"Put some fruits in front, apples, oranges, etc. to make the colors richer..."
Art designers and props are busy in the kitchen.
Frank's kitchen has a semi-open layout. The island cooking table is filled with various ingredients. Several pots of red Christmas flowers are placed against the wall. Various reminder notes are posted on the refrigerator door, creating a kind of atmosphere.
It has both a festive atmosphere and a very life-like atmosphere.
Before long, everything was ready.
"Is there any problem with the director?"
The art designer also specially asked Xue Xiaolu to come over and check to see if there were any omissions.
"Well, good, let's get started."
Bai Xue stood there with her arms folded and took a deep breath. She was wearing a floral skirt the color of tomato scrambled eggs and had a big wavy hair. She had a big belly.
"Don't be nervous, relax."
He Xin had just put on his makeup and was wearing a khaki short-sleeved T-shirt with an unkempt beard and came over to comfort her.
In the first scene, although the performance was not difficult, Bai Xue still felt like she was on the battlefield. It was rare that she didn't have a playful smile. She raised her head to look at He Xin and nodded solemnly.
"A!"
Fixed camera position, panoramic lens.
Bai Xue entered the camera from the right side of the screen, but before she reached the Nakajima cooking table, she heard Xue Xiaolu shouting "Card!"
"Xiaoxue, don't act like you're entering your own kitchen. It's your first time at Frank's house. You should bring a sense of curiosity or novelty."
"Oh, I understand. I'm sorry, director!" Bai Xue hurriedly raised her hand to apologize.
"Well, come again."
Bai Xue retreated out of the camera again.
"A!"
When Bai Xue walked in this time, she glanced around curiously. When she saw the ingredients on the Nakajima cooking table, a smile suddenly appeared on her face. She suddenly became excited and walked briskly.
.
I picked up a bunch of green asparagus and took a look at it, and found prawns in a basket in the sink.
"Wow, the prawns are so fresh!"
Here she also temporarily added a line for herself.
As a former food magazine editor, of course I am very familiar with things and ingredients in the kitchen.
The camera slowly advanced, and He Xin came into view from the left side of the screen with his hands folded. He was standing at the doorway on the side of the kitchen aisle, leaning half in, looking at Bai Xue's back washing vegetables, and blinked twice.
, hesitated for a while, made a decision, and then quietly turned around and left.
"Stuck! Passed!"
Xue Xiaolu was very satisfied and felt that both of them performed their roles very well. Especially Bai Xue, she was particularly pleasantly surprised. This girl really lives up to her name. Bingxue is smart and can tell at a glance. In addition, the line added on the spot was a finishing touch.
Meaning, Wen Jiajia's carefree BJ girl's temperament was immediately reflected.
The first scene went smoothly, especially when a line that came up subconsciously was approved by the director. Bai Xue's face was full of excitement and she came close to the monitor.
"Director, can I watch the replay?"
"Okay!" Xue Xiaolu smiled.
She liked this girl very much, she was unpretentious and very spiritual.
Spirituality is particularly important to actors, as it feels like God is giving them food.
Bai Xue bent over and watched the replay carefully, her lips curled up, and her heart was filled with beauty. Especially at the end, when she saw the brief scene of He Xin, she immediately exclaimed: "Wow, brother, you did a great job.
"
This is not a deliberate flattery, but a sincere admiration.
At the beginning of the play, Frank was not interested in Wen Jiajia, who flaunted his wealth in a high-profile manner and liked to talk to himself. He was just trying to deal with it out of etiquette.
Regarding the scene where Wen Jiajia broke into his kitchen and volunteered to cook, He Xin did not frown or stare, or open his mouth to show that he was hesitant to speak. He just blinked twice and spoke with a smile.
The facial expression reveals the inner emotions from being entangled to letting it go. This is how to moisturize things silently!
Xue Xiaolu didn't pay attention at first. She instinctively trusted He Xin's performance. When she heard Bai Xue's yelling, she was attracted and watched it again. She also felt the beauty of the subtle performance and praised:
“It’s really good!”
He Xin was a little embarrassed by the compliments from the two women, and hurriedly said: "Okay, okay, let's hurry up and prepare for the next shot."
The second shot is a close-up of Bai Xue washing and chopping vegetables. Of course, it is no longer a simple scrambled egg with tomatoes, Bai Xue is going to make a braised prawn dish.
The cooking is complicated, but the shots are simple. You can get over it after just one shot.
On the one hand, Bai Xue's movements are very skillful, and you can tell at a glance that they have been practiced; on the other hand, a shot like this took more than ten minutes to shoot, and the real use may only be a few seconds. Even if the post-editing is not satisfactory,
You can also find a real chef as a stand-in for reshoots.
