: Training Cherie Chung's Acting Skills

Huang Wenbin actually just had a whim and wanted to leave some surprises for future generations.

Thirty or forty years later, when some young people revisit this film, they will be surprised to find that Hong Kong stars actually appeared in mainland films so early on.

This is actually the leader of the Heaven and Earth Society, and this is actually Hong Gu.

In the internet age, this is a rare pleasure.

Seeing that they had agreed, Huang Wenbin then talked to Chen Huaikai about having Liu Songren and the others make cameo appearances.

Chen Huaikai was naturally very welcoming.

After discussing it, the two quickly decided on the roles that Liu Songren and Chung Chuh-hung would play as cameos.

Liu Songren made a cameo appearance as the fake Zhang Mazi, and at this point, he was covered in dust and grime, somewhat resembling a bandit who had fallen from the mountains. With some pockmarks on his face, at first glance, it might not be easy to recognize him.

As for Cherie Chung, she made a cameo appearance as Daiyu and Qingwenzi, with only one scene and less than ten seconds on screen.

After both parties reached an agreement, Chen Huaikai decided to film the scenes involving the two of them first.

As a result, Liu Songren and Chung Chuh-hung received the complete script, as well as the script that specified their roles and lines.

Immediately afterwards, they were taken to a special dressing room to get their makeup done.

This was Liu Songren's first time working with a mainland Chinese production team, and he finally realized the differences between the two.

Compared to the crew of "Let the Bullets Fly," his crew was practically a makeshift operation.

Moreover, the film crew here has a clear division of labor and works in an orderly manner, just like a movie production machine.

In Hong Kong, people shoot wherever they want, grabbing anyone they feel like and shooting whatever they want. The main focus is on doing things as they please, with the priority being to meet deadlines.

Liu Songren quickly skimmed through the script, and after getting a general idea of ​​the story, he couldn't help but smirk self-deprecatingly. He realized that he had indeed been somewhat naive.

At the time, he saw that the film market was booming, and he had saved some money from acting in TV dramas. On a whim, he started a company, intending to make a big splash.

They spent some money to hire a well-known screenwriter in the industry, who wrote a reasonably decent script, and then assembled a production team to start filming.

Du Qifeng was like a curious child, looking around and occasionally asking the staff a few questions.

Of course, his Mandarin was also terrible, but fortunately the staff were very patient and answered his questions.

The first scenes filmed were the two cameo roles played by Liu Songren. One was at the Huang family home, where Master Huang gave him a large landmine.

Another scene is on the hilltop, where he is shot and killed by Zhang Mazi.

The gunfight before the killing can be filmed later, since the fake Zhang Mazi didn't show his face during the gunfight, only his voice.

"Teacher Liu, you've already seen your portrayal of the fake Zhang Mazi, haven't you?"

Huang Wenbin walked up to Liu Songren and asked him again, "What are your thoughts on this role?"

"There are some." Liu Songren is, after all, a professionally trained actor who has acted in many TV series: "He is a fake, uh, bandit? In terms of identity, he is a dog kept by Master Huang, who is used to amass wealth and do all sorts of dirty work."

Huang Wenbin nodded and said with a smile, "Teacher Liu truly lives up to his reputation as a TV star; his understanding is spot on."

"Don't say that!" Liu Songren blushed and said somewhat embarrassedly, "If you've been an actor for so many years and you don't even have this much ability, then you might as well quit."

Huang Wenbin smiled and said that these words should be given to those traffic stars in later generations whose acting skills have regressed instead of improved.

After several rehearsals with actor Jiao Huang, Liu Songren quickly found his rhythm for his first scene and they worked together very well.

The second outdoor scene will be filmed tomorrow.

Next up is Cherie Chung's scene. Strictly speaking, her role is very simple; she's basically just a decorative figure.

However, whether due to nervousness or some other reason, she was unable to get into the zone.

Chen Huaikai thought the young girl was a little bothered by being watched, so he specially cleared the area, leaving only the main actors, the photographer, and Huang Wenbin as staff.

Since Cherie Chung had no acting experience, and "The Deadly Gold" didn't cultivate any acting skills in her, she couldn't naturally show her talent even in a short scene of just over ten seconds.

The moment she appeared, she exuded an aura of "acting".

With this mindset, the harder you try to act, the more out of character you become.

For example, Yang Mi's performance in the recent TV series "Harbin 1944" is the kind that sets off a great image as soon as she appears on screen, announcing to all the viewers, "I'm about to show off my acting skills."

"Xiao Huang, go and explain the play to her." Chen Huaikai wasn't angry. After trying a few times, he said to Huang Wenbin.

Mr. Chen didn't understand Cantonese, so he had to leave the matter to Huang Wenbin.

Huang Wenbin nodded and waved to Chung Chu-hung: "Ms. Chung, come with me for a moment."

Chung Chor-hung knew she hadn't performed well and felt quite embarrassed, so she followed Wong Man-bun out.

Chen Huaikai then instructed Yang Zaibao, Ge Cunzhuang, and Jiao Huang to continue rehearsing the banquet scene.

Huang Wenbin led Chung Chu-hung to a rooftop in the compound, where they gazed at the surrounding rice paddies and the distant river.

"Am I stupid?" Chung Chu-hung said somewhat awkwardly. "I'm sorry for delaying your work."

Huang Wenbin turned around and looked at her, smiling as he reassured her in Cantonese, "It's alright, it's just a rehearsal, we haven't officially started filming yet."

