Actors have no vacation

Chapter 172 A Full Day
Whether it's "Tonight" or "Living Alone", they are actually a bit of a documentary.

This is related to an old director that Director Zhou worked with.

The old director came from a documentary team and switched to variety shows halfway through. His personal style is obvious. For example, when he was filming a food show, he began to dig out the only son left behind by the shop owner in the country; Ask the pet store owner what happened to the pets that couldn't be sold.After the show came out, not only the audience was puzzled, but the leaders also had a headache about the ratings.Always relying on the system and never changing after repeated admonitions, people secretly call him old and stubborn.

When Director Zhou was called Xiao Zhou, he has been learning from the old director. Although he learned how to do variety shows, he has already branded the documentary style in his bones.When Xiao Zhou was finally promoted to Director Zhou, he suddenly realized that he could neither do pure variety shows nor be capable of making pure documentaries. It was obviously too late to return to the furnace, and colleagues in the station were also waiting to see the little stubborn taught by the old stubborn What works will come out.Director Zhou simply broke the jar and made a variety show as a documentary.

This category is now called observational variety show.

Observational variety shows are not about placing a few cameras around the guests, and then filming them in chronological order, and doing nothing else.This kind of shooting method without embellishment and diluting the creative consciousness is no different from "sneak shooting", and the existence of the director is useless.

Since it is a variety show, it needs ratings and needs to retain the audience's attention, so "conflict" is also needed.

Director Zhou has seen many directors interfere with the subjects for the so-called "dramatic conflict" in the stage.

Some directors will deliberately provoke and spread bad words about the two artists before the filming starts, and then wait for the conflict to break out and hot spots to be booked; friends, regardless of the secrets, just order the guests to "cry for me"; and some directors, in order to capture the disappointed expression of an artist, will instruct the staff to tell the artist something like "your XX work has been reported"" XX sues you for copyright infringement” bad news.

It probably happens often on other TV stations as well.

Director Zhou didn't like such excessive intervention.

Therefore, the ratings of "Tonight" have improved, and after getting rid of the predicament of being cut in half, Director Zhou used documentary techniques to shoot variety shows bit by bit.

This is undoubtedly a risk. If you meet a good subject, you can wait for good material, otherwise it may be mediocre.But he really enjoys the feeling of being in the fog and unable to predict the next step.

Because of this, his peers laughed at him for being "lazy", "giving up his job as a director", "fucking around like an old stubborn", "if you want to engage in creative work, then shoot other things, don't come to shoot variety shows"...

Director Zhou didn't have a strong heart and a tough face like the old stubborn, so he was very sad to hear that.The old stubborn was not comforted by this, but just chuckled, saying that when people reach middle age, they will know that people cannot stay clean forever.People with cleanliness are uncomfortable.Do you want fame and fortune, or want to be morally clean? If a person wants both of these things at the same time, he will live a very miserable life.

Only Director Jin of "Extreme Man" expressed his appreciation to him, and asked him not to give up exploration. Entertainment, sociality, popularization and personalization of variety shows can go hand in hand.

Integrating several contradictory words into one work without being ugly requires a very high level.

Director Zhou didn't dare to hope extravagantly, he felt that it would be pretty good if he could do half of it in his lifetime.

Director Jin said, don't think so hard, it also depends on luck.In the variety show industry, directors and hosts need to complement each other.If you meet them, you will be able to embark on a shortcut to rapid growth.

Director Zhou didn't know when he would meet such a subject.

Huang Jin and Director Jin of "Extreme Man". Jiang Heng and Director Luo of "Three Days Two Nights".Top variety show directors all have a top partner.

Director Zhou felt that this life was probably hopeless.To meet such a partner is simply harder than finding a marriage partner.

Until he started the first recording of "Life Alone".

……

"Tell me, what is the first of the 'Ten Business Principles'?" Guan Chen stretched out his index finger, his voice buzzing under the gas mask.

Standing in front of him were a dozen employees wearing gas masks.

"Safety first!" the staff members shouted.

Guan Chen nodded in satisfaction, and then began to summarize: "This escape drill took 49 seconds, not bad, and passed."

The staff applauded excitedly, as if expecting something.