These two shots were planned for last night's shooting. Xue Xiaolu originally wanted to polish the shots, but as a result, both the actors and the behind-the-scenes staff cooperated very well, and it went surprisingly smoothly. It was still early, so we continued shooting.
The camera position was adjusted, the lighting was adjusted, and the actors touched up their makeup. He Xin changed into a black turtleneck sweater, light gray corduroy casual pants, and a pair of shiny leather shoes.
On Christmas night, Wen Jiajia came to the door suddenly. Although he was very resistant in his heart, he still tidied up a little out of etiquette.
"Northwest" has a lot of lines. During the break between filming, he and Bai Xue checked the lines and practiced their moves. Compared with the nervousness at the beginning, after shooting two scenes, Bai Xue was obviously already invested in it, and
He Xin could tell that she had done enough homework in advance and the rehearsal went very smoothly. Even if she stumbled occasionally, she could get over it quickly with a little adjustment.
While He Xin secretly sighed, he would inevitably compare Bai Xue with Tong Yali. It must be said that they both graduated from Chinese drama, but the gap between the two is quite obvious.
On the one hand, it may be due to talent. Although Tong Yali is beautiful, she does not have Bai Xue's innate spirituality. What's more terrible is that not only is she talented, but she also works harder than you. It's no wonder that Tong Yali's acting skills have almost failed in recent years.
He didn't make much progress and kept standing still. On the contrary, Bai Xue was able to surprise him many times.
"Okay, everyone is ready."
"A!"
"Tsk!"
The tender green asparagus was put into the pot and mixed with the meat slices inside, and the aroma immediately overflowed. Bai Xue held on to the pot handle with one hand and stir-fried quickly with the other hand, with a big belly.
"Let me do it."
He Xin's voice came from outside the camera.
"Need not."
Bai Xue turned around and took a quick glance at the sound. Just as he was about to continue stir-frying, he suddenly turned back again and took a closer look at He Xin who was standing behind him.
The camera panned as she looked back and switched to a subjective shot from her perspective. He Xin, who had changed his clothes, was standing there with a kitchen apron in his hand.
From the shiny leather shoes, to the black turtleneck sweater, to the somewhat decadent face, the camera scanned from bottom to top.
He Xin looked at the camera, like Bai Xue staring at himself, with a question mark expression on his face. He leaned back slightly and subconsciously took a small step back.
"Handsome!"
Bai Xue had a teasing smile, her eyebrows were raised, and her eyes were bungling.
He Xin was speechless and had to say again: "I'll do it."
"No, the kitchen is mine today."
The asparagus slices were sizzling in the pot. Bai Xue quickly turned around and stir-fried twice quickly, and at the same time said: "Tie the apron for me."
He Xin had no choice but to step forward and put the apron around her neck.
"Tie it up for me."
Bai Xue was wearing a suspender-backless skirt, and she turned around to reveal a large expanse of snow-white. When He Xin came closer to help her tie her apron, he tried his best to avoid the white-snow, but his nose could still smell other than the aroma of meat and vegetables.
Another nice scent.
Helping the pregnant lady to tie her apron loosely, he was about to turn around and leave when he heard the command again: "Hair!"
Helpless, he had no choice but to turn around and walk behind her again, raised his hands, and hesitated for a moment. This action seemed a bit too intimate. But he still carefully took out the long wavy hair from the belt of the apron, and then said:
He turned around and walked out of the camera without saying a word.
Bai Xue stir-fried twice more, turned off the heat, and turned to look at the camera while taking the plate. The camera language was that she was looking at He Xin's leaving figure with an inexplicable look in her eyes.
"Stuck! Okay, very good!" Xue Xiaolu shouted to stop.
In this shot, He Xin's performance is as stable and delicate as ever. A few short expressions and a few movements are smooth and natural, and the details fully express the helplessness and entanglement of a middle-aged man living alone.
Similarly, Bai Xue's rhythm is also very good and she can handle it easily. The only regret is that the look in her eyes at the end seemed a bit abrupt.
"Xiaoxue, everything was very good up to now. But when Frank left, your eyes were a bit too much. Your relationship hasn't reached that level yet. It would be nice if it could be lighter."
"Uh, okay, I'll try again."
Bai Xue was stunned at first. Her eyes just now were not intentional, and her emotions were revealed naturally. However, she immediately realized that she was confused. It was Wen Jiajia who was looking at Frank, not He Xin herself.
So I started over and took the notes:
"The second time in the third shot of Scene 56!"
"A!"
Because it is a continuous shot, from the moment He Xin helps her pull out her hair and then turns away, the camera goes from close shot to medium shot, from the moment He Xin walks out of the shot to Bai Xue's last meaningful look, I have to do it all over again.
This time Bai Xue obviously paid attention, but it seemed too deliberate.
"Card!"
Xue Xiaolu shook his head and said: "It doesn't feel right, try another one."
