Chapter 400
Zhou Xiao had been staying at the photography base for the time being. After she and everyone had swiftly restored the studio to its original state and prepared for tomorrow's shoot, she told everyone to leave work early to recharge their batteries for tomorrow's shoot.
After two days of bustling activity, the photography base finally returned to calm. Even the security guard's puppy seemed a bit more lively. By nightfall, Zhou Xiao and Xue Xi were the only ones left in the small building. Xue Xi still lived on the third floor, but now she would come downstairs to visit Zhou Xiao.
In the second-floor living room, a laptop sat on the coffee table, its screen displaying the original footage from the past two days. Sitting on the carpet, Zhou Xiao was selecting the photos, waiting to send them to Qiao Haidong for post-processing.
"Sister Xiaoxiao, aren't you resting yet?" Xue Xi walked over to Zhou Xiao's side naturally, then sat down on the carpet with her. Seeing the extremely fast assembly and compilation on the screen, Xue Xi suddenly felt that what he had just said was nonsense.
"Almost done," Zhou Xiao said as he tapped away at the keyboard, moving the final few photos he had selected into a folder. Once the compressed files were sent to Qiao Haidong's work email, Zhou Xiao's two days of work were officially over.
Looking at Zhou Xiao, who was still in good spirits, Xue Xi felt a surge of admiration for her boss. She didn't know about the others, but as a photographer's assistant, she knew better than anyone the sheer amount of energy Zhou Xiao expended.
Zhou Xiao closed her computer and smiled slightly at Xue Xi, who sat obediently beside her. Then, as if remembering something, she picked up the remote control from the coffee table, turned on the TV, and casually said, "Want to watch TV together?"
The show I’m watching is of course CCTV’s “The Unparalleled General”. It’s only been a week since it was first aired, but this show already has the potential to become a phenomenal hit.
The most obvious thing is the ratings and broadcast volume, which broke CCTV's records for several years on its first day. But this is not enough. The ratings of "The Unparalleled General" are like a sharp blade, and their ultimate goal is to continuously break through.
Even with the show airing on both TV and the internet, Blueberry Video still updated its battle reports daily. The number of comments in less than ten episodes already far exceeded the total for entire series of other popular dramas.
Meanwhile, discussions about "The Unparalleled General" continued to swirl on social media platforms like Weibo, Douyin, and forums. Imitations of the characters' lines, gestures, and clips from the series became incredibly popular on short videos.
What made Zhou Xiao feel the drama's popularity most directly was the explosive growth of messages in his account's private messages. In the past, these private messages were usually filled with messages from fans, hoping that Zhou Xiao would give a pat on the back of their favorite artists.
Lately, the forums have been crammed with eager fans. Most of these people, whose "recent super topics" appear on their homepages, have nothing to do with the entertainment industry. Judging by the text of the messages they've received, it doesn't seem like they were orchestrated, but rather a sudden rush of people following a brief education.
…
The drama of the unparalleled general is superb.
Any data fan who enters the super topic will be shocked by the data at the top of the drama super. When they see the tall buildings and high-intensity interactions inside, it is also their first true understanding of the drama super of the hit drama.
As the popularity of actors and actresses has increased, drama super-fans in the domestic entertainment industry have long lost their ability to fulfill their true purpose. Some drama super-fans even blatantly block fan forums created for a character without any reason, just because fans of the main actor are dissatisfied with a particular actor in the show.
The drama "The Unparalleled General" is different. Thanks to the concerted efforts of Ji Shao fans and the drama fans, this super topic finally fulfilled its name. It focuses on the drama and serves as an important platform for fans to communicate and interact.
Zhou Xiao glanced at the time. She'd turned on the TV a little late today, and it was almost the end of today's update. But it was clear that this hadn't affected the excitement in the super topic at all.
Seeing Gao Lou suggesting they go to Blueberry Video to rewatch the show tomorrow, Zhou Xiao couldn't help but smile. He inexplicably thought the fans were really adorable. They were already starting to pay attention to the show's statistics.
Zhou Xiao browsed through several high-profile posts on the topic, and just as she was about to leave, a new post popped up on the page. Just as she was about to exit, she suddenly discovered that the owner of the post was Ji Shao!
On the other side, Song Xiao and Chen Shenju were sitting next to Ji Shao respectively. The moment they saw his post was successfully sent out, they immediately cheered together.
Ji Shao, who was sandwiched between the two, was somewhat helpless when he heard the cheers, "It's just a post, why are you two going to such a fuss?"
Song Xiao and Chen Shenju exchanged a glance, appearing serious on the surface, but secretly chuckling. Who just edited the content for almost twenty minutes? Well, if you don't tell me, I won't tell you either.
But deep within that smile, there was a growing respect for Ji Shao. Posting on the drama's official Weibo account was a task assigned to the actors, and Huang Xiang had already done so yesterday. The actors would relay their posts, and by the finale, all the main cast members would gather under the official Weibo account. This promotional tactic was both novel and a necessary evil.
Just how big of a hit has "The Unparalleled General" become? Numerous brands have already expressed their willingness to pay high prices for title sponsorship and cover the show's meet-and-greets and roadshow expenses. This has the rest of the cast, except Huang Xiang and Ji Shao, drooling profusely.
