Chapter 633 Keep it going
Many movies are re-edited, but it's rare for TV series to be re-edited.
Re-editing the series is a significant undertaking and requires an additional investment.
However, Lu Yanhe's words made Li Zhibai somewhat tempted.
Although hesitant, he was tempted.
Li Zhibai wasn't trying to prove anything, like that the drama was actually well-made or that his judgment was sound and he hadn't misjudged the actors.
He simply wanted to know why, after going through eighty-one tribulations, overcoming each one, and achieving good results along the way, things didn't go as planned at the final destination.
Lu Yanhe added, "No matter what, I suggest you talk to the editor and Liu Manbo to see where the problem lies. There are no unusable shots in these scenes. Apart from a few actors' performances, which were indeed a bit bad and made people complain, I think the most serious problem is that I can't stand watching it because it's not attractive."
Yan Liang also said, "I've read the novel and seen that terrible movie adaptation, so I know what the plot will be like, but watching this drama feels a bit convoluted."
Li Zhi nodded.
However, before he could even find the editor to talk to, Lin Suyang arrived with a message.
"This matter, sigh—"
Lin Suyang sighed upon meeting him.
"What's wrong, Yang-ge?"
"I had a chat with Lao Xie."
Lao Xie is the editor of this drama, Xie Yun.
What did he say?
“He said the blame was on him, and he didn’t try to shirk responsibility,” Lin Suyang said. “But I said, he’s a senior editor, so why did he edit the show like this? He said it was because Liu Manbo wanted this style, and Liu Manbo wanted every shot to be good, which actually prioritized visuals over the story’s pacing. I asked him why he didn’t tell Liu Manbo when he saw the problem, and he said it was because Liu Manbo wasn’t well-liked by the people at Lighthouse Video before, but since I, the producer, supported Liu Manbo, he didn’t want to go against her.”
Li Zhibai seemed to have been hit hard.
Lin Suyang: "I can only say that there were many unexpected factors in this matter. When Lighthouse Video reviewed the film, they didn't think there were any major problems with the film. In addition, there was a conflict with you before. So, by the time the finished film reached you, there was basically no room for adjustment. Because of your previous support for Liu Manbo, many people misunderstood. Even if they saw some problems in the film, no one was willing to be the first to stand up and speak out."
Li Zhibai: "I can't believe I even have a question."
“You’re the producer, and so am I. If this drama isn’t done well, we’re both definitely at fault,” Lin Suyang said. “I should have thought of that beforehand. Since we’ve implicitly given Liu Manbo so much directorial power, we should have followed up more after filming was finished.”
"The filming went so smoothly that I never expected Liu Manbo to have such problems in post-production."
"Yes, these are all our problems. It's okay, we'll learn from our mistakes and improve next time." Lin Suyang said, "You said you wanted to re-edit a version, but we need to communicate with Lighthouse Video about that. After all, they invested in this drama and they own the copyright. Knowing them as I do, they might not be willing."
“Let’s communicate first,” Li Zhibai said. “A couple of days ago, someone even sent me a message, mocking me.”
"What are you mocking?"
"They mocked me for insisting on using Liu Manbo."
"They didn't mock you for not being able to carry the show," Lin Suyang sneered. "They know that even though this show has received a lot of criticism, it hasn't affected its popularity at all. There are still many people watching, and several brands you endorse have added ad placements. What are they pretending to be victims for? This show has been making money for them since the investment promotion started. If there's controversy over its reputation, it falls on you and the main creators. They haven't been affected. Which idiot sent you that message? Show me the screenshot. I'm going to ask the owner of Lighthouse Video when did an actor who can bring them so much commercial revenue start being mocked by their people behind their backs? What a bunch of idiots!"
Li Zhibai didn't stand on ceremony at all; he immediately took a screenshot and sent it to Lin Suyang.
Lin Suyang: "Regarding the controversy surrounding this drama, I will respond on your behalf, earnestly accept all criticisms, and absorb all opinions."
Li Zhi nodded a hundred times.
"Shouldn't I respond myself?"
