Chapter 54 Halloween Ball

The wide hall was shrouded in dim golden-gray light, melodious and cheerful music floated in the hall, and the students of Moss Middle School gave full play to their imagination by dressing up in fancy clothes and exaggerated and bizarre costumes. Compared to the people around them, Lin Mingyang, dressed as a prince, looked much more "normal".

Lin Mingyang was looking around at the scene of the dance, when suddenly a guy wearing an evil ghost-shaped headgear leaped out and blocked his way: "Halloween candy!"

"Ecks!" Lin Ming Yang heard the guy's voice.

"Well?" Ecks opened his arms and proudly spun around in front of Lin Ming Yang, "My stylized costume is okay, right?"

"Very imaginative!" Lin Ming Yang nodded, "I think it's much better than your original face!"

Ecks heard the sarcasm in the other party's words, and he changed the topic with full concern, "Where's our photographer? The ball is about to start, they should be in place ahead of time."

"As a matter of fact they're already here!" Lin Ming Yang pointed to the guy dressed as Superman not far away, "Our main photographer is there, and the others, there's one hidden in the candy house over there, one hidden in the pumpkin carriage next to the dance floor, and one staying with the lighting guy who's in charge of panoramic shots."

"Is this necessary?" Ecks followed the direction of Lin Ming Yang's finger to look at them one by one, his setup was so ingenious that if he didn't look closely, it would be really hard to find out that there was actually a camera hidden in there, "Even though this is a real dance party, everyone knows that we're making a movie."

"That's why I don't want to see them letting go because of their constraints, which will affect the movie." Lin Mingyang explained.

"Respect for the truth of the process, I admit that this theory of yours is very special." Ecks hummed softly through his nostrils, "If in the future you're really prepared to be a director, but you still insist on filming in this way, then surely no one will invest in you. According to your theory, this earth would have long been destroyed hundreds of times by those imaginative directors in Hollywood."

"These are two different approaches, if the filming is a very dreamy story, such a story that everyone knows will definitely not happen in reality, then there is nothing wrong with pursuing the reality of the process. Whereas the type of movie you're talking about doesn't rule out the possibility of it happening in reality, so the truthfulness of the outcome is much more important." Lin Mingyang retorted.

"Alright, I can't beat you anyways!" Ecks "threw up his hands and surrendered", he didn't want to dwell on this issue with Lin Ming Yang, so he changed the topic, "What about our Cinderella?"

"Kate is in the back putting on her makeup!"

"Behave yourself!" Ecks patted Lin Ming Yang's shoulder, then grabbed the glass of orange juice he hadn't yet drunk from him in passing, "Aside from a little bit of whiskey missing, this ball is indeed perfect!" After saying that he walked towards a witch-costumed female teacher without looking back.

Through wireless paging, Lin Mingyang confirmed that the lights and photography were in place, then he quickly walked to the center of the dance floor. As the director of the movie, he still had a few things to arrange before the dance officially started.

The ball's lighting technician cooperated by turning off the surrounding lights, leaving only a beam of light shining squarely on Lin Ming Yang. Everyone quieted down, and all eyes gathered on Lin Ming Yang's body.

"I'm glad that everyone is able to come to this ball, of course we have a bit of a special occasion for this ball today, as you can see our photographer." Following the direction of Lin Ming Yang's finger, a light came on and the main photographer dressed up like Superman greeted everyone before the light went out.

"We are about to complete a set of important shots at this ball today, and we hope that everyone can give some small cooperation." Although he couldn't clearly see the expressions of the people on stage, Lin Ming Yang was able to feel the anticipation, "There's only one request, everyone have fun and do whatever you need to do!"

A loud cheer rang out from the stage, Lin Ming Yang smiled, "But I still have to remind everyone that besides our main cameraman, there are also three cameras at the ball site, and they are in a place where everyone can't see them and don't need everyone to see them. Of course our cameras will only record the ball site, not for those darkly lit and remotely located corners. Everyone should understand what I mean."

