Chapter 103: The Infuriating "Bathing Scene"

  On the scene, Yi Feiyang had someone lay down the camera track, set up a boom on the snowy ground, with two cameras, one above and one below. One person shot close-ups, while another shot distant views.

  The tracks are laid out, the actors are in position, and Yi Feiyang orders someone to cover up the snow on the ground a bit, so that it doesn't reflect onto the lens.

  After all this is done, the field recorder announces through a loudspeaker that everyone in the venue will enter a 10-second countdown.

  "Ten, nine, eight, ……"

  The venue was silent as a cicada, everyone perked up their ears, waiting for Yi Feiyang to give the best command.

  These guys who were used to shooting low-budget adult films felt the urgency of filming a movie for the first time.

  This is what filming should be like!

  This is what a true filmmaker looks like!

  "Three, two, one, action!" Yì Fēi Yáng shouted loudly, and the camera lens immediately focused on the deer. The crew members behind the scenes used sturdy branches to sweep away the snow outside the lens, driving the deer to start running.

  This pregnant elk was borrowed by Yi Feiyang from the nearby zoo as an "actor" for the rabbit Bill, and since it had been in the zoo for a long time, it was not afraid of humans at all. Looking at those workers who were rushing to sweep and shovel snow, it elegantly moved its legs and strolled leisurely on the snowy ground...

  Go ahead, this elk occasionally buries its head to eat a few mouthfuls of wild grass exposed in the snowy ground, and then glances at the depressed staff with beautiful eyes, as if saying, "You fools, what's the point of holding a stick? Don't think I'm afraid of you!"

  Yi Feiyang stroked his chin, thinking a thousand times, but he didn't expect this elk to be so disobedient. He wanted it to run, but instead it was playing in the snowy field, being romantic. Fine, just you wait!

  "Who's that guy? Are you in charge of blasting? Take a shot at that doe!" Yi Feiyang pointed to the mother deer.

  Demolition expert: "But...the deer is a protected animal. Besides, it's borrowed from the zoo!"

  "Idiot! I didn't tell you to shoot it, just scare it a bit and make it lift its hooves!"

  The blaster understood and then took out a starting pistol from sports, with a loud bang, echoing through the snowy ground.

  That originally still proud and noble doe, chewing on some wild grass with her legs crossed, suddenly shuddered violently, then frantically ran away in a mad dash.

  "Hurry up and capture its running speed with the camera! Note that the machine on the boom must be shot at a diving angle..."

  Yi Feiyang constantly adjusted the shooting angle and details that the camera needed to capture.

  At this time, Yi Feiyang suddenly thought that if there was a helicopter, it would be great to shoot from top to bottom. But thinking about it, this is just a low-cost erotic film, no need to make it a real Hollywood blockbuster... However, I really want to try that shooting method next time. Take a helicopter, fly directly to the sky, and take pictures, it must be very exciting!

  The footage of the deer running is great, at least when watching the replay, Yi Feiyang can't find any place to modify; besides, wanting to let the pregnant doe run again "desperate sprint", Yi Feiyang also feels a bit unbearable, thinking about it from another perspective. If he were to put himself in her shoes and run desperately with a child in his belly, he'd probably die after two laps!

  The camera above the track focused entirely on Abraham as the deer ran, capturing his every move, gaze and expression. Even the subtle actions of cocking and releasing the trigger...

  Abraham is absolutely the oldest "three good students", Yi Feiyang has only taught him once, and he has mastered everything to shape the character.

  Yes, he did it very well!

  The calmness and ruthlessness at the beginning of the hunt, the mercy of sparing a life after discovering the doe was pregnant, and finally firing a blank shot, were all portrayed very well.

  Abraham's excellent performance made what was originally a long prelude, actually only took seven or eight minutes to shoot, in short, the shooting went very smoothly.

  The next shot shows the townspeople running over to tell him that his last son has also been killed in action on a European battlefield, with George, played by Abraham, overcome with grief.

  This crying scene was also filmed very well.

  It's unclear whether Abraham had been oppressed for too long or tormented by life, but as soon as Yifei Yang held the microphone and shouted, he burst into tears. His turbid tears gushed out of his eye sockets like a faucet releasing water, streaming down his orange-peel-like old face in two rivulets...

  Such exquisite crying skills left people in awe.

