Lu Baobao's face darkened and her expression could not be easily read. Jiang Se moved closer to her and said, "We're going to play dead people."
The other extras felt excited at the mention of this. Some of them whispered among themselves, "The crew should be giving us red packets after this."
Lu Baobao was about to ask about this when the script supervisor urged the crew members to hurry up and bind the extras together. They were pushed onto the wooden pikes erected near the river.
Jiang Se's hands were bound behind her back and she was pushed to the riverside with the slipknot in her hands. Meanwhile, the extras who played the Japanese soldiers had already grabbed their bayonets and were waiting for the director's orders.
The crew fitted the background actors with blood bags. A man with a pen was communicating the plot to another woman, "So, when Gao Rong says his lines, you will say 'pah'."
Many of the background actors envied her for even having a line.
The woman nodded vigorously. Then, the man with the pen turned and looked at Jiang Se and the others.
"When the prop blades slash at you, they'll press the blood bags and you should fall into the river." He pointed to a cordoned-off safety area in the river where there were several people as well. "We've taken safety precautions. Anyone who falls into the river today will earn another $20."
Upon finishing the brief, he clapped his hands. "Alright, get ready."
The main actor, Liu Ye, was not involved in this scene. The female celebrities Liu Baobao spoke about were not involved as well. This was only a part of "Rescue Mission".
Jiang Se was pushed to the riverside. There were a handful of wooden pikes and Lu Baobao was fortunate enough to be tied to one so that she did not have to get wet. Jiang Se, however, stood at the edge of the river. She clearly had to jump into the river.
Everyone went to their places. Then, the director shouted, "Let's do a test run. Action!"
The script supervisor wrote the take number on the clapperboard and stepped forward. "Take one!"
This was the first take for this scene. With the clap of the clapperboard, the middle-aged actor in the Japanese army uniform spoke with a sinister voice, "If Zhou Mingchong refuses to give us what we want, you'll all die here!"
The others were stunned and the director was furious.
The others barely had time to react when the script supervisor with the pen ran forward and shouted at a woman, "Cut!"
"Do you have a problem? Didn't I tell you to say 'pah' after Gao Rong finishes his lines?"
The woman could not even raise her head after being scolded. The man swore at her with a fierce expression for a while longer before waving his arm. "Again!"
Everyone went to their places again. The lights and cameras were aimed at Jiang Se and the others while the male actor, Gao Rong, readied his stance. He placed a hand on the bayonet hanging around his waist and said, "If Zhou Mingchong refuses to give us what we want, you'll all die here!"
This time, the women who had just been scolded reacted quickly. She hastily said, "Pah!"
The scolding was fresh in her mind, but her scoff sounded weak. Naturally, the script supervisor with the pen was jumping with rage.
"Can you do it or not? If you can't, we'll switch!"
The woman was tearing up after being scolded, and she kept apologizing. They only did a retake after a long while.
"Take three!"
When the clapperboard rang out, Gao Rong recited his lines again. After two fails, the woman shouted loudly this time. "Pah!"
The shoot was not cut this time. Instead, the script supervisor was talking to the director. When they looked over, they were frowning.
After the woman uttered her line, the middle-aged man who played the Japanese soldier gritted his teeth, cursed, and raised his rifle.
The plot stopped there and the director gestured, so the production grip called for the shoot to be paused.
Gao Rong stopped. The firearms specialist of the crew went up to inspect his rifle.
Jiang Se looked at the rifle which gleamed coldly in the distance. It must have been an actual rifle. However, it should not contain any rounds.
In a movie with such a huge investment such as "Rescue Mission", the crew would not be using prop guns. To keep it real, they would usually zoom in on the rifle itself, and then shoot a scene in which the blood bags would be detonated.
The script supervisor communicated with the woman who had the line again. Under the scorching sun, Jiang Se felt sweat oozing from her back. They had been standing there for half a day. In order to shoot a scene depicting the sorry state of the captured villagers, they were not allowed to move.
The makeup artist went over to patch their makeup again. After the firearms expert inspected the rifle and confirmed that it was safe to use, the script supervisor clapped the board again.
This time, Gao Rong raised the rifle. However, the woman with the line must have been so nervous that she did not detonate her blood bag and got another round of scolding.
"Let's leave this scene out for now. Finish all the takes with the background actors first," instructed a man with shades lounging under a beach parasol, displaying an impatient look. When he finished, the script supervisor shouted some orders. He gave Jiang Se and the others some directions, and the cameras tilted toward them.
With the smack of the script supervisor's clapperboard, the cameras panned across the rows of rifles. As Jiang Se stood by the river, she saw a man brandishing a knife running toward her. The knife was raised, and he made a slashing gesture.
The blade connected with her shoulder. Although it was only a prop and did not do any real harm, the man had still put a lot of force behind the knife, so it hurt.
Jiang Se made a pained expression. Remembering the instructions from the script supervisor, she pressed her detonator and the blood bag erupted with a dull sound. Then, she untied the knot behind herself without hesitation and plunged into the river.
The heat of the day was almost too much for her to bear in the thick clothes. She felt much cooler in the water.
The river water embraced her from all sides. Her cotton jacket grew heavier after taking in some water.
Fortunately, Jiang Se knew how to swim. Moreover, there was someone standing by in the river. The person swam up and pulled her onto the riverbank.
The others who had also fallen into the river got up as well. Jiang Se wrung the excess water from her jacket and wiped her face.
Upon doing that, the makeup on her face was removed slightly. The director, who was looking at the camera, made a gesture to signal a pause.
They were taking a short break. The extras naturally gathered in their small groups and rested.
Jiang Se felt tired as well. Lu Baobao was released from her bondage to the wooden pike. Her costume had bloodstains whereas her gaze was that of a person who had just recovered from shock.
"That scared the hell out of me."
She moved closer. When she saw that Jiang Se was drenched with her hair still dripping wet, she could not help but say, "I was scared to death when I saw you fall into the river."
Being an extra in a movie production was not as fun as Lu Baobao expected. They did not even see a single celebrity, let alone get the chance to take pictures with them.
"I was also scared to death when the gun was aimed at me." Lu Baobao seemed dispirited and seemed as if she wanted to run away from this. She clearly regretted her decision to become an extra today.
Jiang Se twisted the excess water from her hair. "I think the production team is using real rifles. However, since the firearms specialist has checked them, it should be fine."