CHAPTER 13
A few days later, "Their Little Affairs" launched an official verified Weibo account and followed Lu Jingnian and Fang Hao's Weibo accounts.
By 8 PM, the official account posted several photos of the two from the makeup fitting and tagged them: @Lu Jingnian, @Fang Hao. "One city, one story. Welcome to portray their story for us!" (smiley face, hug, heart)
Lu Jingnian and Fang Hao both reposted this Weibo post promptly, understanding the unspoken message.
Lu Jingnian's Weibo reactions were relatively calm, with fans expressing their excitement and happiness in the comments.
In less than half an hour, Fang Hao's Weibo post had tens of thousands of reposts and comments filled with excitement, various emojis, crying out in joy, and within moments, the numbers reached tens of thousands.
Xiang Xiaoyuan, looking at this, suspected that his company had hired internet water armies. "Is he really this popular?"
Cai Juan nodded, "Yes, he is indeed that popular." and then proceeded to enlighten her.
Fang Hao, a former talent show singer, handsome, talented in singing and dancing, with an innocent and childlike smile, has a considerable number of sister fans and mother fans.
This is his first TV drama, and naturally, his fans are extremely excited, propelling it to a hot search on the same night.
The official Weibo account garnered a lot of attention, but afterwards, there was only one more post that announced the director and screenwriter, without further updates.
Lu Jingnian and Fang Hao are the traffic drivers for this drama. It was only natural for the official account to first reveal this pair of actors. Sometimes, popularity equates to strength.
Sun Xin was once one of the most outstanding TV drama directors in the country. In the 90s, he directed several milestone urban romance dramas, and many of today's leading TV drama actresses emerged from his shows. Despite his scruffy appearance, he captures delicate and soft emotions among the male and female characters on screen. Those were some of his best works and his peak period, subsequent projects never reached those heights, and his reputation has declined.
Many actors used to compete for roles in his dramas, but now he has lost the power to choose actors, with the production and investment teams making those decisions.
However, there are still many fans online supporting him, encouraging him on his Weibo and the drama's Weibo, although there's a hint of anxiety in their encouragement. Most fans still hope he can regain his former glory and make a comeback, while the general audience and various media are watching closely.
After a week, Xiang Xiaoyuan went to the shooting location.
The first scene was between Lu Jingnian and Fang Hao.
In the novel, their romantic storyline involves a reconciliation after a broken relationship.
They fell in love during their sophomore year, and by their senior year, Fang Hao was set to study abroad. His intention was to bring Lu Jingnian with him so they could study together and get married after graduation. However, Lu Jingnian disagreed, leading to their separation. After completing his studies, Fang Hao returned to China and joined the company where Lu Jingnian worked, allowing for a chance to rekindle their past relationship.
The first scene takes place on a university campus, where Lu Jingnian watches Fang Hao playing basketball. The night before the scene, they had a fight about studying abroad, and neither could convince the other. The next day, although the male lead had a game, the female lead still showed up.
The filming location was set in a gymnasium. Typically, they wouldn't arrange anything too difficult, aiming for a smooth and auspicious start.
"After the second half, let's grab a meal." Fang Hao picked up a bottle of mineral water, gulping it down and wiping off some sweat.
Someone on the court shouted at him, "Hey! Big guy, stop chatting with your wife all the time~ We don't have much time left!"
"Yeah, you two are always glued to each other, our eyes are about to go blind!"
A few boys laughed and made silly noises.
"You r@scals!" Fang Hao chuckled lightly, turned around, the back of his blue basketball jersey soaked with sweat, and as he ran off, he didn't forget to tell his girlfriend, "Think about what you want to eat tonight!"
At this moment, the monitor cut to Lu Jingnian's face.
She gazed at Fang Hao, her lips slightly curved, displaying the familiarity and sweetness that only a girl in love would have when looking at her boyfriend.
"Nice gaze." nodded Sun Xin, still looking scruffy.
The camera shifted back to Fang Hao, who received the ball from a teammate. Two players from the opposing team crossed in front of him, but he skillfully dodged them with a few feints. Then, he lifted the basketball over his head, applying a bit of force with his arms. The ball arced beautifully through the air, swishing right through the orange hoop.
Cheers filled the air, girls screaming one after another, Fang Hao looked towards the audience, pinpointed a spot, and flashed a brilliant smile.
Lu Jingnian's smile deepened as she half-stood and waved her hand before sitting back down. She continued to watch the court, but her gaze seemed vacant, as if she was lost in thought. She quietly sighed, and the smile on her lips held a hint of bitterness.
"Cut! Excellent!"
It went smoothly, capturing the scene in one take.
Sun Xin's heart relaxed a lot. Luck was on their side. The two actors chosen by the investment party performed better than he had imagined, basically meeting the requirements. The male lead was only 21 years old, young and handsome. He might also love sports, with a straight stature, his basketball moves were chic and handsome, showing that he was a natural performer.
The female lead was already 26 years old, but looked very young, portraying a university student without any sense of dissonance.
Sun Xin was currently satisfied and instructed the team to prepare for the next scene.
After Xiang Xiaoyuan watched this scene, she had only one feeling—both being listed by the media as the four small flower actresses born in the 90s, Lu Jingnian's acting skills were much better than Zou Yirui's.
The next day was mainly focused on the two of them, with scenes set in the school.
