Coaching

"Ah Zhen, eat before you leave!" "No time to eat, I have to catch my bus!" Early in the morning, Qiu Shuzhen dashed out of the house in a fluster, a small bag slung over her shoulder and panic written across her face. Today was her first day on the set. Far too excited, she had tossed and turned all night before finally falling asleep. When she opened her eyes, she was already late—and it was quite a distance from her home to Clear Water Bay Studio. *Beep, beep!* A Škoda suddenly pulled up right in front of her. The window rolled down, and Chen Qi waved from the back seat. "Get in!" "Ah, Teacher!" Delighted by the unexpected rescue, Qiu Shuzhen scrambled into the car. In the blink of an eye, it vanished down the cluttered little street. Quite a few neighbors had watched the whole thing, and tongues immediately started wagging. "The Qius really have some nerve, sending Ah Zhen off to be a concubine at such a young age!" "Doesn't look like any tycoon to me, though. Tycoons ride around in a Mercedes or a Rolls-Royce. Who'd be riding in a car like this?" "I'll rip your filthy mouths off! You rotten-hearted old bags, I'd send your own mothers off as mistresses before I'd ever do that to Ah Zhen!... It's a movie, don't you understand? Our Ah Zhen is acting in a film! She's going to be a big star!" Fortunately, Mother Qiu arrived in the nick of time and chased off the gaggle of busybodies. Watching the end of the street, she prayed silently in her heart: *Ah Zhen, you have to do us proud!* Qiu Shuzhen had no idea about any of that. She sat in the car, beaming with joy, and asked, "Teacher, how come you came by my house?" "I'm heading to the studio too. Cut through here as a shortcut and happened to run into you. Why are you so late?" "I overslept!" She scratched her head sheepishly. Her hair, which used to be thick, poofy, and messy, had now been permed smooth into a neat, well-behaved style. She grinned. "If I hadn't run into you, I was planning to take the bus." "By yourself?" "I'm already thirteen!" "Thirteen is still a child..." Chen Qi thought it over and said, "Mornings are one thing, but sometimes we film late into the night. It's not safe for you on your own. How about this: whenever there's a night shoot, you ride in my car, and I'll drop you back off." "Really?" Qiu Shuzhen was overjoyed. "Thank you, Teacher! You're so good to me." "If something happens to you, we have to pay damages!" Chen Qi was an expert at bursting bubbles. Sure enough, the little girl choked on her words, pouting and falling silent. She gazed out the window as the car passed through Hong Kong's bustling streets, various buildings gliding by. Suddenly, she spotted a restaurant. She recognized it as a spot that had been buzzing with popularity lately; their steak rice was supposed to be delicious, and it had even made the news to great fanfare. Too bad she had never eaten there. She lowered her head, then stole a glance at the man beside her. Chen Qi had his eyes closed, thinking about who-knew-what. She had never had much contact with mainlanders. She had always heard they were poor, rustic, and ferocious, but Chen Qi shattered that impression completely. He was more capable than Hong Kongers, able to bring in Americans to make a film, and he was handsome too. "Teacher, can I ask you a question?" "Shoot." "How old are you?" "None of your business! Keep your mind on acting. If you do a lousy job, I'll chew you out!" Chen Qi said without opening his eyes. *Tch!* Qiu Shuzhen made a face at him and didn't speak another word the rest of the way. ...... Ed Harris and Amy Madigan lived up to their reputation as professional actors. After arriving in Hong Kong and making a brief adjustment, they swiftly got down to business. Their attitude was great, and most importantly, they didn't cause any drama. In contrast, Chen Qi had never heard of the two child actors. According to Jessica, they were minor celebrities in the United States and highly professional. Whether they were professional or not, he hadn't seen proof yet, but they were certainly high-maintenance pains in the neck. Both children were accompanied by guardians who nitpicked every detail of their