Huayu Entertainment 1995 started with hijacking.

Chapter 17 Shooting
Wu Yuchen walked into a study room where many members of his film crew were present. They had been meeting up every evening for the past few days to report to him, the director, on the progress of their preparations.

"Old Jia, have you found any extras yet?"

"Found a job, 15 yuan a day, the crew will provide meals."

"Qi Jing, have you gotten the recording equipment yet?"

"It's already been borrowed."

"And clothes, the female driver's jacket must be bright red, very vibrant, this one is too dark!"

"I have a bright red wool coat over there, Director, I'll get it for you to see now!"

You know what, the students in this film group are incredibly enthusiastic about making a movie. No matter what methods they use, they can quickly get each assigned task done.

Wu Yuchen went over each item one by one. He had a preparation list in his notebook, and he would check off each item as it was completed.

Almost everything has been checked off today. We have one more day tomorrow, and everything should be ready by then. We can start filming on time the day after tomorrow.

……

On Friday morning, a No. 44 bus and a Jeep drove to the outskirts of Beijing and stopped.

Then a lot of people got off the bus, including film crew members and extras.

Wu Yuchen and Jiang Qinqin got out of the jeep, which was borrowed and not for carrying people, but specifically for transporting camera equipment and other filming equipment.

After Wu Yuchen got out of the car, Lao Jia, Wu Shixian, and Chen Er came over. Wu Shixian looked around at the scenery. The leaves of the trees by the roadside had turned yellow, and both sides of the road were desolate gray-yellow land overgrown with weeds, giving a sense of ruin and desolation.

It was already the time of Frost's Descent, and the temperature in the suburbs was even lower. A gust of wind blew by, stirring up the yellow dust from the wasteland.

Fatty Wu gave Wu Yuchen a thumbs up: "Wu Yuchen, the place you chose is perfect!"

Wu Yuchen looked up at the sky, which was overcast and somewhat gray. He smiled and said, "The weather is perfect!"

The overall style of this film is to be cold and absurd, so the environment in which the story takes place should have this dark and desolate color tone, so that people can feel that the background is oppressive and dull.

Even the extras they hired to play bus passengers were all required to wear dark-colored clothes, either black, gray, or khaki.

Jiang Qinqin was now wearing a specially prepared bright red coat, which made her stand out in the environment. Red represents blood and violence, and also foreshadows the unusual nature of her fate.

Wu Yuchen looked towards the male lead, Duan Long, who was carrying a black bag, wearing a black coat, and pure white pants that exuded a hint of swagger.

Wu Yuchen glanced at him, then walked over and shoved a cigarette into his mouth: "Open yourself up a bit more, be a little roguish."

Wu Yuchen didn't want a male lead who was a righteous and upright figure, or an honest man who bursts forth from silence. Instead, he wanted someone who was slightly roguish, had a friendly and outgoing personality, and looked like a meddlesome young man.

Duan Long gripped the cigarette in his hand and took a deep drag. He knew that his taciturn nature was different from the character's personality, so for the past two days he had been trying to think of similar people he had met before, to imitate their characteristics, and to constantly immerse himself in the character and become like him.

As for Sun Honglei, he was the one he was most at ease with, because this guy had been involved in the underworld before, and had come into contact with all sorts of people. Many of his former friends were hooligans and thugs, and he had probably been involved in a lot of fights. As long as he got fierce, this robber wouldn't be difficult for him.

Then Wu Yuchen walked over to the camera, glanced at it, and frowned before saying:
"The color tone is wrong, make it cooler and darker."

Seeing that the photographer couldn't achieve the desired effect after adjusting for a while, Wu Yuchen simply took matters into his own hands. He had made his living as a photographer in his previous life, so he hadn't forgotten his skills.

The third-year photography student next to him stared wide-eyed as Wu Yuchen skillfully handled the camera and adjusted it in no time. Despite studying photography, he actually had very few opportunities for hands-on practice; he hadn't expected his junior to be so capable!

"Director Wu, you also know about photography?"

"I've had quite a few hobbies before."

Wu Yuchen smiled and casually brushed it off, but he planned to take the photos himself. The photographer wasn't good enough, and he couldn't let him waste the film.

Wu Yuchen also drew storyboards, but they were mainly for the rest of the crew to see, to ensure that the whole team knew what each scene he wanted to shoot would look like, so that they could cooperate with him in his work.

He basically doesn't need to look at them; the images are all in his mind. This is something he discovered after his rebirth: his memory has become excellent, and he can recall many vague things from his past life if he thinks about them carefully.

There was no opening ceremony; the crew simply operated smoothly under Wu Yuchen's direction and filming began immediately.

Wu Yuchen started by shooting the outdoor scenes. He took advantage of the weather today to shoot all the necessary scenes, which took half an hour. The main task was to shoot the outdoor environment both inside and outside the bus, while it was moving. So it was a lot of trouble for the bus driver to drive back and forth on this route.

After Wu Yuchen made some hand gestures, the actors began to take their positions under his direction.

These extras, carrying large and small bags, boarded the bus and sat down. They didn't have to speak a word or have any lines, which symbolized their identity as "silent actors".

Inside the bus, Wu Yuchen stood behind the camera, pointing the lens at the door.

After Wu Yuchen shouted "Action!", the actors began to appear on stage.

But Wu Yuchen didn't actually start filming. He wanted to work out the actors' condition first, and then start filming when they were ready. The main reason, of course, was that he didn't have enough money and had to use film sparingly.

Sure enough, as soon as Duan Long got into the car and began to deliver his lines, Wu Yuchen noticed the problem.

"Crack!"

Wu Yuchen walked straight over and patted Duan Long on the shoulder:

"I want you to have a bit of a roguish air about you, to show that you're not afraid of trouble, but not to immediately turn you into a petty thug. Don't go overboard with that cocky attitude!"

Then he turned to Jiang Qinqin and said:

"And you, Qinqin, have you ever seen a bus driver smile at a passenger as soon as they get on?"

You're a bus driver, and you have to smile at every single passenger you see. Your face must be stiff by now!
Think about the bus drivers you usually see. Don't treat him any differently; he's just a passenger who got on the way!

Wu Yuchen's words were blunt, but once he entered the film set, he wasn't the amiable type. A director needs to have authority to manage such a large crew.

Jiang Qinqin and Duan Long looked embarrassed by Wu Yuchen's words and dared not refute him, so they quickly composed themselves.

Three minutes later, Wu Yuchen shouted "action" again, and then "click!" again.

He explained it to them for the first two or three times, but later he stopped explaining and just clicked "cut," letting them adjust it themselves.

Wu Yuchen understands very well that if the requirements are strict at the beginning and the right state of mind is achieved, the filming process will be much smoother later on.

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(End of this chapter)