“Cut!” Frowning, Wang Yang shouted, “Jessica, don’t just keep smiling. Put some emotion into your acting. Come on! Let’s do it again!”
From the rooftop garden of East High, people could see the Wasatch Range in the distance. With endless mountains silhouetted against the blue sky, the view was extremely beautiful. This was Troy Bolton’s secret base. In this scene, he would bring the leading actress, Gabriella, here. The two would talk and open up. In the movie, this set of shots should be romantic and aesthetic.
However, the atmosphere was not so great during shooting. The whole crew crowded here, including the camera crew, the script supervisor, and so on. It was really a bummer. But could this have been the excuse for Jessica’s bad performance?
Jessica and Tom Welling were sitting on a bench, acting. However, she had not even finished reading two lines when another “Cut!” came.
The whole crew stopped. Wally Pfister moved the camera onto the other shoulder. Looking at Jessica, Wang Yang spread his hands and walked up to her. He said helplessly, “It was the same as the first take! I don’t just want a smile. Jessica, give me some warm and attractive feeling! Understood?”
“Yang, I am so sorry.” Wang Yang’s reproach made Jessica frown. She felt even more anxious. She had tried several ways of acting, but neither a smile nor a grin was good enough for Wang Yang.
Repressing his dissatisfaction, Wang Yang gave her an encouraging smile. He said to her, “It’s okay. Do better this time!” Then, he clapped his hands toward the crew and went back behind the camera. He said, “One more time.”
Wally Pfister adjusted the camera. The lighting engineer was lighting with a softbox. The sound engineer lifted the long microphone toward Jessica and Tom Welling. Holding the clapperboard, the script supervisor called loudly, “The rooftop garden scene, shot five, take twenty-two. Begin!”
Yes. This shot had been taken twenty-one times. And they were still working on it. The other shots in this scene had been taken smoothly, but in this one, in which the leading actor and the leading actress were opening up while sitting on the bench, Tom Welling was doing fine, but Jessica did not seem to be herself. Wang Yang explained and analyzed this scene to her, and he even told her how she should act. However, she just could not do it correctly.
The shooting of High School Musical had started more than half a month ago. More than half of the non-musical part had been shot. They would complete the non-musical part very soon. The shooting had been rather smooth during these days. They had been advancing faster than they had imagined. It was firstly because the leading roles were doing a good job. Secondly, it was because they had prepared the complete storyboard a long time ago, so they never needed to deal with the question of how to shoot next. Besides, Wally Pfister was very warm-hearted. He corrected many problematic shot designs for Wang Yang and helped him resolve many shooting challenges.
Wang Yang certainly gained many precious experiences and learned a lot from Wally Pfister, like how to master the camera, when to use quick motions, when to use slow motions, and so on. He also gained many practical directing experiences, things that he would never learn from books, like how to block a scene, how to make others know what he wanted, how to deal with the chores of the crew, and how to maintain the operations of the crew. He had to do everything in person, and he had been progressing fast. He also had come to realize how difficult it was to be the producer and the director at the same time.
This was different from shooting Paranormal Activity. Paranormal Activity was shot on a DV. Back then, he had worked at home with Rachel and Zachary every day during the shooting. It was fun. At the moment, there were dozens of crew members and even more cast members. Everyone’s work seemed to depend on him. The set decorator said the classroom where they were shooting was kind of old. It needed some painting. Okay, so they would paint it. The camera crew would ask him what to shoot the next day so that they could get prepared in advance. Tom Welling and other leading roles would ask him questions about the script. The script supervisor would even ask him whether she should buy Harry three burgers…
However, these were just fine. They were among his usual responsibilities. By comparison, there were things that were more annoying.
The set decorator had a quarrel with the prop master. The set decorator complained that the prop master had not completed his task, while the prop master claimed he had no idea he had such a “task” at all. The art director and the makeup artist almost had a fight. Both of them claimed their costume designs were more youthful and sunnier. Wang Yang had to meddle in, made a choice, and comfort them. One night, a handyman, drunk in a bar, had had some conflict with others. They even went to the police station. Wang Yang was so angry that he even swore, but he still had to hold his temper to get it resolved. Then, he fired that guy immediately.
Although that guy was only a handyman, if this incident was reported by the media, High School Musical’s image would be affected. Then, in a domino effect, they could even criticize that Wally Pfister had shot many porn movies. This would sabotage the promotion of the movie.
Such troubles came up almost every day. It was really exhausting. Although Wang Yang was young and strong, and although he was very enthusiastic about making movies, he sometimes felt run-down after going through this every day.