“There’s no need,” Lin Suyang said. “What we need to do now is strengthen your acting skills, not your role as a producer. Responding is about showing an attitude. Besides, although there has been some criticism of your performance in this drama, it has been generally good. Many people’s comments are quite fair. The parts where you received the most criticism were when you were acting with Teacher Jiang Jun. You were a bit led by his rhythm and lost your own rhythm, so your performance was unbalanced. It was only after seeing what they said and then observing your previous performances that I realized that this is indeed the case. If your co-star’s acting skills are not that good, you are the kind of person who can perform very well. But if your co-star’s acting skills are good, you seem to feel a bit burdened and lose your greatest strength in acting—relaxation.”
Li Zhibai: "Now that you mention it, it does seem to be true."
Lin Suyang: "Didn't you realize this was a problem before?"
"No, but when acting with Teacher Jiang Jun, I do seem to be more serious and attentive."
“But the more serious you are, the better the result will be.” Lin Suyang said, “I’m going to find a teacher to help you analyze the problems in your performance. After the release of ‘Even Faking Death Is Not an Option,’ you have been noticed by many people in the film industry. This industry is sorely lacking in male actors of your type. Many people have come to submit scripts, although they are all very similar roles.”
Li Zhibai said, "I can't keep acting in these kinds of romantic comedies forever."
“Yeah, that’s how I communicate with those film companies. If they want you to act in a romantic comedy, unless the script is absolutely amazing, they’ll have to send you a script of a different genre as well,” Lin Suyang said. “Fortunately, you’re popular enough now, and the box office of ‘Even Faking Death’ is good enough, so we have plenty of options.”
-
Some actors know how to play to their strengths and avoid their weaknesses. They won't take on roles they're not absolutely sure they can handle. So every time they appear in a role, people think, "This actor is such a good actor, so reliable."
Some actors like to push their boundaries and often try to play different types of roles. Sometimes, this can turn into a disaster, but other times, it can be a huge surprise when they do it well. In the eyes of others, this is what makes them an actor with inconsistent performances.
In reality, 99% of actors don't fall into either of these two categories. This is because very few actors truly have the power to choose. Often, they can only find one option that they are relatively less resistant to from a pool of choices that aren't entirely satisfactory.
Li Zhibai is a selective actor, as is Lu Yanhe.
"How many supporting roles has Lu Yanhe played since he became famous?"
"Three Mountains, The Mist, Tropical Rainy Season, Chinese Paladin... Actually, he doesn't seem to have many dramas where he played the lead role. Come to think of it..."
In September, Lighthouse Video launched a new program called "Film and Television Roundtable," where several veterans of the film and television industry sat together to talk about the industry, celebrities, and all sorts of other things.
These kinds of shows have very low production costs, and are destined not to become the kind of popular variety shows with extremely high national recognition. However, sometimes, when the topic of discussion becomes hot, the viewership can still be quite impressive.
Their first conversation was about Lu Yanhe, the most popular male actor at the time.
"Indeed, he did have one serious leading role, 'Late Spring' and 'Friends,' and that's it," someone said.
"But he's really amazing. Every time a show he's in comes out, everyone thinks he played a major role in its success."
"In fact, that's true. Look, apart from 'The Silent River,' Zeng Qiao was the main star promoted in China at the time. In other dramas, whether it was 'The Road to Glory' or 'The Seventeen Floors,' Lu Yanhe's carrying role was no less than Shang Yongzhou's and Chen Bige's. To be honest, Shang Yongzhou and Chen Bige still had status at that time, but their popularity was no longer as high as Lu Yanhe's."
"The movie itself doesn't care about the actors' popularity. You'll get criticized if you say that. Even Lu Yanhe himself wouldn't dare say that he can outshine Shang Yongzhou and Chen Bige."
“I didn’t mean that, but that’s just how the market is. If you ask the market now, who do these three people favor more? The answer is definitely Lu Yanhe.”
"You can't look at it that way. So, who do you think big directors prefer to work with? Haven't you noticed that Lu Yanhe actually has a pretty bad reputation with big directors? He's done so many productions, and in the TV series industry, he only worked with Luo Yuzhong and Chen Lingling. In the film industry, he only worked with Wang Zhong, and at that time, he was just a minor supporting actor. Liu Bige won an award and became a famous director after working with him."
"Now that you mention it, that makes sense. Most of Lu Yanhe's resources come from projects he did himself."
"To date, no major director has ever asked him to star in a movie."
Why is this happening?
-
"They're not wrong, are they? Why don't any big directors offer you roles?"
