Chapter 51

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday to Anna Sophia, happy birthday to you--"

In the night, in the Westwood area, the house where Anna's family rented was brightly lit, and the spacious dining room was filled with joyful singing.

A three-tiered fruit cake with ten candles was placed on the round dining table, the candlelight flickering, and the guests were gathered around the table, along with Toto and Bella, who were staring at the cake, drooling.

Anna stood in front of the cake, wearing a brand new white floral dress that made her light golden hair shine warmly, and her radiant smile made her look like a little angel.

Since Anna's family didn't have many close friends in Los Angeles, the guests today were only the Ye family, the young actress Taylor-Durre and her parents.

"Anna, make a birthday wish!" Janet said with a smile after they finished singing "Happy Birthday."

Anna looked at everyone, closed her eyes slightly, clasped her hands, and made a wish aloud: "I hope I can perform well in my first on-set performance, I hope I can get a movie role soon, and I hope this current date can continue!" She glanced at Ye Wei and blew out the candles in one breath.

"You made three wishes, but Santa Claus only has two ears, and he didn't hear the last one," Ye Wei said with a helpless look, making everyone laugh.

"But he has a heart, and he can feel it," Anna said seriously, which made the adults even more delighted. She and Taylor-Durre exchanged a playful glare, responding, "Alright then!"

After making her wish, it was time to cut the cake. Toto and Bella were the happiest, each getting a large piece.

Next was the gift-giving time. In this country, people like to open gifts in front of others, and if there are greeting cards, they should be read as well; otherwise, it would be considered impolite.

In the living room, Anna opened the gifts one by one in front of everyone. The adults gave her age-appropriate toys and school supplies, Taylor-Durre gave her a delicate beaded bracelet, and Dodo gave her a baby doll.

Ye Wei's gift, Anna saved for last. Her face was full of anticipation, and everyone was curious too—what could it be?

The gift box was not large, tied with a ribbon and a greeting card. Anna took out the card first and read aloud, "Happy 10th birthday, Anna Sophia-Robert!" Then there was nothing else. She looked at Ye Wei with disappointment, "Just that...?"

"Anna!" David and Janet both called out; it was too impolite. When receiving a gift, one should always exclaim how wonderful it is and say they like it very much, that's the proper etiquette.

"Ha ha!" But everyone saw Ye Wei laughing heartily, "Got you, didn't I? I prepared two greeting cards, and this!" He magically pulled out a rolled-up piece of paper from his sleeve, unfolded it, and it turned out to be a sketch of Anna's smiling face!

"Wow!" Anna exclaimed genuinely, "This is amazing!"

She quickly took it, her big eyes wide open, unable to look away. There was also a line of pen-written wishes and Ye Wei's signature in both Chinese and English. She read, "Anna Sophia-Robert, you are just a 10-year-old girl now, but in the future, you will be a great actress and a big star."

"Drawn so well!" "So lifelike." Everyone praised, and Taylor-Durre was almost envious. Dodo pouted, "Brother, I want one too!"

This gift was enough to make Anna happy, and she hadn't even opened the gift box yet. When she did, it was a beautiful small mirror with a copper handle, and on the mirror surface, there was a non-fading marker pen writing "Ah-NaSophia." Although it covered a bit of space, it seemed to have some deeper meaning.

Everyone was curious, and Anna was about to ask, but Ye Wei explained, "Ahna, I believe you will definitely become a famous child star in the future. How fame will impact and change your life, I can't imagine, and neither can you. I just want to wish you that, no matter what, you can always be happy."

"If one day, whether because of success or failure, you feel lost, look in this mirror, and maybe you can find yourself again."

David and Janet were moved, and Durre's parents praised him. Ye Haogen and Gu Qiao exchanged a smile, their son was the most considerate and thoughtful person here.

"Thank you..." Anna, though young, couldn't fully understand his sentiment but was deeply moved, knowing he was thinking of her. She nodded, "This is the best gift I've received, both of them!"

No one felt offended by her words. In terms of sentiment, no one could match Ye Wei this time.

"Cool." Ye Wei laughed, it seemed Costco really had a lot of good things, and he should go there again when he had the chance.

...

By December 9th and 10th, the preparation for "Dance of the Angels" had reached 99%!

Darrum had already sent the shooting schedule to every crew member, and the equipment had been reserved. On the afternoon of the 11th, a group of people left the USC equipment center stealthily, each pushing a small cart loaded with various filming equipment.

On Marklandtuck Avenue, Ye Wei was waiting with a hired small truck, ready to transport the equipment back home, which would also be the set for the next day.

When he saw the eight stealthy figures, his eyes lit up, and he ran up, shouting, "Guys, well done, I'm proud of you!"

He immediately checked the camera on Darrum's cart, a Sony HDC-F950, the second-generation digital camera just released this year, the best digital camera on the market! Paired with HDCAM-SR digital high-definition tape, it can achieve RGB full-bandwidth recording. Lucas used it this year to complete the filming of "Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith"!

"Wow, this is great, 'what you see is what you get,' ha ha!" Ye Wei touched the camera body, praising it, "You know, the Japanese did a good thing."

After checking the camera, he continued to look at the other equipment: tripods, heads, Steadicam! Various lighting tools, various sound recording tools, portable TV monitors, walkie-talkies... and some clothespins, small pliers, and other small tools for the set, just as he said, this is professionalism!

"Wow, 'baby,' I've missed you so much!"

