Chapter 89

"Kid, what do you think a director should be on set?"

Before even reaching the set, Spielberg suddenly asked a question as if it were an exam, with a smile on his face.

Ye Wei's mind instantly flashed with many thoughts. There was no standard answer to such a question; every director should have their own style. A sincere answer would be more touching...

Recalling the three days of shooting "Dance of the Angels," scenes flooded his mind, and he said from the heart, "A friend. I would be friends with my team members. Being a boss, a king, or a god might make things go faster, but everyone would become a bunch of yes-men, without passion or care, just a job.

But filmmaking is a team effort; no one knows everything. Complementing and helping each other yields more. Especially friends, they have the most vitality, treating the set like their home, thinking about how to make it better. And they build friendships, leading to future collaborations. The efficiency of a crew of old friends is even higher.

This is the way I like to direct."

"Just friends?" Spielberg asked again, seemingly unsatisfied, his smile fading.

Ye Wei frowned, not quite understanding. This was not only his heartfelt answer, but Spielberg was also this type of director. James Cameron, on the other hand, had a controversial relationship with his crew members. Many actors who worked with him would say, "I never want to work with him again," and they really did.

Spielberg was different; many actors and crew members became his long-term friends, like Tom Hanks, Harrison Ford, and Zemeckis. They formed their own power group, advancing together.

Not every director is James Cameron, and Cameron can't become a giant like Spielberg. Why wasn't the old man satisfied?

Was this answer too mediocre? Ye Wei thought and added, "I wouldn't say just friends. Sometimes you have to take on other roles, sometimes a boss, sometimes even a villain, but most of the time, a friend, a friend who is both loved and hated. In the end, you always love him."

Spielberg didn't say anything, continuing to walk forward, his attitude unclear.

Would this add points or deduct points? Ye Wei scratched his head, not caring, deciding to just be himself.

Paramount Studios has over 30 sound stages. Since November last year, "Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events" has been shooting in 10 of them. The one they were now entering was not far from Paramount's iconic water tower, where a key scene, Count Olaf's mansion, was set.

This was a Hollywood blockbuster set. At a glance, there were at least two to three hundred staff members, bustling and noisy. Whether it was the "base camp" rest area, dining area, or the set's filming and performance area, people were coming and going, filled with the shouts of various departments.

If this place was a market, then the set of "Dance of the Angels" was a front yard lawn stall.

"Damn, is the lighting not set up yet?"

"The lighting is done, but the set is too slow!"

"Wrong, the camera is placed here, it seems to be crossing the axis!" "It was there before, and this is within 180 degrees, absolutely no crossing!" "Clapperboard!"

The few people arguing about whether the next camera position crossed the axis stopped and turned when an assistant quickly passed by, then smiled and walked over.

"Hey, Steven, welcome!"

The 40-year-old director Brad Silberling, a white man with long hair and glasses; the 50-year-old producer Laurie MacDonald, a fit, blonde white woman; and the 40-year-old cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki (nominated for Best Cinematography twice), all greeted Spielberg warmly.

Spielberg chatted with them for a few moments, and the director and cinematographer returned to their argument, while the producer led the big shot on a tour of the set.

Ye Wei followed, his eyes roving over the busy surroundings, his blood boiling. A blockbuster set! Amazing! Where were Jim Carrey and Meryl Streep? Not for autographs, but just to see his favorite actors was exciting.

However, he regretfully discovered that they weren't on set this morning! It seemed only a few young actors were present.

Like Emily Browning, who played the sister "Violet." He recalled the information he had looked up; a girl from Australia, 15 years old, started acting at 10, and had already starred in several films, including "Only the Brave" and "Gothika." In last year's "Ned Kelly," she was Heath Ledger's sister. She had a good presence, indeed like a next-door girl.

Emily Browning, who had just finished a rehearsal, suddenly looked over.

Ye Wei smiled slightly and then turned his gaze back to following the big shot.

"We plan to shoot for three more days, then we'll leave here and continue shooting at the Downey Studios in the suburbs. The set is a huge challenge, but we're on schedule."

On the way, Laurie MacDonald updated Spielberg on the shooting progress and introduced various aspects of the set. They arrived at the monitoring area, where a large TV connected to cables was placed. At Laurie's signal, an assistant played the previously shot footage, which couldn't be seen on film.

In the small area, nearly ten people stood, with the more powerful ones naturally in the front. Ye Wei, due to his connection, could stand in the second row.

He watched the TV screen with interest, perhaps he could get a sneak peek at Streep's performance?

"These are the shots we just finished," Laurie said, smiling. It was Emily Browning's performance. Director Silberling also walked over, chuckling. Spielberg nodded and praised, "It looks great."

Ye Wei frowned, noticing a slightly uncoordinated black shadow on the right side of the frame in the previous shot, which seemed to be a microphone. But it was very fast, and the shadow was small, and the elaborate set distracted attention. He wasn't 100% sure...

What to do? If he didn't say anything, he wouldn't make a mistake, but he wouldn't stand out either. He was here to show his stuff! This was also an attitude towards filmmaking; every detail must be done well!

"Wait!" Thinking this, Ye Wei called out.

Everyone looked at him in confusion, and he continued, "Can we rewind and look at the previous shot again? It seems to be a continuity error, there's a microphone on the right side of the frame."

