Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation
Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
A faint aroma of tea permeated the room. Lu Ze’s nose was quite sharp, allowing him to sniff the faint smell. The shutters were closed, but the room was brightly lit. There were three people in the room, and in the center was Gu Mingde. As for the two, Lu Ze didn’t know who they were.
“Lu Ze, right? A special extra?” Gu Mingde was seated leaned back in his chair. He seemed a bit tired, having gone through more than a hundred auditions. Taking a puff from the cigarette in his hand, he asked Lu Ze with his head still going through the latter’s file.
‘Right, a special extra.”
Lu Ze’s voice betrayed a trace of nervousness. After all, this was his first time personally seeing and talking to a first-class director. He naturally felt immense pressure. Although he had made deals with bigger tycoons than Gu Mingde in the course, he did not care about them. Moreover, he desperately needed this role.
“Have a seat! You have one minute to get ready before we start.”
Hearing Gu Mingde’s words, Lu Ze sat down on the stool with only two-thirds of his buttocks placed down. He put his two hands on his knees, sitting in a bit of relaxed posture and not completely straight.
“How long have you worked in Hengdian?”
“Two years.”
“Then how come I only see the list of your previous two months’ roles? Did you not act in any significant job before that?” Gu Mingde frowned as he flipped pages. He was somewhat annoyed at the actors’ union. To send an actor who had just been properly acting for two months to him? Moreover, did they think this play was some joke? Or were they a bunch of minor figures? Was there a production crew that didn’t know his name?
Lu Ze didn’t reply, nor did he have any response. He could only control his emotions and wait for the character.
“Are you ready? You can begin, Zhang Lixian.”
“Yes!”
Lu Ze instantly stood up from the stool and replied loudly. His voice was exceptionally clear, but the three judges did not currently manage to see anything special about it.
“You’ll take over the second frontline regiment,” While sitting, Gu Mingde delivered the dialogue in a flat tone and waited for Lu Ze to pick up on his own.
“Yes! I request to bombard the second defense line of Japanese troops with yellow phosphorus shells. Moreover, I believe that US aircraft might go for the second round.”
His voice had an explosive cadence and was fraught with tension, hearing which, the three inwardly nodded to themselves. They could grasp an actor’s training in the fundamentals of dialogue delivery.
“You may.” Gu Mingde blew the steam over his teacup and took a sip as he offered another dialogue. Thereupon, he folded his arms over his chest, waiting for the other’s performance.
Lu Ze began to roam around the room. He lowered his head as if there were a map of the terrain before sneering with confidence as he said, “I wish for the US aircraft to deploy explosives and gasoline.”
“No. Uh… the surviving first regiment soldiers are also there. They will be caught as well, no?
“I know, so what?”
The arrogance and confidence on Lu Ze’s face became increasingly dense, and Gu Mingde took notice of this fact. His expressions were vivid, and his tone was further raising the atmosphere. Under his advice, Lu Ze’s expression gradually transformed, even exuding arrogance from his eyes. However, it did not seem exaggerated at all. For a twenty-four old high-school graduate extra, it was a challenging feat.
Lu Ze did not spare a moment to notice the expressions of the three judges as he had already immersed himself into the role. His performance was exceptionally stable. His head remained lowered, looking at the ‘map’ while enunciating every word.
“The soldiers of an entire regiment, who had just secured the front with their flesh and blood, would come to nothing.” With a frown yet a straight body, he uttered the last dialogue with forceful vigor, as if convincing himself,
“To sacrifice oneself for the country… they would be glad.”
There was a sudden silence in the room as nobody amongst the three spoke out. Gu Mingde beckoned Lu Ze to have a seat, feeling pleased as well as puzzled inwardly. He exchanged glances with the other two, receiving the same thoughts from them as well.
“Have you studied acting? If you have studied formally, why doesn’t your file show anything?”
Lu Ze had heard the same questions from many directors, and he replied with his usual answer, “I’ve read a few books… Self-studied.”
‘Nonsense!’
Gu Mingde could only shout this in his heart. He would be crazy to believe that this was self-study. From dialogues to movements, facial expression changes, modeling an imaginary environment… Lu Ze was even better than new university graduates in almost every aspect. Could self-study learn this? Then what was the purpose of specialized institutions?
He did not buy the fact that an acting genius could self-teach themselves to this extent by reading a few books. Even if he were a genius, he would still need guidance in the later stages. It was the same reason why grassroots found it challenging to stick out.
Anyhow, he avoided going deeper into this subject. It was because whether Lu Ze had taken formal education or not, or whatever he was hiding had nothing to do with him, as long as he didn’t have a criminal record. Anyway, this matter would be investigated thoroughly.
At this moment, he only needed to think if Lu Ze were suitable in the role.
First, external appearance-wise, his age was young and features grand. His height was a full match, while his hair would be fine after a little growth. Although temperament was a bit harder to guess, he certainly had it in him. After muddling in the dirt in Hengdian for two years, Lu Ze had naturally gained some kind of peasant-like aura. However, his excellence in acting could easily conceal his original shabby appearance. Thus, this was also a pass.
As for acting, this was the peak of performance he had seen amongst the new generation actors. His dialogue delivery was firm and rhythmic, his movements were natural and clean, and his grasp over expressions and rhythm was perfect, emerging as a profoundly sophisticated performance. The only unknown factor currently was his ability to preserve his mental state before the camera. Today’s outstanding performance might turn into cowering before the cameras. Many young actors quickly fell into this pit.
Taking a sip from his tea, he turned his head and looked at the faces of his two peers. Seeing their expression, he knew that he did not need to ask anything. They were quite satisfied.
“Alright, go back and wait. You’ll hear our response in three-four days. You can go back. Be safe on your way back.”
Although the three of them were quite satisfied with Lu Ze’s performance, there were still a lot of contestants left. However, they were not too optimistic about the remaining young actors being able to outperform him. They would merely take a look for formality, having more or less made their decision without much chances of a change.
“Thank you, director Guo! Thank you very much!”
Lu Ze stepped forth and stretched his hand out. The three politely held his hand on both sides and as they patted his back as they said a few words of encouragement.
…
“This kid is pretty good and also knows etiquette, much better than the whiny college brat from just now.” The executive producer praised Lu Ze while sipping his tea. He was talking about the little guy who auditioned before Lu Ze. The latter was a fresh graduate from acting school. Upon hearing their ending remarks, he had merely nodded and left, somewhat disrespecting these three great men. The hell those teachers in the school were teaching these students!
“Not just etiquettes, he’s meticulous too, no?” Gu Mindge flipped over to the next name on the list. He was not bothered by Lu Ze’s performance that displayed formal training. He merely felt what this kid was trying to hide to this extent?
“Wandering in a place like Hengdian for more than two years, how can he still be sane? Ah! How many more is left? My waist is killing me!”