When Tony was done with the makeup, Sandy was also almost done with Jiang Se's hairstyle. A young girl with a composed gaze appeared in the mirror. Her lips were slightly pale as if she was slightly under the weather, but she was staunch and unyielding.
"This feels right!" Sandy puffed Jiang Se's hair slightly and said to her reflection in the mirror, "Your eyes convey the right feeling as well."
Jiang Se was just thinking about "Feng Nan". With these thoughts in her mind, it was only natural for her eyes to display her emotions. Coupled with the makeup, it was just as Sandy had said: the feeling was right.
She finally emerged from the makeup tent. The script supervisor had already checked his watch multiple times. When he saw her walk out from the tent, he was first shocked by the change in her bearing brought about by the change of clothes and makeup. However, he quickly drove his awe out of his mind and urged Jiang Se on.
"Hurry up. Director Zhang has been waiting for some time."
It had been more than 10 minutes since Jiang Se entered the changing room.
Because the famous director's time was precious, the script supervisor was worried that he would get impatient from the wait.
When he led Jiang Se to the director's tent, Zhang Jingan was no longer talking to Liu Ye about the Jianghua Group. Instead, they were discussing the script. As they spoke about some lines in the scene, they seemed to be having a jovial time.
When the script supervisor led Jiang Se over, Zhang Jingan merely glanced at her and said, "Let her try something."
Before this, Zhang Jingan merely found her beautiful. When he set his eyes upon her once again after her wardrobe change and makeup, he realized that her presence was suitable as well.
The makeup artist had capitalized on her features and given her an unyielding look. It was the perfect look for the scene she would be trying out with Gao Rong.
However, Jiang Se was not trained in acting. Although Gao Rong was not famous, he had starred in many films before. Sadly, his acting skills were too stiff. That was why the "Rescue Mission" production team cast him as an antagonist.
Zhang Jingan was slightly worried that she would be overshadowed by Gao Rong's aura just like the background actor before her whose acting was not at all satisfactory.
He beckoned Jiang Se over and gestured for the script supervisor to show her the script for this scene. Her lines were very simple. It was the same as the woman before her: a simple "pah".
However, Zhang Jingan's requirements were naturally not simple. Otherwise, the other woman would not have done several shots yet failed to satisfy him.
Jiang Se closed her eyes and thought about "Feng Nan". Then, she thought about her current situation. When she reopened her eyes, she no longer concealed the flames of rage burning in the depths of her eyes.
She was not an arts major and had never acted in anything before this. However, this did not affect her current performance in any way.
When Zhang Jingan saw her expression of barely suppressed anger, showing no signs of stage fright in the presence of himself, Liu Ye, and the others, and presenting a commendable performance after going through the script, he could not help but feel that his appraisal of her had been too low. It seemed that she had some potential after all.
He remembered Liu Ye's suggestion. He was initially worried that Jiang Se's acting would be too soft and would ruin this film in which he had poured much of his energy. Therefore, he had disapproved of Liu Ye's words earlier.
However, when he saw her current performance, Zhang Jingan felt slightly hesitant instead. He was about to say something, but he bit his tongue. He decided to wait until he had seen her performance with Gao Rong. There was no need to rush.
The others went to their places again. Many of the extras were giving Jiang Se envious looks.
Lu Baobao and the others had remained bound on the wooden pikes for half a day now, so they were feeling slightly dehydrated from being under the sun. When they heard the clapperboard and knew that the shooting was about to resume, they sighed in relief.
The Japanese soldier, Gao Rong, lived up to his name as a veteran who had been in the industry for more than a decade. Nothing in his expression showed that the other supporting actor had been switched. Instead, he waved his hand with a fierce expression and a savage flash in his eyes.
"If," he paused, giving the listener a certain pressure, "Zhou Chongming doesn't surrender the item up, all of you will die here!"
When she watched the woman acting with Gao Rong before this, she did not feel anything special. However, when Jiang Se was doing the acting herself, she felt as if she was facing a bona fide invader who wanted to take her life.
She fixed her eyes on Gao Rong while the edges of her eyes reddened.
As the camera moved closer to her along the tracks, her expression was completely captured on the screen.
She bit her cheek hard. Every corner of her eyes was brimming with an unyielding rage. She had not spoken yet, but her reluctance to bow down to the scorn of a Japanese soldier could already be felt by anyone watching.