Wang Yang started to understand why his photography teacher would say directors were all powder kegs and terrorists and that no one would want to piss them off because otherwise, you would be doomed. He imagined if a producer suddenly showed up and kept nagging him, saying things like, “Buddy, don’t shoot the scene that way!” or, “We don’t have enough budget!” he would definitely fly into a rage and swear at the producer.
Fortunately, it was already very close to Christmas, which would be celebrated at the end of the month. East High was already on vacation, which made the shooting a lot easier. At least, Wang Yang did not have to deal with enthusiastic harassment from the girls anymore. It was a huge relief for him.
Wang Yang was making every possible effort to instruct the actors and actresses how to act during the shooting. This was the director’s job. The leading roles of High School Musical were all new to the business. Without much acting experience, their acting was kind of childish. Like Tom Welling, he was always a little too inward, without too many facial expressions on his face. He would only smile when Wang Yang reminded him that he needed to smile in this scene. However, Wang Yang did not have to worry about Rachel. Her shot usually only needed one take. If it was more than one, it was probably screwed by others. She did save Wang Yang lots of film.
It could have been fair to say that Jessica’s acting was terrible, even worse than Tom Welling’s. The problem was not with her moves, how her face looked in the camera, or her lines. In these regards, she was actually doing better than others. However, there was a huge problem with her facial expressions. Wang Yang had to explain every detail to her, but it would still take several takes before she could meet his requirements. The progress of the shooting had been slowed down mainly because of her. Otherwise, it could have been faster.
However, this scene had been taken twenty-one times, and she still was not doing well enough. The protagonist, Gabriella, here should be sweet and full of tender affection, but Jessica only read the lines with a smile. It was far less than enough. This had always been her problem. It was not that she was not taking this seriously enough. Instead, she worked very hard. Nevertheless, she always gave people the feeling that she was acting. She did not put her emotions in her acting and was always outside of the story. She worked hard, but the hard work of hers did not pay off.
“Singing with you felt like that…” said Jessica with a smile, looking at Tom Welling. Her voice did not sound very natural because she was extremely nervous. She was afraid that she would hear “Cut” again before the scene ended.
But there it came.
“Cut! Cut! Cut!” Wang Yang could not help but shout three times in a row because Jessica was doing worse. The pressure accumulated during the past few days made him lose control of his temper. He suddenly flew into a rage, but fortunately, he came to himself immediately. Covering his forehead with one hand, he let out a sigh. Shaking his head, he said, “Everyone, let’s take a break.”
So, Wally Pfister put the camera down. Next to him, Harry George took it with extreme care. He put the camera back onto the tripod. The lighting engineer, Steven Tyler, put down the softbox as well. Tom Welling stood up and told Jessica to relax. Then, he walked away to look at the mountains in the distance.
Sitting on the bench, Jessica was frowning. Closing her fists tightly, she sighed to herself. “I’m really stupid!” She was very scared of doing the same scene again and again, especially when it was her who was not doing right. She had been trying very hard to act, and she had tried every acting method she knew, but it still did not work.
Over the past two-odd weeks, similar problems happened to Jessica almost every day. She had to do the same scene again and again and listen to Wang Yang’s instructions. However, the more patient Wang Yang was, the more anxious she would be. By then, they had shot this scene twenty-two times, and it was still not good enough. She was breaking her personal record again and again. She even felt like it was hard to breathe.
Twenty-two takes for a scene was the record since the start of the shooting. Wang Yang felt helpless, too. He had tried his best to explain to Jessica what was essential in this set of shots. He had explained every bit of his thoughts. If this were the original television film, Jessica’s acting would have been good enough, because when she was on the TV screen, the audience might only pay attention to her face and would not care how good her acting was. However, this did not work for him. Movies should be treated seriously. If their attitude for everything was “as long as it was not bad,” this would turn out to be a terrible movie for sure.
The leading actress in his movie could not just be a pretty face. What he wanted was an excellent actress—a Gabriella!
“Jessica.” Frowning, Wang Yang walked over. He sat down on the bench. Looking at Jessica sitting next to him, he asked confusedly, “Anything wrong? You were doing a great job, but now? What is the problem?”
Looking at him, Jessica said apologetically, “Yang, I am sorry. I…” She hesitated. Then, she gnashed her teeth and shook her head slightly. “Yang, I don’t know how to do it.”
“Put your emotions in!” Wang Yang said immediately. In fact, at the moment or in the future, this was always the biggest weakness of Jessica’s acting. In all the movies she starred in, as far as he could remember, her facial expression was always the same, no matter what role it was. She was just a pretty face in those movies. In a few terrible comedies, her acting was extremely dramatic. It was fair to say that she was not the kind of actress who was good at making people laugh with her body language. She was just not comical.
