Chapter 561 Reinvigorating the Spirit
After spending almost the entire morning discussing the issues, it was nearly noon when both sides finally clarified some of the previously disputed points and reached a solution.
Throughout the entire process, Lu Yanhe and Chen Ziyan were present, as was Hong Qi, so that any problems could be addressed directly on-site and a consensus could be reached.
Once the contract expires, Lu Yanhe's agency contract with Xingyu will automatically terminate.
Chen Ziyan had lunch with someone at work.
Lu Yanhe decided not to go with her. He didn't have time in the afternoon and planned to visit Chen Siqi at the "Jump Up" company in Lingyang District.
He waited for Zou Dong to drive over at the company's garden café. He used to frequent this place, but hadn't been there for a while; the baristas had all changed, and he didn't recognize any of them.
The company has rules: no matter which celebrity comes over, you can't take photos, approach them, or ask for autographs or photos. Although some people still take photos secretly, at least openly no one dares to violate this rule. Violation results in penalties ranging from a deduction of bonuses to immediate dismissal for serious consequences.
So Lu Yanhe was quite comfortable drinking coffee in the small garden, and picked up a magazine they provided to look through, which included Huang Kairen's latest interview.
Lu Yanhe saw Huang Kairen mention his feelings about filming "My Own Swordsman" in an interview.
"This role is outside my comfort zone. I didn't need to prepare as much for this role as the Twelfth Master in 'Rouge' because it has a style similar to 'My Own Swordsman'. I had to amplify the parts of myself that are similar to this style and hide the parts that are not suitable for this style. So it took a lot of effort."
Huang Kairen mentioned: "Before filming almost every scene, we had to rehearse two or three times. Although it may seem like a lighthearted sitcom, if you think about the lines and the tone and rhythm of each actor's speech, you will find that each of us designed a special speaking style for this show and this character, which is different from our usual speaking rhythm. This really tests our skills - there was even a time when I was so unconfident that I needed to hire a performance coach to come with the crew to help me with my lines."
Lu Yanhe was deeply moved after reading Huang Kairen's interview.
When he used to write scripts like "My Own Swordsman," he was always worried that if the script was too stylized and a different group of actors were cast, the effect would not be as good as the original.
In reality, as long as you work with good actors, actors with vision, even if you change the cast, they will still live up to the role. Good plays always create a filter for the audience, making them feel that changing the actors would just not have the same feel. In fact, the actors themselves know that no role is indispensable to them.
All classics considered irreplaceable are simply those that have reached an unsurpassable pinnacle within their respective scope—forming a classic memory.
But if there weren't such classic memories, and without that kind of filter, would other actors not be able to portray this character?
That's not how it works.
Lu Yanhe reaffirmed his conviction once again.
No matter what kind of production it is, you must collaborate with talented and capable people. Because they're not there to diminish your work; they're there to enhance it.
Fortunately, he met many outstanding people, and it was with these people that his "miracle of success" was able to continue time and time again.
Lu Yanhe took a picture of the interview page and sent it to Huang Kairen, sending him a message: I saw your interview.
Huang Kairen replied: We are still on set.
"My Own Swordsman" is still filming and hasn't finished production yet.
They're planning to film the entire "My Own Swordsman" series in one go.
Lu Yanhe: Is everything going smoothly?
Huang Kairen: It went quite smoothly. The popularity of Friends has us all looking forward to seeing if the second and third seasons will be even more popular than the first season.
Lu Yanhe: Yes.
With the foundation laid by the first season, the next two seasons will definitely only be more popular.
Airing a TV series in seasons not only effectively controls production costs and reduces risks, but also extends the show's lifespan.
A TV series is always most popular before it ends.
Because everyone has expectations for an unknown outcome.
Every year, new viewers join in, all eagerly anticipating the final ending.
"May I sit down?" a voice suddenly rang out beside Lu Yanhe.
Lu Yanhe looked up and saw someone who surprised him.
Rich pear.
