Film and art are inextricably linked. Fine art is the life of cinemaIt provides a steady stream of artistic nutrients and creative inspiration for films, and meets the new needs of film creation. At the same time, the development of film has also given art a new form of expression. Film and art are intrinsically inseparable from the arts, supporting each other and growing together. But when it comes to film art, most people think of painting the movie set. This could not be more wrong. In fact, film art is a big departmentIn Hollywood, it includes costumes, props, scenery and makeup;In Hong Kong, there are broad categories such as art direction, artist and modelling, with the artist mainly responsible for scenery and props, while the stylist is mainly responsible for costumes and makeup. That is to say,All the scene designs, costumes, accessories and other props used by the characters that the audience sees in the movie can be classified as film art
Hai Rihan was at the filming site to figure it outThe current situation of the survival of domestic film artistsand figure it outHow exactly does an artist work?, as wellWhat kind of skills and knowledge does it require?We deliberately reviewed some of the previous two podcasts of Mr. Wu Yongchao. In the name called"What is the "art" revealed by the crew?》In the two episodes of the podcast, he has been deeply involved in the field of film art for 15 yearsMr. Hai Rihan, with Hong Kong to accumulate a wealth of film work experienceMr. Wu Yongchao, as well as experienced screenwritersTeacher MulelaTogether, we talked about a lot of behind-the-scenes scenes related to film art. Mr. Hai Rihan graduated from Beijing Film Academy, and has been deeply involved in the field of film art for 15 years since joining Director Jiang Wen's "Let the Bullets Fly" as an art assistant. In the past 15 years, she has grown into an independent art director in the film industry, not only participating in many important film projects, but also accumulating a lot of work experience. 
Hai Rihan (left) and director Jiang Wen, the course she opened is"Film Art Class".From the perspective of film art, it analyzes the visual mystery of film, and what kind of knowledge and skills film artists need to have as a job. 
Text excerpt from podcast. What is fine artWu Yongchao (hereinafter referred to as "Wu"):Regarding the concept of "art", I didn't understand it before I talked to the crew, because when I saw these two words, I felt that it was painting, and I felt that art in the movie seemed to be related to painting. But when I entered the crew, I found that it was not like that at all. Let Mr. Xiaohai (Hai Rihan) systematically tell us what art should do?Hai Rihan (hereinafter referred to as "Hai"):In simple terms,In fact, everything you see in the movie screen needs to be prepared and responsible for by the artist. This brings up the things that you can see and pick up, and these are the props;There is also the space you want to stay in, whether this scene is built or live. All of this is the work of fine arts. So the art is very cumbersome. It was only after I joined the crew that I realized that painting is not a very important thing. I remember that at that time, I had a crew in Guangdong, they had an art group, and there were more than a dozen people at that time, and the division of labor was very different. For example, my daily job is to draw pictures, and others are responsible for drawing props, some are responsible for setting scenes, and some are responsible for finding scenes. Mule pull (hereinafter referred to as "mule"):In other words, art is a big department, and under the big department, there are many small departments
The scene in the Longde Hall created by the art team of "Fengshen".Sea:Basically, it isSettingWithPropsThese two categories. But previously, it was also includedStyling- I only learned about this after I started in the industry. Even my predecessors in Hong Kong told me that in the earliest days, lighting was also a part of fine arts. In fact, art is like a contractor, responsible for building a tall building out of nothing, that is, to make a scene very realMule:Hahaha I'm going to tell the story of my rental at this time. At that time, I rented a room, because it was too old, so I asked Sister Hai (Hai Rihan) to help me find someone to paint the walls, paint putty, and all kinds of scenery here and there. Hahaha, about the time of a play passed, and the wall skin began to fall off hahahaha. Sea:HahahaThat's right, because what we do is always fake, because our budget is always limited, so we can't think about daily living, just care about the time of your play hahaha. Wu:Just talking about the scenery and props, the props, it reminds me of the previous Hollywood, there were very awesome props, what aliens, terminators, and big dinosaurs in the Jurassic. At that time, there were no computer stunts, and they were able to make the props so realistic. Do we have this kind of prop too? 
