Fringe artists in the entertainment industry

Chapter 2 2. The real performance is never on camera

Most artists seem dissatisfied with the world.

There is always an anger and disappointment in my heart that others don't quite understand, and I want to confront and criticize the society and the world.

In the movie Extreme Cold, the male protagonist Qi Lei is such a person, a very paranoid painter and performance artist.

In the movie, Qi Lei and his teacher made an experimental art together, simulating burial on the Beginning of Autumn, simulating drowning on the Winter Solstice, symbolic cremation on the Beginning of Spring, and melting a huge piece of ice with his own body temperature on the Summer Solstice to simulate ice burial. Death, I want to use this to see what impact the death of an artist will have on society and his works.

Unfortunately, this was a scam from beginning to end. The real performance art only started after Qi Lei pretended to die. He hid in the dark and observed the world and the impact of his death on the world.

Qi Lei, who completed the simulated death, found that his death did not have any impact on the world. His paintings were not given meaning, and the tide did not rise because of the sacrifice of his life. His life ended meaninglessly.

In desperation, Qi Lei decided to complete his final performance art and ended his life on the autumn solstice.

This is adapted from a true event. The current artistic atmosphere and artists have always been very fierce and brave, but they are far less elegant than later.

In what form art should exist, it seems that it has different manifestations in every era, and it is impossible to say which one is better or worse.

More than twenty years later, someone once said that today's art is too formal and superficial, seemingly elegant but has lost the tension that touches the soul.

Chen Li'an neither agrees nor denies this statement. The background of the times and the social environment are the decisive factors that determine the art form.

The extremely cold audition location is in the West Village, and it is also very "artistic", a kind of "poverty art" with the characteristics of the times.

Chen Li'an walked in the alley of West Village and felt a kind of intimacy from the bottom of his heart.

The audition place was extremely shabby, with no place to sit. The white putty on the wall was peeling off, and the green color at the base of the wall seemed to be covered with a layer of white dust, making it much brighter.

At this time, Wang Xiaoshuai was very poor and confused. Perhaps it was this poverty and confusion that made him write a script like Extreme Cold.

People always think a lot when they are in trouble, and they also tend to explore and think a lot.

It is very suitable to use it here if you are poor and think about changes.

Before meeting Wang Xiaoshuai, Chen Li'an first met Jia Hongsheng, who had long hair, was thin and depressed, and had a strong sense of melancholy and depression.

Chen Li'an looked at Jia Hongsheng leaning against the wall with headphones on. He seemed not very interested in anything and was just immersed in his own world. The music in the headphones was very loud, but he couldn't hear what song was playing in it.

Jia Hongsheng also noticed Chen Li'an and seemed to feel "the same kind of atmosphere" in Chen Li'an.

Chen Li'an glanced at him but did not go up to talk to him. He now needed to immerse himself in the characters. This was his habit of acting in dramas in another world.

Not many people came to audition today. After all, Wang Xiaoshuai is still banned. So when the movie was finished, Wang Xiaoshuai even wrote unknown in the line of director.

Not many people will be interested in such an independent or underground film.

Ninety-nine percent of people in the entertainment industry pursue fame and fortune, but Extreme Cold does not have these two things.

But here is what Chen Li'an wants.

The fifth-generation director's movies are out of reach of Chen Li-an, and current TV series will only choose famous actors.

Only the sixth-generation directors who have just begun to emerge are suitable for a newcomer like Chen Li'an.

The audition process was not smooth. Several people who had entered before came out quickly. There was no performance or lines, and it seemed that life and death were determined by one glance.

Wang Xiaoshuai was a little troubled. None of the actors who came to audition today were satisfied. They were either inexperienced extras or people who were too obsessed with fame and fortune and wanted to brush up their resumes.

There is no one who really has the strength to fit the character's image.

After seeing more than ten people, Wang Xiaoshuai came out of the room and wanted to smoke a cigarette to relax.

When he pushed open the door to the room and walked out, he spotted Chen Li'an at a glance. A hint of surprise flashed in his eyes and he put down the cigarette in his hand.

This kind of temperament fits the character of Qi Lei perfectly, but he looks a little too good-looking.

Chen Li'an's current image is very consistent with the character image in his script, but Chen Li'an looks a bit young.

Wang Xiaoshuai walked towards Chen Li'an, and when he glanced back, he was attracted by Jia Hongsheng's figure.

At this moment, Wang Xiaoshuai felt as if he was favored by God.

Chen Li'an noticed that Wang Xiaoshuai wore black glasses and had a round face that did not look like an art film director at all.

