Chinese entertainment starts with idols

Chapter 29 Breakthrough in Acting

Filming of "Buddha Mountain" continued as normal, and the "three-person team" in the crew had now become a "gang of four".

Sylvia Chang, who plays the "landlady," also joins the cast. She is a middle-aged woman who falls into despair after her son dies in a car accident.

Sylvia Chang is a true all-rounder, a real actress, singer, director, screenwriter, and producer. Her decades of acting experience and life experience have given Raymond Lam a great deal of inspiration.

In particular, the scene where she breaks down and cries alone in the car conveys the pain of losing her child and the sense of emptiness of life through her restrained tears and trembling body language, "making it especially painful to watch."

Zhang Aijia and Lin Feng had a solo scene together, which made Lin Feng realize the gap between his current acting skills and those of true veteran actors.

This scene is simple: Sylvia Chang teaches Lin Feng, who is heartbroken, to sing the line "Kissing the child's face, kissing the child's cheek" from the Peking Opera "The Legend of the White Snake." She uses a trembling voice to portray the White Snake's grief at being separated from her child.

This performance, with its delicate emotional layers and explosive power, not only moved the staff off-camera to tears, but even Lin Feng, the actor opposite him, was touched.

This was the first time Lin Feng had been directly overshadowed in a scene, which was a huge blow to him. He had always thought that his acting skills were already very good after being tempered in his previous life, but he never expected to be completely outmatched.

Indeed, there are no shortcuts to acting skills. It seems that there is still a lot to learn. But where should he start to improve? Lin Feng always felt that he was missing something.

Lin Feng isn't one to waste time internally; he prefers to find solutions by communicating with others, because for every problem that troubles him, there are already successful paths to solutions in the world.

"Binbin, I want to ask you something. You've acted in some good movies, and also quite a few bad ones. How do you improve your acting skills?"

"Hmm, Binbin, you used to be Sister Binbin, now you're just a regular Binbin. You're so disrespectful. Is this how you humbly ask for advice? I'll give you a chance to say it again." Fan Binbin teased Lin Feng.

"Okay, the most beautiful, prettiest, and sexiest sister Binbin in the world, may I ask you a question? How can I improve my acting skills?" Lin Feng said in a very exaggerated manner.

However, Fan Binbin seemed to enjoy Lin Feng's flattery, and her response was quite thoughtful.

"You haven't heard it before, 'There are no bad characters, only bad movies'? That's an actor's conviction. The characters are definitely fake and virtual, but you have to believe they are real, and they are real!"

This is why some actors act convincingly while others act fake. It's all about conviction. If you don't even think about it, how can you act it realistically?

By the way, about that show you did a while ago, "Meteor Shower," I thought you had a very strong sense of conviction, and you were very talented!

A young nobleman showered a MG SUV with elaborate praise for a full three minutes. Wasn't your performance quite impressive?

Lin Feng felt embarrassed, not expecting that Fan Binbin had seen his famous work.

"Don't feel embarrassed about this. That's just how actors are. Who hasn't acted in a bad movie? If the director tells you to act like this, can you refuse?"

And sometimes, even when you know perfectly well that he is bad, doesn't exist, or is even wrong, you still have to act it out.

Even with all the special effects available today, without this sense of conviction, how could we perform in front of a green screen?

Besides a sense of conviction, acting skills, well, you definitely need to practice. You never know when you'll suddenly have an epiphany.

"Binbin, now I really think you're pretty amazing."

"What do you mean? Weren't I amazing before? I've already won several Best Actress awards! Okay?!"

...

At this point, the filming had reached the train scene, which is the most important scene in the movie. It symbolizes that life is like a train, and its direction is uncontrollable. It also reflects the helplessness of the younger generation towards the future.

Even with the railway department's full cooperation, the cost reached millions per day, and these three scenes of trains passing through tunnels were filmed together.

The first time the train passed through the tunnel was a moment of "youthful excitement and exploration." This was not only Lin Feng's first time riding on a train, but also the first time the three main characters experienced riding on a train.

As the train winds its way through the mountains, tunnel after tunnel, the sun shines brightly, the mountains rise and fall, and the train roars past, the sounds of the wind and the train whistle intertwining.

The three laughed and shouted on the roof of the car, feeling the speed and freedom, a natural release and catharsis of youthful passion and physical sensations.

Lin Feng's character "Ding Bo" appears calm on the surface, but his frequent swallowing and tight lips reveal his inner excitement and anxiety.

When young bodies and minds melt into the beauty of nature and the exhilaration of sensory stimulation, all the troubles of life, emotional entanglements, and inner confusion are swept away.

At this moment, Lin Feng couldn't quite put his finger on it. He felt that he had merged with the character to some extent, but he wasn't quite sure what that feeling was.

The second time the train passed through the tunnel, it was a "conflict and release of emotions." After arguing, the three of them once again chose to board the train, attempting to release their emotions through extreme behavior.

As darkness fell and dark clouds gathered, the train traveled along the desolate tracks, making the tunnel appear even more gloomy.

The three climbed the train in silence, no longer laughing and joking like they had the first time, but instead falling into deep thought.

As the train entered the tunnel, the only sound in the darkness was their breathing; as it emerged from the tunnel, rain lashed their faces, and the three of them instinctively closed their eyes, savoring the moment of clarity and pain.

Lin Feng, who plays "Ding Bo", lowers his head to avoid Fan Binbin's "Nan Feng" gaze, and picks at the metal sheet on the car roof with his fingers, blood seeping from under his fingernails, hinting at his inner struggle.

At this moment, Lin Feng felt an unusual calm and complex emotions. This feeling was very subtle. He could sense that there was a wall in front of him, as if as long as he could break through this wall, the view ahead would suddenly open up.

The third train journey through the tunnel represents "the reconstruction and farewell of faith," which is also the ending of the film. The train travels on the silent tracks, with only faint lights inside the tunnel and city lights in the distance.

The three sat side by side in silence, occasionally exchanging a glance before looking out the window.

As the train entered the tunnel, darkness enveloped everything, with only the sound of each other's breathing; as it emerged from the tunnel, the lights gradually brightened, illuminating the faces of the three people, their expressions calm and resolute.

Lin Feng, who plays "Ding Bo", looks up at the sky with an expression of anticipation for the future, and taps the carriage lightly with his fingers, conveying a sense of rhythm.

The railway tracks made a clattering sound, and amidst this cacophony, the whistling of trains filled the air. The environment was chaotic, with lights flickering and dimming—a truly turbulent place.

At this moment, Lin Feng was completely integrated with the character. He was so calm that he could clearly feel that he had broken down the wall in front of him. He could even feel that his acting skills had entered another level.

Even director Li Yu, sitting in front of the monitor, felt that Lin Feng had changed. He had become more relaxed and natural, and this natural performance made people more empathetic.

At this point, Lin Feng no longer needed any acting skills or methods. He only needed to immerse himself in the character, follow the character's expressions, and even follow the character's own subconscious performance. The rest would happen naturally.

Improving an actor's acting skills is a long and persistent process, because acting skills not only include technical aspects, but also the actor's own life experiences and social observations.

The reason why Lin Feng's acting skills were able to break through is that he integrated his life experience and rich theoretical skills accumulated in his previous life, and finally ushered in this breakthrough!

However, this breakthrough seems to have come a little late. At this time, "Buddha Mountain" was already in the final stages of filming, leaving Lin Feng with not much room to showcase his talent.

......