This director needs to apologize

Chapter 251 Three minutes on stage and ten years of hard work off stage

In the last week of May, the crew moved to the fourth mountainous and hilly location to shoot the scene where the Tang army formed an array.

Taking advantage of the time between filming the first two scenes, Xiaomei has recruited a sufficient number of extras at the Dunhuang Film and Television Base.

Generally, more than half of the crew who come to the Northwest Film and Television Base to shoot movies are shooting costume dramas, so the local extras are more than capable of meeting the requirements of "Mulan".

To put it bluntly, it's very simple, just line up, march, plus a rough battle and confrontation.

That's right, it's not a fight, but a confrontation. The large depth-of-field shots of the group actors are basically fleeting, giving the audience a panoramic view.

Therefore, the extras do not need to be proficient in action scenes. They only need to hold the props and weapons in their hands and parry with each other to prevent the scene from happening.

As for the close-up shots of wielding a knife and seeing a bloody man fall on his back, it was natural for professional martial arts to take action.

Because it was a large-scale performance involving several thousand people, the crew set out before dawn.

The armor, weapons, flags and other props needed for the day's shooting had already been brought by Lu Ping to the temporarily built warehouse there.

There is a saying in Peking Opera that three minutes on stage takes ten years off stage.

Today's scene has almost the same meaning.

In just a few minutes of filming, the lead actor and the front row extras all needed to wear ancient makeup. Liao Feifei's makeup team was simply too busy. In addition to the support of another team from the Magic Film Factory, Xiaomei had to make temporary arrangements locally. I hired a dozen makeup artists.

I started putting on my headgear and putting on makeup before 6 o'clock, and it wasn't until about 10 o'clock in the morning that everything was completed.

As for the extras in the back row, just stuff the buns with cotton and tie them on their heads, so that the scenery doesn’t get in the way.

This person is wearing makeup, and at the other end, Lu Ping's props team grabs the extras and distributes costumes and props.

Of course, it is impossible for all the extras to wear helmets and armor. The extras in the distant scene are actually wearing costumes that look like armor, and the various weapons they hold are also light and fluttery. It can be used if the wind is strong. Just blow it away.

This is also a last resort. A complete set of armor customized at a large price weighs more than 20 kilograms. With weapons and other accessories, the weight exceeds 30 kilograms.

These items are too heavy and take up space. Hundreds of sets are the limit of the crew's capacity. It's not that they can't make more, but it's difficult to transition.

Thousands of extras changed their costumes one by one and took their places. Hundreds of professional extras also clarified their tasks. When I looked at the watch, it was already past 11 o'clock. What else were I filming? Let's have dinner.

Most of the production team and props team lost their voices, some had sore throats that they couldn't swallow water, and the girls in the makeup team were so tired that their hands were shaking when holding chopsticks.

I was lucky today, there was no strong wind.

While filming at the Geopark two days ago, there was a sudden gust of wind one afternoon. The red sand filled the sky and the visibility was less than 5 meters. At that time, Chen Yiming kept worrying, fearing that the wind would not stop until dark and someone would disappear again.

At 1 o'clock in the afternoon, the extras, who had finished eating, drinking, and resting, lined up and walked through the show as usual.

At the front of the team, Yu Nan led the way, and Nie Yuan was half a step behind. Behind them were cavalrymen in a row of four, and fifty rows of cavalry pulled out a long cavalry column.

Behind the cavalry was Gu Yuehe on horseback, followed by five or six knights, and behind him were six infantrymen, holding a gun in one hand and a shield in the other, with a knife hanging from his waist and a bow and arrow on his back, armed to the teeth.

Behind a long line of infantry, at some distance apart, there is a knight holding a flag. The large flag, as thick as an arm, is nearly three meters long. The flag is fluttering in the wind. When it is rolled up, you can see a big word "Su" on it.

In the center of the team behind the knights, Wang Jinsong was walking slowly with his helmet on his head and his armor on his bridle. Behind him was another cavalry team.

The number of cavalry behind Lao Wang is much smaller than that of the former army cavalry behind Mulan. This is called real action behind the protagonist and stunts behind the supporting role.

The actors had to walk more than once in an afternoon, and cooperated with the calculations of the resident special effects artist to shoot enough material from multiple angles and multiple cameras.

