This actor has something

Chapter 500 Happy Wrap-up

The weather is getting hotter and hotter every day.

There's an apricot tree at the entrance of the film set rented in the film studio. It looks quite old, tall and lush.

When the film crew arrived, it was during the blooming season, and the trees were covered in beautiful pink apricot blossoms. Zhou Huimin even took a few photos at the time.

As time passed day by day, from April to June, the small buds behind the apricot blossoms slowly grew into fruit, and then slowly grew bigger, and now they have begun to ripen.

The bright orange apricots had a touch of crimson on the side facing the sun, looking incredibly tempting. He Daqi's two little rascals were drooling as they looked at them from under the tree.

Actually, they have apricots at home, and it's apricot season now. He Daqi and his wife are usually happy to buy these seasonal fruits and vegetables. But now, these two little rascals are fixated on the fruit on the tree and won't leave, whining for He Daqi to climb the tree and pick a few for them.

That's how kids are. Sometimes they don't cherish things that are too easy to get, but they can treasure things that are a little difficult to obtain.

He Daqi glanced at the tall apricot tree in front of him, not wanting to climb up and go through the trouble. If it were easy to pick, the apricots would have been picked long ago, and there would be no way to wait until they were fully ripe. After all, this was the entrance of a film crew, and there were plenty of skilled staff members and extras.

"The apricots up there are sour and astringent, they don't taste good. When we go back, Dad will buy you big apricots, they're big and sweet, so you can eat your fill."

Clearly, He Daqi's perfunctory attitude displeased the two little ones, who pouted and fussed around him, insisting that he climb up and pick a few.

Lu Yang watched from the sidelines with amusement. Seeing He Daqi just going on and on with his monotonous chatter to fool the two kids, Lu Yang didn't want to waste any more time. He had come out to urge He Daqi because he hadn't returned to the set on time. So Lu Yang waved over a few support staff and asked them to bring out a high telescopic ladder from the set, go up and pick some apricots to coax the children.

Not long after, the two children, who were happily eating apricots, followed He Daqi back to the film set. While eating, they complained that He Daqi had lied to them, saying that the apricots were clearly very sweet.

It is indeed sweet, because He Daqi is eating it right now.

“We’ll be moving to a different location in another two weeks, senior. Your kids are on summer vacation now, and Director Zhou isn’t picking them up every day anymore. Could you talk to her and ask her to stay on set a little longer each day, finish filming sooner, and get some rest? It’s getting hotter and hotter. If she keeps dragging it out, she’ll suffer even more later.”

Lu Yang walked beside He Daqi, also munching on an apricot. Despite being unattended, the apricots were quite large and perfectly ripe, just the right time to enjoy them.

Upon hearing Lu Yang's suggestion, He Daqi agreed without hesitation: "Okay, I'll talk to her. How about this, let's work overtime and film tonight. It's not hot at night now, so let's try to wrap up filming as soon as possible before it gets too hot."

"If you can persuade your wife, everything else will be easy to discuss."

He Daqi pretended not to hear Lu Yang's subtle provocation and changed the subject, saying, "The special effects for the Illusionary Prison Break are almost finished. The graphics and color team contacted me last night and said they'll be done by the end of this week. Remember to check on it this weekend."

Upon hearing this, Lu Yang paused, let out a long breath, and his smile brightened even more as he happily said, "Finally finished! This movie took about a year and a half to make, right? Even if it wasn't a year and a half, I estimate it was close. It really took a lot of time."

"So, are you still going to make Painted Skin 3 in 3D?" He Daqi asked with a smile and a hint of mischief, seeing Lu Yang's relieved expression.

"Of course we'll keep making 3D films! Otherwise, wouldn't all my studies have been for nothing? I'll be the number one 3D director in China from now on."

"Tsk, that's ambitious!" He Daqi gave a thumbs up.

……

……

Ten o'clock in the morning.

He Daqi and Zhou Huimin quietly arrived at Qimingxing Cinema Wudaokou Store.

They were considered late, because as soon as they entered the screening room, they found that everyone else had arrived long ago and was now waiting for them.

After more than a year of hype, the production of "Phantom Prison Break" has finally come to an end. Today, in addition to senior executives from Asia Pacific Film Group and China Film Group, as well as the actors of the film, there are also many directors who have come to learn and visit.

This isn't an official release; it's just a test screening at the cinema to see if there are any shortcomings. After all, it's our first time making a 3D movie, and we don't know for sure what the viewing experience will be like. We need to screen it beforehand to find any problems, which is why we arranged for Qimingxing Cinema Wudaokou Store to set aside a screening room for this test.

