I'm not just a director

On March 2002, 3, the 6rd of the first month, the Waking of Insects.

"Inception" started in a low-key manner.

This low-key launch is compared to the grand occasion when Lao Mouzi's "Hero" was launched in August last year.

At the invitation of Zhang Weipin, "Hero" almost invited a lot of well-known movie stars from the media and entertainment circles to participate in the launch event.

Since the filming location was in Dunhuang, the starting point was naturally set there.

As a result, the terrain of Dunhuang is mountainous, and the temperature varies greatly.

When the temperature is low, crew members have to wear cotton-padded jackets, and when the temperature is high, they can only wear vests.

After such a toss, the people who rushed there all sneezed and participated in the movie start.

The starting location of "Inception" was chosen at Bayi Film and Television Base.

As the boss, Han Shanping also brought a group of middle and high-level leaders of China Film Group to participate.

China Film's popularity has continued to increase over the past few years.

First, Han Shanping made drastic reforms to the domestic film market, and then director Jiang Pei'an continued to produce masterpieces.

The main reason is that "Taken" and "Source Code" are good enough.

The latter has the aura of "domestic sci-fi blockbuster" and "the first domestic commercial film to exceed [-] million yuan".

The scene was noisy. Although it was the opening scene, some actors still did not show up.

For example, Cheng Long, who is busy with handing over work abroad, and Li Lianjie and Zhang Ziyi, who are "trapped" in the "Hero" crew.

A lot of media came for these three people, but when they went to the scene to see, good guy, the three big names collectively released Jiang Pei'an's pigeons.

Sometimes it's like this, Jiang Pei'an didn't say anything as the director, and Han Shanping, the big boss, didn't mention it.

But the media can always grasp the "essence" of it.

"Cheng Long and Li Lianjie are suspected to be at odds with "Inception", and refused to show up at the opening opportunity."

"The two kung fu superstars, even Jiang Pei'an is difficult to control."

"Zhang Ziyi is suspected of having an affair with director Jiang Pei'an, and the atmosphere at the opening scene is heavy."

Of course, these are all news fabricated by some entertainment tabloids to gain attention.

A discerning person can tell it's fake at a glance, but there are always people who are interested in these false gossip.

After a series of processes were completed, "Inception" began to shoot.

"Inception" was extremely successful in later generations.

It is not only in its gorgeous visual effects and exciting action scenes.

It lies in the philosophical and psychological issues it explores in depth, as well as the exquisite narrative structure of puzzles.

So, when it came time to actually shoot, the biggest problem the crew faced first was...

How are dreams created?
Whether it's Zhu Decheng, Lin Di'an, or Bob, who is in charge of actual effects at Industrial Light & Magic, everyone is a little confused.

As for Wu Ershan... He is still in a state of confusion.

Their current artistic aesthetics are still stuck in the past due to the limitations of the times.

Even before the start of the film, Jiang Pei'an had already held several meetings with the main creators of the film crew.

Even the sub-cameras were drawn and placed in front of them, but they still felt that the burden on them was heavy.

Therefore, all of this has to wait for Jiang Pei'an to dispatch.

"Everyone, there is not much time left for you to be confused, we have to move, hurry up!"

Sensing everyone's emotions, Jiang Pei'an clapped his hands.

In the first three days of filming, the most important thing is to run the tacit understanding between the crew and the actors.

Jiang Pei'an, as the protagonist, walked from the side of the monitor to the set after the scene was set up and all the props and staff were in place.

Compared with other actors, Jiang Pei'an has undoubtedly the heaviest burden.

Not only have to take into account the emotional problems of the opponent actors, but also go to the monitor to check the shooting content from time to time.

Fortunately, Zhu Decheng is an experienced executive director, and Lin Di'an and Bob are also staring at the screen, which makes him a lot easier.

This scene is an indoor rivalry between him and Hu Jing.

The role of the wife is like a ghost, coming out from time to time to tease the protagonist.

This time is also her first appearance in the entire movie.

Hu Jing was wearing a black silk satin pajamas, looking elegant and mysterious.

Jiang Pei'an walked up to her, tightened the tie around his neck, and played with the prop cup in his hand.