  Even Yi Feiyang was shocked and wondered if this old man had some kind of golden finger or if he was hacking.

  Otherwise, how can you cry just by saying so?!!

  He asked him for the reason, he said, thinking of his dearest wife!

  At that moment, Yi Feiyang suddenly thought that maybe it's not all bad if his wife had died!

  After finishing Abraham's crying scene, Yǐ Fēi Yáng quickly started shooting the townspeople's discussion about the war and their various reactions to going into battle. These amateur actors, who had not received professional training, surprisingly performed each of their roles with great nuance, which made Yǐ Fēi Yáng very satisfied. Basically, they passed in one take, and by the time all the shots were finished, it was still before 12 o'clock.

  "Awesome! I'm impressed! In all my years in Hollywood, I've never seen a director shoot footage as brilliant and efficient as you!" The bearded cameraman gave Yi Fei Yang a thumbs up.

  After this play, Yi Feiyang's calm on-site command, scene scheduling ability, grasp of the camera and excavation of actors thoroughly conquered all the people in toP company, establishing his authority as a director.

  After hearing Da Hu Zi's praise, Yi Fei Yang just smiled and said that this shooting speed is already very low for Hong Kong people.

  To know that filming in Hong Kong is at a rocket-like speed. Generally, shooting for one month is already considered "long", and the shortest can be done in 7-8 days.

  For example, Hong Kong's famous director Wong Jing shot his classic film "God of Gamblers" in just 13 days, simply to grab a spot in the Lunar New Year release schedule.

  Perhaps at this time, someone will say that those are Hong Kong's fast-food movies, which do not require meticulous craftsmanship and belong to rough rush jobs. In fact, it is not the case. Although the saying goes "slow work produces fine goods", but for films, shooting slowly does not necessarily mean they will be good...

  Of course, freaks like Wang Jiawei are excluded. Like that Hong Kong classic comedy film "The Eagle Shooting Heroes" which was praised by countless people later, the shooting took only 27 days.

  As a Hong Kong person who is top-notch in filming speed, Yee Fai-yang has already reached the pinnacle of filming speed.

  "Bill, what shots are we going to take this afternoon?" Yifei Yang said with a lingering tone, turning his face to Bunny Bill.

  Bill, acting as the producer, flipped through the script in his hand and said with a smile: "We're going to shoot Stormy's bathing scene by the nearby river. And also her crying scene at night when she says goodbye to her family."

  Yi Feiyang nodded and said to the scene recorder, "Announce that we're wrapping up for the day. Call Henry boss and ask him to prepare more food. We'll be working overtime tonight!"

  ……

  Inside the tent, Yifei Yang took off his jacket and lay down on a chair with his eyes closed to rest. Although it was not his first time directing, shooting such a large scene was a first for him.

  To know, Yì Fēi Yáng photographed "Ghost Record", the actors were just a few people, counting on fingers. The venue was also that big, an old building, that's all. Which is not like now. Not to mention the main actor roles, there are more than a dozen people, and those extras, adding up to almost a hundred.

  This time the investment exceeded 300,000, while in the past, Yi Feiyang's films had an investment of no more than 70 or 80,000. In the past, when filming horror movies, the requirements for character portrayal were not too high, mainly to create a certain atmosphere for the film. Now that he is filming an erotic film, and one that pays homage to excellent films like "Lust, Caution", Yi Feiyang feels a great deal of "pressure".

  So at this time he lay on the chair, looking as if he was resting. In fact, once his eyes were closed, a series of decomposition scenes appeared in his mind.

  "Director, may I come in?" A gentle voice floated in.

  Yi Feiyang sat up from his chair and found Storm standing in front of him.

  "What's wrong?"

  Storm held the script and said carefully: "It's like this, for the afternoon and evening performances. I'm a bit worried."

  Yi Feiyang picked up the tea on the table and took a sip, then turned his face and asked: "Why?"

  "I think I might not be able to take good pictures." Stromi said with a worried face.

  Yi Feiyang pointed to the chair in front of her and asked her to sit down, smiling: "Stormy, actually filming is very simple. The key is to immerse yourself. When I shout 'action', you just need to think of yourself as Rachel and that's it. Honestly, this afternoon's bathing scene isn't difficult at all. Tonight's crying scene is even more of a strong suit for women. I really don't understand what you have to worry about."

