Chapter 355 The Price of the Seventeenth Floor (10,000-word update!)
Xu Bin, his face turning ashen with rage, stormed into the station director's office.
"Director, there are so many rumors circulating that our station is going to hand over the production of 'Friends' to Jiang Lan. What's going on? There's so much noise going around, it's like I'm the one who did something bad to Lu Yanhe. But as you know, this has nothing to do with me. It was Old Li who arranged for it."
Shen Tailin was not at all surprised that Xu Bin would rush in to find him.
He smiled and said, "Take your time and sit down."
Xu Bin: "How can I sit here?! Director, you can't really make me take the blame, can you?"
Shen Tailin shook his head and said, "We all know what happened. Who would make you take the blame? We're just keeping our own business to ourselves. We can't let outsiders laugh at us."
Xu Bin was furious. "But now everyone outside is laughing at me. They don't know the truth and think I'm doing something bad for Lu Yanhe."
“When you were in charge of the Friends project, the people under you deliberately used some tricks to disgust Lu Yanhe. Didn’t you realize that someone was behind it? Isn’t that also partly due to your oversight?” Shen Tailin said. “Now that Lu Yanhe is finally willing to repair relations with Beijing and Taiwan, let the outsiders say what they want. They won’t really cut a piece of your flesh.”
These words made Xu Bin even angrier.
—You don't feel the pain unless it's your own flesh being cut off, right?
He really wanted to ask that question. Of course, he held back.
Shim Tae-im said, "Of course, you'll still be in charge of the second season of Friends. But I don't need to say more about your attitude towards Lu Yanhe later, do I?"
Xu Bin said, "The Friends project was originally something we created, but now it's like we can't do it without him."
Shen Tailin: "You should wait until the second season airs before saying that. If the second season can still achieve the same results as the first season even without Lu Yanhe, then we can say that. You were the one who gave up the first season, while Lu Yanhe was the one who did the massive publicity. Why do you think Lu Yanhe has such a status in 'Friends'? Half of it is because you gave it up yourself."
Shen Tailin's words made Xu Bin feel like he had been fed a mouthful of shit.
Damn, what a statement!
Xu Bin thought to himself, wasn't it the decision made by everyone in the station to give up on this show?
But Shen Tailin is the station director, so what could Xu Bin say?
Speechless.
"Did you arrange for Chen Ziliang to be in the second season?" Shen Tailin suddenly asked.
Xu Bin nodded, "His boss and agent invited me to dinner several times, and they were very proactive in wanting Chen Ziliang to appear in the second season. I was also looking for actors, and I had been looking for a long time. Although Chen Ziliang has received some negative reviews recently, he is still a big star with a lot of buzz and popularity. His willingness to act in this kind of ensemble drama will also help the second season."
Shen Tailin glanced at him and said, "It's fine since I used it."
Xu Bin was taken aback.
After he came out of Shen Tailin's office, he pondered for a long time what it meant to "use it and then use it".
It sounds like Shen Tailin isn't very satisfied with Chen Ziliang.
But generally speaking, why would the director of a TV station have an opinion on the selection of the lead actors for a drama series, even a very popular one?
The whole thing struck Xu Bin as odd.
After all, Beijing and Taiwan are different from video platforms.
The CEO of a video platform can chat and laugh with a popular star like Lu Yanhe, but the director of a traditional TV station might not feel the same way.
As a result, Shen Tailin's attitude towards Lu Yanhe has clearly changed, and Xu Bin even thinks he's paying too much attention to him.
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The easing of relations between Lu Yanhe and Beijing and Taiwan has brought joy to some and displeasure to others.
For example, Chen Ziliang was genuinely unhappy and even very worried.
He was worried that if Lu Yanhe was willing to return for the second season of Friends, then he would have no chance with the project.
After worrying about this for half a day, his agent Yan Wei said that Lu Yanhe was very clear that he would not return. This relieved Chen Ziliang, but also made him feel a little upset.
Even a project like the second season of "Friends" could be abandoned without a second thought from Lu Yanhe. This kind of boldness and confidence, regardless of whether it's arrogant or not, ultimately means that Chen Ziliang doesn't have that kind of confidence.
It's obvious to everyone that one is on an upward trajectory, while the other is on a downward trajectory.
Chen Ziliang has been being harassed and scolded by Ma Zhiyuan's fans these past few days, who blame him for dragging Ma Zhiyuan down, making him so angry that he can't sleep at night.