The final formation of the Tang army in the film will be a huge army that snakes around the mountains and hills, with the front cavalry led by Mulan, the infantry array led by Xiao Siye, Su Dingfang's Chinese personal guards, and the baggage behind the palace. Troop composition.

After the panoramic shot of the march was completed, the queue walked one last time until the horse team behind Wang Jinsong completely bypassed the hills, revealing the baggage vehicles at the rear.

Wang Wei stood on the trailer, holding an electric horn and shouting "Start!"

On the horizon in the distance, several Tang Army scouts covered in blood appeared, whipping their horses' buttocks with their riding whips as they moved forward desperately.

A camera car was speeding parallel to the war horse on which the scout was sitting, taking pictures sideways at 90 degrees.

The four knights in the first row behind Mulan rode out and sped up to meet her. The second camera car moved forward slowly in front of the queue. There were two cameras on the car, one focusing on Yu Nan and the other following the knight.

Mulan made a move with her right hand, and the cavalry behind her raised a triangular flag, and the queue slowly stopped.

Nie Yuan turned his horse back and patrolled the cavalry on the side of the queue, shouting from time to time, "Stop where you are, don't dismount!"

As the two groups of cavalry met, three or two scouts were on the verge of collapse, and they reluctantly turned back with the support of their own group of cavalry.

The first camera car continued to follow, until the scout leader rolled his saddle and dismounted, knelt down on one knee in front of Mulan's horse.

Wang Wei gave the order, "Click!"

There was a slight commotion in the team, and the solemn military atmosphere temporarily dissipated.

On the spacious sedan off-road vehicle, Chen Yiming re-read the clip and looked back at Lin Xiao.

The latter nodded slightly.

Chen Yiming took the walkie-talkie at hand, put it close to his lips and said loudly, "Pass!"

The instructions conveyed by Wang Wei were filled with uncontrollable joy. Chen Yiming's passing meant that today's most difficult large-group scene was successfully completed.

The local extras can be disbanded, but the work of the leading actors and professional extras is not over yet.

Next, there are still a lot of close-ups and close-ups that need to be reshot.

The reshoots at this time were completely different from the previous captures of the marching procession. This time it was a real "performance" shot. The actors under the camera had to carry the scene, and the number of NGs increased rapidly.

What’s even more troublesome is that even though there are several leading actors being filmed, the professional extras who appear together still have to actually stand there as the background.

After three or five shots, you have to stop and take a rest. After all, you always have to rest.

The weather in May and June is already very hot in the desert near Dunhuang. This location is barren of grass and unprotected, and people, horses, vehicles, and equipment are all undergoing severe tests.

The progress was much slower than previously expected. By the time the light was no longer suitable at 4 p.m., only a small half of Yu Nan's personal shots had been completed.

Fortunately, the filming will continue the next day, so there is no need to mobilize a large number of people like today, only professional extras will be called.

When we returned to the hotel in the evening, everyone was exhausted.

Chen Yiming now personally understands the pain of commanders of large units during war years.

The crew size of "Mulan" has expanded to nearly a thousand people. Putting aside professional extras, the behind-the-scenes team alone has exceeded 400 people.

Equipment, props, supplies, logistics, all kinds of things, and countless things.

Chen Yiming can no longer do everything as he did when filming "1951". He had to divide the responsibilities and fully trust the heads of each department.

Even the department heads cannot get down to the lowest level. Their limited and extremely squeezed energy means they can barely manage the team leaders.

Chen Yiming could not really grasp the situation further down the line, and many team leaders Chen Yiming did not know him at all.

When the reports from various departments were compiled, it was already early in the morning, and it took another hour for the shooting plan to be arranged. The next morning, I got up at 4am and set off at 5am.

Judging from the recent shooting situation, it is not uncommon for the crew to have minor glitches. Damage and waste often occur, and the reserved materials are being consumed rapidly.

But Chen Yiming no longer has the energy to take care of that. As long as the sample meets the requirements, the rest will be left to chance.

He now only hopes that the Dunhuang scene can be completed on time and with high quality. Anyway, Lu Ping's prop team is increasing the amount of customized props and has more than enough reserves.

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(End of this chapter)