As national-class actors who are well-known at home and abroad, He Saifei and Xu Fan have established remarkable achievements in their acting careers. However, in the recent hit dramas, they have been questioned and criticized by the audience for their exaggerated performances. This situation reflects that contemporary audiences have higher and higher requirements for actors' acting skills, and it is difficult to obtain the audience's recognition by virtue of titles and qualifications alone. How to maintain professional standards in the harsh market environment has become a topic worth pondering.
He Saifei won wide acclaim for his role as Yang Jiuhong in the classic work "Mansion Gate". Her superb acting skills, elegant demeanor and unique Yue Bai infuse this prostitute character with infinite charm. The audience's expectations for her have also risen. However, in the latest urban drama "Cheng Huan Ji", He Saifei's performance disappointed many audiences.
She plays Liu Wanyu, a snobbish and poor-mouthed mother in the play. The role is unpleasant in itself, but He Saifei seems to have taken it too extremely. She is often sad and aggressive, even on happy occasions without smiling. Some viewers bluntly said that He Saifei's performance was like "Kelly possessed", squeezing his eyebrows and making eyes, full of nervousness, which was unacceptable.
A similar situation happened to Xu Fan. In the family ethics drama "Fireworks", Xu Fan plays a contrived and moody mother, Meng Mingwei. She often speaks with a sharp voice and exaggerated expressions, which makes the audience feel very uncomfortable. Many netizens commented that Xu Fan's acting skills were too violent, and he really "drove away customers".
The two national first-class actors are in a similar dilemma when it comes to portraying the role of ordinary mothers in everyday life. They highlight the negative traits of the characters too much, resulting in an unbalanced and three-dimensional image. The audience could not empathize, but instead developed a strong antipathy.
This phenomenon is worth pondering: Is it because the screenwriter portrays the role of the mother too negatively, or is there a deviation in the actors' grasp of the day-to-day role? Or are our expectations of national actors too idealistic, ignoring the fact that they are also mortal?
Undoubtedly, playing ordinary characters in everyday life is a big challenge for veteran actors. They have long established a standardized "artistic image" on the stage and screen, and it is easy to exaggerate their daily roles. However, under the trend of rapid development of the contemporary film and television industry, the audience's requirements for actors are also increasing. Relying solely on qualifications and prestige cannot satisfy the audience, and the actors must change their thinking and experience the lifestyle of ordinary people with their hearts in order to make the characters more vivid and close to reality.
It's like a working-class audience, although they have also seen the glamour of high society in film and television works, but in the final analysis, what they want to see most is a scene similar to their living environment. If the actors can't show the details of life well, it will be difficult for the work to resonate with the general public.
There is no doubt that He Saifei and Xu Fan are both veteran actors who have been deeply involved in the stage for many years, and their dedication and contribution to the performing arts is undoubted. However, change in the film and television industry has always been relentless, and the practice of relying too much on the existing prestige is destined to be drowned by the torrent of the times. Therefore, how to keep pace with the times while adhering to their own style has become a major proposition in front of them.
Film and television works carry not only the artist's personal concept, but more importantly, the reflection of the ordinary people's life. Only when the actors feel the joys, sorrows, and sorrows of ordinary people with their hearts, and understand their inner entanglements and contradictions, can they show the ordinary daily life to the fullest. When the characters become vivid and credible in the eyes of the audience, the actors will truly realize the integration of art and life, and they will not be abandoned by the trend of the times.
For national first-class actors like He Saifei and Xu Fan, it is not a bad thing to face the challenge of civilian character building. Instead, this challenge forces them to re-examine their own ways of performing, to go beyond the established paradigm and to discover the possibilities of art in ordinary life situations. Only when you really "touch the ground" can you find the extraordinary in the ordinary; Only by getting closer to the audience can we win word-of-mouth and lasting recognition from the market.
This transformation process is bound to be tortuous, with setbacks and doubts. But as long as you insist on experiencing the true nature of life with your heart and refracting the excitement in the ordinary with the power of simple expression, the national first-class actors will eventually realize the sublimation of art on the road of civilianization and get a new stage of life.
Continuing with the challenges of democratization faced by actors at the national level:
In the context of rapid changes in the film and television industry, national first-class actors are facing unprecedented challenges and pressures. Audiences' expectations for acting skills are rising, and relying solely on seniority and titles is no longer recognizable. They were forced to change the traditional way of performing and strive to be close to the lifestyle and aesthetic orientation of ordinary people.
This transformation is not achieved overnight, and it will inevitably be accompanied by many pains. Accustomed to a staged or exaggerated performance style for a long time, it is easy for actors to be too contrived when dealing with everyday subjects. He Saifei and Xu Fan's poor performances in "Cheng Huan Ji" and "Pyrotechnics" are precisely the result of a lack of real experience of civilian life.