With an endorsement deal nearing its end and no indication that the company intends to renew it, Yan Wei is making a concerted effort to maintain public relations and keep the endorsement. Otherwise, if the endorsement falls through, his declining commercial value will once again be exposed to the public.
For the general public, whether an artist is popular or not depends to some extent on whether they have works airing, whether they frequently trend on social media, and whether people are discussing them.
For those in the industry, the considerations are even more complex. Many people focus more on trends – whether the trend is upward or downward. If it's upward, it's an investment opportunity; if it's downward, it's time to cut losses.
This is why Yan Wei insisted on including Chen Ziliang in a project like the second season of "Friends".
He's willing to take a pay cut, write the OST for "Friends" for free, and even agreed to film other dramas and record some programs for Beijing TV.
The packaged cooperation framework was one that Chen Ziliang had never signed with any other place before.
It's obvious that the second season of "Friends" will be a hit. With Chan Chi-leung joining, it will once again receive tremendous attention.
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Of course, none of this has anything to do with Lu Yanhe.
What really concerns him is that summer vacation has arrived again.
The summer special edition of "Jump Up" is here.
The new drama directed by Chen Lingling, which started filming in August, has finally been named.
The Silent River.
Lu Yanhe and Zeng Qiao received a message from Chen Lingling and went to her studio together to read the revised script.
Chen Lingling, dressed in pajamas and with her hair all messy, opened the door for them, startling both Lu Yanhe and Zeng Qiao.
Although Chen Lingling has always been a rather unconventional person, unlike the typical accomplished director who maintains an air of nonchalance, her appearance in such a casual manner still surprised Lu Yanhe.
"Come in," Chen Lingling waved for them to enter. Slipping on her clattering plastic slippers, she pointed to two thick scripts on a table and said, "These are the scripts for the first five episodes. I've made some changes. You can read them first."
After saying that, Chen Lingling went to another room by herself.
Lu Yanhe and Zeng Qiao looked at each other in bewilderment.
Zeng Qiao smiled, revealing a helpless smile, "Then let's read the script."
Lu Yanhe sat down with Zeng Qiao.
About ten minutes later, Huang Cheng arrived.
"Brother Huang."
"You've already arrived." Huang Cheng was somewhat surprised to see them. "I thought you'd be a little longer."
Lu Yanhe said, "Director Chen sent the message to us at eight o'clock in the morning."
Huang Cheng: "It seems she didn't sleep at all last night. She was still sending me messages at four in the morning. She's going to the film set again this afternoon."
Chen Lingling is currently directing another film.
She, who is usually low-output, has become unusually prolific this year, filming two dramas back-to-back.
Huang Cheng said, "Fortunately, 'The Silent River' has money. Foreign streaming media are really generous when it comes to making movies. We don't have to be too careful about budgeting. We can use the best people in every department."
That's true.
Chen Ziyan once said that Lu Yanhe's per-episode salary for the drama "The Silent River" was the highest he had ever received for a role.
Money makes things easier. This is true. If everyone in every department is a top performer, the director will have to spend far less effort.
Lu Yanhe asked, "If 'The Silent River' is released on overseas streaming platforms, which domestic platform will broadcast it?"
"It's not even settled yet. The biggest companies are all vying for it." Huang Cheng smiled. "Let's talk about it later. There's no rush. It's not up to us to decide. The whole series belongs to Maxine. They decide who they work with. We're only responsible for producing this series."
Lu Yanhe nodded.
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"The Silent River" is a suspenseful crime drama.
There was a previous version of the script, and director Chen Lingling wanted to change it to an ancient setting, but after some hesitation, she gave up on it.
However, to avoid some sensitive issues, the drama is set in a fictional Southeast Asian country with a predominantly Chinese population.
Moreover, it seems that some of the outdoor scenes will be filmed in Southeast Asia.
In this story, Lu Yanhe plays the suspect and Zeng Qiao plays the police officer. The two were classmates at the same school, and the murder case is related to the school they attended.
The character played by Lu Yanhe, in particular, had a very difficult life, especially the reason he committed murder, which made Lu Yanhe feel heartbroken when he read the script.
It's a great story.
He sighed frequently while reading the script, and he himself felt heartbroken many times.
Being born as a human being is as difficult as being an ant.
How can we fight against this turbulent fate?
