On March 5, there was another long queue at the Actors Guild of Hengdian Film and Television City. Many young people come to participate in the selection interview, hoping to be promoted from extras to prospective actors, and strive to appear in front-facing scenes in film and television dramas.
This year, as more and more film crews have settled in, the opportunities for actors to act are increasing. There is a real-life version of "Boss Boss" who played the second male lead just two months after arriving in Hengdian; there is also a college student who starred in seven or eight micro-films in half a year. Short play... But at the same time, many crews are troubled by "not enough extras", and some new actors also feel "capacity panic" when faced with sudden opportunities.
Indeed, not long ago, the topic of "Hengdian's shortage of group performers" also attracted the attention of the entire Internet. Faced with this situation, Chao News reporters discovered during an interview in Hengdian that the Hengdian Actors Guild is increasing the time and quota for actor passes to cope with the filming needs of the crew. In addition, systematic training related to film and television performances is also highly sought after locally.
Multiple crews in Hengdian have scheduled shooting scenes. Photo by Chao News reporter Wu Yue
Urgent! There is a shortage of extras in Hengdian
Someone’s salary increased 10 times in two months
Downstairs in a hotel where the crew is stationed, Shen Tao (pseudonym), an extra who has been in the industry for 6 years, is waiting for work. In less than 5 minutes, he received 6 actor notification group messages: "100 additional extras", "The crew is recruiting additional actors, monthly salary is 6,000-7,000 yuan"...
Recently, he has seen an increase in demand for extras. ——Compared with two months ago, the number of recruitment notices has at least doubled. "The crew is looking for group performances every day. There are more applicable scenes for young people like me, which is especially in demand."
Shen Tao received 6 in 5 minutes A group notice is recruiting actors. Photo by Chao News reporter Wu Yue
The shortage of extras has also caused worries for the Hengdian Film and Television City Actors Guild, the "parental family" of Hengpiao actors. Recently, a large production crew requested "80 extras" from the Screen Actors Guild late at night, but only 50 people were found. In order to fill the vacancies, the crew can only temporarily invite special actors to perform in some scenes.
To this end, the Hengdian Film and Television City Actors Guild has increased the time and quota for actor passes. A search for "Hengyingtong" on the Zhejiang Liban App shows that the number of actors' certificate applications increased to 260 on March 6, and the number of people who can make reservations on March 1 is 140. This month, the number of people who can make reservations for certificates has expanded to 53. %.
Added actor certification time and quota notification. Source: Actors Guild of Hengdian Film and Television City, Dongyang City
Chao News reporter learned that since the beginning of this year, the number of film crews stationed in Hengdian has increased by more than 20% year-on-year, and the gap in young extras in the first week of March was about 40%. Currently, the crew needs a large number of extras, especially the shortage of young male extras. After newly registered actors complete the formalities and participate in pre-job training, they can join the crew as an extra.
On one hand, the crew is suffering from a lack of extras, and the Actors Guild publishes recruitment announcements every day; on the other hand, after the hot "pass wave" for actor passes, they have withstood the test of the waves. Some people rise to the challenge, and some retreat after being frustrated. Who can really stay for a long time? There are only a few "horizontal actors" in the world.
In the first month of this year, Zhang Xiaohua (pseudonym), an actor from Guangdong, saw a queue of 100 meters long for new actors, with new actors queuing from the application window to outside the building. This scene reminded him of when he first came to Hengdian last year, less than 5 of his 18 friends remained.
"Being an actor is hard work. Staying up late for filming is normal. Even if you are on camera for five or six hours a day, you still have to wait on the set for more than ten hours." In addition to working long hours, Zhang Xiaohua said that many extras have not participated in professional training to improve their acting skills because they are amateurs. , can only be tired of running around in different group performance scenes.
