From Flower Vase to Film Emperor in Hollywood

"Anson."

Gus looked at Anson with clear eyes, revealing a hint of encouragement.

"I want you to know that you can be yourself."

"No pretense, no acting, just revealing your most authentic self, finding your own voice, it's okay."

A sentence, light and weightless, without any force, yet it calmed Anson's agitated and anxious mood.

Looking at Gus, Anson showed a helpless smile, "Director, where did you hear this inspirational quote from? The Oprah Winfrey Show?"

Gus thought seriously, "It might really be so."

Pfft.

A burst of suppressed laughter came from the surroundings.

Gus was not distracted, still staring at Anson, "Listen, I know it's scary. Exposing yourself on the movie screen, in front of millions of faces. God, that's why I don't want to be an actor."

The corners of Anson's mouth turned up, "Director, are you sure that's the real reason?"

Gus spread his hands, "Let's just pretend that's it."

Then.

Gus continued, "But at the same time, this is also an opportunity for us to face ourselves. You know, we always live in one cocoon after another, tightly locking ourselves up, for fear of exposing our fragility and softness, and becoming the target of other predators."

"Maybe harm will come, maybe it won't, we have no way of knowing."

"But what is certain is that we have already begun to hurt ourselves."

"Bravely face yourself, bravely recognize yourself, and bravely embrace yourself, learn to reconcile with yourself, this is more important than anything else."

Anson was startled—

Could it be that Gus saw through him? Could it be that the fact that a weathered soul was hidden beneath this skin was exposed?

But after carefully examining Gus, Anson realized that he was overthinking it, Gus was just mentioning it inadvertently.

Gus's words continued.

"Anson, your performance, your understanding, your analysis, are all correct, but it's just missing a little bit of authenticity."

"I don't know what that is, but I believe you can find the answer, because you are an excellent actor."

After the words were spoken, a beat later, Gus noticed Anson's surprise, and only then did he realize what he had just said.

From doubt and dissatisfaction to unreserved recognition, it was only a change of a few days. Those affirmations, those praises, those trusts were all real, not polite remarks. Gus himself was even more surprised than Anson.

But, thinking about it carefully, Gus nodded lightly again.

"I believe in you."

This time, there was still no hesitation.

Then.

Gus saw a shallow smile rising from the corner of Anson's mouth, not bright or brilliant, light and shy, but as if it could illuminate the whole world.

The smile only paused for a moment, and Anson continued, "Director, I may need some time to sort out my thoughts."

Gus nodded lightly, and said decisively, "No problem."

Anson turned around and strode towards the end of the corridor on the other side, completely unaware of the stunned gazes of the people around him with their jaws dropped, and walked away.

Alex: Dumbfounded.

Who can explain what they just saw?

Not long ago, the rustling exchange of glances could not hide their disappointment. After unveiling the mystery of the movie, the filming process presented in front of them completely lost its halo:

Raw, rough, simple.

Don't even talk about magic, it's even laughable.

No wonder people always say that distance creates beauty, especially in Hollywood, don't get too close, otherwise it may be disillusioned, everything will be subverted.

Anson, after taking off the Spider-Man mask, just looks like an ordinary handsome guy, besides that appearance, there is nothing special about him.

It is inevitable to feel a little sentimental.

What the audience sees is just an image projected on the big screen; but hidden behind the screen are the actor's and director's reflections on life.

A movie can just be a movie, a bucket of popcorn.

But a movie can also be more than just a movie, becoming an expression, an interpretation, an explanation, opening the door to another world for the audience.

Of course, they are only seeing a scene now, no one can know the result—

Maybe Anson will amaze the audience after thinking it over; maybe after spending a lot of time, it will still be terribly bad; maybe the scene just now was completely a public relations activity, deliberately performed for the students.

But no one can deny the impact of this scene.

It was even more shocking than Anson holding the reflector as a photography assistant just now.

This proves Anson's professionalism as an actor, especially in the current situation of Spider-Man's brilliant success, Anson is still willing to discuss performance in a down-to-earth manner, without the slightest pretense, which is indeed admirable—

Even if it is a performance, at least Anson is willing to cooperate in staging this scene for the sake of his image, which is already better than countless actors.

What's more, Alex doesn't think this is a play.

He saw it with his own eyes, really felt it, and he trusts his judgment.

Anson is real, Gus is real, those frustrations and fears, those conversations and thoughts are all real, and those confusions and doubts are no exception.

It turns out that besides the glamorous Hollywood and the dark and rotten Hollywood, there is another look, like a unicorn living with a group of people.

Alex turned to look at Eric—

Speechless.

He couldn't find the words to describe it, he didn't know how to express his feelings.

Eric calmed down instead, without the excitement and excitement just now.

Until just now, what Eric saw was Spider-Man Peter Parker; but now he saw Anson Wood.

Eric said, "Don't you think Anson like this is particularly charming?"

Alex didn't understand.

Eric, "I mean, focusing on one thing and putting your heart and soul into it, daring to admit your failures and daring to face your weaknesses, because you love it, you give it all. Such a person is especially handsome."

Alex nodded vigorously, "Yes, yes, yes!"

Eric stared at Anson's leaving back, muttering to himself, "I'm really looking forward to his performance."

Alex, "What if it fails again?"

Eric laughed, "Isn't that even more exciting."

Alex imagined the scene, nodded vigorously, and couldn't help but laugh.

If he went to a lot of trouble and made such a gesture, but the result was still a mess, then the picture should be... very amazing.

However, this is not what Anson needs to worry about now.

Anson doesn't have time to think about it for the time being, he needs some time to calm down and sort out his thoughts.

Whether it's expressionism or method acting, it's all just a performance in the final analysis; but now, Anson needs to show himself, the real himself.

This is the most difficult thing.