Chapter 476 Career Line
The investment promotion conference for "Business Simulator" in Yunnan Province went very smoothly. With the dual influence of CCTV and Ji Shao, even the CCTV production team couldn't help but show off a little that day using the official account that had millions of followers before the show even started.
The entire post was filled with a joyful atmosphere, which delighted fans as well. This official account was great! It was much better than those official accounts that gained followers but still acted aloof. Furthermore, it was a CCTV account, implicitly demonstrating the official's support for Ji Shao.
Before the press conference officially began, there was actually a small incident. Because the production team had already pre-selected the brands to invite, several brand chairmen who hadn't received invitations even came directly to the event and approached the production team to discuss whether they could be included.
"Business Simulator" is a collaboration between CCTV and the Yunnan Provincial Bureau of Culture and Tourism. Rather than being an investment promotion event, everyone understands that this is leveraging Ji Shao's traffic to open up the market for local brands and provide a small number of jobs for the people of Yunnan Province.
In recent years, CCTV has also launched cultural tourism promotional campaigns across the country, with local governments generally cooperating. However, this was the first time they'd collaborated with such a popular artist, and the number of fans who spontaneously gathered around the press conference surprised many.
If they declined to bid because they were not interested in this variety show, then now is the last time these brands can be given another chance to bring their products to the press conference. This is the last time that the station and the Cultural and Tourism Bureau will open their doors to support this variety show.
All CCTV variety show sponsors must possess a certain brand image and credibility. Only those companies carefully selected by the Yunnan Provincial Bureau of Culture and Tourism and free of significant negative publicity are eligible. Of course, the title sponsorship has already been secured by consumer goods giant Yujie, which has already invested heavily in the program.
Shortly after the press conference, Yunnan Province experienced a tourism boom thanks to Ji Shao. Because "Business Simulator" is a variety show about simulating the operation of a homestay, for fans, taking in Yunnan Province's magnificent mountains and rivers and unique local customs and culture, even occasionally snagging a spot or two can be considered a truly enjoyable journey.
The variety show over there was filming in full swing, and the crew here were also preparing for the show. When Zhou Xiao arrived this morning, he saw some agents or parents bringing their artists over.
"Dancing Fish" is a folk comedy film that uses the intangible cultural heritage of fish lanterns throughout, inheriting, reforming, and promoting traditional culture. The cast is of varying ages, and many young actors are needed.
Fang Xi's own selection criteria for film and television productions remained unchanged. Even child actors who had already garnered considerable attention through a few dramas and roles were required to wait the same time as other children auditioning. Zhou Xiao even suspected that Director Fang might favor newcomers.
Not only the actors who played the child characters, but also many of the film's more substantial roles were selected in advance by them. Zhou Xiaoyou took the time to review these dozens of actors. Aside from a few veteran actors, the others, even though they had filming experience, looked like they had never appeared on screen before, little different from amateurs.
One of the roles that the children brought by their agents and parents today will play is the teenage version of Su Ruoqing, the character played by Ji Shao in the movie "Dancing Fish".
When he was little, Aqing was playful and didn't want to sit on a bench and work on bamboo strips like his grandfather did. Yes, making fish lanterns often starts with making bamboo strips.
At first, the thorns on the bamboo strips would prick the child's delicate hands, making them grimace. But as they became skilled craftsmen, their rough palms and fingertips became the most convenient polishing tools for making fish lanterns.
Living in a rural courtyard, little Ah-Ching is quite naive, yet he subconsciously avoids the repetitive work that leaves his hands riddled with tiny bamboo thorns. Yet, he is also extremely clever and intelligent, so his aura was the most important factor in the casting.
"Which batch is this?" Li Zimin approached Zhou Xiao casually holding a pen in his mouth, secretly watching several agents and adults return disappointed.
"Are you asking about today's performance, or all of them?" Chen Dian leaned over and responded. It was during this period of recruiting young actors that people suddenly realized there was such a large pool of child stars in China.
"Director Fang's requirements are too high. I think some of them are quite handsome and would be a good match for Ji Shao." Li Zimin looked at Zhou and smiled. "Teacher Zhou, don't you agree?"
Zhou Xiao shook his head and didn't answer. Just looking good wasn't enough. Besides physical resemblance, the younger character's temperament also had to match the character. Little Aqing might look like a little brat, but deep down he had a sense of responsibility.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have secretly practiced after his grandfather tacitly allowed him to soar into the wider sky. Otherwise, after graduating from university, he wouldn't have resolutely taken over the skills and hopes left by his grandfather before he left, and once again let the fish lanterns dance in the sky during the Lantern Festival due to the lack of successors.
