Director of Photography Department of Huayu

Chapter 43 It’s exciting just thinking about it
In the office of the director of the Photography Department of Beijing Film Academy, Mu Deyuan leaned back in his chair and glanced at the electronic clock on the wall. The hands had passed ten-fifteen.

“It should be turned on.”

Mu Deyuan muttered softly, then stood up and walked to the window. The late winter sun shone through the glass, casting a warm glow. He squinted his eyes and said with a hint of anticipation, "I hope you can stand up for yourself, kid. Don't rely on me to go to the crew to support you."

He deliberately missed Wu Chen's opening ceremony today, and also wanted to see if Wu Chen could really manage the crew.

If he went, he would have to rely on the authority of the teachers and advisors. People might obey his orders on the surface, but what about behind the scenes?
Only Wu Chen who can conquer everyone with his strength and charm can be considered a qualified director.

At the same time, the news of the filming of "The Dark Side" naturally spread like wildfire on the Beijing Film Academy campus.

A boy from the Recording Arts Department was strolling around campus with his girlfriend, beaming with joy:

"Have you heard? Wu Chen from the Photography Department started filming today. My roommate is working as a sound engineer there. He's said to be incredibly professional, no worse than those idiots from the Directing Department. And his attitude is pretty good too. When the Directing Department hired someone from our department before, they acted like they were worth two and a half million."

"Shh!"

Before he could finish his words, his girlfriend tugged at his clothes and winked at him.

He was stunned, turned around and saw three students from the directing department walking by with grim faces. He quickly shut up and slipped away with his girlfriend.

The three people from the directing department behind them looked unhappy and stopped when they saw this.

"Who on earth is it that, when going to invite people from other departments, actually slanders the Directing Department?"

"It's hard to say. Your attitude wasn't very good when you went to other departments last time, so be gentle with the acting department."

"Nonsense, am I that kind of person?"

"Stop arguing. I don't care. I just want to see what Wu Chen can come up with. He's only a freshman, and I don't believe he's been learning to make movies since he was in his mother's womb."

"."

Inside a villa in the MY District, Wu Chen, dressed in a black woolen coat, stood behind an ARRI camera and called out in a deep voice, "Everyone, take your positions! 'Dark Side', scene one, shot one, action!"

More than ten people in the crew instantly tensed up and started shooting the first shot.

Traditionally, scenes with lower difficulty are often chosen for the start of filming, in the hope of a smooth start.

Hu Jing was wearing a gray tweed skirt and standing by the window. The backlight shone on her face, creating a broken halo.

Wu Chen personally controlled the camera. The camera slowly moved in from the side of her face, capturing the panic that flashed across her eyes, and then pulled back to the panoramic view, freezing the moment when she and Zu Feng looked at each other.

When he shouted "click", the sound was not loud but resounding.

The crew and the onlookers were slightly stunned.

You can tell whether the director and photographer are skilled or not from the beginning.

“This camera is incredibly steady!”

"It's not just the shots, the choreography is frighteningly sophisticated."

"."

While Wu Chen was still observing the material of the first shot, the few of them discussed in a low voice.

"Xuan'er, why do I feel like Wu Chen doesn't look like a rookie director? He's both the director and the photographer. He even adjusts the softness and angle of the lighting. Is he really a genius?"

Guan Yue was stunned by the smooth filming technique. It felt more mature than any other crew she had been to.

Dong Xuan didn't know how to reply for a moment. Her beautiful eyes fell on Wu Chen and she said softly, "Maybe."

Wu Chen recalled the scene from the shooting just now in his mind. His requirements for the composition of the picture were not high at all.

If it weren't for this persistence and talent, he would never have been able to join the ranks of photographers without a professional background in his previous life.

The crew didn't rent a surveillance camera, so they could only rely on the images in their minds.

Of course, having a monitor is useless.

ARRI is a film camera.

In the film era, monitors could not play back high-definition images. If you wanted to see the specific shooting effects, you had to develop and watch the "rough film". This also means that there is not much difference between having a monitor and not having one.

Of course, the big crew will still put it together in a proper manner, after all, you can still see some basic composition and movement.

Therefore, in the film era, many directors would personally act as photographers and shoot with the camera.

"The image isn't quite as good as it could be, let's try again!" Wu Chen pondered for a minute before speaking. "Oh my god, that's too demanding," Guan Yue exclaimed softly. "That image would have been perfect for a TV series long ago. It's quite good."

