Chương 63: START OF FILMING

— Director Daniel Exxo, as a renowned film director, knew better than anyone that it took enough courage to cast a newbie in a leading role. Fortunately, this was what Johanna wanted. This was her wish. As such, even if he lost everything he had, he was willing to fulfil her wish.

The most important thing, right now for Johanna, was how Amaranta resembled the character described in her work, which is the main reason why it has taken so long to say who the lead actress for this film would be.

Johanna, always promised the person who supports her to be a writer, that when she was famous she would describe her love story.

And in doing so, she would look for the perfect actress to represent her.

And she found her after so many years of searching.

That is why they are filming right now.

—"Hello, Dulce Akotegi. I am Martin Yaregui."

— Hector was wearing an old military uniform. He stood in front of Amaranta, looking very serious. He almost confused Amaranta for a moment. It was as if she was looking at Martin Yaregui, for real, straight out of the script.

—"Martin Yaregui, I'm Dulce Akotegi."

Amaranta shook Hector's hand.

"Dulce, let's talk later."

"Sure," Amaranta agreed.

— Johanna Saenz asked the makeup artist to help Amaranta change into Dulce's costume. "Amaranta, let's take a picture of your character in whatever outfit you're wearing."

—"Okay." Amaranta returned to the dressing room. The costume director chose a pink floral dress for Amaranta. He put the dress on her and a pair of leather shoes. She sat in front of the mirror and the makeup artist said, "Amaranta, I'm going to give you some bangs." "Sure. It's up to you," Amaranta said smoothly. She was aware that makeovers were essential to make the character she was playing look convincing.

— Amaranta closed her eyes. The makeup artist used a wooden comb to brush Amaranta's hair and cut her bangs. Then, her nimble hands pleated the long hair into two braids.

— Amaranta had very good skin. It was fair, soft, and supple. There were no blemishes on it. Her lips were like those of young girls. Her skin was radiant, seemingly glowing from within. The only problem was her eyebrows, they were a little messy. However, that could easily be dealt with by just using an eyebrow razor to get rid of the excess hair.

"Take a look."

Amaranta looked at her reflection in the mirror. Her bangs made her look even softer and sweeter.

"Thank you."

— Eleonora entered the dressing room. "Amaranta, I've already placed our luggage in the hotel room," she reported. "I've also called your grandmother. She said that you don't have to worry about her and work hard on acting."

"Thank you, Eleonora, you're amazing." She stood up and looked at her dress. It was the perfect length and the waist was just right.

"Mum, do I look okay?" Johanna turned around and saw Amaranta running towards her. For a moment, she felt like she had seen an old friend…

"Amaranta, you look like Dulce right off the script!"

Director Daniel Exxo had been worried about whether Amaranta could play Dulce Akotegi well. But when he saw her as 'Dulce' today, he felt how Johanna did: Dulce had finally come to life… She was no longer a character that existed in Johanna's script. She was a living being. She had flesh and blood.

—"Let's take a test shot." Director Daniel suddenly had the urge to film after seeing Amaranta characterized as the main character of his beloved Johanna's film.

— Just from appearance alone, Amaranta's character as, Dulce, and the character of Martin, played by Hector, fit what was written in the script. "Hector, do you remember the scene on the train?"

— Hector nodded. "I remember." Director Daniel was very happy. "Let's move to a different set. We'll film the part on the train. Amaranta, try to capture the feelings for that scene first." Director Daniel Exxo wanted to move to a different location was a task for the workers present. The scene on the train was linked to another scene, the one at the train station.

If they wanted to film that part, they would also have to find extras.

— Luckily, Director Daniel Exxo was a famous director, and everyone who worked for him was competent. All the workers were in position less than an hour later. Amaranta and Hector met on the film for the first time. They were also not familiar with each other in real life. That was the reason the scene was actually quite similar to real life.

