Chapter 79 The Most Important Female Lead

  In the script of Zhou Xiao, one liter of tears is actually not very consistent with both versions of film and television drama he experienced. If you really want to say it, roughly the first half is similar to the TV series version, and the second half is similar to the movie version.

  In the movie version of "One Liter of Tears", it mainly describes the episode where the mother takes care of Aya. Except for these two people, all others are relatively unimportant supporting characters. In terms of story, the movie version is also very simple and can even be said to have almost no storytelling.

  In the TV drama version, whether it's Aya's family or her seniors at school, including Nishikido Ryo, and even the doctors in the hospital, everyone has their own story.

  In Zhou Xiao's view, both options are not very good. The movie version is rated relatively ordinary because it lacks storytelling, while the TV series version has a good reputation but always gives people an atmosphere that deliberately tries to make you cry.

  So in this version of the script, Zhou Xiao can be said to have absorbed the advantages of both film and television versions, removing the plot that was not very resonant with the disabled school in the later stages of the film. The spirit of self-reliance and independence despite physical disability is transformed into another small story placed on the mother's body. With the empty time, Zhou Xiao added another male role, which is similar to Nishikido Ryo, and also entered the medical university like Nishikido Ryo. It can be said that the plot of the boy entering the medical university is a hope left for the audience after the story ends.

  Finally, Zhou Xiaobian's one-liter tears turned from a single-threaded process into two intertwined threads. The mother's care for Ya was concentrated in the middle part of the movie, while the entire thread of the movie was tied together by the male lead's line, making it seem like Ya had lost his lover due to illness at the beginning. In the middle of the story, the male lead would be painfully entangled and struggling with how to treat Ya. In the end, the boy finally understood his own heart and confessed to Ya, spending their most beautiful last moments together.

  This way, the plot of the whole story becomes much more substantial. Then, in terms of Ya's character shaping, Zhou Xiao also focuses on reshaping the ordinary yet passionate side of girls. Although she asks "Why did God choose me to get sick", at the same time, she can also enjoy the warmth of the sun and appreciate the beauty under the blue sky. Every deep breath with a happy face, combined with her weak and disabled appearance, will be a tear bomb that hits the audience's heart.

  In Nagata Koto's view, Zhou Xiao's script is still quite immature in some ways, after all he's just an amateur. However, this can't conceal the spirit that he has shown in the script. A script is a picture described with words, no matter how well you write, if you can't draw out the picture, can't use the picture to express the character's emotions and state of mind, then you can only be considered a good writer at best.

  But Zhou Xiao's script doesn't have this problem at all. Scene by scene, all the plots are vividly described, making it feel like they're happening right in front of you. Even the use of camera angles and the placement of important props are clearly presented in the script. Nagata Koto thinks that this script is more like a textual representation of a sequence of shots rather than a movie script! Not to mention her, even if a cinematographer were to film it directly, the movie could be easily made because Zhou Xiao's work is too meticulous.

  This will certainly reduce the director Fang's own space for self-expression, but for Nagata Kotono, who has not directed anything independently, this is actually a good thing, as it will give her a strong backbone. Even if she doesn't know how to shoot, using Zhou Xiao's script directly would be a good choice.

  As for the story, Zhou Xiao's setting also made him bright-eyed. This movie seems to be a romantic process between a boy and a girl after the girl got a terminal illness, but in Nagata Koto's view, if this movie is shot, the so-called male protagonist is actually just an existence of soy sauce. The first part of the film describes the loss of love and health for girls, the middle part tells about the strong courage of mothers and girls, and the girl's attachment to the world, while in the end, although the girl has a fatal ending, the boy completes her incomplete life with a romantic wish, which makes up for the deficiency of life to a large extent. This romance will make the girl's departure even more heart-wrenching, as for the boy's choice of medical school at the end, it is equivalent to leaving hope for everyone. Such a movie has a reasonable pace and complete plot, with a tear-jerking point every few minutes, enough to make men and women who enter the cinema cry from the beginning to the end of the film!

  "This..." When Nagata Koto finished reading the last word of the script, she lifted her head with a complex expression and spoke out one word.

  "This is indeed what I wrote." Zhou Xiao smiled and said, in the past month or so, he had seen too many expressions like the woman's in front of him. Is this song yours? Did you write it? Did you shoot this ad? Before seeing the results, almost everyone wouldn't believe what he could achieve, only when they saw that Zhou Xiao really produced something in a short time that they might not be able to do in their lifetime, would shock, admiration and incredulity climb onto their faces, making them still dare not believe and ask such questions.

  Nagata Koto patted his own head: "Sorry about that, it's an honor to be able to film this movie, let's talk about the contract next."

  Her meaning is very simple, I promised to shoot this movie!

  Zhou Xiaochang let out a sigh of relief, the most important member of the crew had finally been confirmed.

  After roughly confirming the contract with Uncle Inoue, Eita Kotani, who was still enthusiastic, brought up the most important issue next to Zhou Xiao, that is, who would be more suitable for playing the heroine Aya.

  Zhou Xiao's first thought was Ogura Yuko, but Ogura Yuko was also the first person he denied. This girl is a bit silly and stupid, hiding behind the scenes during commercial shoots and frequently causing trouble. Putting her in front of the camera would be even more so, otherwise, why did she almost never have any outstanding film and television works in her past life?

  "This girl can't be too old, at most no more than 22 years old, because the story describes for most of the time is about Ya's high school days." said Zhou Xiaodao.

  "Not to mention that there are some requirements for her acting skills, which actually ruled out the vast majority of idol-type actors, but now it seems that those who are popular don't seem quite suitable either..." said Nagata Kotaro.

  "There is actually someone who is most suitable... a child star debut, the age is just right, very beautiful, and the acting skills are sufficient..." said Zhou Xiaodao.

  "Are you saying...?" As soon as Zhou Xiao's adjectives came out, Nagata Koto guessed who he was referring to: "Anda Yūji?"

  "That's right..." Zhou Xiao nodded in agreement, but didn't seem to care much about this woman named Ando Yui. In fact, it wasn't that he didn't care, it was just... with his and Nagata Kojiro's qualifications, they couldn't possibly invite Ando Yui.

  Who is Arimura Kasumi? She appeared in a TV drama called "Homeless Child" at the age of 12, and the final episode's rating reached 37.2%, which was Japan's most sensational work at that time.

  After 2010, Zhou Xiao has rarely played the leading role in TV dramas. At that time, most people who had just come into contact with the Japanese entertainment circle knew her from her ex-husband, Iketada Jun, who often served as MC on Weekly AKB.

  Generally, children who debuted as child stars will reappear as ordinary actresses after a period of time after graduating from their child star identity, but Ando Natsumi did not. Starting from the age of 12, she had one or two works every year and never left the sight of Japanese audiences, but this also made her worth and recognition extremely high, making it impossible for Zhou Xiao to invite her.

  Zhou Xiao was worried, most of the Japanese actresses he knew were only eleven or twelve years old, and many hadn't even turned ten yet. These little girls obviously couldn't play the role of Aya from high school to twenty-five years old.