"The film crew," Li Zhi asked curiously.
Lu Yanhe: "How would I know? I can't just ask people why they don't cast me in their movies."
Yan Liang laughed and said, "What's so strange about that? Go and look at the films our big-name directors have made in recent years. There's no role suitable for Yan He. They wouldn't dare to approach us for such a small role."
That makes sense; there are still too few films in the market featuring men in their twenties as the main characters.
They are mostly youth romance movies or art films.
This is especially true for films by great directors.
The main actors are mostly actors of the same age as Shang Yongzhou and Chen Bige.
Lu Yanhe said, "Don't you have any big directors handing you scripts?"
Li Zhibai shook his head, "No, not a single one. Why would they even look at us popular celebrities? You can't even get any offers, let alone us."
Yan Liang said, "Whether it was Xingyu in the past or Zhuomuren now, we were just their most profitable artists, but not the artists with the deepest ties. The resources they could usually exchange, especially these kinds of resources, were unlikely to be given to us."
Lu Yanhe asked, "Who is the company's most favored actor right now?"
"In terms of resources, Cheng Hai is one of them. After 'The Birth of an Actor,' his popularity soared, and the company replaced him with two dramas and one movie, all of which were top-three roles. Besides him, Chen Jing and Jiang Bai also have quite a lot of resources."
Li Zhi nodded and continued Yan Liang's words.
“Lin Suyang said that Chen Jing and Jiang Bai are basically given one or two roles in the company every year. They are members of the popular group MX and are the least troublesome,” Li Zhibai said. “Lin Suyang told me this to point out that I am not cooperating with the company’s arrangements.”
“We really don’t cooperate with them much now. We basically don’t participate in the shows they produce or the programs they invest in,” Yan Liang said. “For the company, feeding us those good resources doesn’t bring as much feedback as it does to others.”
Lu Yanhe: "So, does that mean you guys are basically fighting on your own in the company?"
"You can't say that. We still used a lot of the company's resources. It was mutually beneficial," Li Zhibai said. "Didn't my renewed contract with Yan Liang stipulate that we have priority to choose one film each year that the company invests in and produces? Furthermore, for the films that Yan Liang and I are currently acting in, the company also has familiar investors and business partners who will follow up. This is quite important for how much say we have in a film."
Lu Yanhe: "But the core, best resources will be given to those artists who have signed long-term contracts and are tied to the company for the long term?"
“Yes.” Li Zhibai nodded.
Lu Yanhe said, "They probably didn't ask you to mentor any new employees, did they?"
“Of course we’d give in, but neither of us agreed,” Li Zhibai said. “If it were just about helping out some of our acquaintances, that would be fine, but we don’t really know them. We’ve only met a few times. Why should I pay for their favors and let them benefit? We’ve never seen them trying to take advantage of other people’s resources when we were newcomers.”
Lu Yanhe: "It's really ridiculous. Back then, it was one thing for Yan Liang and me not to be famous, but you were quite famous. Why didn't they ever consider having one of the company's most popular actors bring you into a production?"
“Back then, acting didn’t make me much money. I’d act for two or three months and earn at most a few hundred thousand. It was nothing like doing commercial performances, where you could earn at least 100,000 per show.”
"Oh right, I forgot, you were scheduled to do a ton of commercial performances back then."
“However, film and television salaries are now being pushed down,” Li Zhibai said to Lu Yanhe. “That’s all your fault.”
"My fault?" Lu Yanhe asked incredulously. "Why should I be blamed?"
“Now everyone is reducing the length of TV series, with a maximum of thirty episodes, and most are only ten or twenty episodes. However, the filming time has not been reduced at all,” Li Zhibai said. “In addition, the Jumping Theater is cultivating more and more actors, and the platform is tightening its budget. Unless they are top actors, the salaries of other actors are being squeezed very hard. Unless they are actors who carry the show and attract investment, their salaries have been reduced by several percent.”
Yan Liang: "Have you heard? Many film and television projects are cutting budgets now. The implication is that Jumping Theater can produce a decent-to-medium-sized drama with such a low budget. Love Letter, with a budget of tens of millions, was able to gross 1.5 billion at the box office. On the contrary, many dramas have such high budgets, but all the money goes to the producers, directors, and actors, while the platform suffers huge losses. I heard that other video websites are also going to learn from Aurora Video and make the producers and platforms share the risks in the future, instead of the current one-off deal where the producers are guaranteed to make a profit regardless of the outcome."
