In April 2018, at the 37th Hong Kong Academy Awards ceremony, the person who triggered the climax of the scene was not Gu Tianle, who won the film emperor for the first time in 25 years, but a "tea aunt" who dressed plainly and looked ordinary.
When she went on stage to receive the award, all the directors and actors on the scene stood up in unison, they stood up and applauded her, stood to see her receive the award, and stood to listen to her thank you speech.
This aunt, 68-year-old Yang Ronglian, known as Pauline (Sister Lian), received the "Professionalism Award".
It is understood that the "Professionalism Award" was added by the Hong Kong Film Awards Association in 1990 to commend those behind-the-scenes workers who have made outstanding contributions to the Hong Kong film industry, such as lighting engineers, photographers, editors, etc.
But this time, it was awarded to an old aunt who did not even have the end of the film's signature to "pour tea and pour water", what did she rely on?
In 1950, Yang Ronglian was born in Macau, China. When she was a child, her family was poor and there were many brothers and sisters, and she dropped out of school at the age of 10.
At the age of 12, when someone was still spoiled in the arms of her parents, Yang Ronglian had entered the factory as a female worker, earning money to subsidize the family.
She has done a lot of work, one of the hardest jobs is to make mosquito coils, at that time the mosquito coils are toxic, heavy taste, the whole factory, is the smell of mosquitoes, both unpleasant and harmful, everyone is bitter. But there was no way to escape, after all, there were many people and few jobs in those years, and it was not easy to have a job to do.
At the age of 16, Yang Ronglian had her own small family, and her life was still difficult. Seeing that many people around her had smuggled into Hong Kong to seek a living, she took her newborn daughter to Hong Kong with her husband.
In the 60s and 70s, Hong Kong was already an international metropolis, prosperous and inclusive, but not everywhere gold.
When she first came to Hong Kong, Yang Ronglian's family lived on a boat. Eating on the boat, living on the boat, and finding some scattered work on the boat at the same time, after more than ten years, Yang Ronglian gave birth to four more children.
The family has more people, the cost is large, and it is always not good to nest on the boat, so Yang Ronglian and her husband went ashore to become a small trader, selling early and doing some other small business.
However, the Hong Kong police always have to come to drive them away, and Yang Ronglian often just set up a stall and sees that the police have to put away and run. On days like this, the income is very small, and it is difficult to maintain a living.
When I was worried, once Yang Ronglian's brother came to the house for dinner, learned that his brother was doing drama in the Hong Kong crew, there was a little network, Yang Ronglian's eyes lit up, so he asked his brother to take her to the crew to find a job.
At the beginning of entering the crew, Yang Ronglian did a "costume assistant", that is, to manage the actors' performance costumes, she did not read books, she could not read a few big characters, and this job was particularly difficult to do.
At this time, it happened that some directors said that they lacked a "tea worker" there, and in this way, Yang Ronglian officially started her tea water worker career.
Some people may think that the so-called "tea water worker" is not who is thirsty, pour a cup of water for whom, and then sit there and watch the stars. A super easy and simple job, what professionalism is needed? If you think so, you're dead wrong.
In the crew, Yang Ronglian did not have a fixed working area, every day she had to push a small heap truck, walk around on the set, see who needed tea, and take the initiative to hand it over.
A crew, from the director to the actors, is as few as dozens of people, as many as nearly a hundred. What each one likes to drink, when to drink, habitually drink hot or cold, do not need other daily necessities, to do everything, it is not easy.
This is not only to have good foot strength and good eyesight, but also to know how to observe words and colors.
When people are unhappy, you hand a water to ask if you want to drink, and you may find a scolding;
So many people, if they are not careful, take the wrong cup and have to be criticized again.
At first, because she didn't know the words and didn't know English, Yang Ronglian couldn't understand which cup was which person, so she was not less than thrown in the face, but she never got angry and still smiled and faced it.
On her first day in the industry, the producer said to her, you just need to be in charge of the director and the lead actors.
But Yang Ronglian found that the staff behind the scenes were more hard, they had no assistants, they did not have time to rest, no matter how hot it was, they had to carry the machine around all day long, and their clothes were often tired and wet.
