According to the setting of the script, "Brave Death Island" needs some young actors, although there are not many scenes, but it is a key scene to highlight General Hammer, and the crew also issued a recruitment notice in the actors' unions on the east and west coasts, looking for suitable candidates, because of the film's 50 million dollar investment, there are many parents who dream of becoming famous or want their children to become money-making machines, and even came to Los Angeles from far away New York to audition.

Wang Jie has delegated power to these small roles, and as the director of such a huge crew, it is impossible to do everything himself.

However, he also told the casting director to be cautious, after all, children can be completely classified into the uncontrollable factors of filming, and the National Child Protection Act and the California Entertainment Law also have almost strict regulations on the working hours of child actors.

On August 15, "Brave Death Island" officially started filming.

San Francisco's Hilton Gate was bustling with people, reporters were under the white pillar-covered gates, and the press officers of the crew were trying to maintain order with microphones, but the guys who heard the news were still in a mess.

Several leading actors have become the focus of attention of various media, Wang Jie has never participated in the launch conference, and he is hiding in the presidential suite to rest at this time.

The launch event didn't end until 1 p.m.

"Clear!"

Looking at his watch, Wang Jie found that the hotel only had three hours left for them, and said to Sophie Marceau behind him: "Inform everyone to speed up, we don't have much time." ”

A Hummer drove over and stopped at the door of the hotel, Wang Jie looked at the parking position, and then took the megaphone from the assistant director Wu Baige next to him and put it to his mouth.

"The car is facing the door!" he looked up and said to Tang Jili: "Communicate with the hotel, set up a camera on the terrace on the third floor, and use overhead shots." ”

After Tang Jili left, Wang Jie walked to the camera team and asked, "John, is the No. 1 camera in place?"

"OK!" John Schwartzman said to his assistant, "We've laid out the track on the left side, and the number one can go back to shoot." ”

"The street is too narrow," Duke said......, pointing to the entrance to the hotel, "and set up the second machine in the hotel." ”

Turning around, Wang Jie walked behind a camera, looked at the location at the door of the hotel through the lens, and then shouted: "Old Wu, the light is still faint, I want to be thicker and brighter!"

Wu Baige, who was in charge of handling the color of the light, immediately made an "OK" gesture to Wang Jie.

"John, the shooting is up to you. ”

In this shooting, Wang Jie did not arrange the director's camera, and will sit behind the monitor throughout the whole process, he returned to the side of the hotel door and walked to Zeng Jiang's side.

Zeng Jiang, who had just finished putting on makeup, was wearing a neat suit, and his tall figure looked majestic, although he was sixty years old, he gave people the feeling of being sharp.

"Zeng Lao, the opening scene is not long. Wang Jie pointed to the location at the door of the hotel, "You rush out of it, and then ignore the other people's obstruction, and go directly to that Humvee." ”

"I understand. ”

For an old actor like Zeng Jiang, this scene is not difficult.

"Show the skills you've worked on all these years. Wang Jie raised his index finger at him, Zeng Jiang laughed, and then clenched his fist at Wang Jie, Zeng Jiang's Dharma swordsmanship has always been practiced all these years, and now three or five strong men are not his opponents at all.

Back behind the monitor, after the extras were arranged in place, Wang Jie asked the assistant director Wu Baige to shout to start, ready for test shooting.

A lot of people gathered at the door of the hotel, and an old man with gray hair rushed out of the hotel, he only took a brief look, then selected the Humvee parked at the door of the hotel, and rushed directly to pull out the waiter who was ready to park......

"CUT!" Wang Jie shouted to stop, and then said directly: "It's over!"

The test shot passed once, and it seems to have made a good start, especially in the shot of Zeng Jiang just now, he was anxious and had a unique characteristic of fierce atmosphere, which really lived up to the swordsmanship he had practiced hard over the years.

Judging from the footage summarized on the monitor, Zeng Jiang is not acting at all, he seems to be a senior war agent.

Although it was simple to clear the scene, after Wang Jie shouted to stop, the camera shutter sound of the reporter and the surrounding audience kept ringing, which is a common problem encountered when filming exterior scenes, as long as the other party does not interfere with the normal shooting of the crew, it is generally not too preventive, which can be regarded as promoting the movie.

After filming the shot of Nicolas Cage running out of the hotel door and the two stuntmen driving off the street, the first day of filming for the crew came to an end.

Today's footage is really not difficult, Wang Jie and Wu Baige, Tang Jili and John Schwartzman have also done enough communication before shooting, and he himself has rich experience, which makes the first day of shooting relatively smooth.

The crew then prepared to rush back to Burbank for the next day's filming in the ILM studio.

The reason why I chose to go on location in San Francisco on the first day was because of the crew's publicity needs on the one hand, and the sponsor's requirements on the other hand.

That's right, the film has attracted a lot of advertisements, Wang Jie has experienced the baptism of highly commercialized movies in the original time and space, and he is not averse to product placement and the like, as long as advertisers are not forced to appear in some unreasonable scenes, he will generally not object.