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Chen Lingling's version of the script is even more emotionally intense...
The police officer played by Zeng Qiao and the suspect played by Lu Yanhe have more confrontations and conflicts.
Previously, although Lu Yanhe and Zeng Qiao were the two male leads, they were basically on two separate storylines and didn't have many scenes together. This version of the script has been changed, and the two clash in almost every episode.
It's been revised very well.
Chen Lingling seemed to have gone to catch up on an hour and a half of sleep. When she reappeared, her eyes were still drowsy, as if she had just woken up.
But her thinking was very clear.
Without asking Zeng Qiao and Lu Yanhe for their opinions, she said directly, "I've increased the clashes between the two of you. The previous script was too focused on inner monologues, which required a lot from the later editing. It's easy to make it dull and unwatchable. I still hope this drama is more entertaining and doesn't present the audience with too high a viewing threshold."
Lu Yanhe nodded.
Zeng Qiao said, "After reading the script, I also felt that this version of the script was better. It was one thing after another, and there was basically no time to relax."
Chen Lingling: "Because there are very few episodes, it's very difficult to tell the whole story and establish several characters in such a short time. Unlike when we filmed before, we had plenty of footage and could handle some things in post-production. This time, we had to figure out what we were going to film and what effect we wanted to achieve in each scene before filming. Unfortunately, I don't have enough energy right now; I'm also filming another drama. You two are both very mature actors and understand acting. You have to figure it out yourselves. In the past, when actors didn't understand acting, I could tell them how to act correctly. You two don't need me to do that, right? And, to be honest, I don't have that much energy to help you figure out every scene."
Lu Yanhe didn't expect Chen Lingling to say that.
"Director, we will prepare well, don't worry," Zeng Qiao said.
Chen Lingling yawned.
"I'm so tired, I'm going to take a nap. You can take the script with you. I'll revise the last three episodes and then let you see them."
After saying that, Chen Lingling got up and left.
Huang Cheng said to them, "Let's go, I'll see you off."
Huang Cheng saw them out.
He said, "She's been under a lot of pressure lately, filming the scenes she's currently working on while also preparing for the scenes to come. She invited you all here today mainly to see how you're doing. She didn't say anything, so she's probably satisfied with how you're doing."
Lu Yanhe and Zeng Qiao exchanged a smile.
This wasn't their first time working with Chen Lingling, and they knew that this director had her own methodology for guiding actors.
Lu Yanhe is the type of person who fully trusts a director once he chooses one, while Zeng Qiao has honed his acting skills steadily and solidly, possessing a confidence that he can handle any production team or director.
Some actors might feel uncomfortable with Chen Lingling's probing attitude—because they feel like they're being manipulated—but neither of them seemed to mind.
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Finally, the show is about to begin.
In July, the summer heat intensifies.
While preparing for "The Silent River," Lu Yanhe was also helping Jia Long prepare for the film "Lost in Thailand." Although he was said to be helping him with preparations, Lu Yanhe was actually only responsible for providing his suggestions and ideas. The real driving force behind the project was Jia Long and the director he found, Jiang Lu, a newcomer director who had never independently directed a film before.
Lu Yanhe recalls that although "Lost in Thailand" was a classic, it was actually a poorly made film with a visibly low budget.
In fact, in many people's minds, comedy films have almost become synonymous with "winning big with small investments".
However, given that Jia Long is the lead actor, this film obviously cannot follow the path of "high returns with low budgets," as his salary alone determines that the film's cost cannot be "small."
Lu Yanhe simply shared his own style regarding the film with them.
When it came time to finalize the casting, a public audition was held to find the role of Niu Geng.
Wang Dashan also participated. There were other well-known actors as well, but after the auditions, Wang Dashan was indeed the most suitable.
Even Jia Long himself said, "It's rare to see such stubbornness and honesty in a young actor."
Wang Dashan acts without any inhibitions, which is what Jia Long values most.
Actors graduating from academies are increasingly burdened by their image. They liberate their true nature, but to a large extent, they also lose the sense of boundaries that ordinary people have, replacing the restraint that is the norm in reality with theatrical exaggeration.
Wang Dashan auditioned for the scene where he is looking for a seat on a train and discovers that his seat bumps into Li Chenggong.
When he was acting in this scene, it wasn't Jia Long acting alongside him personally, but rather a staff member who was reading the script aloud to him.
