Chapter 87 of Volume One: The Makeup is Set

  "Cami, don't mention it, I've already memorized it." Lin Xiao sat helplessly in the waiting lounge, sighing as he spoke to Cami who was chattering nonstop beside him.

  "I'm not at ease!" Cami gave him a white eye "You should know, Hong Kong and Taiwan artists basically look down on the domestic entertainment industry. Actually, this is also because the popularity of mainland films is not as high as that of Hong Kong and Taiwan."

  Lin Xiao laughed and said, "They can't look down on them, they have to take a shot. In recent years, the Hong Kong film industry has been in a slump, Taiwan's film and television industry is saturated, if they don't go north to make a fortune, do they plan to go to Japan and South Korea to make a fortune?"

  "Look! What did I just tell you?! Cami was furious "No matter what you think, when collaborating with Hong Kong and Taiwan artists, strictly prohibit any regional differences! If this gets out, it's a big deal! How many years has Hong Kong been returned? Do you remember how Ah Mei was banned? That was a directive from the General Administration of Radio and Television! Do you want to be banned by all three major cinemas in Hong Kong at the same time?"

  Lin Xiao painfully sighed "Here we go again... I know, absolutely not, I guarantee it."

  But it wasn't until he boarded the plane that Cami repeatedly reminded him several times, and then watched him enter the gate with a worried look.

  "What a troublesome guy." She looked at the back of the boarding gate and suddenly smiled, dialing her phone "Uncle He, yes, I'm Lingzi, how's your consideration on that matter last time... Alright... I'll contact you when he gets back."

  The plane parted through layers of white clouds in the azure sky and finally landed at Hong Kong Airport.

  After getting off the plane, Lin Xiao pushed his sunglasses up. Although it was already October, the weather here was still warm and sunny, completely different from Beijing where you could smell a hint of winter.

  "Lin, old brother." As soon as he got off the plane, he saw a black sedan parked at the airport. As soon as he came out, Huang Bo smiled and crawled out of the car, patted him on the shoulder.

  "Is this all you've brought?"

  "Huang Ge, you've been in high spirits lately." Lin Xiao said with a smile, "Just putting on a show, it'll be over in a day or two at most. Bringing one set of clothes to change into is enough."

  "It's all thanks to Lin's phone call back then. Otherwise, I wouldn't have dared to imagine myself setting foot on the land of Eastern Hollywood so soon." Huang Bo humbly smiled "I thought that for this lifetime, I would only be able to stay in the mainland, didn't expect..."

  "However, Lin is still doing well, I heard that you have recently joined the crew of "Never Give Up"?"

  "It's been several days and there's still no news." Lin Xiao laughed and shook his head "I'm afraid it's hopeless."

  The two chatted casually as they boarded the vehicle. Hong Kong reporters are much crazier than those on the mainland, and if there were a group of paparazzi blocking their way at the entrance, it would be difficult to arrive on time.

  The car sped out of the airport and ran for a full hour before arriving at the edge of Kwun Tong District.

  This time's makeup was done at a large cosmetics company rented in Guantang District, and the props were also very complete. When they arrived, several cars had already been parked at the entrance.

  As soon as they arrived at the entrance, a parking attendant immediately came to serve them. After stopping the car, the two people directly entered this company called "Jin Ying Art". Inside, many people were already seated.

  "How can there be so many people?" Huang Bo was also surprised, looking at his watch in confusion "I only saw a few when I went out earlier, the crew shouldn't have this many people, right? Didn't they say that this company has already been rented out?"

  Lin Xiao laughed and said, "Huang Ge, you don't know this. Movies emphasize camera language, a scene is much longer than TV, there's no time to reapply makeup, it's possible that TV shoots over 10 minutes of footage, movies need to shoot tens of minutes, then edit. Although the final result is also around 10-20 minutes, the effect is completely different."

  Huang Bo was stunned for a moment, and then he suddenly remembered that the other party was on the big screen for the first time. He couldn't help but ask with concern: "Brother Huang... you... is this your first time filming a movie?"

  Huang Bo nodded and humbly asked "You're quite experienced?"

  "Experience doesn't count, just knowing a bit is enough." Lin Xiao decided to elaborate "For such a long time, actors are likely to sweat, so the makeup for the movie, regardless of the brand, must be absolutely waterproof. And to determine which brand to use, it requires discussion among the heads of the lighting department, makeup department and prop department. The people you see should be them."

  Huang Bo nodded thoughtfully.

  Lin Xiao pointed to the people in the hall and said, "Not only that, but heavy makeup is also very damaging to the skin. Huang Ge, you know that an artist's face is their second most important asset. In the process of putting on heavy makeup, repeatedly confirming one's appearance can be very harmful in the long run. You should remind your makeup artist about this later."

  After finishing, he smiled and added "If we become stars in the future, we will all need to have our own exclusive makeup artists and maintenance experts, this is essential."

  "Alright, who knows when that day will come." Huang Bo also smiled.

  Just then, Zhou Xingzhen walked out from inside, clapped his hands and smiled, "Welcome everyone to Hong Kong. Since we are all part of the same crew now, I won't say thank you for your hard work and other polite phrases."

