Entertainment: I just want to be the boss behind the scenes

Chapter 352 Script Killing Movie
"Xiao Yangjin was selected in the final?"

"Yes. When the selection started, the production team was quite impressed with her, but she was later eliminated due to lack of ability. Unexpectedly, a contestant withdrew from the competition, leaving a vacant spot, so they let her take over."

"That's okay too!"

Listening to Yang Ming's explanation on the phone, Meng Bai had a "black question mark.jpg" expression on his face: "What did she do that would impress the production team?"

"The production crew asked her why she wanted to be a girl group idol, and she said it was because she was paid 2000 yuan a month and provided food and accommodation..."

"..."

There was silence on both sides of the phone.

How should I put this answer...Anyway, it is indeed the truth.

"You told me that this girl was lucky, but I didn't believe it." Yang Ming said with emotion: "Now I realize that sometimes you really can't help but believe this stuff."

Meng Bai thought to himself when he heard this, Yang Chaoyue is more than just lucky, she is destined to be lucky.

"Where are the other three people?" After all, they had a meal together, so Meng Bai also took the opportunity to show some concern.

"They were relatively successful and made it through the final round. They have already gone to the Xiaoshan production team to gather, and the official recording should begin before the end of the month."

Although the screening process of the program team is very complicated, the standards are actually not very strict.

There is no way. 101 places for contestants may seem not many, but there are even fewer people to choose from.

Tencent Video recently aired a selection documentary titled "Girl Group", which counted the number of girl groups in the entire domestic entertainment industry.

Even if we include those underground idols who are not even considered 48th-tier, there are less than people in total, and a considerable number of them are from the " series".

If we exclude those who skirt the rules or sell dog meat under the guise of mutton, there will be even fewer people left.

So this time, in addition to those girl groups or trainees, "Produce 101" also has a large number of new singers, new actors and internet celebrity anchors.

In comparison, the TCG that Taiyang Chuanhe put together in a hurry at least concentrated training for more than half a year.

So except for the fact that the selection process of Yang Chaoyue was a bit outrageous, there was no problem with the other three girls.

After hanging up the phone, Meng Bai still couldn't help but sigh for a while.

If I had known earlier, I shouldn't have let this girl become an idol. She should have stayed in Arc Light and acted as a mascot or something.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but laugh.

Whether a drama or an artist can become popular often involves some metaphysical elements. The entertainment industry is a concentration camp for science and engineering illiterates, so it believes in things like fate more than other industries.

If it were some traditional companies, they would rather offer this girl a high salary and keep her even if she doesn't work.

I don't want anything else, just for good luck.

Of course, Meng Bai just thought so. As a member of the "Flying Spaghetti God Cult", he was just interested in metaphysics for fun.

What's more, although Yang Chaoyue is gone, Huguang still has a new "special prize winner".

"Mr. Meng, this is the inspiration for the story I mentioned earlier."

He Yihe handed a not-too-thick script to Meng Bai, and then waited nervously.

Living in a single-parent family with his mother since childhood, He Yihe was always the obedient "other people's child" when he was young.

Because his father was a doctor of literature from the Chinese Academy of Drama, he was a standard science student until high school, and his grades were excellent. He was admitted to the science experimental class of No. 101 Middle School and participated in various science and engineering competitions.

But perhaps it was his talent, he was actually more interested in text stories. So after the college entrance examination, he made up his mind to persuade his mother to let him give up science and pursue literature.

After working as a freelance writer for several years, he joined ArcLight Pictures through the introduction of his biological father and became a new screenwriter.

As soon as he joined Arclight, he found that he was in the right place. Suspense and mystery works are based on logic, which is a perfect opportunity for He Yihe, who has a background in science and engineering.

It didn't take long for him to show his ability in the screenwriting department. He was first promoted to a full-time screenwriter, and later he was responsible for part of the script for the second season of "Who's the Detective".

By the third season, he had even become the lead writer for a single episode.

As one of the most talented people in Arclight's screenwriting department, he, like other colleagues, has his biggest idol as his boss, "Meng Bai".

He thought that he would develop slowly and maybe in a few years, he would have the opportunity to work with his boss. But he didn't expect that a sudden "Special Prize of the Annual Meeting" would bring his wish forward.

When he first found out he had won the prize, he was surprised at first, but then began to worry.

He had a story idea that he thought was very interesting, but it was still in the gestation stage and had not yet taken shape. He originally thought that he would find an opportunity to give it to his boss after it was fully perfected.

Now that the opportunity has come, it's embarrassing that his story is still in the inspiration stage.

Fortunately, my boss told me at that time that there was no need to rush and I could wait until he was sure before showing it to him.

In the past few months, apart from his normal work, He Yihe has been perfecting this story in his spare time. Until recently, he finally completed a first draft.

Although it is just a rough outline, it is at least a complete story.

After hesitating for a few days, he finally gritted his teeth and went to his boss to tell him his idea.

"Is this the story about script-killing that you mentioned before?" Meng Bai took the script and looked at the blank cover: "No title?"

He Yihe's face tensed, and he said awkwardly, "I haven't...thought about it yet."

Damn it, I was so focused on the content that I forgot the name.

