Bright Era of China Entertainment

Chapter 765: Filming in Progress

Looking at the male protagonist's opening scene, picking up parcels on an unmanned delivery vehicle, the high-tech elements will bring the audience a sense of novelty and novelty, which is a positive feeling;

The male protagonist goes upstairs and reveals his current situation of being in the late stage of cancer and waiting to die through inner monologue. The emotion conveyed is tragic and gloomy, which is a negative feeling;
The male protagonist met some neighbor aunties chatting about gossip while walking in the corridor. The light comedy atmosphere brought by the daily life performed by the aunties and the slightly funny emotions conveyed were also positive feelings.

The three-act plot structure at the beginning is a good way to achieve an emotional ups and downs.

The plot structure design of other film and television dramas has its own particularities. Different concepts naturally lead to different plot design ideas. However, when Chu Xuan is the director, his three-act structure theory must of course be implemented. The entire drama "My Love from the Star" was designed and created by Liu Yi and the screenwriter team based on Chu Xuan's three-act theory.

The three-act structure theory emphasizes a complete and coherent emotion, denies emotional fragmentation, and then denies invalid transitions, thus emphasizing the continuity of the plot in the idea of ​​cutting pictures.

Unlike most movies and TV dramas, when telling the story of one person, it suddenly switches to another person without any foreshadowing or transition. This does not conform to Chu Xuan's three-act theory.

Therefore, the advantages and disadvantages of the three-act theory are obvious. The complete emotions brought by the coherent plot will make the audience feel comfortable watching the show. As long as the three-act theory is followed, there will be no abrupt emotions. However, if the ups and downs of emotions and stories are not designed to be interesting, the rhythm of the story will appear slow.

The significance of emotional ups and downs in film and television art lies in that the multi-dimensional emotional value not only improves the quality of the work, but also changes the audience's perception of watching the drama. The changing sensory experience is one of the factors that attract the audience to follow the drama.

Not to mention the ups and downs of the story, most film and television dramas focus on a process of beginning, laying the groundwork to the explosive outcome. This is a common routine in film and television around the world, but this routine is not derogatory. As long as the design is novel and innovative, it is a good routine.

But if the three-act style requires everything to be complete and coherent, the rhythm will inevitably be lost. This is why many directors, in post-editing, often suddenly cut to the key plot in order to ensure the rhythm of the highlights, abandoning the foreshadowing plot in an attempt to make the audience go directly to the climax and thus attract the audience to continue watching.

Therefore, the three-act structure must maintain the core element of "integrity and coherence" in this theory, while also avoiding making the plot dull and losing the rhythm of the highlights due to "integrity and coherence". This places very high demands on the design of the script. Not only must each three-act plot be meaningful, but the emotions must also have ups and downs, and the highlights must be as much as possible.

In the design of the script of "My Love from the Star", the protagonist just completed an emotional ups and downs in the three acts at the beginning. The significance of this is to explain the historical background and current situation of the protagonist. The highlight is to give the audience the reversal they expect.

Then the next plot design will definitely go in the direction of reversal, and the ups and downs of emotions end with the aunts' sense of humor. Then in the next coherent plot, if you want to connect the previous and the next to complete another ups and downs of emotions, you can either raise this sense of humor upwards or sink this sense of humor. This can achieve the purpose of emotional ups and downs, and it is also the design method of the three-act theoretical plot structure.

Liu Yifei stared at the monitor intently as the scene starring the male lead Chu Xuan was being filmed.

Shots: One full-body shot from behind, one medium shot of the upper body from the front, both shots move in rhythm with Chu Xuan's movements.

Scene: A room with soft, warm lighting that is not too bright.

Sound: In the southeast corner, Chinese medicine is bubbling in a teapot.

Details: There are Chinese medicinal materials next to the small table where the teapot is placed, so that the audience can know what is brewing in the teapot.

In the dimly lit room, there was only the sound of boiling Chinese medicine. Chu Xuan still had no lines, with his hands in his trouser pockets, quietly looking out the window at the bustling city.

In this back-shot camera language, the feeling of loneliness instantly shatters the sense of humor brought by the aunts, but the impact is not enough.

As soon as the sound of boiling Chinese medicine stopped, Chu Xuan came to the small table in the corner, picked up the teapot and poured the Chinese medicine into the cup, then drank it slowly, coughing a few times in the middle to show his physical weakness.

