Chapter 127: Life Calls for Ritual

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Two days later was the day The Nobodies officially began filming.

With nothing else to do, Chen Qi left home early.

For some reason, he was actually feeling a little excited.

Strictly speaking, this was his first time stepping onto a professional film set, and he had to admit he was looking forward to it.

A little after nine, he followed the address Xu Bunian had given him to an old building.

There was no elevator, and the building itself looked as though it had quite a history.

He climbed to the rooftop with eager anticipation and saw several members of the crew busily preparing everything.

When Chen Qi arrived, Xu Bunian, Zhou Xiao, Zhao Wu, and the others all brightened. They came over to greet him with visible excitement.

They truly were excited.

Zhou Xiao was thrilled to have another chance to direct a film, while Xu Bunian, Zhao Wu, and the others were excited because this was their first real opportunity to take part in the filming of a movie.

Chen Qi smiled and greeted them as well, looking around curiously while he did so.

The rooftop was surprisingly spacious. He wondered how they had managed to find it.

After exchanging greetings, Xu Bunian and Zhou Xiao gave him a general rundown of the preparations for the film.

After listening halfheartedly for a while, Chen Qi cut them off without hesitation. “All right, all right. As long as you know what you’re doing, there’s no need to tell me about all that.”

He had no interest whatsoever in the actors, equipment, manpower, or anything of the sort. All he cared about was the filming.

“When do we start?” he asked.

“We can begin shortly,” Zhou Xiao replied. He then solemnly introduced Chen Qi to the entire crew.

“Let me introduce everyone. This is the investor for our film, and he’s also the screenwriter. Be a little more respectful when you see him from now on!”

Hearing the director’s introduction, the crew members were all slightly taken aback. Their gazes at Chen Qi also became noticeably more surprised.

The screenwriter?

The investor?

They truly had not expected this young man to hold both positions.

Being the screenwriter was not particularly remarkable, but being the investor carried considerable weight.

Because of that status, several unmarried women on the crew could not help stealing another glance or two at him. Of course, they probably had no ulterior motives; most of it was likely simple envy.

“Hello, everyone.” Chen Qi smiled and greeted them.

The crew then held a brief commencement ceremony.

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The so-called commencement ceremony amounted to little more than a few auspicious words wishing the production a smooth start and successful filming.

It was simple, but according to Zhou Xiao, the ceremony was still quite important. Only after going through it would everyone truly feel that the film had officially begun production.

Well, perhaps this was what people meant when they said that life needed a sense of ceremony.

Without it, everyone would feel as though something were missing.

After the commencement ceremony, filming officially began.

The shooting location was downstairs.

Chen Qi had looked over the script earlier and knew that the scenes to be filmed here covered the sequence after the two robbers broke into the heroine’s home.

It was also the funniest section of the entire film in Chen Qi’s opinion.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that this sequence could be taken out on its own and made into a promotional short!

Only after entering the house downstairs did Chen Qi realize that all the preparations had already been completed. Once the actors took their positions, filming could begin immediately.

“So this just happened to be an empty house?” Chen Qi asked curiously.

“No, someone lives here. We rented it for half a month,” Xu Bunian explained. “We paid a fairly generous amount, and since we’re only using the living room, the owner agreed readily enough.”

Chen Qi understood and did not ask any further questions.

“All right, everyone, prepare for the first shot of the first scene!”

“Action!”

At Zhou Xiao’s command, the crew and actors quickly immersed themselves in the filming.

The shoot had officially begun.

Chen Qi watched with keen interest from the sidelines. Without disturbing Zhou Xiao, he carefully observed everything the director did, down to the way he handled color and camera angles.

At that moment, he could not help sighing inwardly. There was nothing like being on your own set. He could watch however he pleased without having to worry about anyone else’s attitude!

“Cut, cut, cut! Your reaction was too slow. You should react the instant the alcohol is poured on.”

“Don’t make your expression so animated here. Remember, you’re someone seeking death!”

“Zhao Wu, you need to show a reaction after seeing his pain as well. The more shocked and disbelieving you look, the better. Like this…”

Zhou Xiao had his own understanding of the script, and he was directing the actors to bring it to life according to the effect he wanted.

Chen Qi, who held the title of producer, simply watched silently from the side. Even when Zhou Xiao’s approach differed from the version on Earth, he said nothing.

Before they signed the contract, they had already agreed that this was Zhou Xiao’s film and that Chen Qi would not interfere in any way.

“Good! That’s a wrap!”

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“Next shot.”

The filming proceeded in an orderly fashion.

Chen Qi continued watching silently from the sidelines.

One scene…

Then another…

Then a third…

Zhou Xiao organized all the scenes set in the house and filmed them one by one.

After finishing there, they moved the equipment back up to the rooftop and began shooting the rooftop scenes.

Before they knew it, half a month had passed in the blink of an eye.

With this sequence completed, all the scenes set in the capital had also been finished.

The crew was about to move to a new location.

Since the story was not set in the capital, the crew would have to leave the city and travel elsewhere.

Chen Qi had actually considered changing the story’s setting to the capital. That would have made it easier for him to learn by observing Zhou Xiao, while also reducing some of the crew’s difficulties. But after discussing the idea with Zhou Xiao, he decisively abandoned it.

As Zhou Xiao put it, indoor scenes in the capital would not be too difficult, but coordinating outdoor shooting locations would be extremely troublesome.

Aside from anything else, the various approval procedures alone would be enough to give anyone a headache for days, and a small company would generally have no chance of obtaining them.

Therefore, after weighing the advantages and disadvantages, Chen Qi ultimately gave up on the idea.

He had no intention of accompanying them to the next location.

It was true that he wanted to learn by observing Zhou Xiao, but there was no need to follow the crew everywhere.

That would be far too boring!

After watching Zhou Xiao repeatedly shoot the same scene over and over for half a month, Chen Qi was nearly sick of it.

When he had filmed My Amazing Brothers in the past, he had been immersed in the process and had not felt much of anything. But now, as an observer, he realized that filmmaking could be an extremely dull and tedious undertaking.

More importantly, although watching Zhou Xiao direct had benefited him greatly, Chen Qi still felt that truly mastering the craft would require him to practice it himself.

Simply observing from the sidelines was far too slow a way to absorb everything.

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