Special correspondent of this newspaper Han Xiaoying
The romantic comedy movie "Welcome to Me" starring Shi and Wang Yinglu was released on the 5th. The film tells the story of Chen Xiaozhou (played by Yu Shi) who accidentally suffered from "visual hallucinations" after falling out of love, as long as he saw a yellow object, the people around him would become "little yellow duck", speaking an incomprehensible "quack" language, Feng Jiannan (played by Wang Yinglu) The appearance of Chen Xiaozhou rescued Chen Xiaozhou from the world of "Little Yellow Duck", and the two started a warm healing journey. In an interview with the Global Times, the film's director Song Haolin and leading actor Yu Shi shared the highlights and behind-the-scenes stories of the film.
"Laughter is real, thinking is also real"
In Chen Xiaozhou's world, Feng Jiannan is his only "antidote" and his destined person. Director Song Haolin admitted that at first he just wanted to tell a love story, but as the goal of creating a "destined person" became clear, the concept of "rubber duckling" gradually became clear. "In love, when the destined person appears, everyone else seems to be gone, and how to 'externalize' this love characteristic is a difficult point." After many discussions and tests of multiple versions by the main creative team, director Song Haolin and screenwriter Miao Qian appeared. In the director's view, "The little yellow duck is bright, cute, and cute, so that everyone who sees it can smile, which is also the direction of love in the film - happy, relaxed and happy." ”
Talking about the characteristics of the film, the director bluntly said that "the brain hole is very big". When Yu Shi interpreted the film, he thought that it was a comedic way to convey thoughts on love: "The motives of the characters in the film are reasonable, and they are not forced to shake off the burden. Chen Xiaozhou is actually a very 'declining' person, and 'visual hallucinations' make him unbearable, but this illness brings joy to the audience, and it is more real if it is not deliberately funny. The director was pleasantly surprised by this understanding of the role. Regarding the interpretation of "visual hallucinations", Yu Shi believes that the visual effects can make the audience intuitively feel the condition, but he also needs to interpret the state of Xiaozhou's illness. In this regard, he set Xiaozhou as a symptom of mental breakdown - from the listlessness when he was sick at the beginning, to the later finding the "antidote" to burn his fighting spirit, it is a process of slow recovery.
As the leading actor, when Yu Shi saw the finished film, he thought that his attention would be on examining his performance, but he didn't expect to be deeply attracted by the plot, "I completely watched it, the laughter is real, the moving is real, and the thinking is also real." In Yu Shi's view, the power of a work lies in being able to make people happy and gain insights at the same time. "Although the film is presented in a fantasy form, the core of what I want to express is very practical - cherish the people you want to cherish, and don't make decisions lightly."
"Love scenes don't have to be particularly intense"
Director Song Haolin met Yu Shi for the first time and found that he had a natural sense of relaxation and vitality. In order to enhance mutual understanding, the director specially arranged a script killing, in which Yu Shi played an old man in his 60s. This seemingly relaxing and entertaining game session allowed the director to see Yu Shi's ability to improvise comedy, so he decided to let go and give Yu Shi more space to perform. The director smiled: "Driven by Yu Shi, especially after interacting with the ducks, the whole crew has a 'crazy' temperament." ”
Yu Shi said frankly that he pays attention to the natural expression of emotions when performing, "Acting is not to complete the task, only by being completely immersed in it can the role be more vivid." Director Song Haolin believes that the value of Yu Shi lies in being able to complete the performance vividly and accurately. Chen Xiaozhou and Feng Jianan's "ambiguous period" hand-holding scene impressed the director deeply, "Yu Shi did not simply and rudely hold the heroine's hand, but processed the details with the rhythm of the plot, acted with his hands, and performed the psychological state of wanting to hold or not." Yu Shi recalled that scene and said: "The emotions of the love scene are not necessarily particularly strong, some people feel that they must kiss, shout I love you, and send roses...... These episodes have existential significance, but I prefer the subtle, delicate feelings in love. ”
There are many similar impromptu scenes. The director will deliberately not stop, keep the most vivid side of the actor, and the actor will also tap his potential. Feng Jianan, played by Wang Yinglu, hides all her emotions in her heart, which requires her to interpret her strong emotions in a calm way. When filming the last stage confession scene, the director asked the actors to concentrate and explode the pent-up emotions without a communication partner, and at the same time needed to have a layered sense of emotions. If this scene can't be supported, the whole play will collapse, and Yu Shi and Wang Yinglu have withstood the pressure. Yu Shi played another one on the spot when I was already satisfied, and let me cry in front of the monitor. Song Haolin recalled.
A "charcoal in the snow"
Recalling the process of taking over the script of "Welcome to Me" and becoming Chen Xiaozhou, Yu Shi bluntly said that this is director Song Haolin's "charcoal in the snow". "At that time, I was in a state of 'idleness', "King of the Sky" and "Fengshen Part 1: Chao Song Fengyun" have not yet been released, I am like a 'transparent person' in the circle, at this time the director came to me with the script, and a theatrical movie also asked me to play the male lead, I am very grateful."
The director's trust runs through the whole shooting, and this trust is also an encouragement for Shi. The director is willing to adjust the role for Yu Shi, let Xiaozhou get closer to Yu Shi, and let Yu Shi become Xiaozhou, "It may take a year or two to write a script, but Yu Shi has grown into Yu Shi, he has used it for more than 20 years, and he is more three-dimensional, more real, and more vigorous." When I felt the urge to get the character closer to the actor, I knew I was right. ”
The scene of playing and singing "I Want You" on the rooftop was an unexpected joy for the director. "There was a problem with the shooting location when filming started, and after changing the location, I accidentally found the rooftop as an excellent filming location, and I thought that Yu Shi loved to play the guitar very much in his life, so he added a scene of playing and singing, but I didn't expect the effect to be unexpectedly good." Yu Shi also sighed: "The director trusts me very much, gives me a lot of performance space, let me play to my heart's content, and I also continue to develop myself in the process of interpreting Xiaozhou."
Whether it is Ji Fa in "Fengshen", Ba Tai in "My Altay", or Chen Xiaozhou in "Welcome to Me", in Yu Shi's view, sincerity towards the role is the most important. In the future, he wants to challenge more roles with space and irreplaceability, "I am willing to accept all kinds of types, such as playing a villain or trying some unexpected roles, hoping to constantly break the restrictions and break through myself." ▲