Now the sense of humor brought by the aunts is completely gone, and emotions of loneliness, sadness and pity completely replace it, completing the beginning of the first emotional ring of a new three-act series.

Starting with negative emotions, according to Chu Xuan's three-act theory, the excessive emotions that follow in the next scene must have a different turn, and this emotional turn must be in line with the plot situation. It cannot be random, and it cannot be changed arbitrarily just for the sake of emotional transformation.

Just then, the alarm clock in the house rang.

The alarm clock rings as a signal. It is required by the plot, it is the beginning of breaking the audience's dull mood, and it is also a reminder that Chu Xuan will use the next scene to complete the emotional transformation.

Chu Xuan put down the cup, sat down on the bed and opened a large express box. He took out a clown hat, a clown nose and other makeup props.

The camera gives a close-up, shifting the audience's focus and dispelling the audience's pathetic and pitiful atmosphere, replacing it with curiosity about "what the male protagonist is going to do with a clown costume", completing the emotional transformation and achieving an emotional ups and downs in this three-act scene, starting from negative emotions to positive emotions.

The underlying logic of the three-act structure is a simple beginning, process, and end. This play has a beginning and a process, and the next step is to tell the audience an end, which is also the last link to complete the emotional ups and downs in this three-act plot.

After a short break, start another scene following the previous one.

Chu Xuan walked out directly from the private bathroom. The shots that had been mainly taken from behind to reflect the loneliness of the male protagonist were mainly taken from the front in this scene.

Chu Xuan is photographed in a clown-like image. The contrast in image will give the audience a new perception and greatly deepen their curiosity about "what the male protagonist is going to do."

This emotion of curiosity still belongs to the process emotion and has not been transformed into the emotion of the result, so another play is needed to complete this link.

The set moved to another constructed scene and filming began.

There is a scene similar to a small square in front of the green cloth, with extras acting as passers-by coming and going, and some extras watching a person's performance.

The performer is Chu Xuan, who transforms into a clown and performs various performances for the audience in a funny way, such as unicycle, magic wand, apple throwing, stilt walking...

The onlookers watched with great interest, and some even scanned the QR code to give money as a reward.

Chu Xuan performed various shows according to the teacher's instructions. Liu Yifei watched with great interest in front of the monitor, while Zhou Jielun watched from outside the set and kept the rhythm in his mind.

[Dear, don’t be so scared that you close your eyes.

Not everyone can do clown tricks.

Exaggerated eye shadow, blue sad tears.

Throwing knives, breathing fire, walking on stilts and playing the flute...】

This scene has music, and it is also the first scene where the song "Uncle Jock" appears, in order to deepen the character of the male protagonist.

The main melody of this song is rap, with a brisk and cheerful rhythm, which fits the atmosphere of the extras watching Chu Xuan's performance with smiles on their faces.

However, the more this soundtrack fits the current plot atmosphere, the greater the audience's perception of the male protagonist Jock will change, and the greater the degree of emotional transformation will be.

In the opening scene, the protagonist Jock's inner monologue said that he no longer had any extravagant demands or desires for life.

But, Jock transformed himself into a clown and performed on the street? Would someone who had no aspirations in life do this?
Even if it's just to make money to survive, it at least shows that Jock has the desire to live.

The conflict between the two is the contradiction between the characters' thoughts and actions.

Isn't that how people are? Often, they think about something, but due to various factors, their actions often fail to live up to their intentions.

This is us in reality, and it is also the self-troubles that people with flesh and blood cannot get rid of.

This scene is the conclusion of this three-act plot. It allows the audience to transform their curiosity into some empathy, and they will have a sense of substitution for the hero Jock's difficult life. It is also the beginning of the spiritual connection between the hero Jock and the audience.

Such a sense of immersion will trigger the audience's strong expectations for the male lead, hoping that the male lead will get better and better, thereby increasing the audience's desire to follow the drama.

The only possible logical loophole here is why the male protagonist wants to play the clown?
There are two main reasons. One is that the male protagonist is too weak to do anything else. The other is that the male protagonist suffers from inferiority complex and social phobia due to waiting to die from cancer, so he does not want to face the society with his true face.