This female celebrity, whom he had never actually met but had heard of and seen before, stood smiling at him next to his table, looking at him with an inquiring gaze.
Lu Yanhe nodded hesitantly.
Fuli sat down and said with a smile, "Thank you for letting me sit down, otherwise I would have embarrassed myself in front of many people."
In the small garden, other people are having coffee.
As Fuli sat down at Lu Yanhe's table, the table, which had already been the subject of much curious scrutiny, now attracted even more attention from all directions.
Lu Yanhe asked, "Is there something you want to tell me?"
“Yes.” Fuli nodded, her eyes showing a serious and determined look. “I auditioned for the show ‘The Birth of an Actor’ before, but I was rejected in the end. I heard it was because of some things that were slandered against me before.”
Lu Yanhe knew about this.
He said, "I don't handle the specifics."
“But you can make them change their minds,” Fuli said. “Yanhe, I really need this opportunity. I’ve already wasted a lot of time. An actress’s best years are only a few years. I don’t want to be eliminated from this industry before I’ve even become famous.”
Lu Yanhe didn't expect Fuli to be so direct with him.
“Your agent is Zhou Ping’an. He can make you famous anytime he wants,” Lu Yanhe said.
“If he could make me famous, he would have made me famous long ago.” Fuli gently bit her lip, revealing a pitiful look. “Besides, he has signed with Mengli now, so why would he care about me?”
Lu Yanhe: "Fuli, it's not that I don't want to help you, but every project I work on involves selecting candidates strictly based on auditions and interviews. I can't change everyone's decision because of my personal opinion."
“If it were because I’m not suitable for the show, that would be one thing, but I was rejected because of a fabricated charge,” Fuli said aggrievedly. “I know that I’ve been put on the list of tainted artists by many people because someone slandered me a while ago, saying that I bullied others when I was in school. But it was later clarified that it was not true at all. It was because Zhang Lan didn’t want me to play the second female lead in ‘Liu Guang Yin’, so she deliberately made up such news to get rid of me.”
This surprised Lu Yanhe quite a bit.
It turns out that Tomiri knew everything.
“I want a fair chance to compete,” Tomori said.
At this moment, Furi wasn't acting; this was a genuine expression of her emotions.
She has done such things in the past, but so what? Who in this world hasn't hurt others? Why does this matter become so serious when it happens to her? Don't those big-name celebrities have any shady secrets?
No, it's just that they've become famous, so someone is covering for them.
Why should her acting career be cut short before she even becomes famous?
Why would someone with her looks be cast in a web movie?!
Furi was unwilling to accept this.
She knew that as long as Lu Yanhe softened his attitude, her opportunity would come.
At that moment, as Fuli looked at Lu Yanhe, who was handsome and deep in thought, another idea suddenly popped into her mind.
If only Lu Yanhe were her boyfriend.
If Lu Yanhe were her boyfriend, she wouldn't need to beg him so desperately for a chance to appear on a TV show.
From a young age, Furi knew she was a very beautiful girl. Over the years, there had been no shortage of men who made advances or hints at their feelings for her. However, Furi never felt she needed them. She knew early on that her beauty was her best asset, and she couldn't afford to play it carelessly. A hand that could be played so easily is cheap and will be looked down upon.
But if it's Lu Yanhe, Fuli thinks it's worth it.
Fuli's gaze fell on Lu Yanhe, and her expression changed slightly in that instant.
Lu Yanhe realized it almost instantly.
As an actor, Lu Yanhe's keen perception means he rarely misses subtle changes.
However, sometimes he was unsure what this subtle change meant.
But in that fleeting change in Fuli's eyes just now, Lu Yanhe clearly sensed an intuition—
He seems to be being watched.
Lu Yanhe looked at Fu Li with suspicion, wondering what she was up to.
“I can’t help you with this.” Lu Yanhe said bluntly, “Although I really want to help you, I can’t compromise fairness. All the cast members for ‘The Birth of an Actor’ have already been decided. If I help you now, it means that someone else will have to leave.”
Tomori sighed, a look of disappointment on her face.