accommodations and complained endlessly about the filming conditions. Chen Qi told Tsui Hark to shoot their scenes first so they could pack up and get lost as soon as possible. In this era, the only Hollywood child star he really knew of was Drew Barrymore, but she was likely busy filming Spielberg's *E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial* right now and couldn't possibly come to Hong Kong. The dialogue for *Orphan* was primarily in English, supplemented by Chinese. The Americans naturally had no trouble, and Liu Xuehua knew English too. Qiu Shuzhen faced the greatest hurdle, but her lines could be dubbed in post-production. This scene depicted Esther being sent to an international school, where she was bullied by her classmates. A troublemaker snatched the Bible she carried everywhere and tried to rip off the ribbon around her neck—a ribbon that seemed like mere decoration, but actually concealed scars. Touching that raw nerve sent Esther into a frantic, crazed screech. Harboring a deep grudge, she would push the bully down the stairs the very next day... The bully was naturally played by Yuan Jieying. Qiu Shuzhen, meanwhile, wore a little white dress, knee socks, and leather shoes. Her smoothly brushed hair fell over her shoulders as she clutched a Bible to her chest, looking exceptionally quiet and demure. "You grab for the book, and the pages scatter across the floor. Then you go to pull off the ribbon around her neck... and you shove her hand away and scream at the top of your lungs." "Scream as hard as you can! Really put your back into it!" "Understood!" Tsui Hark gathered them around to rehearse, wanting to avoid wasting film. "OK, run through it once!" He stepped back, clearing the floor for Yuan Jieying and Qiu Shuzhen. Yuan Jieying basically played herself, aggressively snatching the book until pages went rustling across the floor. As Qiu Shuzhen dropped to her knees to gather them, Yuan Jieying sneered, "Why are you wearing a collar only dogs wear? Here, let me take it off for you!" She lunged forward. Qiu Shuzhen swatted her hands away and began to scream: "Ahhh—" "Cut!" Tsui Hark called out, "Not sharp enough, not angry enough! Again!" "Ahhh—" "Cut!" "Cut!" After several takes, Tsui Hark remained unsatisfied. Qiu Shuzhen's throat burned from screaming, and she was already coughing. Helpless, he could only say, "Take a break for now!" With that, he turned away to shoot the scenes for the two foreign children. "..." Biting her lip, Qiu Shuzhen watched from the sidelines. Annoying as the child actors' guardians were, once the kids were in front of the camera, they genuinely had talent. The two child actors might not have understood deeply, but their mimicry skills were exceptional. "OK!" "Perfect!" Tsui Hark even rolled the camera directly, thoroughly pleased with the result and giving a thumbs-up in praise. He kept rolling take after take until the guardian stepped in to object: "No! No! Your working pace is far too intense, way beyond what a child can endure! I demand an immediate break!" "..." Tsui Hark turned to look at Chen Qi. Chen Qi was helpless too. *Damn it, in America, only child stars get protected, while regular child laborers are treated worse than dogs.* They had no choice but to let them rest and go back to Qiu Shuzhen's scene. She grew visibly tense, lacking the confidence to pull it off. Seeing this, Chen Qi quietly called Yuan Jieying over. "Ah Ying, have you ever gotten into a fight?" "Every day! I'm the big boss at school—I've got tons of little lackeys!" "When we roll in a minute, grab her ribbon with one hand and snatch her hair with the other. Real pull, put some muscle into it." "Really? I can bully her?" Yuan Jieying's eyes lit up. "It's for the scene. Don't pull so hard you rip her hair out." "Don't worry, I've got plenty of experience." Bubbling with enthusiasm for this sort of thing, Yuan Jieying skipped off. Behind her, Chen Qi shook his head. *She really is a delinquent girl through and through—rebellious to the core, and bisexual to boot, into guys and girls alike.* *Wait.* He glanced over at Tsui Hark and couldn't help a chuckle: *She'd actually be right at home in one of your films!*