Watching another group of young actors leave, Zhou Xiao decided she shouldn't continue to watch. Under the curious gaze of the two script supervisors, she took the camera that had been kept in the first-floor lobby at Director Fang's request and began to rub it.
As the fangirl who filmed Ji Shao and had a deep understanding of the plot, the children who were being held by adults and standing in the corridor began to appear in Zhou Xiao's camera.
…
The past few days have been spent selecting the role of Xiao Aqing. Zhou Xiao set up her tripod early in the morning, waiting for the young actors to arrive. Perhaps it was just such a coincidence that as she set it up, a clear and tender child's voice rang in her ears.
"Sister, are you going to take a picture of me?"
The bright yellow fabric made the child look particularly lively. Zhou Xiao turned around and saw a pair of bright eyes fixed on him. Eighty percent curious and two percent bold, Zhou Xiao didn't say anything. Instead, he raised the camera on the tripod, bent down, and aimed the lens at the child in front of him.
He didn't look too much like Ji Shao, but he still fit the character's childhood appearance quite well. Zhou Xiao slowly calculated Ji Shao's proposed appearance in "Dancing Fish" in his mind, pondering for a moment until someone grabbed the hem of his clothes and shook it, and then he came to his senses.
"Do you like being photographed?" Zhou Xiao bent down with a smile on his face, and whispered after moving the camera away.
Seeing the child in front of her nod like a grown-up, Zhou Xiao had already made a decision. She wasn't a casting director and didn't interfere with the casting process. But if this group of young actors still weren't chosen, she would give this child a chance.
The imagined scene did not happen, but under the gaze of Li Zimin and Shen Dian, they watched Zhou Xiao, who had just been sitting in front of the tripod, looking at the camera lens and talking to the two of them from time to time, being called in by Director Fang.
The interview room, which was converted from the master bedroom on the first floor, was very spacious. As soon as Zhou Xiao stepped in, before he saw anyone, he felt an atmosphere that was more relaxed than the previous depressing one.
Fang Xi, who was sitting in the middle, heard footsteps. When she looked up and saw Zhou Xiao coming in, she quickly extended her hand and beckoned her over. When Zhou Xiao quickly walked behind her, she saw two resumes neatly placed on a pile of messy A4 papers. One of them was the child Zhou Xiao had just met.
Fang Xi pointed at the two photos with his index and middle fingers and asked directly, "Which of these two children do you think is more suitable?"
When the people sitting at the long table heard this, their eyes subconsciously fell on Zhou Xiao. Was this... going to let this older sister decide?
Other directors might not give such an important choice to a director from Group B, but that doesn't mean Fang Xi won't. You know, many of the roles she directed in the movies and TV series she directed before were recommended by behind-the-scenes staff who were familiar with her.
No one knows an actor's worth better than the crew behind the scenes. Many duplicitous actors often lose their temper and anger at those with less status. The film is yours, and your actions on set are also being scrutinized by hundreds, even thousands, of eyes.
Zhou Xiaowei leaned forward, examining the two resumes with great attention. The resumes contained not only basic information but also modeling and stills from the two children's past shoots and performances.
"Director Fang, please let me take another look at the two children," Zhou Xiao replied after thinking for a moment.
Although the content that Groups A and B are responsible for filming has not yet been released, Zhou Xiao already has a vague feeling that Director Fang will let him film the young Su Ruoqing.
Fang Xi listened to Zhou Xiao's words and nodded slightly, then asked the assistant to go outside and call the two young actors in. Seeing that both of them looked a little nervous, she shifted her gaze to Zhou Xiao again.
The choice is here.
The choice that had them all a bit tangled came to Zhou Xiao. At first glance, the other young actor's facial features didn't resemble Ji Shao's, but upon closer inspection, a resemblance could be detected between his eyebrows and eyes. It wasn't much, but it was enough.
Zhou Xiao immediately understood the dilemma facing the group of people in the room. Was it about similarity or cleverness?
You have to know that the film's investment promotion was entirely focused on Ji Shao, and both the focus of the publicity and the key points of the play would undoubtedly fall on him. The fact that the young actor's eyebrows and eyes can bear some resemblance is already a unique blessing, and it will also make it easier for the audience to accept the transition from 1.0 to 2.0.
After selecting the lens assist, Zhou Xiao chose the answer without hesitation.
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