Hummer, Ferrari and several other businesses have brought a total of $25 million in advertising sponsorship to the film, which is still the result of Wang Jie's minimization, and if he opens up the advertising bidding, the advertising cost of the film will definitely double.

Just as Wang Jie watched the crew clean up the venue, Zeng Jiang, who had finished removing his makeup, suddenly walked over.

"William, I've heard something. He looked at Wang Jie, "The crew intends to play this role with Sean Connery?

"I did consider Sean Connery. ”

There are some things that Wang Jie said without shying away from Zeng Jiang at all, "But Connelly is not on the road, so I will ask you to come to the rescue." ”

Hearing these words, Zeng Jiang laughed, and Wang Jie also laughed, the relationship between Zeng Jiang and Wang Jie is not at all measured by money.

"Old man Zeng. Wang Jie said: "Are you, the Oscar winner, afraid that someone will compare you with that outdated 007?"

"007?007 What is it?" Zeng Jiang had a rebellious smile on his face, "William, in terms of acting skills, I can dump that old bastard for eight streets." ”

"Of course. Wang Jie sighed, "If it weren't for the fact that we are Chinese, you would at least be able to win two more Academy Awards, Mr. Zeng." ”

The publicity work of the movie "Brave Death Island" began when filming started, and naturally professionals were responsible for it, Wang Jie didn't pay attention to this aspect at all, and put his energy into filming, more than half of August has passed, if you want the film to catch up with this year's Christmas file as planned, he still has a lot of work to do.

"John ......"

In the studio, Wang Jie shouted to stop, walked to the main camera, and said, "Change the virtual focus lens, give Ed a close-up!"

The smoke from the burning cigarette obscured Ed Harris's figure, and the resolute face in the mirror was full of anger......

“Cut！”

Looking at the picture in the monitor, Wang Jie shouted to stop, and then said to the other side: "The lights are darker, I want to be able to show the dark feeling of heavy hearts." Yes, the light should bring a sense of oppression to the lens. ”

After speaking, Wang Jie stopped caring about the gaffer who adjusted the light, and walked directly to Ed Harris, who was surrounded by cameras.

"Ed......" he thought about his words for a moment, "don't show your anger, General Hammer is indeed very angry at this time, but as a soldier who has been tested on the battlefield, he can suppress this anger in his heart, his decision is deliberate, and his expression should be calm." ”

"That ......," Ed Harris frowned, "there should always be a movement or something that shows his mood." ”

"Looks, with your eyes. Wang Jie pointed to his eyes, "I will give you a close-up of your eyes, with your sharpest eyes." ”

"Is that so?" Ed Harris's eyes widened slightly, and his whole temperament changed, and his expressionless face couldn't suppress the anger in his heart at all, but this anger was not written on his face, but it was an indescribable feeling.

"Keep your shape up. Wang Jie gave him a thumbs up and returned to the back of the monitor.

The acting skills of these veteran actors are not a problem, after Wang Jie conveys his intentions through words and actions, they can always make adjustments in a timely manner.

Compared with the two characters in "Life and Death" who only need to sell their faces, this film has higher requirements for the three protagonists.

"John, shoot with a false focus. Wang Jie shouted to the camera: "Take a close-up of Ed's eyes." ”

Then, he turned on the megaphone, patted it lightly, and said solemnly: "Attention departments, don't make mistakes again, otherwise I will cancel lunch!"

"Act 1, Act 2, begin!" he himself shouted.

The cigarette burned again, and Ed Harris's figure was blurred, but it could make people feel the heaviness of the moment......

Staring closely at the monitor, Wang Jie's main focus is on the close-up of his eyes, when Ed Harris stood in front of the mirror, John Schwartzman immediately captured his eyes, and the sharp eyes set off the temperament of General Hammer and the depression brought by the surrounding environment.

"Cut!" Wang Jie nodded with satisfaction, "This is over, transition!"

The time-consuming and labor-intensive scenes in the studio are often just for shooting a few minutes or even seconds of footage, and after Wang Jie gave the order, the crew moved to the other side of the studio to shoot Zeng Jiang's shots.

This place was arranged as a prison, Zeng Jiang had already put on a wig and painted makeup, and after being notified by an assistant, he immediately came to the venue.

After explaining a few words of precautions, photography, lighting and other departments began to be busy according to the prior plan, all of which were temporarily in charge of Wu Baige, and Wang Jie seized the time to explain a few words to Zeng Jiang.

"Although Mason has been imprisoned for a long time," Wang Jie said succinctly...... "but he is still a lion." ”

"I understand. Zeng Jiang nodded.

"Give it your all, you're the best. ”

With one last word, Wang Jie walked into the venue, began to look at the situation of the set, opened the door of the "prison" where Mason was imprisoned, and immediately frowned when he saw the two books placed in it.

"Wood ......" He had just finished shouting when the head of the props team walked over quickly.

"Director......

Without waiting for him to finish asking, Wang Jie pointed to one of the books and said, "This is the "Art of War" you prepared?"