Despite this, Wang Dashan was perfectly fine, and his demeanor was exactly the same as when he spoke normally.
This is the most difficult part: to portray a character who is rarely seen in everyday life, and to make him appear relaxed and natural in a scene with intense and concentrated jokes.
When Lu Yanhe saw this part, he thought to himself, regardless of whether Jia Long and the others were satisfied or not, he himself was satisfied.
Of course, the results also proved that everyone has their own judgment and can see the quality of a good performance.
Jia Long and Jiang Lu both thought it was good.
And so, Wang Dashan made the decision.
With Wang Dashan already cast, the other roles don't have much screen time and won't have a significant impact on the film. They can either find actors for cameo roles or let the actors choose themselves. Lu Yanhe didn't have many ideas.
The movie "Lost in Thailand" takes place during the Spring Festival travel rush.
Jia Long wanted to simply postpone filming the movie until the end of the year.
Lu Yanhe had no objections. He wasn't starring in the film, nor did he need to coordinate his schedule. There was only one thing: Jia Long still wanted him to make a cameo appearance as the handsome college student, but Lu Yanhe preferred to find someone else for the role. He figured that since he was already the screenwriter, his fans would support him if they wanted to. Finding another actor for a cameo might be more effective.
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If "Lost in Thailand" was driven by Jia Long, then "My Own Swordsman" was entirely Lu Yanhe's own project.
Compared to the issue of actors, Lu Yanhe was more concerned about which director could take charge of the project.
Before directing "My Own Swordsman," the original director, Shang Jing, had already produced sitcoms such as "Story of the Cooking Squad."
In the current entertainment industry, the only director Lu Yanhe has ever worked with on a sitcom is Bai Jingnian, the director of "Friends".
Unfortunately, Bai Jingnian is a director at Beijing-Taiwan Film and Television, and his personnel file is with Beijing-Taiwan Film and Television. He basically doesn't take on projects outside of Beijing-Taiwan Film and Television. If you want to hire him, you need to get permission from Beijing-Taiwan Film and Television.
Jingtai now definitely wants Bai Jingnian to focus entirely on making the second season of "Friends" a success, and there's no need for them to even try negotiating.
After learning that Lu Yanhe was worried about this matter, Chen Ziyan rolled her eyes at him and said, "Why are you worrying so much? Since this project is a collaboration with Aurora Video, just hand it over to them and let them worry about it. They are such a big platform, surely they can assemble a good team for you?"
Lu Yanhe: "I... I seem to have subconsciously considered this project as my own."
“Then you’d better change your mind sooner rather than later. To be honest, I think you’re being too optimistic about the casting of the main actors for ‘My Own Swordsman’ right now. They’re not working with you because they don’t intend to give you all that power,” Chen Ziyan said. “It’s one thing if you have one or two choices, but you’re acting like you’re the producer of ‘My Own Swordsman’ right now, or you’re just doing this with the money they’re paying you.”
Lu Yanhe was hit hard by Chen Ziyan's words.
Actually, Chen Ziyan had mentioned this to him before, but she hadn't said it so directly at the time.
Lu Yanhe fell silent.
Lu Yanhe knew Chen Ziyan was right. Regarding the "My Own Swordsman" project, probably because he had been working on it alone so far, and it hadn't even entered the formal preparation stage, unlike "Lost in Thailand," where there was a real Jia Long there to remind him that he couldn't make the decisions himself.
“If you have your eye on a few actors and have ideas about the casting, you can communicate with Aurora Video as early as possible, but don’t make the decisions on your own. If conflicts arise later when the project is officially launched, even if you have the intention to make the project better, it will make them unhappy. After all, they are the ones who are paying for it,” Chen Ziyan said. “The one who pays is the boss. It may be a rough saying, but it’s true.”
Lu Yanhe said, "Sister Ziyan, what do you suggest I do?"
“First, make a list of your target actors. Second, go to a meeting with Aurora Video and ask for people, especially a project manager, someone who can represent Aurora Video to advance the project and act as a mouthpiece between you and Aurora Video,” Chen Ziyan said. “Then, once you have such a person, you can openly hand over the list and tell them that these are the actors you initially think are suitable, and ask them to give it serious consideration. Give them face; given their current sincerity towards you, they will definitely give your opinion serious consideration.”
Lu Yanhe asked, "What if my opinion clashes with theirs?"
