Quancheng, in a small restaurant near Dongshan Repertory Theater
Zuo Le met today's target, Bao Xiaoyong, deputy captain of the performance team of Dongshan Repertory Theater and national second-level actor.
"Hello, Teacher Bao."
"Director Zuo? Hello, hello."
As if he didn't expect Zuo Le to be so young, Bao Xiaoyong looked a little surprised, but he quickly came to his senses and shook hands with Zuo Le.
Although the small restaurant is not large, it still has two private rooms. Zuo Le and Bao Xiaoyong were led into the private room by the landlady. After some negotiation, each of them ordered two dishes. Zuo Le asked the landlady to add another one.
Egg Seaweed Soup.
I didn’t ask for wine. Bao Xiaoyong was rehearsing in the afternoon and couldn’t drink.
It was dinner time when they arrived, and the small restaurant was extremely busy. Zuo Le went out to urge them twice before the landlady brought two dishes with an apologetic look on her face.
The food was served and the two of them started to eat. As soon as they moved their chopsticks, they could get down to business.
Looking at Bao Xiaoyong who picked up a chopstick of yuba and stuffed it into his mouth, Zuo Le poured himself a glass of water and asked with a smile on his face.
"Mr. Bao, I heard from Brother Chen that you have some opinions on the script? You are a veteran in the industry and have more experience than us young people. If you have anything to say, you can just say it. I will definitely listen."
Bao Xiaoyong was recommended to Zuo Le by Fatty Chen. He is an experienced actor. Although he has not appeared in many film and television dramas, he is a well-known figure in the drama industry. Especially in Dongshan Province, he can be regarded as one of the top drama actors.
If he hadn't won any drama awards and the Dongshan Drama Festival's national status was not as good as that of Beijing, Shanghai and other places, I'm afraid Bao Xiaoyong would have been rated as a national first-class actor.
After Zuo Le read Bao Xiaoyong's information, he immediately decided to ask Bao Xiaoyong to play the role of "Shopkeeper Sun" in the play.
However, he didn't expect him to fall in love with someone else, but Bao Xiaoyong didn't fall in love with him.
It can't be said that he didn't like it. Bao Xiaoyong was quite optimistic about the script of "Underground Traffic Station", but he was still a little hesitant, so he asked Fatty Chen to take the lead and wanted to have an interview with Zuo Le, the director and screenwriter.
That's why today's small restaurant is like this.
………
After hearing Zuo Le's question, Bao Xiaoyong put down his chopsticks, thought about it and said: "Director Zuo, Bei Bai (Fat Chen) and I are friends. We are not outsiders, and I will not talk in circles with you.
Frankly speaking, there is nothing wrong with the script, I like the role of Shopkeeper Sun very much, and the salary is reasonable, but my only worry is whether the style of our drama will be... too unserious, after all, it is about the Anti-Japanese War."
Zuo Le understood what Bao Xiaoyong meant: "Are you afraid that "Underground Traffic Station" will be criticized as an anti-Japanese drama?"
"That's right."
Bao Xiaoyong nodded and said with some emotion: "In the past few years, there have been more and more anti-war dramas in the industry. They are shoddy and poorly received, and many actors who participated in them have lost their reputations.
Director Zuo, I, Bao Xiaoyong, have worked diligently in the regiment for so many years in my life. Not to mention my great career achievements, I have never made a mistake in terms of reputation. Although I like "Underground Traffic Station" very much, but..."
Bao Xiaoyong said this, but the meaning is obvious.
He is a man who cherishes his feathers and attaches great importance to reputation. He does not want to risk his life and be ridiculed by the audience and old friends who like him because of the anti-Japanese drama.
Zuo Le understood Bao Xiaoyong's concerns. He added half a cup of tea to Bao Xiaoyong, pondered for a while, and then spoke.
"Teacher Bao, maybe it's rude to say this, but I think you didn't understand the show "Underground Traffic Station", or you only saw the surface but didn't dig deeper.
But I don’t blame you, after all, this is just a script, it only has lines and a summary of the story, which is too thin.”
Perhaps because he really liked the script, Bao Xiaoyong asked Zuo Le's words to pique his curiosity: "Director Zuo, you are the screenwriter, can you talk to me about the creative ideas of this drama?"
Shopkeeper Sun plays a very important role in "Underground Traffic Station", to a certain extent even more than the protagonist Shui Gen.
Bao Xiaoyong's acting skills are superb, and his body image is very suitable for the role of shopkeeper Sun. Zuo Le really hopes that the other party will agree to participate in the role. Seeing that his attitude has relaxed, he hurriedly continued to persuade him with sincere words.
"Teacher Bao, first of all, I personally hate those anti-war dramas just like you.