  "It's like this, director. In the past, the dramas I've filmed basically only required me to show off my sexiness and charm, but this time the script requires me to cry when we're separated..."

  "Yes, mainly to express Rachel's feelings of leaving this small town, replacing her father to go to the battlefield, with many worries in her heart but unable to speak." Yì Fēi Yáng explained.

  "I knew this too, but damn it, I really can't cry!"

  "What did you say? You won't cry?" Yì Fēi Yáng was stunned.

  "Yes, I'm a weird person. Although I'm a girl, my personality is very strong and I've hardly ever cried from childhood to adulthood... Oh God, I almost forgot what tears taste like."

  This time it was Yi Feiyang's turn to be at a loss whether to laugh or cry.

  At first he liked Rachel because of the manly determination hidden in her eyes, but now this determination has become a stumbling block, she doesn't even know how to cry!

  "Cough cough, you can think about the little cats and dogs that died in your own home..."

  "I'm sorry, I've never raised these things!"

  "Huh?" Yi Feiyang's mouth opened wide, "Then what about your deceased loved ones, you must have some, right?"

  "They almost all left with a smile on their faces, and when we said goodbye to the bodies, we were still smiling."

  Yi Feiyang was completely speechless.

  "You try hard to think, yes, there must be things that make you very unhappy, heartbroken, and then you immerse yourself in them, tears gushing out... Look at old Abraham, crying on cue, even crying to the point of dying, how great, how professional!"

  "So you're saying... I should go ask him for some pointers on how to cry well?"

  "Ah, your humble attitude towards learning is great, go ahead, I wish you success!"

  Yi Feiyang kept cheering her up non-stop, and Xiao Ti's face gradually improved. Then she got up to bid farewell and went to find Old Abraham to teach her crying skills.

  Yi Feiyang lay down again, and before long, the phone beside him rang.

  The phone call was made by Gao Jiaobao, saying that the news from Lion's Gate Entertainment is that the box office revenue for "Blair Witch" has been settled, and Boss Gusta hopes that Yi Feiyang can attend the company's celebration banquet tomorrow night, which also serves as a Christmas party.

  Yi Feiyang has a headache, his new play just started filming on this side, and the other side is doing this plane thing. He doesn't go, it's not giving face to the other party... Of course, what Yi Feiyang urgently hopes for is to get the dividend in hand, damn, he's already waited for half a year.

  So, after thinking for a moment, Yifei Yang was determined that he would definitely go tomorrow night!

  Got a reply from Yi Feiyang, Bao was super excited!

  Nonsense, as the financial controller of Dream Illusion Film, he dreams of having 2.4 billion in his pocket every night.

  Money, you are more attractive than women!

  This is the fat man's motto for life.

  ……

  Afternoon shooting began, this play is mainly about Stormi's "Rachel" washing in the river, suddenly hearing gunshots from the forest, then hastily dressing, and finally learning that it was Old George who was hunting, and also learned that the situation on the European battlefield was urgent, and his father was recruited again.

  For shots like this that are a bit more racy, we need to clear the set while filming, especially can't have too many men standing around.

  Yi Feiyang was familiar with this and directly arranged for people to block the four sides of the venue, only allowing photographers and other technical personnel to stay on site.

  But when it came to the actual shooting, something still went wrong. It wasn't because some men didn't follow the rules and sneak a peek, but because the river water was too cold, and Stormi had no experience with winter swimming.

  Being an actor is so hard, let alone bathing in the river on a cold winter's day, most of the time you have to soak in the water seven or eight times, it can freeze your whole body into a cucumber.

  Yi Feiyang didn't want to be so ruthless either. Let alone a girl, even men may not necessarily be able to take off their clothes and get into the water in such cold weather.

  However, according to the script requirements and character settings, "Rachel" is a girl from a hunting family, physically strong and not a weak and frail girl.

  To give Stormy a boost, Yifei Yang called out to Rabbit Bill and several other men to take off their clothes and test the water temperature first.

  Rabbit Bill was stunned, only now did he realize that being an assistant director is a tough job. He had thought that being close to the water tower would allow him to see some sexy scenes, watch beauties devote themselves, but unexpectedly, he didn't get to see any sexiness, instead he had to devote himself for everyone! (....)