Soft and warm fragrance

For the first time, Kate Beckinsale felt that even playing a vase role was so difficult.

Although the director had explained the scene clearly, she had already sketched the general image of her character in her mind.

Yet, when she started, "Cut."

This was the fifth time she heard the call to stop today.

"Kate, take a rest and adjust your state."

Lyman didn't say much. Kate didn't understand why he said that when he could clearly see everything through the monitor.

She was overshadowed in the scene with her acting.

What could she say? It wasn't that her performance was bad, but her aura didn't match Heath Ledger's portrayal of Second-in-Command.

"Heath, come here."

Heath approached, and Lyman instructed, "Try a different approach later, maybe tone down your performance a bit."

"Okay," Heath nodded affirmatively. For him, he could perform this scene in over a dozen different styles, toning down his emotions was straightforward.

...

The gap between people was indeed significant, and Kate felt somewhat disheartened.

It was like when she was a child, excelling academically, smoothly making her way to Oxford University, she always felt that learning was not difficult. It even left her without any sense of accomplishment or passion, so she went to Hollywood to become an actress.

However, her recent performance was genuinely poor, even worse than when she first started.

As soon as her gaze met Heath's for a split second, her reaction was astonishing. In that moment, she felt like he saw through her, as if she couldn't hide anything from him.

So, whether it was forgetting lines or having improper expressions or wandering eyes that were almost out of the camera's frame, she committed all sorts of mistakes, making her doubt if she had ever acted before.

Her performance was worse than a rookie.

"Ready!"

Ten minutes later, everything was ready, and Kate stepped into the scene again...

Lyman watched the footage transmitted through the monitor and nodded slightly. It seemed that his approach was effective. Having Heath Ledger tone down his performance and not pressuring Kate too much, she improved compared to before, but it still wasn't enough. "One more time."

"Heath, adjust your sitting posture as well. Lean back, don't lean forward."

"Okay," Heath gestured his agreement.

As an actor, delays due to performance were uncontrollable factors, but Lyman remained composed. His temper usually flared up due to the crew's inadequate work, not the actors' performance.

If an actor didn't have the right mindset, forcing them wouldn't be helpful; it was better to take it step by step.

Actors were like this; perhaps talent played a significant role, but experience in front of the camera was also essential.

Did Heath know how to act from birth? Did Nicolas Cage win the Oscar for Best Actor as soon as he debuted?

Rubbish. The former had been doing extra work for who knows how many years, and the latter, relying on family resources, was never short of roles, often playing substantial characters. But in the early days, he was mocked by others, slowly persevered, and even changed his name. Eventually, he won numerous acting awards, including the Oscar for Best Actor. How many years did it take Nicola to reach this point? It should be around 12 years when counting from when he approached the A-list, which was around 1996 when he won the Oscar for Best Actor in "Leaving Las Vegas".

Who hadn't gone through refinement? Kate had just started her career for less than five years, and she had only acted in a few films. In the acting industry, she could be easily referred to as a newcomer.

Moreover, acting wasn't just a matter of subjective interpretation. It required life experiences, a foundation in performance, and a touch of inspiration. Sometimes, when that feeling came, it was astonishing.

For instance, Heath Ledger, from "Buried" to now, Lyman had witnessed his progress. When he started shooting claustrophobic scenes, he needed a lot of time to find his footing. Now, he handled it with ease.

The roles he portrayed became more three-dimensional, more rounded.

Like earlier, he used several different emotions to convey the same scene effectively.

Subtle, outgoing; implicit, tension. He was becoming increasingly adept at capturing these nuances.

The slight sense of youthfulness from "Buried" had gradually faded away over time.

And then, there was Tom Cruise. His earlier works were similarly not up to par; often, you could detect a sense of discordance within his performances.

But at least he was improving. If he hadn't played the role of handsome and cool characters so many times, many habits wouldn't have become ingrained. His progress might have been even faster.

It could truly be said that appearance could lead to success or failure. If he wasn't handsome enough, he wouldn't have received so many acting opportunities.

It was also because of this aspect that the path of transformation was so difficult.

However, with the willingness to put in effort, all wasn't lost.

"Cut."

After another take, it was much better. Although Kate's performance still lacked finesse and wasn't perfect, fortunately, her appearance compensated for this deficiency to some extent. It didn't ruin the immersion for the audience, fulfilling her role.

The filming process was gradually improving.

...

A week later, on the set of Warner Bros. Studio.

Today, they were filming Tom's family scenes, which also laid the foundation for his later outbursts and transformation.

