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Parkour, the globally popular Extreme sport, uses everyday environments as its playground, relying on one's physical abilities to navigate known and unknown surroundings quickly, effectively, and reliably.
Parkour originated in France and entered China around the year 2000. After more than a decade of development, it has become one of the most popular sports among young people in the country, with national parkour competitions offering substantial prizes.
As a rising fashion sports brand, Senqi targets young people who enjoy sports. Therefore, parkour elements were incorporated into this advertisement to resonate with the target audience.
Silver Horse Advertising invited Lu Chen to endorse Senqi, and the use of a professional stunt double for the parkour shots was a well-thought-out decision. No one expected that problems would arise on the first day of shooting.
In fact, injuries are commonplace in parkour, especially when proper protective gear is lacking. Even Coach Wang, a professional, could not avoid accidents.
However, for the director, this was a disaster.
The advertisement needed to be completed quickly, as there were contractual agreements between Silver Horse and Senqi.
If it did not air within the stipulated time, the company's reputation and interests would suffer greatly.
Otherwise, they wouldn't have rushed to start shooting on the second day of the National Day holiday.
Coach Wang's injury complicated the subsequent shooting work. Although it was not difficult to find professional parkour athletes in Jinling or the surrounding areas, finding someone with a similar height and build to Lu Chen was not easy.
Parkour is more suited for individuals with smaller frames and agile movements.
Lu Chen was over 180 cm tall!
Wang Hai struggled to stand up, his head hanging low, his face filled with shame:
"Director, I'm really sorry."
He was a professional, but this mistake was quite low-level and purely due to carelessness.
This was not Wang Hai's first time working as a stunt double, but it was the first time he had encountered a problem right at the start of shooting.
It was one thing to injure himself, but it was another to delay someone else's shooting work.
The director smiled wryly: "Forget it, this isn't your fault. Who can guarantee that nothing will go wrong?"
"I'll have my assistant take you to the hospital. It's best to get an X-ray to check for any bone injuries. We'll cover the medical expenses."
In this industry, reputation is crucial. Unless one is a big-name star, being harsh and ungrateful won't get you far, especially for stunt actors, who earn their living through hard work. If an injury occurs, they must take responsibility.
The director of the advertisement surnamed Zhong, had been in the show business community for many years and understood how to handle things well.
Wang Hai quickly waved his hand: "There's no need to go through all that trouble. I just strained a muscle; a bit of ointment and a couple of days of rest will be enough. No need to waste money at the hospital."
His personality was quite straightforward.
An assistant brought over some ointment for him to apply.
Director Zhong sighed helplessly and asked, "Do you know anyone who can come help?"
"Director..." Before Wang Hai could answer, Lu Chen spoke up: "Nevertheless, let me give it a try!"
Director Zhong was at a loss for words: "Mr. Lu Chen, if you get injured, that would be even more troublesome!"
If the stunt double has a problem, they can always find another one, but if the male protagonist has an issue, can they just replace him? That would be ridiculous!
He felt an inexplicable irritation rising within him and didn't want to explain further to Lu Chen.
Lu Chen smiled lightly: "Director Zhong, I exercise regularly. I think I can handle simple parkour. Let's shoot the first jump over the box. If there are no problems, we can shoot the second one. How does that sound?"
He emphasized, "It's better than just waiting around!"
This statement struck a chord with the director. The scenes in the film city were not free to use; if they couldn't finish shooting today, they would have to continue tomorrow. Not to mention the time and energy spent, the rental fees would still need to be paid.
So they might as well give it a try!
Director Zhong gritted his teeth and said, "Alright, but you must pay attention to safety and not push yourself too hard!"
The first shot involved jumping over a box filled with flowers, and the danger level was quite low.
Lu Chen smiled: "I know."
Having made the decision, Director Zhong no longer hesitated and immediately instructed his crew to start preparing.
"Camera ready, get the equipment in position!"
"You guys, don't just stand around watching; keep the tourists away from here!"
"Makeup artist, touch up Lu Chen's makeup."
Ten minutes later, Lu Chen, fully equipped in Senqi sportswear, Senqi running shoes, and carrying a Senqi sports bag, stood on the sidewalk and did a few warm-up exercises.
In front of him, about ten meters away, at the entrance of a flower shop, three large corrugated cardboard boxes were stacked, filled with vibrant roses still glistening with morning dew.
To Lu Chen's left, the photographer was controlling a high-definition digital camera, aiming it at him.
The photography assistant was ready to push the track at any moment.
"Attention, everyone!"
"Street chase, first scene, first shooting."
"Action!"
With the director's command, Lu Chen immediately took off running.