"The third shot of scene fifty-six, the third time!"
"A!"
He Xin stepped forward again and carefully helped her gently pull out her hair, then turned and left with a bit of confusion. Bai Xue changed the acting method this time, the cooking movements went from fast to slow, and it was natural when turning off the heat and picking up the plate.
He turned his head to look at the camera, his eyes twitching the corner of his mouth with a bit of curiosity.
"Card!"
Xue Xiaolu still felt something was wrong.
"Come again!"
"Card!"
"Come again!"
There were several in a row, and Xue Xiaolu was still unsatisfied.
Bai Xue was still holding back her energy at first, but as she continued to NG, she began to panic, her rhythm began to get messy, and in the end even her cooking movements became deformed.
"Card!"
Another NG, Bai Xue raised his hand and shouted: "Director, wait a minute, let me adjust it."
Although Xue Xiaolu was not a director for the first time, he was still a director with a screenwriting background after all. He was not good at training actors, so he could only repeat one step at a time in the hope of moving from quantitative to qualitative changes.
But it was obvious that Bai Xue had almost run out of food at this time, the rhythm was disrupted, and the performance became more and more unbearable.
Her co-star He Xin had noticed this a long time ago. Out of respect for the director, he never interrupted. It was only now that Bai Xue took the initiative to ask for adjustment, and he followed up and said: "Director, take a rest."
"Uh, okay, let's take a ten minute break. Thank you for your hard work."
At this time, Xue Xiaolu also realized that he had been too impatient just now. Maybe the first two were too smooth and he was a bit too seeking for success.
Bai Xue finally breathed a sigh of relief. The asparagus slices that had been fried repeatedly in the pot were no longer in shape. She curled her lips, threw the vegetables in the pot listlessly into the trash can, and prepared to wash the pot.
The stage manager next to him saw this and rushed forward: "Sister Xiaoxue, let me do it. You can take a rest."
Bai Xue shook her head, minding her own business with the spatula, her eyes dull.
He Xin looked at her and realized that the girl seemed to be stuck in a corner and would not be able to get out for a while. He thought for a moment and walked over.
"Don't think too complicatedly. What is Wen Jiajia's personality?"
"ah?"
Bai Xue was dumbfounded, and after a long while she said in a hurry: "Oh, he is carefree, lively and outgoing, and he has a bit of an axe."
He Xin nodded and asked again: "Why did she go to Frank's house on Christmas Eve?"
The girl thought for a while and said: "Originally, Lao Zhong promised her to spend Christmas together, but ended up breaking the promise. She was very disappointed. Moreover, she, Mrs. Huang, Zhou Yi and others couldn't get along, and they were very lonely... Well, so she acted rashly
It’s coming to the door.”
"Then why did she choose Frank?"
"That's how the script is written..."
Bai Xue answered subconsciously, but she immediately felt something was wrong in the middle of the sentence, and said hurriedly: "Oh, it should be Wen Jiajia who feels that Frank is easy to get along with although he doesn't talk much, and the confinement center she originally booked was raided at the beginning.
, Frank did not leave her alone, but helped introduce her to Mrs. Huang. In Wen Jiajia's eyes, Frank should be a good person, and she was too lonely, so she wanted to come to join in the fun. "
"Well, that's right. But have you ever thought about it. Although Wen Jiajia has a carefree personality, after all, she graduated from college and worked as a food editor, so she still understands basic etiquette. In addition to coming to the door rashly, she also rushes to occupy other people's homes.
Kitchen. From Frank's point of view, I feel conflicted. I feel that this girl is too familiar, and she even doesn't regard herself as an outsider. I don't welcome you to the door, let alone usurp the guest, but I can't bear it.
, I have no choice but to follow you..."
He Xin didn't point out the problem right away. As an actor, he felt the same way. Many times, you may understand well, but it doesn't necessarily mean you can perform it. He broke apart the causes and consequences of the scene, smashed them into pieces, and then combined the two.
The character's personality characteristics and the inner emotional changes of the character are explained bit by bit with Bai Xue.
But before he finished speaking, the girl's eyes lit up and she couldn't wait to say: "Yes, yes, brother, I understand. It's not that Wen Jiajia doesn't understand anything. She feels lonely, but she also feels Flack's
Loneliness. She knew that Frank was a good man and a gentleman, so she had a feeling of sympathy for Frank, or a feeling of sympathy for him, and a sense of hugging each other for warmth. This emotion was also reflected in her eyes when she looked at Frank's back... uh
, perhaps it was at this moment that Frank planted a seed in Wen Jiajia’s heart for the first time.”
"bingo!"
He Xin had a teachable look on his face, reached out and patted the girl on the shoulder, and said with a smile: "This is the emotion, you should experience it carefully. Remember, don't be deliberate, the emotion will come naturally when it comes."