In addition to his scenes opposite Xu Jinglei and Wang Li, Li Tang is more of a bystander wandering around subway stations and subways. Many shots are shot from his subjective lens, and occasionally he also acts as a background plate.
As a bystander, he often finds some interesting details. For example, when Fan Wei comes out of a crowded subway, he stumbles, the heels of his shoes are stepped off, and then he makes a motion to lift the shoes. Even though it was just such a small gesture, a simple and honest character with a sense of joy appeared vividly.
In stark contrast is Ke Lan, who plays opposite Lao Fan. What did she say? She worked very hard, but she always felt that she was exerting too much force. Well... it's not accurate to say that she was exerting too much force, because only those who have acting skills can be called too hard. She can't talk about acting yet, and her performance is very exaggerated. To use Shanghai as an example, it’s probably just crazy. Fortunately, Lao Fan kept trying to make up for it, and the rivalry between the two was barely passable.
On the contrary, Gao Yuanyuan, who was not very optimistic before, brought Li Tang a little surprise. She fully interpreted the role of a bold, brave and strong photo studio clerk who had just stepped out of school and longed for love. Of course, her pure and sweet image plays a large part, especially when she is in an offensive state, her sharp and powerful eyes are in great contrast with her image, giving people a feeling of being fierce and fierce, and even more so. It adds a bit of a savage girlfriend flavor.
"Cut! Okay, passed."
A rivalry scene between Gao Yuanyuan and Hu Qiang in the subway was successfully filmed. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Shooting in the subway for more than ten days was really tiring. Because we had to avoid the peak hours of subway operation, we would often shoot until 11 or 12 o'clock in the evening. Even if the subway was stopped, we still had to shoot at the subway station. Moreover, the subway is an open place, and passengers often accidentally enter the camera, and then have to retake the shot.
These past ten days have really been a torment for everyone.
"Yuanyuan, Xiao Hu, thank you for your hard work!" Li Tang walked over and said hello.
Gao Yuanyuan said nothing. Li Tang's neglect during this period made her very unhappy.
Hu Qiang kept saying: "It's not hard! It's not hard!"
He acted well. In the scene just now, when Gao Yuanyuan's hand touched his, the nervous, flustered and joyful expression was very vivid. In fact, in the final analysis, he is acting in his true colors like Gao Yuanyuan, but his performance is more original and is a completely real reaction. After all, the innocent and lovely Gao Yuanyuan is too lethal to these eighteen or nineteen-year-old boys.
However, the little guy winked and knew that Gao Yuanyuan had an unusual relationship with Teacher Li. After saying hello, he hurried away and did not stay to be a light bulb.
Gao Yuanyuan raised her head and deliberately ignored Li Tang. Although she is not tall, her neck is quite long, especially when she raises her head and stretches her neck to the limit, she looks like a proud swan at first glance.
She just wanted to put on a posture of "I'm very angry, come and comfort me", but unfortunately after waiting for a long time, she couldn't hear Li Tang's voice. When she looked back, she saw Li Tang sitting there with his phone down and sending a message.
She couldn't help but get angry, stamped her foot, and said coquettishly: "Brother Li..."
"Oh, wait a minute!"
Li Tang raised his head and glanced at her calmly. He continued to edit the text message. After typing the last line and clicking the send button, he looked up at Gao Yuanyuan again and said, "Is something wrong?"
"..."
Gao Yuanyuan stared at him blankly for three seconds, muttering to herself: Don't be angry, I'm not angry. Taking a deep breath, he said aggrievedly: "Brother Li, do you still mean what you say?"
"What's wrong..."
Li Tang was stunned for a moment, then thought about it and said hurriedly: "Oh, Yuanyuan, I'm really sorry. I'm really busy during this period and I really can't make time for a while. Can you wait a little longer?" "
He promised the little girl that he would treat her to dinner, but during this period of time because of filming the subway scene, he left early and came back late all day long. Today, he had promised Jiang Qinqin to go to her place for dinner, and just replied to her text message.
"But... but my play is about to be finished, and I have to rush to the new crew to report. When will you be free?" Gao Yuanyuan pouted.
She had already passed the audition of the "Heaven and Dragon Sword" crew before, and of course it was her agency that finally helped her land the role of Zhou Zhiruo, the second female lead. Because she was angry with Li Tang, she never told him.
"Huh? Oh, you succeeded in the audition. Congratulations! Congratulations!" Li Tang said in hindsight.
Then he could only apologize: "I really can't spare any time recently, uh... where is your new drama filmed?"
"I will be filming interior scenes in Huairou for the time being, and will transfer to Hengdian in two months."