There was another burst of laughter from the stage, and Lin Ming Yang concluded with, "I'm sure this will be a happy and memorable night." After that he snapped his fingers and the beam of light shining on himself slowly dimmed, then the soft light made the whole hall start to brighten up and the melodious music played once again. Lin Mingyang's speech had lifted the last trace of concern in everyone's hearts, and with the attitude of "this is just a dance party", everyone quickly got into the mood.

Lin Ming Yang returned to the backstage with the main photographer Carl, dressed in a snow-white princess gown Kate Beckinsale was ready, the exquisite butterfly mask added a layer of mysterious beauty to her beautiful face.

"You look beautiful today!" When he walked into the dressing room, Lin Ming Yang praised him heartily, and then the makeup artists surrounded him and began to touch up his makeup.

"What do I need to do?" Kate Beckinsale had long been accustomed to such compliments.

"The atmosphere of the ball will help you get into the mood, and from here on out, you'll have to think of yourself exactly as Susan as you wait for your prince to appear." After Lin Ming Yang explained the plot to her, he then turned his head to Carl, the main cameraman beside him, and said, "After you go out, the camera will follow her all the way, and following the originally designed route, we'll meet up at the Halloween carriage."

"No problem!" Carl patted the camera, indicating that his side was OK.

"Shall I go out now?" Kate Beckinsale added asking.

"Provided you've memorized all the lines." Lin Mingyang let the makeup artists smear his face as he looked into the mirror and reached out to tug on his collar, "There's no teleprompter, so we're all on our own this time. Remember the most crucial lines, the rest you can play freely, just express the meaning above the script."

"You won't be late this time, right?" Kate Beckinsale kindly reminded after determining what she was going to perform.

"Looks like you're already a bit impatient!" Lin Mingyang replied half-jokingly, then the makeup artist tapped him on the shoulder and signaled for him to raise his head, so he regrettably missed the other party's angry expression.

Kate Beckinsale finally heard Lin Mingyang tilt his head and say, "Never back out of a game because you're worried about the score being behind." (1)

----

When Kate Beckinsale walked into the hall, the ball was reaching its climax, and because of the lighting, no one paid special attention to this beautiful "Cinderella". Lin Mingyang's idea was really unique, and being in a real ball scene, Kate Beckinsale easily got into her role.

Lin Ming Yang did not tell her the exact time of the meeting, so Kate Beckinsale, like the other people around her, picked up a glass of juice and slowly moved through the crowd, slowly moving towards the location where she had arranged to meet.

Because there was no continuous shooting, Lin Ming Yang in the background could only keep in touch with the photographer Carl who had been following Kate Beckinsale through a wireless headset. But when he learned that Kate Beckinsale's had gotten into character and was about to approach the appointment location, he knew that it was time for the prince to make his appearance.

Although Lin Ming Yang had been reminded of this, the effect didn't seem to be obvious, and at the agreed upon location, the prince didn't appear in front of Kate Beckinsale as expected. Karl had found a very hidden camera angle, and that real anxiety on Kate Beckinsale's face was well captured by him.

The ball had reached its climax and everyone was having such a good time that some had even forgotten that there was a crew filming this. Lonely Kate Beckinsale stood there alone, some boys had already come over and asked her to dance, the embarrassed Kate Beckinsale could only politely refuse.

"Hi, are you waiting for me?" A familiar voice popped up beside her, and Lin Ming Yang just appeared in front of Kate Beckinsale quite unexpectedly.

"Hi, hello." Because she hadn't reacted, Kate Beckinsale answered looking hesitant.

Lin Ming Yang nodded with satisfaction in his heart, because this was what he needed, the heroine's hesitant and contradictory heart was shown very realistically by Kate Beckinsale. Lin Ming Yang's scenario setting was so successful that it introduced Kate Beckinsale completely into the character's inner world.

