9 It was like He was There in Person

 

After walking to the apartment building, Han Fei knocked on the door lightly. Soon a crew member came to meet him. “Director Jiang Yi told me to come for casting, but I’ve run into some troubles lately, I might not be able to…”

But before Han Fei could finish, he was dragged into the apartment building by the member. “You’re finally here. You have no idea the trouble you’ve caused. Director Jiang was breathing down everyone’s neck. He scolded all the new actors, berating them for their inability to act out the emotions that he wants. He has turned away so many people already.” 

“But I’ve no experience in this genre and I have more important things to do later tonight…”

“Director Jiang! The new actor is here!” The crew member shoved the script directly into Han Fei’s hands. “Normally, there will be a special room for casting, but we’re running on budget here so don’t mind it that much. Hurry on over, Director Jiang has been waiting for you for a long time already.” Holding the script copy, Han Fei was manhandled into a room. Six actors about his age stood by the wall. None of them dared to utter even a word. 

“Do you call this acting? Do any of you have actual respect for this profession? Such ridiculousness!” In the middle of the room, a middle-aged man pointed vexedly at the few actors. His tone was severe and loud. One of the younger female actors was almost in tears. 

“Do you think tears will help your acting? Why is the fake blood only on your clothes? What about your face and hands? Do you think the murderer will take your beauty shot into consideration when he’s coming after you? Let me tell you now, if you’re afraid of dirtiness and tiredness, don’t be an actor! I don’t care if you’re here because of the sponsors, if you’re on my set, then you’ll have to follow my standards.” Director Jiang was famed for his temper. He was once a lecturer at Xin Lu Movie and TV Acting Academy, Han Fei finished a course under him before. After a long lecture, Director Jiang finally turned to Han Fei, “I’ve heard about what happened to you. I have a character that you can read for.” 

Studying the room, Han Fei knew it was unwise to say no directly but instead he uttered respectfully, “But Director Jiang, I have not acted in the horror genre before.”

“It’s the audience’s power to pigeonhole an actor but it’s the professional actor’s job to break out from those preset molds. Get it? So, are you a professional actor or not?” Director Jiang walked towards Han Fei with the script. “Our script is based on a real case that happened several years ago, the human jigsaw case. Until now, the murderer is still on the loose. To help get into character, I’d advise all of you to read up on the news articles at the time, to get to know the characterizations better.” 

“Erm, Director Jiang, who will I be playing?”

“Officially, the police have revealed 7 victims to the public but in reality, there are 8 victims because the murderer used parts from his previous 7 victims to piece out an eighth body. You will be playing his second victim, Wei Youfu.” Director Jiang spoke quickly as he flipped through the script. “I’ll give you a brief summary of your part. Wei Youfu is your typical white collar worker. He reached home late one night after a long OT session. He came home to find his wife missing. He sent a few messages to his wife and the latter replied saying that she had gone temporarily back to her mother’s place. The man who was tired did not think much of it and entered the bedroom. Here’s the kicker. The wife did not return to her maiden home because she was already dead. The murderer was hiding inside the bathroom, cutting through her body. The message was sent to Wei Youfu by the murderer.” 

“Director Jiang, what kind of personality did Wei Youfu have?”

“Don’t interrupt me. The hardest thing about your role comes at the latter part. As Wei Youfu drifted off to sleep, he heard the bathroom door open. His wife’s head was placed by someone at the door. His fear was instantly ignited and horror swallowed him! The murderer walked out from the bathroom and made him the second prey of the night.” Director Jiang circled some of the few acting points on the script. “The government will never allow us to shoot a gory scene like dismemberment so you will have to use your expression to have the audience feel that intense sense of fear. You have to draw into your own primal fear to evoke the same sensation in the audience! Can you do that?”

“I’ll try my best even though I’ve not attempted this genre before.” Han Fei’s dream was to be a comedy actor, he had no idea how he’d end up reading for a horror movie role. 

“Okay! We’ll go right to the set to have you feel everything out.” Director Jiang waved to summon the few cameramen up to the second floor. “We initially wanted to use the original crime scene as the set for authenticity but we failed to contact the original house owner so we settled on this place.” Heavy blinds were set up in the set. With the lack of light, the set looked quite the part. 

“Alright, everyone, it’s time to get into place! Get moving! Since the main antagonist is absent, floor manager, you put on the mask and take his role as the murderer working inside the bathroom for now. Remember to calculate your timing pushing out the human head. Then you’re to jump out from inside the bathroom.” Five minutes later, everyone was set and the room quieted down. 

With Director Jiang’s guidance, Han Fei slowly got into character. Lying inside the dim bedroom, his body was gradually swallowed up by darkness. Han Fei closed his eyes. He did not really need to act for the horrendous memory from last night was still fresh in his mind… the spine-chilling cold and unshakeable despair. 

Creak… A soft gasp whispered inside the quiet room. Han Fei opened his eyes blurrily. His eyes darted about before landing on the bathroom door. His wandering pupils eventually focused on the door handle. It was like he had rehearsed this scene many times. Before Han Fei fully awakened, the bathroom door handle started to move on its own. Perhaps it was the light distortion but the camera captured the bathroom door opening a small gap. 

The darkness behind the small gap appeared to hide a world of the dead. 

When the five fingers reached out from the gap, the terror in Han Fei’s memory was invoked! His pupils narrowed and his heart pulsed. He felt a chill caress his face. His blood surged through his body and his adrenaline level shot through the roof. Han Fei’s face paled and his body kicked into self-defensive mechanism. His psychological terror triggered a biological reaction. The wife’s head rolled out from the small gap. The familiar face careened down the bedroom floor. She appeared to be smiling but the smile was chilling, like she was asking when he was coming to join her. 

The suppressed dread within Han Fei sparked off when the bathroom door was shoved open and the bloody knife entered his sight! The murderer was coming after him!

The familiar darkness carried with it the familiar dread. The despair from his previous failed escape froze him into place! 

The image of the pale human face hidden under the bedside lamp overlapped with the real-life murderer. For a split second, Han Fei could not tell what was real and what was fake. The actual death threat from the system turned his face into a mask of fear!

Words could not describe the expression in Han Fei’s eyes. Even the floor manager who played the murderer had to stop himself and turn around to look behind in alarm. 

“Cut!” Director Jiang who held the script rushed over. He roared angrily at the floor manager, “Why did you turn around? You’re the murderer! Why did you stop to look behind you?” 

“I’m sorry, Brother Jiang.” The floor manager removed the mask and his face was covered in cold sweat. “When I saw the expression Han Fei’s face earlier, I really thought there was something behind me so my head instinctually turned around.” 

“You are supposed to be a fucking murderer, how can you be so easily scared? You’ve wasted such a good shot!” Director Jiang then ran back into the bedroom and personally helped Han Fei up from the bed. “Han Fei, your acting has improved tremendously! You are born to be a horror genre actor! This talent of yours should not be wasted!” 

“Is my acting really that good?” Now that Han Fei had calmed down, his expression returned to normal.

“Yes! It was as if you were there in person, and experienced what Wei Youfu did yourself!”