"Hasn't filming started?" Chung Chu-hung was taken aback. "Why hasn't filming begun?"

"Because film is very expensive," Huang Wenbin explained. "The mainland isn't that wealthy yet, so we rehearse before shooting to reduce film waste."

When Chung Chor-hung heard this, she was taken aback again. She thought of the crew of "The Deadly Gold in the Cold Mountain" and realized that there was never any rehearsal. They would just turn on the camera and start filming, and that would be it. There were basically no retakes.

It's not that I think film is expensive, it's just that I think it's good enough as long as it's watchable.

"What kind of person do you think she is?" Huang Wenbin asked again.

Chung Chor-hung didn't follow Wong Man-bin's train of thought: "Who are you talking about?"

Then it dawned on me: "You mean the character Daiyu and Qingwenzi?"

"Yes." Huang Wenbin nodded.

Chung Chor-hung shook her head. She hadn't thought about that question. She felt that it was just a minor role with only a few seconds of screen time, so there was no need to overthink it.

Huang Wenbin said softly, "So, none of your expressions or postures just now were correct."

"Then tell me, what kind of person is she?" Chung Chu-hung looked up at Wong Man-bun, a hint of competition in her eyes.

Instead of asking, Huang Wenbin replied, "Do you think it's Daiyu Qingwenzi, is that her name?"

"Of course not." Chung Chu-hung shook her head without hesitation: "No woman has that name. Even if she were Japanese, she wouldn't have that name."

Huang Wenbin nodded: "Yes, but in the script, both Teacher Huang and Zhang Mazi tacitly agree that she is called by this name."

"Because she had no status," Chung Chu-hung replied. "She was probably bought by Master Wong as well."

At this moment, she hesitated for a second or two, because she didn't know whether to call her a prostitute or a maid.

If Daiyu and Qingwenzi were prostitutes, then why would a local gentry have a prostitute present a precious gem when entertaining the county magistrate? Gems are quite valuable, aren't they?

Logically speaking, his concubine could have carried it out.

This place does feel a bit strange.

If Daiyu and Qingwenzi were merely maids, why were they dressed so provocatively and not at all averse to such things? Was it because Master Huang had made them do these things so many times that they had become accustomed to it?

Under Huang Wenbin's guidance, Chung Chuh-hung began to delve deeper into the character's inner world.

Gradually, Cherie Chung actually figured some things out and filled in some information that wasn't in the script.

This is what some veteran actors often refer to as a character biography.

"You have another problem, which is nervousness!" Huang Wenbin said.

Upon hearing this, Cherie Chung immediately retorted: "I'm not nervous. When I was competing in the Miss Hong Kong pageant, I was fine even when I wore a swimsuit on camera. My figure is naturally beautiful, and I can confidently show it off in front of the camera. What's there to be nervous about?"

Huang Wenbin glanced at Chung Chu-hung's figure; it was indeed taking shape and showed great potential.

He shook his head and explained, "That's not what I meant!"

"What is that?" Chung Chu-hung asked, looking puzzled.

"You're too inexperienced right now; you tried to show off your charm in front of the camera just now."

"And there's a difference between underwear and swimwear, and you're aware of that difference."

Huang Wenbin explained softly, "This conflicted mindset caused your unease, and what you showed was a bit of nervousness."

Chung Chu-hung thought about it for a moment, and it seemed that was indeed the case.

In this scene, she needs to wear a bellyband and carry a box containing jewels as she walks from upstairs to the banquet hall.

Although the bellyband covered more areas than the swimsuit, I still felt inexplicably ashamed. Although I quickly suppressed this shame, this was only a short scene of a dozen seconds, and I couldn't possibly cram in so many emotions.

"What should I do?" Cherie Chung was at a loss. She had never attended an acting training class. Not long after she won fourth place in the Miss Hong Kong pageant, she was snatched up by Joseph Lau to play the leading role.

Although she had been filming for more than two months, she was still confused. However, Huang Wenbin's words just now cleared up many of her doubts.

"When you lack sufficient expertise, whatever the first thought that pops into your head, knock it out first."

Although Huang Wenbin himself has not acted much, he has watched many movies and listened to many interviews with actors and directors. "What you have to do is to put yourself in her shoes. No, at that moment, you are her. You have to show her physiological reactions in that environment."

He has now combined some theories from Wong Kar-wai and Zhang Songwen to give Cherie Chung a quick acting training session.

Wong Kar-wai advocates breaking down all acting techniques until the actor's most authentic self is revealed. To achieve this effect, he sometimes spends months or even a year working on a single scene, and the amount of film he wastes is quite astonishing.

Many actors who worked with Wong Kar-wai in the early days were almost driven crazy by him.

Zhang Songwen prefers to make normal physiological reactions during filming because human physiological reactions cannot be acted out; they are conditioned reflexes that naturally emerge in a specific environment.

It may sound mysterious and profound, but this is actually the most suitable way for beginners in acting.

Because beginners don't have acting skills, but as long as you're human, you'll have physiological reactions. The problem is how to bring them out at the right time, which takes practice.

For Cherie Chung's dozen or so scenes, she doesn't need to exert too much effort; just a little bit of coquettishness combined with fear is enough.

"How about this, I'll play Master Huang and Master Tang, and act opposite you."

Huang Wenbin decided to use real-world experience to train, or rather... adjust Chung Chor-hung's performance: "We'll rehearse a few more rounds."