Zhou Huimin was also quite curious about this, so she accompanied He Daqi today. Otherwise, it would be strange if she would be willing to move in this hot weather.

Recently, she has been complaining every day that He Daqi delayed the start of filming for "My Love from the Star" by more than ten days, which has caused it to drag on until midsummer, forcing her to rush to catch up on the schedule by filming night scenes. If He Daqi hadn't been so perfunctory before, "My Love from the Star" might have already wrapped up filming.

"Daqi, why are you sitting so far back? Come sit in the front row."

While chatting with Lu Yang, Han Shanping kept an eye on the entrance. When he saw He Daqi and his wife enter the screening room and prepare to find a corner to sit, he stood up and waved from a distance.

His shout immediately drew the attention of dozens of people sitting in the front row of the screening room.

This made He Daqi, who wanted to secretly contact the projectionist to start the screening directly, get up somewhat helplessly, take Zhou Huimin's hand, smile and walk to the front row to greet everyone.

After exchanging greetings and taking his seat, He Daqi casually made up an excuse to Han Shanping next to him, saying, "Chairman Han, didn't we agree to test the projection effect today? So I'm going to sit in the back row to see how it goes. We can't all sit in the front row, can we?"

His excuse actually convinced Lu Yang, who was sitting on the other side of Han Shanping. He immediately peeked back and saw that no one was sitting there. He craned his neck with some concern and asked He Daqi, "Senior brother, should we arrange for people to sit in different corners? Otherwise, I'm afraid that the viewing experience will be poor from some angles, which will affect the overall effect."

"Don't worry, there will be two more test screenings later. We'll arrange someone then," He Daqi explained with a smile.

As they were talking, the lights in the screening room went out, and the whispers immediately subsided.

He Daqi put on his 3D glasses and waited for the movie to start.

Han Shanping didn't shut up. He leaned towards He Daqi and asked in a low voice, "Daqi, why does Xiao Ning's new movie have to be released during the summer? And specifically in mid-July? You don't know, we've already delayed the release of Transformers 3 in Hollywood for half a month. We can't delay any longer. We agreed to schedule it for July 22nd, just one week later than Xiao Ning's Detective Chinatown. If you don't change the release date, it will clash with yours."

"Hey! Ning Hao is so stubborn, he insists on releasing the film during the summer season. We've had different people try to persuade him, but he won't listen to anything we say. He keeps saying he's not afraid of Hollywood. What a mess this is! Why don't you, Mr. Han, try to persuade him too?"

He Daqi's answer made Han Shanping frown, and he couldn't help but twitch his lips, cursing He Daqi in his heart.

He had already called Ning Hao before, and Ning Hao repeated the same excuse He Daqi was giving. Aside from the names being switched, everything else was basically identical. If Han Shanping still didn't understand that these two were talking nonsense, then he'd wasted his life.

After a moment's thought, Han Shanping knew what He Daqi and the others were planning. He could only pretend not to understand, clicked his tongue, and stopped talking, preparing to watch how the 3D movie "Ya Yue" turned out.

Two hours later, a beaming Han Shanping pulled Lu Yang aside and showered him with compliments, insisting on taking him to lunch.

They also wanted to invite He Daqi and his wife to come along, but He Daqi politely declined.

The couple left the cinema discreetly. As soon as they got into their van, Vivian Chow pulled Kenneth Ho aside to discuss the movie they had just watched.

Previously, Zhou Huimin didn't pay much attention to the initial planning and production of the movie "Phantom Prison Break," but now that she has seen the finished product, she is truly shocked.

She really hadn't expected that domestic films could produce such amazing special effects, especially with the added 3D viewing experience, which made many of the effects feel so real, providing a truly immersive experience.

"So Lu Yang is going to make Painted Skin 3 into a 3D movie later?"

He Daqi nodded and said, "Yes, Painted Skin 3 is different from Illusion Prison Break. The special effects of Illusion Prison Break are sword and shadow effects and internal energy projection effects, as well as some martial arts illusions. Painted Skin 3, on the other hand, features demons and monsters, as well as Taoist magic duels. It will be a completely different experience."

"After watching this kind of movie, I realized that technology is becoming more and more advanced. I never thought that mobile phones would be so convenient and have so many functions in the future."

Zhou Huimin's tone conveyed a sense of regret for being born at the wrong time.

He Daqi didn't respond. Recently, the drama "My Love from the Star" was filming a scene where the female lead suffered a major blow, and Zhou Huimin had become very talkative. She would easily fall into a little sadness over the slightest insight into life, so He Daqi mostly just listened without saying anything lately.

