Save the Panda's

SO I am coming to the end of my Panda film. It has been great.  This was my first time as the lead.  Wow it is lots of work.  only as an assistant director have I been this tired. and this was a cheezy romantic film, god help me when I get to helm an actioner.  

This film was hard.  mainly because there was not enough prep time.  We didn't get the finally scrīpt until a day before shooting, and we shot sound sync in chinese,  I am used to it, but usually I get rests in between,  but this time, I was in practically every single scene of everyday I shot.  I couldn't even go to the bathroom!!   Everyone in this industry dreams of being the leading man or woman, but they don't tell you what it takes.  I hope I did an ok job.

I usually have a few months to prepare my entire scrīpt and come up with ideas and do research, that is for significant roles, for the little ones they are much like this one, you just get the scrīpt the day before, or sometimes five minutes before they yell action.  In the end it is a job and no excuses you are expected to know your lines and act them and somehow convey a level of authenticity to what you are doing  while standing there in clothes from 70 years ago saying things that no one in their right mind would ever say.   But hey.  it's acting.

The authentic part of this role ws that after I said all those cheezy lines and professed my love more thn once to this chinese girl in the 1930's she didn't fall run away with me to europe and live happily ever after. 

so here I am, I have angered the natives and I am trying to save a panda from my evil uncle who is trying to kill the poor thing for it's pelt, and in the middle of it all I find time to fall in love with the girl who nursed me back to health. well. when i get the pics up you will all see why that makes perfect sense. she is a rare beauty.  and I have to say of all the actresses and celebrities in china(there is a separation there)   she is perhaps the best actress i have worked with, and she certainly has her head on straight.   as I mentioned in earlier posts, her name is Fatima Ya Qi. please have patience for the photo's

So the only thing I believe in the scrīpt is that I would definately fall in love with my leading lady. 

if this was real life in 1930's sichuan china.  well then my characters tale would be quite grim.

Ithe girl I fall in love with would perhaps be stoned for soiling her virtue, (even suspicion of a woman losing her virginity at that time was kind of heavy.   let alone to a foreigner)

My character would also meet some grizzly doom, perhaps being ground up as extra protein for the panda's oooiiiieeww.   or worse,  

I heard In hollywood actors get research packets to make their characters more believable.  in china we just have the internet . if an actor chooses to research their character then that is where we go.     no time on this one, so   we did all that on the fly. changing the scrīpt as we went. I was lucky that the director was open to many of my suggestions.  since there was little we could throw in to make me a more believable zoologist from the 1930's  we emphasized the personal relationships in the story more.  making the greedy businessmna who brings my character over, my greedy bussinessman uncle,   that completely changed the story and my charcter from that of a seasoned zoologist who came to study panda's and was duped in an idiotic way to that of a wet behind the ears boy just graduated and trying to prove himself who has deep trust and admiration for his strong armed uncle,  by adding the family connection it makes it easier for the audience to dismiss the obvious signs, because people don't usually  suspect their family members of devious things, especially the ones they admire the most.

so   instead of going technical, we tried to make the characters more human to bring authenticity.  of course we won't know if it worked untill we have it chopped scored and mixed.  should be interesting.  I'll be helping with the distribution on this one too, so I will sure put up a trailer on here when we get one ouit.

peace out everyone.  Save the Panda's!!!!!!!!!!