Before receiving the news of the interview, I didn't know much about Shen Tai, so I went to read his works, interviews and social platforms. With a lot of "hearsay", come to the day of direct communication.
Listening to his well-written lines tell his state of mind, many "conjectures" are broken at this moment.
"Time has passed for a long time, I can't remember what I said myself, but you really found it, asked very professional questions, gave me a short time to prepare, and today will really be nervous." 」
The next interview, as he said, will be silent for a few seconds because of thinking, will repeatedly consider the words until accurate, and I can reach his sincerity across the screen.
Shen Tai accepted early that flowers fell on his head, and the first male no. 1 work stood out in the national sea selection in the second year of entry;
He also realized early on that luck is not sustainable, and the so-called "sky high and thick" was broken by the first experience, and the reverence for the performance was carved into the bones at that time.
This tense power allows him to recognize his profession more rationally, overcome some moments of slack and wavering, and refrain from waiting for the flowers to blossom.
01 The restrained aesthetic behind the performance
The chat begins with his new play Sleeping Garden.
Shen Tai, who has good facial features and a tough look, has played many positive roles in the past, and is mainly responsible for the "fear" part in this "sweet terror drama", occasionally flashing a black shadow until the suspense is finally unveiled.
Lin Shen (Gong Jun) accidentally killed the eldest brother, and in order to avenge his brother, he kidnapped his lover Xiao Xiao (Qiao Xin) and asked them to atone for his brother's death.
There are not many scenes behind this boss scene, only a final glimpse is needed to make the ending of the whole play stand up.
Who can fulfill this "dancing with shackles" requirement? Director Zang Xichuan thought of Shen Tai, and in the past the two collaborated on a "Great Chinese Medicine", and he was deeply impressed by his temperament of good and evil.
Late at night the day before entering the group, Shen Tai waited for the director in the hotel, "Do you have time after work?" Let's talk about the characters. "That night, they talked a lot about the character's native family, about why they fell into paranoia step by step, all of which didn't appear on the two-page script.
Between small talks, Shen Tai thought of the third uncle of "Infernal Affairs 2", killed people, in the wind, leaned against the car, and played a harmonica "Friendship Lasts Forever" with a serious face.
Perhaps, the nursery rhyme that the eldest brother often sings to the younger brother can also be played at this moment? Shen Tai suggested that it is best to interpret it in the way of "whistling".
He did not shy away from being inspired by his predecessors, in fact, Shen Tai had only finished watching actor Zhang Songwen's film appreciation class a while ago. Nortel graduated from the same school, and Zhang Songwen was Shen Tai's brother-in-law.
On the road to the birth of the actor, the classic masterpiece is worth watching repeatedly, he listened to Zhang Songwen's "online lesson", and found many details that had not been paid attention to before, so he sent a message to express his gratitude.
This should be one of the few moments he is happy to express.
Flipping through Shen Tai's social platform, you will probably think that he has left the entertainment circle and lived an ordinary life. In fact, in the most silent year, he only updated one piece of content, and at the same time, he immersed himself in the crew and made three film and television works.
On the one hand, there is constant inward expression, and on the other hand, there is a simple life day after day.
Shen Tai understands that the income level of actors is higher than that of ordinary people, and he does not have too many worldly desires to eat, drink and enjoy himself, but fortunately he is not overwhelmed by the burden of reality.
He repeatedly watched the classic old films of the past, and could capture different feelings every year;
He likes to read biographies of people, and two pages may condense a person's life;
He moved the equipment into his home and prepared a simple version of the gym for systematic training four times a week.
Fitness, reading books, pulling tablets, finding regularities in irregular work.
He slowly felt that "restraint" was a kind of beauty.
Learn to control desires in life.
Although we all know that people instinctively try to enjoy themselves and do things well when they lie down, Shen Tai is the same, and there will be a small struggle before each workout, encouraging himself to "usher in the next heart-rending lungs and enjoy the final happiness."
Performance requires more "control".
When he first went to school, he would always think that "good performance" was about equal to "explosive power", crying to tear his heart and lungs, laughing and eager to show his back teeth. However, "people will subconsciously correct their own performance", sadness will not be able to stop taking a deep breath, embarrassment will pretend that nothing happened, "the more control the more can impress people", Shen Tai stressed.
02 Broken and standing
When I asked him, how will he explain himself after experiencing a low tide period?
Shen Tai smiled: "I have always felt that my life does not have a climax. ”
For him, behind the "climax period" is self-satisfaction and oblivion. Compared with the big ups and downs, Shen Tai prefers the long flow of thin water.
Shy by nature, there is no one in the family who is engaged in this industry, and his father does not believe that he can be a good actor, if he had not met Cui Xinqin, the acting teacher who once had the wisdom to pick Huang Xiaoming, he would not have embarked on the road of acting with a blank piece of paper.
Freshman year has the honor of playing a small role in "Wrong Love" and becoming a "child of other people's families" in the circle of moms and colleagues, but Shen Tai's self-evaluation is merciless:
"It's hot, it's bad."
In the face of the phenomenon of traffic dominance, he did not have anger and criticism from the class, and the familiar "self-doubt" returned to the body.