Dinosaur props from Jurassic ParkSea:A few years ago, I was filming in Hong Kong, and there was a special "special channel" in the crew, which was specializedMake special power-ups, the most powerful is the "Brother Long" in the props industry. The first time I met him, he went to visit director Tsui Hark's class with director Er Dongsheng. At that time, he was working on "fake horses", as if he was already in the fifth or sixth generation. It's that they think every year about how they can make this horse really better. At first, the horse could only run, and by the time "I Am a Passerby" was filmed later, Brother Long's horse was already able to kneel and lie down. Wu:Why do many cosplay dramas like to use "fake horses" now? Sea:Because you can't expect every actor to ride a horse, and you can't guarantee that every horse will be so obedient. Let's talk about Brother Long, he has many legends. For example, those ancient costume martial arts in the Tsui Hark period, and all kinds of strange weapons in Qimen Dunjia, were all invented by Brother Long. One of the most legendary things I have ever heard is that once I filmed and teased a bear in the mainland, and I didn't have a place to put it aside for a long time, and it was a pity to lose it, so I simply shipped it back to Hong Kong and raised the bear in Hong Kong for a long time. 
A clip of riding a fake horse in Mr. Red CarpetWu:This reminds me of something I talked about in Wen Nian. At that time, he was filming "**** was inexplicably deceived to South America" with Wong Kar-wai. One day during filming, he patted Wong Kar-wai and said, "This taste is wrong, I think he should have a packet of Vitasoy in his hand at this time." Wen Nianzhong said: In South America, you asked me to buy you a pack of Vitasoy?! Wong Kar-wai said no, I must. Later, Wen Nianzhong went back and hand-painted a Vitasoy outer packaging. Sea:When I first started in the industry, I thought that Hong Kong art is amazing. As long as the director says he wants something, the reaction of us ordinary people may be: I can't do it, or I don't. But Hong Kong art will have a habit of always calculating first, and then asking you how long you will give me, and I will make it for you. As an artist, you should never refuse the director at the first time, and you must do everything you can to complete it. Art is always at the service of the director, and it is always necessary to meet the director's ideas when he needs them. 
Hong Kong film art director Wen NianzhongMule:Then you need to be a robot cat, hahaha, and be able to pull something out of your belly pocket at any time. So, did you have a time when you couldn't give something at all?Sea:Basically nothing!But it is true that there have been some difficulties. For example, in a scene many years ago, the director temporarily said what kind of coral he wanted. I thought: Oh my God, it's two or three o'clock in the morning, and the machine will be turned on at six o'clock tomorrow morning, and I'll go ** to find you coral?Then we went to the storeroom, took the wire around the shape, then took the candle drops, and then hurried to make the effect, and we made a coral on the fly. There are so many things like this that a lot of props may just be fake. A Hong Kong senior once shared that there were not so many pistols in Hong Kong filming in the 90s, and the props directly blackened the actors' hands. The joys and pains of artMule:Speaking of styling earlier, you haven't talked about styling yetDidn't you do the styling of two plays?Let's start with science popularization. Sea:Styling is the cut of the character's clothing, how to apply makeup. It's this makeup, I think it's too complicated. These things, if they don't accumulate over time, can't be mastered at all. I was doing styling at that time, probably because I was always looking at it, and I developed a habit of thatI care about all the scenes and people in my life。You may not be able to draw, for example, what kind of character I want to draw you into. Different actors may have different drawing methods, is it possible to add something to him?It's all the work at hand, I can't do it. After that, I realized that art is always about the scene;And to do styling, you just have to deal with people. It's going to be a little simpler, because I just have to figure it out. But the scene is too trivial, too complex, too varied. 
Among the makeup photos, "East Evil and West Poison" is the most well-knownMule:Two different modes of operation. Speaking of styling, I want to ask: The first play I followed in my life was called "The King of Guns", the modern drama style of the male and female protagonists, that is, the hair and face, the makeup is not thick or special, but it can be worn for two or three hoursWhy is it taking so long?Sea:When the actors are applying makeup, the lighting, cinematographer, and director all have to look at the makeup. Because from the naked eye, it may feel good, but when you shoot it, it's different. Even the lighting of each actor is different. This requires that makeup is necessarily different, so it is time-consuming. There are some people who look really ordinary, but being photogenic may be something else. So I think it's hard to put on makeup, you have to think about everyone's different facial features and micro-expressions. There are some of them that we think look good every day, but when they are photographed, they look very big and strange. This requires makeup, good coordination with lighting and photography, to cover up this shortcoming. Therefore, a good-looking picture needs too many departments to study. Even a very beautiful and good actor can't be said to be 360 degrees without dead ends. Makeup is not something we imagine, as long as it looks good, or what kind of look does the hair look like. It is very difficult to make a look that fits the actor and the character. 
