novelraw Chapter 6 Immortal
Chapter 6 Immortal
"95% of the scenes can be filmed inside Chedun, and the remaining 5% can be filmed in and around Shanghai." Wang Damin and Lu Peng returned to the hotel in the afternoon, and Lu Peng said to Shen Qing in a relaxed tone.
Wang Damin was in a great mood. He leaned back on the sofa, pounded his thigh, and said, "Setting up a scene requires money and time, but it's a small amount of money compared to frequent location changes."
Shen Qing was also in a good mood and said, "I've made an appointment with a few students from the Shanghai Theatre Academy. Let's meet up tomorrow."
……
The next day, in a private room at the coffee shop near the Shanghai Theatre Academy entrance.
Wan Qian stood out quite a bit among the group of men.
The mid-length cashmere coat and her exquisite makeup, especially in stark contrast to Guo Jingfei's unkempt appearance, drew Shen Qing's gaze involuntarily to her.
After Guo Jingfei introduced Lei Jiayin, Yang Haoyu, Wan Qian and others, Wan Qian's gaze towards Shen Qing changed from curiosity to surprise.
"So you're a director! You're so young. I thought you were an actor." As if afraid that Shen Qing would misunderstand, because in some contexts, saying someone is young can have a derogatory connotation, she quickly added, "What I mean is, Director Shen, you're so young to be able to direct a movie. You're so young and accomplished."
Everyone took their seats.
Wan Qian took off her cashmere coat and hung it up, revealing a deep V-neck tight-fitting cashmere knit sweater underneath, showcasing her great figure.
Shen Qing couldn't help but take a couple more glances.
Meeting Shen Qing's gaze, Wan Qian's face brightened with confidence as she asked directly, "Director Shen, Brother Guo only told me that there was a movie that needed actors, and he recommended me. I don't know what kind of role it is, or if it will be difficult to play. Now that we're here, do you think I'm suitable?"
Shen Qing laughed and said, "We're still missing an ambitious leading lady who can navigate a group of men with ease. Miss Wan, do you think you're suitable?"
Wan Qian was momentarily stunned upon hearing this.
Before coming, she only knew there was an opportunity, but she had no idea what the specific role would be, which made her very calm.
Upon suddenly hearing the words "leading lady," I couldn't help but feel a surge of emotion.
For a student who hasn't graduated yet, the opportunity to play the lead role in a movie right away is extremely rare.
After regaining her composure, she looked at Shen Qing and smiled, "I think if Director Shen thinks I'm suitable, then I am. Director Shen, don't you think I'm right?"
Shen Qing didn't delve into that question, but instead said to the others, "Our film is an ensemble piece, and the roles you're auditioning for are all main characters, similar to the main cast in 'Friends.' Every character is important. Please leave your contact information later, and we'll contact you when the formal auditions are held."
As he spoke, he turned to look at Wang Damin, who nodded and said, "Everyone, please ask me for your contact information later."
Yang Haoyu and Lei Jiayin also showed expressions of surprise. The main characters in an ensemble piece are still the main characters. For them, as long as they are the main characters, there is nothing that is not difficult.
The meeting lasted less than two hours in total, during which Wang Damin gave a brief introduction to his role.
As the event ended, Wan Qian completely disregarded the possible thoughts of her companions and walked confidently up to Shen Qing, smiling as she said, "Director Shen, may I ask for your personal contact information? After listening to Director Wang's introduction, I feel that I am very suitable for the role of Su Mengdie. At the same time, I don't know much about this character, so I would like to ask you for advice when it is convenient for you."
Shen Qing asked her, "Does it have caller ID?"
"have."
Shen Qing took out her phone, and Wan Qian happily gave him her number. Shen Qing dialed the number, and after Wan Qian's phone rang, Shen Qing pressed the hang-up button.
……
The next day, Shen Qing went to Chedun Film and Television City with Wang Damin and Lu Peng to scout locations, and then received a phone call from Zhao Hongwei.
"Duan Long (Duan Yihong) has taken on a new foreign horror film, with the schedule booked until May or June next year. If you want to use him, you'll have to wait, and his salary may also need to be increased."
"What I mean is, let's change the person; that way we can save some money."
Shen Qing didn't think Duan Yihong was a must-have; he was just suitable, but the cost-effectiveness wasn't really high, considering that Duan had just won an international Best Actor award.
After thinking for a moment, he added, "There's a guy named Shen Teng from Happy Twist. I've met him a few times before, and I think he might be suitable to play Chen Xiaoda. Our Beijing Film Academy's 2000 vocational class had a guy named Zhang Songwen who was a very good actor and might be suitable to play the mysterious man."
"I'll have someone contact them." Zhao Hongwei paused, then said, "By the way, Liu Yifei and her daughter are currently in Shanghai. I'll send you their contact information in a bit."
"What are they doing in Shanghai?"
