Interview with ＂Baby＂ Yang Mi： Never take the initiative to compete for roles, such a posture is not good-looking

Yang Mi

The film "Baby," produced by Hou Hsiao-hsien, directed by Liu Jie and starring Yang Mi, premiered at the second Pingyao International Film Festival. In the film, Yang Mi plays Jiang Meng, an abandoned child with birth defects, and her subversive image and dialect performance are considered to be a display of her acting strength. On October 14, Yang Mi gave an exclusive interview with Liu Jie, the director of "Baby," detailing this special creative experience.

Unlike the cast and crew mode that Yang Mi was used to in the past, the shooting of "Baby" lasted for 9 months intermittently. In the middle of the shooting, under the name of "make-up", it was completely reshooted twice, and it was not really completed until the end of the third shooting. There was no script during the shooting process. Director Liu Jie took the actors to explore the state and relationship of the characters, completed the line creation on the spot, and asked Yang Mi to perform in Nanjing dialect.

In the process of such three runs-in, Yang Mi withstood the director’s repeated inspections of her performance, striving to achieve the most realistic state, and finally let Jiang Meng remove Yang Mi’s shadow. In the eyes of outsiders, it seems impossible for Yang Mi, a commercial star, to devote such time and energy to a movie, but in the creation of "Baby", Yang Mi can be said to have no reservations. According to Liu Jie, every time Yang Mi enters the group to shoot "Baby", he is ready to reshoot it later, and fully accepts the possibility of modifying his creative intentions, which makes him feel very warm.

Many people think that Yang Mi took over the role of "Baby" to subvert the beautiful image of the past, in order to gain public recognition in terms of acting and achieve transformation, but Yang Mi said that he did not think so much, and he never forced any role, "I am super passive. You let me take the initiative to fight? I don’t, the posture is not good-looking."

Never take the initiative to fight for the role, such a posture is not good-looking

Did Yang Mi take the initiative to win the role in "Baby"?

Liu Jie: When we chatted, I really don’t remember who suggested that we should make a play together. I actually didn’t think she would agree, because I presupposed a situation at the time. I said that if we made a play together, I don’t have a script, and I don’t like to discuss it with the actors, because if there is a script, the actors will design the characters and will break up with me.

The next day, her agent called me and said, I heard that you had a good chat with Power Mi, and if there is a chance to work together. So it’s actually pretty good, and that’s the truth.

Was there already a "Baby" project at that time?

Liu Jie: I have an idea. I have a five-page outline, and I have maintained this five-page outline ever since.

: Yang Mi has played such roles less often before, is there less opportunity to find you in the first place? Or did you not take the initiative to find such a role yourself?

Liu Jie: She is not an active person.

Yang Mi: I’m super passive.

Liu Jie: Yes, she is actually quite the kind of strength of a Beijing girl, and it doesn’t matter what, but once I agree to this job, you can let me do anything.

Yang Mi: Yes, I will do the work for you, but you let me take the initiative to fight for it, I don’t, I don’t think I want it, it’s not good-looking, and my posture is not good.

As an actor, you may want to try and challenge such a role. Don’t you have such an idea?

Yang Mi: If you have it, you can have it. If you don’t, forget it.

: Don’t force it, do you?

Yang Mi: Yes.

Is there an age group where, at the age of 30, you want to make a change as an actor?

Yang Mi: I didn’t think so much.

No script, repeatedly grinding out character relationships and lines

: Last time you played the blind man in "I am a Witness", you went to contact the blind man. Have you contacted orphans like Jiang Meng this time?

Yang Mi: I went to the welfare home with the director, and also went to the ICU ward of the maternity hospital.

Liu Jie: Yes, they are all children who are struggling to survive.

Yang Mi: It’s still very touching. There are dozens of incubators in a room. They all have names attached to them, and children with various symptoms.

: "Baby" only has an outline and no script. How was the scene filmed?

Yang Mi: Nothing.

Liu Jie: Just force her to react, tell her what the situation is, what it is, and then what she will say, and then she will say, "What will I say," I said, "This is what you want to say, is it what Jiang Meng wants to say?"

Yang Mi: Even when I was playing opposite scenes, I didn’t know what kind of relationship I had with my opponent. For example, I didn’t know what kind of relationship they had with my mother.

Liu Jie: They all came out slowly.

