Entertainment: I am the peak

Chapter 7 Big Customer!

MV directors also have to be selected. Is it so easy to make money under the star-studded banner?
Li Qiutang had experienced this kind of situation many times, and she was able to tell the other party about her experience in the industry very smoothly.

This includes which crew you worked for which director as assistant director, which crew you worked for as a photography assistant, what awards your student short films have won, and what MVs and commercials you have shot before.

Of course, he also mentioned that he studied under the famous director Jiang Wei.

Although Li Qiutang is young, he has a lot of experience and a thick resume.

"Are you from the Film Academy?!" Jing Tian, who was sitting opposite, lit up his eyes.

"Yes, the directing department."

"What a coincidence! Our Tiantian will be taking the entrance exam for the Film Academy next year." The middle-aged man said with a smile.

"Haha, that's great. You have such a good image and temperament, the acting department will definitely want you." Li Qiutang said with a smile.

After introducing himself, the middle-aged man took out an MP3 and said, "This is the song we are going to shoot. Listen to it and see if you have any ideas." He wanted to test Li Qiutang on the spot.

Li Qiutang put on his headphones and listened to the song "Who Are You" twice. The other three people did not speak during this time and waited for him quietly.

The lyrics and music of "Who Are You" are both traditional Chinese style, and they also incorporate popular rap elements, making it a catchy song.

If there is a flaw, it's probably the line "I drew a red plum blossom on the envelope and sent it to Bremen."

The Chinese style artistic conception is pretty good, let’s take a look at a foreign place name, Bremen.

Those lyricists would do anything to make the lyrics rhyme.

Many MV shootings on the market choose a very simple method, finding an outdoor location or setting up a scene, letting the singer start singing, and when they are done, they go back and edit it to make a MV.

A small number of singers will turn their MVs into feature films, such as "Thousand Miles Away".

The latter costs significantly more than the former.

Li Qiutang knew that Xingguang Canlan was not short of money, but just because he had money didn’t mean he could spend it at will.

He had never heard Jing Tian's songs in his previous life, let alone watched her MV. Now he can only rely on his own understanding of the songs to explain his MV creation concept.

He gave two MV plans: "This song has a Chinese style, with fresh lyrics and music. There are two ways to shoot the MV. One is the ordinary way, find a scene, preferably a courtyard or a garden, and we'll call it a day after the song. The other is to make it into a feature film, packaging the freshness and haziness of the song into it."

Before the middle-aged man could speak, Jing Tian interrupted him: "The latter one is better, it can be made into a feature film."

Li Qiutang glanced at the middle-aged man and saw him nod. He then told Jing Tian the story of the MV he had thought of on the spur of the moment:

“I don’t know what the lyricist’s original intention was, but after listening to it, I felt that it was a story about regret, because at the end of the song it’s still asking who you are. The lyrics contain very classical images such as plum blossoms falling, butterflies flying, and red lips, as well as very modern images such as coffee and commemorative medals, so I plan to divide the story of the MV into two lines, one ancient line and one modern line.

"You and the male protagonist were a couple in your previous life, and you loved each other very much. In modern times, you meet each other but don't know each other, but you vaguely feel that you know this man, so you keep asking who he is. That's basically it. It will take some time to fill in the specific story."

Jing Tian seemed to like this plan very much because in it she could act and play two roles.

"This song is only 4 minutes and 15 seconds long," the middle-aged man reminded Li Qiutang.

"There's enough time. The story of the MV is very simple. Just shoot a few clips and tell the story roughly." Who still watches MV as a short movie.

Normally, the people in Starlight would go back to discuss and decide on who to shoot the MV for, but sometimes things can be very simple.

Jing Tian decided on the spot to ask Li Qiutang to shoot a music video for her: "Let's shoot this story about ancient times and modern times that you mentioned." Jing Tian had already made the decision, and the middle-aged man who came with her naturally had no objection. He smiled and said, "Since Tian Tian likes it, let's do it. Our MV is handed over to you."

The middleman then suddenly realized that the person in charge was this pretty girl.

After agreeing on the cooperation, Li Qiutang went back to conceive the story of the MV.

Eighty thousand yuan may seem like a lot, but not all of it belongs to Li Qiutang.

Xing Guang Canlan handed over the planning and shooting of the MV to him, and he also had to find people to form a team and pay them salaries!
Of course, the costs of actors, venues, props (including filming equipment), transportation, and meals are not included in the 80,000 yuan, otherwise Li Qiutang would have to pay money to Xingguang Canlan.

At this time, Li Qiutang's nature as a profiteer was revealed.

He used 500 yuan to trick Wang Boxue, the cameraman who had previously filmed "The Night the Comet Came", into coming: "Shoot a music video for 500 yuan, and the work will start in a few days. Do you want to do it?"

"Fuck!" It's easy to shoot a music video, 500 is good enough.

"I'll give you 200 more, and you can find a lighting technician yourself."

"no problem."

Wang Boxue turned around and tricked his junior into lighting him by treating him to a 50-yuan hotpot meal.

It is a bit difficult for the male protagonist of the MV to trick the handsome guy from the acting department into coming with him for a few hundred dollars. He can make money by shooting anything after school. However, the casting is not the responsibility of Li Qiutang. Li Qiutang only needs to leave her requirements for the male protagonist to Xingguang Canlan, and they will find an actor for him.

Even though it was just an MV and she was paid for the job, Li Qiutang still had to do it seriously since she had accepted the job.

Xingguang Canlan has money, but they only plan to spend about 30 on this MV. Jing Tian is just a newcomer, there is no need to spend too much money on an MV.

There are ways to play with 30.

Three days after taking the job, Li Qiutang found Xingguang Canlan to discuss the story script. This time, the person who met him was not the middle-aged man from last time, but Xingguang Canlan's boss Lu Zheng, with Jing Tian sitting next to him.

Lu Zheng also flattered Li Qiutang: "After all, he is a talented person from Beijing Film Academy. He has good ideas and works quickly. He has a script in just three days."

Li Qiutang said politely, thinking that if he hadn't met with two distributors of film companies in the middle, he would have finished the script in two days. He started working: "In ancient stories, the specific dynasty is vague. You are a lady from a noble family. One day, you are on an outing and meet a handsome scholar. You two fall in love at first sight. After you get married, you play together and study together. In the second year after your marriage, he goes to Beijing to take the imperial examination. You bid farewell to him on the Misty Rain Bridge, but the scholar never returns. The ancient story ends here."

"Ah? What a pity." Jing Tian sighed.

"A modern story. The suburb where you and the scholar fell in love is now full of high-rise buildings. Only the Misty Rain Bridge remains as a cultural relic. The tour guide is still explaining your love story with the scholar to tourists. You revisit the Misty Rain Bridge and feel that everything is strange, yet inexplicably familiar. At this time, the reincarnated scholar appears. The two of you look at each other on the bridge, and finally end with your meaningful smile. Is this smile the joy of finally waiting for you, or just a polite response to a stranger? It is left for the audience to answer."

Is the story bloody? Bloody.

But melodrama generally means that it won't be bad and the audience can easily accept it.

Jing Tian was very impressed by this story: "This is good, this is good, I want to shoot this!"

But Li Qiutang still reminded Lu Zheng: "We need to go to other places to shoot, and the budget may exceed."

Lu Zheng didn't care at all and waved his hand: "It's okay, you are the director, as long as you shoot it well and our Tiantian likes it, I will take care of the money."

When big investors took action, the response was indeed different.

(End of this chapter)