Although Wen Rui had never intended to be an actor, he'd occasionally thought about what it would be like to be on a film set. It seemed like an interesting career, to be sure, but it wasn't something he'd ever had to seriously think about, let alone figure out how to be good at.
But things had changed now.
After more or less fleeing from the apartment with Zhou Ye's amused stare chasing behind him, he'd headed straight over to the set that he was supposed to be reporting at this morning. The call time he was given was 11 a.m, which was pretty decent, he thought. Today was his first day on set and he was admittedly nervous, especially since he didn't have any guidance from a manager and it didn't seem like CE had assigned him any assistants either.
So much for being a member of a popular band. The treatment he was currently experiencing was pretty much what he'd expected for an 18th-string nobody and he had no doubts that this was because of Manager Qu's petty grudge.
So be it.
The set of 'The Wallflower Becomes a Diva' was thankfully located in the same city Wen Rui was in now, which saved him a lot of fuss. Also, he was still finding his footing in this new world and he didn't need a sudden change in the environment to add to his stress. The reporting location he'd been given was Er High School, which was one of the top schools in the region too, paling in colour only next to Wen Rui's alma mater and the Fu High School that Zhou Ye had transferred over from.
He hopped out of the Didi at the entrance and took a good look at the place he would be spending the next couple of weeks working in. Most of the series would be filmed here because it was a high school romance but there would be scenes outside on the streets too, such as the shopping district.
Er High School was pretty much a standard high school, with its red and white brick walls, school logo mounted proudly on the top of the main building that stood in all its tall glory behind a wide quadrangle that was used for morning assembly. Green banners lauding the school's achievements unfurled and fluttered in the light breeze, white characters written vertically down it emphasising the strong school spirit.
It invoked a sense of nostalgia in Wen Rui. This was what he was familiar with. Perhaps it wasn't a bad thing that he'd been given the chance to act in this drama. It might be his only chance from now on to relive his old school days.
The security guards stopped him before he could enter. Once they realised that he was here to film, they directed him over to the set location, which had since been cordoned off to keep nosy students out. It was already 10 in the morning and most students were in their classrooms but there were an odd couple of classes that were commuting towards physical education classes. Thus, a small commotion erupted when they caught sight of Wen Rui, who stood out like a sore thumb in his home clothes.
Even with a mask on, his physique and looks were still eye-catching. The chatter became progressively louder and Wen Rui picked up speed, not wanting to be stopped now. He couldn't remember how he usually dealt with fans, whether he was kind or cold, but he didn't want to deal with that right at this moment.
Thankfully, despite the excitement, the students of Er High School were a well-behaved bunch in general and had been told that they were not allowed to bother the actors or film crew. Wen Rui finally made it to the classroom without any interruptions.
Before stepping on set, Wen Rui had had all sorts of preconceptions of what it would look like. Some of it was correct, such as the bustle of activity and the sheer number of people involved. But he had overlooked how technical it was going to be, with location assistants checking and double-checking to ensure that everything was in place and that the day's shoots would all be in order.
There was a small car park just outside this block of classrooms, which was slightly isolated from the rest. It looked like a new extension of the school and might be the reason why the film crew chose Er High School over the rest as it didn't look like students were using this building yet. The car park was chock full of vehicles and trailers. There were crowds of people milling back and forth from here like it was the centre of the hub. Wen Rui meandered over here, slightly at a loss about what to do with himself.
Luckily, someone recognised him immediately.
"Wen Rui?" a young man spotted him and waved him over. He had a chart in his hands that had something resembling a schedule scribbled down on it. "Perfect, you're early." He didn't bother introducing himself, just ushered Wen Rui over to the assistant director to report his presence. The assistant director didn't have much to say to him either besides welcome. Everyone seemed to be part of the frenzy, rushing here and there with a purpose that was alien to Wen Rui. He tried to keep out of the way until he was needed, heading over to the catering section because it looked like the calmest area.
There was only one young girl here, chewing absentmindedly on the edge of a croissant while scrolling through her phone. Her face was vaguely familiar but he couldn't place why. Wen Rui was still trying to decide whether she might be someone he knew personally or whether he'd seen her on billboards or adverts recently when she looked up at him and gave a squeak.
"Ruirui!" she gushed, leaping out of her seat with such enthusiasm that Wen Rui took half a step back. "You're really the male lead!!! I couldn't believe it when I saw the cast list!"
Wen Rui gave her a polite smile. "Nice to meet you," he said. "You're…"
"Li Xue," she introduced herself with a beam. "I'm the jealous second female lead, a pleasure to work with you!"
Despite her bubbly personality, she kept a respectful distance from him and Wen Rui found himself relaxing into the conversation 5 minutes later.
"I think we're filming our first scene together later," she said, pulling out a tattered script from behind her to flip to the page in question. "I had the chance to meet the director just now, he mentioned starting with something simple, so it will just be the scene I first fall in love with you after seeing you climb a tree to take a nap. No dialogue, just some physical activity. Sounds okay?"
Wen Rui read through the part. There didn't seem to be that much to it but he was almost a complete newbie. He didn't know how to position himself in front of the camera or how best to express his emotions without talking. In some ways, this might make the scene even more challenging.
He was so lost in thought that he didn't realise he'd drifted off until he heard her squeal again.
Blinking, he shot a questioning look at Li Xue.
"Sorry, sorry!" she giggled. "It's just that you usually look so cold on stage and in photoshoots, I wasn't expecting you to be this…dazed."
He looked back down at the script. "That's just an image," he ended up saying.
Li Xue smiled. "Got it," she said. "I suspected as much, haha, it's common in the industry." Pulling a face, she gestured towards herself. "My company is marketing me with the whole 'girl next door' vibe so I can't even ugly laugh without getting into trouble."
"Are you an actress?"
"Hm? Are you asking if I went to acting school? Yep!" She sighed. "But it's hard to get a job. The competition is so steep."
Wen Rui hesitated. "If you don't mind me asking," he said. "How should I…angle myself for the scene later?"
Li Xue's eyes widened. He could see another shrill noise just about to erupt from her lips and braced himself for its onslaught. Luckily, she managed to contain herself by stuffing half the croissant into her mouth before dusting the flakes off her fingers.
"Of course I don't mind!" she said around the food. "Here, come, let me talk through it. Mind you, I'm no expert, but you can try listening and see if the method I learnt works for you."
Like this, Wen Rui made his first friend on the set. Li Xue was keen to help and he was keen to learn, which made the time go by quickly. He was so distracted with trying to memorise her tips that when the door to the makeup trailer slammed open, he jumped in his seat.
"What kind of lousy excuse of a makeup artist are you?! Do you know how important Xin Xin's role is? What are you going to film if she's too unwell to go on set later?"