The first play was with Xu Fan and Jiang Yiyan, who were so nervous that they couldn't even say bad words, "I'm probably the little fresh meat in the hearts of those old actors." ”
Such an evaluation may be attributed to his first starring work, "Glass Love".
Actor Yu Kexin and Andy Lau's past love journey, written into a book called "Love Sea Starry Sky", and adapted it into a TV series based on this book, because the prototype of the hero in the play is a well-known superstar, the film side haixuan once attracted a great response.
In the end, Shen Taiyin was elected as "a pair of talking eyes".
At that time, he was still a sophomore at Nortel, and in the face of pie falling from the sky, he felt that everything was naturally beautiful. But reality once again dealt a cruel blow.
Working with experienced mature actresses, Qing astringent as he found himself as if he didn't know anything, insomnia all night, acne all over his face, and most importantly, he had "lost his instincts" by really listening to and really seeing what he felt.
Shen Tai still remembers: "My self-confidence is so arrogant. ”
This memory is a sword of Damocles, hanging at all times, supervising him to walk on thin ice and pour out his strength.
Later, he went crazy for "The Sun Is Like Me", learned to make cocktails for "Daughter Red", and consulted workers for the textile drama of "Cloth World".
Talking about "Wei Zifu", he thought of the last scene, the "Wei Qing" played by himself passed away, and the "Wei Zifu" played by Wang Luodan faced the bad news.
The "general" had to wear three layers of armor inside and three outer layers, and the "sick" needed to lie in a thick quilt, which was the hottest summer in Hengdian's nearly sixty years, and the lights shone and the temperature of the studio was close to the sauna.
Shen Tai's eyes were tightly closed, and he listened to the voice in his ear: "This side must be cleared... Stand a little over there... The lights are a little less..." He forgot the passage of time, and his consciousness drifted away, fluttering and flickering.
Suddenly, it felt like someone was shouting and pounced on me.
As soon as he opened his eyes, Wang Luodan was acting in tears, and he immediately closed his eyes again.
"You scared me to death, the corpse!"
Shen Tai recounted Wang Luodan's reaction after filming this scene, and I could feel that he was happy, taking this as a small story after tea and dinner, and "suffering" was just a hasty background.
This is also his requirement for himself, the minimum duty of being an actor, hoping that the audience will see himself on an idea, "déjà vu", like the so-and-so seen around him.
But Shen Tai hopes that the director will think that his performance is "accurate", and has set a small goal: he hopes to get the director's approval through hard work and is willing to cooperate with me again.
Looking back at Shen Tai's acting career, from small roles to male protagonists, the role is light or heavy, but before reaching the peak of the industry and mastering the right to speak, the profession of actor is always passive, there were directors and producers before, and now the platform has the final say.
Faced with the question of "do you want to be red", he confessed his desires.
This "desire" is not a material desire. Behind the "red", more audiences know you, are given more choices, and have the capital to let everyone give you opportunities.
Shen Tai does not want to be positioned: "I can play the main melody, I can also play the costume sweet pet, I can play the policeman or the bad guy..."
Actors always want to play good roles that are three-dimensional and plump, and if you like it, there are definitely many people who like it. He regretted every role he missed.
"This play, I had hope, read the script very much, has imagined a lot of details for the characters..." Added their own color, but could only miss it.
Speaking of first silence, then a laugh with a sigh.
Looking at the atmosphere a little low, he changed back to a gentle and positive look:
"It's a bit cruel to say, but that's the reality, it's about acceptance!"
He thought about participating in reality shows, but worried that the audience would have a preconceived sense of withdrawal; he also rejected some commercial live broadcasts, worried that the energy could not be taken into account, "definitely not that he did not want to make money, not that he had a vendetta against money", he added with a raised voice.
The aroma of wine is also afraid of the deep alley, so let's rely on the word of mouth of old customers.
Don't forget the original intention, make a good relationship, let the director be willing to cooperate with himself next time, this should be the best answer he has ever thought of, for those who are cautious.
03 Hedgehog
The youthful spirit of the past has also been precipitated for more comprehensive consideration.
Sometimes it is inevitable to encounter some situations that cannot be controlled by themselves, and I obviously do not want to mention the old things again, and I can't stand the other party to turn over this stubble.
In the face of the outside world's rumors, Shen Tai did not move for two reasons.
He said he hated any "pun" he said.
"If you want to respond, be generous, and if you don't respond, don't pretend to be fake, let everyone guess."
Naturally, I don't want to be the beginning of some fantasy.
"Not responding doesn't mean acquiescing, but I don't want to involve anyone else anymore."
Until the end, my incompetent interviewer did not ask the question buried in my heart: If I were to repeat it, would I still choose this way?
Teenagers are changed by the years, but there are also some things that "must not be lost".
At the end of the interview, he talked about the actor's personal life for the audience also has a leading role, probably feeling that he is too serious, and once again seriously emphasized:
"It's a bit of a mission to say, but I want to be a decent person, be a good person, and tighten myself from time to time."
We can't easily abandon good thoughts and persistence because they haven't received feedback for the time being, and find a seemingly self-consistent reason for the beggars, blind obedience, and depravity.
The ancient Greek poet Algirokus had an old adage that the fox knows many things, while the hedgehog knows only one big thing.
Shen Tai is about a hedgehog.