— Director Daniel also had his own considerations. He couldn't let the two of them act out an emotional scene when they had just met. If I did that, Amaranta and Hector would not be able to cultivate any emotion towards each other and would probably not be able to achieve the effect I wanted.

The extras were already in their seats.

— Amaranta also took a seat. She was wearing a long vintage dress, and her hair remained pleated in two braids on one side of her head. She held a book in her hand. She lowered her head and read the book in her hand seriously. There was a white reflector board not far in front of her.

— This would help the camera capture the image more vividly during filming, and the result would look better.

"Action." They signaled the start of the scene.

— Director Daniel Exxo turned his gaze to Hector del Campos, who was wearing a white shirt as he ran toward the train that was starting to move, panicked and with his hair disheveled. After running toward the car and entering, he used the bathroom and changed quickly. However, his appearance did not change much. He simply wore a black jacket over his clothes and combed his hair to make it a little neater and added a pair of gold-framed glasses. Certainly, she looked better now. Amaranta approached calmly and said in a low voice, "My dear, you've waited for me for a long time."

—"Dulce was a little confused. Just as she was about to say something, Martin put his index finger against Dulce's lips and said, "Yes, I was wrong. I shouldn't have made you wait so long."

—"Some men approached the entrance of the carriage.

—"Martin noticed the men from his peripheral vision. He put his lips right next to Dulce's ears and whispered, "Help me."

—"Dulce's face flushed instantly. The tip of her finger was a little cold. When she put it on her lips, it felt like her lips were kissing her finger. She could hear a voice in her heart saying, "Yes, it's him." This was the fateful first meeting between her and Martin Yaregui.

—"Director Daniel Exxo examines Amaranta and Hector from behind the monitor. The camera angle was great, and the two of them were very young. They matched the age of their characters in the script well. Their faces were full of youth and vitality, and Director Daniel couldn't help but anticipate their next performance.

After the first scene was over, the director gestured for Amaranta and Hector to come and see him. "Do you see what's wrong?"

Amaranta and Hector shook their heads. What had he seen? There were no problems with their performance.

—"You two have read the script. It is written in the script that the characters' eyes met. Did you two talk with your eyes? Especially you, Amaranta. There were no issues with your performance before, but you have put yourself in a box. The feeling between Dulce Akotegi and Martín Yaregui should be that of love at first sight. You have to show that attraction, which two young people feel when they see the person they think will be the one who should live by their side forever. You two have to make the audience interested in your story. Also, you, Hector, your gaze is not right in this part…"

— Only the conversations between characters were written in the script. As the male and female leads, Amaranta and Hector had to exemplify the characters using these simple conversations.

If the script only had the conversation between Dulce Akotegi and Martín Yaregui, then the task that Amaranta and Hector had to complete today was to make the characters come to life.

—"Was there any need to think about it? It was because pretty girls are easy to spot," Hector mused.

"Maybe it's because Dulce is pretty."

— Director Daniel nodded. "What's the first thing men and women notice? That's right. It's the looks," he pointed out, answering his own question. "Appearance, no matter how superficial this sounds, determines whether you're willing to meet her and ask for a second date." Director Daniel Exxo paused and waited for reactions. When no one dared to comment, he continued, "Her personality determines whether you can overlook her appearance. Martin Yaregui, is running away from such people. He's a very cautious person. When he enters the train car, he has to cautiously observe where he sits. Hector, you're only familiar with the lines in this script. But to portray this character well, you have to understand Martin Yaregui's character as a person."

After director Daniel Exxo pointed out more points to emphasize, they felt more pressure on themselves. This made Amaranta and Hector feel even more stressed. Filming a movie was different from filming a drama series. Filming was very demanding on the actors' emotions and how they expressed them.

The movie screen was so big that when the camera moved, you could even see the pores on the face. It was important to show the character's emotions so that the viewers could really get involved in the story throughout the entire plot. You always have to be aware of the emotions of the characters.