Chapter 142 Not for Sale
Editor Xiao Li gave a name: "Zheng Changming."
Jiang Jianni: "..."
Sorry, I've never heard of it.
She only knew the four famous directors who came later, as well as some directors who transitioned from acting to behind-the-scenes work.
She's not focused on this industry, so it's impossible for her to know the name of every director.
So I had to ask again, "What works has he created?"
"No."
Fearing Jiang Jianni would refuse, he quickly added, "But Director Zhengming graduated with a degree in directing and has participated in the filming of many TV series."
"You know the TV series 'The Four Sisters of the Lu Family', right? He was the assistant director in it."
"The Four Sisters of the Lu Family" is a TV series that aired after the Lunar New Year this year. It tells the story of the four Lu sisters from the 1970s to the 1980s.
There are dramatic elements, illicit affairs, rape, extramarital affairs, going astray and reconciliation, stories of four sisters, and stories of the previous and next generations.
In just twenty-four episodes, the content is as rich as that of an eighty-episode series from later generations.
Although there weren't any explicit scenes, some of the storylines were honestly much bolder and more daring than those filmed twenty or thirty years later.
Jiang Jianni kept marveling at how audacious and fortunate the screenwriters are these days while watching.
Unlike twenty years later, when all screenwriters are dancing in shackles and chains.
I never expected that this young director, who is said to be only twenty-six or twenty-seven years old, would have participated in the filming of this kind of drama.
Seeing that Jiang Jianni's attitude had softened, Editor Li quickly threw out the most important bargaining chip: "Didn't you just ask about the funding?"
"There's absolutely no need to worry about that; Director Zheng plans to invest himself."
Jiang Jianni was genuinely surprised: "He invested it himself? He funded it all? Seriously? A period drama costs millions to produce, and he paid for it all by himself?"
What kind of tycoon is this?
Editor Xiao Li quickly replied, "It's true, I'm not lying to you. Director Zheng's family is wealthy. He wanted to make his own TV series and didn't want to be controlled by others, so he asked his family for investment. I'm not lying to you, it's true."
Goodbye.
The more he talks, the more he sounds like a liar.
Coal mine owners haven't turned their attention to the film and television industry yet.
Until two thousand years ago, many well-known TV dramas were actually produced by TV stations, some of which were broadcast on CCTV, some on provincial stations, and some on local stations.
But frankly, there are practically none of them being personal investments.
There's no way around it; the investment in producing a TV series is just too huge.
Movies can have their budgets reduced, but TV series are so long and have so many people, so even if you try to reduce the budget, it will still cost a lot of money.
For example, everyone knows the classic novel "Journey to the West".
The production team really cut corners during filming, but the total investment still reached six million. Filming was even suspended at one point due to insufficient funds.
Back then, actors' salaries were relatively low.
In the past two years, actors' salaries have increased. It is said that during the filming of "The Investiture of the Gods", the highest salary was already over 10,000 yuan.
No one knows better than Jiang Jiani herself how complex the plot of her novel, "The Sequel to Investiture of the Gods," is.
If the other party wanted to extract a segment for a movie, I could believe it if it was a personal investment, but a TV series? A single person investing?
Are you kidding me?
Compared to that, copyright fees are nothing.
Jiang Jianni's previously excited spirits seemed to be doused with cold water: "I've thought about it, but I think I'll pass."
Editor Xiao Li: "???"
He didn't understand; everything was fine just a moment ago, so why did she suddenly give up? "Teacher Jiang..."
Jiang Jianni waved her hand: "I haven't finished writing the book yet. Let's talk about it after I finish writing it."
"Thank you for your trouble, Xiao Li. You've made a wasted trip."
Editor Xiao Li immediately panicked: "Teacher Jiang..."
Jiang Jianni gently patted her stomach: "Xiao Li, it's not that I don't want to earn this money."
"Look at my belly, it's so big, the baby is almost here. I really don't have the energy to deal with these things before the baby is born."
"In that case, if Director Zheng Changming is willing, you can tell him to wait."
"At least until I give birth to the child and finish writing the novel."
"Making a TV series is no joke; it costs millions. At least let people see the ending of the story before talking about anything else. We can't cheat people, right?"
Only then did Xiao Li notice her enormous belly.
The words of advice I wanted to say suddenly became impossible to utter.
How should I put it?
When Zheng Changming contacted them, their editor-in-chief also mentioned this issue.
Zheng Changming meant that Jiang Shan could write faster and finish the rest of the story so they could publish it gradually.
He's taking photos here, and the magazine is continuing to publish them.
Both sides are advancing simultaneously.
By the time the serialization ends, the TV series will be almost finished filming. After the series concludes, there will be some promotion. I don't believe the TV series won't be a hit.
However, none of them expected that Ms. Jiang was pregnant and about to give birth, and she refused.
Xiao Li isn't stupid.
He could tell that Teacher Jiangshan was not short of money at all; writing was just a hobby for him.
There's no point in forcing someone like that.
If they push them too far, they might quit, and then their magazine would be finished.
Let's be reasonable.
They had contacted her by phone several times and knew that Teacher Jiangshan was a young woman, but they never expected that this young woman was an expectant mother.
Editor Xiao Li left dejectedly.
Lu Xiangyang helped Jiang Jianni to sit down on the bed and washed her feet and massaged her legs with warm water: "Didn't you always say that it would be great if you could film a TV series? Why don't you agree now that someone wants to film it?"
Jiang Jianni said dejectedly, "Who said I don't want to? I miss it terribly."
"The problem is, it's unreliable."
"This Zheng Changming actually dares to say that he is producing the drama on his own. I don't even believe him when he makes such outrageous claims."
"A modern drama costs over a million to film, and this is the most expensive period drama. He funded it all by himself?"
"I'd be a fool to believe him."
"Forget it, I don't think I'm destined to make that kind of money. I'll just stick to earning royalties."
As for copyright fees and such, it seems she really isn't destined for that.
She gave up, but Xiao Li didn't.
After leaving the Jiang family, he immediately found a public phone booth and called back to the editorial department to explain the situation.
The editor-in-chief jumped to his feet: "What? You rejected it? Because you're about to give birth?"
"You're talking nonsense."
"Teacher Jiangshan only needs to sign the copyright contract for the TV series; she doesn't even need to go to the filming location. How could that affect having a baby?"
"Did you say something that angered Teacher Jiang and that's why she refused?"
Xiao Li quickly replied, "No, no, that's exactly how Teacher Jiang refused. Did she offer too little money initially?"
Editor-in-Chief: "Did Professor Jiang himself say he thought the copyright fee was too low? Didn't you say the price was negotiable?"
Xiao Li was stunned for a moment: "Ah, I, I didn't say anything about copyright fees..."
The editor-in-chief instantly flew into a rage: "You...you ...
He was like an angry bull, and it took him a while to calm down: "According to what you said, Teacher Jiang was originally quite willing, but later refused. You must have said something you shouldn't have."
“You better learn everything Teacher Jiangshan said, including what you said yourself.”
"If you miss a single word, I'll dock three months' salary!"
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