There was still a while before leaving the plane, so Jiang Pei'an took the opportunity to give Hu Jing a little trouble:

"Don't think about anything, your whole expression should be wandering in sadness and peace."

"I know the director, do we need to make eye contact later?"

Hu Jing asked.

Jiang Pei'an shook his head and said:
"No need, you are the projection of my heart, we have been with each other in dreams for 50 years.

We are already very familiar, so you don't need to look at my eyes deliberately and take care of my emotions. "

Hearing Jiang Pei'an's words, Hu Jing nodded.

"are you ready?"

Zhu Decheng looked at the two people in the picture and asked loudly with a loudspeaker.

"Lighting OK."

"Props OK."

"The group performance is OK."

Jiang Pei'an also nodded towards the camera.

"Okay, "Inception" takes one scene at a time, let's start!"

"Turn on!"

After receiving the slogan to start the machine, Jiang Pei'an walked over with a cup on the crowded deck.

He saw his wife standing by the railing. The light hit his face, flickering, and he walked slowly to his wife to drink water.

Hu Jing didn't even look at him, she seemed to be talking to herself, and also seemed to be talking to the people around her:
"If you jump from here, can you still live?"

Jiang Pei'an put away the cup, looked below the deck with his probe, and said slowly:

"It will fall into the sea."

When he was talking, Hu Jing kept staring at his profile, as if he had a lot to say.

"What are you doing here?"

Jiang Pei'an withdrew his gaze and turned to look at Hu Jing.

When he looked over, Hu Jing looked away without leaving a trace, and said casually:

"I thought you'd think of me."

Jiang Pei'an looked at her with a helpless and painful expression:
"Of course I will think of you, but I will never trust you again."

Hu Jing smiled lightly and said:
"so what?"

……

"Okay, click!"

Zhu Decheng shouted over there.

Jiang Pei'an looked at Hu Jing and said:
"Just now your performance was too deliberate, your eyes have been looking at me since I appeared.

When I look below the deck, you get a close-up here, so any movement you make is magnified.

Immediately afterwards, my eyes returned to you, but you should naturally look away at this time. "

In this rivalry scene, the range of movements is very small, almost using close-ups to intersperse back and forth between expressions and eyes.

So Jiang Pei'an's requirements are very strict.

"Okay, I see, let's have another one."

Recalling the question Jiang Pei'an just said, Hu Jing nodded.

"Okay, come again."

"Every unit is ready, one scene, one shot, two shots, start up!"

Jiang Pei'an watched the performance of himself and Hu Jing on the monitor.

After watching all the replays of the five cameras, he nodded and said:
"Pass."

This scene was NGed five times in total, which is not too much for the first scene.

But Wu Ershan on the side looked puzzled.

In his opinion, there may be some flaws in the first and second shots, but after the third shot, he felt that it was all right.

It is understandable that the fourth NG was to keep one, but Jiang Pei'an took the fifth time.

As if seeing Wu Ershan's doubts, Jiang Pei'an asked the makeup artist to touch up the makeup while saying:

"You have seen the replay just now, it is almost enough, but why do you need to retake it twice?

The reason is simple, from the perspective of the panoramic and close-up shots, we both performed OK.

But in terms of close-up shots, there is obviously a little distance between the two of us.

If you look carefully at the characters in the script, you should know that the protagonist's wife is actually his "demon" or subconscious mind.

He himself knew this, although it was in a dream, but he kept the habit of the two of them getting along for 50 years.

50 years is a very large span, covering almost half of a person's life.

Such a relationship should not be so unfamiliar and indifferent.

The two follow-up shots are all looking for that feeling of life. "

Making a movie is not like making a TV series. It can use a long space to create a character, and then use the plot to continuously enrich the character.

The movie is just over two hours long, for a limited time.

Maybe it's an action or a look, or a few lines, to let the audience remember this character.

Therefore, shots that can express the artistic conception of the movie are added here.

Hearing Jiang Pei'an's words, Wu Ershan nodded half-understanding.

But Wang Xingxing on the side was confused, he had already officially attended the director class of Chinese opera.

Jiang Pei'an specially called him over for this shoot.

I don't expect him to be of any help, just to let him gain more knowledge.

Such a professional team and such rich shooting equipment cannot be seen in the village.

For Wang Xingxing, it all started from scratch.

