went to Gao Qunshu's studio for an interview, he opened the door and saw that he was on the phone responding to the media. He kept saying, "It's not that I don't want to work with professional actors. I've never said that. I don't want to work with people who have many problems." Actors cooperate." After the premiere of " Ice Hunting ", the topic caused by the acting skills of the heroine Yao Anna quickly fermented, and director Gao Qunshu also posted responses on social media one after another. On March 1, the finale of the TV series "Hunting Ice" was screened. In an exclusive interview with a reporter from the Beijing News, Gao Qunshu said frankly that this is the film that he has personally responded to the most in so many years of filming. He cannot watch it. Zhang Songwen and Yao Anna were wronged.
Gao Qunshu has not directed many TV series in recent years. The most recent work that has been broadcast so far is " Father's Identity " which was broadcast in 2016. Originally, he had no intention of directing "Ice Hunting" himself. He thought of making a small-budget online drama with non-professional actors to train the young directors and team. Until Zhang Songwen joined, the fate of the drama changed. Gao Qunshu went into battle personally, re-arranged the script, used a large number of professional actors and directed it himself. Even so, Gao Qunshu admitted that "Hunting Ice" is still a low-cost drama, and there are many regrets and loopholes in creation and production. However, the actors in this drama have fulfilled their roles qualifiedly. If there is a problem, it is also his problem as the director. After all, he was the one who shouted "pass" on the scene, and he should be responsible.
Anna Yao plays Zhao Younan.
- Responding to the controversy -
No matter what others say, I must defend my actors
Beijing News: At the beginning of the first episode of "Hunting Ice", the appearance of Zhao Younan, played by Anna Yao, caused quite a controversy. Netizens think her look while undercover investigating a case is too ugly and doesn’t look like her?
Gao Qunshu: I don’t think there’s anything wrong with the styling, especially when people in real third-tier cities in the 1990s usually wore wigs and black stockings. Many netizens may not know much about the real life in the 1990s.
Zhao Younan went undercover to investigate the case.
Beijing News: There is another "hot search on the entire Internet" recently. When Zhao Younan was searching in the play, his gun-raising action was imitated by many netizens. Do you think Yao Anna's actions are uncoordinated?
Gao Qunshu : She has her shortcomings, but the action of raising a gun was taught by a retired coach of the Secret Service. She may not be so skilled in it. After all, the training time is too short, but the action is right, it’s just that she doesn’t do it well. skilled. The moment you raise the gun this way, your eyes must look in the opposite direction, it must be like this. This is all taught by the coach.
Yao Anna’s gun-raising movements have been professionally trained.
Beijing News: Zhao Younan is very good at running in the play, and Anna Yao is even running in many scenes. In reality, do the police need to make so many trips to handle cases?
Gao Qunshu: The most important way to handle cases in the 1990s was the crowd-sea tactic. You have to go through all the family relationships of the suspect from childhood to adulthood, including kindergarten classmates, junior high school classmates, people you met after work, and social relationships. , at this time, whoever runs faster will benefit. At that time, we relied on this kind of primitive human labor to solve crimes. There was no monitoring, and we relied on a large number of interviews to slowly find out the clues. In particular, the new police officers were willing to make contributions and work hard without caring about their own lives. They were young and physically fit, worked tirelessly and went forward to touch it bravely, and they found it.
Beijing News: When you first started using Anna Yao, did you ever think that using her would be so controversial?
Gao Qunshu: I didn’t expect that she was not so famous at that time. I can only say that I am addicted to challenging non-professional actors, and this may be my problem.
Beijing News: You have frequently posted on social media recently to respond to various controversies about Anna Yao. Would you still be so protective if you were a different actor?
Gao Qunshu: Of course is maintained. Everyone has to maintain it. This is my actor. No matter what others say, I have to defend my actors.All my responses were for Songwen and Anna. I was not speaking for myself. I was criticizing myself. The first time I spoke was because someone said that Songwen and I both took big red envelopes from Huawei to praise Yao Anna. What do you think this is? You can't wrongly accuse Zhang Songwen, and of course you can't wrongly accuse me, so I wrote the essay. Mistakes that should be admitted must be made clear even if they are not our fault.
Beijing News: After the broadcast, netizens did have a lot of controversy about Yao Anna's acting skills. As a director, how do you evaluate Anna Yao's performance?