Corruption is rampant in the entertainment industry as well.
In the past, a film and television project could easily cost hundreds of millions of yuan, and no one knew how much of it actually went into production. Looking at the accounts, a wig could cost tens of thousands of yuan, and a hat could be listed as an expense of several thousand yuan.
However, that was the chaotic and painful period of the video website's rapid, unregulated growth. Now that they've established themselves and figured out the industry, they naturally won't let themselves be fooled anymore.
"Was your project affected?" Li Zhi asked. "What about the projects that followed?"
“No,” Lu Yanhe shook his head. “I didn’t want such a high production budget myself, but Aurora Studio insisted on it. I was worried that if the production budget was too small, it wouldn’t be able to support the stock market’s expectations.”
“…” Li Zhibai chuckled, “The Northern Lights are also something that leaves you speechless.”
"Compared to the stock market, the investment in one or two dramas is really nothing," Yan Liang said. "The revenue that a project can bring to a company now, if converted into the stock market reaction, far exceeds its own returns. If your Linghe goes public, the revenue brought to your company by the 1.5 billion yuan box office of 'Love Letter' might not even be one-tenth of the stock market returns brought by that box office success itself. I heard Zhou Ping'an say before that it was a real waste of the box office hit of 'Love Letter'; the returns it could have brought would have been multiplied by several times."
Lu Yanhe: "This is all a game of capital. It looks like you can make a lot of money, but I don't lack money, and I don't understand these capital games. I don't want to take the risk. Once I get trapped, will I never be able to make any more adventurous works again? I'll only be able to play it safe, otherwise it will affect the stock market. So, after thinking about it, I'd better give up. To be honest, what would I do with so much money? I already earn enough every year to do whatever I want."
“That’s true.” Li Zhibai nodded. “You’re really good at seeing this. I think my family is all obsessed with money. They’re always thinking about making more and more money.”
Lu Yanhe: "Different people, different personalities. Some people just like to play this kind of capital game and enjoy it. Let them play their game."
“You’re overthinking it. They’re not that gentlemanly. People who play this kind of game will do everything they can to get you in if they see you’re unwilling, because you have something they want to win,” Li Zhibai said. “You should be careful. I reckon Linghe has become a hot commodity in the eyes of many big investors who want a piece of it. Hasn’t anyone approached you about acquiring it?”
“There have been some offers, but I’ve rejected them all,” Lu Yanhe said. “I’m very clear that I don’t accept any equity investment or acquisition. Linghe itself isn’t a normal commercial company; it’s currently operating almost entirely based on the IPs I’ve created.”
"Then you and Sister Ziyan need to be careful. No, you can't trust Sister Ziyan too much either. There are many agents who stab their artists in the back. Oh, but Sister Ziyan doesn't own many shares in Linghe, so it won't affect your control over Linghe." Li Zhibai said "but" twice in a row, speaking off the cuff. "What I mean is, be careful that people inside your company don't collude with those big capital firms that want to acquire your company, and end up ripping you off and putting your company in someone else's hands."
Lu Yanhe: "We have always paid close attention to this aspect."
The reason Chen Ziyan initially sent Xu Fanxing and Chen Qin to Linghe was precisely this: to supervise and check Xu Tianming and Chen Yin. Later, why did Chen Ziyan send Wan Qingqing and Song Jiang overseas? Why did she entrust the development and operation of external copyrights to Xu Tianming, while placing internal production and management in Chen Yin's hands, while also having Hu Siwei subtly divide Chen Yin's power?
In fact, Chen Ziyan's approach is to divide the company into several lines, so that no one can stay in one line for many years. There will be regular personnel changes to prevent anyone from becoming too deeply involved in any one line.
Xu Tianming and Chen Yin are both professional managers who have power, but it is limited.
Lu Yanhe always felt that if it weren't for Chen Ziyan, Linghe Company really wouldn't have been able to start.
He's not cut out for this.
And Chen Ziyan...
To say that Chen Ziyan would betray him.
Lu Yanhe thought to himself, he would never say anything, but if Chen Ziyan really betrayed him one day, there was nothing he could do.
We can only turn against each other on that day.