The experience he had accumulated in shooting folk tunes in the village was destroyed in less than half an hour after arriving on the set.

There were more than 100 extras and staff on site, but when the whole set was in motion, everything was in order, and there was no sense of panic.

You must know that when he was filming folk ditties in the village, there were only a dozen or so group performers at the most at the same time, and with the filming crew, there were not even 20 people.

If Jiang Pei'an's current studio is a large single-family villa, his crew of folk ditties can't even be called a dog house.

Not to mention what Jiang Pei'an said just now, such as the sense of distance.

I don't understand, I don't understand at all!
Jiang Pei'an glanced at Wang Xingxing who was confused and didn't speak.

He just wanted to let the other party have a concept subtly.

This is the case in the film and television industry. Some equipment and ideas may not be used for a lifetime.

But the director's thinking and imagination cannot be imprisoned...

"Okay, it was fine just now, let's prepare for the next scene."

Jiang Pei'an said slowly.

"Transitions!"

"Move the props out first!"

"Come on, give me a hand, quick!"

……

Throughout the whole day, the entire crew was constantly running in, and all work was proceeding in an orderly manner.

"Call work, everyone has worked hard today."

Jiang Pei'an patted and said to the staff with a big speaker and a smile.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief when they heard that work was over.

When making a movie, the last thing everyone likes is to brush the night.

Whether it is the state of the actors or the physical and mental health of the crew, they are exhausted to the extreme.

But these are not the most difficult, the most difficult is the first day of work.

Although some directors will take care of the emotions of the actors and crew, they will not arrange various difficult scenes on the first day.

But it's like the first day of work after a long vacation, and it's especially hard to get into the mood.

The staff of the film crew were busy calling it a day, and Jiang Pei'an came to Wu Ershan and Wang Xingxing.

"How was your first day?"

Jiang Pei'an took a sip of mineral water and asked with a smile.

"It was very shocking and very touching. It is indeed one of the most professional crews in China."

Wu Ershan adjusted his glasses and said.

Wang Xingxing followed closely and said:

"Me too, I was very touched and shocked. Compared with your crew, my side is nothing."

The feelings of the two are similar, but there is a trace of longing and eagerness in Wuershan's shock and touch.

He received professional training at Nortel, and he understands the theoretical knowledge of directors.

Although he has been an advertising director since graduation, being able to establish a world here in the best place in the capital shows that he still has two talents.

As for Wang Xingxing, this guy was completely hit.

He has always believed in what Jiang Pei'an said:
The director only needs to concentrate on staring at the picture in the viewfinder frame when shooting.

But he didn't know how much preparatory work he had to do before the picture appeared in the viewfinder!
And what he saw and heard in "Inception" this time completely complemented his knowledge on this side.

Then... Dao Xin collapsed.

Compared to what you are shooting now, what I was shooting was shit!
"Okay, let's all go back first, Xing Xing, you don't need to come over tomorrow, I will mainly focus on the courses in Chinese opera.

When there is no class, come to the crew again. "

Jiang Pei'an said with a smile.

"I see."

……

On the third day after the crew started working, Cheng Long finally arrived from abroad.

With Cheng Long's arrival, the crew of "Inception" is considered complete for the time being.

After hearing that Cheng Long was coming, Wang Xingxing rushed to the set to meet his idol even if he skipped class.

It turned out that this guy had just arrived on the set, and he wanted to lie that he had no class today.

Jiang Pei'an made a phone call to the head of the director department of Chinese opera.

Then, a spectacle occurred on the entire set.

Wang Xingxing held Cheng Long's hand and didn't want to leave. There were two staff members beside him holding his hand and dragging him to the outside of the studio.

Cheng Long looked at him with embarrassment.

"Hurry up and take this thing away, it's a shameful thing."

Jiang Pei'an said angrily.

"Brother, please sign for me, I like you so much, please sign for me!"

Wang Xingxing hugged Cheng Long's arm and said beggingly.

In the end, Jiang Pei'an had no choice but to wave his hand to let him get his wish.

"Thank you brother, this trip to the capital was not in vain, hehe."

Wang Xingxing hugged Cheng Long's autographed photo, and was supported by two big men, one on the left and the other on the right, smiling foolishly.

... (end of this chapter)