Gao Qunshu: I would position her as graduating from compulsory education in junior high school. I told her agent before that you must not make false claims about how good her acting is. I think she completed the task with passing standards. First of all, she has many disadvantages as an actor. She has no life and no experience. After all, it has not been long since she graduated from school. Her living environment is relatively closed and simple, but she has made progress during filming. I really didn’t expect the audience’s response to her acting skills to be so great. Now the audience’s requirement is not just to improve, but to follow Zhang Songwen’s (acting skills), which is definitely over.
- Comment on the starring role -
丨 Zhang Songwen
He will tell you one thing, vivid and vivid is not enough to describe
Beijing News: Zhang Songwen is recognized by everyone as a very good actor. From the perspective of a director, what has he accomplished? What’s your unique advantage as an actor?
Gao Qunshu: Zhang Songwen is a very unique actor, he is different from ordinary actors. He lives a normal life, and to be honest, many actors nowadays don’t know what a normal life is like. Zhang Songwen started working after graduating from high school, and then he entered film school. After he graduated from film school, he went to work in society and experienced too many things. Acting is all about playing other people's lives. Zhang Songwen has seen too many people and things. When we met and chatted for the first time, he told me many things and feelings. In fact, he didn't talk much about acting. He just talked about his life, who he met and what happened in his life. He was particularly good at observing and experiencing life. His heart was very sensitive and rich. His descriptions and insights made me think he was a very magical person. He tells you something so vivid that it's not enough to describe it. He can remember every detail of the time, such as what happened when he was a child, what happened when he worked as a tour guide, what happened after he came to Beijing to graduate and had no filming, what happened with his agent, and what happened during the filming. It comes out as a movie. Who has such perceptive, memory and descriptive abilities? I haven't seen it.
"Hunting Ice" is Zhang Songwen's villain again after "Hurry".
Beijing News: It can be understood that for Zhang Songwen, going to film school is the same as working as a tour guide. It is also part of his life experience?
Gao Qunshu: Yes, all successful actors have experienced the ups and downs of society. There is no one who has not experienced the difficulties of growing up and the complexity of society, and has come through it step by step. In fact, entering film school is also a part of his life. Unlike others, he graduated from high school and entered film school. That is part of studying. Film school is a part of life for him. The difference is very big. He is observing and absorbing life every day. For others, going from high school to college is a necessary process for learning and growth, but for him, this is not the only way to learn in life. Being a tour guide and going to college may have parallel roles for him. Unlike other actors, going to film school is the only way to learn.
丨Anna Yao
I say from now on, you should go out with friends more
Beijing News: When you first decided to use Anna Yao, how do you think she matches the character's temperament?
Gao Qunshu: She is very suitable, her appearance is like a policeman. The first time I met her, she had short hair, was very simple, very capable and neat. The most valuable thing about her is that she doesn't have the common flaws of actors, she's not pretentious or fake.She just wants to do a good job. I will do whatever you say. How far I can do it is another question, but first of all, I am willing to do it well. Everyone was dissatisfied with the result, mainly because of me as the director. My mistake was that I shouldn't have said "passed".
Beijing News: Before "Hunting Ice", Anna Yao had never been a heroine. How did Zhao Younan choose her for this drama?
Gao Qunshu: Yao Anna was recommended by someone when we decided to use non-professional actors. They also introduced her as Ren Zhengfei’s daughter. But I have used farmers and policemen in filming. In my opinion, they are all non-professional actors. Many people learn to perform routines after learning acting, but Anna Yao is genuine, just like the policewoman Zhao Younan in "Hunting Ice", she is a very confused newcomer who is determined to enter the front line and make a career. new police officers. I said this scene would be very painful, but Anna Yao said on the spot that I could endure hardship. This is something that many actors don't have. The final result was not satisfactory, and there is nothing to say about it, but you cannot accuse others unfairly and say what happened to so-and-so’s daughter. You said that there are a few actresses now who can run without makeup in the mountains and forests at will, even the male doubles can't outrun them. We first used a male stand-in for the running scene, but he ran too slowly. I asked why you were running so slowly, and he said he was exhausted and couldn't run anymore. I said Yao Anna, try running by yourself. She ran like crazy, faster than the stand-in. I said okay, the stand-in can rest, and Yao Anna will do all the movements by herself.
Beijing News: Netizens also discovered that she is very good at running.
Gao Qunshu : There are also those who laugh at it, and they will run away as soon as they say it. Why am I willing to use non-professional actors? Non-professional actors will risk their lives to film, while many professional actors cannot. If you ask an actress to wear no makeup, it is already very rare. How many actresses can run down a mountain road?
