Chapter 141
The Peach Blossom crew is too small to accommodate these screenwriters.
The script selected by Ling Sui is called "Peach Blossoms", and the signed screenwriter often appears at the end of ancient costume dramas.
Based on Ling Suisui’s judgment of the screenwriter’s style...this should not have been written by her, she’s just putting her name on it.
This kind of thing is not new in the domestic entertainment industry. Sometimes the fruits of labor of young screenwriters are snatched away, and sometimes it is out of helplessness. If the name of a well-known screenwriter is not used, the film and television company will not even look at it.
After all, many companies prefer IP adaptations over original scripts. Well-known IPs have both a fan base and have been tested by the market, making them a safe bet for film and television capital.
The story of "Peach Blossom" is very simple, and the historical background and related settings are a mixture of multiple eras.
The hero, Zhou Cishuo, his father is Prince Cheng. Although he is not a prince, the dynasty favors royal family members, and he was given the title of a prince when he was ten years old.
The heroine Xu Fangfei, her ancestor followed Emperor Taizu to build the country, and was hailed as "the first meritorious minister of the founding of the country", a top noble in the court.
These two are both the late-born son and daughter of their parents. They are loved by their elders and do not affect the interests of their older brothers and sisters. Therefore, they are spoiled and lawless. They are two famous devils in the capital.
When they were about to discuss marriage, their families found out that it was all over, as there was no family of equal status willing to marry.
So the two families discussed, why not bring them together and solve two problems at once?
Both families felt that this arrangement was good. Their family backgrounds and reputations were similar, so it was not necessary for either of them to look down on the other.
However, the male and female protagonists were very unhappy when they learned about this.
Zhou Cishuo likes gentle and virtuous women, and Xu Fangfei yearns for a handsome and considerate husband. Who wants to be with another well-known playboy?
But marriage is a major matter that can only be decided by parents, so this pair of happy enemies got married and began their chaotic married life.
The person in charge of the planet thinks that the main character’s character as a fool is not a good setting, but Ling Suisui thinks that this is actually the highlight.
She said: "Prince Cheng has six sons, five married daughters, and a group of grandchildren. The whole palace is full of fighting."
"In other dramas, the protagonists of the family fights always try their best to win by scheming step by step, but Peach Blossom Blazing is very special. The two protagonists are not very smart, and the main character just passes by the whole world of family fights."
While others are plotting for power and profit, these two idiots are only concerned about what to eat for lunch today, what to eat for dinner, and what to eat tomorrow.
They love gossip, but their ability to eat gossip is limited, so they always eat rotten or expired gossip; if someone wants to set a trap to harm them, the two idiots will not play by the rules, and in the end the harmer will suffer the consequences, achieving a comedic effect.
"The growth line is also very interesting." Ling Suisui couldn't help laughing when he said it himself, "This is the first time I've seen the male and female protagonists' progress being achieved through bragging to each other."
Zhou Cishuo boasted that if he could take part in the imperial examination, he would definitely be the top scorer; Xu Fangfei was very disdainful, saying that she was also a business genius and making tens of millions of taels of silver would be no problem.
They both laughed at the other for daydreaming, then got drunk and signed a document, saying that if one of them achieved it, the other would obey him/her for the rest of his/her life. When the two men sobered up, they were completely dumbfounded.
Ling Suisui found this scene very funny just by imagining it. After listening to her description, Li Mingxu also developed a strong interest in "Peach Blossom" and took the script outline from her hand to read it.
"I think it's possible," Li Mingxu said. "It's easy to act... well, I mean, it's easy for the audience to empathize with this character."
For Li Mingxu, Zhou Cishuo was too easy.
This kind of character has no substance, and his emotions are all written on his face. Is there anything simpler than this?
Ling Suisui also felt that he was quite suitable. He had to pretend when playing Li Bufan, but he should be able to act naturally when playing Zhou Cishuo.
Li Mingxu is still a nobody and has some naive and beautiful fantasies about the entertainment industry. Many people like to use the word "smart" to describe actresses. In fact, male actors also have this period, but it is mostly very short.
It is so easy for traffic stars to get promoted, but once they become arrogant, their temperament becomes greasy and their agility is gone forever.
So...while Li Mingxu hasn't been affected by the bad practices in the circle yet, it would be a good idea to shoot a costume drama as a souvenir.
The two leading actors unanimously chose "Peach Blossom", and after discussing it with Xingxing and Aoqi, they quickly agreed.
This is a self-produced drama produced by Aoqi. The platform positioned it as Ling Sui bringing in newcomers, so the rating was only A+.
Although the budget is not large, the production cost of the traditional Chinese puppet show is not expensive. Moreover, Ling Suisui got a discount as agreed before, and Li Mingxu is their own artist, and both of them have low pay. With this calculation, the crew still has ample funds for costumes, props, and venues.
It is March now, and the initial shooting time of "Peach Blossom" is July. This kind of ancient idol drama is usually filmed in Hengdian, and the costume design is all outsourced. The director and the filming team have fixed company partners, so preparations are quick.
As for supporting actors, they are even easier to find. Aoqi has a lot of show people who are in urgent need of jobs. A casting director can receive greetings from dozens of agents within half an hour by posting a circle of friends recruiting actors.
Actors are not only the stars who are often counted. At the bottom of the industry pyramid, waiting for opportunities is the norm for most people.
