Strange Life of a Cat
Chapter 350 - Chapter 350 Chapter 343 Not Following the Script

Chapter 350: Chapter 343: Not Following the Script Chapter 350: Chapter 343: Not Following the Script The first day of shooting went smoothly, and Charlie and the others were relieved. When chatting with Xiao Guo over the phone, Charlie’s tone was very relaxed, which bolstered their confidence for the shooting days to come; they felt less anxious.

“The crew has been really nice to us, both Mr. Yang and Director Kong are easy to talk to, and everyone in the crew has been very polite to us… No, we haven’t revealed anything, we obviously know better than to disclose any details about Heitan… Yes, okay…”

While Charlie was on the phone, Zheng Tan lay on the couch watching TV, and the others were playing poker.

The TV was showing an idol drama featuring Ronald, who had a role similar to his character in this movie. Watching Ronald on screen, Zheng Tan thought that if Ronald was acting naturally, it would be easy to guess his personal preferences and character traits.

Zheng Tan had once considered disrupting Ronald during their shared scenes by not cooperating, but upon reflection, he realized this would only tarnish his own reputation and not affect Ronald much; if there were any hold-ups, it would appear to be Zheng Tan’s fault, and the crew would likely sympathize with Ronald. It was not only counterproductive but also disruptive to the shooting process, so that tactic was out of the question.

While watching the melodramatic scenes on TV, Zheng Tan pondered the script.

“Heitan, you should watch less of this kind of drama; too much of it could turn you into an idiot,” said one of the card players who had just lost a pack of cigarettes, coming over to Zheng Tan. He intended to snatch the remote control lying next to Zheng Tan’s paw and change the channel.

This person didn’t really think Zheng Tan could understand the drama; he only assumed Zheng Tan was watching Ronald, who they disliked, while he wanted to watch a war drama now.

As he reached over, Zheng Tan lifted a paw to press down on the remote control, preventing him from taking it.

Meeting Zheng Tan’s gaze, the man shook his head helplessly, “Alright, keep watching.” After that, he returned to his card game and continued playing.

After the drama ended, Zheng Tan glanced at the clock on the wall; it was almost eleven o’clock. Time to wash up and sleep, as the shoot would continue tomorrow. There were only three rooms available, and Zheng Tan occupied one on his own while the other five people shared the remaining two.

In the days that followed, Zheng Tan was still quite relaxed. Initially, he felt a bit uneasy, as it was not completely calm to be surrounded by celebrities and perhaps future Movie Emperors and Movie Empresses, but Zheng Tan soon adjusted and even had time to think about when he could deliberately act clumsily.

Today, there was another scene for Zheng Tan.

The male lead went to the supermarket to buy an electric toothbrush, thinking it would be easier to brush his teeth once he transformed into a cat. Just after he paid, he noticed black fur starting to sprout on the back of his hand. Knowing he was about to turn into a cat, he rushed to his car and drove home as fast as he could; he had a window of time to transform from human to cat, and he needed to be home for that.

There was a car chase involved in this scene, of course, it wasn’t actually filmed at high speed.

After rushing home like the wind and slamming the door shut, the camera cut to the interior, where the contents of the shopping bag had scattered all over the floor. The person who had just entered was gone; only clothes and pants remained, and a black cat crawled out from a sports shirt…

The shoot went very smoothly, and Zheng Tan performed unexpectedly well when he crawled out, showing signs of panting, then lay down as if exhausted.

“This scene is good!”

Kong Han was very satisfied with the morning’s shooting results and progress, wishing it could always go so smoothly. Sadly, Kong Han’s good mood didn’t last long, as the afternoon’s shooting made Kong Han explode.

NG followed by NG, and yet another NG, damn NG!

Kong Han furiously threw the script rolled into a tube onto the floor, his face clouded with anger.

Unlike his usual approachable demeanor, Kong Han transformed when directing; sometimes he was irritable, sometimes he was completely unapproachable.

Zheng Tan glanced at Ronald, whose expression was equally displeased, as well as the lead actress, Wei Wen. Although Wei Wen’s displeasure wasn’t as obvious, it was clear she was also unhappy. Naturally, Ronald was the reason for the NGs.

Before starting the scene, Kong Han had briefed the main and supporting actors on the plot. Although he hadn’t delved deeply into it, this film wasn’t meant to be profound; it was meant to entertain and amuse. Even though the film didn’t demand deep interpretation, it still required acting skill. While the other actors cooperated during the briefing, Ronald did not; he was out goofing around every two or three days, and Kong Han wasn’t the type to push the issue.

Initially, Kong Han thought the role of the second male lead wouldn’t be difficult for Ronald, essentially requiring him to play himself, but problems kept occurring. Now everyone was stuck waiting on him, yet he just sat there with a stern face, not taking the initiative to humbly ask where he might have gone wrong.

There’s a saying in the industry: standing in front of the camera, you are the actor’s only support. So even with all the modern, advanced equipment available where a director can monitor from afar and give orders, Kong Han, like most directors, always stood beside or near the camera to facilitate direct communication with the actors, rather than having them worry about how the shot turned out or the director’s opinion after filming a scene.

