Huo Zhiming's move of going to so much trouble to build a street just for the movie obviously suited Jiang Se's temperament. It was as if every blade of grass, every object and every scene in the story appeared vividly in front of him.
Jiang Se almost ignored Huo Zhiming, Mo Anqi, and Director Huo's assistant and others around her. She put her hands in her coat pockets, seeming a little cold, but subconsciously smiled happily because her wish was about to come true.
If it weren't for Huo Zhiming mumbling:
"Your pay is too high. Otherwise, you can use the remaining money to improve this street."
Part of the money invested by the investors went into the pockets of the two main actresses, and every remaining penny was deducted by Huo Zhiming.
When building the streets for real-life filming, he disregarded his dignity and personally negotiated the project with others. He watched the progress every day at the construction site where the mud was flying, holding his wallet tightly and keeping an eye on every penny that was spent.
He also repeatedly reduced the reimbursement of the crew's food, drinks, and transportation expenses of each member.
Even the hotel where the crew stayed was not chosen as a high-end five-star hotel because of Jiang Se and Tao Cen's fame, but instead was chosen as a little-known hotel closest to the set.
Because the hotel learned that "Criminal Suspect" was going to be filmed here, it was willing to give Huo Zhiming a discount.
This old man's stinginess is reflected in every aspect. The car that Jiang Se rode in when he came here before was also shabby and old, but he was willing to spend money on every plant and tree on the street.
The hotel signboard looks like it was specially made at a high price to look half new and half old, and a lot of effort has been put into every detail.
He complained that Tao Cen and Jiang Se were too expensive. The assistant looked embarrassed, fearing that Huo Zhiming's temper would anger Jiang Se.
The investors were willing to pay not for the movie itself, nor for the story of "Criminal Suspect", but for the fame and box office appeal of Jiang Se and Tao Cen.
What's more, the largest of them, Huaying, already had a close relationship with Jiang Se. When investing in the filming of "Xianyuan", it was said that Jiang Se's salary had reached as much as 80 million, not including the subsequent share of the box office.
From this point, we can see that Huaying treats Jiang Se differently and specially. It would be fine if Huo Zhiming complained behind Jiang Se's back that his pay was too high, but he also said that in front of Jiang Se, which inevitably embarrassed his assistant.
He reached out and pulled Huo Zhiming, but Huo Zhiming looked unhappy, shook off his assistant's hand, and pointed at the street scene in the distance:
"That side should have been repaired. Looking at it this way in the camera, the real scene will be much better."
He put his thumbs and index fingers together, made a camera gesture in front of his eyes, and mentioned a street that had been poorly repaired, looking very regretful.
Although she had not been with Huo Zhiming for a long time, Jiang Se probably understood a little bit of his character. She heard him brooding over it and saw the assistant's small movements, but she did not get angry because of Huo Zhiming's words:
"The pay I got for starring in "Criminal Suspect" was not high." This was the price set by the company. They asked her to take the role purely to create the illusion that she and Tao Cen could still get along well. The pay that Luo Yin negotiated personally was far lower than the income from "Xianyuan".
"Agreeing to play the role of 'Su Yi' has nothing to do with remuneration. If Director Huo thinks the street is not perfect, you should ask the investors for more funds."
Huo Zhiming hesitated for a moment, Jiang Se looked at him for a while, and he snorted:
"Whether this is true or not, we have to wait until the filming starts."
He led Jiang Se into the already built hotel. All the facilities inside were already prepared. Every item in the lobby was extremely exquisite. Details such as carpets, front desk and customer feedback book were all prepared.
"In the few days before the gathering, you should try to familiarize yourself with every corner here. I will have Xiao Zheng give you the street map later."
He had a tough attitude, and when he said these words, he showed an attitude that would not allow Jiang Se to refute.
The assistant looked helpless, but she didn't expect that Jiang Se nodded every time Huo Zhiming said something. Such obedience made Huo Zhiming look at her several times in a row.
All the actors I have worked with in the past, regardless of their status, fame, age, as long as they have a little bit of fame, generally do not like someone giving them direct orders like Huo Zhiming did.
