Cui Jingfu played the "Eight Precepts of the Pig". (Courtesy of the interviewee)
Recently, in the college theater of Guangdong ATV Vocational College of Performing Arts, every night I saw an old man in his sixties, with a class of students, rehearsing a program, which was prepared to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding of New China, and this old man was Cui Jingfu, the actor of the "Eight Precepts of pigs" in the 98th edition of "Journey to the West". Choi, as one of the organizers of the evening, urges students to rehearse every day.
Artist turned teacher, Cui Jingfu worked quietly in Dongguan for more than 8 years. In 2005, Cui Jingfu retired from the Guangzhou Repertory Theatre and came to Dongguan twice to teach. "I'm content to be able to pass on the art I've experienced to them." Cui Jingfu said.
Choi King-fu
He is a teacher
Teaching artistic performance, "I am satisfied"
Guangdong ATV Vocational College of Performing Arts in Dongguan is a full-time general higher education institution. Before retiring, Cui Jingfu had never been to Dongguan; when he came to Dongguan to teach, he laughed and said that it was because of his friend's "teasing".
In 2005, Cui Jingfu retired from the Guangzhou Repertory Theatre and first took over a film. "Later, a friend of mine said to me, 'Teaching is fun, come here.'" In 2009, I came to Dongguan to teach. Cui Jingfu said with a smile, "Not long after coming, I think this is a bad decision, teaching is too tiring, unlike acting, you can rest for a while." At that time, he was the head of the acting department at Guangdong ATV Vocational College of Performing Arts, and his main job was teaching. However, Cui Jingfu's teaching is 8 years.
As an older generation, Cui Jingfu knows how to cherish the opportunity to learn. He said: "When I first came to school, compared with when we were studying, the learning atmosphere was not very strong. When the students learned that Cui Jingfu was the actor of the "Eight Precepts of the Pig", their learning attitude changed a lot. Cui Jingfu said: "Many students ran over, took a group photo, and the enthusiasm for learning has also increased a lot, and the children who come to learn to perform will also accept the recognition of their peers." ”
In 2016, Cui Jingfu briefly left the school until the fall of 2018, when he again served as the dean of the Guangdong ATV Performing Arts Vocational College. Not only teaching, but also this time I want to sort out the student training mechanism from the professional level, and multiple departments are once again integrated into second-level colleges. This collection of multiple majors, including acting, photography, costumes, makeup, and sound effects, has as many as 700 students. The burden on Cui Jingfu's shoulders was not easy.
As a performing artist, Choi Jingfu has played many famous roles and often flew around the world before retiring. But now Cui Jingfu has completely turned himself into an ordinary person, mingling with students all day long.
Cui Jingfu said he and his wife taught in Dongguan. Now every morning at 6:30 a.m., he will take the students to morning exercises, and then wash and eat after they are finished. "This is a set of scientific training methods, including body combing, vocal cord development, dynamic training and many other aspects. Students have to do movements while communicating, which is not a small difficulty. Cui Jingfu said, "Grasping the morning exercise is a good preparation for learning." ”
Cui Jingfu will give lessons to students every day, and the requirements for students are quite strict. In his opinion, if students want to become a great tool in the future, they need to learn the basic courses in school first. "I'm content with my life now, because I'm content to be with my kids and teach them the art I've experienced." Cui Jingfu said.
He is the "Eight Commandments of the Pig"
The nationwide search for the "Eight Precepts of the Pig" was fruitless, and the assistant director personally went into battle
As the assistant director of the "Journey to the West" sequel crew, Cui Jingfu once searched for the actor of the Eight Commandments of the Pig across the country, and finally prompted by various coincidences, he himself became the actor behind the mask of the "Eight Commandments of the Pig".