Picking up the book, Wang Jie threw it directly to him, "Although Mason is a British agent, he is Chinese, I want the Chinese version!"

"I'm sorry......" Wood Ward said quickly, "I'll figure it out." ”

The Chinese version of "The Art of War" had nowhere to find it in a short time, and the props team simply remade a cover, finally without delaying Wang Jie's shooting plan.

Heavy footsteps sounded, Zeng Jiang's hanging gray wig obscured most of his face, and the handcuffs and shackles on his body illustrated his situation, but the old agent did not collapse from the torture of his captivity, but showed the temperament of only those who had been on the battlefield and whose hands were covered in blood.

He was fierce and cold, without the slightest gentlemanly demeanor.

This is exactly the change that Wang Jie deliberately made to the role in order to conform to Zeng Jiang's performance style, John Mason is no longer an elderly gentleman with a personable demeanor on the surface, his temperament and movements are more aggressive.

In fact, the original John Mason's setting was to a certain extent to take care of Sean Connery, but the problem is also obvious, an agent who has been imprisoned for decades will either become depressed and collapsed, or become more manic and continue to maintain his personable demeanor? That's James Bond, not John Mason!

This is no longer a James Bond-esque British agent.

Zeng Jiang walked all the way, and John Schwartzman carried Steadicam and kept snapping in front of him until Wang Jie shouted to stop.

Since the start of filming, Wang Jie has rarely participated in the actual shooting, and almost all the shooting has been handed over to the camera team led by John Schwartzman, who is more in control of the overall situation.

And the shot will be fed back to the director's monitor as soon as possible, which is enough for him to make a judgment.

Although he was very satisfied with the results of the first shot, this shot was to highlight the characteristics of John Mason, and Wang Jie shot a few more shots in case he had more options in post-production.

Next, he transferred again to shoot the shot of Nicolas Cage, and he and Cameron Diaz, who played his fiancée, were also prepared in advance, and when the crew made a little arrangement, the filming began.

These shots are generally not difficult, although the three leading actors often NG, Wang Jie sometimes needs to adjust the venue or camera position, and even fine-tune the scene when inspiration comes, but the shooting is relatively smooth, and the benefits of using experienced actors such as Ed Harris, Nicolas Cage and Zeng Jiang to star in action movies are also obvious, and their acting skills are much better than those traditional zombie-faced action stars.

Especially Nicolas Cage, who does not lack the hardness that an action star should have, but has acting skills that traditional action stars such as Stallone and Schwarzenegger can't match, and it is not for nothing that he can become a benchmark for action movies in the 90s.

Again, his problem is obvious.

Cage is like a distinctive, but not very consistent soccer player, who is in good and bad shape, and he habitually plays very well in one movie, and then very badly in the next, and sometimes even in the same film, his performance level fluctuates greatly.

Because of his problems in the concept of the scene, Wang Jie's shooting interval dragged on for a long time, and as a result, Cage was still in good shape when he was shooting with Cameron Diaz just now, but after reshooting, he inexplicably lost his state.

"Goosby is a nerd, not a literary youth. ”

After NG five in a row, Wang Jie stood in front of the helicopter model, his voice was a little high, "Nikolai, Goosby is about to participate in the operation, and the fate of San Francisco is in his hands, at this time he should not be excited, but nervous!"

"Nervous, understand?"

At this time, Wang Jie was like a high-horsepower hair dryer, and he didn't have the usual calm appearance at all, "Nikolai, don't tell me you don't know how to be nervous!"

"Give me five minutes. Cage also understands that the problem lies with him.

Wang Jie nodded and returned to the back of the monitor, but as soon as he started shooting five minutes later, he shouted to stop again!

"Nikolai, tell me, where has your state gone?"

Taking a deep breath, Wang Jie suppressed the anger that wanted to explode, this is not a problem that can be solved by losing his temper, he walked to the helicopter model, paced back and forth a few steps, waved his hand to Sophie Marceau who followed behind to deliver water, and finally said: "First of all, this is my problem, I interrupted the shooting for too long, causing your state to disappear......"

"William......" Cage was a little embarrassed, because of the relationship between his uncle Coppola, the relationship between the two is also good.

"That's it, Nikolai. Wang Jie walked up to him, ignored the curious eyes of the Navy SEALs, and said, "Your eyes should keep looking around, the legs in the cabin keep swinging slightly, and ......."

Wang Jie turned to Zeng Jiang on the other side, "Old Zeng, tell him a few jokes that are appropriate for the situation." Nikolai, you squeeze out a smile when you hear the joke, understand?"

The eyes that look left and right at all times, the legs that keep swinging in the cabin, the smile that squeezes out with Mason, and the nervousness of Nicolas Cage when he is not in good shape.

Maybe Wang Jie's method played a role, or maybe Cage found some form, and in the subsequent shots, the overall performance got better and better, and when the reshoot was held for the sixth time, Wang Jie finally shouted with satisfaction.