Beijing News: Did Yao Anna receive professional training from the police before starting the film?
Gao Qunshu: Before was started, I asked her to experience life with the young actor who played the policeman. Yao Anna went to the local police station first. But to be honest, they don't know much about experiencing life. She just got acquainted with life, and when Zhenyi Pai discovered that her actions and other aspects still didn't look like a policeman. I stopped and went to find a retired coach from the Secret Service to train her. I said we should shoot other things first, and gave her another week. I told the coach, you must not treat them as actors, just like training new recruits, starting from standing at attention, 8 hours a day, walking in step, raising a gun and searching , starting from basic movements. I say you do it 10,000 times until you develop muscle memory. But at present, it seems that I still haven’t practiced enough, although I have made great progress.
Beijing News: Specifically, in what aspects has she made progress?
Gao Qunshu: She used to look at everything at a loss, with no target in her eyes. Real special forces hold a gun for 8 hours and always stare at a point. After such training, they must be very accurate in seeing things. Later, we hired two more coaches. During the filming of each scene, a coach was on hand to provide action guidance. Her movements were not that skillful, but they were definitely correct.
Anna Yao played a rookie policeman.
Beijing News: In addition to being very serious and hard-working, does Yao Anna have any advantages as an actor?
Gao Qunshu: It’s enough to endure hardship and work hard. You have to do it step by step. Besides, for an actress to be able to endure hardship and work hard, this is such a high requirement.
Beijing News: If the time is long enough, she will still improve?
Gao Qunshu: of course. When filming any scene, time is the most important factor. If we can't pass three or four shots today, then we'll shoot again tomorrow. The actors themselves can't sleep, and they will think about how to change it at night. If it still doesn't work the next day, try again a month later. There will definitely be changes in this month. People are alive. If you have time to grind, you will definitely make progress. The problem with low cost is that the filming must be completed within the specified period. Even if the actors, lenses, and scripts are not perfect, they can only be passed first.
Beijing News: So in your opinion, if you want to become a qualified actor, what does Anna Yao still lack?
Gao Qunshu: I once told her, Anna, you need to go into life now, not stay at home. I say from now on, you should go out with friends more, go to street stalls to drink beer, let yourself go and break yourself. She is usually a homebody, but I say you can’t be that homebody, you have to go out more, you have to see more, first you see, then you can feel, and then you can express. You have never seen it before, how can you show it.
- Revealing the Behind the Scenes -
A common problem in major crime dramas is the weak presentation of the police department.
Beijing News: There is a perception. At the beginning of the first episode, most of the scenes are focused on the role played by Anna Yao. This is intentionally shown. ?
Gao Qunshu: The opening of follows the real development process of the case and is presented from the perspective of the police, so it will focus on Zhao Younan.
Beijing News: This drama has a very obvious feeling. The police part seems a bit weak in terms of script presentation?
Gao Qunshu: Yes, this is also a common problem in such big case dramas. When writing about a police officer, I can only write about his actions. I cannot write about a person in such detail. The development of his characters can only be in action. This is a real reality. When "Conquer" was aired, it faced the same problem. At that time, many people said that "Conquer" was created by Sun Honglei alone, and none of the actors who played the police officers knew how to act. Major cases are solved by a group of people working together as a team. They are group portraits, and more about actions. There are no personal highlights. When "Conquest" was aired, many comments said that the police officers did not perform well and kept a straight face every day. In fact, the real situation was like this. When a big case came, the leader said that the case must be solved within 10 days. If the case was not solved, he would be dismissed. How could he How about not keeping a straight face? Many times, keeping a straight face only creates atmosphere and pressure for subordinates. But everyone just said that the actor can’t act. The villain has a separate character line, which makes it easier to stand out. After "Conquer" aired for many years, everyone discovered that the younger brothers around Liu Huaqiang also performed very well, and finally found that the melon seller also performed very well. And from a creative point of view, it is true that this type of script has very high requirements for screenwriters. It requires too much skill, and few screenwriters can do it. Zhao Dongling ("Police Honor", " Red Sorghum ", "Happiness" The screenwriter of "To Ten Thousands of Homes") can do it.
For a newcomer like Yao Anna, it is difficult to ask her to give her best performance.
Beijing News: On the set of "Hunting Ice", it is said that you asked other actors to watch Zhang Songwen's performance when they had no scenes?