"If there's a conflict, we'll resolve it. It's perfectly normal for both sides to disagree when pushing forward a project," Chen Ziyan said. "If it really comes to a point where it can't be resolved, then we'll talk about it. Actually, no matter what, Yan He, the most crucial thing for you in this matter is your attitude. Don't give them the impression that you're domineering or dictatorial in this project. If you show them respect in many situations, they will reciprocate. After all, you already have a significant advantage. No matter what they say, this project was started because of you, and they paid a lot of money to hire you. If they don't care about your opinions, it's like they're wasting their money. This is the biggest endorsement that President Lin has given you."
Lu Yanhe had a sudden realization.
Okay, Sister Ziyan is still Sister Ziyan after all.
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So, Lu Yanhe met with Zheng Huai-ren, the executive in charge of content production at Northern Lights Video.
This time, Chen Ziyan was not present.
Lu Yanhe said, "President Zheng, I have been seriously considering the things we talked about a long time ago. The reason I asked you to meet with me this time is to discuss the TV series 'My Own Swordsman'. We will be choosing a production company soon, and before that, I would like to discuss some other things with you and reach a consensus."
Zheng Huai-ren nodded and said, "No problem, please go ahead."
“I still have to say, I’m only twenty years old. In many ways, I’m a complete novice with no experience. If you feel there’s anything I haven’t considered enough, feel free to tell me.” Lu Yanhe emphasized this first before continuing, “I hope that Aurora Video can arrange a producer or executive producer to work with me on the ‘My Own Swordsman’ project. I have many ideas about this project, such as the casting, the shooting style, and the script content. These ideas may not be fully developed; they are my first reactions based on the content itself. Therefore, I need someone to liaise with the various departments to help me bring these ideas to fruition, or to directly prove that they cannot be implemented.”
Zheng Huai-ren was taken aback.
He was surprised.
He hadn't expected that Lu Yanhe would take the initiative to suggest that Northern Lights arrange a producer for the project.
The position of producer, to put it bluntly, is actually about supervision, or rather, oversight. It's about being the person who "supervises" the production process.
Lu Yanhe and Chen Ziyan took the initiative to say they wanted to find a professional production company to produce the show, no problem, that's definitely a matter of specialization.
But Zheng Huai-ren didn't expect them to take the initiative to find someone to be the producer, which was tantamount to installing a surveillance camera next to them.
Lu Yanhe said, "You gave the 'My Own Swordsman' project a budget of 200 million yuan right away. Not to mention that we plan to do it in seasons, even if we don't do it in seasons, this budget is far higher than our expectations. There may be some differences in understanding between us regarding the 'My Own Swordsman' project. Personally, I have no intention of making an all-star cast for the main characters of this show."
Zheng Huai-ren frowned in confusion: "Why not?"
“Because it’s not suitable.” Lu Yanhe said bluntly, “Of course, the actors’ salaries will definitely be high, because I hope to invite celebrities to make cameo appearances in each unit. The salaries for these cameos are not low either, but I don’t know how to do the accounting, so you need to arrange someone to do it.”
Zheng Huai-ren: "Let's put aside cameo appearances for now. Why is it unsuitable? To be honest, we're aiming to create an S+ level drama with an all-star cast. If your script isn't S+ level, it's a huge waste."
“President Zheng, whether the production cost is S+ is not the key to whether a drama can achieve S+ effect,” Lu Yanhe said. “Wulin Gaiden is a drama about the common people. If you bring in a large group of well-known stars as the main characters, the threshold for the audience to enter this world will become higher. For example, for the role of Bai Zhantang, Sister Ziyan kept persuading me, saying that Huang Kairen was very suitable. Huang Kairen also took the initiative to tell me that he was willing to play the role because he had worked with me before. But I still have some resistance. Why? Because he is too well-known. Everyone knows him, and his star aura is very dazzling. I think it will affect the quality of this drama. It is not a drama that is meant to be high-class. It is about the far reaches of the martial arts world.”
Zheng Huai-ren took a deep breath. "Yan He, we have already announced to the public that 'My Own Swordsman' is an S+ level drama series."
Lu Yanhe looked puzzled.