"Pah!"
When Jiang Se had been Feng Nan, given her good upbringing, she had never spoken such words or used such a tone.
As she said her line, she leaned forward slightly. Her body language conveyed her rocking emotions and exuded a certain pressure.
She got her inspiration from her meal with the Jianghua Group heir. The young master seemed dominant enough. When he spoke with her, he would habitually lean forward, making her feel pressured.
Her actions clearly won Zhang Jingan's favor.
He took note of Jiang Se's performance from his perch behind the cameras. He smiled and nodded, clearly satisfied.
Gao Rong wiped his face with gruff movements and pressed down on his bayonet as he took two steps backward. He lowered his chin and ordered in a cold voice, "Kill them."
When he said those lines, Zhang Jingan gave an "okay" sign from behind the cameras. It was clear that this single take was all that was needed.
The makeup artists went over to patch up the bound Jiang Se's makeup while the firearms expert inspected the rifles. When the squibs were in place, a gunshot rang out, and Jiang Se slumped to the ground.
Her performance this time was not as satisfactory as her angry outburst just now, so the director wanted a retake.
The script supervisor went up to her and explained, "When the blood bag is detonated, besides displaying a pained expression, you'll have to pay attention to your posture when you fall."
He took the script of this scene which had been rolled up and continued, "In this film, your character has been helped by the Zhou family before, hence you'd rather die than betray Zhou Mingchong."
Since there was not much time, he merely explained the character hastily and pointed at Jiang Se with an index finger. "Do it well. We'll try this again."
Jiang Se closed her eyes and nodded.
She got into this supporting character of the script who might not even have a name. She thought about the favors she had received from Zhou Mingchong. The invaders were now hunting Zhou Mingchong down and threatened to kill the Zhou family servants if they did not tell them where he was. Given the character's internal struggle and her determination as a young girl, when her means of retreat had been cut off, she refused to lose to a man.
Jiang Se fumbled about for the feeling before nodding at the script supervisor.
When the cameras rolled, her body jolted once when she was "shot". Then, she looked down with difficulty at her chest. Blood was splattered across her chin and face, but she still looked exceptionally striking and poignant.
The cameras were focused on her once more. Jiang Se's weak knees slowly gave way and met the ground. There were two more gunshots. She bit and broke the bag of blood in her mouth. The props master had told her that Zhang Jingan had strict requirements and wanted the shot to be as realistic as possible. Therefore, the bag of blood inside her mouth was not ordinary honeyed water with food coloring like the ones used in television shows. Instead, they had imported these bags of blood. The props master wanted her to be mentally prepared.
Despite being prepared, when the metallic taste of blood filled her mouth, Jiang Se almost retched.
She fell to the ground with her eyes half-opened and she tried her best to empty her mind.
She could hear the patter of footsteps around her as the invader, Gao Rong, walked up to her. She seemed reluctant to lower her head before this invader. She moved her bound legs as if she wanted to get up.
However, all that was caught on camera were her legs moving feebly.
Zhang Jingan made an excited gesture. He instructed the camera to slide closer to Jiang Se along the tracks. The camera was lowered.
There seemed to be a defiant look in her eyes as if she was clinging to life. At this moment, it seemed as if she had truly gotten into character. When Gao Rong recited his lines, she gave another weak "pah" at his feet.
The blood from her mouth splashed onto Gao Rong's ankle, taking him by surprise while he was still reciting his lines.
This scene was not part of the script. Fortunately, Gao Rong was an experienced actor. Although he was shocked, he did not slow down when reciting the rest of his lines. Instead, he lifted his leg angrily, playing along with Jiang Se's performance.
It should have been Gao Rong's time to shine in this scene. However, Zhang Jingan did not instruct the camera to adjust its angle. It was focused on Jiang Se's face instead.
In this scene, the newcomer's performance was on par with Gao Rong's. There was no sign of her paling in comparison to him.
Although the scene of her second "pah" while spitting blood was not written in the script, Jiang Se's improvisation had made it better than planned as the character was immediately brought to life. It matched her reluctance to yield before Gao Rong's threats in the scene before this.
The light in Jiang Se's eyes seemed to fade slowly. Zhang Jingan stroked his chin, appearing troubled.
"Liu Ye, you're right."
