The other Actors in the conference room were all focused on practicing the script, but those without lines gradually noticed a slight anomaly in the room's atmosphere: everyone was focusing their attention on Hugo.It wasn't because Hugo held the right to question as the lawyer, nor because he was the lead Actor, nor because his voice was louder at that moment. Rather, during the confrontation between Hugo and Kiefer, everyone's sense of hearing and sight was being influenced by Hugo. Before anyone else could react, their energy, heartbeats, and breathing were all following the frequency and volume of Hugo's voice; this feeling of being reined in was more akin to being mesmerized.After all, the other Actors were just bystanders, much like a jury listening in on the scene, and they had been led along by Hugo without even realizing it. If even the bystanders felt this way, one could imagine that for Kiefer, who was Hugo's sparring partner, the feeling must have been quite unpleasant.Kiefer only felt that his rhythm had been completely disrupted. He didn't even realize he was losing control; he just felt like his mind was a tangled mess of yarn when reciting his lines, making it difficult to clear his thoughts. This feeling was not pleasant.Hugo was immersed in the process of studying his character. He could feel that he had grasped a small part of the character's essence, but it still required constant refinement.At that moment, Hugo experienced a special realization: in reality, when an Actor plays a role, it cannot be one hundred percent acting; there is inevitably a part that belongs to the Actor themselves. However, how to perfectly blend that personal part with the character varies from person to person.Some Actors perform as themselves, in which case the character is likely over eighty percent their own self. Some Actors perform a breakthrough role, perhaps showcasing an unknown side of their inner depths. Some Actors perform based on their own experiences and life, in which case the result depends on whether the Actor's understanding of the character is correct. Truly excellent Actors, however, consider the character's experiences and story in combination with their own, seeking a point of convergence, and then combine the two.Al had told Hugo back then, "Don't study the acting; study the character," which is exactly the point. Only by truly understanding the meaning of the character and truly treating the character as a person is it possible to bring the role to life.Although a character exists based on the film's story, even so, the character still has their own complete personality. Their growth background, psychological activities, and the causes of their personality traits do not come out of thin air. The process of shaping this character is, in fact, the process of the Actor's realization of the character.Why is it said that every role must have a part that belongs to the Actor? It is because an Actor is also an independent individual, and different Actors have different appearances, expressions, movements, backgrounds, and personalities. Simply put, if Hugo were to play Daniel, or if Tom or Brad were to play this role, the results would certainly be different. Even if the three of them performed in the exact same way, the effect seen on the big screen would still be different. Moreover, if different Actors performed in the same way, it would be like seeing countless masks, devoid of any originality.Therefore, an Actor must give the character a vivid life based on their own characteristics, while also stamping it with their own unique mark. Only then can the character become a one-of-a-kind existence, and only then is it truly their own acting.Hugo was now vaguely aware of this, but how should he go about it? Right now, Hugo was attempting to do just that. He hoped to demonstrate Daniel's personality through the way he spoke. Speaking can be divided into various aspects like pronunciation, intonation, and volume, and even the slightest difference in detail creates a different effect. Even the simplest "hello" would yield vastly different results depending on the way it was spoken.Hugo was still not proficient, but he was working hard to master it. Although it was merely the tip of the iceberg, he had touched upon the bottleneck of his first acting breakthrough. Therefore, what was presented to the other Actors was a performance that was so eye-catching and breathtaking.The script rehearsal continued. Immersed in their performance, Hugo and Kiefer didn't notice the anomaly in the conference room at all and professionally continued with the rehearsal.Hugo's hypothetical question was soon interrupted by Kevin again, and this time, the judge once again sustained Kevin's objection.This caused Hugo to pause slightly before regrouping. "Captain, was Dawson's final report given a below-average rating because you discovered he was secretly giving food to Bell?"This time, Kevin objected again, but the judge overruled it. Kiefer had to look at Hugo. "Lance Corporal Dawson was given a below-average rating because he violated military regulations.""Military regulations?" Hugo raised his voice