Since experiencing that peculiar and lengthy dream, he had been exercising every morning, running and practicing martial arts, rain or shine, without fail.
As a result, running had become one of Lu Chen's ingrained daily habits. When he took off, his movements were very smooth and fluid, showing no signs of stiffness or discomfort, and he quickly reached the boxes.
In the next moment, Lu Chen's left foot landed heavily on the ground, and the highly elastic sole of his shoes responded with a powerful push. His right leg simultaneously lifted and extended forward, propelling him into the air as he jumped over the flower box, which was over a meter high.
Then he landed steadily!
To ensure Lu Chen's safety, the director had specifically lowered the height of the boxes.
In reality, this was clearly unnecessary; Lu Chen's jumping ability was outstanding, even surpassing Wang Hai's!
"Good!" Director Zhong couldn't help but shout, pleasantly surprised.
Jumping over the boxes on the ground was something many people could accomplish, even easily.
However, Lu Chen's entire sequence— from the start, running, boosting, jumping, to landing— was executed seamlessly, flowing like water, creating a visually pleasing effect that was quite extraordinary.
As Lu Chen had mentioned, he exercised regularly; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to jump so beautifully!
At this moment, Director Zhong's worries dissipated significantly.
Applause erupted from the surroundings, and the shooting team members cheered for Lu Chen's performance.
It was rare for a star to possess such excellent athletic ability.
Although it was just a simple run and jump, it showcased his personal athletic qualities and capabilities.
However, things were not that simple. When Director Zhong reviewed the footage from the shoot, he couldn't help but smile wryly.
He realized he had made a significant oversight.
The original plan was for the stunt double to jump, so the camera had been positioned to capture the side view. Now that Lu Chen was performing the jump himself, the side shot was meaningless and even flawed.
Additionally, Lu Chen's speed was a bit too fast, and the camera couldn't keep up well, resulting in footage that was out of focus.
Director Zhong had no choice but to call Lu Chen over, explain the situation, and ask him to reshoot.
Lu Chen nodded, indicating no problem.
His cooperative attitude left a good impression on Director Zhong. There were not many artists who respected directors and took their work seriously like Lu Chen; many young newcomers in the industry were often impatient and self-important.
Directors like Zhong, who shot advertisements, frequently faced difficulties with stars who liked to act high and mighty.
During the second take, Director Zhong arranged for both frontal and side camera angles and increased the number of crew members to enhance the speed of the shoot.
This time, the shooting went smoothly, and Lu Chen's performance remained impeccable!
However, the next action posed a challenge.
Lu Chen needed to sprint quickly along the sidewalk, jump onto a step, then use his hands to push off a railing, leveraging his strength to vault over a flower bed that was nearly two meters wide, finally landing on the grass.
The difficulty of this move was not something an ordinary person could accomplish.
Wang Hai had twisted his ankle while attempting this very move!
Director Zhong was worried about a repeat of the tragedy; after all, Lu Chen was not a professional parkour athlete, nor even an enthusiast, so asking him to perform this move was undoubtedly a significant challenge.
He thought for a moment and said to Lu Chen, "How about we use post-production compositing for this move?"
Post-production compositing involves using green screen technology and wires, allowing for the completion of any high-difficulty, risky actions.
It would certainly be a hassle, and the effect would not be as good as a live shoot, but it was better than risking Lu Chen's safety.
There were dedicated green screen studios in the film city.
Lu Chen understood what post-production compositing meant and couldn't help but laugh: "That sounds too complicated. Director Zhong, let me try it first. If I can do it, we can shoot it directly; if not, we can think of another way."
Director Zhong considered it and ultimately agreed.
Mainly because Lu Chen's previous performance had given him a lot of confidence; otherwise, he would have definitely refused.
Even though it was practice, Director Zhong still arranged for all the shooting personnel to be ready for the live shoot.
Facing the approaching camera, Lu Chen felt no nervousness at all. He continued running along the sidewalk, and in the blink of an eye, he reached the steps leading to a small square, suddenly exerting himself to jump high!
At that moment, everyone's hearts raced!
They watched as Lu Chen soared through the air, his right hand firmly pressing against the top of the railing post. Using the strength of his arm, he effortlessly flew over the two-meter-wide flower bed, gliding through the air like an eagle before landing on the grass.
In the next moment, Lu Chen's body bent down to absorb the impact, using his left hand to stabilize himself on the ground.
Then, like a spring filled with energy, he leaped back up gracefully into the square.
Everyone was left speechless!
Wang Hai stood up in disbelief, completely ignoring the pain in his ankle.
The series of movements Lu Chen had just completed was something not even professional parkour athletes could surpass!
Had he really never practiced parkour before?
Wang Hai couldn't believe it!
(End of this chapter)