My Wife Is a Superstar (Ning Tan)

Chapter 862

Chapter 862 Her Limits

It was actually harder to film a music video than a television show.

Both television shows and films had scripts, so even if the actors' non-verbal performances were subpar, they still would have their lines to let the audience know what the actors were trying to show.

Therefore, many mediocre actors who wanted to display anger and sorrow in their performance would resort to screaming their lines.

However, that was not something that would work in music videos, for music videos were short clips. The visuals were only there to support the audio. In other words, the script would not be long.

Furthermore, while some music videos had plots, some did not. Some were only performances of certain emotions, and some were even ambiguous visuals whose meaning was left to the audience to interpret.

Those videos required more from the actors. They would need the actors to know what the director and the song wanted to portray.

Therefore, Ning Ran surprised Xie Dazui. He had not told her anything yet, nor did he hand her any script, but it seemed like she already knew what the concept of the song was and had gone into the role of a middle school teacher.

A white shirt. A pair of simple black pants and shoes. A faint smile. A solemn but kind look. An austere demeanor. A scholarly style.

That was the beautiful teacher that youths would adore. They would have both respect and fear for her, but they would want to see her too. They would want to get closer to her, but they would not have the courage to cross the line because behind the love they had for her was a stronger respect.

Xie Dazui thought, How did this girl know that this is the image I'm looking for? Could it be that she can read minds? Oh, wait, no. It's not that. It's because she's a professional and she's talented.

Talent was what set the upper limit of a person's capabilities in their profession.

A person without the talent of acting could reach the minimum standards of acting through hard work, but talent, or lack thereof, meant they would only go so far. It would be close to impossible for them to become the top actor.

Of course, there were tons of awards nowadays that could be bought with money. Achievements completed via cheating would not count.

Another group of people was the talented people. They lived to act, and even if they did not have any professional training, they could still act perfectly.

With hard work, those talented people would break through others' records and become the top actors and masters of the field.

Xie Dazui was a director who often took on music video jobs, so he came into contact with stars all the time. Yet, there were few who he thought could actually act, and the woman in front of him was one of the rare few.

“Okay, let's start. In the first scene, you'll be walking into the classroom from the outside. You'll look at the empty classroom and pause for a few seconds before leaving,” Xie Dazui instructed.

The music video had a simple script, but Xie Dazui had decided there and then to tell Ning Ran what to do instead of giving her the script.

Ning Ran nodded.

The camera started rolling, and Ning Ran came and raked her gaze across the room as the sunlight filtered in through the windows.

Somehow, the simple white shirt on her managed to accentuate her beauty.

The gaze in Ning Ran's eyes was a peaceful one tinged with nostalgia. When she swept her eyes across the empty chairs and tables, a sense of melancholy filled in the air.

It was not sorrow portrayed by tears but by the look in her eyes.

Despite there being no tears in Ning Ran's eyes, everyone at the site could sense her heartache.

Then, when she turned around, her demeanor and the way she walked changed.

“Cut!” Xie Dazui cried out, wrapping up the first scene.

There were no failed takes at all.

The staff members quickly shared a look with each other, confused.

This had never happened before. Xie Dazui was a notoriously picky man, and it was a miracle if someone could wrap up a scene in less than ten takes.

However, Ning Ran managed to wrap up the scene with just one take. The staff was gripped with shock. Content provided by NôvelDrama.Org.

Even Shi Jie was dumbfounded. Xie Dazui had been disgruntled about the change in actress previously, so he thought that Xie Dazui would make things hard for Ning Ran. Yet, he had let Ning Ran pass after one take.

Did he finally grow a conscience and is now walking toward the light?

Right then, Xie Dazui waved at Ning Ran, gesturing for her to review her scene.

Ning Ran's heartbeat quickened as she wondered if the director was going to start hurling curses at her.

“Did you know what idea I wanted you to perform earlier? What were you thinking when you were doing the scene?” Xie Dazui asked.

Ning Ran became a little flustered. “No one gave me a script, and I heard that you were prone to impromptu performances, so I thought there wasn't a script this time. Did I interpret this wrongly?”

“Just tell me how you understood the scene earlier,” Xie Dazui urged.

“The classroom is empty, and I'm walking in from the outside. So that means it's now either the holidays or after-class hours. The teacher must either be transferring or going on a break if she comes in at this time. Moreover, the absence won't be a short one, so she must be thinking of getting a last look at the place where she and her students spent time together at. Therefore, I understood the scene as a scene of nostalgia and a reluctance to part. If she's changing her job, she might feel sad, but it won't be melancholy.”

Once Ning Ran was done saying her piece, she kept her gaze away from Xie Dazui, for she did not know whether or not she was right.

However, Xie Dazui was staring at her with a strange look.

“Director Xie, was she right? We've never filmed a music video before, so please be patient with her if anything isn't quite right,” Wang Xiaoou chimed in.

All of a sudden, Xie Dazui laughed.

It came all of a sudden, and no one knew what that meant.

“In that case, we'll shoot two more takes. One will be based on the scenario in which you're leaving the country for further studies, so you won't be coming back. Another would be a transfer to a different school, so you can still come back once in a while. No, that's not enough. I want another. The third would be that you're not transferring—that you're only on a break. You're going to marry, and you'll be leaving for a while. Once your leave is over, you'll be coming back to work. Can you film these three different styles?”

That felt like the director was trying to put Ning Ran in a tight spot. Even though the setting was

different, there was no script, and it was going to be the action.

Her skills in performance were truly getting put to the test.

“But didn't you say her first take was fine? Why does she need to shoot three more?” Even Shi Jie felt that Xie Dazui was trying to make things difficult for Ning Ran.

“Don't butt in. It's not your turn yet,” the director uttered.

However, Ning Ran did not think that the director was putting her in a tough spot. She felt that the director was testing her limits to find out how well she could act.

Hence, she accepted the challenge. “I'll try it out, then. Please spare me some tips if I don't perform them well.”

Xie Dazui waved his hand and said, “Gather up. We're starting now.”