However, compared to other problems, her biggest problem was that she was not putting emotions in. Wang Yang explained to her after ordering his thoughts, “Think about what is happening in this scene. You should relate to Gabriella as much as you can. How she is feeling now.” Shrugging, he analyzed, “She is happy, joyful, a little shy. Her heart leaps at the sight of Troy. She is opening up to Troy. It’s kind of a love confession. You know what I mean?”
Jessica nodded silently. When Wang Yang had been done, she suddenly said bluntly, “I understand, but I can’t act it.”
“You can act it!” Wang Yang said surely. Patting her on the back of her hand, he encouraged her, “Come on. Don’t tell yourself you can’t. I know you can. You were doing great in the audition, weren’t you?”
Looking at him, Jessica wanted to say something, but eventually, she held her tongue. She said in a low voice, “No, Yang, I can’t.”
Wang Yang was kind of pissed off since she had been saying she could not do it repeatedly. Spreading his hands, he said, “What’s wrong with you? You are telling me now that you can’t do it? You can’t act?! Come on, Jessica! Do you want me to act in this scene for you?!” His voice was a little bit high. It drew many people’s looks, but they looked away immediately and walked away as well.
Jessica flushed in an instant. She was embarrassed. Wang Yang realized he had been too loud. Holding her hand, he said with sincere guilt, “I am sorry, Jessica. I’m just a little angry—not because your acting isn’t good enough, but because of your lack of confidence.” Holding her hand tighter, he said with a smile, “You should never lose your confidence. You know that? Stay confident!”
“No, I am the one who should apologize. I’m not professional enough.” Jessica smiled at him and told him she did not blame him. She looked around. Seeing no one looking at them, she approached Wang Yang’s ear. She whispered, “Yang, I know I should put emotions in, but when I was acting and looking at Tom’s eyes…” Looking at Wang Yang’s face, she stopped hiding her emotions. She said, “They are pale green, not like your black eyes. Then, a voice in my head reminded me that he is Tom… Yang, I acted well in the audition because I was looking at you.”
That was the reason? Wang Yang did not know whether to laugh or cry. He was kind of moved. He wanted to kiss her. He knew this pretty, sweet girl sometimes was stubborn and proud, but she had opened up to him unreservedly. Wasn’t that her trust in him? He thought for a while, trying to resolve her problem. He said, “Jessica, this is acting. Don’t think so much! When I call ‘Action’, you will be Gabriella. When I call ‘Cut’, you will be Jessica again… no, wait.” He suddenly asked, “Which approach do you adopt in acting? The approach of experiencing the role or that of the art of representation?”
Shaking her head, Jessica answered, “I’ve never thought about that.” She thought for a while how she acted. Then, she said, “When I am acting, I will think what the role should be like, and then I will try to convince myself I am her so that I can act like her.”
So, it was the approach of experiencing the role, then. Looking at her and thinking of her future movies, as a practitioner of practical aesthetics acting, she obviously failed. He suggested to her, “If you really can’t get rid of that voice in your head, I think the approach of the art of representation will work better for you. How the character is feeling has nothing to do with you. You are just imitating! Jessica, don’t worry about it. Acting doesn’t mean you have to experience the role. It’s not the only acting method. You should know that.”
Jessica nodded, thinking. Yang was right. On the one hand, she was making a great effort to be the role, but on the other hand, she knew she was not the role. This brought her lots of pressure. Should she adopt the approach of the art of representation, instead?
Patting on her shoulder, Wang Yang said with a smile, “By the way, when you are acting, you don’t really have to look at Tom’s eyes. You can look over his shoulders into the distance. Look at the mountains in the distance. That might help.” Shrugging, he said with a smile, “Anyways, it looks the same in the camera. You are just looking forward.”
Wang Yang got to his feet when he saw Wally Pfister walking over. Looking at him and Jessica, Wally said, “Yang, I have an idea. Why don’t you sit on the bench to act with Jessica?”
Both Jessica and Wang Yang were struck dumb. Wang Yang burst out laughing. “What? Me?”
Smiling and nodding, Wally said, “Anyways, what we need now is her close-ups. It doesn’t matter to whom she is speaking.”
It was a smart solution. They just needed to add Tom’s shots in the phase of editing. Wang Yang asked confusedly, “But why me?”
Spreading his hands, Wally Pfister said with a smile, “Come on. Everyone knows.” Looking at Jessica, Wang Yang burst out laughing. “Okay. Everyone knows?” Although they did not try to keep their relationship a secret, they did not tell anyone about it, either.