Wang Xiaoshuai walked up to Chen Li'an and asked, "Are you here for the audition?"

Hearing Wang Xiaoshuai's question, Chen Li'an raised his eyelids and said in a cold voice: "Yes."

After hearing Chen Li'an's answer, Wang Xiaoshuai turned to look at Jia Hongsheng and asked, "Hongsheng, you are here too."

"Yeah." Jia Hongsheng took off his headphones and replied. His mental state was a little sluggish and he didn't seem to have slept well.

After Wang Xiaoshuai looked back and forth between Chen Li'an and Jia Hongsheng, he was a little happy and a little confused.

In Wang Xiaoshuai's opinion, these two people fit his script very well, and they were a little embarrassed for a while.

Chen Li'an's image is more suitable, but Jia Hongsheng is so famous that Wang Xiaoshuai doesn't know how to choose.

If you really want to compare, Wang Xiaoshuai prefers Jia Hongsheng, but seeing Chen Li'an's paranoid melancholy and a hint of aggressive resentment, Wang Xiaoshuai hesitates.

Wang Xiaoshuai's entanglement was seen by Chen Li'an, who put his hands in his pockets and said nonchalantly: "Am I suitable? If not, I will leave."

Chen Li'an's open-mindedness and casualness made Wang Xiaoshuai stunned for a moment, and then he said: "You are very suitable, and Jia Hongsheng is also very suitable. I am a little confused."

Chen Li'an turned his head to look at Jia Hongsheng and found that he had no mood swings. He just stood there with his eyes wandering, not knowing what he was thinking.

Wang Xiaoshuai hesitated for a while and said, "Come and try the show. Hong Sheng will come too."

Jia Hongsheng hummed and walked to Wang Xiaoshuai's side. Chen Li'an raised his eyelids and followed Wang Xiaoshuai into the room.

It was said to be a trial, but it was actually just a few people sitting together and chatting. It was neither formal nor serious, more like a get-together with friends in the afternoon.

There were not many people in the room, including Chen Li'an and Jia Hongsheng, there were only five people.

Of course there is no need to mention Wang Xiaoshuai, and the other two are assistant director Li Huatong and a producer with gold-rimmed glasses, whose name is very interesting, Shu Qi.

It's not the female star Shu Qi. This Shu Qi is a director in Hong Kong, and Shu Qi has also filmed his movies.

Several people in the room seemed to have forgotten about the actors outside who were still waiting for auditions, and sat together smoking and chatting.

There was only one window in the small room, and the air was not circulated well. Smoke quickly filled the entire room, but the people were very talkative.

The topics discussed in the room were also very interesting, not related to movies, but about performance art and conceptual art.

The content of the conversation was about the performance artists in the East Village, especially when talking about Zhang Huan. Wang Xiaoshuai was a little excited and was very enthusiastic about Zhang Huan's performance art.

Chen Li'an didn't express too many opinions, and Jia Hongsheng also didn't talk much. The person who talked the most was Wang Xiaoshuai, who seemed to have great enthusiasm.

He talked about some of the performance art he had seen in the East Village, and there was a strong desire for expression in his words.

Perhaps it is this strong desire for expression that makes Wang Xiaoshuai write extremely cold scripts. The form of performance art is an art with strong impact.

If you see it with your own eyes, you will be very touched, but this touch often dissipates quickly, and only those with sensitive hearts will be deeply affected.

Wang Xiaoshuai seems to be this kind of person, who can easily grasp inner emotions and amplify them.

This quality is rare and must be possessed by those who engage in art.

After chatting for a while, Wang Xiaoshuai probably realized that his purpose today was not to chat, so he turned to look at Chen Li'an and Jia Hongsheng and asked them what they thought of performance art.

Chen Li'an was sitting on the chair. He felt that the vertical back of the chair was making him uncomfortable and he had to straighten his back.

Hearing Wang Xiaoshuai's question, Chen Li'an raised his head, glanced at him and pointed at himself.

Wang Xiaoshuai was reminded by Chen Li'an and noticed Chen Li'an's weird sitting posture. His back was straight, his head was lowered and he was looking at his toes. His left leg was crossed over his right leg to form a right triangle.

The whole person's posture looks extremely strange, extremely awkward but also has a sense of beauty.

Chen Li'an said at this time: "Now I still need a chain to tie me to the back of the chair. I will be surrounded by a huge glass cage and placed on Wangfujing Street. This is a performance art."

When Jia Hongsheng heard Chen Li'an's words, his eyes immediately lit up, and he said with some excitement: "Do you compare the chair to society or a system? Glass is the indifference and alienation of human feelings?"

He is a really sensitive person.