mijobooks Chapter 19: Filming Wrapped
Chapter 19: Filming Wrapped
Less than a week after the machine was turned on, some unsettling news began to circulate in Beijing.
Liu Yu first heard the term "boiling point" in the dressing room at the Tianjin filming location.
That noon, the film crew was shooting a scene in a residential building in an old neighborhood, depicting Xiuzhen at home. Wang Chaowen walked in carrying a boxed lunch, his expression much more serious than usual. "Brother, take a look at this."
The phone screen displayed a text message that read, "An outbreak of pneumonia of unknown cause has occurred in Beijing, and medical staff have been infected. We advise everyone to reduce going out and take precautions."
Liu Yu glanced at it and his heart skipped a beat.
Boiling point, the boiling point in 2003.
In his previous life, he experienced that pandemic. Although he wasn't in the hardest-hit area, the memory was vivid: school closures, quarantines, mask shortages, Banlangen (a traditional Chinese medicine) sold out, the pervasive smell of disinfectant, and daily reports on television about new cases and deaths.
The pandemic lasted for about half a year, and only gradually subsided in the summer.
It's February now, the epidemic has just begun, and most people haven't realized how serious it is.
"What's wrong?" Liu Ye walked over from the side, glanced at the phone screen, and said, "Boiling Point? I heard from a friend in Guangzhou that it seems pretty serious, but it shouldn't spread here, right?"
Liu Yu didn't reply. He handed the phone back to Wang Chaowen. Liu Yu knew that this peace wouldn't last long.
......
That evening, Liu Yu received a call from Liu Jianhui.
The voice on the other end of the phone was lower than usual, with the seriousness typical of a doctor: "Xiaoyu, listen to me, that 'lung disease' isn't ordinary; it's highly contagious. Your mother and I are worried about you filming there, so you need to take precautions. Wear a mask when you go out, wash your hands frequently, and avoid crowded places."
"Dad, I understand," Liu Yu said. "You all need to be careful in Changsha too. There are definitely patients at the hospital, so make sure you take proper precautions when you go into the wards."
"Don't worry about me." Liu Jianhui paused. "Your mom told me to tell you to come back as soon as you finish filming, and not to stay in Beijing."
"understood."
Less than five minutes after I hung up, Zhang Yan called again.
Her tone was much more urgent than Liu Jianhui's: "Xiaoyu, I heard there have been cases in Beijing too! Is your film crew still going to film? Can you please take a break?"
"Mom, we're filming outdoors right now, so there aren't many people around. I'll be careful, don't worry."
"How can I feel at ease? You're all alone over there, so close to Beijing, what if..."
"Mom, I was in the army," Liu Yu interrupted her. "What haven't soldiers seen? I know what I'm capable of."
Zhang Yan was silent for a few seconds on the other end of the phone, then sighed: "Then promise me one thing, call me every day to let me know you're safe."
"it is good."
After hanging up the phone, Liu Yu sat in the lounge, lit a cigarette, took two puffs, and then put it out.
He began to recall the timeline of his previous life's boiling point: in March 2003, a large-scale infection began to occur in BJ.
In April, the country entered a state of emergency, with schools closed, factories shut down, and public places closed; the peak was reached in May; the situation was gradually brought under control in June; and the epidemic ended in July.
It's the end of February now, and they still have time to finish filming, but the window of opportunity is closing.
He called Wang Chaowen and Xin Hao together for a short meeting.
"Chaowen, go to the pharmacy first thing tomorrow morning and buy all the masks you can find. Medical masks, N95 masks, gauze masks—buy as many as you can. Also, disinfectant, alcohol, and a thermometer—don't forget any of them."
Liu Yu's tone left no room for argument, "Furthermore, from now on, all meals for the crew will be purchased centrally, and no one is allowed to eat out. Before starting work each day, everyone will have their temperature checked, and those with abnormal temperatures will not be allowed to board the vehicle."
Wang Chaowen was taken aback: "Brother, is it really that serious? It can't be that bad, can it?"
"As for it," Liu Yu looked at him, "believe me, this matter is much more serious than you think."
Wang Chaowen opened his mouth, but seeing Liu Yu's gaze, he didn't say anything more and nodded.
Xin Hao remained silent for a moment, then stood up and patted Wang Chaowen on the shoulder: "Let's go, I'll go with you."
Xin Hao had served in the military and was much better at executing orders than the average person.
......
The next morning, Wang Chaowen and Xin Hao went to four pharmacies and bought out all the masks available in Tianjin.
I bought more than 2,000 medical masks, more than 300 N95 masks, more than 500 bottles of disinfectant, and 20 thermometers.
When the items were brought back to the film set, everyone thought Liu Yu was making a fuss over nothing.
A senior member of the lighting crew joked, "Director Liu, are you opening a pharmacy?"
Liu Yu didn't laugh. He told him to distribute the masks to everyone and reminded everyone that they must wear masks when going to work, disinfect their hands after work, and take their temperature twice a day, morning and evening.
Nobody took it seriously, but they did it anyway.
It's not because everyone believes the boiling point is that serious, but because Liu Yu is the boss, and you just do what the boss says.
In the days that followed, the film crew continued to operate in a peculiar atmosphere.
The prevention and control measures in Tianjin have not been fully tightened yet, and people on the streets are still living their lives as usual, but the news on TV is becoming increasingly unsettling; the number of confirmed cases in Beijing is increasing, medical staff are getting infected, disinfectants and Banlangen (a traditional Chinese medicine) in supermarkets are being snapped up, and some residential communities have begun to be placed under lockdown.
Some people in the crew started to panic. A young female script supervisor cried and said she wanted to go home. Liu Yu called her to the dressing room and talked to her for twenty minutes. "Director Liu, I'll stay and finish filming the scene."