Yang Mi: We played all kinds of rival plays, such as dismantling the wall panels, and we dismantled them many times. Today, we dismantled the boards again, and the boards were nailed on again. Why did you nail them and dismantle them again?

: In the end, whether it is the relationship or the lines, who will make this decision in the end?

Yang Mi: The director makes the decision.

Liu Jie: Running in, grinding a little bit.

Yang Mi: It’s still your decision.

Liu Jie: No, I’m judging by the side.

Are there some lines that Yang Mi came up with himself?

Liu Jie: Yes, there must be. I really don’t remember, we took a lot of pictures.

Yang Mi: I took a lot of footage, a lot of footage.

Liu Jie: Let’s talk about it alone, that is to say, she has filmed at least 250 to 300 scenes.

Yang Mi: You have to ask me which sentence in this play impresses me the most, which is (in Nanjing dialect) "why is it not cured", "I am from Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital", these two sentences appear the most frequently.

Nanjing dialect was only said to be learned after entering the group. Did you find a teacher?

Liu Jie: Yes.

Yang Mi: The teacher takes me to and from get off work every day and chats online 24 hours a day.

Liu Jie: Yes, give her a local radio program in Nanjing and practice every day.

Yang Mi: I listen to it every day, I listen when I go back, I have been listening, I have been listening.

Does the director have a grasp of Nanjing dialect?

Yang Mi: No, he really has no talent for languages.

Liu Jie: No. Let the Nanjing people judge and ask them if they can accept it? I will let them judge harshly. Except for the three starring stars, the others are all Nanjing people.

Yang Mi: I have been learning from them, asking my mother how to say this sentence in Nanjing dialect, etc. Sometimes the director will say a few words to us in Nanjing dialect on a whim.

Liu Jie: I’m in a hurry to demonstrate.

Remake twice, try to remove Yang Mi’s shadow

How long does it take to shoot like this?

Yang Mi: The first three months.

Liu Jie: 75 days.

Yang Mi: Three months for the first time, two months for the second time.

Liu Jie: No, the second time in a month.

Yang Mi: 40 days.

Liu Jie: No, 30 days.

Yang Mi: You are bargaining with me for the third time in a week.

: Three times? Is this the middle where the crew stopped and then came back?

Yang Mi: It didn’t stop for a while.

Liu Jie: Stopped for half a year.

Yang Mi: The first time was a serious shoot. We had a shoot, and the director said I might make up for it.

Liu Jie: After all, the director is a liar.

Yang Mi: As a result, I made up another whole play.

Did you reshoot it?

Yang Mi: Yes.

Did the director work this way before? I don’t remember.

Liu Jie: Yes, I used to have a good reputation.

Then he made up a third shot?

Liu Jie: Yes, we should have taken two and a half shots of the content of the five pages from mid-March to the end of May.

What was the reason for your dissatisfaction the first time?

Liu Jie: I think it’s what everyone is looking for, that thing is not the ultimate state of our seriousness, because what? In fact, in my opinion, all these people may not be in the same story, not in the same life, nor in the same channel, including looking for the feeling of the characters, looking for the texture of life, how to let Jiang Meng remove Yang Mi’s shadow. We were very determined from the beginning, that is, we should not see Yang Mi’s shadow in this person.

So we have to work hard to get rid of her own things and change everything. After a month of running in, I told everyone very passionately that we would officially start filming tomorrow, so I reshooted it. In fact, she was a little nervous at that time, but she still thought it should be over, because it was all agreed, and the original agreement was 75 days.

After that, I think she was also very happy. The whole group had a shut-down meal together, and then said goodbye to everyone. I said a word, because she also asked me, Are you satisfied with the director? I said go back and cut it, and I said there might be a little make-up.

Yang Mi: To reshoot is to reshoot a play.

How do you keep her coming back like this?

Liu Jie: Grind it, grind it slowly with the agent, from two days to a month.

What does Yang Mi think of himself?

Yang Mi: I have never had a concept of time.

Liu Jie: She doesn’t know, she has no concept.

Yang Mi: Wherever you ask me to be, I will be there.

(Yang Mi’s agent added: Her state is that the director said she wanted to come back to shoot, and she said yes, her wish is to go back to shoot. And our state is that the director wants two days or three days, and the director said it may not be enough. We thought that six days at most should be enough, but we ended up shooting for a month. Just for this, we arranged other things.)

