Wu Chen left the Performance Department feeling quite satisfied.
If everything went smoothly, now only a female lead remained to be confirmed.
Filming was tentatively set for after the New Year, so there was at least another month to prepare slowly, no need to rush too much.
Just then, Wang Jinsong, who was about to return to his office, ran into Zhou Yiwei, who was heading to be a teaching assistant.
"Yiwei!" Wang Jinsong called out.
"Teacher Wang!" Zhou Yiwei quickly walked over.
"Is the teaching assistant work going smoothly?" Wang Jinsong asked with a smile.
"Very smoothly, thank you, Teacher Wang."
Zhou Yiwei bowed slightly; if the Performance Department hadn't given him this opportunity, he would still be struggling outside.
"It's your Teacher Zhang Hua's credit, no need to thank me." Wang Jinsong waved his hand, "Are you interested in playing a role? A director has taken a liking to you and thinks you're quite suitable..."
"Teacher Wang, can I do it?" Zhou Yiwei's eyes lit up.
He had waited two years for this sentence.
In the two years after graduation, he had gone to every film crew in Beijing, but nothing came of it.
To make a living, he had done all sorts of jobs: he had been a photographer, pushed dollies, recorded sound, held boom poles, and even hosted events, performed skits for companies, and done voice-overs for crowd scenes...
If Teacher Zhang Hua hadn't given him a hand three months ago and brought him back to Beijing Film Academy as a teaching assistant, he would still be doing odd jobs on film sets...
"Believe in yourself!" Wang Jinsong patted Zhou Yiwei's shoulder happily; he was just mentioning it in passing, "Keep the news confidential, you know the rules!"
"Understood!" Zhou Yiwei nodded heavily.
It was an unwritten rule for actors to keep film crew invitations confidential.
There were countless cases of actors losing roles due to leaks, so he naturally wouldn't make such a basic mistake at this time.
After giving his instructions and a few words of encouragement, Wang Jinsong hurried away, leaving Zhou Yiwei still in a daze.
First-year, Photography Department, director, movie...
These four words, when separated, were all fine, but when combined, they just didn't seem right no matter how he thought about it.
Yet, what Wang Jinsong told him was a sentence formed by these four words.
A cold wind blew through the corridor, and Zhou Yiwei instinctively Shrink his neck, but the light in his eyes wasn't extinguished; instead, it burned even brighter.
"How much worse could it be than the past two years?" Zhou Yiwei mocked himself.
.....
Meanwhile, Wu Chen walked along humming a tune, in a great mood. He pulled out his Motorola flip cell phone and checked QQ; Liu Yifei's message from last night was still there.
"Hmph, take your time eating!"
The message was sent last night when Wu Chen and his roommates were eating barbecue.
Wu Chen could even imagine Liu Yifei's proud little expression when she sent that message.
Just as he was about to reply, Mu Deyuan suddenly called, instantly making his mood sour.
Without bothering to send a message, Wu Chen quickly ran back to the Photography Department.
"Why, Teacher Mu?"
Wu Chen asked urgently; Mu Deyuan had told him on the phone that Yan Bingyan didn't have time to act anymore.
No time, not no availability. The difference here was significant.
No availability could still be coordinated, but no time likely meant it was truly out of the question.
"Yan Bingyan's mother is critically ill, she has already turned down all film offers, so there's nothing we can do for now." Mu Deyuan sighed; he had only just learned this after receiving a reply from Liang Ming.
"There's nothing to be done about this kind of thing!"
"Mmm!" Wu Chen was also a bit helpless, but things were unpredictable, beyond human control.
"However, before you arrived, I already called Professor Chang Li of Central Academy of Drama and asked her to recommend a few people to try out. They shouldn't be too bad, right?"
Mu Deyuan saw Wu Chen's mood was a bit low and suddenly changed the subject.
"Ah?" Wu Chen was stunned and blurted out, "Teacher Mu, is that appropriate?"
"Why isn't it appropriate?" Mu Deyuan said with conviction.
"Putting everything else aside, the relationship between our two schools is still very close, with a lot of exchanges and cooperation.