Especially as he got older, his fame became increasingly disproportionate to his status. Investors didn't like him, and neither did the actors. But this old man still had a serious attitude on the set and he didn't go back on his word, which was extremely offensive.
More and more people started arguing with him on the set, and Huo Zhiming became known for his weird and mean temper.
Previously, the two had argued about the issue of film pay, but unexpectedly, when Huo Zhiming mentioned filming, she seemed to have restrained her temper. No matter how serious Huo Zhiming's tone was, and the tone of his requests was so natural that even Huo Zhiming's assistant was uneasy, Jiang Se still just nodded obediently, which made Huo Zhiming's opinion of her slightly change.
In the plot, Su Yi is a meticulous woman with high IQ, calmness, and excellent psychological quality. She is so smart that even a policeman like Shen Xunran feels helpless when facing her.
After Jiang Se arrived at the set on the first day, he first took a rough tour of the set. The extras had not yet moved in. Once the filming officially started, this would be the crime scene in Wangjin District that shocked the entire city.
Huo Zhiming brought Jiang Se over that day and left soon after for something else. Jiang Se stayed and asked Mo Anqi and others to help her take pictures of every corner of the set with their mobile phones, and then they went back to the hotel to make more preparations.
Although Huo Zhiming mentioned that a site distribution map would be sent to her room, Jiang Se still walked along the street and drew a simple map before the map was delivered in order to enhance her memory.
In the next two days, she forced herself to take notes of the photos taken on the set that day in her room. On the evening of the 16th, Tao Cen also flew to Wangzhou and stayed in this hotel.
A troublesome incident occurred on the day Tao Cen moved in.
A waiter in the hotel was bribed by the reporter and helped the reporter disguise himself as a guest and enter the hotel. He secretly took private photos of Tao Cen, which was discovered by Tao Cen's assistant.
This action also made Tao Cen's assistant dissatisfied with Huo Zhiming living in such a place. Before he settled down that night, Tao Cen's agent proposed to Huo Zhiming to change Tao Cen's residence, but was rejected by Huo Zhiming.
Just like the impression Jiang Se had on Huo Zhiming when he met him on the first day he came to Wangzhou, Huo Zhiming had an extremely stubborn personality. He did not look at Tao Cen differently because of Tao Cen's identity and the fact that he took the initiative to film "Criminal Suspect".
"Song Yi believes that the hotel's security measures are not trustworthy and that the conditions here are too shabby. After the candid photo incident, Tao Cen's team no longer trusts the hotel's waiters and wants to move to another place."
Tao Cen's room was right next to Jiang Se's. The hotel's soundproofing was not very good, and the noise from the argument in the room was a little louder, so one could hear it clearly even if one put one's ear close to the wall.
Song Yi felt that since Tao Cen became famous, whether working at home or abroad, he had never stayed in such a bad hotel, and the management was not comprehensive. He listed a number of reasons, but was eventually blocked by Huo Zhiming with just one sentence:
"Tao Cen has never stayed in a hotel like this before, so she can treat this as an experience."
The old man had a stubborn temper and showed no sign of giving in to Song Yi's questioning. Mo Anqi leaned against the wall to listen to the noise next door and relayed it to Jiang Se.
"What's more, the hotel Song Yi mentioned in Wangzhou City is very far from the filming location, and driving back and forth every day will also delay time."
Huo Zhiming obviously didn't want to waste unnecessary time on the journey. Although living in a small hotel here had many inconveniences and the living environment might not be as good as a five-star hotel, it had the advantage of a special location.
Huo Zhiming won the dispute. The news that Tao Cen released the filming of "Criminal Suspect" in advance that day was a constraint for Jiang Se, and also for her.
The old man had a stubborn and merciless temper, as if he would just refuse to shoot if Tao Cen was not satisfied.
Everyone knows his character. Tao Cen is not as confident as him, and she also cares about her reputation. It was she herself who leaked the news of filming "Criminal Suspect". If she turns her back on him and refuses to shoot the film, she will only embarrass herself.
After the incident was settled, all members of the No. 17 crew gathered in Wangzhou and officially started filming "Criminal Suspect".
Most of the crew members who follow the gossip about Jiang Se and Tao Cen know a little about the relationship between them.