An extra performer's income. Photo by Chao News reporter Wu Yue
In the long run, the monthly income of three to four thousand yuan is only enough for ordinary group performers to cover daily expenses. Moreover, this situation is still some distance away from real acting. Zhao Haiying, a senior special actor who is filming in Hengdian, suggested that newcomers to the group acting industry should make career plans during training and get roles with lines through acting skills, which means they can earn higher incomes.
In Hengdian, being an extra performer is the first step for every new actor. After that, you can pass exams and acting skills to be promoted to special actors, roles, etc.The salary is also clearly divided according to the level -
currently earns more than 100 yuan a day for extras. According to the current shortage of extras, the salary may be increased. If you are promoted to a special guest actor, your daily salary can be increased by 3-10 times. According to the relevant person in charge of the
Actors Guild, the current number of registered "Hengdiao Actors" has reached 130,000. This year, 1,400 new actors have registered, a year-on-year increase of about 60%. But with the demand for crews soaring, the shortage of actors may be even greater in the future.
is busy! Go for the "actor dream"
Real-life "boss" and retired civil servants come to "drift"
There is a shortage of extras, attracting many young people to join. Compared with making a living, other group actors who have "confidence" are very enviable by "newbie group actors". After all, these group actors no longer need to pay too much attention to the needs of food and clothing, and can already pursue their "actor dream" with more peace of mind.
"Hong Kong drifting actor" Liu Lin is from Xinjiang and was a civil servant before. After he retired, he and his wife moved to Hengdian because his daughter came to work in Pan'an, Zhejiang Province.
In less than two years of acting, Liu Lin has already appeared in more than 20 film and television dramas, half of which are short dramas. He has played roles such as chairman, father, treasure appraiser and bodyguard. Liu Lin said that he doesn't like square dancing, but he loves performing, and his life in Hengdian filming is very fulfilling.
In order to realize his "actor dream", he also participated in actor training organized by Hengdian Film and Television Crew Service Co., Ltd. This is the second time I have enrolled in a class - I have taken a basic acting class, and during this time I am taking an advanced class. I hope to improve my acting skills and strive to star in more good works.
During the training period, he took 6 hours of classes every day. He had to learn acting, auditioning, basic language skills training for lines, Wia, horse riding, etc., and he also had to memorize lines on weekends. Liu Lin said that the teachers who teach are all invited professionals. After systematic study, he can perform the characteristics of the characters according to the script situation, and the probability of being selected by the director is getting higher and higher.
Actors participating in training. Photo by Chao News reporter Wu Yue
Also training with Liu Lin was Dong Shuzhi. He is the founder of a financial company in Shanghai. He just came to Hengdian two months ago and saw the Actors Guild recruiting group. After submitting his resume, he successfully got the role of the second male lead after two interviews.
In the eyes of others, Dong Shuzhi has achieved financial freedom and is a real-life "boss boss." But in his heart, he has had a "dream of being an actor" since he was a child. During the Spring Festival this year, Dong Shuzhi stayed in Hengdian filming and earned his first pot of gold from "Hengdiao".
"Compared with my previous career in finance, acting is not my specialty, but this is the direction of my future research and I feel very fulfilled." He is very satisfied with his current income.
The reporter asked, "Have you made tens of thousands of yuan?" He smiled and said very modestly, "No, no, I feel that for every effort, you will gain. Your own efforts are very important, and of course you also need a little luck."
In Hengdian, there are many people who come from far away to "dream to be actors". They have clear goals and work extra hard. In another classroom, Shi Yongxue from Beijing was taking advantage of the break to make up notes. She hopes to become a martial arts actor.
Shi Yongxue is taking notes in the training class. Photographed by Wu Yue, a reporter from Chaozhou News. Walking in the aisle outside the classroom of
, there were sometimes sounds of crying, sometimes angry questions like "Do you want it?", and many actors were training in bel canto. "Ah, ah, ah" kept coming and going... Every classroom carries the efforts and dreams of actors.