There are mines hidden in the crotch, grenades knocking down planes, and Japanese soldiers being torn apart by hand...these bizarre plots not only insult the audience's IQ, but also desecrate to some extent the arduous War of Resistance Against Japan and the ancestors who have devoted their efforts and blood."
After hearing Zuo Le's confession, Bao Xiaoyong looked at him with a much softer and closer look.
As a native of Quancheng where the tragedy occurred, Bao Xiaoyong grew up listening to his elders scolding the invaders for all their evil deeds.
In essence, Bao Xiaoyong is still a middle-aged angry youth. Therefore, he reveals that he has an extraordinary disgust and resistance to those anti-war dramas that pretend to be patriotic but actually tarnish the anti-war patriots.
Previously, Bao Xiaoyong intentionally refused to act in "Underground Traffic Station". In addition to fearing that his reputation would be damaged, he was also partially disgusted with the current anti-Japanese dramas and did not want to join in the trend.
Zuo Le's words moved Bao Xiaoyong intentionally or unintentionally, making him listen carefully to Zuo Le's next words.
…………
"Teacher Bao, you can also see that our drama is in the style of a sitcom, so when it is announced in the future, the subject matter will be explained to the audience in advance, and this drama is not a serious drama.
This will greatly reduce the audience's various jokes and the vilification of the villain in the play, and thus label us as an anti-war drama.
You can rest assured that we are a self-produced drama in Dongshan Terrace and we know our own sense of proportion, so we will definitely not be careless about it."
Bao Xiaoyong was born in the Dongshan Repertory Troupe and is considered a member of the system. He immediately knows the elegant meaning when he hears the strings.
In some matters, the state-run television stations are much clearer and understand the rules better than those film and television companies that only care about money.
Bao Xiaoyong's expression became softer and softer. Seeing this, Zuo Le continued to strike while the iron was hot: "I told you before that you didn't understand the underground transportation station. In fact, I was not talking nonsense.
Maybe you think this drama is just a comedy that contains espionage, but it actually ignores the story background and characters.
Compared with genre spy war dramas, the most outstanding thing about "Underground Traffic Station" is that it breaks away from the shackles of "elites versus elites" and focuses its perspective on the people.
The daily life and the accumulation of various details show the turbulent picture of the entire nation's war of resistance. The small things make it big, and the army and the people are united. From this point of view, I am confident that the theme of "Underground Traffic Station" is not inferior to any high-quality anti-war TV series.
As for your concern that the plot is too humorous and light-hearted, I think it is just a comedy wrapped around a tragedy. You can go back and read the script and feel what "the country is invaded" means from some of the lines.
Shopkeeper Qi's grave was dug up, Translator Bai's family was murdered, and even street vendors were made trouble by traitors. Guests at Dingxiang Tower complained about currency devaluation and abnormal price increases...
I am not boasting, but if you read the script carefully twice, you will be able to detect the tricks behind the comedy.
With all this in mind, I don’t know whether “Underground Traffic Station” will be recognized by the audience, but it is definitely full of sincerity. It will not, and I will never let it become a drama about the Anti-Japanese War.”
Zuo Le's face showed his attitude firmly.
As a "drama copycat", Zuo Le has no intention of debating his own moral standards.
But since he has "copied" "Underground Traffic Station" from his mind, whether it is out of inner guilt or self-interest, he hopes to restore the original version of the TV series as much as possible.
Let these works from another world shine as brightly as they should or even more brilliantly in your own world.
…………
The determination on Zuo Le's face touched Bao Xiaoyong, and he expressed solemnly to Zuo Le.
I hope Zuo Le will give him two days to re-read the script of "Underground Traffic Station".
Zuo Le was naturally overjoyed, and added Fetion to Bao Xiaoyong, saying that if Bao Xiaoyong didn't understand anything about the script, he could directly send Fetion or call him to ask.
At this time, the landlady finally brought the remaining two dishes. Zuo Le and Zuo Le were in a good mood and did not bother to argue with each other, and chatted happily while eating.
After having enough tea and food, the two of them rushed to pay. With a slight advantage, Zuo Le successfully scanned the payment code of the landlady.
In the next two days, Zuo Le has been busy contacting other character actors.
After he found translator Bai, Captain Huang and actors Nojiri, Zuo Le, who was doing takeout in Fengyuan Community at night, received a call from Bao Xiaoyong.
Shopkeeper Sun:√
ps: As for the actors, the background is still mainly fictional, but in order to facilitate memory and distinguish the characteristics of the actors, the name experience may be somewhat similar to that of real actors.
This is mainly to serve the plot. Please don't associate the characters in the book with real actors. I hope you understand.