The two have not been on good terms in recent years due to their development trends. Although they belong to the same agency, their assistants never greet each other in private and never smile when they meet.
In this situation, some people in the crew were worried that the two actresses would not meet on the set and would quarrel in public.
But on the day of the start of filming, when Jiang Se and Tao Cen officially met, there was no tense scene. Compared with the cold faces of the assistants on both sides, the two actresses smiled, and although there was no intimate conversation, they did not turn their faces away in public.
Due to the influence of the weather, some scenes had to be shot first. The first scene to be shot happened to be Jiang Se's scene, in which she needed to walk out of the hotel where the crime scene occurred.
Huo Zhiming scheduled the filming of Jiang Se's scene to start at six in the morning.
There was still some preparation work to be done before filming began. Jiang Se knew that she would be woken up very early, so she went to bed early the day before. She didn't even attend the crew's dinner party to celebrate the official start of filming. She took a shower and went to bed directly, and was woken up at two o'clock in the middle of the night.
The temperature difference between day and night in Wangzhou is huge. When the assistants got dressed and took a car from the hotel to the set, they were shivering with cold.
The road was pitch black, but the lights were on in the car. Jiang Se was still reading the script for today's scene, trying to feel the atmosphere of the plot in advance so that he could immerse himself in Su Yi's world more quickly.
The lights on the set were bright and the staff were still busy. Jiang Se wrapped herself tightly in her thick down jacket as she got off the car. The cold wind blowing in her face made her shiver, and she felt the hairs on her face and body stand up.
The makeup artist is already waiting in the dressing room on the set. The makeup for this scene is simple, and the important thing is to express the situation and the actors' demeanor and micro-expressions.
Jiang Se's hair was tied up, revealing a delicate and flawless face. The stylist changed her into a black deep V dress with a slanted collar, a pair of high heels, and a beige long windbreaker that just reached her knees, which just revealed a pair of slender calves. When she sat there, even her reflection looked graceful.
The most eye-catching thing about her was her bright rose-colored lipstick, which made her skin look whiter than snow. The dimly lit dressing room seemed to be made more classy by her delicate and beautiful face.
Huo Zhiming arrived very early. It was just past four o'clock when Jiang Se finished packing. There was still more than an hour before the official shooting, so he lifted the curtain and entered the dressing room.
Huo Zhiming seemed to attach great importance to this movie, which he had put a lot of effort into. He personally took care of every detail and did not allow any mistakes.
When he came in, Jiang Se was wrapped in a thick blanket and reading a script under the light. When Huo Zhiming saw this scene, his stern face relaxed at once.
He originally thought that Jiang Se would take this opportunity to take a nap and rest, but he didn't expect that she was still working overtime.
"Have you memorized the street topography?"
As soon as he came in, he took off the gloves on his hands, rubbed his hands, blew a breath, and asked a question.
February in Wangzhou was extremely cold. Even though he wore thick gloves from head to toe, his hands could not warm up at all. By now, they were already stiff and a little painful.
Jiang Se nodded, "I'll remember it."
When Huo Zhiming made the request to her, she had already taken advantage of the time before the official shooting to familiarize herself with the terrain of the set. She even brought Mo Anqi here several times. She had walked this street dozens of times and was already very familiar with it.
"You should have read the script. Although this scene has no lines, it is very important."
"Criminal Suspect" is just a suspicion as the name suggests, but there is no substantial evidence to prove the crime. This is also the most important reason why Shen Xunran and Su Yi compete with each other in the movie.
How to show that Su Yi is a suspect and make the audience "believe" that she was the one who killed the person, but just like Shen Xunran in the play, she cannot find any real evidence against Su Yi. This requires Jiang Se to figure out and work hard on her own to perform the essence of the plot.
Huo Zhiming was afraid that Jiang Se, with his fame, would not be able to act out the feeling of 'Su Yi' in his script, so he took the trouble to explain it again and again.
At 5:40, before the official shooting began, the makeup artist touched up Jiang Se's makeup once more, and the crew members were already in their positions.
To Jiang Se's surprise, Tao Cen also appeared on the set on the other side of the camera.
She also had a play today, but not in the early morning of this spring. Jiang Se was a little surprised that she got up so early just to come to the theater to watch her performance. (To be continued)