"In Hengdian, as long as you work hard, your dreams will come true." This is the motivation for many actors in the training class to realize their dreams. Because, judging from the experience of their classmates in accepting roles, there are not many people who have played second male roles within two months of joining the industry and starred in dozens of film and television dramas in a year. When the opportunity comes, it will ultimately depend on whether they have the ability to take on the job. .
is hot! A wave of investment in micro-short dramas has arrived.
Beijing’s “contractor” has become the “financier behind the scenes”
The popularity of short dramas has triggered a wave of investment. At the same time, the pursuit of quality in short dramas is also increasing day by day. From the experience of many group performances, we can also feel that today's micro-short drama crew's definition of group performance is no longer just "walk-in", but has solid and real requirements.
Su Nan from Beijing is a new investor in micro-short dramas. In early March, when the reporter met him at the Huaxia Cultural Park Scenic Area of Hengdian Film and Television City, the second micro-short drama "Guanggongqu" he invested in had just been completed and he participated in the drama for the first time. This year, he expects to invest in more than ten micro-short dramas.
Su Nan (first from the right) is filming a short drama. Photo by Chao News reporter Wu Yue
Su Nan was originally working on an engineering project in Beijing, and his friends called him a "contractor." And many investors like him are becoming the "behind-the-scenes financiers" of micro-short dramas. According to official statistics, in December 2023, there will be as many as sixty or seventy crews filming micro-short dramas in the China Cultural Park.
html In early March, at the Green Mango Studio, another modern drama location in Hengdian, Yu Fanhao, the director who had previously shot a long drama, was filming the micro-short drama "Double Kill" in Hengdian. Since last year, he has filmed more than 30 short dramas.Yu Fanhao discovered that micro-short dramas have also become popular in the industry - directors of major dramas have entered the scene one after another, and even veteran actors are involved in the filming and post-production of micro-short dramas. For example, the micro-short drama working group of a certain front-line director in Hong Kong has been inspecting venues in Hengdian recently.
Chao News reporter learned that compared with major dramas that invest tens of millions of yuan, the production cycle of micro-short dramas is shorter and the investment is less. Some only need to invest four to five million yuan, and one can be filmed and produced within 30 days. Due to the low cost, investors have more opportunities for trial and error.
Green Mango Studio. Photographed by Wu Fumei, a trainee reporter at Chaozhou News.
"You can make money by shooting five micro-short dramas as long as one of them becomes popular. Previously, a popular micro-short drama had a return of up to 20 million yuan." A micro-short drama casting assistant director A reporter from Xiang Chao News revealed that this is also the main reason why hot money pours into micro-short dramas.
As the demand for filming increases, the demand for outstanding actors exceeds the supply. More and more actors are paying more attention to the content of short plays. Vulgar and eye-catching micro-short plays are obviously not favored by the audience, and the director is changing his thinking for this reason.
Micro-short filming scene. Photo by Chao News reporter Wu Yue
html In early March, Liu Xinyuan, a junior at a university in Hebei Province, rushed to Hengdian after receiving an invitation to play the second female lead in a micro-short drama. In the six months since she entered the industry, she has participated in seven or eight short dramas. She also saw changes in the micro-short play in the role requirements: "For the first micro-short play I auditioned for, the director asked me to be more exaggerated. In the last play, the director often told me to 'tighten up a little bit' and the acting requirements were more delicate. , the content is also full."It can be seen from this that micro-short dramas are also providing training opportunities for more actors. Yuan Man, the person in charge of Huaxia Cultural Park, believes that if new actors want to develop in the entertainment industry for a long time, they need to accumulate excellent works. A good short drama is exactly what they and the whole society need.
These are the epitome of "horizontal actors" striving to improve themselves, and they are also vivid examples of the changes in the crew's industry. In Hengdian, good actors never lack opportunities. But in the final analysis, the ability of "Hengdiao actors" to stay in Hengdian for a long time ultimately depends on their acting skills.
(Source: Chao News)
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