“If we told everyone at this point that the production cost of ‘My Own Swordsman’ would be reduced, especially since the cast wouldn’t include actors of Huang Kairen’s caliber, there would be a lot of skepticism in the market. For example, people would question whether our platform had internally evaluated the show and no longer had faith in it, or whether the script was too bad to attract good actors,” Zheng Huai-ren said. “You’re saying that the production cost doesn’t determine the final broadcast effect of a show, and that’s certainly true. However, if a show is viewed favorably from the production stage, it will absolutely not be a low-budget production. Just like your script, we can’t spend tens of millions to buy your script and then only spend a few million to hire a group of unknown actors to star in it. We are a listed company. If we do this to a project, no one will be optimistic about it—even the stock price of ‘My Own Swordsman’ was affected, given that it was already highly anticipated.”
Lu Yanhe was dumbfounded.
He didn't expect that he wouldn't have to spend so much money on the "My Own Swordsman" project, and Zheng Huai-ren was still unhappy about it.
Lu Yanhe hadn't expected that the production cost of "My Own Swordsman" alone would affect the stock price of Aurora Video. He found it exaggerated and unbelievable, but after Zheng Huai Ren's explanation, it seemed to make some sense.
Zheng Huai-ren said, "The main cast doesn't have to be an all-star lineup, but it definitely can't be a cast without any stars. Yan He, I must ask you to change your mindset. Without actors who are rated as S+ level in the market, our drama and many of our future plans will be affected."
Lu Yanhe gasped.
What?!
Despite the conflicts over production costs and casting, Zheng Huai-ren still arranged for a producer to oversee "My Own Swordsman" as soon as possible.
Jiang Zixin, an experienced woman, is thirty-six years old.
Zheng Huai-ren then made several more phone calls to Lu Yan-he.
“Yan He, we are determined to produce this show to the highest standards. You don’t need to have any concerns,” he said. “I don’t know if you’ve heard any rumors that our production of this show is affecting many other projects, but that has nothing to do with you. ‘My Own Swordsman’ is a show that we all have high hopes for. We don’t want to fail to achieve our desired results in the end just to save a little money.”
Lu Yanhe was both amused and exasperated.
Zheng Huai-ren also misunderstood.
Lu Yanhe was at a loss for words.
Many projects can't get funding, but his projects don't want that much money. People throw a whole bunch of money at him and say, "You have to spend it!"
The most expensive part of "My Own Swordsman" right now is its scriptwriting fee, which is 500,000 yuan per episode. According to the initial plan, if the first season is to have twelve or sixteen episodes, then its scriptwriting fee would be 6 to 8 million yuan.
In addition, he also received a share of the profits from the show, although this was not included in the production costs.
Lu Yanhe decided to stop thinking about the production costs; there was no need for him to worry about them anymore.
The key is to make this show well; leave the accounting to Jiang Zixin and the others.
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Lu Yanhe argued with Chen Ziyan, Jiang Zixin, and Zheng Huai Ren many times, and had a serious talk with Huang Kairen. Finally, he compromised and let Huang Kairen play Bai Zhantang.
Zheng Huai-ren insisted that the drama must have two S+ level actors, and after searching around, they could only use Huang Kai-ren.
Besides Huang Kairen, Aurora Video also hopes that Tong Zhanggui can find a top-tier actress.
To Lu Yanhe's surprise, the Northern Lights recommended an acquaintance of his.
Zhen Hongyu.
When Lu Yanhe was filming "Phoenix Terrace", Zhen Hongyu was originally cast as his love interest, but later, because of something that happened to her, Xiao Yun was replaced.
Is Zhen Hongyu playing Tong Zhanggui?
Lu Yanhe's face twisted instantly.
The main reason is that Yan Ni's image is so deeply ingrained in people's minds that Lu Yanhe simply cannot imagine himself as a young girl in her early twenties.
Lu Yanhe asked very seriously, "Tong Zhanggui is a widowed woman. Although she is not old, she is definitely not in her early twenties. Do you think it would be suitable to cast Zhen Hongyu as the actress?"
This choice left Lu Yanhe speechless and incredulous.
Lu Yanhe's reaction was more intense than Aurora Borealis had anticipated. Considering Lu Yanhe's attitude, everyone temporarily put the role aside.
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As the TV series "My Own Swordsman" progresses, many of the things Chen Ziyan said to Lu Yanhe back then are being fulfilled one by one.
Lu Yanhe also realized that if he really made a foolish decision to select all the actors by himself, the conflict between him and Aurora Video would only escalate further.
There's a lot to discuss.
Lu Yanhe understood even more why Chen Ziyan had asked Aurora to arrange a producer first.