Gao Qunshu: has been like this from day one. Not only to watch Zhang Songwen's plays, but also to watch all the plays, even the actors who have no roles, should also go and watch them live. I told the actors, watch more scenes where I train others, and then it will save you some trouble if I train you again, and it will indeed save you some trouble. When the actors arrive at the scene every day, they sit back and watch.
Beijing News: In your previous works, you have also used a large number of amateur actors. How did you train Yao Anna and other actors to perform on the set of "Ice Hunting"?
Gao Qunshu: I won’t tell non-professional actors about acting. I will tell them what the character’s mood was like when doing this. Why do you do this? Let them really listen, see and feel. When it comes to the training of non-professional actors, I tell everyone differently and it needs to be based on his existing foundation. For example, Miao Bo, who plays He Hongzhang, has never acted before. He is a host, and he always speaks in a broadcasting tone, which he practiced little by little. He used to have a very exaggerated acting style. In life, as long as he drank a little wine, he would stand up and say, "I will recite a poem to everyone!" What do you think we should do? In the end, I said something and asked him to follow it up, and I practiced it bit by bit.
Beijing News: You also said in previous interviews that the requirements for actors do not require them to retell every line word by word according to the original text. You hope that they can digest and express it in their own way?
Gao Qunshu: I require actors to have second creations. Good actors take the initiative to make second creations. No matter how good the script is, it must allow people to express themselves according to their usual speaking habits and pronunciation. Otherwise, everything will be the same. For an inexperienced newcomer like Yao Anna, as long as she can complete it, it is difficult to ask her to perform. We had a scene with a young actress where she was cooking noodles, and I almost went crazy on the scene. Pour the cold water in, and before it boils, she puts the dough in. I said, do you eat instant noodles under cold water? She said, isn't this filming? This is the key issue. She treats acting as acting and life as life. She thinks it doesn't matter what she cooks, whether she cooks it or how she cooks it. What she practiced in school was all insubstantial, so it wouldn't be a disaster on the school stage, right? I said we would take an acting class today and teach her how to cook noodles first. I remember taking 28 takes of that scene. After taking many photos, she suddenly got the idea and acted out cooking noodles as a real thing, and she got it right instantly. I said girl, I almost ruined my reputation for the rest of my life, but I can train you out of it, I am so powerful. It would be great if Anna Yao had such a play, and I could teach her. But all her plays only have tasks, and there is no room for such life-like details.
The reason why I was scolded is because the style of filming is different from the usual one.
Beijing News: Do you think there have been some changes in the audience's aesthetics in watching dramas over the years? For example, people are not quite able to accept this documentary style now, do they think it is rough?
Gao Qunshu: I don’t think it’s because people’s aesthetics have changed. The same was true when “Conquest” was aired (it was scolded), but social media was not so developed at that time, and there were not so many voices that could be expressed. At that time, some people also said that " Thirteen Murder Cases" was called a TV series? We don’t even have a light on. Do you think we can do without a light? It’s so dark in the play that no one can see clearly. Why do I let you see it so clearly? In fact, it is still a matter of concept. The same goes for movies. When " Feng Sheng H" came out, it was criticized for having logical loopholes like a sieve. " Detective Hunter Zhang" was scolded to death. Is it a movie? This is a "rule of law in progress". But after all, the audience of movies is still smaller than that of TV series and online series. I concluded today that the reason why I have been scolded so much is because my style of making films is different from what many people are used to seeing. It is not the glossy and sophisticated look that they often see. My sense of documentary may be offended by many people. Not used to it. Some netizens also complained that our shots, editing, and soundtrack were particularly rough. I agree with this statement. On the one hand, the budget is insufficient, but on the other hand, we just want to make a simple, documentary-style drama that will bring everyone back to the 1990s.
"Hunting Ice" has a unique temperament.
Beijing News: Looking back now, if there are any regrets about "Hunting Ice", do you think there are any reasonable suggestions in the comments of netizens?
Gao Qunshu: Of course has it. For example, in terms of plot, the policeman is not as well written as the villain. It is true. It is not full. This is really a script problem. It can be written better. We just used the existing relatively simple conditions to build a small bungalow. If you insist on using the standard requirements of high-rise buildings, we really can't do it. Yesterday at dinner, a buddy said that this drama is just like that, there is no breakthrough or anything good, but it somehow makes you want to follow it. I think this is what I am, this is what I am good at.
Beijing News Chief Reporter Liu Wei
Editor Tong Na
Proofreader Liu Jun
