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

Chapter 69 Pretender

The reason why Meng Bai came to Noon Sunshine was mainly for a script called "The Pretender".

That was when he was in college. Because of the huge popularity of "The Disguiser", many people in the market were following suit and making spy war dramas in those two years.

Meng Bai was also affected at that time, and based on some fragments of inspiration in his mind and some information he found, he took real people such as "Brigade Commander Wang Yong", "Three Heroes of Longtan" and "Yuan Shu" as prototypes, and wrote a story about "playing with multiple identities and lurking in the enemy camp".

However, he just wrote an outline at that time, without a complete story. It was not until he met Zhou You while working on the crew of "All Quiet in Peking" that he completed the outline that had been shelved for many years and asked his senior to help him submit it.

At that time, his idea was to see if he could get a script adapted and have his name signed.

Unfortunately, there was no news afterwards, and he thought there was no hope, so he gave up waiting and started working on a new script, which was later called "Soul Ferry".

Unexpectedly, his new script had already started filming, and he was told that Noon Sunshine had taken a fancy to the script and wanted to discuss the adaptation with him.

When things are not going well, there are numerous difficulties and obstacles; when things are going well, the road ahead will be smooth.

So sometimes Meng Bai himself couldn't help but sigh, if there really is such a thing as fate in the world, then this thing is really too bland!

But no matter what, this is a good thing, and Meng Bai naturally still hopes that the cooperation will be successful.

As for why he didn't shoot it himself, to be honest, he had considered this issue before he came.

However, he is currently just a newcomer in online dramas and is not familiar with the situations and intricacies of the TV drama and TV station circles. He needs a "big brother" like Noon Sunshine to guide him.

As for turning the script of The Pretender into a web drama, Meng Bai had never thought about it. Firstly, it was a pity to make a web drama with such a serious drama theme, and secondly, he also wanted to take this opportunity to learn from the professional team's experience in production and post-production.

After all, compared to the revenue from a drama, those experiences, relationships and channel information are more valuable.

In other words, this script is like "paying tuition". What's more, he is not unwilling to pay.

Of course, the prerequisite is that Noon Sunshine is indeed willing to cooperate.

But Meng Bai soon realized that he was worrying too much. After meeting and greeting each other, Hou Hongliang, the "senior producer", said to him directly: "We have taken a fancy to the script of "The Pretender" and would like to invite Mr. Meng to be the planning and screenwriter. What do you think?"

Hou Hongliang is a middle-aged man wearing black-framed glasses and a well-tailored casual suit. At first glance, he looks like an industry tycoon or a successful person.

Meng Bai scratched his hair. Is this the rhythm of the boss' conversation? He got straight to the point right away.

However, Meng Bai is no longer a novice. He knows that the most taboo thing in negotiations for business cooperation is to be led into the other party's rhythm.

"If this project is approved, will Director Kong Sheng be in charge?" Meng Bai asked slowly.

You can go as fast as you want, but I have my own pace.

Hou Hongliang was not in a hurry, or rather, he did not care too much. He said patiently, "It's hard to say. It depends on Director Kong's arrangement. But don't worry, we are very optimistic about this script. If the project is approved, even if other directors are in charge, Director Kong will help supervise and check it."

"Can I ask, if we cooperate, when can the filming of this drama start?" Meng Bai explained: "Because I have some projects planned later, I am afraid that I will not be able to adjust by then."

"I know about that 'Super Web Drama and Film Universe' plan that Leshi.com announced before." Hou Hongliang said with a smile: "If our cooperation goes smoothly, we can start preparations around October, and we should be able to start filming in early next year."

"Half a year?" Meng Bai asked. "It's hard to say how long it will take for many processes, such as project establishment, review, investment confirmation, and contact with the platform, so we can only use the most conservative time to calculate." Hou Hongliang explained.

Meng Bai suddenly realized, yes, he was used to filming web dramas and forgot that the process of filming TV dramas was much more troublesome.

However, isn’t this the experience I need to learn from?

He calculated the time in his mind. According to his original plan, "Psychological Crime" will be finished in July and August, and he can start preparing for "Soul Ferry 2" while doing post-production, and finish it before the end of the year. In this way, after the Chinese New Year, the next work of the "Green Ivy Series" can be started.

But if The Disguiser is to be considered, then the schedule will have to be adjusted. Crime of the Mind and Soul Ferry 2 can remain unchanged, but the next work will need to be postponed.

After sorting out the timeline, Meng Bai found that it was not impossible. He only needed to replace the original "detective" story of the next "Green Ivy Series" with the "forensic" one, and he could also try out an idea he had long ago.

Thinking of this, Meng Bai looked at Hou Hongliang and said, "I have always hoped to cooperate with our Noon Sunshine, but I have a few more requests. I wonder if Mr. Hou can agree to them?"

"You said."

"First of all, since I am the 'planning screenwriter', I hope to have the right to make suggestions on the plot. And any changes to the plot must be told to me."

Hou Hongliang pondered for a few seconds and asked, "Just the right to make suggestions?"

"Yes." Meng Bai said simply.

Working with a large company like Noon Sunshine, he naturally would not dream of having the "complete discretion" of being the "chief screenwriter", but he still would not give up control over the plot of the work.

Meng Bai was very determined on this point. After all, the script was his, so he could just not cooperate. After he had filmed a few web series and had enough capital, he would naturally have plenty of opportunities to make TV series.

An "accident" like the one in "The Adventures of Li Xianji" would only be enough if it happened once.

Fortunately, after considering for a while, Hou Hongliang chose to agree to Meng Bai's request.

After all, he is no longer the new screenwriter with no confidence. The outstanding performance of "Soul Ferry" and the cooperation with Leshi.com have given him the strength to fight for the right to speak.

"Any other requests?" Hou Hongliang asked.

"Mr. Hou, you are my senior, so I won't say anything fancy." Meng Bai said, "To be honest, I agreed to cooperate for one main reason, which is that I want to learn from your production experience and the operation of the crew."

In terms of the role of "producer", Meng Bai was forced to take on the role. Previously, due to the small investment and small crew of "Soul Ferry", and the fact that most of the crew members were experienced, many problems could be solved by makeshift means.

But the experience of just one drama is not enough. For example, with the rapid expansion of the crew of "Psychological Crime", he felt a little overwhelmed.

There are two ways to solve this problem. Either you form several smaller projects to gain experience, or you find a big guy and learn from him, which is equivalent to finding a "master" to guide you.

His original plan was the former. It just so happened that the experience he had accumulated from completing several projects in the "Green Ivy Series" should be enough for him to upgrade.

But now this sudden cooperation has given him the possibility of the latter.

Even among TV drama producers in China, Hou Hongliang can be regarded as a T1-level figure. Having the opportunity to learn from such a big man is like "taking a ride to brush a high-level dungeon". The experience accumulated from one drama is equivalent to that of working on four or five dramas by himself.

(End of this chapter)