横漂
héngpiāo · 'Hengdian drifter': an aspiring actor waiting for extra work at the film studios
Hengpiao means a 'Hengdian drifter'. Hengdian World Studios in Zhejiang is China's largest film and television base, and the word names the aspiring actors who live nearby and wait for work as extras or bit-part players. Many stay for years without a break. King of Comedy gives one of its leads this status, as a hengpiao who has not made it in five years.
Where it comes up
Neon & Nine-to-Five
King of Comedy: The Drama That Borrowed Stephen Chow's Title and Moved the Film Set to a Fishing Village
A guide to the 24-episode iQIYI comedy King of Comedy, which borrows the name of Stephen Chow's 1999 film for a new story about a Fujian fishing village, with Yang Chaoyue, Jiang Long and a troupe of sketch comedians from iQIYI's comedy contest.