His brows were tightly knitted together. He tapped the ground with his left foot, making soft sounds.
"This newcomer is interesting. Her performance has brought the character to life. I should give her the role in Daqing Village."
However, now that Jiang Se had already shown her striking features besides performing well, Zhang Jingan would not be satisfied if this scene was cut and another actor were to be used.
At this moment, in his mind, Jiang Se was the Zhou family's maid who had died by Gao Rong's hand. The maid with the exceptional charisma could be portrayed by none other than her.
"If she's caught your eye, she'll have plenty of chances in the future." Liu Ye removed his shades and looked at the young girl on the screen.
Before this, his impression of her was that she was just another pretty face. However, she now seemed more interesting to him. "She's young, she's got looks, she's patient, and she's got some skills. Even if she's not in the Daqing Village film, I know that if a girl like her has ambition and is smart about it, she will surely have other opportunities coming her way."
Zhang Jingan was still lamenting the loss. He spread his fingers and clenched his fist. Then, he brought it down onto his chest and nodded. "That's the only way."
After he said that, he got up. "It's getting late. I've been here for half a day. Let's go."
Liu Ye stood up as well. He glanced at Jiang Se who was lying on the ground nearby. Although he found her interesting, he eventually decided to crush his own intentions after considering his own popularity and status. He put his shades back on.
The shooting ended smoothly, so the famous director was ready to leave. He was clearly surprised and satisfied with what he found after coming here to inspect the shooting on a whim. He left with a smile on his face. Even his tone was gentle when he addressed the executive director.
Jiang Se was helped to her feet. The crew untied her hands and gave her some mineral water to rinse her mouth.
Since it was getting late, after the filming, the crew gave the extras their packed lunch. Lu Baobao grabbed hers and ate it on a round table under a beach parasol with Jiang Se.
She clearly had a hard day. There were still streaks of makeup lingering on her face while her neck and ears were red from being under the sun.
The executive director naturally headed to somewhere else for his meal as the other crew members sat down in small groups. The other extras found shaded spots, squatted down, and ate their lunches.
Although this scene was completed, it did not mean that the job for the extras was over. They merely appeared for an instant on-screen. After completing this scene, they would have other scenes to film in the afternoon.
Gao Rong sat among the crew members as if trying to get in touch with the common folk. He raised his packed lunch toward himself and spoke with a smile, "Little Jiang, how old are you?"
Although he was not extremely popular in the entertainment industry, he did gain seniority from all the years he had been working and the crew members did regard him with some level of respect.
When Gao Rong was finished with his question, Jiang Se did not even have the time to answer when Lu Baobao said with a smile, "Senior Gao, Sese is 17, a year younger than I am. We're still in grade 12, and we're classmates."
This young girl had a scheming mind and would not withhold any information.
The others bombarded her with questions. They soon learned virtually everything they wanted to know about Jiang Se from her. Naturally, Lu Baobao told them about the original Jiang Se's intentions of making it big in the entertainment industry.
However, nobody laughed at her. After all, Jiang Se was gorgeous. Heaven definitely favored her in this aspect. With her looks, body, and bearing, it would be easy for her to enter the industry in the future.
Moreover, a famous director such as Zhang Jingan had been satisfied with her performance even though she was not an arts major. Jiang Se clearly had the talent for this, thus it would not be surprising if she became a superstar in the future.
"Little Jiang, you did well in the shoot today. I almost let my own emotions be influenced."
When Gao Rong mentioned the day's filming, Lu Baobao beamed and nodded repeatedly. "It's true, it's true."
Jiang Se truly did a good job today. During the filming, Lu Baobao felt as if she had been pulled into the world of the script. "I knew she'd be fine. Still, I couldn't help but worry about her."
The others laughed and Jiang Se smiled as well. However, her thoughts were elsewhere.
After lunch, Lu Baobao had another assignment. However, nobody called on Jiang Se to be an extra anymore.
The industry was like a concentrated cocoon of the human condition. She looked on as Lu Baobao changed into different costumes over the course of the afternoon and portrayed different characters while being drenched in sweat. However, because she had earned the personal praise of Zhang Jingan, Jiang Se was left to wait by the side with some water. Nobody came to order her around anymore.
A few shoots and a break later, the crew filmed a scene by the river at dusk. Jiang Se overheard some of the crew members say that Li Mingyuan was coming.
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