Yang Ronglian, who was soft-hearted, thought: "It is not easy for everyone to come out and earn money, or prepare a few more sets of towels and water cups and take care of them together." ”
In this way, the entire crew, whether the other party is a big star, or a small supporting role, whether it is the front desk or the backstage, she has taken care of it together.
In the summer, she would boil some mung bean soup to relieve the heat and distribute it to everyone;
In winter, she makes an extra cup of hot tea for everyone to warm up;
No, just make some sauce and bento and give them to the crew to eat.
Jackie Chan once told reporters that the sauce made by Sister Lian was particularly delicious.
Once, when she wasn't on the crew, Asa said she was so thirsty that she couldn't get to work, she shouted "help."
Yang Qianye was thin and small when she first debuted, and every time Sister Lian saw her, she would ask her what she wanted to eat and drink, as long as she said it, Sister Lian would find a way to help her make it.
Sometimes when filming is tired and always NG, Yang Qianye will run to Sister Lian, complain to her, talk to her, at this time Sister Lian always listens quietly, and then pats her shoulder, gives her a hug, comforts her and encourages her, and lets her cheer.
Later, Yang Qianye became red, she said, seeing Sister Lian, it was like seeing her own mother.
Sister Lian is like this, treating every cast member in the crew as her own child. She takes care of everyone with motherly tenderness and care.
Over time, everyone is used to Sister Lian's care, and the crew must have her in order for everyone to feel at ease.
After the fame was made, more and more people were looking for Sister Lian, and sometimes, she went to several crews a day, got up at four o'clock in the morning to clean up, and came back in the dark at night.
The starting time of the crew is not fixed, the location is also random, she has never shouted bitterness, called tired, she thinks in her heart, there is income for work, and there is income to be grateful.
In 1991, Mei Yanfang and Andy Lau worked together on two films.
The crew filmed two scenes in a row, filming for seven days and seven nights, and Yang Ronglian also did not return home for seven days and seven nights, and has been busy on the set.
Recalling this experience, Sister Lian said: "After returning home, it was really like death, as soon as I got home, I collapsed on the sofa and fell asleep, and slept for two days before getting up. ”
No matter whether it is sunny or rainy, the wind and the sun, where the crew is, Where Sister Lian is.
Just like that, day by day, year by year, 30 years have passed in a flash.
Although several of her children have grown up and the family is not as poor as before, Sister Lian is still reluctant to leave her job.
She said that if you get used to it, you will be uncomfortable if you don't move, and if you don't ask anyone to do it all the time, then don't do it.
Over the years, she has served countless big stars, such as Zhang Guorong, Andy Lau, Gong Li... There are also Xie Tingfeng and others, And Sister Lian is a big star who has watched them grow from a green appearance to a red half of the sky.
Over the years, she has met and cared for stars, directors, producers, and finally formed a deep friendship with her.
Therefore, when she learned that the organizing committee of the 37th Academy Awards planned to award the "Professionalism Award" to Sister Lian, everyone was happy for her.
In the live broadcast VCR, a group of stars expressed their gratitude to Sister Lian.
Yuan Yongyi said: "Sister Lian will definitely take good care of you, will ask you what to eat, and then prepare you";
Wu Zhenyu said: "I thought that all 'tea' was called Pauline, and her name has become synonymous with 'tea', which is the unsung hero." ”
Jackie Chan even flew back to Hong Kong to present her awards, personally pressed the wheat for her, and thanked the conference:
"Some people may not have noticed her presence during filming, but you call for help when she's not on set. When I heard that Sister Lian had won the award, I was obliged to fly back. ”
Sister Lian let us know that doing a line, loving a line, day by day, what you love, will embrace you in turn.
When I was a child, everyone wanted to do a big career, and when I grew up, I realized that in fact, there are very few people who really do big things. Most people are in humble positions, doing humble work.
Sister Lian has no culture, no more opportunities, pouring tea and water for decades, but won the "Professionalism Award", and a group of stars stood for her.
Life is long, and what makes a person is not how many skills you have and how many opportunities you have seized, but the days and nights when you are on a road and buried in your head.
As in the case, Sister Lian.
Resources:
Beijing Daily, "Yang Ronglian's Self-Description";
A video "Simple and extraordinary, she insisted on pouring water for 30 years and won the Hong Kong Film Awards"
-END-
Author: Li Jinhua
EDIT: Grass
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