At this moment, he picked up a Fresnel light, a 1000-watt soft light, and held it like a lover, "Cool, guys, this is really cool."

This kid even knew the industry term for 500-1000 watt soft lights, "BABY," which Darrum and the others didn't know unless taught by a teacher. Why did he know? But they were no longer surprised, having heard that his family had made a movie, he probably learned it on set.

"Yes, I'm glad you like it..."

"Ha ha ha ha!" Ye Wei laughed heartily, with these treasures and this team, he could shoot anything he wanted in three days!

He then picked up an electronic clapperboard, clicked it, and was full of anticipation!

...

That evening, the pre-production gathering for "Dance of the Angels" was held at "Good Taste Nation" restaurant.

Despite saving a lot on equipment, with dozens of people attending, Ye Wei couldn't take them to expensive places like Michelin-starred restaurants or Hilton hotels; he was the one paying the bill.

But taking care of the crew's stomachs was too important. Everyone was working for free, not just the students, but the amateur and semi-professional actors, what were they in it for?

On one hand, it was for their interest and love, and on the other, it was to experience something beyond their ordinary lives, to get a taste of being in the film industry.

If they didn't enjoy it, they would lose morale.

Bard helped a lot, his family's restaurant closed for a day, cleared the space, and specially hosted the "Dance of the Angels" crew, only charging the cost price.

Ye Wei stipulated that the main actors could bring their families, the extras could come alone, the eight could each bring a friend, and the Dream Chasers members like Lev and others also came, but they had to pay for themselves. Despite this, the restaurant was packed, and more people kept coming.

At this moment, the restaurant was filled with laughter and conversation, people getting to know each other and building camaraderie.

This was a good start; only by feeling like part of the team would they have a higher sense of responsibility and greater enthusiasm for work.

Anna's family was talking with the two middle-aged actors playing Anna's parents, and Ye Wei was very pleased; after today, their understanding of their roles would surely improve.

Toto and Bella also came, running around and eating, not forgetting that Bella was also a main actor, and it was important to keep her happy, but not to let her eat too much!

"Mmm mmm mmm..." In a corner of the restaurant, Bard was eating voraciously...

"Hi, the weather is really nice today." On the other side, Lev mustered the courage to chat with the beautiful college student Susan. Susan responded, "Yes," and Lev walked away with a silly smile, excited and nervous! But this was the beginning of love, wasn't it?

Corvin was holding a DV camera, filming everything. These images would also be part of Ye Wei's promotional material, showing the grand dinner party he had organized.

Chen Nuo, Li Ming, and others were talking, even the most introverted bookworms were infected by the lively atmosphere and were very excited.

"Those Harvard-Westlake students are rich," Darrum sighed again, was it really just a short film for middle school students? It felt like an independent feature film now.

Parela suddenly saw something, "Look over there! What a playboy." Darrum looked over and saw Ye Wei welcoming a newly arrived middle school girl, the intimate manner clearly not just a friend. He said excitedly, "Oh, Anna is here too."

Was a clash about to happen?

Ye Wei was happy that Lily could come, as her mother had a dinner party tonight, and she had said she wasn't sure if she could make it. She had canceled her mother's event to come here. He smiled, "Thank you for coming, it makes me feel like a big shot."

"I just wanted to enjoy a good meal; those charity dinners don't have much food," Lily joked, looking around, her eyes a bit nervous because his family was also in the restaurant, and last month, they had an impolite and awkward encounter...

Although they were just ordinary alumni, and there were so many people, still...

Before they could say much, Dodo suddenly ran over, calling, "Brother, brother!"

"What's up?" Ye Wei looked at her, and Lily also looked at the cute little girl, her mood instantly relaxing, a smile on her face.

Dodo said urgently, "Bard ate a lot, I saw it." Ye Wei had asked her to keep an eye on Bard's eating.

"Let him enjoy tonight," Ye Wei shrugged, pointing to Lily, "Let me introduce you, this is Lily, my classmate." Lily bent down, stroked her head, and greeted, "Hey, Dorothy, I often hear your brother talk about you."

"It's you! The girl who ran out of our house that day!" Dodo exclaimed, remembering the incident last month, "You're my brother's girlfriend, right?"

"Not..." Ye Wei and Lily both laughed, but seeing him deny it so quickly, her eyebrows furrowed slightly.

This wasn't the time for her to cause trouble. Ye Wei bent down, covering Dodo's mouth, and glared, "Don't talk nonsense, kids don't understand, be quiet!" Dodo mumbled, "Mom, mom..."

Unexpectedly, someone wanted to stir things up, Anna! She saw, and she bounced over, looking at Lily, and extended her hand, smiling, "Hi, I'm Anna Sophia-Robert!"

"Lily Collins." Lily shook her hand, also looking her over, her eyes flickering with something.

Anna wrinkled her nose and said seriously, "I just wanted you to know, I'm also dating Wei."

"Which Wei? Me?" Ye Wei exclaimed, looking at Lily, who had a strange smile, unsure if she was angry or amused, but her eyes clearly had a hint of displeasure, and her voice was insincere, "I already know, it's his freedom, I mean, we're not in a relationship."

"Hey, Darrum, what did you call me for?" Ye Wei suddenly looked at Darrum, and walked over, "What? What shot? I'm coming."

When he reached Darrum without looking back, he glanced at Lily and the others, seeing them chatting like friends, it was strange...

"Hey, bad boy." Darrum and Parela both laughed.

"Tell me, what shot did you want?" Ye Wei looked at them, puzzled.

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