"May I invite you to a dance?" The gentle voice was matched with that mesmerizing smile on Lin Mingyang's somewhat overly handsome face, and Kate Beckinsale found herself seeming to have truly turned into that Cinderella from the fairy tale.

Her hand was gently pulled up by Lin Ming Yang, and then she realized that she couldn't help but follow the other party's footsteps as she walked through the bustling crowd towards the dance floor. By this time, Kate Beckinsale had already immersed herself in her role, with a completely swooning little woman's expression on her face, and she had already forgotten that not too far away, Carl's camera had been faithfully recording all of this.

Not far away in the corner, Ecks, who had all of this in his eyes, gently took a sip of juice, and then smilingly said to the principal by his side, Matthew, "The show has begun."

"He's very talented." Matthew wore a bowler hat of a certain height that was exaggerated, and his bowler hat shook so much with the slightest movement of his head that it made him look unusually solid in the crowd.

"Putting aside the original preconceptions, I have to admit that he really is a genius!" Ecks looked at Lin Ming Yang and Kate Beckinsale who had already stepped onto the dance floor, "Maybe he can really become a great director."

And in the center of the dance floor, Lin Ming Yang was already dancing with Kate Beckinsale stepping to the beat of the music, the other people on the dance floor finally noticed the presence of the two of them, and then everyone unspokenly stepped back towards the two sides, leaving more space for the real protagonist of the ball, and at the same time, providing Cole with more filming angles.

When it was time to memorize the lines, Lin Mingyang's hand on Kate Beckinsale's back gently moved, and the other party finally reacted, then Lin Mingyang began to "recite" those lines that he had already memorized, and Kate Beckinsale also matched him word for word. The other party finally reacted, then Lin Mingyang began to recite those lines that he had memorized so well, Kate Beckinsale also matched him word for word, until the opposite side of the Karl put down the camera with satisfaction.

"That was a great performance you guys just put on!" Carl wiped the sweaty hands that had just overflowed from his overly nervous devotion, and excitedly shouted at the two of them.

Interrupted by him, the footsteps between Lin Ming Yang and Kate Beckinsale could no longer keep up with the beat of the music, and Lin Ming Yang could only let go of his hand full of regret, "So we don't have to do it all over again?"

"The lighting, the angle and the way you look at each other is perfect, I swear this is the most perfect set of shots I've ever gotten!" Carl obviously hadn't gotten over the excitement of what he had just seen.

"Well then, notify all units of the crew to call it a day, today's shooting ends here, and everyone can enjoy the ball next!" Lin Ming Yang loudly announced the result, and there was another round of cheers around him.

Lin Ming Yang had originally wanted to invite Kate Beckinsale to continue to the ball for a dance, because the feeling of that moment of filming had left him wanting more, and frankly that feeling had mesmerized him. However, after returning backstage and removing his makeup, he had not seen Kate Beckinsale, not realizing that the other party was intentionally trying to avoid him at this time.

After the shooting was over, Kate Beckinsale, who had returned to the backstage, realized that her face was burning hot, and the worst part was the strange feeling that once she saw Lin Ming Yang, she felt that she could no longer keep a normal heart like before. She was like a frightened white rabbit right now, so she hurriedly removed her makeup and casually put on a piece of clothing before preparing to leave.

At the door, she happened to run into Ecks, because of Lin Ming Yang's words last time, which made Ecks finally decide to talk to Kate Beckinsale, and it just so happened that at this time, the two ran into each other.

"Kate, the ball isn't over yet, are you this ready to leave?"

"I'm suddenly feeling a little uncomfortable." Kate Beckinsale made a random excuse.

"It doesn't matter, does it?" Ecks, however, tensed up, seeing as the movie was about to be finished, Kate Beckinsale couldn't afford to have anything go wrong at this point in time.

"Just a little bored, want to go out for some air!" Ecks' concern gave Kate Beckinsale a headache.

"I see!" Ecks nodded, "If you don't mind, I'll go for a walk with you, it just so happens that I have something I want to discuss with you."