At this stage, Chen Ziyan has truly excelled in every aspect, leaving him speechless. Her success in acquiring the fire allowed Lu Yanhe to invest early on, securing a significant share. As for his film and television company, he gave Chen Ziyan shares for free, but she only took a small portion, which had no substantial impact on Linghe's operations. Lu Yanhe's management control remained firmly in his hands.
Not to mention, Lu Yanhe and Chen Ziyan share too many common interests.
Film and television projects, several companies, talent agency collaborations...
Needless to say, if Chen Ziyan betrayed him, but he betrayed Chen Ziyan and kicked her out, Chen Ziyan would suffer the same heavy loss.
And if one day he really kicks her out, it was Chen Ziyan who handed him the doorknob long ago.
When interests become entangled to a certain extent, it is no longer possible to sever their relationship through simple betrayal.
Trust is mutual.
Harm is mutual.
It all depends on which one they choose.
-
"Lu Yanhe and his team have brought in so many media outlets for their year-end review. What are they trying to do? Aren't they trying to weaken our influence and take our place?"
Huang Lian stood in front of his office window, making a phone call to Yu Maiqiu, the head of the Red River Award.
If anyone saw him now, they would be very surprised.
Because, compared to two months ago, Huang Lian's eyes are bloodshot, his mouth is inflamed, and there is a red ring around his lips. You can tell from his current appearance how badly he has been living these past two months.
He has already heard the news that many people are dissatisfied with the farce that has been made at this year's Golden Tripod Awards.
Especially the bigwigs behind the Golden Tripod Award.
Although he is currently the chairman of the executive committee, many people stand behind the entire executive committee of the Golden Tripod Awards. If they are collectively dissatisfied with him, they can convene a meeting at any time and replace him. If it weren't for the support of the people behind him, allowing him to remain in this position for the time being, he might have been replaced long ago.
Those people may not necessarily support Lu Yanhe or be dissatisfied with him; they are simply unhappy that the Golden Tripod Awards have been embroiled in such a scandal, which has affected the Golden Tripod Awards' authority and credibility.
The Golden Tripod Award has reached its current status thanks to the efforts of several generations. For many, their entire career may culminate in the recognition bestowed upon them by this award. Not to mention, many older generations gained their professional recognition through the Golden Tripod Award. If the prestige of the Golden Tripod Award diminishes, it means that the significance of their professional achievements is also diminished.
Who wants to see this?
Now, all the major media outlets are busy with their year-end reviews, looking at the best works, directors, screenwriters, and actors. It's easy to imagine that when these reviews are finalized, people will definitely compare the results with the Golden Tripod Awards.
If it were just one or two media outlets doing this, that would be one thing, but that's not the case.
Huang Lian was truly panicked at this moment.
If the Lu Yanhe incident was just a temporary controversy that would pass, then this media review can be said to have put mainstream awards, including the Golden Tripod Award, under intense scrutiny.
No one would dare to say to the dozens or hundreds of media outlets and platforms that they are all unprofessional and that we are the ones who truly present awards based on artistry.
They represent the voice of the masses.
Huang Lian now wants to join forces with Yu Maiqiu, the chairman of the executive committee of the Honghe Award, to go to the relevant higher authorities and stop such activities.
Yu Maiqiu said, "Old Huang, what reason do we have to get the higher-ups to stop this activity?"
Yu Maiqiu felt helpless.
"No, this would greatly weaken the authority and influence of our three major awards," Huang Lian said. "Just think about it, if dozens or even hundreds of media outlets and platforms do a review, and the final results are compiled, how much public opinion would be generated if a work that was neglected by us was highly praised by them?"
“Then let it be. What are you afraid of?” Yu Maiqiu said. “Their assessment clearly shows that commercial works have more advantages. We insist on our artistry, including focusing on the main theme. It’s perfectly normal for there to be differences.”
Huang Lian was furious, thinking to himself, "You guys focus on the main theme, but their Golden Tripod Awards have always been waving the banner of 'Audience Award'."
"As for authority and influence, Lao Huang, the real benefit of having such a review event that encourages audience participation in discussions about film and television dramas is enhancing the influence of our industry," said Yu Maiqiu. "If their review results differ significantly from our award results, that's fine too. Doesn't that allow some viewers to better understand what kind of works we favor? The purpose of these awards is to recognize creators in this industry and to promote its development. In recent years, the viewership and attention of the Honghe Awards ceremony have been declining. I'm quite happy to see this kind of comparison boosting attention."