Liu Yu never imagined that one day he would also have to serve as a psychological counselor.
That's the job of a producer; even if the sky falls, you have to hold it up until the film is finished.
The filming itself went very smoothly.
Filming took place over thirty days in Tianjin's old city, BHX district, and the mountainous areas of Ji County, with each scene progressing according to plan.
Liu Yu sat so long behind the monitor that he could barely straighten his back. His eyes were getting sharper and sharper; he could spot any shot with an off-key emotion or any line with a bad rhythm at a glance.
Sun Yang once told him, "Director Liu, the way you look at the footage now is different from what it was ten days ago."
"What's different?"
"Ten days ago you 'hoped to make a good film,' now you 'know how to make a good film.'"
Liu Yu didn't respond, but he knew in his heart that Sun Yang was right.
Making movies is like selling cars. For the first few deals, you're learning as you go, figuring things out as you go. But as you sell more, you learn what the customers are thinking, what to say and what not to say, and when to advance and when to retreat.
He has already filmed a third of his scenes, and his control over the camera is much better than on the first day of filming.
.......
He amplified the romance. In the scene where Xiu first met, the original script only had a few simple lines of dialogue, but he insisted on adding a scene of them running in the rain. The two of them ran in the alleys of Tianjin's old city without umbrellas, their hair soaked by the rain, and their laughter echoed in the alleys.
He thought about this scene for a long time because it would be very troublesome to film; it required artificial rain, waterproofing equipment, and the actors couldn't catch a cold.
After filming, watching the playback, Liu Ye and Yan Danchen's smiles were so genuine. That feeling of "I'm not afraid of anything because you're here" didn't need any lines; the audience understood it at a glance.
He amplified the sadness as well. In the scene where the female lead discovers she has amnesia, he didn't use any background music. There was only Yan Danchen alone in the empty living room, surrounded by silent furniture.
Her gaze shifted from confusion to fear, from fear to denial, from denial to despair, and finally settled into a terrifying calm.
After the scene was filmed, there was a silence on set for about ten seconds, and no one spoke.
When Yan Danchen stepped out of character, her eyes were still red. Liu Yu handed her a bottle of water and said, "You've worked hard."
Liu Ye's performance was impeccable. The male lead had almost no long lines of dialogue, and he acted mostly through facial expressions and body language.
Liu Ye has a talent; even if he just stands there doing nothing, you can feel a melancholy aura about him.
But the male protagonist isn't melancholic; he's just reserved.
When a man faces the gradual fading memories of his wife, his pain is not expressed through loud weeping, but through sitting alone on the balcony smoking in the dead of night, and through the slight trembling of his fingers when his wife can no longer call his name.
Liu Ye took this "restrained performance" to the extreme. After filming a few scenes, Liu Yu watched the playback and felt his eyes getting hot.
The last scene before filming wrapped was the ending that Liu Yu had retained from the Korean version of the movie from his previous life.
He didn't choose the cliché of a miracle cure. The female lead's illness wasn't cured; she still didn't remember who the male lead was, didn't remember that she had been married, and didn't remember anything from the past.
The male protagonist drove her away from the sanatorium and into the distance. She leaned on his shoulder, the sunlight streaming through the car window illuminating her face; her expression was calm, even with a slight smile.
She didn't remember him, but when she leaned on his shoulder, her body was relaxed, her heartbeat was steady, and the corners of her mouth unconsciously turned up.
Her memory has faded, but love has been etched into her soul.
The excitement of wrapping up filming didn't last long, because everyone knew that the pandemic was getting worse.
Beijing has already begun its lockdown. Schools are closed, companies are shut down, residential areas are locked down, the streets are deserted, and buses only have drivers and a few passengers wearing masks.
Confirmed cases have also been discovered in Tianjin. Although the number is still small, the atmosphere has become tense.
The planned wrap party, which was to be held at a restaurant in Tianjin, was cancelled.
It's not that Liu Yu is unwilling to spend money, but gatherings are strictly prohibited now. Any gathering of more than ten people may be reported, and if reported, one will be quarantined.
"I'm sorry everyone, the wrap party can't be held for now." Liu Yu stood in front of the crew bus and said to everyone, "After the pandemic is over, I'll treat everyone to a meal in Beijing. You can choose the location, you can order the food, you can choose the drinks, and I'll pay the bill, no questions asked."
Someone shouted, "Director Liu, you said it yourself!"
"I said it," Liu Yu smiled. "I, Liu Yu, keep my word."
More than fifty people, in two buses, drove from Tianjin back to Beijing.
Along the way, the city outside the car window seemed to have been put on pause; shopping malls were closed, restaurants were shut down, amusement parks were empty, and even Tiananmen Square was almost deserted.
Wang Chaowen sat next to Liu Yu, looking out the window, and whispered, "Brother, this doesn't look like Beijing anymore."
"Like what?"
"Like the beginning of a disaster movie."
Liu Yu didn't respond. He knew this wasn't the beginning of a disaster movie; this was the reality of 2003.
Back in Beijing, the bus drove directly to the entrance of the Beijing Film Academy.
The school security guards, dressed in protective suits and goggles, stood fully armed at the gate, only allowing vehicles to pass once they recognized the vehicles as belonging to the school.
The school has made arrangements. All members of the film crew will be quarantined immediately upon entering the school. Each person will have their own dormitory room, and they are not allowed to visit each other's rooms. They will be required to report their temperature every day, and the quarantine period will last for fourteen days.
When Liu Yu dragged his suitcase into the dormitory building, the corridor was empty and quiet enough to hear his own footsteps.
The school hasn't started this semester, and the entire campus is like a ghost town.