"What? No way?" Silberling looked surprised, "We've watched these shots several times, how did we miss it..."

The assistant didn't take long to rewind. Everyone was actually curious about this teenager, seeing his clothes, he was just a Harvard-Westlake student, at most a high schooler! Being a friend of a big shot wasn't surprising, but being an "assistant" was odd.

Spielberg's smile didn't change, and he watched the suspected continuity error with everyone. However, after several replays and freeze-frames, nothing was found.

What's going on? Ye Wei widened his eyes; there was definitely a black shadow just now... But the facts were clear, so he could only smile, "Uh, sorry, I was wrong."

"No problem." "Continue!" Everyone didn't pay much attention, and Silberling said happily, "I told you." Spielberg looked at Ye Wei and joked, "Young man, did you see something supernatural?"

"Ha ha, maybe!" Ye Wei laughed, feeling a bit nervous. Oh no, not only did he not stand out, but he also made a fool of himself. He needed to find a way to make up for it quickly...

But for a long time, he didn't get the chance. Until the set quieted down and entered the shooting mode, an unexpected situation occurred.

This was a scene between Emily Browning and Liam Aiken, who played her brother. After she flubbed a line, she seriously requested, "I want that teenage boy to 'step out of sight,' because he reminds me of my classmates, making it hard to get into character..."

"Step out of sight" means to be out of an actor's line of sight.

"Uh... OK." Ye Wei was taken aback, but he smiled naturally, "The boy's name is Ye Wei, I'll step out, you do your best."

He had to run far away, almost leaving the sound stage, and the shooting area indeed became a black shadow.

Losing the chance to impress the big shots, Ye Wei felt a bit frustrated, thinking the Australian girl was being a diva, demanding "step out of sight," like Garbo...

But thinking about it, she was just trying to do her best, so he couldn't blame her. Ah, if it were Streep's scene, she wouldn't need anyone to step out.

After more than half an hour, Spielberg's visit to the set was over, and the group left the sound stage. Ye Wei, besides making a fool of himself and being shooed to the side to eat a donut, did nothing to showcase his directorial talent or familiarity with the set.

The big shot's schedule was tight. Next, Spielberg went to the Paramount administrative building for a meeting, which involved business secrets, so Ye Wei couldn't follow. He returned to the Lincoln car to wait.

The situation took a sudden turn for the worse. When the meeting ended, and Spielberg and his group returned to the Lincoln car and left Paramount, the morning was already over. Ye Wei had only the initial "ducks are bad, geese are good" performance, a mere show! And it was only because of his knowledge of China.

At noon, Spielberg had lunch with a big shot from Universal Pictures to discuss the distribution of "The Terminal."

Ye Wei couldn't participate and stayed in the Lincoln car, eating fast food from KFC.

The afternoon was even worse. Spielberg went to the editing room in West Hollywood to work on the editing of "The Terminal." However, the old man and his editor, Michael Kahn (nominated for Best Editing six times, won three times), were still using traditional linear editing!

This meant cutting film on an editing table with scissors, using a Moviola for editing, and a KEM platform for previewing... This was the method from the 1970s!

To be honest, Ye Wei couldn't help at all, just standing there with wide eyes. He learned non-linear editing, a 21st-century advanced digital technology, not these outdated antiques. He couldn't even identify the parts.

And in front of Michael Kahn, he could only learn. He didn't know "The Terminal" well, so there was nothing he could do, just watch and help with some menial tasks.

But things went wrong. While Ye Wei was using a KEM to watch a discarded piece of film on the floor, the KEM jammed! It broke...

Or maybe it was already broken, and he just happened to use it.

Ye Wei watched Spielberg bang on the KEM, feeling awkward, "I didn't do anything to it..." Kahn shouted from the editing table, "Don't break the good parts! Take the good parts and combine them with the old ones to make a good one!"

"Goodbye, old friend. Kid, I only have 29 good KEMs left now." Spielberg shook his head, stopping, "If they all break, my career is over, because without machines, I can't edit films, and those manufacturers don't produce them anymore."

29? Ye Wei was speechless, really impressed by these two old-timers. He was getting more and more anxious, making another fool of himself!

By the time the afternoon was over, and the group left the editing room, Ye Wei hadn't made up for it. "A clumsy wooden man who occasionally makes witty remarks," was his self-evaluation. If not for the witty remarks, Spielberg might have forgotten who he was.

This was not good!

It was already night, and the tight schedule continued. Spielberg was heading to the Roosevelt Hotel in West Hollywood for a film salon, as the Oscars were approaching, and the big shots had many events.

Ye Wei could see the referee looking at his watch, about to blow the whistle for the end of extra time, and he was still far behind! The only chance for him to stand out was this salon. Fortunately, he was allowed to follow the big shot and see the world.

Under the night sky, the group entered the Roosevelt Hotel and soon arrived at the luxurious banquet hall where the salon was being held. Inside, it was already bustling with dozens of people chatting in groups.

"Look who's here, ha ha, 'dinosaur' has arrived!"

As they walked in, a middle-aged white man with a white beard walked over, smiling and teasing Spielberg.

Oh, my God! Ye Wei was suddenly startled, a bit stunned. Why didn't anyone tell him this person would be at the salon...!

George Lucas!!!

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