17 unremarkable acting students from the Central Academy of Drama who later all became big stars

In the early autumn of 1980, a group of energetic young people, with a touch of joy and excitement, walked through the gates of the Central Academy of Drama. They were: Jiang Wen, Cong Shan, Lü Liping, Yue Hong, Liu Xiaoning, Liu Bin, Jiang Cheng, Cao Li, Gao Qian, Wang Xiaoyan, Qiu Xiaoguang, Xue Shan, Hao Guang, Jia Yulan, Yu Junwu, Yang Lishan, and Li Yizhe, the 17 students of the Central Academy of Drama acting class.

As everyone can see from the photo above, at that time they were all still very young. Cong Shan and Jiang Wen had just graduated from high school and were not yet 18. Moreover, in the eyes of outsiders, Cong Shan was just a scrawny little girl who had not yet blossomed, looking like a middle school student. Jiang Wen was thin, and not only was he unremarkable in appearance, he also looked like a "little old man." Liu Xiaoning had single eyelids and small eyes, not at all like the "thick eyebrows and big eyes" actors people were used to seeing. And Yue Hong and Lü Liping were also quite ordinary in looks, not nearly as beautiful as the legendary peerless beauties.

Yes, for a long time, in people's minds, casting an actor required a good figure and high attractiveness. Many people even mistakenly thought, what's so hard about acting? As long as you look good, that's enough. So nowadays, a bunch of incredibly popular young idols and young beauties end up with nothing left but "looking good."

So when these 17 students first enrolled, they immediately drew a lot of criticism. Everyone discussed it: "Just these few odd-looking ones, they can still be actors?" "We spent so much time and traveled to so many places across the country, and this is all we brought back, these few unremarkable-looking fellows?"

Everyone, look at how Jiang Wen looked when he first enrolled. How did he look like an 18-year-old young man? He completely looked like an uncle!

But it was precisely these 17 students, who were not favored at the time, who went on to produce several Best Actors and Best Actresses, and some students, such as Jiang Wen, even brought their own films to the international stage.

The first in this class to stand out and become known to everyone was Cong Shan, the timid and very shy girl when she enrolled. This was first thanks to the courage of the teacher who recruited her into the Central Academy of Drama, and second thanks to the discerning eye of the great director Xie Jin. It was the Central Academy of Drama teacher who discovered her acting potential from the unremarkable Cong Shan, and it was Director Xie Jin who, out of thousands of people, spotted at a glance the unique quality in Cong Shan, which allowed Cong Shan, who had never acted before, to play the role of the female lead Xiuzhi in the film "The Herdsman."

After "The Herdsman" was released, it immediately caused a strong response and became one of the films that won the most awards that year. Cong Shan, because of her role as Xiuzhi in it, leapt to become a star who attracted everyone's attention. But in fact, at that time Cong Shan was still just a sophomore studying at the Central Academy of Drama.

Cong Shan had a kind of plain and unadorned quality, and it was precisely this quality that many actors did not possess. So she could play the role of Xiuzhi well and achieve success.

Soon after, Yue Hong, the girl described as "careless and rough," also appeared on a film and television gala with the skit "The Girl Selling Peanuts," and attracted widespread attention. In 1985, she also won the Best Actress Award at the 6th China Golden Rooster Awards for starring in the film "In the Wild Mountains." She became famous overnight.

Then there was Liu Xiaoning, this rough man with "single eyelids, small eyes, and who could not smile," who also became famous for starring in the film "The Price of Frenzy," becoming the "tough guy heartthrob" of the time.

There was also the equally ordinary-looking Lü Liping. In 1986, for co-starring with Zhang Yimou in the film "Old Well," she won the Best Supporting Actress Award at the Popular Film Hundred Flowers Awards and the China Golden Rooster Awards. By 1990, because she played Ge Ling in the TV series "Stories from the Editorial Board," she became one of the audience's favorite actors at the time, and with this role she won the Best Actress Award at the China Feitian TV Awards.

Of course, there was also Jiang Wen, who was thought of at the time as a "little old man." In fact, when Jiang Wen co-starred with Liu Xiaoqing in "Hibiscus Town," he was only 24 years old, yet he had to play a middle-aged man in the film. At the time, Director Xie Jin was not very confident about whether such a young Jiang Wen could handle the role of Qin Shutian, and only after seeing Jiang Wen's costume test photos did he confirm it. And the young Jiang Wen portrayed very successfully the image of an intellectual who, in a special era, was treated unfairly yet still remained optimistic.

Afterward, Jiang Wen met Zhang Yimou and joined the crew of "Red Sorghum." During this filming of "Red Sorghum," Jiang Wen and first-time director Zhang Yimou argued constantly over the performances, and in the end they argued out an internationally acclaimed classic.

Cong Shan, Yue Hong, Liu Xiaoning, Lü Liping, Jiang Wen... none of them were very good-looking actors, but after 4 years of professional training, they used their own thinking and superb acting skills to create one vividly distinctive character after another, and not merely to let the audience admire their "looks."

So there is a saying: a good actor does not rely on their face. I think this is exactly the kind of actor it refers to.

And now, although they have also grown old, they still maintain a lasting artistic charm. Because they do not rely on "faces," they are not afraid of the years. In today's world where "vases" dominate, we truly look forward to seeing more and more actors like this!

It is said that Jiang Wen's next directed film after "Let the Bullets Fly," "Hidden Man," is about to be released. This film, bringing together famous actors such as Jiang Wen, Eddie Peng, Liao Fan, Zhou Yun, and Xu Qing, is said to make this summer restless. I wonder if everyone is looking forward to it as much as I am?

Dear everyone, in your eyes, what kind of actor can be called a good actor? Hurry to the comment section and tell us!