"Oh well."
After that thought popped into her head, Fuli lost her obsession with "The Birth of an Actor".
If you can't access it, you can't access it.
If she could really win over Lu Yanhe, what would she care about "The Birth of an Actor"?
At this moment, Zou Dong sent a message to Lu Yanhe, saying that he had arrived downstairs.
Lu Yanhe: "I have to go."
Fuli took the initiative and asked, "Can I add you as a friend?"
She tried to make her smile seem innocent and harmless, saying, "I hope that in the future there will be a role that suits me, and you can consider me, no matter how small the role is."
Since they were both celebrities and had met several times at Star Entertainment, Lu Yanhe took out his phone and added Fu Li as a friend.
At that moment, Furi thought to herself: I've taken the first step.
-
When Lu Yanhe arrived in Lingyang District, it was already 1 p.m.
Chen Siqi and the others were taking a lunch break.
Lu Yanhe then went with Zou Dong to a nearby hot pot restaurant, ate something, and filled their stomachs.
The snow was falling heavily, and Lingyang District is not like the city center; it is sparsely populated.
Looking out from inside the hot pot restaurant, apart from a few buildings, most of the area is natural, covered in snow, a silver-white landscape that looks somewhat desolate and cold.
However, the headquarters of "Jump Up" was decorated very nicely.
Entering through the gate, you'll find a small courtyard. In spring and summer, the courtyard is adorned with flowers and plants, making it resemble a mini garden. You can leave your workstation and find a place to work in the courtyard.
Even in winter, this little courtyard remains serene and simple.
A temperature-controlled glass room—this is the place that Chen Siqi and her friends insisted on building.
Everyone says that when working at "Jump Up," there must be a place where everyone can escape from their workstations.
They all readily accept the fact that "work is inherently unpleasant." Therefore, they try their best to create conditions that make everyone relatively happier. Of course, in reality, working at *Jump Up* is probably mostly enjoyable—
Especially those working at headquarters, most of whom are content editors. Only their job requires a fixed office location. Whether it's a magazine, new media, or other platform content managers, their primary daily task is to obtain the content they need.
The salary for this job certainly can't compare to other positions—whether it's film and television marketing or market marketing, the bonuses are much higher than those for content editing.
Therefore, people who usually take this job are those who are interested in the work itself.
Lu Yanhe had been here several times and was deeply impressed by the work atmosphere here—he even longed for the work atmosphere here.
Sure enough, as he walked down the corridor past the large cubicles of the editing room, he once again saw everyone sitting in their own little corners, reading books, magazines, or using computers... Although Lu Yanhe knew that their work was definitely not as easy as it seemed to him, this scene made Lu Yanhe yearn for it.
Perhaps it's because he always needs to travel frequently between different places that he inexplicably envies jobs where he can sit in one place and not move.
-
“Then I’ll prepare a studio for you here? If you want a nice studio environment for writing scripts, come here to write,” Chen Siqi said with a smile.
Lu Yanhe was saying that if he were writing the script here, his thoughts would definitely flow more smoothly.
"Forget it, it takes almost three hours to get here and back." Lu Yanhe shook his head. "Don't you get tired driving back and forth every day?"
Chen Siqi said, "I don't go back and forth every day. I only stay here two or three days a week to handle related matters. Most of the time, I'm still in the city, living near Ziyuan Bridge. There are dormitories here, and I sleep here when it gets too late."
Lu Yanhe: "This place is quite suitable for a vacation."
“Yes.” Chen Siqi nodded. “Mingyin stayed here for a while before. She was finishing up a novel and needed a place to concentrate and isolate herself, so she came here.”
"Is it the novel she finished serializing in 'Jump Up'?" Lu Yanhe asked.
“It’s not that one, it’s another one,” Chen Siqi said. “A new serialization will start soon in Jump Up. The previous serialization, Shadow Dancer, has already gone to print and will be available soon. Yuehu TV has also bought the TV series rights to this novel and is preparing to adapt it into a TV series.”