Chu Xuan was not going to explain these two reasons. He believed that the role he interpreted would allow the audience to understand the character's behavior. If the character was explained too clearly, some connotation and depth would be lost.

Among the onlookers of this scene was Wu Xiaobao, played by Ouyang Nabi, who watched Jock, played by Chu Xuan, perform the clown show with great excitement. Her appearance also paved the way for the next scene.

"I need a minute, the time limit is not reached."

"How much is left?"

"20 seconds."

"Okay, I'll go and practice my acting skills."

Zhou Jie Lun silently thought about the rhythm of the music for this scene on the spot. According to his idea, this scene would need one minute of music to achieve his expected effect, but Chu Xuan's performance was still 20 seconds short of one minute.

Chu Xuan didn't say much after hearing his words. In other dramas, the music follows the plot, but in "My Love from the Star", the two need to complement and integrate with each other. Zhou Jielun is far more professional than him in expressing musical emotions, so he didn't waste any time and went back to polish the scene and reshoot it.

Liu Yifei was watching in front of the monitor. Chu Xuan had not had a single line in his part so far. The character of Jock was interpreted entirely through Chu Xuan's acting skills and the language of the camera. So far, the character has become more and more full and soulful. She is proud of her husband's acting level, and it is also what she has been observing and learning carefully.

Chu Xuan and Zhou Jie Lun went through this scene several times, and then moved on to the next three-act scene.

Lens:

From behind, Chu Xuan has taken off his makeup, finished his street performance, and is carrying his prop box upstairs, ready to go home.

The Joker was shot from the front, and after removing his makeup, he was shot from the back. From the change in the language of the camera, it seemed as if he was returning from the happy side to loneliness. This shooting technique repeatedly reflected the duality of the male protagonist Jock.

At this time, a voice came from behind: "Are you Uncle Clown?"

Chu Xuan put his left hand in his trouser pocket and held the suitcase with his right hand. He turned his head and saw Ouyang Nabi.

When Ouyang Nabi saw Chu Xuan's face, perhaps because of the child's unique eyesight, she immediately said excitedly: "You are Uncle Clown!"

Chu Xuan paused. He was a clown, which was a job that made people laugh in society. It was embarrassing to be recognized, so he didn't say anything and turned to go upstairs.

Ouyang Nabi looked very excited. She followed happily with her short legs and chattered all the way.

"Uncle Clown, you are so awesome. How did you make that magic bubble?"

"And why is there fire coming out of your mouth? Do you really know magic?"

"You play the bamboo beautifully..."

"That's a flute." This was Chu Xuan's first line so far. Calling the flute a bamboo was an insult to him. The more inferior he felt, the stronger his rebellious self-esteem forced him to correct it.

"Flute?" Ouyang Nabi looked confused.

This is the first scene in this three-act structure. While introducing the character of Wu Xiaobao, Chu Xuan emphasizes that the "flute" plot reflects Qiao Ke's strong self-esteem caused by his inferiority complex, making the character more full.

In such a situation of interaction with children, the drama created by Ouyang Nabi's innocence and Chu Xuan's serious emphasis is slightly funny and can make people smile.

Continuing the empathy that the clown performance brought to the audience in the previous scene, this scene starts the three-act emotional journey with a slight sense of comedy.

"Eh? Uncle Clown, you live across from my house?" The second scene began, and Ouyang Nabi chased Chu Xuan to the door of his house, and said in surprise and joy.

Chu Xuan ignored her and took the key to open the door.

The camera gave a close-up of the door, and Ouyang Nabi was not in the shot.

"Uncle Clown, can you perform the clown act for me again?" Ouyang Nabi's voice came from behind.

Chu Xuan opened the door and took a step inside.

"I'll give you money, can you perform again?" Ouyang Nabi's voice came again.

Chu Xuan paused, and the camera changed direction as he turned his head, aiming at Ouyang Nabi.

Ouyang Nabi pouted: "My father is a magician, but he never performs magic for me. He says magic is fake and deceptive. He doesn't allow me to like deceptive things. But I like to watch it because it makes me very happy. Uncle Clown, you don't know that I am sick and can't go anywhere. It's so boring."

Ouyang Nabi blinked her eyes, looked up and said expectantly: "Uncle Clown brings happiness to everyone, he must be a good person, can you turn into a clown for me again?"