Looking at Jessica, chuckling, a little shy, Wang Yang could not help but roll his eyes. This facial expression was amazing! Nodding, he said, “All right. Let’s do it. Maybe it will work.” Then, he sat down on the bench. Smiling, he said, “Let’s start, Gabriella.”
Jessica was really excited to act with Wang Yang. With great interest, she started to act with a smile. She read her lines, “Remember in kindergarten how you’d meet a kid and know nothing about them, then ten seconds later you play like you are best friends because you didn’t have to be anything but yourself?” Her eyes were bright. In a cheering voice, she said, “Yeah, singing with you felt like that…”
Smiling, Wang Yang said, “Well, uh… I never thought about singing, that’s for sure, till you.” Jessica, feeling what Gabriella was feeling, lowered her head shyly. Then, she looked up. With a smile, she said, “So you really wanna do the callbacks?” Shrugging, Wang Yang said casually, “Hey, just call me freaky callback boy.”
Jessica showed a sweet smile. She said, “You’re a cool guy, Yang.” She recalled how Yang had been surrounded by those girls and how he had been playing with Danny like a kid. However, when he was shooting movies, he was extremely serious and focused. She read the next lines involuntarily because that was exactly how she felt. “But not for the reasons your friends think. You are just cool. And thanks for showing me your top-secret hiding place.” Remembering what a great time they had had together in primary school, and with what they were having at this moment, she felt happy and tender. She said, “Like kindergarten.”
“Wow, that was perfect…” Wang Yang murmured. Jessica cheered up immediately when she had heard Yang’s comment. Seeing Wally thumb up at them with a smile, Wang Yang shook his head. He said with a smile, “Well, there is no other way. Let’s do it this way. But Jessica, you should say Troy’s name, instead of Yang.” Clapping his hands hard, he called, “Everyone, get ready!”
Soon, everything was ready again. Wang Yang was not standing behind the camera. Instead, he was still sitting on the bench. The script supervisor called, “Take twenty-three, action!” Then Jessica started to act as she had before. Looking at Wang Yang, she was not acting, but being herself.
When she finished, Wang Yang called immediately, “Cut! Perfect!”
Wally Pfister said with a smile, “I’ve got it.” Jessica felt relaxed.
Wang Yang also let out a sigh. All shots for this scene were finally done. Standing up with a smile, he said, “It’s done. Let’s call it a day!”
Everyone cheered. They started to pack the filming devices. Wang Yang gave them some instructions. Then, he walked up to Jessica, who was staying behind. He said with a smile, “Jessica, it worked this time, but you can’t rely on this method every time. You really need to conquer this problem.”
Nodding, Jessica said, “Yang, I will study the approach of the art of representation.”
Wang Yang said, “Okay.” Then, he whispered into her ear, “Forget about this for the moment. Let’s go to a restaurant and go to the cinema tonight!”
Jessica’s eyes lit up. She said in pleasant surprise, “Really?”
“Of course!” Wang Yang nodded with a smile. He had not been on a date with Jessica even once since that vacation they had taken a long time ago. He was not a rookie. He knew maintaining a relationship was like taking care of flowers. You needed to constantly water them and move them to places where they could get some sunshine so that the flowers would not wither. Both he and Jessica had been extremely stressed at work lately. It was time to get some relaxation.
Jessica said with a happy and expectant smile, “Which movie shall we watch?”
Wrapping his arm around her, Wang Yang said with a smile, “Up to you.”
They had dinner together in an Italian restaurant. Then, they went to the cinema to watch You’ve Got Mail, released not long before. It was a pleasant date.
After the movie, they went back to a hotel near East High. The whole crew was staying here. Wang Yang took a shower, but then he did not go to bed. Sitting at the desk, he was reading a storyboard and a shooting plan. The non-musical part of High School Musical would be done in about two days. Those scenes were outside of the school, like in Troy Bolton’s home, in Gabriella’s home, and so on. The crew had leased the places for the shooting.
Then, they would start to shoot the musical part. The musical part involved several scenes, like the corridor in the school, the basketball gym, the pantry, the auditorium, and so on. Wang Yang was going to finish shooting the scenes in East High’s pantry and corridors, as well as a few other scenes. Then, it would be Christmas. Everyone would be on vacation. They would go on with the shooting of the basketball gym and the auditorium after the vacation.
The choreographer they had specifically hired had already arrived in Salt Lake City. She could start to work anytime. However, the current problem was that they had not chosen the songs for High School Musical yet!