Chapter 32: Infectious

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

When the executive director heard Gu Jiaer’s words, he was immediately shocked.

“Director Gu?”

“Live audio?”

The people around him were taken aback as well. In recent years, the trend of local productions was to take after foreign productions. Television productions aside, movie productions leaned toward live audio compared to dubbed audio as well.

However, the directors who did that were mostly people who had great confidence in the abilities of the actors reciting their lines.

The flexibility of an actor’s voice could very well affect the performance of the actor in the film. An infectious voice could reinforce the audience’s impression of the plot, so it was clear how important voiceover actors were.

Even though Sun Qiming knew that Jiang Se could speak French and he decided to cast her as the character Miss Zhang, he did not intend to use the live audio recording. In fact, he merely chose her so that it would be easier to match her lip movements to the language.

However, Gu Jiaer was currently thinking of using the live audio recording.

“She’s an amateur.” The executive director could not help but glance at Gu Jiaer as he had doubts about his latest inspiration.

However, the moment he said those words, the executive director knew that he made a mistake.

In the studio, Gu Jiaer’s words were the law. At this moment, his doubts were enough to annoy Gu Jiaer, who had a short fuse, to begin with.

He was about to explain himself when Gu Jiaer spoke without turning his head, “Who’s the director here? You or me?”

When no one else around him dared make another sound, Gu Jiaer’s expression relaxed somewhat. He made a gesture for the filming to be paused. Then, he replayed the recording of Jiang Se reciting her lines.

Her tone sounded pleasing through the headphones. She had a unique implicit charm as she introduced the history of Paris in a lively manner. Coupled with her looks, this became an enjoyment to the eyes and ears.

“There’s no problem with her voice, but using the live audio recording won’t do as well.” Besides the noise on set, her expression was calm and her tone was slightly cold. Even when she smiled, she gave the impression that she was high and mighty.

If he were to judge this from a visual perspective alone, there was not much of an issue. However, Gu Jiaer took his headphones off.

“Bring her here.”

She was lacking passion in her tone, and she recited her lines like a machine. Therefore, she could not incite a passion for Paris among the listeners.

The cabin set was full of passengers and equipment. Even with the air-conditioning, it felt hot just standing there for some time.

Jiang Se had just finished her lines when she saw the script supervisor waving at her. She walked toward Gu Jiaer.

“Director, did I say something wrong?” Jiang Se asked him, and Gu Jiaer shook his head. He had studied videography in France many years ago, so he was slightly familiar with the French language.

Her intonation was on point, and there were no issues with her lines. “In this scene, Miss Zhang’s introduction to Paris is supposed to make Wang Qianqian look forward to reaching her destination.”

When he said this, Jiang Se understood the emotions Gu Jiaer wanted to convey.

“You’re a newcomer to this industry.” Gu Jiaer swept his gaze across Jiang Se and did not care to soften his words. “It’s a good thing that you’re not nervous in front of the cameras and that your gaze didn’t shy away from them. You were able to maintain your cool. However, you’re too calm. You must understand the meaning of being an actress. You’re supposed to serve the film’s needs. You’re a servant to the plot. Don’t treat this as a stage where you can shine or use this as a platform to showcase yourself.”

Jiang Se was taken aback.

“If you want to move others, you’ll have to at least use your emotions to move yourself.” When Gu Jiaer saw her scowling slightly, he continued, “Your external qualities are good, and you’ve been under Zhang Jingan’s direction before. You should understand that you can’t rely on your looks alone if you want to join this industry.”

The entertainment industry was not short of newcomers. While Jiang Se might be more beautiful than the current celebrities today, it was not impossible for there to be more outstanding newcomers than her in the future.

“Otherwise, all you’ll get is fame and popularity. You won’t last if you don’t have any good work under your belt.”

He waved his hand and pointed to the side.

“Think about what I’ve told you over there. Think about how you should be reciting your lines. Come back here and recite them to me when you’re done.”

When Gu Jiaer said this, the people around him were shocked. He seemed to care about this newcomer and was even offering her tips and guidance.

The crew members looked at Jiang Se. They were thinking about the same thing: that this newcomer was lucky.

It was known that although Gu Jiaer was not on par with a great director such as Zhang Jingan, he was still held in high regard in the entertainment industry.

His films had their own market, so Gu Jiaer’s name that guaranteed box office sales.

There were many investors who were willing to invest in his films. Aside from the male and female leads, and certain important supporting characters which were decided by the investors, Gu Jiaer had the authority to pick most of the other members of the cast.

Jiang Se’s looks were to his liking. She would not have to worry about not becoming famous if she appeared in Gu Jiaer’s films a few times.

“Thank you, Director.”

Naturally, Jiang Se could tell what Gu Jiaer meant. She bent and scuttled to the side as she sighed soundlessly.

Before this, she merely treated acting as a job. The reason she entered this field was that she did not want to disrupt the original Jiang Se’s life. She was thinking that if she woke up in her own body again one day, she would not cause too much trouble for the original Jiang Se.

That was why when she wanted to pick a job to escape her poverty, her first choice was to enter the entertainment industry which was in line with Jiang Se’s wishes.

Whether it was in Zhang Jingan’s “Rescue Mission” or “Pretense to Reality”, she did everything because she was poor as she had told Dai Jia.

She did not worry about her personal gain or loss. All she wanted to do was to play her part well before the camera. She did not want to make any mistakes, but she did not want fame either.

However, Gu Jiaer had pointed out with a single statement that her heart was not in her acting.

From the beginning until the end, she remained herself. Even when she was supposed to portray Miss Zhang, all she did was change into the air stewardess’s uniform and was still herself.

If this was aired, she could still stand out with her looks alone. However, unless she had no intention of working in the entertainment industry, she would have to do something about this. If she wanted to work longer in this industry, she could not be Jiang Se while portraying every other character.

Jiang Se frowned. Although she joined the entertainment industry to pay for her tuition fees, she did not want to be seen as an empty flower vase.

She recited her lines softly, recalling what Gu Jiaer had said to her. She disregarded the people around her and mumbled her lines to herself.

By now, she knew her lines by heart. However, the more she recited them, the more she understood what Gu Jiaer meant. She was not infectious while saying her lines. She could not inspire a passion toward Paris among the listeners.

How could she be infectious?

As she kept reciting her lines, her volume diminished gradually.

She thought of Pei Yi.

“…the manor I’ve bought is in a village in Médoc. I have grapes there. The manor is mainly white which is your favorite color. Every morning, when you open the windows, you’ll see an exceptionally blue sky. The vineyard stretches out before you as far as the eye can see. You can even smell the grapes in the air.”