu Xuan's hand and walked out together.

She was also talking nonsense, but she didn't expect it to have any effect.

Chenglong glanced at the young couple. Chu Xuan's insights inspired Tang Jili. Liu Yifei's sudden words helped Tang Jili find his thoughts. These two little guys were quite interesting.

The other actors went back to rest early. Only the two of them stayed on the set, sitting in front of the monitor to read the script, listen to the analysis, and take notes.

He could also guess that Chu Xuan and Liu Yifei's pursuit was not just actors. After all, where their status and capital were, they would definitely pursue bigger careers.

But his attitude towards learning is really good, and young people like him are rare.

"Let's do this. I'll shoot your scenes for the next few days. The lack of results may have something to do with the camera, but there's also something wrong with the way they perform."

"You are different. Your characters are people in modern society. You should act in a normal state and give them some time to find their state."

At the entrance of the hotel, several business cars and nanny cars stopped. After everyone got off the cars and walked into the hotel, Tang Jili changed the shooting plan temporarily.

"Okay." Chu Xuan and Liu Yifei agreed. Although it was tiring to focus on filming, they had no other ideas for the smooth progress of the filming process.

"Get some rest early." Tang Jili and Chenglong walked up the stairs, preparing to discuss camera matters.

"It's so difficult." Liu Yifei and Chu Xuan walked into the elevator.

"Take your time." Chu Xuan pressed the elevator button.

Science fiction movies are the weak point of domestic movies. Even if Tang Jili had made complete preparations before this, there was no guarantee that everything would go smoothly.

From the performance of the actors to the presentation of the camera, it takes time to slowly explore how to capture the characteristics of Chinese science fiction.

In the final analysis, it is still a matter of experience and ability, which can only be learned and accumulated over time.

The elevator door opened, and Chu Xuan and Liu Yifei walked onto the carpet in the corridor.

The young couple did not go back to the room immediately, but came to Liu Xiaoli's room to say hello to her.

The two children stayed on the set, and they were all their own people. Liu Xiaoli felt relieved and did not follow them to the set to watch them filming. She stayed in the hotel to help them handle some affairs.

""Legend of Red Flame" will be aired in March. You, Sister Hua, have said that you will go to "Happy Camp" to promote it. Will you go? If so, it will be at the end of next month."

Chu Xuan and Liu Yifei looked at each other and asked each other's opinions through eye contact. In the end, the young couple shook their heads at the same time: "Don't go, there is no time."

Liu Xiaoli nodded. This was what she expected. As the hero and heroine, it would be troublesome to go back to China.

"How about spending the Chinese New Year here this year and never going back?" she asked again.

The Spring Festival will be here in a few days, and although Los Angeles cannot celebrate this festival, they still have to celebrate it.

Tang Jili and Chenglong, including the crew, will not go back, and it is even harder for the two children to go back as the male and female protagonists.

Moreover, the crew only had two days off, New Year's Eve and Spring Festival, and there was no time to return to China.

"Okay." Chu Xuan didn't care. Anyway, all three of their family were here, so the Chinese New Year was not celebrated anywhere.

"Okay." Liu Yifei nodded. Although she regretted not being able to return to China to visit her grandmother, the fact was that the situation did not give them the opportunity to go back to celebrate the New Year, so there was really nothing they could do.

"Then you should rest early." Liu Xiaoli looked at Zeng Ni: "We will go shopping in Chinatown these days."

Now that she has decided to celebrate the New Year here, she also wants to see what candies and other New Year products are available in Chinatown to prepare for the New Year.

"Okay." Zeng Ni nodded.

"Auntie, Sister Zeng, good night." Chu Xuan pulled Liu Yifei and turned to leave.

Liu Yifei turned around and said, "Mom, Ailande is coming years ago. She will contact you then, and you ask Brother Lu to pick her up."

Grande? ...Liu Xiaoli was stunned for a moment, then immediately responded: "Okay."

When he was still in Xiangjiang in December, Macron contacted his daughter and determined the time for the third discussion, which would be a few days ago.

The daughter was probably using Ailande as a shield, trying to trick Chu Xuan into going to Macron with Ailande for talks.

Chu Xuan turned to look at his mother-in-law and saw a hidden smile in her eyes. He knew what was going on and was ready to watch Liu Yifei's performance.

(End of this chapter)