No matter what the situation, having someone like this mediates can prevent many conflicts from erupting directly on the surface.
At this time, the trailer for "The Seventeenth Floor" was released.
Unlike "Friends," "The Seventeenth Floor" received maximum support from all departments in Beijing and Taiwan, with various trending topics being bought at an alarming rate and connections being made with various media channels.
The level of popularity is encouraging.
Lu Yanhe's character in the drama is a genius with a bit of a cowlick, and his screen time in the trailer is second only to Chen Bige, making him the undisputed male lead.
Chen Ziyan has already arranged various press releases to be launched in conjunction with the drama's promotion.
This is Lu Yanhe's third drama to air this year, following "Friends" and "Three Mountains".
This is also Lu Yanhe's second leading role in a drama series.
Of course it's very important.
Of course, at this point, some people refused to stop.
For example, Li Yuefeng.
He didn't intend to harm Lu Yanhe; he just wanted to gain more exposure for himself. However, his methods were the same as before, and his intentions were written all over his face.
For example, some press releases have appeared online claiming that the drama has one female lead and two male leads, and that Li Yuefeng's role is similar to Lu Yanhe's, with no distinction between male lead and male supporting role.
For example, there are rumors that the Beijing TV station highly praises Li Yuefeng's performance and has decided to submit him for the Best Actor category in this year's major awards.
Wait a minute, it's obvious who did this and what their purpose was.
To put it bluntly, he actually wanted to turn himself, a supporting male character who was the third lead, into a leading male character who was equal to Lu Yanhe.
Chen Ziyan said, "This is Li Yuefeng's usual practice, but this time he didn't dare to make it too obvious."
The main reason is that Lu Yanhe's momentum in the past six months has been so strong that almost no one can compare with him.
No matter how arrogant Li Yuefeng was, he could never believe that he could now be on par with Lu Yanhe.
There was a difference when she starred in this drama, let alone now.
Actors compete openly and covertly for fame, regardless of gender.
Lu Yanhe had dealt with Li Yuefeng and was somewhat familiar with him, knowing his personality.
Unlike Huang Kairen and Zeng Qiao, Li Yuefeng is someone who openly displays his snobbishness.
But he's not really a bad person, unlike the villains in some stories who use despicable means to harm others for their own benefit.
At most, he just likes to freeload.
"Moreover, because we refused to sign a cooperation agreement with Beijing TV before, a lot of Beijing TV's own promotional resources were given to other people," Chen Ziyan said. "This is out in the open. It was made very clear before that Shen Yue and Yan Zhimeng have both signed cooperation agreements. They have already recorded two programs on Beijing TV this month. I saw some of your fans asking on the official Weibo why you, as the lead actor, rarely appear on Beijing TV programs to promote this drama. I will spread the word that you are preparing for director Chen Lingling's new drama. Don't let it slip yourself."
"Okay, sure." Lu Yanhe nodded.
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What kind of viewership ratings "The Seventeenth Floor" will achieve is a question that the industry is very concerned about.
Just like Friends, The Seventeen Floors is a rare "battle royale" theme in domestic film and television dramas.
How many viewers will actually buy into it is an unknown.
However, with top actress Chen Bige leading the cast and Lu Yanhe playing the male lead, the drama faces both an uncertain future and widespread optimism.
"The Seventeen Floors" has only twelve episodes, each lasting one hour.
When scheduling the broadcast, Beijing TV struggled for a long time with whether to broadcast it weekly or daily.
Friends maintained its popularity for two whole months by airing weekly, maximizing its economic benefits.
Ultimately, Beijing and Taiwan decided to broadcast the show weekly.
However, because the investment in "The Seventeenth Floor" was so large, they didn't dare to gamble everything on their own. They sold the online broadcast to Aurora Video, and the video platform would be available 24 hours after the TV premiere, giving the TV station a 24-hour window.
This drama also sold for a high price.
Aurora Video acquired the exclusive online broadcasting rights for this series for two years at a price of 10.5 million per episode.
The head of the Northern Lights Video acquisition department said in an interview: "Such a price is not expensive for a drama with only twelve episodes. Although the average price per episode is higher than other dramas, when packaged together, it is very cost-effective for a project with such a cast."
Even before its official broadcast, there were already as many as eight pre-roll ads online.
This demonstrates the market's optimism towards the drama.
(End of this chapter)
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