Japanese Entertainment: From special effects actor to action superstar

Chapter 492 What's the film crew next door doing?
Back in Nara, Manatsu Ryu jumped out of the car and looked at the Ikoma City citizens who were even more enthusiastic than he was.

My fellow villagers, I've missed you all so much!
Gu Ming jumped down and casually helped Zhen Xialong to the side.

Fellow villagers of Ikoma, I, Akira Kotani, am back!

Gu Ming has also introduced some programs to be filmed in Ikoma recently. Although Ikoma is a relatively remote place, it is very convenient to get around. It only takes two hours to get from Ikoma to Tokyo.

Of course, this is the result of Japan's infrastructure improvements in later years. It would take about half a day now, but it is still quite convenient.

Thanks to this, some film crews do come to Ikoma to shoot, since many current productions rely heavily on studio sets. Even in the 1980s, many productions were filmed in studios.

Gu Ming simply greeted everyone briefly before turning around and instructing them to start unloading the truck, preparing to use the filming location.

Zhen Xialong helped carry a few boxes, and when he looked up, he was surprised to see a brand-new Nissan Jeep.

Zhenxia Long was greatly surprised: "Brother Gugu, what's this car for?"

"Oh, this is some amazing tool that we'll be using for filming later. Don't worry about it, go and get busy over there."

Gu Ming casually shooed Zhen Xialong away, then climbed into the jeep, ready to take a stroll around the film set.

The film studio in Ikoma is located in the suburbs, occupying a large area of ​​land. The property rights belong to the Ikoma City Government, so whoever wants to film here has to negotiate with the local Ikoma authorities to rent the film studio.

"It's a pity that the equipment here is still a bit lacking, which is why it can't attract any truly big-budget productions."

Gu Ming shook his head slightly, then performed a drift outside the studio and stopped precisely in the parking space.

Gu Ming wanted to go into the photography studio to take a look, but when he looked up, he was shocked. The studio doors were tightly closed, and locked from the inside.

"Huh? Why isn't my photo studio open?"

Gu Ming looked around and found the security guard nearby.

"Oh, it's Mr. Furuya! Mr. Furuya, you're back. Do you need the studio? Well, we're currently filming a project here."

The security guard was also in a bit of a dilemma.

They're all here to film their work, so it's really difficult to coordinate.

Gu Ming waved his hand casually: "It doesn't matter. I'll go in and talk to them to see if it's convenient to coordinate a time."

Gu Ming changed locations and entered the photography studio through a side door.

The studio is not completely dark. Studio shooting requires extremely high lighting, so a special high-lumen studio is built for some scenes.

However, those high-lumen studios are also very expensive. Even though Toho was a large company, it only dared to build one high-lumen studio.

The equipment used in Ikoma City was purchased by the Ikoma City government from discarded equipment after the restructuring of Daiei. Although the quality wasn't very high, it was sufficient for some small and medium-sized productions and TV drama productions.

When Gu Ming walked in, the lights in front of him were indeed dazzling. The topmost light moved along the track under the operation of the lighting technician, illuminating the set.

Upon closer inspection, it resembled a dilapidated village. The young man walking through the alley tightened his grip on the rifle slung over his shoulder.

As he unloaded his rifle, the dart also moved instantly.

"provoke!"

Gu Ming tilted his head slightly.

"Who's there! This is a restricted film set; unauthorized personnel are not allowed to enter!"

The slightly disordered footsteps indicated that several people were rushing towards Gu Ming.

Gu Ming raised his hand to cover his face: "Take the light away, I can't see! What kind of work are you guys doing? Do you even know how to light a camera? The picture will be completely ruined if you do it like this!"

The person's footsteps gradually stopped.

Judging from his words, Gu Ming is clearly not just a bystander watching the spectacle.

As soon as the lights were moved away, Gu Ming lowered his hand and saw the employee at the front say "Oh," with a look of realization on his face.

"Is that you, Furuya-kun? You're Furuya-kun! Oh my, Furuya-kun has come to visit our film set! I've heard that you're the bridge-builder of the Ikoma City film studio, but I never thought I'd actually see you!"

Gu Ming grunted.

He was just passing by, but after saying those words, Gu Ming felt a little embarrassed.

"I only came to check it out because I heard that someone was filming here. As a native of Ikoma, I am also happy to see more people filming in Ikoma."