Will the boss feel that I am fooling him?
Meng Bai didn't care about it. The project name might be modified more than a dozen times during the entire production process, so it didn't matter whether it existed now or not.

He is more concerned about the content of the story.

Meng Bai had some impression of He Yihe. The two episodes of the third season of "The Great Detective" that received the highest ratings were the ones he was mainly responsible for writing.

Now there is another story with the theme of "script killing", and I am really interested in it.

Meng Bai flipped through the script in his hand—which couldn't really be considered a script—and began to read it carefully.

During the Republic of China, a shocking murder occurred in Shanghai. The richest man in the city was murdered in a hotel room, and the whereabouts of the murderer remained a mystery.

One night, a group of new people came to the abandoned hotel due to the murder. A frustrated screenwriter, a washed-up female star, a third-rate director, an action actor, a former detective, and a wealthy businessman, six people came together, hoping to reproduce the murder into a movie and become famous.

In order to make the plot more realistic and attract the audience, they need to deduce the most reasonable truth of the murder. However, during the discussion, they gradually discovered that the murderer was among them. Not only that, there are more stories buried under this shocking murder...】

Because it was just a literary story, it wasn't very long, only about a dozen pages. It didn't take Meng Bai long to finish reading it.

"You really are worthy of being the screenwriter of "Detective Chinatown." Meng Bai teased, "Whatever story you write, you always have six characters playing the whole scene, right?"

He Yihe was stunned when he heard this, and then his face turned pale.

Perhaps because the theme of "script killing" is so similar to the format of "The Great Detective", he didn't think much about it when he was writing it and just completed it in the way that came to his mind.

Now that Meng Bai pointed it out to him, he suddenly realized that this was not a program with a limit on the number of guests, so why did they have to complete it according to the structure of a six-person group?

"It seems you've thought of this, too." Meng Bai said, "In order to limit the story to these few people, each character has to shoulder too many tasks. Not only does it make the characters too complicated, but many plot twists are also abrupt."

No wonder, He Yihe suddenly realized, and said that the reason why he felt more and more uncomfortable as he wrote further was because each character had a lot of functions, which made the core of the whole story smaller and smaller.

If he abandoned the mental constraints on the number of roles and split the roles... he suddenly felt that he had many new ideas.

Thinking of this, he looked at the big boss sitting opposite him with admiration.

He had shown this story to his friends before, and everyone praised him for being able to tell a very complex story with such a small scene, and he was very proud of it.

Unexpectedly, Mr. Meng got to the heart of the problem after just one look, pointing out the flaws that he was proud of but was actually full of loopholes.

"Also, I can see that you consciously used small stories to allude to major changes in the plot. But in the end, you reduced the main theme to pure revenge. From the perspective of reasoning, it does form a logically complete closed loop, but it lowers the overall structure of the play."

"Also, the characterization of the murderer is indeed multifaceted, but the other characters have become mere tools, and the previous professional backgrounds and the like are all meaningless."

"..."

Meng Bai pointed out several flaws in the story one after another, and He Yihe's face became paler and paler.

"Yes, I'm sorry, Mr. Meng."

Finally, He Yihe said with shame: "I finished this story a little hastily. I will go back and start over again."

"That's not necessary." Meng Bai looked at the story in his hand, "What I just said were just some flaws. The theme of this book and the story itself are still very exciting."

As he spoke, he expressed his thoughts on the story and some new ideas.

He Yihe was listening carefully at first, but soon he took out a pen and paper and began to take notes. As he wrote, his heart was filled with shock.

Mr. Meng only read the story that he had been pondering for a long time once, and immediately he had many more exciting inspirations and settings.

Especially at the end, the truth of the whole story was changed from a definite ending to an open ending, which deepened the theme a lot.

I thought I was already very talented, but today after experiencing it myself I realized what a crushing difference is.

Sure enough, he is worthy of being President Meng!
Meng Bai finished speaking about his thoughts and revision suggestions in one breath, and finally said: "These are some of my ideas. After all, this story is still your creation, so you can pick and choose to use it."

He Yihe looked at the densely packed records on his hands and smiled bitterly in his heart.

Every suggestion from Mr. Meng was much more brilliant and appropriate than his own ideas. No matter how he changed them, it would feel like he was destroying them. It would be better to just use them directly.

But in this case, can this still be considered my own script?
Perhaps knowing what he was thinking, Meng Bai continued, "Well, when you go back, you can find two helpers you want, form a separate team together, and try to come up with a complete script. If the project is approved, you will be the first to sign it, after all, you were the one who came up with the idea for this story."

He Yihe heard this and said excitedly: "Okay, Mr. Meng, I will start as soon as I get back."

Watching the young man leave happily, Meng Bai couldn't help but sigh that Arclight's screenwriter department is really full of hidden talents. Without paying attention, a talented seedling popped up.

He is still very happy to train these young screenwriters. After all, he has more and more things to do, and it is impossible for him to be the screenwriter for every Arclight project in the future.

But then again, Meng Bai stroked his chin, the first annual meeting's special prize went to a "mascot", and the second time, it went to a talented young screenwriter.

This special prize is actually selective.

(End of this chapter)