Global Film Emperor

Chapter 491 The Elegant Monster
"It's okay, honey. I'm just a little tired. What did you make tonight? It smells like beef. Is Daphne still sleeping? I'll go wake her up."

"Wait, Joseph, what's he doing here?"

"Him? He's been feeling very unwell lately..."

"Hmm~"

“I still have an insurance payment and taxes to pay. If I delay any longer, I might be sentenced to a few days in jail, so… I wanted to borrow some money from you.”

"You lent it to him?"

"..."

“He wants it back! You can’t give him the money! That’s your own money! He hasn’t fulfilled his duties as a father, so why should he come to you to clean up his messy debts?”

……

"Ding Ding Ding ~"

This wasn't a talent show or a fancy restaurant, so there were no bells. Lu Ze patted the pressure bar of the French press, interrupting the actress's energetic performance.

After taking a sip of tea—authentic Chinese tea—it wasn't surprising that this private club had Chinese clients, and even a proper old rosewood tea table. However, since the other party was rehearsing a play, it was indeed disrespectful to be so busy with tea sets. So, I declined Fatini's offer to bring the tea table over and simply used a French press to brew some tea leaves.

"Wait a minute, Alyssa, there are some issues that need to be addressed. The issues are quite serious, so I have to interrupt. I feel that your gestures are a bit... excessive. If the final cut is released, too many gestures in this scene will distract the audience and make them focus too much on your body language. I don't think that's a good thing."

Fatini decided to film "Atonement" in English. As European actors, the actors on set all had good English skills, and there were no cases where the actors' English accents were too heavy to be understood. This solved a big problem for Lu Ze, since his Italian was really bad.

Interrupting an actor's performance is impolite, since this is not a live shoot but a meeting to discuss the script. However, with Lu Ze's arrival, the nature of the meeting seemed to change, becoming more like a lecture from Lu Ze to the young actress. With Lu Ze using gentle language, the actress whose performance was interrupted felt it was acceptable and even diligently wrote down Lu Ze's suggestions in her notebook.

Perhaps it was because she had just finished filming a sitcom that required exaggerated physical movements, which left her with some aftereffects of comedic performance. Fortunately, these aftereffects were not serious. After the problem was pointed out, Elisa was able to correct it quickly, which made the veteran actors sitting silently to the side start whispering and nodding frequently.

Everyone had received the script some time ago. Since it was a play about the young master, these people had been working hard behind the scenes. Soon, they had rehearsed the lines two or three times. The veteran actors were also excited and eager to compete with others. Some even set their sights on Lu Ze, hoping to have a go at this top actor who had recently gained a lot of attention.

For the time being, everyone's attitude in this meeting was quite good, and they were fully engaged in it. After another round of dialogue, Fatini also expressed his thoughts, describing the scene he envisioned to the actors. He used a lot of professional terminology, which showed that he had really put in a lot of hard work. Lu Ze also thought about the scene along with him and would probably give Fatini's description of the set an 8.5 out of 10.

"Lu Ze, it's your turn. You and Dennis will go over the part where you went to borrow money."

When Lu Ze stepped onto the field, everyone perked up. They respected him, but that didn't mean they lacked the courage to compete with him. On the contrary, everyone was eager to try and see how good Lu Ze was.

"Well, let's get started."

He took a sip of black tea, adjusted his voice to its best condition, and coughed lightly. He appeared expressionless, but if you lifted Lu Ze's clothes, you would find that his abdomen was hard at this moment, his abdominal muscles were contracting, compressing and sinking the air in his chest cavity, tightening his diaphragm, and at the same time, his vocal cords were slowly expanding in order to expel a large amount of air when he opened his mouth, creating a sufficiently deep voice.

This is a technique similar to bel canto bass singing, and it is also somewhat related to the screams of heavy metal music. Combined with Lu Ze's already deep and resonant vocal timbre, it is the best tool for imitating the voice of an elderly person.

This is difficult, not only because it requires high technical skills, but also because it demands a high level of vocal ability. After all, vocal cords also have an age limit. Many people say that singing is a very damaging activity to the voice, but in reality, as long as you speak, your voice will be damaged. This is why many people can tell someone's approximate age by listening to them, because as people age, their voices are also undergoing a continuous aging process.

Most actors who play elderly people choose to use dubbing to make up for their lack of voice imitation. Only a few actors, just a small group, can "accelerate" the aging of their voices through systematic technical training to reach the standard of performance. However, Lu Ze is an exception; he has not undergone systematic training.

It's just that I've definitely aged a lot.

The first course after the system was unlocked didn't really come in handy at work until more than ten years later, but good things come to those who wait, and it's good to arrive at the right time.

