Chapter 19 Wu Bai... Isn't he a singer?
"Don't worry, Sister Weiwei, I value this drama more than you do, and I will definitely not cut corners."
Since he dared to say it, Meng Bai would not speak nonsense: "The scene of this drama is simple, and not many actors are needed. In addition, the script is ready, so the preparation will be quick, and it is estimated that it will take more than a month. There are still two months of shooting time left, and it should not be a problem to finish shooting before the end of the year."
Gan Wei thought about it. Indeed, according to the script, most of the stories in the first season of "Pendulum" took place in a convenience store, and the main plot basically took place between the "three protagonists" plus one or two "unit characters", so the size of the crew was very small.
As we all know, the more people involved in a project, the more difficult it will be to coordinate, and the same is true in reverse.
The crew is small in size and has fewer people, so there are fewer mistakes, and the efficiency of operation is naturally high.
Of course, the most critical advantage is that there is a ready-made script by Meng Bai.
You know, in most film and television projects with a very long preparation period, eight out of ten are waiting for the screenwriter to write the script.
Gan Wei thought to herself, thinking about it this way, it seems that it is not unbelievable to finish filming before the end of the year.
Just when she thought of this, she heard Meng Bai add: "Of course, this is just an ideal plan at present. When filming actually starts, it must be decided according to the specific progress."
This sentence made Gan Wei feel relieved. Fortunately, this kid knew how to compromise.
"Okay, as long as you know it." Gan Wei responded, and then thought of another question: "Regarding the director of this drama, do you have a candidate now?"
Meng Bai thought that Gan Wei would ask this question, and he said that he actually had a few candidates in mind, but because the project was not confirmed before, he had not contacted them.
Now that the project has been confirmed, Meng Bai can ask them one by one to see who is interested, and then he can choose the one with the best cost-effectiveness and the one that is most compatible with him.
Meng Bai briefly explained the situation to Gan Wei, and then said that if Leshi.com thinks there is a suitable candidate, he can also introduce him to him.
Gan Wei said that he didn't have anything suitable for the time being, but he would keep an eye on it. In addition, she hoped that Meng Bai would talk to Leshi.com before deciding on the director. The subtext was that she also wanted to take a closer look at the other party's level.
Meng Bai naturally agreed without hesitation.
...
Producer, director, and screenwriter are the "three horses" of a film and television project.
The screenwriter writes the script, the director turns the text of the script into pictures, and the producer is responsible for preparing the crew. If a drama wants to achieve good results, the three parties need to work together.
In the project of "Soul Ferry", Meng Bai himself is the main screenwriter; and because of the existence of the "shell company" Arc Light Film and Television, it is equivalent to him also serving as a producer.
This is actually not a big problem. In the past two years in the Beijing North Film and Television Circle, he has not always had jobs such as "part-time screenwriter" and "episode screenwriter". In most cases, he can only receive work such as advertising films and promotional films from some small companies.
In these groups with as few as one or two people and as many as six or seven people, in order to save costs, everyone is often required to have multiple positions.
Sometimes, when you are unlucky, you may encounter the "explosive combination" of a non-professional company and an intern, and even you can only be the person in charge as a copywriter and coordinate.
So although he has little experience, Meng Bai is not completely unfamiliar with the work of a producer.
However, in this way, the requirements for the director are relatively high. According to Meng Bai's idea, it is best to find an experienced and mature director to be responsible for the filming.
However, such directors are generally very famous and are unlikely to take on a web drama. Moreover, the pay of such directors will also be very high, and their "pitiful" budget may not be able to afford it.
You know, the screenwriter fee and producer salary that Meng Bai opened for himself only added up to 120,000.
For the entire project, the highest pay that Meng Bai can accept is Li Qin's "50,000 per episode" price. According to the "lens time converted to episodes" calculation method commonly used by actors, Qin Meizi's total pay is about 400,000.
This price is more than enough to find some new directors, but it is far from enough to find experienced directors.
Therefore, Meng Bai's idea is to find some "substitutes".
For example, an advertising director, a micro-film director, or a "big director's assistant" who has never directed independently.