"How about I go visit the class when I have time?"
Since he didn't have time to invite the girl to dinner, Li Tang could only push it back. On the one hand, he has no time, but on the other hand, he also thinks that as time goes by, and more importantly, if the two of them don't stay together, the girl may not be so enthusiastic.
"ah?"
Gao Yuanyuan was disappointed, but looking at Li Tang's "sincere" eyes, she could only say pitifully: "Then you must keep your word this time."
"good!"
Li Tangman nodded apologetically and solemnly.
…
In the ward, Wang Li, wearing a hospital gown, sat on the bed, and the nurse next to her was untying the gauze covering her eyes in circles. When the gauze was connected and Wang Li opened her eyes, Zhao Xiaoding quickly pushed a close-up shot and saw her adapting to the surrounding light and suddenly turning her head to look at the lens of another camera.
Her eyes in the picture are clear, and she seems to be filled with endless disappointment...
"Cut! Okay, passed!"
Zhang Baiyi shouted excitedly.
Sitting on the hospital bed, Wang Li heard the director finally shouting, and her whole body suddenly became sluggish. The two assistants waiting nearby were very busy helping the person carrying water and the other putting on clothes.
This shot took me an entire afternoon, and I took nearly ten shots over and over again, and finally I got through it. Zhang Baibai stood up from behind the monitor, faced the lens of the synchronized documentary film carried by the assistant director Mouse, raised one hand, and said loudly: "I announce that "Metro to Spring" has been completed!"
There was a burst of applause at the scene, but the applause was not very enthusiastic, just from a few staff members around. Most of the actors have already finished filming.
There is no way, Wang Li's acting skills are there, even though she works hard and has a very good attitude, but her talent is limited, and she can't be an actress just with a pretty face.
During the filming process, we can only try to avoid her weaknesses in acting skills. The most effective way is to maximize the long shot and give more close-ups. For example, in the last shot, we make full use of her clear eyes and try to amplify her advantages. Matching her beautiful appearance can have the finishing touch.
At the same time, it is also an explanation to the sponsor, otherwise it would be a bit unreasonable if someone invested two million to get a second female lead role, with few lines, blindfolded, and always looking far away.
Fortunately, Wang Li is a bit silly and sweet, or she knows her own shortcomings, so she understands some of the crew's small actions and doesn't get too entangled. In a word, the role of the second female lead was just confused.
After the applause, Wang Li, who had regained her composure, walked up to Li Tang and said sincerely: "Teacher Li, I have caused trouble for you."
"It's okay, it's okay, everyone helps each other." Li Tang said with a smile.
In any case, this girl was quite nice, and she left a good impression on Li Tang over time.
Wang Li looked at Li Tang and asked, "Teacher Li, am I not suitable to be an actor?"
"Well……"
Li Tang was speechless for a while, hesitated for a moment, and then said frankly: "It's not that it's not suitable. If you are really interested in this area, I suggest you find a teacher to strengthen basic skills such as lines, body shape, and acting. .If you have the conditions, you can try a stage play."
After all, stage plays are cheap, otherwise it would be too expensive to spend millions on a character just to have fun.
Hearing this answer, Wang Li seemed to be relieved and said with gratitude: "I understand, thank you, Teacher Li!"
The planned shooting period of "Subway to Spring" was forty days, and now it was completed a week in advance. It was inevitable to celebrate, and a finals banquet was held that night.
Except for Xu Jinglei and Gao Yuanyuan who couldn't leave due to filming, Fan Wei and Ke Lan, who had finished filming early, also came. Although Ke Lan's acting skills are a bit terrible, he has a good personality and is carefree, and even if he has a background, he will not be like some people who say "I am a noble" all over their face, and then look down on this and that. She easily gets along with everyone, and she even flew here from Hong Kong to attend the wedding banquet today.
Lao Fan is very quiet in private, always has a humble smile on his face, and is always polite and soft-spoken when talking to others. And although Lao Fan is from the Northeast, he drinks very little, or he deliberately controls it, but he drinks very little.
Li Tang and Lao Fan have very few scenes opposite each other, and appear more as bystanders and backdrops. Maybe it's because he's used to acting in sketches, but Lao Fan's handling of details is quite good. Sometimes it's quite unexpected, but the effect is particularly good. Although he modestly said that this was just his own imagination, it was obvious that he was very good at observing and capturing the characteristics of little people.
In fact, Lao Fan has also been interested in moving to film and television in the past two years, so when facing Li Tang's investors, it was rare for him to say a few sincere words.