After Yu Maiqiu finished speaking, Huang Lian was speechless for a moment, not knowing what to say.
"To be honest, why are you arguing with a young man like Lu Yanhe? You'll retire before him anyway. Do you expect to use your seniority to pressure him?" Yu Maiqiu said. "If you, as the chairman of the executive committee of the Golden Tripod Awards, don't cultivate a good relationship with a young man like him, his plays will stop being submitted to the Golden Tripod Awards in the future. What will you do then? Are there any plays in China with a greater international influence than his? If plays like his stop being submitted to the Golden Tripod Awards, who will be the one who loses face, him or the Golden Tripod Awards?"
Yu Maiqiu's words almost made Huang Lian spit out blood.
Huang Lian hung up the phone and took a deep breath.
The anger in my heart still couldn't be quelled.
Suddenly someone knocked on the door.
The secretary walked in.
"Chairman Huang."
"Go on," Huang Lian said, his face regaining its usual calm.
The secretary looked troubled and said, "Gu Mo, Zhang Yuan, and Liu Zhihan have come together and want to see you."
Huang Lian: "What are they doing here?"
“They didn’t tell me,” the secretary shook her head, “but they seemed like they didn’t want to come.”
Huang Lian's face darkened, and he said, "Then tell them I'm not available right now and to go back first."
"They said they had arranged to meet with reporters for dinner at six o'clock in the evening," the secretary said.
Huang Lian: "..."
Veins bulged on his forehead.
"Let them in."
Gritting his teeth.
-
"We must create a ranking list, not just a top ten list."
During an internal meeting, Chen Siqi clearly stated her plans for the year-end review.
In the afternoon, there was a disagreement among the people on this issue.
Some people say that creating a ranking list will cause a lot of controversy, and that simply making a top ten list would be more peaceful.
Chen Siqi said, "Peace means no discussion, and without discussion, there will be no buzz. Don't forget what our original intention was to create this ranking list: to attract everyone's attention. Are there few articles or posts online recommending good movies or TV shows? Not at all. I know that some people will definitely watch them after seeing the recommendations, but think about it, are you more likely to watch a show because someone says it's good, or because you really like a show, but there are several shows ranked higher on a certain list, and the media, magazine, or individual who ranked it is someone you value? Are you more likely to watch it then?"
Everyone fell silent.
"As for the controversy or attacks on our ranking list, that's normal," Chen Siqi said. "As long as you create something with content, there will always be people who like it and people who don't. Similarly, if you create a ranking list and you don't rank the top four, there will still be people questioning why certain works aren't included, or why such terrible works are included. In any case, we have to face criticism. As long as we act uprightly and honestly, we can only let others say what they want."
“If we want to make a good literary magazine, we can’t make the content mediocre,” Chen Siqi said. “If we want to be comprehensive, we don’t need to position ourselves as a literary magazine.”
Lin Yu and the others nodded in agreement.
"That's right. Why is our reader loyalty so high? How did we transform from a fan-service book into a magazine with a loyal readership, and how did we manage to become a bestseller in an era of declining print media? It's because we can continuously bring readers something new, something that other online media don't offer," Xu Zijun said. "This ranking list is based on the votes of our readers, reflecting their preferences. If this ranking list can truly have a certain influence, then for our readers, this sense of participation will be very fulfilling."
Zhou Mukai said, "Actually, I have a suggestion."
What suggestion?
“The most popular dramas, male actors, female actors, screenwriters, directors, etc., could we invite these people to an event, like a dialogue or a small awards ceremony, to make our ranking more formal and valuable through this sense of ceremony?” Zhou Mukai said. “Or, to put it simply, for example, to do a special issue with interviews with them?”
“Then it seems like we’re taking advantage of them,” Lin Yu said.
Zhou Mukai asked, "What if we could invite top creators like Shi Xia or Luo Yuzhong as special interviewers or dialogue guests? Or what if we could invite the boss of a major production company or a top film critic? In short, it's this kind of event. We may not be able to bring them any real benefits, but we will definitely bring them a sense of honor and recognition that they feel is valuable."
