Located just 30 minutes southeast of London, Surrey is a quiet town, with the River Thames flowing quietly through the town, cosy and peaceful, comfortable and beautiful, and the University of Surrey is a century-old school in England.

However, compared to the beauty or grandeur of the rest of the British Isles, Surrey has a much more vibe of life and a more distinct rural feel to the suburbs. It's a town for settled living, but for vacationers and travellers, the appeal doesn't seem so great.

Standing on the edge of the reeds of the country road, you can see the dark red brick walls of the country houses slowly spread out, the clutter of bushes, damp mud and dilapidated shacks, outlining the chaos of the lack of order, and the large dark clouds above the head block the sun tightly, and even more dim all the scenery in sight, and the hurried footsteps do not want to stop at all.

But Lan Li's footsteps stopped, standing on the path, seriously admiring the scene of life in front of him.

The old man in the garden, with his back bent, was intently trimming the lilac hedge wall, and the clatter of scissors trampled in a special rhythm in the wind.

The postman delivering mail on a bicycle with a big smile on his face greeted the residents standing on the balcony on the second floor.

There is also an old woman in a floral dress standing at the intersection, carefully looking at the empty intersection, looking for an opportunity to cross the intersection.

……

There are no special images and pictures, full of a strong atmosphere of life, and even a little trivial, but let the mood slowly settle down, and a faint warmth floats to my heart.

"What are you looking at?" Nathan curiously probed left and right, standing next to him, and followed Lan Li's line of sight, but found nothing, and the question marks on his head were not only unanswered, but also became more confused.

A smile appeared on the corner of Lan Li's mouth, and he said with a chuckle, "That's it, a corner of the town." ”

Nathan frowned slightly, wondering: Is there anything special about this corner of the town? I've been standing here for at least three minutes, looking more like I'm admiring a masterpiece.

"The quirks of artists are always unpredictable, so don't guess. A chuckling voice came from behind him, and he didn't turn his head, and Nathan turned his head directly, and then he saw Rooney Mara walking towards him.

Today's Rooney, dressed in a light outfit, white shirt and sky blue jeans, with a pair of white canvas shoes, and finally a smoke-gray jacket, a long dark hair casually tied into a ponytail, without any superfluous embellishments and dresses up and down, simple and generous, but revealing a Nordic coldness, so that the eyes involuntarily fell on the corners of her mouth.

Nathan couldn't help but blink, and the unresolved question mark on his head added even more: when did Rooney appear? Why didn't he hear any engine sounds, did Rooney come on foot, and what did Rooney's words mean?

Thinking and hesitating, Nathan saw Rooney blink with a smile, revealing a hint of playfulness, and in an instant, the coldness quietly dissipated, as if he could see a glimmer of light brightening up little by little, revealing a faint touch of warmth.

Rooney's footsteps stopped at his side, and instead of speaking immediately, he cast his eyes forward, joining Lan Li's ranks, quietly admiring the quiet rural scene in front of him.

The tranquility that surged between the two men inexplicably calmed Nathan's eagerness and irritability, and countless questions remained unanswered, but he was no longer in a hurry to pursue answers. Then, Nathan joined them, watching the scene before them, but still confused.

"It's been a long time, haven't you? I guess you're going to miss it all. Rooney broke the silence, a shallow smile in her cold voice.

"Huh. Lan Li chuckled, and then shook his head from side to side, not denying, but noncommittal.

It's been 10 months, more than 10 months, and I've been in the city, from Berlin to Los Angeles, to London, and finally New York, and since 2012, I've spent all my time going back and forth between these cities, working one after another, and I can't stop doing it.

Now, after a long absence, I have finally left the city confines again and come to the countryside, the large buildings and bustling crowds in my sight have all faded, and even the noise and chirping in my ears have completely disappeared, and the tranquility that has spread from the inside out makes people can't help but want to immerse themselves in it and wander slowly.

Of course, the same is true for the crew.

