This Star Only Wants More Money - Chapter 42

“Teacher Xu Feng has a bit of humor in him.” “He’s not as cold as I imagined.”

Xu Feng wondered what was humorous about what he said and why people thought he was aloof. Wasn’t he just stating the facts? Could it be that his previous behavior wasn’t aloof but rather a case of finishing his tasks and clocking out afterward?

As they continued to get to know each other and familiarize themselves with the environment, half an hour quickly passed.

Director Song glanced at his watch, stood up, and clapped his hands forcefully, shouting, “Alright, everyone, it’s time! Take your positions! Let’s aim to finish this episode today!”

With a flurry of movement, the crew both inside and outside the set sprang into action. Xu Feng, feeling a bit lost, walked over and gently reminded Director Song, “Director Song, have you perhaps forgotten what I’m supposed to be doing here?”

Director Song, holding a clapperboard with a long rectangular script on it, chuckled as he patted Xu Feng on the shoulder, “No rush, no rush. Just take a look at the general style of our drama first and see if it inspires some creativity for your composition.”

“If you can’t come up with something, we’ll just pick one of the unreleased songs you already have; you won’t have made this trip for nothing. We’ll sign the confidentiality agreement after we wrap up for the day, so there’s no hurry!”

Xu Feng immediately understood what the director meant. Composing a song that matches the style of the drama would yield a different reward than simply having the production team choose one of his existing songs as a safe option.

“Alright.” Xu Feng also wanted to see if he could complete the system’s task by mixing with the crew, so he didn’t refuse. “I’ll take a look first.”

Director Song nodded, glanced at the set preparations, and asked, “Do you need us to arrange for some musicians to help you with the production? We’re on a tight schedule, so some of the tedious work could be handed over to others. The production team won’t have any conflict over copyrights with you.”

Creating a studio version of a song is more complicated than it seems, especially when it comes to arranging harmonies and scores for different instruments — it’s a heavy workload. Having a professional team would significantly improve efficiency.

“No need, I can handle it myself,” Xu Feng politely declined and then asked, “After filming is done, how soon will the drama be released? It seems like there’s some urgency for the song.”

“We have contracts with several companies, and the release can’t be delayed for too long,” Director Song explained briefly. “We aim to release it within half a month after filming ends, no later than a month at the latest. So if you need a team, just let us know, and we’ll do our best to support you.”

Releasing the drama just half a month after shooting ends… that was a bit different from what Xu Feng had expected.

Xu Feng nodded slightly, “That is indeed quite a tight timeline.”

For a rush job, he ought to charge extra!

Director Song thought Xu Feng was giving him a heads-up and laughed, patting Xu Feng’s shoulder again, “We understand it’s a big challenge, and composing needs inspiration. A song can’t just be written on demand, so don’t pressure yourself. This is a small-scale production; we don’t need a world-class hit.”

After saying that, he glanced at the prepared set, nodded, and said, “Feel free to look around here. We’re about to start shooting the next scene, so I need to get back to work.”

Reaching the set, Director Song immediately switched from his friendly demeanor to a serious, focused state, directing the on-site shooting.

Xu Feng took the opportunity to observe the scene.

As Director Song had mentioned, this modern urban martial arts drama revolved around the disciples of various schools competing against each other in a contemporary setting, even including some foreign martial arts factions, all vying for supremacy.

The main characters, of course, started their journey from a once-glorious but now-declining sect.

The plot was fairly conventional, but if you accepted the premise, it was actually quite engaging.

This was Xu Feng’s first time closely observing a proper film set, and watching how the actors performed.

After observing for about ten minutes, Xu Feng came to a conclusion: acting well in front of a camera was not as easy as it seemed.

It was completely different from the imagined scenario of posing in front of a camera and playing dress-up according to a character’s setting.

Sometimes, an actor must cry genuinely, roll on the ground, or perform some deeply embarrassing acts under the gaze of countless people without any emotional cues.

If someone could feel embarrassed about being exposed for what they posted on QQ ten years ago, how much more embarrassing would it be to display their awkwardness in public?

The scene presented on set was entirely different from what was edited and presented to the audience… How could they show the correct emotions in such a mismatched environment?

When an actor finds something funny but has to cry with gut-wrenching sorrow without showing a hint of laughter, it’s always a significant test of their acting skills and mental resilience.

Without fully immersing themselves in their character, any performance would feel disconnected.

This is why many people often criticize and ridicule young idols and internet celebrities who try their hand at acting on the big screen.

Being an idol and being an actor are two completely different professions.

“Fortunately, I have this mercenary system. Otherwise, I can’t imagine how thick my skin would have to be,” Xu Feng muttered as he circled back to the set.

Just after a short walk, Xu Feng noticed that the atmosphere on the set seemed a bit tense.

It looked like they were encountering some issues.

Xu Feng immediately moved closer.

Director Song, looking displeased, closed the clapperboard in his hand and shouted, “Cut! No, the coffee shop waiter’s expression and actions are all wrong. It doesn’t evoke the strong feeling of animosity we need. The subsequent scenes won’t connect properly. Let’s redo it!”

“Cut! It’s the same problem again. Do it over.”

“Cut…”

“Let’s take a short break. I think everyone’s mindset is off right now. Have a drink, relax a bit. Today, my only requirement is to get this scene done.”

Just as Xu Feng was watching with interest, someone tapped his shoulder.

Yan Wei, sporting a doll-like face and an aura of cuteness, had appeared behind him at some point, holding a large cup of milk tea. She spoke in a very soft voice, “Teacher Xu Feng, have you found your inspiration yet?”

Inspiration? As long as the money is in place, inspiration will come naturally.

Xu Feng glanced at her and casually replied, “Not exactly… What’s going on with your scene? Running into some trouble?”

Yan Wei assumed Xu Feng meant that inspiration wouldn’t come so quickly, so she nodded deeply and pointed to the few people on set who were in a tizzy, “Teacher Xu Feng, don’t rush; the more anxious you are, the harder it is to find the right mindset. That’s exactly what’s happening to them now.”

“The extra who was supposed to play a role in this scene was coming today, but there was a typhoon, and his flight got canceled… And it seems like the student extras just can’t deliver the kind of irrational, blood-pressure-raising attitude needed for the waiter’s role, so the whole scene is stuck here.”

“By the way, Teacher Xu Feng, with your looks, have you ever thought about developing a career in acting?”