The year before last, Professor Chang Li's performance class collaborated with our Photography Department to set up an 'Inter-School Performance-Photography Workshop.' You weren't here then, otherwise, I wouldn't even need to make a call; you could just go directly to Central Academy of Drama to find someone.
For example, this year, our Photography Department and Central Academy of Drama's Performance Department jointly offer the 'Acting in Front of the Camera' course, it's just not your first year's turn to practice yet..."
Alright, in his previous life, Wu Chen wasn't from an academic background, so he really knew little about these matters.
A new hope emerged!
If he remembered correctly, Chang Li was the head teacher of Central Academy of Drama's 1996 class.
The Eight Golden Flowers, he didn't believe he couldn't pick one or two to play the female lead!
Mu Deyuan saw Wu Chen already starting to ponder and couldn't help but smile, "Don't think too much. For your movie, the female lead would actually be quite suitable for Zhang Ziyi and Qin Hailu, but you can't afford their fees."
That stung!
"But, Teacher Mu, will the school have any objections?" Wu Chen asked softly.
"Cough, Zhang Xiao is from our Photography Department."
"Teacher Mu, you should have told me earlier. Now I can walk around like I own the place..."
"Walk around like you own the place, my foot! You be honest with me." Mu Deyuan laughed and slapped Wu Chen, "I've helped you as much as I can. Be careful with casting. Our Performance Department isn't bad either, so consider it yourself."
"Got it!"
While Wu Chen and Mu Deyuan were still communicating, over at Central Academy of Drama, Chang Li was grumbling.
"Mu Deyuan, that old scoundrel, treating me like a wishing well turtle."
Just thinking about that pile of requirements—appropriate age, good temperament, good acting skills, low fame, low pay, low risk... she got angry.
Who makes demands like that?
"Fine, I'll give your Beijing Film Academy Photography Department this much face. But if the filming isn't good..." Chang Li snorted coldly, but on the list paper, after careful consideration, she circled a few names.
"It can only be picked from the graduates."
She circled around and finally settled on Zeng Li, Yuan Quan, and Hu Jing.
Of course, her own resources would prioritize her own students.
......
On a winter evening, the last sliver of orange light in the sky was swallowed by night, and the streetlights came on, like a string of warm yellow beads adorning the cold wind.
Wang Jinsong acted quickly; Zu Feng and Zhou Yiwei had already contacted Wu Chen.
However, Zu Feng hoped to see the character's scenes in the script before making a final decision.
Wu Chen understood; after all, this was a two-way choice. After discussing it, he directly set the script reading and audition for tomorrow at noon.
With the time set, Wu Chen walked towards the dormitory with his cell phone in his hand, the cold wind drilling into his sweater collar, making him shrink his neck.
By the roadside, several students rode "Phoenix" bicycles past, their bells jingling, and street vendors hawked roasted sweet potatoes, steam rising in the winter night, like a moving old painting.
Returning to the dormitory, he saw Chu Tianshu and Pu Songri gathered around Xiang Zhuo's spot, staring intently at the screen.
"What are you looking at?"
Human curiosity prompted Wu Chen to lean in as well.
"A post from the Central Academy of Drama BBS!" Xiang Zhuo didn't even turn his head, completely focused, "It's explosive."
"Zhang Mo Beat Someone Because He Was Cheated On"...
"Move aside, let me see too!"
Seeing the title, Wu Chen unhesitatingly squeezed into the middle. In his previous life, he hadn't known enough; it was all a mix of various later news.
Nothing was as direct as seeing the post from Central Academy of Drama BBS now.
After reading the content, Wu Chen rested the back of his hand on his chin, somewhat incredulous, "No way, they didn't even spare an eighty-year-old? Is this guy surnamed Huang that outrageous?"
As soon as Wu Chen said this, the four of them exchanged glances.
"Chen Ge, this post couldn't have been bought off, could it...? It really is outrageous." Xiang Zhuo murmured after a moment of thought.
"Doesn't look like it. Generally, people who are bought off wouldn't start off like that."
"Then how should they start?" The three turned their heads and looked at Wu Chen in unison.
"Let me say something fair..."