Huayu: That year, I withdrew from the Super Boy competition.

Su Wei stayed on set for several hours, until the sun gradually set in the west.

He walked to the edge of the film set and greeted a few people.

"Then you guys get back to work, I'll head back now."

The others waved goodbye to him.

……

The next morning, Su Wei arrived at the "Chinese Paladin 3" film crew.

It was barely dawn, but people were already busy on set.

When Su Wei entered the studio, the assistant director was calling people over a walkie-talkie.

Instead of finding a seat, Su Wei put her backpack in a corner and went to lend a hand wherever someone was needed.

"Not bad, young man."

The assistant director on set, surnamed Wang, patted him on the shoulder upon seeing this and said, "Keep it up!"

Su Wei nodded.

Seeing his sincere attitude, Assistant Director Wang didn't say much, only telling him to quickly go over today's lines again.

Su Wei thanked him, found a corner, took out the script, and looked through the scenes to be filmed today.

Actually, he had already memorized most of it last night at the hotel.

But as a newcomer, I was still uneasy, and memorizing my lines helped me calm down.

About half an hour later, the other main actors arrived one after another.

Hu Ge arrived first, wearing a black coat and carrying a cup of soy milk. He greeted Su Wei with a smile.

"You're here so early."

Su Wei smiled and replied, "I haven't been here long."

Yang Mi arrived shortly after, holding a script and with her hair casually tied in a ponytail. She chatted with Hu Ge for a bit about today's scenes.

After exchanging a few brief pleasantries, the group went into their respective dressing rooms.

Su Wei followed.

The dressing room wasn't big, with several mirrors lined up in a row. The makeup artists were all busy at work, their hands moving quickly and efficiently.

Hu Ge and his team's makeup and styling were all pre-arranged. The makeup artist worked with them for dozens of days and was already very skilled; they could finish in about half an hour.

But it's different for Su Wei.

Today is his first scene. The makeup and costume design for the Demon Lord has only been sketched out before. The specific direction will have to be decided on the spot.

The makeup artist in charge of Su Wei's makeup was surnamed Liu, in her thirties, and she said she had been doing film and television makeup for seven or eight years.

She opened the reference picture she had prepared in advance, looked at it for a long time in comparison with Su Wei's face shape, tried several shades of foundation on the side of her face, and then started applying her base makeup.

The hair requires more effort; the Demon Lord's hairstyle is more complex.

Hair extensions, styling, and sectioning—each step is time-consuming.

More than an hour had passed by the time Su Wei finished her makeup and styling.

He looked at himself in the mirror and his features did look more rugged than usual, but something still felt off.

Before I could think about it, the door to the dressing room was pushed open, and the chief director, Li Guoli, walked in.

He stood behind Su Wei, a cigarette between his fingers, staring at his reflection in the mirror for half a minute.

He didn't say anything.

He took two steps to the left, then a little to the right, looking back and forth, tapping his chin lightly with his fingers, nodding and shaking his head from time to time.

"no."

He finally spoke, "Your face is too pale."

Makeup artist Liu stopped what she was doing and looked at the director.

Li Guoli pointed at Su Wei's face:

"This makeup and styling doesn't make him look like a supreme ruler of the demon realm, but rather like a young master from a noble family."

Her skin was made too clean, like she was going to a banquet.

He put out his cigarette and made his request again.

"The face should be darker, and the angles more defined, so that you can tell at a glance that you're not a good person."

Majestic, imposing, standing there exuding authority without a hint of anger.

The makeup artist nodded after hearing this, and without saying much more, readjusted the color.

Su Wei cooperated and sat in the chair, letting her make the changes.

After the first revision, the skin tone was made more than half a shade darker, and the shadows were made more pronounced.

Li Guoli glanced at it and shook his head again: "Not enough, it needs to be stronger."

The second version intensifies the shadows on the brow bone and jawline, and also adds a darker shade below the cheekbones, resulting in a more angular overall look.

Li Guoli took a closer look, but still shook his head.

Makeup artist Liu took a breath and simply let go of her hand.

In the third version, she made significant adjustments to her facial contours.

The temples were deepened, the eye sockets were accentuated with shadows, and the jawline was transitioned three times using highlights and shadows.

At this moment, Su Wei looked like a completely different person, with a heavy sense of pressure between his brows.

Li Guoli finally stopped shaking his head.

He crossed his arms and looked at it for a while, then slowly nodded.

"Hmm, he's starting to feel like a demon lord."

He didn't linger after saying that. He patted Su Wei on the shoulder, turned around, and left the dressing room.

There were other people waiting for him to look at the scenery outside, and the coordinator was also looking for him to sign the revised notice.

Makeup artist Liu breathed a sigh of relief and said to Su Wei:

"Alright, the director has given his approval, so we can proceed according to this from now on."

Su Wei stood up and looked at herself in the mirror.

The person in the mirror certainly didn't look like him this morning.

He slightly tensed his face in front of the mirror, without making any extra expressions, but the sense of oppression was already there.

He nodded, thanked Sister Liu, turned and walked out, preparing to go to the waiting area.

The stagehand was already waiting at the door. He paused for a moment when he saw him, then quickly waved.

"Brother Su, this way, Studio B, your first scene is about to start filming."

When Su Wei arrived at Studio B, the site was almost ready.

The director of this scene was Liang Shengquan.

Speaking of which, I have to mention something.

The production team of "Chinese Paladin 3" had a total of four directors. The chief director, Li Guoli, oversaw the overall project, while the other three were divided into groups to film, each focusing on their own key scenes.

Today's scene, "Chonglou's First Battle with Jingtian," is one of the most important scenes between the two characters in the early part of the series, and it was directed by Liang Shengquan.

Inside the shed was an old wooden loft, a two-story structure. The stair railings had been given an aged look, and the talisman props pasted on the pillars were being blown slightly by a blower.

The scene wasn't large, and under the pale studio lights it even looked somewhat frail, but Liang Shengquan wasn't worried at all.

These are not problems. Once the special effects are added in post-production, and the lighting and sound effects are coordinated, the desired feeling will be achieved.

What he needs to do now is to transform the cold action descriptions in the storyboard into a fateful collision of sparks on the screen.

Liang Shengquan sat in front of the monitor, his brows slightly furrowed, flipping through today's storyboard again.

He doesn't talk much normally, and he doesn't like to chat idly when filming. He says what needs to be said and leaves the rest to the actors to figure out.

But he was clearly waiting for something, and he looked up and glanced to the side.

Hugo has already started setting up the scene in the attic.

He stood at the corner of the stairs, his body slightly hunched, his shoulders raised, trying to find the right state of mind for the character Jing Tian.

Jing Tian was originally a pawnshop clerk. He was timid and always wanted to run away first.

But when there's no way to escape, they can grit their teeth and go for it.

Hu Ge has become increasingly adept at portraying this cowardly yet brave spirit.

He tried a turning motion, switching from "frightened retreat" to "raising his sword to block," making the transition twice. He felt it wasn't quite smooth, so he went back and did it again.