Guan Chen said: "According to the agreement, once qualified, everyone will be given a month's salary as a bonus."

The staff burst into cheers.Some of them embraced each other excitedly, some knelt down on the ground and muttered words, and some wanted to lift Guan Chen up and throw him into the sky, but they were tripped by Guan Chen and fell to the ground one by one. Can't get close.The staff had no choice but to stand two meters away from Guan Chen, shouting and circling hand in hand, as excited as wild men of primitive tribes around a bonfire at night.

Manager Qian seemed to have a lot to say, "What?! Bonuses?! And...cough cough cough cough!" But just as he raised his head, his throat tickled, and he had to bow his head and squat with Director Zhou. On the side of the street, coughing hard, tears flowed down my face.

In the [Xie Jinzhu Studio] on the second floor, thick smoke was still billowing.

Passers-by who didn't know the truth thought that the staff downstairs were excited because the company was on fire.

Director Zhou wiped away his tears and saliva while filming something unheard of and unseen in the entire history of variety shows in front of him.

Three minutes ago, the meeting room of [Xie Jinzhu Studio] suddenly heard a piercing alarm bell. When everyone looked over, they found billowing smoke from the warehouse, as if a fire had broken out.

Director Zhou and the others didn't expect to encounter such a serious accident on the first day of recording, and they panicked all of a sudden.

There was also a commotion in the office.

At this time, a staff member stood up suddenly, staring like a copper bell, looking ready to sacrifice at any time. "Calm down!" The employee's voice was so loud that it could overwhelm the alarm bell, "Follow the safety manual!" After speaking, he bent down and went under the table.

In the next second, all the staff drilled under the table.

Director Zhou was stunned, and made a distinction in his head, how to deal with a fire and an earthquake.He just wanted to remind everyone that he made a mistake, but all the staff took out a gas mask from under the table and put it on their heads.Then under the command of the loud staff, the staff lined up and left from the door.On the way, a certain employee wanted to take a few folders with him, but was scolded by the colleagues next to him, "Don't kill you!", "How did Brother Chen teach you?", "Is life important at work?", "Don't Kill us!" The staff member lowered his head in shame.

The smoke filled quickly.

Because of his sluggish expression, Director Zhou accidentally inhaled two mouthfuls, and together with Manager Qian, he coughed all the way downstairs.

Downstairs, Guan Chen was already wearing a gas mask, took a stopwatch, and stood there to time everyone.

After being educated by the staff, Director Zhou realized that this was a fire drill.Guan Chen got a tear gas bomb from nowhere and used it in the warehouse. He also used his mobile phone to simulate the sound of an alarm bell, causing everyone to panic.

Director Zhou has also experienced several fire drills. On the TV station, everyone was talking and laughing as they walked slowly outside the building, basking in the sun they hadn’t seen for a long time, and exchanging gossip.I have never experienced Guan Chen like this.

Director Zhou had a lot of occupational diseases, and he began to think that Guan Chen was using a prank to "welcome" the program group.

Neighbors in the neighborhood gently reminded Director Zhou not to be sentimental: "There was already a [Hostage Taking] exercise half a month ago.", "There was another [Anti-Social Human Indiscriminate Massacre] exercise last month. Brother Chen every morning Leading people to run one, two, three, four, and practice formation, with forks and shields, similar to militia."

According to the neighbors, since Guan Chen entered the studio, the whole street has become much, much, much more lively.The entire street has received the "Safety Manual" instructional materials, and in the near future, they may also participate in joint exercises.

Director Zhou told a store owner that he wanted to read the legendary "Safety Manual".

It is said that the staff of [Xie Jinzhu Studio] will also be assessed regularly.Because Manager Qian always failed the exams and took sick leave, he often didn't take the exams, so in today's fire drill, he was in a hurry and behaved very amateurishly.

Director Zhou quickly got the "Safety Manual", which was a thick book, not a "booklet" at all.

Look at the cover first.First, there are four words in the big [Safety Manual], and then in turn:

【Author: Guan Chen】

【Editor-in-Chief: Guan Chen】

[Cover Design: Guan Chen]

【Proofreading: Guan Chen】

The font size of these few lines is almost as big as the title of the book.

It also looks like a lot of work.