Liu Jie: In fact, she was a little anxious when she first came back, but she was still worried. When she came back, she asked me, what is the announcement tomorrow? I said you just came and haven’t seen each other for half a year. You can rest first, it’s okay, slowly find some state, don’t worry, she said no, what if you have a lot of rows?

We only shoot when we are in a state, very casual, no state, if we don’t understand, we don’t shoot, and we call it a day. But in fact, it was really a good opportunity in the end. After more than 9 months of this kind of character experience, indoctrination, and brainwashing. When she comes back, it will be a miraculous return. I think she is pleasing to the eye no matter what, but Jiang Meng.

So it went well later. During that month, she worked very intensely for 17 days and was very concentrated. She should have been sick for two or three days. We were quite cruel. When she was sick, I thought she was in good condition.

Yang Mi: He said that you play best when you are sick.

Which scenes did she get sick in?

Liu Jie: When she learned that the mother had given up her child, she silently walked to the street and sat on the side of the street waiting for Xiaojun to pick her up.

Yang Mi: Was it a fever or gastroenteritis that day?

Liu Jie: The fever is 39 degrees, do you know? The mood is right, the physical state must be particularly responsive, she is very tired and very tired.

After the third shoot, you finally feel settled?

Liu Jie: In March this year, we had the third finishing banquet. Power Mi was very good. She was very nice to everyone in the production team. She toasted everyone goodbye and told everyone that we would meet again. She said that the director was unreliable, and we would definitely shoot for the fourth time. I can only listen, okay. So you know, this is the warmest thing I’ve heard, which proves that she approves and is willing to accompany the director to shoot for the fourth time.

After the first shoot, if she turned around and left, then I thought, forget it, she won’t come again, because after all, our contract is over, but if she said goodbye every time, we will see each other. Then I thought, okay, I can do it again. I think this is so heartwarming.

In the next few months, I went back to Nanjing several times. As soon as I went back to Nanjing, I would send a Moments, and she would ask me, what are you doing?

Yang Mi: I asked him, are you here to see the scenery again?

Liu Jie: Because we have also changed actors among us, and the main roles have been changed.

Yang Mi: Not me, except me.

Liu Jie: I sometimes tease her and put pressure on her, saying that if you don’t play well, you will be replaced.

Yang Mi: I say you change it.

Liu Jie: She saw that I was back in Nanjing, so I thought she might be thinking that I reshooted her and replaced her, just to make a joke with her.

Constantly beaten, but extremely tenacious

Is your performance more about mobilizing your own life experience and observation? Or is it about input and experience?

Yang Mi: It’s the real thing. If there is nothing made, it will be cut.

Liu Jie: Yes, my biggest blow to her at the scene was that "you are still acting, you are still acting, I didn’t feel it, you are still acting", which is actually quite cruel.

Hearing this, will you break down?

Yang Mi: If you don’t collapse, then come again.

The mentality is still very good.

Liu Jie: Tenacious, she is particularly tenacious.

Yang Mi: I am extremely tenacious.

: In addition to plain makeup, there are also many freckles on the face?

Liu Jie: She is not without makeup, but directly smeared the color of shoe polish on her face and made freckles all over her face. We didn’t do it on purpose, we found a basis for life. People like Jiang Meng who have bad endocrine…

Yang Mi: The state will be fed back on the face.

Liu Jie: This kind of child with congenital problems is also prone to freckles and birthmarks.

: Yang Mi said before that some directors don’t talk about drama when they are filming. Director Liu Jie should be the kind who talks about drama, right?

Liu Jie: It’s a lot to talk about. I never told her how to act, I would tell her what the character’s psychology would be like, just the psychology.

Yang Mi: If you overturn it after you finish talking about it, he will overturn what he said. I would think, how is it different from what you said last time? All the scenes you see are basically the ones we shot more than twice. Every shot is different from what we said last time. Which scene is this? Huh? Has this scene moved here? It’s all like this, and there are surprises every day when you come to the scene.

For you, this entire performance was a unique experience.

Yang Mi: The rest of the cast won’t have time for you to grind like this. What impressed me the most was that the house where my mother and I lived had a pond, and the landlord kept a few ducklings. When we first went to shoot the first year, it was a chirping flock of ducklings in a small box. The second time I went to see it, there were only a few big ducklings left. The third time I went to shoot, the ducklings were gone.

Liu Jie: They have all become salted ducks.

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