After discussing with Thomas, Lyman decided to use warm color tones for the entire shoot.

To create something beautiful, and then to shatter it, made the destruction even more convincing and heightened the audience's senses.

Many had said that movies were a deceptive art woven from light and shadow, and Lyman wholeheartedly agreed with this sentiment.

The story was fake, but the emotions might not necessarily be.

The role of lighting was self-evident. If a film lacked proper lighting, the presented effect could be disastrously unattractive.

Actors needed light, and creating an atmosphere required even more.

During filming, techniques such as fill light, color tones, and dimming could clearly highlight an actor's facial features, and a bit of strong light could also mask skin flaws. To say that on-site lighting was akin to a live version of a beauty filter was not an exaggeration.

Those glossy, snow-like skin effects were largely due to the lighting.

Warm color tones emphasized creating a soft atmosphere, making people feel comfortable.

Several warm orange lights were positioned around the room, and the crew adjusted the positions of the light screens.

"Okay, no problems." Soon, the head of the lighting crew came over to report.

"Camera?"

"Okay."

"Actors?"

"Ready."

"Action."

In the camera frame, Tom furrowed his brows slightly as he took out the key and opened the door to the house. He had just met with his superior and requested to return to the police force, but his request had been denied.

Three years, three years, and another three years—unbeknownst to him, he had been undercover for nine years already. When would this kind of life ever come to an end?

"I'm back," he shouted loudly.

As Tom delivered his lines, the camera slowly shifted, revealing a kitchen in the frame. A woman was busy working in the kitchen. Upon hearing the sound, knowing that her husband had returned, the woman turned her body and smiled at Tom. Her smile was cheerful and infectious. For some inexplicable reason, Tom's brows, which had been furrowed since he opened the door, relaxed.

A feeling of warmth spread in the surroundings, perfectly captured by the camera lens.

"Ian, go sit in the living room for a moment. Dinner will be ready soon."

Gentle words, clear eyes, and an underlying affection...

"Cut."

Behind the monitor, Lyman was extremely satisfied.

Hearing that her performance was okay, Eva Green breathed a sigh of relief.

Who knew how long she had prepared for this scene.

When Lyman called her and informed her about the new project, asking her to choose a role, she didn't opt for a slightly more substantial role as a "mole". Instead, when she chose this role, she was already preparing for the day when her scenes would be officially shot.

Generally, actresses of her age wouldn't choose roles like wives, but Eva was someone with aspirations.

She wasn't content with playing vase roles anymore. In her heart, she wanted to prove herself to Lyman.

She hoped Lyman would focus more on her.

Eva didn't know why she had such thoughts, but she acted on them.

...

At night, Lyman was alone in the living room of his hotel suite, revising the filming plan.

He discovered that Tom wasn't an actor who could easily immerse himself in emotions—putting it mildly: he took a while to get into character but quickly snapped out of it.

Sometimes, he would film with great feeling, only to make frequent mistakes the next day.

In contrast, Heath was the complete opposite, quickly getting into character but slowly coming out of it. Many times, after his scenes were done, he would sit alone in a chair, reflecting.

On the other hand, Nicolas was a seasoned performer, rapidly getting into and out of character, yet his performance was still quite impressive.

Perhaps this was the pride of a middle-aged man who had been in Hollywood for almost two decades.

Lyman noticed that when acting with Heath, the pressure was increasing, which stirred his competitive spirit. Whenever they clashed, sparks would fly, and it even enhanced Tom's performance, making it more natural.

It was a good thing.

However, Lyman still felt that it would be better to focus on Tom's scenes more. This would prevent him from being great one day and then losing that spark the next.

"Knock, knock, knock." Someone knocked on the door.

Lyman put down the schedule and opened the door. Standing at the doorway was none other than Eva.

She seemed to have just taken a shower, with a pleasant fragrance wafting from her. What brand of shower gel was she using? It was truly alluring.

No, it wasn't just that—she was genuinely beautiful.

They were already like an "old married couple", so Lyman didn't feel a hint of embarrassment. He simply lifted Eva into his arms and closed the door.

To be honest, after not seeing each other for two months, he was feeling quite pent up.

He was only 27 years old, the prime of a man's, well, you know, strongest period.

...

Beyond the willow, the clear thunderous pond embraces rain,

Droplets whispering, shattering the lotus' refrain.

Within the winding path, secrets hidden and dear,

Affections held closely, who's to truly hear?

Just like "soft murmurs", "pretending to stroll", "gentle breaths", "coquettish shyness during the rain". (Three thousand words skipped.)