If he hadn't known that this was his own doing, constantly transmitting his performance experience and insights remotely, which had led to Zhou Huimin's current state, He Daqi would have taken her to see a psychologist long ago, given Zhou Huimin's melancholic appearance, which suggests she's trapped in the experiential learning style.

The performance experience and insights imparted by the system have no aftereffects, so as long as "My Love from the Star" finishes filming and He Daqi stops teleporting her, Zhou Huimin will quickly return to normal.

As expected, He Daqi did not respond, and Zhou Huimin adjusted her mindset on her own. It can be said that she changes her mindset quickly now. She no longer worries about the rapid development of technology and the fact that she will not be able to experience it in the future. Instead, she turned her attention to her two naughty children at home.

"When we pass by Cuihualou later, remember to stop by and pack two servings of stir-fried shrimp and pork belly. Huanhuan and Lele have been asking for it for the past two days, so it's good to pick it up on the way today."

Hearing this, He Daqi squinted and lazily complained, "Why didn't you say so earlier? It's already 12:30 pm. By the time we get in line and finish packing, it will be almost 2 pm before we get back. Let's just order one and have someone pick it up tonight."

"Why didn't you remind me earlier? I forgot to tell you?"

Are you planning to be unreasonable?

……

……

Lu Yang has been very busy lately, so busy that he's completely overwhelmed.

Filming for "My Love from the Star" has wrapped up, and "Phantom Prison Break" has discovered quite a few minor issues during its post-production testing and screening, so he's really feeling overwhelmed right now.

They wanted to ask Ning Hao for help, but Ning Hao was busy. Detective Chinatown was about to be released and the pre-release publicity had begun, so he was out and about.

Zhang Yimou did have time, but the reason he was willing to collaborate on the filming of "Phantom Prison Break" was to learn new technologies and see if they suited him. Later, he felt they were not suitable and gave up after filming. He didn't get much exposure to special effects or editing afterward.

Moreover, Old Zhang has really made money in the past two years and is planning to take a two-month break to see if he and his young wife can have another baby. Therefore, he refused Lu Yang's request for help very decisively.

As a result, Lu Yang, who is usually easy to talk to, has become a grumpy old man on set. Apart from He Daqi and his wife, he yells at everyone he sees, making the actors and staff live in fear of making any mistakes.

You know what, sometimes having a cold face is quite effective.

At least the relaxed atmosphere on set has tightened up considerably, and the filming schedule has suddenly accelerated. Originally, filming might not have been completed until early August, but at the current pace, it might be finished by the end of July.

It might even be faster, because He Daqi and his wife are about to wrap up filming. Once they finish, if Lu Yang wants to catch up on the schedule, he might lead the other actors to film until 10 p.m. every day, which he could probably manage.

"Cut! Great! Congratulations to Senior Brother and Director Zhou on wrapping up filming!"

As Lu Yang's voice, waving a megaphone, reached their ears, He Daqi and his wife, who had been embracing in front of the camera and exchanging loving glances, slowly let go of each other's hands.

Perhaps He Daqi's acting was too over-the-top just now, making Zhou Huimin, who was looking at him, completely mesmerized. Now that the drama is over, He Daqi has put away his cold and handsome demeanor, while Zhou Huimin is still staring at him in a daze. If He Daqi hadn't pinched Zhou Huimin's nose with a smile, judging from Zhou Huimin's expression, they would have been watching each other until the end of time.

Noticing that Vivian Chow had come to her senses, He Daqi turned away from the camera lens with a smile, took the megaphone from Lu Yang's hand, and announced with a smile: "Everyone has been working hard lately. I know you have to film night scenes tonight, so we will not hold a wrap party today. Starting tonight, we will give everyone an extra meal every day. When the crew officially wraps up filming, we will have a good time then."

The crew immediately cheered.

"Thank you, Teacher He."

Congratulations, Teacher He, on wrapping up filming!

"Teacher He, you can't avoid being toasted when the time comes."

He Daqi smiled brightly, saying nice things as if they were free, agreeing without any hesitation, even when asked to have a big drinking session.

He figured he could just pretend to be drunk when the time came. If a group of people came to toast him, he didn't believe that if he only took a sip while they downed a whole glass, they would complain.

Zhou Huimin came over with a smile and put her arm around He Daqi's arm. Looking at He Daqi, who was in high spirits and joking with someone, she smiled gently, her eyes crinkling, her gaze as sweet as honey.

(End of this chapter)