Gu Mingqing cleared his throat: "I heard that filming here has been very difficult for everyone. This place is located in the suburbs, surrounded by villages. You can only rely on local vendors for food, which seems inconvenient. It just so happens that our crew has also arrived at Ikoma. Let's have a get-together tonight. Don't worry about the cost."

This was followed by a brief burst of cheers.

Following the sound, Gu Mingze moved forward and met the director of the film crew.

This is a middle-aged man with unkempt, medium-length hair, as straight as a bowl of plain noodles.

The man's name was Tanaka Noboru. The two looked at each other, and Tanaka Noboru recognized Tani Akira first.

The man who had just been sitting in the director's chair suddenly stood up, walked towards Gu Ming, and extended both hands to shake hands.

"Furutani-kun, it's Furuya-kun! Oh my, we're actually acquaintances! I was once taught by Akira Kurosawa!"

Gu Ming was taken aback, not expecting the director to be so familiar with him.

"Mr. Tanaka, I never imagined we had this kind of relationship?"

"Yes!" Tanaka Noboru said with a smile, "I was an assistant to Akira Kurosawa back then, and you also received guidance from him. In a way, we were like fellow students!"

It turns out that Noboru Tanaka started his career as an assistant to Akira Kurosawa. During the filming of "Yojimbo", Noboru Tanaka was responsible for taking care of the crew's daily life as a production assistant.

Several years later, he joined Nikkatsu Corporation, which is now commonly known as one of the five major Japanese film companies.

These are Toho, Toei, Shochiku, Kadokawa, and Nikkatsu.

Kadokawa, having both incorporated and disbanded Daiei, occupied a niche in the ecosystem.

Kadokawa is the same Kadokawa as Haruki Kadokawa. However, before acquiring Daiei, the Kadokawa Group was primarily a literary publishing company. It only transformed into a comprehensive film and television production center after acquiring Daiei's resources.

Currently, Japan only has four major players; none of the five major players have daily active users (DAU).

Due to declining productivity and talent loss, Nikkatsu has long pursued a strategy of producing low-budget films, mainly low-cost erotic films with themes of sex appeal and violence. This has seriously affected Nikkatsu's reputation and status.

It wasn't until 1981, when Nikkatsu had recovered, that they suspended their strategy of producing erotic films.

It was around that time that Noboru Tanaka left Nikkatsu and became a freelance director.

Gu Ming then nodded.

Unexpectedly, the two had this kind of relationship, which made them even closer.

When Gu Mingyi suggested exchanging studio space, Tanaka Noboru readily agreed.

"Of course! Our movie is actually almost finished filming. If needed, we can come in the morning or afternoon."

The matter was resolved easily and simply. Gu Ming casually asked, "Mr. Tanaka, what kind of film are you shooting?"

"Oh! This movie was invested in by Toei Animation and is titled 'Doomsday Village'!"

Gu Ming suddenly realized.

So it was this movie.

This is the movie that the president of Toei mentioned before, a movie adapted from a historical prototype. It's about a Japanese man in a small village who, because he didn't meet the physical requirements, was not successfully conscripted. In a fit of rage, he killed dozens of people in the village.

This kind of film is a typical low-budget film that relies on a gimmick to attract audiences, but if it is well-managed, it is very suitable for winning awards.

Gu Ming looked up and saw several male and female actors who had finished filming standing on the other side, looking at him anxiously. Their eyes met briefly, and then they all hurriedly lowered their heads.

In Japan, the hierarchy is very strict. To them, Gu Ming is the absolute superior. They are afraid that if Gu Ming is unhappy, he will bully them. At that time, they can only endure it.

Gu Ming couldn't recognize the actress at first glance, but he recognized the actor.

The male lead in this movie is Masato Furuya, who plays a serial killer in the story.

Years later, Masato Furuya, suffering from severe depression, hanged himself in his home using the belt from his karate uniform.

Masato Furuya and Noboru Tanaka have collaborated many times and starred in numerous films featuring the erhu (a traditional Chinese stringed instrument).

The films all belong to the type that evoke a flood of thoughts just from hearing their names.

For example: "The case of a group of married women committing violence that resulted in death"

The Nun: Desire in Black

The Name of an Angel

The New Female Teacher

……

That's one way to put it.

When these names are put together, Gu Ming can only think of a classic perverted character from Hong Kong movies.

Eight Immortals Restaurant.

"How pitiful! Perhaps he acted in these kinds of movies when he was young, which led to his mental illness and suicide in his old age!"

(End of this chapter)