Chu Xuan lowered his head and looked at her. After two or three seconds, he turned indifferently and walked into the room, closing the door with a "bang".

The camera turned to Ouyang Nabi, who was staring at the closed door in a daze. Then she put her hands on her hips and pouted, "Stingy clown uncle, humph!"

She turned and walked back to the house across the street and slammed the door with the same sound.

This is the second scene of this three-act show. Compared with Ouyang Nabi's cuteness and the pity she received after she explained her illness, Chu Xuan's behavior seemed a bit ruthless.

Such a cute little girl, there is no need to treat her like this even if she doesn't agree, right?
Perhaps from the perspective of the character Jock, such an attitude is in line with the character's personality and situation, but such a plot also dissipates the just-in-time humorous atmosphere, transforming it into some rejection and confusion towards the male protagonist Chu Xuan, completing an emotional ups and downs.

But the male protagonist is the male protagonist after all, and no matter what, the audience cannot feel disgusted with the male protagonist. Here we need a small reversal to mobilize the audience's negative emotions towards the male protagonist into positive ones, and make the male protagonist more three-dimensional in accordance with the character's personality and the situation.

The third scene of this three-act series begins, with the camera continuing from the previous scene and aiming at the end of the corridor.

The door opened and Chu Xuan came out, dressed up as a clown again, and went to the room opposite and knocked on the door.

The camera was pointed at the door. Ouyang Nabi opened the door and saw Chu Xuan transformed into a clown. She jumped up and down in joy and clapped her hands, saying, "I knew that Uncle Clown was a good man! He is an angel who brings happiness to everyone!"

The camera turned to Chu Xuan's face. After hearing these words, a smile appeared on Chu Xuan's clown face.

This is the first time that the male protagonist Jock, played by Chu Xuan, has smiled so far, and it is also the first smile of Jock in the series.

In front of the monitor, Liu Yifei saw the smile on Chu Xuan's face as he was dressed up as a clown. She didn't know if it was because Chu Xuan acted too well or because of her in-depth interpretation of the role of Jock, but she suddenly had an urge to cry. Anyway, she felt moved and relieved.

This scene, as the ending of this three-act structure, allows the audience to transform the negative emotions that the male protagonist has just aroused into positive ones, completing the complete emotional expression of this three-act structure.

From the situation, the lines, and the emotional changes, the audience can clearly see that there is "light" in the heart of the male protagonist Jock, and this "light" is Jock's greatest characteristic, and it is also the core characteristic of the character that this three-act plot wants to express.

The opening three acts are an introduction to the characters’ situations.

The three acts of playing the Joker are about building the inner world of the character.

The three-act structure just now initiated by Wu Xiaobao highlights the distinct characters and their characteristics that can resonate with the audience.

The plot is in three acts, with the main theme being the ups and downs of emotions.

The plot composed of multiple emotional ups and downs is the ups and downs of the story.

Therefore, these three groups of three acts form an overall framework. The opening three acts are the beginning, the clown's three acts are the process, and the three acts just now are the result.

From the overall dullness brought about by the opening situation, to the empathy brought about by the process of transforming into a clown, and finally to the upward "light" character trait that burst out in the result just now, the character of the male protagonist Jock [the clown] is completely established. It cannot be said to be lifelike, but the full sense of character is enough to establish an emotional connection with the audience.

In Chu Xuan's concept, the protagonist and the audience can establish an emotional connection, which is the basic condition for opening the main storyline.

"Crack!"

"Pass!"

Liu Yifei put down the intercom and saw Chu Xuan walking back while drinking water. The clown makeup on his face had not been wiped off yet, and he looked a little tired. She said with a little concern: "Are you tired? Take a rest."

Chu Xuan put down the mineral water and looked at the screen on the monitor: "I'm not tired anymore. I'm getting the feeling. I'll try to shoot the next scene in one go and hurry up to finish the scenes in the studio."

"Good actor." Huang Lei praised half-jokingly and half-seriously. Teachers such as Ning Hao and Tang Jili also nodded in admiration at Chu Xuan.

Under Liu Yifei's distressed gaze, Chu Xuan looked at the camera several times to confirm that there was no problem, and then hurried back to the set.

(End of this chapter)