In fact, the so-called cover design is just a stickman with his tongue hanging out, his eyes crossed, and he fell to the ground and vomited blood.

What kind of design is this... Director Zhou resisted the desire to complain, and turned a page.

The center of the first page only says [Internal information, not to be disseminated].

Turn again, it is the directory:
【What to do in case of a gunfight... 3】

[What to do if you encounter a bomb... 20]

【What to do when you meet a robber... 32】

【Meet anti-social scum...】

【Meet a killer...】

Zhou Dao's breathing became short of breath.

Randomly flip to a certain page at the back, it is "What to do if you encounter a bomb".

The first sentence of the opening: [It is very happy to be killed by the bombing. With a bang, people are gone, and they will not feel pain.Because fragments have no pain to speak of.But if you don’t get killed by the bomb, it will be very miserable...] There are pictures of people being blown to pieces attached to it.

Turning it over again, it is the sixth point under the fourth midpoint in the second largest point of [What to do in the event of a flood]—what to do if you walk through the water and accidentally walk to the edge of a utility pole, resulting in an electric shock.

【Dead.During floods, the poles and electrical boxes are dangerous areas. If you see someone getting an electric shock, don’t go to rescue easily... When a person gets an electric shock, his brain is very clear, but his body does not belong to you at all, and he cannot make any movements.You know very well that you are going to die soon, and then you really die slowly...] Next to it are still horrifying pictures of people with distorted limbs after being electrocuted.

"..." Director Zhou slowly closed the safety manual, closed his eyes, and his temples twitched.

Time flies, time flies.Director Zhou recalled the feeling of opening the "Becoming Actor" series of notes at Guan Chen's house a year ago, and really didn't know whether the thing in his hand should appear on the screen.

Looking back, Guan Chen was still speaking to everyone.

"[Ten Business Principles] Article [-]: Don't trust others easily." Guan Chen turned his face sideways, pointed to the gas mask on his face, and said, "Like this gas mask, there is a special buckle. Many people think This design is superfluous, why don’t you just put it on your head? It’s a big mistake! The purpose of this design is not to delay you for a few seconds, but to prevent the mask from being taken away by others.”

"Don't think that the fire hasn't burned yet, so you can hide slowly. When the indoor temperature reaches a certain level, a flashover phenomenon will occur - that is, the objects in the room will burn at the same time instantly. Death is certain." Guan Chen slowed down. , "Many firefighters died because of flashover."

Guan Chen sighed heavily, found himself wearing a gas mask, took it off, and sighed again.The sun at noon is very strong, hitting from the top of the head.Guan Chen stood in the sunlight, with his head slightly raised, with a look of pity, as if he was bathed in holy light.

The cameraman was touched and said, "After the show is broadcast, if the firefighters are asked to vote, the favorite male star must be Brother Chen."

Guan Chen laughed loudly when he heard this, and put his arms around the younger brother's neck: "You can talk a lot!"

Director Zhou also took the opportunity to praise Guan Chen: "After this episode is finished, the gas masks of this brand are probably going to be sold out. If I were the boss, I would definitely ask you to speak for me."

Guan Chen responded flatly, "Oh."

"..." Director Zhou had no idea what he said wrong.

The exercise is over.

it is noon now.

Taking advantage of the time when the office cleared away the thick smoke, everyone walked to the street for lunch in twos and threes.

Director Zhou noticed that Guan Chen, who was loved by the staff, was not invited to have dinner together, and all of them slipped away quickly.

Director Zhou was like a shark smelling blood all at once.

Taking advantage of Guan Chen pestering the cameraman to ask about the science popularization activities of the fire brigade, Director Zhou stepped aside, grabbed a few staff members, and quietly interviewed them. Where did Guan Chen usually eat his lunch.The clerk replied that Brother Chen occasionally ate with Brother Zhu. If Brother Zhu was not around, Brother Chen would eat with the staff. "Every time we go out to eat, Brother Chen will let us eat with our stomachs open. He is responsible for the bill. Every time, There are no exceptions." After a long time, everyone felt ashamed to always take advantage of Guan Chen, after all Guan Chen was still a rookie actor, hadn't accepted commercials, and hadn't reached the time of financial freedom.So every noon, their staff would break up into pieces one by one, forming small groups and fleeing in all directions. Seeing which one was unlucky, they were caught by Guan Chen for a treat.