But the frustration is that the two most eye-catching and important actors of this drama have already joined the cast. Even though the production team really wants to hold offline activities, everyone knows who these willing sponsors are for.
If Huang Xiang's post the day before sparked a heated discussion in the super topic, then Ji Shao's blog post written in the tone of the "steamed fish" general directly captured the hearts of many drama fans.
It was clearly just a promotional post, but every line of the blog was filled with Ji Shao's profound understanding of the character. At this moment, Ji Shao was like Xie Zhengyun, who had transcended time and space, using Ji Shao's account to complete his first meeting with fans of the drama.
——【Entertainment Forum】——[May 24th evening]
[Theme] Chasing the General's Unparalleled is truly a stable happiness!
[Main Post] It's been a while since I've enjoyed watching a drama so much. Not only is the atmosphere great, but there are also so many amazing ladies who are crazy about producing content! It's really crazy, hahaha. The first thing I do when I wake up every day is to read the new content collected by my fellow fans~
And Zhengyu just came to the super topic to play. I don’t know if it was arranged by the drama production team, but I’m already looking forward to every day to come!
1L
Although there is a filter for chasing dramas when it comes to popular dramas, I feel that "The King's Men" can become a classic as long as the plot plays out normally.
63L
[Smoking] Those who mocked Ji Shao for taking the second male lead role should have been slapped in the face now, right? But to be honest, I really didn't expect his acting to be so good for a newcomer. Although he looks a little green at times, he just happens to match the mature Xie Zhengyun, which is quite wonderful.
146L
We are a small group that follows the drama, and now we tag the official Weibo and the director every day [covering face]. The drama is really good in every way, but the stills are really hard to describe. If there is a magazine photo shoot with all the cast later, please ask Sister Zhou to take the photos!
205L
Reply to 63L: I don’t know if “The Unparalleled General” can make it to the Huacai Golden Drama Awards. Maybe it will even win the Best Newcomer Award.
333L
Dear sisters in the building, please stop giving me bad words! Our classmate Xiao Ji is still working hard in the crew, so please don’t give me any bad words!
…
In the living room, Zhou Xiao looked at the forum link Dong Xiaoyu had sent to the small group chat and couldn't help but feel a bit emotional. Ever since the broadcast of "The Unparalleled General," fans like Dong Xiaoyu, who had gradually returned to the real world due to their busy schedules, felt like they had taken a resurrection pill.
Although I don't know what will happen to them after the show ends, as long as Ji Shao has works, Zhou Xiao believes that everyone will stay together. Works are important to artists, and they are also important to fans.
"Ha—" Xue Xi, who had put down her phone, glanced at Zhou Xiao. She subconsciously rubbed her eyes and then looked at Zhou Xiao and said, "Sister Xiaoxiao, I'm going to bed first. Let's watch the drama together tomorrow!"
Zhou Xiao nodded, waved to Xue Xi, and whispered, "See you tomorrow~"
As for getting a good night's sleep, Zhou Xiao didn't think it meant much. Every employee received a welcome aromatherapy gift pack from her. If you're experiencing insomnia, just a little bit of it will guarantee a sweet sleep!
Thinking of the gift packages, Zhou Xiao pondered for a moment and opened the courier interface, only to see a screen filled with front desk signatures. These packages were Dragon Boat Festival gifts from brands and artist studios, and were currently being stored at the Huashang Times Hotel.
Maybe after tomorrow's shoot is over, I should go back to the hotel. Zhou Xiao propped his chin up with one hand, and his mood suddenly brightened when he thought of Qiao Haidong, who had been certified by XS. Sure enough, this kind of pure shooting without post-production work is a complete joy!
In a residential complex in Shanghai, Qiao Haidong, who subconsciously checked her email before falling asleep, was surprised to see a new email on the screen. After a pause, she reached out and switched the wall lamp to a headlight.
The reason why Qiao Haidong joined Zhou Xiao's studio was not only because she didn't want to waste time on micro-business products that could easily fail, but also because she knew from the headhunter that the boss who was poaching her was Zhou Xiao.
This should be the first time I've seen Zhou Xiao's original film, right? Qiao Haidong thought to himself.
The tablet that was placed on the bedside table to charge before going to bed was picked up. Looking at the progress bar of downloading the compressed package, Qiao Haidong's eyes were full of curiosity.
Post-production is crucial to a successful film; good post-production can even save a bad film. But if a photographer relies too much on post-production... Qiao Haidong feels this is the key to whether she will run away.
If Zhou Xiao became a big star in the industry by relying on transitioning to the post-production stage, then Qiao Haidong, who took over the post-production position, would undoubtedly become a backbreaking worker. Of course, before running away, she also wanted to see if she could exchange some techniques and learn some skills.
The compressed package on the tablet page has been successfully decompressed. Qiao Haidong opened the folder. After clicking on a picture at random, she suddenly became dazed.
On the screen, Zhou Quanli perfectly interprets PZ. However, she believes that being able to skillfully capture that moment and fully display it on the screen is the most precious thing.
Qiao Haidong felt that this was the best original photo she had ever edited, and this original photo was just one she randomly opened in the folder.
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