Recently, the fairy tale drama "Traveling with the Phoenix" starring Zhao Liying and Lin Gengxin ended successfully. The show has received wide acclaim since its launch, with a Douban rating of 7.2, which is quite impressive among similar dramas. How can a fairy tale drama create texture, make the characters come to life, and at the same time integrate a light comedy style? After the series was aired, the show's director Deng Ke and producer Zheng Zhongli were interviewed by the media and conducted a comprehensive analysis and review of the project.
1
Comments on the two leading actors: Zhao Liying is like the "Sacred Needle", Lin Gengxin is relaxed and serious
At the beginning of the interview, when asked about the performance of the two leading actors, Zhao Liying and Lin Gengxin, director Deng Ke first praised three "good" sentences in a row: "Very good, very good, surprisingly good!" He mentioned his impressions of the two of them: Zhao Liying "loves to eat" as much as Shen Li in the play, and is also "hard on the outside but soft on the inside"; Lin Gengxin is "interesting and warm" "On the surface, he seems to be more active on the scene, but in fact he is doing his homework very seriously. "
" In fact, when I started working on this project in early 2019, the only candidate for the role of Shen Li was Li. "Ying." Producer Zheng Zhongli revealed, "She is the protagonist Shen Li, who is as brave and decisive as Shen Li. She is also the producer and is the anchor of the "Hong Kong Phoenix" project."
"Hong Kong Phoenix" is Zhao Liying. Many viewers loved their lovey-dovey interaction with Lin Gengxin in the drama, and their sweet kissing scenes frequently hit the hot searches. The director also said that the two leading actors had a perfect understanding on the set, "I observed on the set that they are very familiar with each other. Some things don't need to be said, their eyes and micro-expressions can convey all the meaning." . For example, some of the scenes in the courtyard are more about daily interactions, such as throwing vats, eating grapes, etc., as well as the much-loved clips that are now circulated on the Internet. It can be said that 90% of them were created by everyone on the spot. "
2
How to implement the "realistic fairy tale drama"? Find the realistic foundation of the characters
Different from other fairy tale dramas, "Traveling with Phoenix" has a "realistic" positioning. Regarding the positioning of "realistic fairy tale drama", Zheng Zhongli said: "When we were filming "Traveling with the Phoenix", one idea was to bring these characters to life, so that everyone can believe in the story and find the realistic foundation of the characters." She Taking the human courtyard at the beginning of the series as an example, "We did not start with a grand world view, but started the life of the courtyard from the perspective of the character Shen Li. Therefore, we also insisted on looking for real-life shooting , and the director went to various places to see the scenery, including Guizhou, Jiangnan, etc., and finally we chose to build a small courtyard in the scenic spot of Dingfeng Lake in Xiandu. Now many tourists go there to check in and take photos. "
Deng. Ke added: “In the earliest days of this project, when we, the producer, and Liying were discussing how to position this project, we said that we should look at this project from a relatively mature perspective. Including the very childlike scene like the opening scene, which is set on New Year's Eve, with a few children lighting firecrackers, and then slowly taking a long shot to the sky to see these gods from a human perspective. In fact, this is what we set for the film. The keynote is to always look at the world of fairy tales from a human perspective. "
3
Industrial Breakthrough: The biggest difficulty is the special effects
"Traveling with Feng" is the first female-channel fairy tale drama produced by Xinli Media. When asked about the difficulties in the production process, Zheng Zhongli admitted that the biggest difficulty was the special effects. ""Traveling with the Phoenix" has a lot of special effects shots and a long post-production time. Even though we worked with the director and producer on a lot of concepts and shooting plans in the early stage, during the actual implementation, we also encountered a lot of problems regardless of the situation. Is it a technical or execution difficulty?"
Deng Ke said bluntly: "The production challenge this time is very great. I feel that I have completed an industrialized 'evolution' with a lot of special effects. Huge video.Based on my work experience, after the director has finished filming a film, the work is basically about 80% complete, because many things have been determined, but there may be some room for creativity in terms of fine editing or music arrangement. However, after the filming of "Walking with the Phoenix" was completed, there was still a lot of special effects work to be completed. "
Deng Ke revealed that the post-production special effects of "Traveling with the Phoenix" were split up to more than a dozen companies for integration. He had to communicate and adjust with each company and team respectively, and the related content ppt was as long as 500 pages. To this end, the main creator A post-production management team has been set up to integrate special effects work.
Zheng Zhongli added: "In fact, it is not difficult to make special effects dazzling and spend money, but it is difficult to combine them with your plot, characters, music, and actors. Get up, you can’t each play his own game. In this regard, I had a lot of discussions with the director, including Li Ying, and the final effect was very good. Therefore, when we face any big special effects drama that may come in the future, we will face the difficulties head on. "
4
How to integrate light comedy elements? "Tailor-made" according to the actors
In the popular men's costume drama "The Son-in-Law" in 2021, Director Deng Ke integrated comedy elements very well, which is impressive.
This In "Walking with the Phoenix", how did Deng Ke handle the light comedy style of the female video drama? In this regard, Deng Ke said: "Comedy has to be implemented in the end. "The comedy style of each play has to be "tailor-made" according to different actors.
He mentioned the difference in comedy treatment between "The Son-in-law" and "Xing Feng": "I think "The Son-in-law" will be more lively. , more straightforward, combined with the actor Guo Qilin at the time, who was very good at shaking off the baggage; when it came to "Traveling with the Phoenix", it was more of a comedy brought out through the plot. The biggest joy in Lin Gengxin lies in the contrast. For example, when Xingyun was in the courtyard in the early stage, he was a relatively lively mortal and would often play tricks on King Bi Cang. We will remember his reactions for a long time. Some. In the later stage, after he turned back to God, the two of them looked like Mr. and Mrs. Smith. I asked the two actors to hold back their acting as much as possible, and then use the rhythm of the music to break their plot. Overall, I think the comedy of "Traveling with the Phoenix" will be more everyday, and many of it are presented through daily micro-expressions, reactions, and on-the-spot states. "
Deng Ke concluded: "In fact, comedy is a very subtle thing. I think the only lesson is that it has to be customized according to different actors. Including that I later filmed "Da Feng Watchman", which is also a male video. At first, people would think that it should be somewhat similar to "The Son-in-Law", but in fact it is not. Finally, when we presented it, we also made a style change based on the actor Wang Hedi. ”
Written by: Nandu reporter Zhu Wenyi