slightly, not in a serious way, but rather with a touch of lightness, as if he were very curious about the question. "What military regulation did he violate?"However, faced with Hugo's question, Kiefer couldn't answer. Hugo didn't intend to give him more time to think and immediately continued, "Captain Kendrick, which military regulation did Dawson violate by giving food to a hungry man?" Hugo deliberately slowed his speech with this sentence, magnifying the incredulity of it all."He violated an order," Kiefer was forced to say. But immediately, Hugo picked up where he left off. "Because he acted on his own values," Hugo's speed increased, and his volume rose slightly in response, delivering his point quickly and clearly into everyone's ears. "He made a decision regarding the health of a Marine, and that conflicted with your orders, so he had to be punished. Is that it?"Hugo clearly wasn't shouting, nor was he even raising his voice, but that sense of relentless pressure made Kiefer very uncomfortable. He instead retorted loudly, "Lance Corporal Dawson violated an order!""But that wasn't a real order, was it?" Hugo remained relentless, but this time he made his tone slightly more relaxed, adding a bit of teasing and irony to contrast with the previous tension. "After all, it's peacetime; he wasn't sent to guard a hilltop or storm a beachhead. I mean, a Marine with Dawson's capabilities could surely decide for himself which orders are important and which orders might... be morally questionable?"Hugo's rhetorical question left Kiefer speechless once again. "Captain Kendrick?" But Hugo clearly wasn't prepared to let Kiefer off the hook. "Is that it? Can Dawson decide for himself which orders to obey?""No, he cannot." Kiefer was forced to give a negative answer."The incident with Curtis Bell taught him a lesson, right?" Hugo's voice was calm yet tense, and he immediately received a gritted-teeth confirmation from Kiefer. "You're sure that's the case, right?""Objection!" "Objection sustained!" Kevin and the judge interrupted Hugo's relentless pressure once again."Captain Kendrick, one last question." Hugo suddenly flashed a smile at Kiefer, a provocation so sharp that Kiefer almost cursed out loud, but Hugo quickly reined in the smile, enunciating clearly with a heavier tone, "If you ordered Dawson to carry out a Code Red on Santiago..."As expected, Kiefer couldn't help himself. He angrily interrupted Hugo's words, "I specifically ordered my men..." But Hugo remained unmoved, raising his voice to suppress Kiefer again, and finished his sentence with a tone as heavy as a thousand pounds, "Would he violate the order again?""Captain, you don't have to answer," Kevin said again.Hugo glared fiercely at Kevin. "No need to answer, I'm done asking.""Captain Kendrick, did you..." The following was a dialogue between Kevin and Kiefer, but before Kevin could finish, applause suddenly rang out in the conference room, interrupting the script rehearsal. This immediately caused everyone to show expressions of anger: this was a script rehearsal, not a Broadway stage performance, and such polite gestures as applause to interrupt the rehearsal were simply not allowed.Thus, everyone angrily looked for the culprit, but when they looked up, they found that Jack Nicholson was the one applauding. He had a faint smile on his face, not caring at all that he had interrupted the script rehearsal, and was looking at Hugo with an approving gaze. Everyone immediately backed down.Jack's gesture could not have been clearer; he was very satisfied with Hugo's performance just now, and Hugo had won Jack's respect with his outstanding performance. The other Actors in the conference room had nothing to say at this moment. Although Hugo had been late this morning, and although Hugo's fame could not compare to Tom's, Hugo had proven himself today through his diligent and serious attitude and the brilliant results of the rehearsal.It must be said that everyone looked at Hugo in a new light. This current winner of the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actor was clearly not just a handsome vase; his talent was enough to make people take notice.Jack's applause only lasted a few beats. After he finished applauding, he looked at Rob, whose eyes were also full of smiles. In fact, the reason Jack interrupted the rehearsal was because Hugo's section had ended, and he had to express his satisfaction with Hugo at the first opportunity.But when everyone quieted down and focused their attention on Hugo, Jack simply said, "Sorry for interrupting the rehearsal. Continue now." It seemed he didn't intend to put Hugo on a pedestal, but merely expressed his recognition of Hugo, nothing more.Hugo was initially a bit surprised, and joy welled up in his heart, but it was immediately extinguished by Jack. Hugo quickly smoothed out the smile that hadn't yet fully formed on his lips, then lowered his head to look back at the script. Although Jack hadn't said anything, at least Hugo knew that the direction of his efforts just now had been correct, and so Hugo had enough confidence that he could learn much more during the filming of "a few good men".