Logically, Xiang Xiaoyuan didn't need to be on set since she had no scenes. However, since she hadn't acted in a TV drama before, she was curious about how TV drama sets differed from movie sets. Secondly, even if she thought the script was just average, she had still accepted it and wanted to showcase her professional qualities. To understand her co-stars, to understand the director...
So far, it seemed Lu Jingnian's acting was the most mature. Fang Hao, being a first-time actor, easily showed signs of nervousness when faced with complex scenes. Once he got anxious, he became stiff, and both his expressions and body language became rigid. It felt like he was trying hard to remember his lines while acting, and he frequently had to call for a take to be redone. Each time he made a mistake, he would bow to apologize to the whole set, making Sun Xin hesitant to scold him.
He was thin-skinned and easily blushed. With frequent retakes, even his ears turned red, evoking pity from all the women on set. Sun Xin explained the scenes to him several times, but he couldn't grasp it. Nervous, sweat dotted his forehead.
It was Lu Jingnian who finally spoke up, "Director Sun, why don't we take a break?"
Sun Xin was nearing his breaking point as well, waving his hand, "Let's take a break."
Lu Jingnian didn't rest herself, instead, she took the initiative to interact with Fang Hao, rehearsing lines repeatedly without getting annoyed.
Xiang Xiaoyuan watched this unfold and genuinely admired her, knowing she absolutely wouldn't have that kind of patience.
Most of the filming locations for their crew were in the city, moving between various places. For the previous week, Xiang Xiaoyuan had no scenes, yet she followed the crew's schedule daily, observing the process without engaging in conversation.
What she didn't realize was that while she was observing others, they were also observing her. Most people had the thought—who is she?
She dressed simply in a black sportswear outfit, tied back in a ponytail, a black baseball cap pulled down low, hiding her eyes, revealing only a delicate chin and pink lips.
It wasn't until the third week that Xiang Xiaoyuan finally had her scenes.
The debut of the young lady. Two transitional scenes.
In general, many directors and actors will put a lot of effort and heart into crucial scenes, those important plot twists, emotional conflicts, or conflicting roles. These are scenes that can attract the audience's attention and also showcase the actors' skills.
Transitional scenes, on the other hand, are often overlooked because they seem unimportant, brief, and trivial. Most audiences do not pay attention to such scenes as they serve to connect important plot points.
Only experienced, top-tier directors and actors will pay special attention to transitional scenes. When transitional scenes are well done, the crucial scenes will flow smoothly, stand out, and the characters' personalities will be well-established.
Whether they are good or bad, and how smoothly they transition, can be immediately apparent.
The first scene takes place in a living room, where she is to play the piano.
The second scene is set in a French restaurant, where she is on a blind date arranged by her family, requiring her to speak French.
These two scenes may appear grand when filmed, but in reality, they will be edited down to a maximum of two minutes in the TV drama (even shorter if it's a movie). They mainly serve to showcase the upbringing of Xiang Xiaoyuan, the young lady portrayed in the scenes, who has received good education and is multi-talented.
Sun Xin had never worked with Xiang Xiaoyuan before and was unsure of her skill level. Initially, he didn't have high hopes. With a few days of guidance from the instructors hired by the crew, he hoped for the best and just wanted to avoid any awkwardness.
"Are you ready?" Sun Xin asked her as she was about to go on stage.
His only requirement was for her to act decently, if the performance was too poor, they could use a stand-in or do dubbing in post-production.
Xiang Xiaoyuan nodded, "Director Sun, don't worry, I can do it."
Sun Xin tentatively believed her, the script supervisor clapped the board, the lights were set, the camera was ready, and he shouted, "Action!"
The girl sitting at the white piano wore a white dress, with a slender waist and her hair up, sitting gracefully and elegantly, embodying the youthful aura of a young woman.
Beautiful, melodious notes flowed from her fingertips—it was a genuine performance of Schubert's "Serenade."
Sun Xin's eyes lit up, and he said to the cameraman, "Focus on her hands and face."
The second scene took place in the restaurant.
Xiang Xiaoyuan ordered, "Salade de hors-d'œuvre froid, foie gras poêlé accompagné de cerises de France et d'amandes fraîches, Mont Blanc." [Cold platter salad, pan-seared foie gras with French cherries and fresh almonds, Mont Blanc.]
Including the earlier greetings, it's actually just a few simple sentences. Generally, domestic actors tend to struggle a bit when speaking foreign languages. However, Xiang Xiaoyuan spoke very naturally and got it right in one take. Her French was soft and relaxed, and at first listen, it truly had a hint of that French woman's charm.
Sun Xin happily called "cut" and praised her repeatedly, "That was great! Have you studied?"
Xiang Xiaoyuan smiled faintly, "Just a little bit, enough to say this much."
Cai Juan, offstage, also chuckled.
Sharpening the knife will not delay the work of cutting wood. The various courses taken over the past two years finally paid off.
Practice does make perfect!
Most importantly, Xiang Xiaoyuan adapted very well. When she said she wouldn't perform, she genuinely wouldn't, when she said she would, she took it more seriously than anyone else and was reliable.
Cai Juan looked at Xiang Xiaoyuan with relief and pride, giving her a thumbs up.
Xiang Xiaoyuan glanced over, her lips curling into a smile as she winked back at him.
Of course, this is nothing she can't handle~
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