"Joseph, I haven't been feeling well lately, I might be dying."

Instantly, the conference room fell silent. Fatini's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as she turned and stared intently at Lu Ze. For someone without formal training, the shock was overwhelming, as if time itself had accelerated within a space less than half a meter in diameter, centered on Lu Ze. They were all still young, but Lu Ze looked old and frail.

But for the actors present, the reason they were mesmerized was not because Lu Ze's voice had changed, but because it more directly confirmed the authenticity of the video of Lu Ze quickly getting into character.

"Too fast...this is...too fast."

All eyes were on Lu Ze. Unlike the actors who had rehearsed their lines before, he didn't use body language to enhance the power of his words. He simply held his teacup, crossed his legs, leaned back in his chair, and lazily looked down at the script. Suit, watch, Chinese tea—very sophisticated. The most immediate sense of oddity comes from the mismatch between appearance, age, and voice. It's like a fifteen-year-old opening his mouth as Dick Cowboy—wouldn't you be confused?

Obviously, you'll be confused, they'll be confused, and Dennis, who was exchanging lines with Lu Ze, will be even more confused.

"Uh... this... this... I'm sorry."

"Keep going, keep going."

"Okay... so what? What's the purpose of your visit? Don't expect me to support you, that's impossible."

"I don't want to rely on you, but the medical bills are very high, and I urgently need the money. I was thinking... could you lend me some?"

"Did you take a single penny when my mother died? Why should you... come to me for money when you're about to die?"

Another mistake, and cold sweat began to trickle down Dennis's temples. He gripped the two corners of the script tightly, his fingertips turning white. The pressure surged like a tide, wave after wave. He dared not look up, and could only bury himself in the script, pretending to be an ostrich. What he feared was Lu Ze's calm and unwavering eyes.

At this moment, Lu Ze was looking directly at Dennis, leaning back in his chair and lighting a cigarette. While answering his lines, he took a puff, then crossed his hands on his crossed legs, relaxed and elegant.

No one cared about Dennis's condition anymore, because everyone understood that this scene could no longer be described as a simple rehearsal of lines. For Dennis, it was more like torture. To put it simply, it was like a socially anxious person being chosen by the teacher to read a text aloud in front of the whole class, especially one who made mistakes right from the start.

The more nervous you are, the more mistakes you make, and the more mistakes you make, the more nervous you become. When an actor can't even keep up with the other actor's casual lines, the blow is devastating. Should you continue or run away? Most people would choose the latter, and Dennis was no exception.

"I'm sorry, I'd like to rest for a bit..."

"Okay, everyone take a break. It's been... more than an hour. Everyone should go to the toilet."

Before Fatini could even suggest taking a break, Lu Ze made the decision on his own initiative, a smile on his face as gentle as when he first entered that morning. But now, in everyone's eyes, Lu Ze was truly terrifying, like one of those squinty-eyed monsters from anime.

……

Inside the restroom, the man finished urinating first, shook himself off, pulled up his pants, and prepared to leave. Dennis, who was next to him, was also fastening his belt and preparing to leave. However, the man was puzzled because he was standing next to Dennis but could not hear the sound of running water at all.

"what happened?"

"I...can't pee, touch my leg."

Reaching out and placing his hand on Dennis's thigh, he could feel the leg trembling uncontrollably. Dennis's legs were weak, and his lips were turning slightly purple. His cowardly appearance was indeed somewhat amusing. The man, with a cigarette dangling from his mouth, shook his head with a smile, his lower lip pursed forward as if he had an underbite, and blew the smoke toward the ceiling, flicking the ash into the flowerpot in the bathroom.

The two had a fairly good relationship, but the man was nearly ten years older than Dennis. To Dennis, the man was more like an older brother than a buddy, so when he encountered certain things in life, he preferred to confide in the man in front of him.

"To be honest, Lu Ze put a lot of pressure on me. It felt like going to a film set for the first time. Do you understand what I mean?"

"Definitely. I also feel nervous when I act with Lu Ze. It's better to be prepared to lose when acting with someone like him. It's really unlikely that you can perform well or stand out."

Have you ever been this nervous?

"Of course, when I was in my early twenties, I liked to go to bars, squander my time, and waste my life. Fighting was commonplace for me. After each fight, I couldn't pee while standing up, and my legs were always shaking. Here's some advice for you, Dennis."

"what?"

"You'd better pee, then you'll stop shaking."

"..."

I'm recommending a book by Wang Buguoba, a veteran author with ten years of experience in the history category. My deepest respect! This is his tenth book, "The Nameless Commoners," with over 10,000 subscribers—a testament to its quality. Promise me you'll love it.

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(End of this chapter)