"It's unlucky to be treated?" Director Zhou didn't believe it. He felt that the people in this studio were really weird and not normal at all. "...You don't know how to adjust the lines in advance, do you?"

The employees shook their heads one after another, saying that this is their daily routine in the workplace, and it is not an exaggeration at all.

Director Zhou suddenly discovered a blind spot, "By the way, why didn't Brother Chen have dinner with Manager Qian? Isn't Manager Qian his manager?"

The staff members rolled their eyes vaguely, but finally didn't explain anything, and ran away after satisfying Director Zhou's curiosity.

Director Zhou turned around and walked back to Guan Chen's side, asking what's for lunch today.

Guan Chen stared sharply at the poor staff in the distance like a falcon.

The staff had a premonition that this seemed to be a real gaze, and they ran faster one by one.

"Forget it." Guan Chen said, "I have a lot of things to do this afternoon, and I'm running out of time, so I won't eat with them."

After a whole morning of observation, Director Zhou seriously doubted how busy Guan Chen was talking about.

Guan Chen made a phone call, but he didn't know who to call, and then took the program team to a nearby restaurant, and asked for two boxes, one for the staff of the program team, and one for the people who were about to come.

About half an hour later, the person Guan Chen was waiting for arrived.

Two youths with green faces, and a middle-aged man.

Director Zhou didn't know those two young men, but he thought the middle-aged man looked familiar, but he wasn't sure if it was the same person...

"Hello Director Zhou, I've seen you for a long time." Liu Lihao dressed up carefully, wearing a sparkling coat.He enthusiastically held Director Zhou's hand and announced his family name, "I am Liu Lihao from "Let's Jump Up First."

Director Zhou was impressed. "Let's Jump Up First" is a late-night variety show featuring some slightly vulgar games.

"Hello." Director Zhou greeted, not knowing the relationship between Liu Lihao and Guan Chen.

But Liu Lihao didn't say anything, just smiled, and then sat down next to Guan Chen.

Guan Chen kept his eyes on those two young men, as if he was examining something.

After the two youths walked into the box and saw Guan Chen, they became very nervous.After all, Guan Chen is already a successful insider because of his "Police Story".When the two young people saw the camera set up in the box, each of them became as stiff as if they were covered with cement.

"How is the quality?" Guan Chen asked Liu Lihao.

Liu Lihao said with a smile: "There are opportunities for internships for good products. If it's not our turn, this is the best batch."

Director Zhou was drenched in sweat. Listening to this bad conversation, he prayed in his heart that he must not get involved in any strange things.

"You guys are all clear about what you're here for, right?" Guan Chen said to the two young men.

The two young men nodded.One of them was more cautious, and confirmed to Guan Chen: "...to shoot short films for non-professional actors, and to make their experiences into stories. The set is about 10 minutes, and the shooting cycle is four to seven days. Plus post-production, the daily remuneration is 800 yuan. Is that so?"

"Yes." Guan Chen nodded, "If the first cooperation is satisfactory, we can continue to cooperate for a long time."

The youth was not happy.He just closed his eyes tightly, as if he had betrayed his ideal just now.

Director Zhou understood.The two young men in front of them are "selling themselves" to another degree.

Directors who come out of the film and television academy, if they do not work as directors after graduation, it is basically difficult to return to the track of directors.It was agreed that I would only temporarily work as an editor/producer/training class/doing odd jobs/as a group performer for a while, save the country with curves, and go back to be a director after saving enough money.But slowly, there is no going back.

"I heard from my friends that when you shoot your graduation works, the bulk of your budget is basically photographic equipment." Guan Chen said, "If I am satisfied with your shooting this time, when you shoot your graduation works, you can come and find them. I will lend you the equipment at a [-]% discount."

The two young people looked at each other, and they looked like they were about to cry just now, but they turned into surprise in an instant.

They shouted in unison: "Thank you Brother Chen!"

Guan Chen waved his hand: "Eat."

"Yes!" The two young people immediately brought up the delicious rice.

　tomorrow

　　
　
(End of this chapter)