  As soon as he spoke, almost thirty people in the hall fell silent.

  Zhou Xingchi looked at his watch and said, "I'm a pragmatic person. Whether acting or directing, I don't like empty courtesy, let alone delay the progress of the crew because of it. Everyone knows what this play means to me, so I won't waste time either. Now, let's start makeup immediately and try to get the final result out today, ok, let's begin!"

  Everyone is working with Zhou Xingchi for the first time, and his stance has changed. He's no longer an actor, but a director who controls the life and death of a play. In the crew, his words are like imperial decrees.

  As soon as the sentence was finished, everyone got moving. Zhou Xingzhen beckoned with his hand, and several makeup artists walked to his side, beginning to listen to him assign one-on-one tasks.

  Lin Xiao and Huang Bo sat next to each other chatting, occasionally glancing over at Zhou Xingchi as he explained his requirements to the makeup artists. Just then, a voice sounded from behind him.

  "Is this Shaolin Soccer's fixed point?"

  "Yes." Lin Xiao replied casually and turned his head to see who was speaking, but suddenly froze.

  Slightly pointed mouth, small eyes, bald head, this appearance is almost unknown to Chinese audiences and artists. It was in '93 that he became famous with the play "Alive", and has since won three Best Actor awards, Ge You!

  "Teacher Ge!" He reacted and hastily shouted.

  As soon as this voice was shouted out, the surroundings became quiet.

  Many eyes were cast over, and when they saw that iconic bald head, almost all of them were shocked.

  "Ge You? Is that really Ge You!" "How did he end up at the Shaolin Soccer makeup point?" "Could he be an undisclosed actor? No way, right?"

  The murmurs of discussion grew louder in this corner, standing out starkly in the quiet grand hall.

  Zhou Xingchi furrowed his brow and looked up, just in time to see Ge You wearing a black suit.

  "Mr. Ge." The spark of anger that had just risen instantly disappeared, and he put on a smile as he walked over "Why didn't you notify us in advance? No one went to welcome Mr. Ge, it's really too rude."

  "I can handle it myself, no need to trouble you, Director Zhou." Ge You smiled and still had that "sly" look on his face as he shook hands with Zhou Xingchi.

  The people around were even more surprised, and they indeed had an appointment in advance. What's going on here?

  "Unfortunately, Mr. Ge refused my invitation three times, otherwise, we would have been able to co-create a classic comedy together today." Zhou Xingchi sighed and said "Not being able to invite such an excellent actor is my dereliction of duty."

  "It's not that I don't want to, it's just that I really can't squeeze out the time." The two exchanged a few pleasantries, but their conversation had already stirred up a huge commotion around them.

  "Zhou Xingchi asked Ge You to play Shaolin Soccer? And he even invited him three times?" Huang Bo looked at the two people who had become the center of attention, saying in shock.

  "Ke Wu hasn't agreed yet?" He frowned slightly "This is a great opportunity to further expand the Hong Kong and Taiwan market, why give it up?"

  "I think he gave up inevitably." Lin Xiao said calmly, "Huang Ge, think about it. Gu You has already won three Best Actor awards and is a true king of the silver screen. People who have achieved fame like this are very protective of their reputation and will not take risks like this. Moreover, his style is really quite different from Zhou Xingchi's."

  A crisp "click" sounded exceptionally clear in everyone's ears.

  Nothing else, just too sensitive to this kind of sound.

  "Who?!" Zhou Xingchi's face suddenly fell as he asked aloud while talking to Ge You.

  The atmosphere immediately cooled down, and everyone looked at each other in dismay.

  Zhou Xingchi apologized to Ge You with a nod, and when he turned his head around, his face was already icy cold.

  "Who? Step out."

  Still no one answered.

  "I don't know who it was, right?" He grunted, "I've said it countless times, no photos are allowed until the makeup is done! Who broke the rules just now?"

  "Come out now, just delete the photos. If you want me to find them, then leave the crew."

  Lin Xiao saw that Ge You's eyes slightly raised at the corner, but she didn't say anything.

  Even he himself did not expect that Zhou Xingchi on the scene and Golden Horse Award, Zhou Xingchi during the audition, almost became two different people.

  Ge You is probably thinking the same way now.

  He is the Golden Horse Award winner, who was once a mentor to junior artists like Gao Lan Chun. Now he is a tyrannical king, but this king speaks with justice, only his punishment is too harsh.

  The atmosphere in the hall suddenly dropped to freezing point, and in this awkward atmosphere, a timid voice finally sounded "Zhou... Zhou Director... it's me, I just wanted to take a photo with Ge teacher. I... I've never seen a real person before..."

  "No need for explanation!" Zhou Xingchi's loud voice interrupted the other person. "You don't even listen to the director? What else do you want to do? Give me your phone."

  "Zhou Dao..."

  "Bring it over!"

  "This is the makeup artist I brought." Just then, a colder female voice than Zhou Xingchi's rang out "What's wrong with taking a photo?"

  Who dares to disturb Zhou Xingchi's mood at this time? Everyone was stunned, and their eyes turned to the person who made the sound.

  "Is it you who brought this?" Looking clearly at the speaker, Zhou Xing's eyes flashed with a complex expression.