The only thing that requires attention is the script.
The script for Taohua has been written for thirty episodes, and the remaining six episodes have also been detailed. Ling Suisui didn’t know who the actual writer of “Peach Blossoms” was, or which people were involved, but she had a feeling that there would be some arguments in this regard after the project was launched.
Sure enough, her bad premonition came true.
A+ is indeed not a big production, but with short dramas constantly invading the market and fewer and fewer long dramas being able to be produced, "Peach Blossom Burning" has also become a hot commodity. Many people want to buy shares in Ling Suisui and are willing to heat up her "cold stove" that has not yet heated up.
First, there was a dispute over the copyright of "Peach Blossom", and then several screenwriters said they wanted to join the Peach Blossom Group, and they are currently fighting fiercely...
Qi Xiaoqing was very confused: "The producer is Planet Pictures, and Planet is also owned by Aoqi Holdings. Aren't they the same company? What is there to argue about?"
“It’s different.”
Ling Suisui briefly introduced to her the high-level factions behind the different screenwriters, who really wanted the project to be good, and who actually had selfish motives because they wanted to promote another actor, and that Li Mingxu was not the only Prince Aoqi, and so on.
The water behind this is so deep that Qi Xiaoqing was stunned.
Wow, it turns out that the so-called "high-end business wars only use the simplest methods" is just a joke, and workplace intrigue is real!
Ling Sui doesn't care about the internal fighting in Aoqi, she just wants to protect Taohua's script.
In mid-March, she and Li Mingxu attended their first script discussion meeting. Originally, there was no plan to allow actors to attend this meeting. It was only after Ling Suisui strongly requested that Xingxing agreed to let them attend.
Ling Suisui was extremely glad that she made the trip - if she hadn't been there in person, she wouldn't have known what strange ideas these screenwriters could come up with, taking the already complete "Peach Blossom" in an uncontrollable direction.
Screenwriter A: "The current content is too trivial and not meaningful enough. I think we can introduce a conspiracy line. For example, the hero is actually the son of the emperor and Bai Yueguang. Bai Yueguang left the palace after she became pregnant and was taken in by Prince Cheng. She then gave birth to the hero. After the hero learned the truth, he participated in the fight for the throne..."
Screenwriter B: "The current plot is not gripping enough, and it should be more exciting. You can set up a scenario where the hero has a goddess that he has been obsessed with and only wants to marry her, but his family disagrees, so he has to settle for the second best and marry the heroine. Later, the heroine finds out about this and wants to divorce the hero, but the already moved hero regrets it..."
Screenwriter C: "I think we can put more effort into light comedy. Comedy is an art of satirizing reality. We can use a few real-life examples to make the audience feel the positive guidance of the show in terms of values..."
Ling Sui was so tired of listening to it that she could see that screenwriter A was good at making the male lead happy, screenwriter B was good at torturing the female lead, and screenwriter C was only interested in winning awards. It was a pity that "Peach Blossom Burning" was just an A+ ancient drama, but it had to worship so many idols.
Just imagine if the three screenwriters above were each responsible for a certain part and their ideas were all realized in the play, what kind of garbage would be produced.
Ling Suisui responded one by one: "Let's not talk about whether sweet love and political conspiracy can coexist. What you said is not political conspiracy at all, it is pure melodrama, which is completely incompatible with the story style of Peach Blossom Burning."
"The same is true for chasing wives to a crematorium. The audience of Peach Blossom all wants to see young couples having a 1v1 love affair. What's the point of inserting a third person? If you change the target audience from those who like pure love to those who like physical and mental abuse, you might as well start a new script."
"And the art of comedy..."
Ling Sui-sui asked screenwriter C: "What do you think of the filming of Freedom House?"
The Freedom House series is the most successful, critically acclaimed sitcom in recent years. Not only does it have high ratings on various platforms, it has also won mainstream awards. In addition, the lead actor Ling Suisui was sitting opposite him, so of course screenwriter C gave a good answer.
Ling Suisui: "Let me share with you the secret of the success of Freedom House. This is what Director Yin Mingcheng told me -"
"That is, don't think about educating the audience through comedy. People have learned enough in class and work. This little bit is not enough."
Everyone smiled awkwardly but politely, and after Ling Suisui's persistent argument, these screenwriters finally gave up the idea of making "Peach Blossom" a big success.
After all, the investment promotion for this A+ ancient costume drama was entirely carried out by Ling Suisui. She may not have such a big say in the S+ big project, but in the Peach Blossom crew, her words still carry a lot of weight.
In early April, when Ling Sui was still working on the script of "Peach Blossom" and her team was selecting her next project, she suddenly received a notice from Aoqi.
The platform asked the leading actors of the game crew to make time the day after tomorrow to prepare for a live broadcast to promote the drama.
Ling Sui is confused. Isn’t the game scheduled to be broadcast in mid-May? All publicity and marketing arrangements of the crew, including when the leading actors should set aside time to promote the series, are planned around this time.
But Ai Tianming told her: "Aoqi is too unkind. The drama that was originally scheduled to take over cannot be broadcast due to technical reasons, so the game that has been online will be moved up for broadcast!"
This news was so sudden that Ling Sui looked at the calendar.
There are only three days left for the promotion of "The Game is Online".
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