The two of them became familiar with each other and exchanged short phone numbers. It happened to be 1:30. The registration window opened, and since all they needed to do was fill in some information and get a contact slip, the process was very quick. In no time, Charles Young and Henry Clark received their contact slips. The manager in charge, Manager Wood, instructed, “Go to the police station to get a temporary residence permit, then come back.”

The police station was a little over a kilometer from the new union. Most of the group walked there together, chatting and laughing along the way. When they arrived, the officer asked for the landlord’s information but didn’t check anything in detail. He just told them to stand still; there was a camera at the window specifically for registration, and the photo was taken in a second. After that, they were given a temporary residence slip, stamped, and the officer said it was done.

The whole process took less than two minutes, and there was no charge.

After getting the temporary residence permit, Henry Clark and Charles Young chatted as they walked back to the new union. Then they made a copy of the permit, got a blank sheet of paper, filled in their personal information, phone number, bank card number, submitted a 2-inch red-background photo, and paid a ten-yuan actor certificate fee.

Manager Wood collected the forms and photos and said, “Wait outside for a bit, certificates will be issued at 2:30.”

Before the certificates were handed out, Manager Stone came out and gathered all the extras together to say a few words: “Once you get your certificate, you’re officially actors. But since you don’t have any acting experience yet, you might be at a loss and make mistakes. Let me give you some advice now.”

“When you’re filming, you need to report for roles first. There are a lot of crews here in Hengdian, and everyone has a chance to act, so don’t worry. If you perform well, you’ll stand out. When filming, the most important thing is to remember that every crew has its own rules. Only by following the rules can the crew get the job done. Don’t be late, don’t leave early, and obey the crew’s arrangements.”

“Also, you need to keep honing your acting skills. Don’t let the opportunity slip by when it comes to you, and then say you can’t act well, right? In general, being an actor has its tough times and its not-so-tough times. How you handle it is up to you.”

“……” Manager Stone briefly talked about things to pay attention to when filming and what extras should do in general, then finished the pre-certificate talk.

At exactly 2:30, the window opened and certificates were handed out one by one. When your name was called, you went up to get your certificate.

Henry Clark noticed that quite a few people had come in from outside at this time.

A tall, handsome guy named Frank Lewis had just received his actor certificate. One of the newcomers walked over to him: “Frank Lewis, right? I’m William Scott. Give me your number, I’ll write it down and call you if there’s a role.”

Frank Lewis immediately gave his number with a big smile.

Standing next to Henry Clark, Charles Young whispered, “Is that a group leader over there?”

“Probably a small team leader. The main group leader wouldn’t come to recruit people in person.”

“True, but that guy’s really lucky—just got his certificate and someone’s already asking for his number. Being tall and handsome really makes a difference.” Charles Young, a little over 1.7 meters tall, was half a head shorter than Henry Clark, and had plenty of reason to be envious.

Soon, Charles Young also got his actor certificate. It had a yellow background, simply listing name, ID number, height, gender, and ID card number, stamped with a red seal and wrapped in a plastic card holder.

Very ordinary, nothing special.

Charles Young fiddled with his actor certificate, but his eyes were on those who looked like small team leaders. Unfortunately, no one came up to him—maybe because he had too many pimples or wasn’t tall enough. Charles Young couldn’t bring himself to go ask the team leaders for their numbers.

This made Henry Clark reflect on what James Mason had said earlier: in Hengdian, looks are everything. It seemed to be true. If you’re good-looking or handsome, the team leaders come to you; if you’re short or average, they barely pay attention.

There were even two extras under 1.6 meters tall who went to ask the team leaders for their numbers and got rejected.

“Will anyone come ask for my number, or should I go ask the team leaders for theirs?”

Henry Clark felt a bit nervous, but mostly excited. He was pretty confident in his looks.

Before long, Manager Wood called out Henry Clark’s name and handed him an actor certificate. As soon as Henry Clark turned around with his certificate, he saw two small team leaders walking toward him.

Chapter 006: The First Casting Call

“Henry Clark, I’m David Bolton, the one in charge of reporting roles for extras. What’s your number? I’ll let you know if there’s a role for you.” The first team leader to approach patted Henry Clark on the shoulder as he spoke.

“Mine is 934628. Brother Bolton, what’s your number? I’ll call you.” Henry Clark happily took out his phone. Looks like he’s in the good-looking group who can get by on their appearance.

“Mine is XXXXXX.”

“Okay, I’ve called you.” Once David Bolton’s phone rang, Henry Clark hung up and said with a smile, “I’ll be following you from now on, Brother Bolton.”

“No problem, no problem. If there’s a role that suits you, I’ll definitely let you know.” David Bolton nodded.

At this moment, another team leader came over: “David Bolton, is your boss Big Boss Stone short on people?”