"Sister Tang, do you have something to talk to me about?" Si Mingyu called back after seeing the message.
"Well, there's something I'd like to trouble you with, Mr. Si." Tang Yan went straight to the point.
She knows that many rich and powerful people don't have time to guess riddles with you, so just say what you need to say without any polite words. The fact that they can answer your call means that the relationship is in place.
"What's the matter?" Si Mingyu was also quite curious. Didn't she go to the capital to film a movie?
"Several scenes of my drama need to be filmed in Shanghai, so the crew came here. One scene requires a supercar. Although I have a Ferrari 458, Director Xu feels it's still a little lacking, so I wanted to borrow Mr. Si's car."
Don’t be fooled by the fact that the three legendary cars, McLaren P1, Porsche 918 and Ferrari LaFerrari, were present in the previous supercar challenge. Bugatti, Koenigsegg, Pagani and Lamborghini were also there. The valuable ones were only a few, and the rest were all cars worth millions.
There are many wealthy people in Shanghai, and there are also many supercars worth over 10 million yuan, but this car is not something you can just borrow. The reason why Tang Yan approached Si Mingyu was because he was one of the investors and was naturally easier to talk to.
"Okay, which one do you want to borrow?" It turned out to be borrowing a car, not a big deal.
"Mr. Si, do you have any other supercars besides the Lamborghini Aventador SVJ?" Tang Yan had only seen Si Mingyu's Lamborghini at the supercar challenge. Afterwards, he checked and found that the signature had been completed, so he thought of borrowing the car from him.
"And a McLaren Senna."
"Great, can I borrow this McLaren?" I originally thought I could borrow a car worth more than 10 million yuan, but now it has become a car worth more than 16 million yuan, which is far beyond my expectations.
"Okay, then you can ask someone to come pick it up at the World Financial Center."
"Mr. Si, are you there? Director Xu wants to visit."
"Then come over here."
When I bought the office space in the World Financial Center, it also came with five parking spaces. The two supercars are usually parked in the underground parking lot, and the exclusive driver Wan Chongshan is responsible for warming up the cars regularly.
"Mr. Si, the guests have arrived." Lin Shirui reported through the intercom.
"Please let them in."
Lin Shirui walked in with Xu Jinglei and Tang Yan.
"Hello, Mr. Si."
"Hello, Director Xu."
After a few handshakes and a few pleasantries, they took their seats, each one a guest and host. Si Mingyu's office was over 100 square meters, with a lounge and washroom nearby. He alone occupied over 160 square meters. As a result, the company's original 1,000 square meters had been expanded to 1,500.
You have to know that this is a famous financial center in Shanghai. The rent for such a large company is not cheap. This made Xu Jinglei and Tang Yan's understanding of Si Mingyu's strength further increased.
"Mr. Si, I was planning to come visit you directly after I got off the plane. But then we started talking about the car, so I asked Tang Yan to call you first."
Xu Jinglei said this to tell Si Mingyu that I didn’t think of you as an investor just because I wanted to borrow a car, but I had planned it a long time ago.
The reason for calling first rather than bringing up the car after arriving was to avoid embarrassment for both parties. If the matter were brought up mid-conversation, and the person reluctantly agreed to lend it out of respect, it would be bad for both parties. Tang Yan would simply call and, if they didn't agree, the matter would be forgotten. When Xu Jinglei came to visit again, she could just pretend she didn't know about it.
"Director Xu, you're too polite. It's not a big deal. I'll have the driver take you there to pick it up later." Si Mingyu also understood what Xu Jinglei meant, but he didn't care.
"I'm sorry to bother you, Mr. Si." Even if a phone call to Si Mingyu could get the people in the department to speak for him, Xu Jinglei had to maintain enough respect for him.
The three of them chatted for a while, and after getting to know each other, Xu Jinglei made an unwelcome request, asking if they could shoot the film at Si Mingyu's company.
It turns out that one of the main characters in the series is the young CEO of a listed company in Shanghai, so a supercar was needed to highlight his status. The original filming location seemed quite small compared to Si Mingyu's company.
Apart from anything else, their current office offered a view of the Huangpu River and several famous financial buildings. Xu Jinglei already had a scene in mind: a close-up of the young CEO in the office, his back to the camera, before the camera gradually zoomed in to reveal the entire Shanghai financial district through the huge floor-to-ceiling windows, instantly captivating.
"That's no problem. Director Xu, just contact my assistant when the time comes." Since he is an investor, there is nothing wrong with lending the location to the crew.
This trip basically solved most of the crew's problems in Shanghai. Xu Jinglei had to thank Si Mingyu very much, so she invited him to attend the crew's dinner party in the evening, and the entire crew would be there.
Of course, the so-called full crew consisted of Xu Jinglei, two assistant directors, the actors with scenes in Shanghai, and their assistants. All other personnel and equipment were temporarily sourced locally. They were all industry insiders, so a few phone calls and text messages were all it took to get the team together, and with a director and actors, they could get to work right away.
The assistant director is currently selecting costumes with several actors. Not to mention the period costumes, even modern drama costumes have specialized rental agencies. For example, banquet dresses, wedding gowns, various official uniforms, and matching jewelry and accessories are all rented.
The costumes used for film shooting are definitely higher-end than those from ordinary rental companies, but this is visually superior rather than brand-wise. The ultimate goal is still to be presented on the screen through the camera.
If a film requires famous brands, the crew has to find a way themselves. Most of the time, the actors bring their own, after all, they are wealthy and will not lack luxury goods.
In many movies, wealthy people drive cars worth hundreds of thousands of dollars without even a driver. This is even worse than some TV dramas. I don’t know if the crew is really poor or they are trying to fool the audience.
Although we just got off the plane, the total flight time was only more than two hours. Although we can't start work immediately, we can't let the actors be idle. The crew pays them on a daily basis, so it won't be tiring to go and choose costumes and try out the styling. It can be said to kill two birds with one stone.
Although he was an investor, Si Mingyu had never been involved in this industry and was very curious about making movies, so he decided to go with them and watch the actors try on their makeup.
The clothing rental agency is located in the XH District, where the Shanghai Film Studio is located. There are many companies serving the film industry nearby, and it is less than an hour's drive from here.
Xu Jinglei and Tang Yan came in a Toyota Alpha, and naturally went back with Si Mingyu in his Maybach. On the way, the two talked about some operational knowledge of the crew and interesting anecdotes encountered during the filming process.
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