Chapter 11: Madness

Perhaps it really is true that men and women working together makes the labor less tiring; they shot quite a few scenes today, yet Chen Nuo still felt the day passed by quite quickly. After wrapping up at 7 o'clock, Zhang Yi came to find Chen Nuo again, "Let's go, my mom stewed chicken today."

Chen Nuo tilted his chin toward a spot not far away, "Forget it for today, she said she's treating me to a meal."

Zhang Yi turned his head to look, his expression turning somewhat grave, "I know her mother. You kid, really, don't... I won't know how to answer for it when the time comes."

Chen Nuo frowned and said, "Director, I am asking you very seriously now: in your mind, what kind of image do I have?"

Zhang Yi did not answer. He said, "Remember, you are only allowed to eat, don't do anything else," and then turned and walked away.

Ni Ni walked over to Chen Nuo, acting shy and hesitant, and said, "What did the director say?"

Chen Nuo smiled and said, "It's nothing, he just told me to send you back early. Let's go, what shall we eat?"

When a person from Xichuan and a person from Jinling go out to eat in Jingcheng together, what do they usually eat?

There is an answer, and only one: Jingcheng roast duck.

Ni Ni and Chen Nuo found a nearby roast duck restaurant. While waiting for the food to be served, Ni Ni took a phone call, and her expression was not very good after she returned.

Chen Nuo asked with concern, "What's wrong?"

"It's nothing, it's just my mom... she likes to worry too much."

Chen Nuo said "Oh," and asked, "Did you come to Jingcheng by yourself?"

Ni Ni said, "Not exactly, I already have relatives here, so I'm staying at their place."

"Why aren't you in school? Did you take leave?"

"Yeah, I wanted to act in Teacher Zhang's film, so I took leave." Ni Ni looked at him and asked, "What about you?"

"I also took leave. I came here to attend a training class, preparing to apply to the film academy."

Ni Ni started to smile, "I can tell, you must really love acting."

Chen Nuo was stunned for a moment and said, "How can you tell?"

"Because..." Ni Ni lowered her voice and said, "Today when you were drinking porridge, I knew you couldn't drink any more, but you still forced yourself to finish it. At that moment, I knew that you would definitely become a fantastic actor in the future, just like Liang Chao or Ge You."

Chen Nuo laughed, "Is it that exaggerated?"

"Really." Ni Ni nodded earnestly, looking at Chen Nuo with a light in her eyes.

"Teacher Zhang once said that only those who truly love film will force themselves to eat 26 pears, scrub the floor 27 times, or eat over thirty plates of pasta. Only such people can become top-tier actors. I want to become that kind of person. I want to be an excellent actor, perform in good works, and let everyone know me. But you, I don't think you need to think about it, because you are naturally that kind of person."

Inside the bustling roast duck restaurant, the noise was deafening, with customers coming and going in an endless stream; it was incredibly lively. Even though the hall was brightly lit, it still could not outshine the light in her eyes.

Chen Nuo did not know what to say, so he raised his teacup, "Thank you, I toast you, may your dreams come true."

"I toast you too, Brother Chen Nuo. Really, you can truly make everyone love watching you act. I won't be wrong about this."

Ni Ni's role was not large; she only filmed for a little over a week before her part was finished. On the day she left, Ni Ni gave Chen Nuo a small gift, a film-strip style keychain. Chen Nuo threaded it onto his keys; although it made them look a bit bulky, it felt heavy and was no longer easy to lose. After Ni Ni finished her scenes, Chen Nuo and the others filmed in the alleyway for a few more days, completing all the urban scenes. Next, the entire crew moved to the outskirts around Jingcheng to film the scenes of the mute man digging the house.

Zhang Yi rented a minibus to take the crew to a county town called Laishui. The county was very small, but it had mountains and water, the scenery was beautiful, and the streets by the roadside were very clean. The group opened five rooms in a guesthouse in the county, and Chen Nuo shared a room with Zhang Yi.

On the first night, Chen Nuo was kept awake all night by Zhang Yi's snoring.

The next day, the minibus took them to a small hill next to the county town; this was the filming location Zhang Yi and the others had selected long ago.

The price of staying up all night was that Chen Nuo's eyes were bloodshot and he was utterly exhausted. His whole body felt as if the screws had been loosened; there wasn't a single part of him from head to toe that had any strength left, making one feel he would collapse and die at any second. Yet, when placed in front of the camera, no one looked more like that mute man who had been digging a hole in the mountain for five years than him.

Chen Nuo also felt his state was just right. Although he was truly tired and desperately wanted to sleep, his mind was in a daze, but in this state of being half-asleep and half-awake, he discovered he had entered the painting.

He was the mute man. At this moment, Chen Nuo felt it with absolute clarity.

Zhang Yi quickly noticed the change in Chen Nuo.

Just after the first shot, Zhang Yi was so excited he slapped his thigh, "It's perfect, Chen Nuo is performing beyond his level today."

He hurriedly called over Li Xiaotian, "Tian'er, hurry and arrange it, move a portion of tomorrow's shooting plan to today. Let's strive to shoot more takes today. Chen Nuo has gone crazy today!"

Li Xiaotian was also from the film academy, and he knew that for an actor, the state Chen Nuo was in now was something one could only hope for, not seek out.

In the industry, this is called "the arrival of inspiration" or "possession by the character."

This state is a level of high concentration and immersion that an actor reaches during the performance, as if the soul of the character has truly possessed the actor, causing the actor's performance to transcend their usual level, with the actor's emotions, movements, and language perfectly merging with the character.

In this situation, the sense of reality and the infectious power displayed by the actor are astonishing.

Watching the playback on the monitor, Li Xiaotian said, "I'll go arrange it right now. We'll shoot as much as we can today, I just hope Chen Nuo can hold on."

Li Xiaotian gave the orders, and everyone in the crew noticed the change in Chen Nuo at this moment. From the head cameraman to the lighting assistant, from the sound technician to the production assistant, everyone was on their toes.

To put it bluntly, everyone in this circle wants to encounter a good director and a good actor, so they can also get their names on the list of an award-winning film. If one really gets lucky and hits upon such a film, they basically won't have to worry for the rest of their lives. What's more, for someone else's film, the behind-the-scenes list is long; for this film by Zhang Yi, the pre-production and post-production staff combined probably won't exceed twenty people. If they really manage to make something of it... I dare not think, I dare not think.

Under these circumstances, the crew's efficiency that day was exceptionally high. Zhang Yi almost never called "cut," shooting one take after another. They filmed until dark, and after finishing the only few night scenes that could be shot, Zhang Yi finally called "Wrap" with great reluctance.

By this time, Chen Nuo was already numb.

Truly numb, even his toes were a bit unresponsive. He forced himself onto the bus, plopped onto his seat, and immediately lost consciousness.

When he woke up, Chen Nuo found he was already on the bed in the guesthouse. He hadn't taken off his clothes, just covered himself with a quilt. He didn't know what time it was, and the lights in the room weren't on; it was pitch black and exceptionally quiet, and he couldn't hear a single sound of Zhang Yi's snoring.

Eh, that's not right.

Chen Nuo suddenly discovered that he was actually lying on a large bed.

(End of chapter)