After Yuehu TV began collaborating with Lu Yanhe and "Jump Up", they began to work together in depth in many areas.
For example, when Mingyin was still serializing her novel "Shadow Dancer," Yuehutai came to discuss purchasing the film and television rights.
Lu Yanhe nodded.
Lu Yanhe has been following the serialization of this novel.
This novel differs somewhat from Mingyin's previous works in style and theme. It tells a suspenseful story of a workplace elite, beginning with the unexpected death of a person and depicting the struggle for survival within a foreign trade company.
Because the subject matter differed somewhat from Mingyin's previous works, the novel received some controversy during its serialization.
However, Lu Yanhe quite liked this novel.
Chen Siqi said, "We also reached an agreement with Yuehu TV. They will work with us to develop a short story adaptation project. Yuehu TV will select some stories from our story library and turn them into high-quality short dramas."
Chen Siqi had long wanted to adapt her short story "Jump Up" into a film and television series—to create a "Jump Up Theater".
The previous "Green Onion Project" was actually a product of this theater, but it was unsuccessful.
As a top-tier television station, Yuehu TV has a wealth of production talent. The fact that "Jump Up" has been able to reach such a cooperation agreement with them to create a "Jump Up Theater" completely makes up for the shortcomings of "Jump Up".
Lu Yanhe looked at the cooperation agreement they had previously reached in Chen Siqi's office.
Yuehu TV plans to turn "Jump Up Theater" into a short drama format.
Since they are all adapted from short stories, each one is basically the length of a movie. It airs every Sunday evening between 7:30 PM and 10:30 PM.
Previously, Sunday nights were the prime time slot for variety shows. However, with the rise of video streaming platforms, the ratings for this prime time slot for variety shows have gradually declined, leading to the cancellation of many Sunday variety shows.
Yuehu TV chose this time slot to create a viewing habit: on the last night before work, watch a show, see the ending directly, and then go to sleep peacefully without the agony of waiting for new episodes or worrying about the length of the series and staying up all night to watch it.
The "Jump Up Theater" is divided into three themes based on the main themes of the novels currently published in "Jump Up": "Youth", "Suspense" and "Workplace".
This kind of theater format has never appeared on television before. Video websites have launched some "XX Theaters" this year, but they are just using a name and have no real connection with each other.
"Jump Up Theater" is truly building a brand.
Lu Yanhe was surprised after reading the plan.
Chen Siqi is about to accomplish what she has always wanted to do.
“Nowadays, TV series are all striving to create high-quality productions and achieve a cinematic feel,” Chen Siqi said. “However, most of the content offered by our theater will certainly not pursue that kind of quality.”
Lu Yanhe said, "One drama a week, that's quite a lot. Can we handle this kind of production scale?"
“We’ve decided to adopt the production model of your Friends,” Chen Siqi said. “Each show will have about a week of shooting time. We won’t choose shows that are particularly difficult to shoot, nor will we choose stories that don’t require much special effects or post-production. Yuehu TV has a lot of production talent in reserve. I heard that they have already contacted four or five filming teams for this show.”
“A film takes about a week to shoot…” Lu Yanhe thought for a moment and said, “What about the actors?”
“Each film will invite one or two stars to play one of the main roles,” Chen Siqi said. “However, the filming mode of this theater is different from the current market. We are not using the conventional filming mode. We don’t know what the broadcast effect will be. We can only try it first.”
Has the online streaming platform been confirmed?
“We’ll be broadcasting it on Aurora Video,” Chen Siqi said. “They’re very interested in this theater. We can release a new film every week, which is similar to online movies for them. But the production quality is definitely better than online movies, and it also has the popularity of the original work and the attention brought by different stars.”
Unlike traditional television stations, video websites now have a built-in user base and also highly value online buzz. Especially now that video websites increasingly rely on new memberships, a constant stream of new content is crucial. A weekly release frequency like "Jump Up Theater" perfectly suits the needs of Aurora Video.
