Chapter 319
Chapter 319
Director Ren may come across as intimidating due to his serious demeanor, but the fact that he had a large bald patch on his head somehow added a touch of humor to his overall appearance, making him less intimidating.
“Miss Ji, I’ve heard of you for a long time.”
Ji Qingqing smiled and reached out to shake his hand.
Another actor entered the audition room. After a brief discussion with several assistant directors, Director Ren led Ji Qingqing and Lin Zhen to another room for a private conversation.
Obviously, the task of interviewing supporting actors was simply delegated to several assistant directors.
As soon as they entered the room, Director Ren didn’t beat around the bush and went straight to the point.
“To tell you the truth, Miss Ji, I have worked with Lin Zhen several times before. She has been a long-time friend of mine and has repeatedly recommended you to me. Therefore, I became interested in your skills.
“Director Zhou also complimented your acting. He repeatedly told me that he didn’t deliberately exaggerate his remarks and just mentioned the truth. But everyone in the circle, including Lin Zhen, knows this fact: I’m a straightforward person.
“I’ve always valued people with real acting skills and only accept those who are capable and can contribute to the team.
“Even though Lin Zhen has recommended you to me, I wouldn’t accept you if I see that your acting skills are unqualified. You have to prove to me that your skills are up to par through a live performance. Is that okay with you?”
A live performance not only tests an actor’s acting abilities but also their dialogue skills. Unlike filming, which allows for post-production dubbing, a live performance is a true test of strength.
The netizens have high standards at present, nitpicking any detail they notice, which made many producers fold under enormous pressure. Therefore, Ji Qingqing could empathize with the strict requirements set by the director.
So she smiled and said, “I can understand.”
“You just perform the scene in this paragraph,” Director Ren said as he handed Ji Qingqing a piece of paper with the plot written on it.
Ji Qingqing leaned in to take a closer look. The scene was about a pair of boyfriend and girlfriend who were madly in love. After a fierce fight, the girl got drunk alone.
Ji Qingqing was slightly stunned.
This scene was familiar to her, so familiar that it couldn’t be any more familiar.
“I’ll give you two minutes to prepare. You can use this bottle of wine as your prop,” said the director, pointing to the bottle of wine on the desk.
Ji Qingqing nodded lightly and familiarized herself with the plot of the script.
In fact, there were no lines, mainly because the main focus in this scene was the heroine’s mood.
Ji Qingqing hadn’t seriously studied acting, so she didn’t actually know how she was supposed to play the role of someone who had lost herself to drunkenness.
But as she recalled the sensation of getting drunk last night, she took a deep breath, twisted off the bottle cap, and drank the wine.
She took a big gulp and let it sit in her mouth. Her eyes were blank as she stared vacantly at the space in front of her. Her face was devoid of emotions.
Half a second later, she seemed to have come back to her senses, slowly swallowing the wine in her mouth. Her eyes appeared to be a bit sour, so she slightly moved her gaze away, blinked her eyes, and reached to rub them.
As she rubbed her left eye and looked at the mobile phone on the table to her right, her chin trembled slightly, feeling a little aggrieved.
She suddenly lifted the bottle and chugged a large amount of wine, swallowing it down in one go. When she put it down, her eyes became a little red.
It seemed that she finally couldn’t help her restlessness, so she held the mobile phone that had been silent for a long time.
For an entire night, he didn’t call or even message me once.
She couldn’t help but cover her eyes with both hands as she stared at the phone’s still-black screen, tears streaming down the cracks in her hands.
A rain of tears was silently shed.
She clenched her lower lip to stay silent, her shoulders shook, and her grip on the phone tightened. After taking a deep breath, she wiped her tears, composed herself, and looked at the phone and pressed the home button.
The phone was off.
Ji Qingqing was slightly stunned. She pressed the button again three times in a row, still, the screen remained dark.
The phone was automatically turned off because the battery ran out of power.
Ji Qingqing stood up abruptly. She had sat for too long and stood up too quickly, so her legs were numb – she stumbled.
Ji Qingqing grimaced in pain and rubbed her calves. She frantically searched the table for the charger. After a while, she finally found it, but due to her nervousness and anxiety, she struggled to plug it into the socket.
Ding—
She waited for her phone to turn on as soon as it began charging.
Five… ten… twenty… sixty…
The phone finally turned on.
The signal was restored, and the moment the WiFi was connected, countless messages and unsolicited phone messages popped up frantically from the phone screen.
As soon as the signal was restored and the phone was connected to the WiFi, the phone’s screen was flooded with a barrage of messages and notifications.
Ji Qingqing laughed as she carefully held the phone to her chest, her eyes sparkled like the stars.
Finally, she burst into tears.
“Cut—”
Applause immediately rang out. Director Ren applauded with undisguised appreciation of Ji Qingqing’s performane.
Although Ji Qingqing’s ten-minute performance just now did not have a single line, whether it was the capricious mood after being upset and drinking, or the panic after finding that the phone was out of power…
The contrast between the emotions before and after receiving her lover’s message, the rawness of her performance as well as the intensity she showed in the climax…
She seamlessly transitioned from one emotion to another!
Such a real performance may not be comparable to some veteran actors, but Ji Qingqing was still young and had a lot of hidden potential.
She indeed has the skill!
“That was such a brilliant performance!”
Ji Qingqing took a tissue to wipe away her tears and smiled humbly when she heard his words. “Director Ren flatters me too much.”
Lin Zhen’s eyes flashed with pride. “How about it, director? Isn’t she good?”
“Due to Director Zhou’s recommendation before, I had learned about Miss Ji’s acting skills. And what I saw today proved what he said. Miss Ji really didn’t match the rumors online.”
“Director Ren, rumors are just based on groundless talks, do you really believe it?”
Director Ren laughed merrily. “The rumors are indeed not credible! Miss Ji’s acting skills are very good, she met my standards, to say the least.”
“Then Qingqing, she…”
Director Ren nodded his head. “As long as Miss Ji is willing, I can arrange her entry into the group right away and the contract will be drawn up as soon as possible.”
Lin Zhen laughed and gave Ji Qingqing a knowing look.
Ji Qingqing understood and smiled.