In his words, every time he went to the Spring Festival Gala, because it was a live broadcast, the pressure was too great and he couldn't bear it. But it's different when making movies and TV dramas. You can use your imagination in front of the camera. If it doesn't work, you can just try it again. It's enjoyable and you don't have to bear the pressure.
Zhang Baibai came back with a glass of wine and made a toast, sat down next to Li Tang, poured himself another glass of beer, smiled and toasted: "Teacher Li, congratulations!"
Yesterday, the 55th Cannes International Film Festival in France announced the list of all nominees. "Balzac and the Little Dressmaker" starring Li Tang, Zhou Xun, and Chen Kun was shortlisted for the "Un Certain Regard" section of this film festival. Of course, this film, which is destined not to be released domestically, was shortlisted in the name of a French film.
The only Chinese film shortlisted for the main competition is "Ren Xiaoyao", the last film in Jia Kechang's Hometown Trilogy. Of all the shortlisted films, the only one that left an impression in Li Tang's memory was "The Pianist" directed by Jewish-French director Roman Polanski.
This movie will shine at next year's Oscars. Actor Adrien Brody won the best actor award at the 75th Academy Awards, and director Polanski also won the best director award. Because Polanski was wanted by the U.S. police for raping underage girls, he was unable to receive the award in person, which caused a stir at the time.
Originally, as a biological son of the Cannes Film Festival, "The Little Seamstress" could only be shortlisted for the "Un Certain Regard" category. It was nothing more than selling the copyrights of a few more countries. In addition, perhaps out of the need for political correctness, or to show a unique perspective, "The Little Seamstress" will also represent France in the competition for the Best Foreign Language Film Award at next year's Oscars. Being shortlisted for the Cannes Film Festival is probably also a kind of warm-up and momentum building.
The "Un Certain Regard" section of the Cannes Film Festival is a bit like the "Upstream" section of the Venice Film Festival. It is a competition section parallel to the main competition section. The only difference is that the "Upstream" section focuses on new directors. works, while Un Certain Regard is an arthouse film festival focusing on diversity and niche.
Although this unit also has awards for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor and Actor, "The Little Seamstress" is a movie with a major heroine, and the only one who can hope to win the award is the heroine Zhou Xun, and Li Tanghe Chen Kun is destined to become a supporting role to support the heroine.
Therefore, Li Tang was not very interested in being shortlisted this time.
Of course, he still had a drink with Zhang Baibai and then said a few polite words.
"Hey, Teacher Li, do you think our film can be sent overseas for awards review after it is completed?" Zhang Baibai asked tentatively.
"Well……"
To be honest, after going through the entire filming process, Li Tang didn't like this movie very much. He always felt that art films are not like art films, and commercial films are not like commercial films. They are far different from Cheng Er's "The Third Man" . The problem does not lie with the script, but with the director Zhang Baibai.
What did you say?
It's probably quite satisfactory and step-by-step, with no unexpected highlights.
But at any rate, he is also one of the major shareholders, and the previous film "The Third Man" has tasted the benefits again. Li Tang has been thinking about this for a long time. The first is the Rotterdam Film Festival early next year. Although this film festival is small, it is very influential in the field of European art films, and Zhang Bai is a new director, which is in line with the Rotterdam Film Festival's consistent support of new directors from all over the world. purpose.
The second one is the Venice Film Festival. He does not expect that "Metro to Spring" will be shortlisted for the main competition unit or the "Upstream" unit. It will be shortlisted for the screening unit. It will be screened at the film festival for publicity. Burning incense.
The third is that we can look forward to cooperating with the French MK2 company again. With the energy of MK2, even if it cannot be shortlisted for the three major European film festivals, it is still very promising to be shortlisted for the Paris International Film Festival or the Nantes Three Continents Film Festival, and then export it to domestic sales, and use the name of overseas film festivals to create a lot of hype. Fan, looking forward to achieving good results in the domestic box office market.
Of course, the premise of this is that the quality of the film is acceptable. Li Tang would not dare to make this conclusion before the finished film is released.
So when facing Zhang Yibai's longing face, Li Tang did not talk to him. Instead, he pondered for a moment and said, "Let's finish the post-production of the film first and pass the review."
The General Administration just issued new rules last year, and no films will be allowed to participate in overseas film festivals without review.
As the saying goes: Whichever mountain you are on, you have to sing that folk song. Since you are living in China for the rest of your life, no matter whether you like it or not, you must abide by domestic rules.
Perhaps seeing that Li Tang's overly calm expression seemed to have a plan in mind, Zhang Baibai was full of hope and nodded repeatedly: "Teacher Li, I understand!"
(End of chapter)