Chen Siqi nodded, "I think Zhou Mukai's suggestion is worth studying. It's similar to the annual cover of Vanity Fair magazine featuring Hollywood stars. Being on that cover is a recognition; you're the most talked-about and popular star of the year. Our ranking is similar. You're the most recognized film and television creator by our millions of readers of 'Jump Up,' and we'll crown you with top-tier recognition. There's no prize money, no direct benefit, but it's an honor—an honor only 'Jump Up' can bestow. It's not just gilding the title of the most popular winners, but also gilding our magazine."
“Okay.” Lin Yu took a deep breath. “Then this will be another big project.”
"Wow!" Suddenly, a girl in the corner exclaimed in surprise, holding her phone.
Everyone looked at her.
She held up her phone and said, "The Golden Tripod Awards have publicly apologized to Lu Yanhe. To be precise, Huang Lian apologized to Lu Yanhe on behalf of the Golden Tripod Awards."
-
The apology issued by the Golden Tripod Awards was not signed by the Golden Tripod Awards, but by Huang Lian.
In this apology, Huang Lian, as the chairman of the executive committee, expressed his sincere apology for the fact that "Friends" is one of the most successful sitcoms in recent years and he especially wanted to give it recognition and honor at the Golden Tripod Awards. However, he did something wrong with good intentions and ended up affecting the reputation of the "Friends" crew, especially Lu Yanhe.
It can be said that this apology came suddenly and inexplicably.
The Golden Tripod Awards have already been presented, and when they were being ridiculed the most, they remained silent and made no move or response. Now that the public outcry has subsided, they suddenly reappear.
Why?
Many people want to ask this.
shock.
Confuse.
I don't understand.
Of course, what is most shocking is the act of apologizing itself.
It's unbelievable.
-
On the set of "Chinese Paladin", Luo Yuzhong said to Lu Yanhe, "You are the first person to get a sitting executive committee chairman to apologize to you."
Lu Yanhe: "I'm baffled myself, I don't know why."
Luo Yuzhong: "The executive committee has a lot of opinions about him. More than two months have passed and the matter has not been resolved. Instead, it has had an increasingly serious impact on the Golden Tripod Awards. Others will not stand by and watch the Golden Tripod Awards get stuck in the vortex of public opinion. It has been a long and difficult process to build the Golden Tripod Awards to its current industry status. Who would want to watch him ruin the Golden Tripod Awards all by himself?"
"You flatter me, teacher. I couldn't possibly bring down the Golden Tripod Award by myself."
“Once an award has a negative label, that label will grow bigger and bigger and harder to remove,” Luo Yuzhong said. “They chose this method to first push all the blame onto Huang Lian, and second to attribute the matter to good intentions gone wrong. In short, they want to save face and can’t really be deliberately suppressing you.”
Lu Yanhe nodded: "Sigh, they're acting all respectable now, and I've been put on a pedestal by them. I feel like if I don't accept their apology at this point, I'll look like I'm not respectable."
“You only need a decent response, not a decent acceptance of the apology,” Luo Yuzhong said.
"Huh?" Lu Yanhe was taken aback.
Luo Yuzhong said, "Didn't you win the Golden Tripod Award for Best Supporting Actor before? You won it for 'The Golden Era'. Now you're filming my movie, and you're playing a supporting role. Just respond to the Golden Tripod Award a little."
Lu Yanhe understood what Luo Yuzhong meant.
"Of course, you can respond or not," Luo Yuzhong said. "No one will blame you if you don't respond, but if you do, those old guys will have a better impression of you. Just do whatever makes you comfortable."
Since Luo Yuzhong said that, it means that Lu Yanhe really doesn't care whether he responds or not; in Luo Yuzhong's view, it won't affect him.
Lu Yanhe liked Luo Yuzhong for this very reason: Luo Yuzhong never played the game of "pointing fingers" and was straightforward, requiring no deliberation.
Lu Yanhe thought about it seriously and said, "I should still respond. This isn't the whole Golden Tripod Award targeting me; it's just Huang Lian retaliating against me. Why should I give up the entire Golden Tripod Award just because I don't like him? Teacher, don't you have a student on the executive committee of the Golden Tripod Award? If you oust Huang Lian from the chairman's position, does your student have a chance to become chairman?"
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I recommend the classic entertainment novel, "I Became the Leading Lady of a Scandal Overnight."
(End of this chapter)
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