“Once this theater is launched, it will probably cause a huge upheaval in the industry,” Lu Yanhe said with a smile. “There are 52 weeks in a year, which means that 52 films will be shot in a year. How many production staff and how many actors will be needed for 52 films? If it can really be made, I can’t even imagine how much impact such a big piece of the pie will have.”
This is equivalent to increasing the production of more than fifty films and television series per year on top of the existing scale.
It is foreseeable that the demand for production talent and actors will increase significantly.
Chen Siqi said, "Yuehu TV also said that if a film is well received and the audience likes it, they can continue to develop sequels or even make long-running dramas."
Lu Yanhe: "Isn't this similar to the pilot episodes that are produced in the United States?"
In the US, many projects allocate a budget to shoot a pilot episode before officially filming, release it to the market, and gauge the response. If the response is positive and the data is good, then the project will be given the green light to officially begin filming.
This is also a way to reduce risk.
Chen Siqi: "Well, but unlike the pilot episodes over there, even without a sequel, ours is still a very complete story."
Lu Yanhe: "This move is too big. So, how many scripts have been released yet?"
"Yuehu TV has initially selected eight novels to be adapted into screenplays," Chen Siqi said. "They have found screenwriters to work on them, but the adaptations are not yet complete."
“Actually, why not combine it with ‘The Birth of an Actor’?” Lu Yanhe suddenly thought of this and said, “Anyway, ‘The Birth of an Actor’ is also broadcast on Yuehu TV and Aurora Video. We can let the actors who come out of this program act out these stories.”
Chen Siqi: "I have the same idea as you. Actors who come out of 'The Birth of an Actor' can be cast in any suitable role. They can also use this show to promote Jump Theater."
“It’s quite difficult to shoot a movie in a week, even if it’s only the length of a film. In this situation, we have to find a group of actors who can act. We can’t waste time on set,” Lu Yanhe said. “If the Jumping Theater can really take off, it will be a good thing for the entertainment industry. Think of how many directors, screenwriters and actors it can cultivate.”
“Yes,” Chen Siqi nodded. “The current economic climate isn’t very good, and everyone is focused on reducing costs and increasing efficiency. If this approach, which focuses on telling a good story without exaggeration, succeeds, it will definitely drive some changes in the entire industry.”
In recent years, there have been virtually no more long dramas with more than forty episodes in China.
Even major platforms are creating a batch of high-quality short dramas, hoping to replicate the success of shows like "The Gold Rush," "The Seventeen Floors," "The Silent River," and "Friends."
They also discovered that if a large-scale drama series with dozens of episodes doesn't perform well, it's a real loss.
In the old days of television, long-running dramas were able to retain viewers and maintain viewership ratings.
In this day and age, audiences are no longer willing to watch long dramas.
Various platforms also need more content, more fresh content, to attract public attention and compete for traffic.
The gameplay is different.
From "The Golden Era" and "Phoenix Terrace" to "The Silent River" and "Seventeen Floors," Lu Yanhe happened to catch up with a stage in the industry's development from long dramas to short dramas.
Lu Yanhe was even a key figure in driving this change.
If it weren't for the success of so many of his short dramas, which brought about viral hits, the industry wouldn't have suddenly become convinced that short dramas were a viable path.
Now, the jumping theater is even more exaggerated.
They started making TV movies right away.
Of course, they don't call this a TV movie, but a TV series, except that this TV series only has two or three episodes and will be broadcast in one night.
Lu Yanhe was very interested to see what kind of impact this novel approach would have on the industry.
Lu Yanhe said, "If you have a script that suits me, you can also contact me."
“Yes.” Chen Siqi nodded. “Yes, although we can’t make every drama a high-quality blockbuster, due to time and budget constraints, we will release one or two benchmark works at key moments to promote our Jumping Theater.”
After hearing the plan, Lu Yanhe, who had been feeling exhausted from working non-stop, suddenly stopped feeling tired.
He himself was also incredibly excited, rubbing his hands together in anticipation.
Everyone is running forward; no one is stopping.
He was the same.
How could he stop?
(End of this chapter)
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