But now, Mr. Luo wasn’t giving you the time of day.

Although Kong Han was furious, he couldn’t let Ronald continue like this.

“Ronald, come here!” Kong Han said in a bad tone.

Ronald was still reluctant. He was only here to give face to Yang Yi; he didn’t care about Kong Han’s face. After his assistant whispered a few words of persuasion, Ronald walked over reluctantly, nearly causing Kong Han to fume internally. At the same time, Kong Han decided that in the future, Ronald would be excluded from his films. This time, letting him play the second male lead was a favor to Ronald’s father. Did he really think he was some sort of highly sought-after movie emperor?!

In the future, he should just stick to acting in idol dramas!

This scene involved the female lead and the second male lead having different opinions about the recent mysterious disappearances of the male lead, leading to an argument. But they just couldn’t get this scene right, and the reason was Ronald.

“You should be showing an ‘I’m so good, why wouldn’t you choose me’ expression, not an ‘I’m so good, you are nothing’ expression. Also, you’re supposed to be acting, not imitating!” Kong Han cursed, clearly very dissatisfied now.

Kong Han’s words were unclear to others, but Ronald knew exactly what he meant.

He was indeed imitating. Previously, there was a very popular movie, in which a wealthy scion played by top-tier actor was immensely angry at a woman with ulterior motives. Kong Han had seen it, and Ronald’s facial expressions were very similar to that scene, or rather, it was almost a copy of that actor’s expression.

Ronald was quite good at imitating, but that wasn’t what Kong Han wanted, and it didn’t even fit this scene.

Kong Han spoke with Ronald alone for about twenty minutes, and then it seemed Ronald had found his rhythm. They continued shooting, but with a change in the original plan; the scene would progress from arguing to the second male lead sitting at a table, furiously guzzling down liquor, and then angrily leaving, all shot in one go.

Every director has their own artistic characteristics. For instance, some directors excel in using long takes, and they shoot a scene in a single take within a location–non-stop, all in one go. Naturally, this can result in rough and less detailed shots, making it difficult to shoot.

Kong Han was not one of those directors. Like many others, his works consisted of many shots per scene. Influenced by some Western films, the trend of filming with increasingly detailed shots was becoming popular. But Kong Han was not rigid; given the small issues with Ronald, finding a suitable solution was sufficient. If Ronald couldn’t handle facial expressions well, then they would simply adapt. It’s not that Kong Han didn’t want to strive for perfection, but this actor was just like this; performing well would be an exceptional feat.

“Action!”

The female lead placed the black cat on the chair while talking to the second male lead.

Zheng Tan jumped from the chair to the table, which held several bottles of high-end liquor–at least, they looked like high-end bottles.

Having come in close contact with Wei Wen today, Zheng Tan noticed that she really had a great figure, those breasts, those long legs…

The others on set had no idea what the black cat was thinking at this moment; they just thought the cat was very obedient and cooperative, a true professional brought in by the director and the boss for filming, much more reliable than Ronald.

This time, Ronald had indeed made some progress, but it wasn’t good enough for close-ups. However, handling this was Kong Han’s job. Seeing how the two people a few steps away were “arguing” intensely, Zheng Tan flicked its tail twice, curiously walked over to two partially filled glasses of poured liquor, and dipped its claws into one of the half-filled glasses.

This particular glass was slightly to the right, the one Ronald had just used.

The two people were engrossed in their acting and didn’t notice Zheng Tan at all. Zheng Tan quickly retracted its paw and moved a few steps away from the glass, disinterested in the toy-like object.

Kong Han, who had been scowling, couldn’t help but reveal a hint of amusement in his eyes. However, since Ronald wasn’t actually going to drink from the glass but from the nearby half-bottle, and not even finish it–just pretend, he didn’t call cut. Capturing this scene was a pleasant surprise, adding a bit of humor when put into the movie.

Perhaps the audience would assume it was intentionally arranged: the protagonist, transformed into a cat, disliked the second male lead and stirred the glass with a paw, hoping to cause trouble, but didn’t anticipate that the second male lead would grab the half-bottle instead of the glass.

Besides, now that Ronald had finally made some progress, it would be a pity to stop. No one wanted to keep accommodating his need for retakes.

The thoughts of others on the set were similar to Kong Han’s. Only Ronald’s assistant was a bit worried. He glanced in Kong Han’s direction and opened his mouth to speak, but seeing Ronald having finally found his groove, he hesitated. Next time might not go as smoothly, and it was apparent Kong Han had no patience to continue discussing the scene with Ronald. Even Yang Yi showed clear impatience; the assistant didn’t dare make a fuss. Hopefully, Ronald would follow the script.

Mr. Jiang looked at Kong Han and, seeing that he hadn’t called “cut,” remained silent.

After their argument, the second male lead furiously walked to the table, grabbed the half-filled glass on it, and downed it in one go, not leaving a drop. The prearranged half-bottle of liquor wasn’t even touched.

The people around: “…”

An eerie silence. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it at Qidian (NovelFire.net), buy monthly tickets, or leave recommendations. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.NovelFire.net to continue reading.)

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