In contrast, the last type is what Meng Bai wants most - someone with strength, experience, connections, and the possibility of choosing small projects for the opportunity to direct independently.
As it happens, Meng Bai does have connections in this area.
"Hello, senior, it's Meng Bai." When the phone was dialed, Meng Bai said in a familiar tone.
"Xiao Meng? You haven't been heard from for a while." A man's voice came from the phone: "You suddenly remembered to call me. You don't want to borrow money, do you? Let me make it clear first. I'm poor recently. If you borrow more than four digits, I'll hang up automatically."
"No, brother, this is how I look to you. Can't it be just a simple way to keep in touch?" Meng Bai said helplessly.
"Don't, I'm not used to keeping in touch with men." The man said with a "disdainful" tone.
The man who was talking to Meng Bai was named Zhou You. He was also from the Central Academy of Drama, but he studied directing.
His hometown was Dongshan Province, just like Meng Bai. After graduation, he did not stay in Beijing, but returned to his hometown to Shanying. He started as an assistant director and is now a live director.
Meng Bai and Zhou You met on the set of Shanying's "All Quiet in Peking" last year. They were classmates at the Central Academy of Drama, fellow villagers, and engaged in the same industry, so they became close all of a sudden.
"By the way, I'm glad you called me. I have something to tell you." Zhou You said, "I showed the spy war script you gave me last time to our President Hou. He is very interested in the script and asked me to ask you when is a convenient time for you to come over and have a chat."
"Uh, who is your 'President Hou'?" Meng Bai asked puzzledly.
"Hou Hongliang. He used to be a producer at Shanying, and now he is the chairman of our Noon Sunshine."
"Wow, big boss!" Meng Bai sighed, and then hurriedly said: "No problem, my time is easy to negotiate, just look at Mr. Hou's time."
"Okay, I'll keep this in mind for you, and I'll tell you when the time is right." After that, Zhou You asked again: "I'm done with what I want to say, what are you calling me about?"
"It's like this, senior brother, I recently discussed a web drama project."
Meng Bai briefly introduced the matter: "The crew is now short of an experienced director, and I want to ask you for help. See if you can contact Brother Zhang or Director Sun to see if they are interested. Or, senior brother, you can come if you are willing."
"Brother Zhang", Zhang Kaizhou, Shanying's director of photography;
"Director Sun", Sun Molong, Shanying's deputy director.
Meng Bai had contact with these two people when they were in the crew before, and they have always been with Shanying's "ace director" Kong Sheng.
Although he has not had the experience of independent directing so far, he is not inferior to ordinary directors in terms of strength and experience.
"Wow, you want me too, aren't you too hungry to choose food!" Zhou You joked, and then returned to seriousness and said: "It's not that I won't help you, junior brother, but if you want to start filming within half a year, I'm afraid there is no hope."
"What do you mean?"
"We are preparing a costume drama with a large investment recently, directed by Director Kong Sheng, and now everyone is busy with this project."
Zhou You explained to Meng Bai that Director Kong Sheng had previously separated from Shanying with a group of people and established a film and television production company called "Noon Sunshine". Although it still cooperates with Shanying, it has been seeking independent development.
Recently, Noon Sunshine has launched a costume drama, adapted from the online novel "Nirvana in Fire". This is the first dominant project after Noon Sunshine became independent, and it is also the first costume drama in so many years.
In order to ensure the quality of the project, Noon Sunshine has almost taken out all the strongest lineups.
In this case, their people naturally have no time to take on other projects.
"It's okay, senior brother, I'll look for other suitable candidates here." Meng Bai was not disappointed, as he had been prepared for this result.
What's more, this is not completely fruitless, at least there is another good opportunity in the script.
Zhou You was silent for a while, then asked: "What is the theme of your play?"
"Supernatural suspense, ghost legends, roughly these."
"Ah... I do know a director who may meet your requirements, but I don't know if he is interested. Well, I'll give you his contact information, you can contact him and ask."
"Okay." Meng Bai was not picky: "What's his name?"
"Oh, his name is easy to remember, it's Wubai."
"...Are you sure the person you recommended to me is a director, not a singer?"
(End of this chapter)
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