"It seems like we were filming a fantasy drama produced by Tangren Media. After filming wrapped, we went to Tangren Media's location in Shanghai together."
"A fantasy/xianxia (fantasy/martial arts) story? Is filming finished?"
The connection between fantasy and Tangren Media is obvious – it must be "The Legend of Sword and Fairy"!
But is the Legend of Sword and Fairy series finished filming already?
"I heard it's just a test shoot, and there will be another test shoot next spring. The actual filming might not start until April or May."
"Nightingale only has one day of filming, so there's no scheduling conflict."
"Even if there is a conflict, it's not impossible to resolve it. The key is the salary. I asked around and found out that our junior classmate is getting 60 yuan for this fantasy drama, which is much more than for 'Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils'."
"Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils is a big-budget production that's sure to make stars, so it's normal for them to receive low pay."
After hanging up the phone, the other party quickly sent over Liu Yifei and her daughter's contact information. Wang Damin immediately contacted Liu Xiaoli, and the two parties eventually agreed to meet the next morning.
The location is a coffee shop near the Chinatown White Building.
After hanging up the phone, Wang Damin joked, "If you ask me, it's actually a good thing that Duan Long is unavailable."
Shen Qing asked curiously, "What do you mean?"
Wang Damin said, "Saving the biggest expense of film salary means we have much more money to spend on our junior."
Shen Qing remained noncommittal.
The next day, Lu Peng continued to scout locations, while Shen Qing and Wang Damin met Liu Yifei and her daughter near the Tangren Xiaobailou.
When the mother and daughter appeared before Shen Qing at the same time, Shen Qing was surprised to find that Liu Xiaoli, who was over 40 years old, was more stunning.
At this time, Liu Yifei was beautiful, but she still had a childish air about her.
After a brief self-introduction, Shen Qing first addressed the quiet Liu Yifei, saying, "Before meeting you in person, I knew that the role of Nightingale was perfect for you. Now that I've met you, I'm even more convinced. If I hadn't been able to get you, I really don't know if there would have been any point in making this movie."
Liu Yifei looked at Shen Qing curiously: "Director Shen, which year of the Beijing Film Academy did you graduate from? You look about the same age as Zhu Yawen and the others, not like you graduated a long time ago."
Shen Qing laughed and said, "I'm from the Directing Department, class of '98. I just graduated and left school when my juniors enrolled last year."
Liu Xiaoli coughed lightly and said, "Our Yifei has already accepted a role in a fantasy drama..."
Shen Qing quickly waved his hand and said, "It's okay. First, our movie started filming earlier than that drama. Second, Liu Xuemei's role only has about 5 minutes of screen time and about a day's availability. We can always find the time."
Just then, Liu Yifei was heard muttering to herself, "It's only a 5-minute scene, and I don't even know how many lines it has. They even said that if I don't act, they don't know if there's any point in filming..."
Liu Xiaoli coughed lightly again.
Shen Qing became serious and said, "Junior Yifei, strictly speaking, the character Nightingale doesn't even have a single line, but she is indeed the soul of this movie and the ultimate mystery. She must amaze everyone as soon as she appears. Only in this way will everything Qi Leshan does for her be reasonable."
"Not a single line?" Liu Yifei asked, her eyes wide with disbelief.
He didn't have a single line, yet he was told it was so important.
Liu Xiaoli also looked at Shen Qing with curiosity.
Shen Qing was silent for a moment, then said, "Even without lines and with short screen time, a character can still become a classic in film history. Just this summer, in Shanghai, Stephen Chow filmed a movie called 'Kung Fu Hustle,' and the female lead is Huang Shengyi, a student from the 01 class at Beijing Film Academy. Insider information suggests that Huang Shengyi's screen time will not exceed 5 minutes, and she will also have no lines, but she will definitely amaze the entire Chinese film history next year."
Liu Xiaoli and Liu Yifei both stared at Shen Qing, curious about where he got the information and why he was so sure that Huang Shengyi would amaze film history next year.
Shen Qing looked at Liu Yifei and said, "If you can act in our movie, then next year there will be two actresses who only have 5 minutes of screen time and no lines, and who will amaze film history. One is Huang Shengyi, and the other is you, junior. It will be quite a story. Huang Shengyi will be more amazing. Actually, you were originally more amazing than Huang Shengyi, but unfortunately I am not as amazing as Zhou Xingchi for the time being."
Upon hearing this, the mother on the other side burst out laughing.
Liu Xiaoli smiled briefly and then stopped.
Liu Yifei smiled, paused, glanced at Shen Qing, and then couldn't help but smile again.
At the end of the meeting, Shen Qing left the biographical sketch of Nightingale with Liu Yifei's mother.
As they left the coffee shop, Liu Yifei whispered to Liu Xiaoli, "Mom, I think his movie should be quite interesting."
She didn't know how the movie was, but he was a very interesting person.