"Director Wong Kar-wai knows and knows the actors too well, what actor doesn't want to be beautiful in front of the camera? He will discover the beauty of the actor and use light to enhance the beauty of the actor. "At the end of the year and the beginning of the year, Shi Yihong, the Mei School of the Shanghai Peking Opera Company, has been busy performing in other places. "Flowers" was broadcast, and Shi Yihong only had time to watch six or seven episodes. As soon as the "Teacher Shi" she played in "Flowers" appeared, screenshots and feedback from relatives, friends and fans flew in from all directions. In the play, it is ridiculed that the building where "Teacher Shi" lives is the "building of unrequited lovers", which was quickly spread by netizens, and Shi Yihong also knew about it.
Shi Yihong plays "Teacher Shi" in "Flowers"
Shi Yihong, who was performing in Chengdu, recalled to a reporter from Jiefang Daily and Shangguan News that in 2019, she received an invitation to "Flowers", "The director said, Mr. Shi, can you help me play a role? There is no script, and I don't explain what kind of role it is." Filmed in the early autumn of 2021, when trying on makeup, Wong Kar-wai told Shi Yihong to play the middle school teacher "Teacher Shi", "Teacher Shi is biased towards literary and artistic young people and likes opera. ”
"Teacher Shi" appeared in episodes 13, 14, and 17 of "Flowers". In a few minutes of footage, Shi Yihong filmed in Zhangyuan on Maoming Road for two days, "A lot of cars came on the second day of my shooting, and after filming, I had to withdraw the props and so on, and end the shooting of Zhangyuan." Her neighbor is also the Shanghai painter Chen Yiming, "The character has the shadow of an actor, Chen Yiming is painting, and I am singing." I think the director wants to tie us together and 'play'. ”
When it came to the official shooting, Shi Yihong still didn't get the script, and the actors were familiar with this typical Wong Kar-wai style. On the first day, it was her and Hu Ge's rivalry, "The director told me that Mr. Bao, played by Hu Ge, was going to come in later, and the door was open." Hu Ge is a stranger, so you have to be vigilant. How will a stranger react when they break into your home? ”
Different states of "Teacher Shi"
Different states of "Teacher Shi"
"Although Hu Ge's face is unfamiliar, he is in a suit and leather shoes, and he doesn't look like a bad guy, and at that time, many people lived together, and the neighbors could see it cooking, so I didn't need to be afraid. The first time, Shi Yihong softened his attitude towards Hu Ge who broke in, "The director came over and said, Mr. Shi, a stranger broke into your house, would you be so gentle to others? I said, it depends on the object, Hu Ge is very clean, it looks like finding the wrong door, I don't need to be fierce." The director asked me to play a more vigilant response, which was a little more powerful. Then, I was a little stronger, spoke a little faster, and then repeatedly adjusted the ratio of 'fierce' and 'gentle', and took a lot of shots. In the end, he thinks that what I understand is the most comfortable reaction. ”
Shi Yihong and Hu Ge
"The director needs the actors to try a lot of performances, and finally choose the one that everyone thinks is good. He gave me a lot of possibilities, and I was free to try it, which was very interesting for an actor. "After every shot, Shi Yihong was summoned by Wong Kar-wai to watch the camera playback," he pointed out to me, for example, in the lens, 'Mr. Shi' raised his gaze too high, making it appear that there were more whites of his eyes, and his gaze was a little lower, which was better. Of course I'm willing to shoot again, and I'm very happy to shoot it perfectly. To make a good film, the director's effort and effort is worth it. He is very careful, and he places small props like butterfly cakes by himself. When the footage was played, I was stunned, there was no need for post-production, the scene was very beautiful, the use of light and shadow was exquisite, exquisite, and so beautiful. ”
Flashing shots from the play
A variety of props were prepared at the shooting site
The crew also took Shi Yihong's photos of various periods as part of the "Teacher Shi" home
The crew also took Shi Yihong's photos of various periods as part of the "Teacher Shi" home
The scene filmed by Shi Yihong on the second day of Zhang Yuan is that "Teacher Shi" sits alone at home, drinking tea and listening to the play, waiting lonely. "The director said that 'Teacher Shi' is waiting for someone, and he doesn't know what kind of person it is, but the actor must have someone in his heart. The director's characteristic is that there are many things hidden, where does 'Mr. Shi' come from, what kind of experience and emotions does he have, what kind of person he is waiting for, and whether this person is coming behind or not, everyone doesn't know, this is very 'Wong Kar-wai'. He doesn't do it very 'realistically', which coincides with the virtuality of opera, where opera actors sometimes don't ask about the ins and outs of the plot, and 'don't seek to understand everything', we rely on the imagination built together with the audience to see the whole story and picture. It's the same with "Flowers", I don't have to ask the director a lot, the basic concept and outline of the character are there, and I know how to act in the process. ”
"The Drunken Concubine" and "Suolin Bag" echo the mood of the tenants of the "Unrequited Lovers' House".
In "Flowers", Shi Yihong sang the famous Peking Opera "The Drunken Concubine" and "Suolin Bag", "Many fans said that it is related to the development of the plot and the emotions of the characters, which is particularly appropriate." Shi Yihong went to the recording studio to record "The Drunken Concubine", but what everyone didn't expect was that "Suo Lin Bag" was sung by her on the spot, without post-production.
"The director said, Mr. Shi, you have a piece of "Suo Lin Bag" 'This is unpredictable in this life', walked from the tape recorder to the window, and sang this paragraph. I just did as he said, and sang while doing it, and I didn't open my voice. I thought that there would definitely be another dubbing in the later stage, but it didn't, and what was released in the play was the simultaneous sound of the scene. Now that I listen to it again, fortunately, "Suolin Bag" is quite passable. ”
After two days of filming, Wong Kar-wai said to Shi Yihong, "If you have time in the future, please come and shoot again." "Shi Yihong is curious about what else to shoot," the director said, wanting to give 'Mr. Shi' an ending, such as having a long-range back, seeing 'Mr. Shi' walking out of the building, he didn't think about what it would look like, and he would talk about it later. Later, he didn't look for me, a very Wong Kar-wai work ending. ”
Editor-in-chief: Shi Chenlu Image source: Courtesy of the interviewee
Source: Author: Zhuge Yi