When the "Journey to the West" sequel crew was formed, it was immediately faced with the task of finding a pig eight commandments actor. "I looked for a long time, all over the country, I tried seven or eight actors, and the director didn't think it was okay." Cui Jingfu said that director Yang Jie did not match one and asked to continue to look for them; it cost a lot of money to find actors in the country, and after the crew was ready to start filming, they had to invest money in it every day, which was very stressful.
Under such circumstances, Cui Jingfu came to complain. He pointed to the "pig mask" and said, "Who wears this thing that is not the Eight Precepts of the Pig?" Why do you have to spend so much time looking for it? "Just then, the makeup artist was nearby. After listening to Cui Jingfu's complaint, Yang Jie said to the makeup artist: "Xiao Cui, come and try it, put it on him." After the makeup artist "dressed up", the pig head pig brain of the pig eight precepts appeared.
As soon as Yang Jie saw it, she immediately made a decision to let Cui Jingfu play the Eight Precepts of the Pig. After Cui Jingfu heard it, he thought the director was joking. Who knows, Yang Jie seriously asked him to put down the work of assistant director in his hand. Under this coincidence, Choi Jingfu became another interpreter of the classic role of pig eight precepts.
After deciding on the role, wang Xizhong, the makeup artist in the crew, hoped that Cui Jingfu could "play the role" and eat his stomach. Cui Jingfu said, "The stomach is real, don't fake, then you have to eat." At that time, I was not fat, more than 150 pounds, and I had to eat my stomach first. Eat a pig's elbow a day, drink beer, and give the same treatment as the New Year. For a week, in addition to reading the script, I just eat, I don't go out to exercise, and the more I eat, the more I want to eat. Very quickly, I ate my stomach and felt that it was difficult to walk. But then I discovered a problem that had been overlooked before— the pectoral muscles couldn't be eaten. What to do? Cui Jingfu had to start losing weight again. He said: "I went from 160 pounds to 223 pounds, I couldn't move, I was very tired to exercise; in order to shoot, I had to lose, exercise more, eat less every day, and after a month, I lost weight to 170 pounds and lost 50 pounds." ”
Wearing a latex mask and a fake belly to shoot a scene is not an easy task. Cui Jingfu said: "Wearing a mask, it is not convenient to take it off, and when filming every day, it is impossible to eat, so I have to wait until the day's scene is finished and then eat a good meal." "From 1998 to 2000, the sequel to "Journey to the West" was staged, several cold and hot summers, Cui Jingfu wore a fake belly, and after filming, his whole body was sweaty, which was particularly uncomfortable.
He is a drama actor
"Li Jindou" was well received by the audience
In addition to the well-known role of Pig Eight Commandments, Choi Jingfu is also a well-known drama actor. In his early years, he only studied in ordinary schools, and his goal was to enter ordinary colleges and universities. "I don't have a performance gene in my bones." Cui Jingfu recalled, "I first entered the troupe, then transferred to the province, just had the opportunity to enter the university, and then squeezed into the Central Academy of Drama in the midst of thousands of troops." ”
In 1988, Cui Jingfu participated in the "Mulberry Plain Chronicle" directed by the drama master Xu Xiaozhong, which was staged in major theaters across the country and caused a sensation in the entire theater industry. The male number one Li Jindou, played by him, was well received by the audience. "In order to act well, I first went to the northwest to experience life for half a month. After returning, the rehearsal was rehearsed for a whole semester; after the end, he went to Singapore and Beijing to perform, which caused a sensation in the country. Now "Mulberry Plain Chronicle" has become the teaching content of the Central Academy of Drama. Cui Jingfu said.
Cui Jingfu said: "My play of the Eight Precepts of the Pig is based on the classic, adding humanization, which stems from the understanding that 'art is higher than life, but it cannot be separated from life', and each generation of actors should have the characteristics of the current era, should not stick to the past, but should be in line with the current life." As an actor you should have your own artistic ideas. That's how I teach my students. ”
Text/Broadcasting Daily all-media reporter Zhong Honglian
Photo: Lu Zheng, all-media reporter of Guangbao (except for the signature)