"Of course I passed. I won't be so demanding!" Yin Xu nodded in response.

"Good director!"

Zu Feng and Hu Jing had no questions and went straight to the point.

Wu Chen skillfully walked to the lights and called over Park Songri and the others. He also took the time to explain:
"This light is too harsh. Hu Jing's emotions need to be ambiguous, and soft light can bring them out. Also, lower the angle so the shadow doesn't cover her chin."

As the first group of people in Wu Chen's crew, Wu Chen naturally received a lot of preferential treatment, not to mention that several of them were his roommates.

The second shot was retaken, with Wu Chen carrying the camera on his shoulder, and the camera moving in and out as smoothly as flowing water.

The panic in Hu Jing's eyes was magnified, Zu Feng's fatigue and sharpness were intertwined, the picture was clearly layered and beautiful like an oil painting.

After shouting "click", Wu Chen recalled the scene again. He was slowly regaining his feeling. After all, he had not been in charge of the camera for many years after his rebirth. Being both a director and a photographer, these two jobs forced him to check certain details back and forth.

"Perfect!" Wu Chen paused, then smiled and made an OK gesture.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Wu Chen came back to his senses and looked at Dong Xuan, who had nothing to do at the moment. Suddenly, something occurred to him, "Senior Sister, how about you try to get a feel for it first?"

Dong Xuan nodded slightly, but looked at Wu Chen blankly, not knowing what Wu Chen wanted to do.

"Come upstairs!"

Wu Chen took Dong Xuan and the others upstairs. Zhou Yang finally had some time. He took out his phone, pressed a button, and said with a grin, "Xixi will definitely be surprised!"

"This is the secret room. The things have been basically cleared out. My idea is that you should go in first to build up your emotions. After a few days, the filming will go much more smoothly." Wu Chen pointed to the room used for filming.

"Um, two senior sisters, please don't come up to watch, otherwise the effect will be lost."

"Ah?" Guan Yue was stunned. "Director, are you going to lock Xuan'er up here alone?"

"Yes, she is like that in the movie." Wu Chen smiled faintly.

"Xuan'er, you are so pitiful!" Guan Yue said pitiful, but her eyes were full of curiosity, and she wanted to lock the door immediately.

"Director, please remember to let me out when the film is over." Dong Xuan went in to take a look and felt a little scared. She was staying here alone. What if the crew forgot about her?

"Don't worry!" Wu Chen said firmly. The heroine is generally unlikely to forget, and she is not an ordinary character.

The mirrors in the room are specially made one-way mirrors.

People in the secret room can see outside, but people outside cannot see what is happening inside the secret room.

"Junior brother, you designed this plot really well. Xuan'er is hiding in there. Such a beautiful girl has been torn into pieces by you. Just thinking about the beauty is exciting." Guan Yue kept muttering as he went downstairs.

"Ahem, Senior Sister, could you please use some more precise words? What do you mean by 'whole' me?" Wu Chen coughed helplessly. This sentence was too misleading to say.

"Oh, that's pretty close."

As the filming progressed, Wu Chen, carrying the ARRI, specially changed a part of the plot and designed a one-shot film. The camera rotated around Hu Jing, her steps were like dancing, and the picture and rhythm were perfectly matched.

It was around 5pm, and since there were no night scenes scheduled, this was the last scene of the day.
People who pay attention to this call it echoing the beginning and the end. The last shot on the first day of filming will usually be the simplest one.

Wu Chen thought about it and decided to take this opportunity to train Pu Songri and others, and then communicated with Zu Feng.

Zu Feng naturally didn't care. He was just going to sit on the sofa for a few more minutes.

"Song Ri, Xiang Zhuo, Tian Shu!" Wu Chen waved, "This scene is up to you. Each of you take a video and see how it goes!"

"Really?" Xiang Zhuo and the others' eyes lit up, and they looked at ARRI with drooling desire.

"Go and try it!" Wu Chen nodded.

"Hey, let me go first!" Xiang Zhuo rubbed his palms and touched the ARRI.

After Xiang Zhuo, Chu Tianshu, and Park Songri finished filming, Wu Chen also took over and shot a shot, and that marked the end of the day's filming.

Just then, someone in the crew called out, "Director Wu, Director Mu is here."

(End of this chapter)