However, if the national first-class actors are complacent, self-contained, and insistent on staying the same, they may be abandoned by the torrent of the times. Film and television art must serve the public after all, and only by keeping up with the audience's aesthetic orientation can we win the favor of the market. Therefore, they must have the courage to break the old model and embrace the challenges of the transition to the common people.
This transformation is not achieved overnight, and it will inevitably be accompanied by many pains. However, only by constantly trying and adjusting can the actors really get close to life and be on the scene freely. The following are the points that national first-class actors should pay attention to:
First of all, observe and experience the lives of ordinary people. The essence of performing arts is a reflection of life, and only by going deep into life and getting close to the masses can actors truly understand the joys, sorrows and sorrows of ordinary people. They should step out of their comfort zone more, go into ordinary homes and factory workshops, and feel the most simple way of life with their hearts.
Second, maintain a humble and studious mindset. Even a senior national first-class actor is still a novice on the road to civilian performance. They should humbly seek advice from their excellent peers, humbly accept constructive opinions from the audience, and constantly improve and perfect themselves with an open mind.
Furthermore, pay attention to the cultivation of inner cultivation. Creating vivid everyday characters requires not only excellent skills, but also a deep understanding of human nature. In addition to performing, actors should read more excellent humanities works and continue to cultivate on the spiritual level, so as to fully show the inner world of the characters.
Finally, with enough patience and determination. The transformation of civilians is a long process, and it will inevitably be criticized and questioned in the short term. However, as long as they persevere and accumulate experience, the national first-class actors will eventually be able to make a breakthrough on this road and win wide recognition from the audience.
In general, the civilian challenge faced by national first-class actors is not an overnight thing. But as long as they keep an open mind, practice actively, and learn with an open mind, they will be able to sublimate art in the process and discover the extraordinary in the ordinary. Of course, the audience wants to see the actors' superb acting skills, but more importantly, sincere emotions and understanding of life. Only by truly understanding this can the national first-class actors make steady progress on the road of civilianization.
The challenge of civilian transformation faced by national first-class actors is by no means achieved overnight. But as long as they have a humble and studious attitude, are good at listening to the voices of the audience, and experience the lives of ordinary people with their hearts, they will be able to continue to make progress on this artistic path and win the recognition of more people.
From a historical point of view, artists have always been responsible for embodying the spirit of the times and leading aesthetic trends. In contemporary society, the public's understanding and cognition of fine art are constantly improving, and it is no longer possible to meet people's expectations by relying solely on the past creative model. Therefore, national first-class actors must keep pace with the times and take the initiative to embrace change.
At the heart of this change is a way of life that is close to the general public. An excellent actor should not only stay on the stage or exaggerated expression, but also strive to reflect the emotional world of ordinary people. Only by closely connecting with the thoughts and feelings of the masses can they discover extraordinary artistic value in the ordinary and win the resonance of the audience.
Of course, the transition from high art to close to life is a new challenge for veteran actors. They have long been accustomed to standardized stage performances, and it is easy to render their daily roles too contrived and exaggerated. That's why He Saifei and Xu Fan have been criticized in their latest works.
In the face of this dilemma, actors must have the courage to break the old model and relearn with humility. They should humbly seek advice from their peers, listen to the audience's pertinent opinions, and constantly sum up their experience in practice. More importantly, we should be more immersed in the lives of ordinary people, feel their joys, sorrows, and sorrows with our hearts, and understand the inner entanglements and contradictions.
Only when they are really close to life can the actors show the ordinary details completely, and can the audience suddenly have a sense of resonance with "this is the person around me". When the character image becomes vivid and believable, the audience will sincerely agree with the actor's performance, and art and life will truly be integrated.
This process is not achieved overnight, and it is bound to be accompanied by many pains. But as long as the actors keep an open mind and practice actively, they will be able to make continuous progress on the road of civilian transformation. After all, true artistic creation has always required artists to go through the world and appreciate the warmth and coldness of the world, in order to discover the extraordinary wonder in the ordinary.
The road to civilian transformation of national first-class actors also requires a lot of patience. In the short term, they may encounter criticism and skepticism, but as long as they persevere and accumulate experience, they will eventually achieve a breakthrough. Because the trend of the development of the times is unavoidable, relying solely on the prestige and seniority of the past is destined to be abandoned by the torrent of time.
On the contrary, only by keeping up with the pace of the times and actively embracing change can the actors maintain a positive interaction with the audience, so as to continuously improve their acting skills and witness the sublimation of art in the ordinary. In this process, they need to learn with humility enough, accept challenges with courage enough, and wait for results with patience enough.
Only when they really "touch the ground" can the actors discover extraordinary possibilities in their ordinary lives; Only by getting closer to the audience can we win word-of-mouth and long-term recognition of the market. This is not only a challenge for national first-class actors, but also a new opportunity.
There is no doubt that this road of civilian transformation is destined to be tortuous, but as long as we insist on experiencing the true nature of life with our hearts and refracting the excitement of life with the power of simple expression, the national first-class actors will be able to achieve artistic sublimation on this road and find a new stage among the common people.