Chapter 467: Chapter 369: Performing Arts
"It means that acting can’t be a hundred percent restoration like shooting a documentary. It’s actually the same principle, which a lot of people have said: acting is, after all, an art. Art is about processing and creating on the basis of life. Just now, you mentioned Nicole Kidman, Tony Leung; you see, no matter how they act, nobody would say their performances are fake or unlike real people. But then again, if you think about it, very few people in real life talk like the characters they portray. This contradiction is precisely the creation of acting. That’s how I understand it. In the end, an actor is a character who uses a story to resonate with the audience. A hundred percent carbon copy of life is just a flat mirror, while acting is a distorting mirror, designed to show different spectators different reflections of themselves—what they aspire to, what they detest, all sorts."
Zhou Yun nodded.
Song Chi said, "Some actors, when they start their career, are indeed very spirited. Everyone thinks they will definitely succeed. But later on, their development doesn’t live up to expectations. If you look at their performances, you’ll find that they are still the same as when they debuted. The thing that was once considered spirited, with repeated use, becomes contrived craftsmanship. That’s why many actors still say that you have to observe and delve into life. Whether it’s about talent or spirit, it can only help you flash in the pan. To go further and broader, you must be exposed to a richer world."
Zhou Yun rested her head on her hand and countered, "But being an actor itself means being quite distant from life, right? Whether it’s the nine-to-five routine, the workplace, or even the kind of corporate drudgery that most of our peers are experiencing, it’s hard for us to truly experience it. We don’t have that opportunity."
"How can that be the case? Do you lose your emotions just because you’re an actor? Even if you’ve become a Celebrity, even if you’re famous and successful, we can’t always have everything go our way. We’ll encounter bottlenecks in our career development, work with unsatisfactory collaborators, and have moments when we can’t help but get angry. We might face different specific situations, but the emotions and circumstances are universal," Song Chi said. "None of us have experienced the actual ancient times, but when we film historical dramas, we need to create a world that everyone believes is real. Not to mention, when we play characters who really existed in history, it requires an even stronger sense of conviction and realism. All of these actually come from our own experiences, from the emotions and feelings we have personally had, then we put ourselves in the shoes of the characters, becoming them."
Song Chi’s words made Zhou Yun pensive.
"My concern is whether my life experiences are too narrow? Are my experiences too shallow?" Zhou Yun said, "Now, if I were asked to play a girl my own age, I’m confident in acting the part. I’m not afraid to act in slice-of-life dramas, romance dramas, and the like. But when it comes to those highly specialized workplace dramas, like when I was filming ’Dingfengbo,’ I felt extremely unsure, treading on thin ice throughout the shoot."
Song Chi: "Right now, in fact, we don’t have the time to spend a long period preparing for a film or a role. Most of the time, as soon as one film is done, it’s not long before entering another crew. Actually, you are already one of the actors I know who is very responsible for their roles. However, the films we shoot now are inherently very limited and repetitive, with very similar characteristics for the characters."
"I quite enjoyed playing the hair-washing girl in ’Gentle Little Horse’ last time, because that was completely a character trait I’ve never experienced," Zhou Yun said with a smile.
Song Chi: "Just think about when we were shooting ’Heart Inquiry.’ If you were given the character of Liu Rusu to play now, would you still find it difficult?"
Zhou Yun thought seriously for a moment, shook her head, and said, "I wouldn’t find it difficult, but there are many aspects where I’d have new ideas. If I were to play her now, I would handle it a bit better."
"But would you believe that if you really were to play Liu Rusu again, you would still be so nervous that your scalp tingles?" Song Chi said. "You say you’re not nervous now because you know that it’s not possible to shoot it again. That’s the nature of the acting industry: in the hearts of actors, the next time is always better. But in the actual process, the more experienced you get, the more insecure you become when it really comes to stepping into a role. We are slowly getting acquainted with what acting really is. The more familiar we become, the more we fear our acting becoming formulaic and cliché, and then we won’t know how to act because we can’t change our face with each film. We only have this one face, and no matter how good we are, we can’t escape the inertia of our own gaze and expressions. This inertia in acting is actually what I’m most anxious about right now."
Zhou Yun said with a laugh, "It’s hard to imagine that we’re discussing acting here tonight."
Song Chi laughed and put down his chopsticks, saying, "It’s because we’re both actors."
After dinner, the two of them cleared the table together and took the dishes into the kitchen.
...
Meanwhile.
At Zhou Lan’s house, she came out of the bathroom with bare legs, holding a bottle of wine.
A muscular, bare-chested hunk was sitting on her bed, flipping through photos on his camera.
Zhou Lan sat on the other side of the bed, looking at him, and asked, "Is the camera more attractive than me?"
The hunk looked up, displaying a smile with neat, white teeth, and said, "Of course not as attractive as you, but I was contacted by the editor while you were showering, asking me to upload a set of photos we took this afternoon. I need to use your computer."
Zhou Lan pointed to the laptop on the table and said, "Go ahead and use it. How long will you take?"
"Not long, just need to send over the photos."
"Aren’t you going to edit the photos?" Zhou Lan asked in surprise.
She knew the ins and outs of this industry; photographers generally process the originals before sending out the finished photos.
Many photographers do not like others to meddle with their work.
And this man was of that temperament.
He said, "The photos are good to use as is."
Zhou Lan nodded and replied, "Then go ahead and work on it; I’ll wait for you outside."
She left the bedroom and curled up on the sofa in the living room, taking out her phone and habitually tracking information on the net.
She searched directly for Zhou Yun.
There wasn’t anything new in the search results, and Zhou Lan breathed a sigh of relief.
For Zhou Yun at this stage, no news was the best news.
At this moment, Shi Luoqi’s call suddenly came in.