Entertainment News: Follow Wang Baoqiang's Rise to Film Emperor

Perhaps it really is a change of fortune...

I just had a cameo role as a stuntman on the set of Journey to the West yesterday, and this very morning, I arrived at the entrance of the Beijing Film Studio early in the morning. Before I'd even finished waiting for a short while, around 8 a.m., a location manager from the Journey to the West 2 crew, accompanied by two assistants, came to the studio to recruit extras. They claimed they needed a few stuntmen and asked if anyone on set could fight a little…

Upon hearing this, Lin Zhi and Wang Baoqiang exchanged a glance, their eyes gleaming with joy. They then quickly pushed their way through the crowd to the very front.

"We can fight, we can fight! We're from Shaolin Temple, we have a foundation in martial arts, and we used to work in the stunt industry!"

Wang Baoqiang raised his hand and shouted excitedly, hoping to attract attention.

"Try practicing a few moves and see..."

Upon hearing this, the external production manager from the Huanzhu 2 crew glanced at Wang Baoqiang and Lin Zhi with interest, then crossed his arms and said...

"Alright, alright, just you wait and see!"

Wang Baoqiang smiled sheepishly, agreed, and then started doing somersaults on the spot...

He has loved doing somersaults since he was a child. He trained at the Shaolin Martial Arts School and can do 100 or 180 somersaults in one go.

It's one of his special skills.

I really enjoy showing it off in front of people!

In the past, when he returned home for the Lunar New Year, the villagers would ask him to demonstrate the advanced martial arts he had learned at the Shaolin Temple. He would often show off his somersaulting skills...

They can climb from one end of the village to the other in one go, which always elicits gasps of amazement and enthusiastic applause.

"Hmm, not bad, not bad, you've got some skills! Okay, okay, our group wants you. 180 a day for stuntmen, paid in the evening, no delays. If you want to go, stand in the back."

The location manager of Huanzhu 2 was indeed amazed by Wang Baoqiang's somersault skills. Seeing that he could do dozens of somersaults in one go without getting red in the face or out of breath, it was clear that he was a trained fighter. He nodded in satisfaction and then, without even letting Lin Zhi, who was with him, show off his skills, he took both of them.

"It's done!"

Upon meeting the stuntmen from the "Princess Pearl 2" crew, Wang Baoqiang immediately beamed with joy, and Lin Zhi muttered something to himself.

"It's all your fault for doing such a good somersault...it blinded everyone!"

Lin Zhi smiled broadly and gently lifted Wang Baoqiang in his arms.

"That is..."

Wang Baoqiang immediately became elated, her eyes narrowing into slits with laughter.

in this way……

The two of them were incredibly lucky again today, becoming stuntmen.

Then, following the external production manager of the Huanzhu 2 crew who had recruited enough people, I went to the Huanzhu Princess crew.

Speaking of the "Princess Pearl" production team, they were the pinnacle of television drama productions of that era...

Of course, I'm referring to popularity!

Because it is a work by the famous screenwriter Qiong Yao, and the first part became a hit throughout Southeast Asia after it aired in the first half of this year, the second part, which was rushed into production, has attracted unprecedented attention both at home and abroad.

Therefore, "Princess Pearl 2" is currently receiving extensive media coverage every day, and its popularity is unparalleled...

No other TV drama production team can match them!

Therefore, the investment in the entire production was unprecedented.

For this reason, the crew received very good treatment overall.

After Lin Zhi and Wang Baoqiang arrived, it was immediately obvious that they could tell.

Not only are the leading actors all provided with RVs, but even the extras and stuntmen have better boxed lunches and costumes than other period drama crews at the same time.

Lin Zhi and Wang Baoqiang are quite satisfied with being able to join the cast of Huanzhu 2 today.

Because Huanzhu 2 is a Qing Dynasty drama, and Hengdian was not yet fully built at that time, most of the filming and set design were done in Beijing.

For example, the interior scenes such as "Kunning Palace" and "Shufangzhai" in the drama were set up by the production team at the Beijing Film Studio...

Other outdoor scenes, such as those depicting scenes of going to Beijing or going out, were filmed on the main street in front of the Beijing Film Studio.

As for other scenes involving numerous ancient Qing Dynasty buildings, most of them were filmed in quaint, antique buildings within Beijing.

This kind of luxurious crew, while offering great benefits, has an incredibly rushed filming schedule.

In order to speed up the production and complete filming as quickly as possible, the entire Huanzhu 2 crew was divided into two groups, A and B, to film simultaneously.

And it's the kind of work that's done day and night, like a man's life depended on it!

As evening approached and the daylight faded, the entire crew showed no sign of wrapping up. They even used a crane to hoist several large incandescent bulbs, illuminating the entire filming location as if it were daytime.

Seeing this, Lin Zhi couldn't help but secretly groan; they were going to have to work until late at night!

This 180 yuan a day stuntman job... it seems money isn't so easy to earn!

"Ha, looks like I'll be pulling an all-nighter tonight."

Wang Baoqiang, who was standing to the side, could clearly sense that it would probably be quite late to finish get off work today, and she turned her head and muttered to Lin Zhi in a low voice.

"I just heard from the assistant director that because filming didn't go smoothly this afternoon, we'll have to work through the night tonight..."

At this moment, a tall stuntman standing next to them grinned at them and said leisurely.

"Shouldn't we pay more for this?" Lin Zhi asked, turning his head.

"Add overtime my foot! What film crew pays overtime? We're lucky if we get a late-night snack!" The tall stuntman muttered, shaking his head.

really……

A prophecy!

The crew continued filming until dawn.

Many people in the crew couldn't stay awake any longer and started yawning.

In the early hours of the morning, even the director of Huan Zhu Ge Ge 2 dozed off several times while sitting in front of the monitor...

The lead actors all had serious expressions, and when they acted, they were like they had swallowed explosives!

Around 4 a.m., Lin Zhi, who plays a petty thug, had a fight scene with the lead actress, Xiao Yanzi, where he was supposed to be kicked away by her. To achieve a realistic effect, the martial arts director didn't allow him to use wires.

As a result, Lin Zhi was kicked hard in the chest by Zhao Wei, who was playing Xiao Yanzi. He almost passed out from the pain, and he grimaced in pain. He couldn't help but curse.

After barely managing to finish filming the scene, Lin Zhi endured the pain and went to a less crowded place. He lifted his costume and saw that his chest was covered in bruises...

"Ouch, Lin Zhi, are you alright? Does it hurt?"

Wang Baoqiang, who had followed, saw that Lin Zhi was injured and quickly asked him with concern.

Lin Zhi gritted his teeth, shook his head, and indicated that he was fine and could handle it.

Wang Baoqiang sighed, "You're too honest. I saw that scene you just filmed. You should have dodged it before she kicked. At worst, the action director would have yelled at you..."

"Those celebrities are no good; they don't care about the lives of us lowly stuntmen. It's all real fighting and kicking!"

"I was filming a scene just now, and the actor playing the Fifth Prince almost hit me on the head with a stick. Luckily, I moved my position slightly and dodged it, otherwise I would have gotten hit like you... Sigh!"