Stills from "The King of Guns".Wu:It's like often having events like the red carpet, and netizens will comment on who offended the stylist or something. I think there's got to be a reason for that. Sea:Yes. It's the same person, it's like this in this play, and it's another in the next play. Mule:Have you ever been scolded by the director and still be grateful? Sea:"I am a passerby".At that time, there was a room where the scenery was done for a long time, but he was still scolded by Director Er Dongsheng. But that was not the scene I made, it was just the furnishings that Director Er Dongsheng scolded, for me, it was the first art class in my life. I still remember that Director Er said: Although I am not as good as Guan Jinpeng, I will tell you about the reality of life. He pointed to the stove next to him and said, "Let me ask you, who hangs a white coat rack next to the stove?" Isn't that clothes full of fumes? Is this the most basic common sense of life? And do you think it looks good? Do you think that makes sense? No matter how small his house is, he has to consider the basic survival of these people. I just think,As long as you are a realistic movie, your scene must start from the most realistic things。So, you must understand the living habits of different people. Later in the project, if I really can't help it, I'll use the method of Erdao, which is what he said: all of you go out now, walk on the street for two hours and come back, and see what kind of clothes they are wearing, don't imagine it. The matter of Er Dao made a deep impression on me, and it also made me developStart with realityA professional habit. 
Wu:Are there any scenes that are particularly comfortable to film?
Sea:Yes,"Seeking Han Ji".It's a drama that I'm particularly happy to make. The box office of this drama is not very good, from filming to release, because of the epidemic, there have been two years. I rarely get a film, from the director to the cinematography to the lighting to the styling, all of them are from Beijing, and then we have to shoot a story about Beijingers, and the actors are also from Beijing, and then it's all about Beijing, and I've been in Beijing for 17 or 8 years. Before filming "Looking for Han", I thought I already knew Beijing very well. But when I actually walked on my legs to find the scenery, I realized that I didn't know much about Beijing. The director asked not to shoot the hutongs, because having the hutongs is another texture, and the real Beijing hutongs are not easy to shoot. When I was looking for the home of the female No. 1, I walked for more than a week, walked around, I went to a community and began to shoot **, kept going upstairs and walked around, there was a good opportunity, the security guards looked at me not very right, it felt like stepping on the point, I felt that the surveillance of the whole Beijing must think that I might be a thief. Because the main creators are all from Beijing, when everyone is filming, the lighting engineer will say: Hey, which one in the neighborhood is particularly delicious, let's go eat that at noon. Hahaha. Or on the edge of the second ring road, a little girl in the crew said: Wait for me, I'll go to the nearby Daoxiang Village to buy fried skewers, hahaha. It's the overall atmosphere, especially Beijing. That is, when Beijingers meet filming, they don't want to see you at all, they enjoy their own space. Fortunately, there was Li Baotian, who was also older at that time. When filming, he took the initiative to chat with several old men downstairs, saying that we would shoot a chess scene together. In fact, those actors were all picked up downstairs by us on the spot. Then it's noon, and people are in a hurry to go back to cooking, hahaha. Li Baotian said, you talk with me for a while, let's shoot for a while, hahaha.
Stills from "Looking for Han Ji".Wu:Do these habits you develop at work affect your daily life in turn? Sea:Obviously, if I am at home, I can't go without the furnishings of my house for a day. Every day I feel uncomfortable with this thing. I've probably made it a habit to always want to adjust it to the most comfortable state. But this one is hard, you don't have a uniqueness. For art, there is no uniqueness. You may have a unique composition or angle for photography, and it should be. But for the arts, there is actually none. If you think it's good-looking, but I think it might be that good-looking, then I can't help it. And another point is that if you always think about others, it's easy to not know what kind of person you really are. I don't know what is actually mine. I once read a book that said that there was a sentence that resonated with me that architects don't know what kind of home they want. Film art is always serving different people and creating different spaces for different people. On the other hand, I've done all sorts of things, but it's actually a bit difficult for me to get a home that belongs to me by myself.