The stage and the crew are two completely different ways of acting, on the stage, after further polishing the acting skills, now Lan Li is gearing up and can't wait to return to the crew, standing in front of the camera lens, once again into the world of performance, to test his harvest in the past six months.

Therefore, standing on the country road, Lan Li still stopped, letting the tense heartstrings relax little by little.

Rooney understood, and really understood Lan Li's inner feelings.

Just like at last year's Oscars, Rooney left Los Angeles almost out of nowhere and headed for Seattle. In the architectural space of Seattle, she can still feel the dull and oppressive feeling of suffocation, if it weren't for sitting on the bench and chatting with Lan Li, Rooney would choose to go to the city park and disappear into the vast expanse of green.

"Are you sure your nerves aren't too tense? You just finished a Broadway show just a week ago, and I thought you'd take a little more rest. Rooney spoke again.

"Yes, I regret it. Lan Li readily admitted, which made the smile on the corner of Rooney's mouth rise, "But it's worth it, this work is worth it." "In fact, after the last show on Broadway, I couldn't put the script down and really start diving into a whole new world." ”

"Uh......" Nathan said hesitantly, "weren't you going to Hawaii to surf after the show?"

Nathan's on-the-spot piercing made Rooney chuckle, but Lan Li didn't show any embarrassment and said calmly, "Surfing gaps, I mean." ”

After the Broadway show, Lan Li bought a ticket for the next day and headed straight to Hawaii, where he stayed for seven days to relax and clear his mind while surfing. Otherwise, as Rooney said, from Broadway to the "Gravity" crew, the itinerary is really too dense, and Lan Li is a little unbearable.

"Are you sure that this skin color is suitable for being an astronaut?" Rooney joked as he looked Lan Li up and down.

Lan Li said unhurriedly, "If there is no rule, astronauts can't like surfing." Seeing the playful smile in Rooney's eyes, he knew that he couldn't continue to talk nonsense, the state of the astronaut's skin after a long time in the space station really can't be compared with the surfing period, "Okay, if the director needs it, I'll paint the skin white." ”

That helpless expression made Rooney laugh happily, but he didn't continue to dwell on it, "But I must admit that this is a very special script." To be honest, I don't have much of a clue right now, and I don't even know how I got the role. ”

"Didn't you just join a new crew when we exchanged emails before?"

Rooney turned her head and stared at her with wide eyes, "That was two and a half months ago, and Soderbergh's filming was going very fast, and it was completed in less than a month. Therefore, Rooney had enough time to join the "Gravity" crew and shoot with the cooperation for the first time.

was stunned, and then Lan Li realized that when he was working on Broadway, Rooney's work was also in full swing. Obviously, he had just made the mistake of carving a boat for a sword, and it seemed that his head had not yet fully tensed.

"Perhaps, starting today, I should return to the habit of thinking. Lan Li teased self-deprecatingly, and both Rooney and Nathan laughed, "So, after studying the script, what is your conclusion?"

"The script itself leaves a limited space for the actors to think, and the real performance space comes from the director. Without a pause, Rooney immediately expressed her opinion, "So, before the official start of filming, the creative team needs to have a good exchange." What ideas do you have for the characters?"

As Lan Li and Rooney say, "Gravity" is a very special script. Not only because of the large number of one-man shows, but also because of the large number of blank spaces in it, the use of actors' performances to complete the exploration and deepening of the core ideas, which means that the actors must fully understand the director's creative intentions, as well as the deep meaning behind the composition of the picture.

Further, the actor must also have a good understanding of the character. What happened to the character's past led to the thinking and struggle within the time frame of the movie, how the character's psychological state fit with the story situation, which led to the thinking under the situation, and what is the driving force of the character that drives the whole story forward.

Before committing to acting, the actor must have a clear understanding of the whole story, the whole character, and have an accurate grasp of the whole film and the director's vision, so that the work can go smoothly.

Now, Lan Li and Rooney have started a discussion, and this is only the first day that the two of them have arrived on the set, and they have not even officially entered the set.