Chinese Entertainment Intelligence King

Chapter 144 When did Beijing Film Academy’s enrollment become so… flourishing?
After returning to the capital in mid-April, Yan Li spent most of his time attending various dinner parties and social events.

TV stations, investors, connections in the circle, everything is available. Although it has been a bit tiring, some results have been achieved.

Among them, there are a few that are worth mentioning.

First, Yan Li negotiated the distribution business for two drama crews, one of which was among the top 2005 dramas in 50 as reported by Monthly Intelligence.

If these two films are released smoothly, they can bring 200 to 400 million in revenue to Yi'an Film and Television.

The second is the "Railway Guerrillas" that Yan Li had been thinking about, and the Shandong Provincial TV station finally agreed to release it.

Yan Li obtained a 300% share of the drama in exchange for free distribution of 30 million+, and co-produced it with Shanying and another Shandong film and television company.

With this investment and share, plus the free distribution, Yan Li’s profits were relatively limited.

So everyone likes to cooperate with outsiders, and they are indeed easy to fool.

It is difficult to negotiate prices with companies in the industry like Tangren, and it is even more difficult to take advantage of official partners like CCTV and Shanying who hold the initiative.

However, "Railway Guerrillas" was already managed by Shanying, so it was not so eager for distribution. The so-called free distribution was just to help Shanying.

Yan Li didn't expect to get rich from "Railway Guerrillas".

If this kind of red theme is handled well, with various policies and subsidies, it is a sure win. But if you want to make a big profit, the probability is the same as playing a scratch-off lottery.

Therefore, Yan Li’s goal is to seek stability and at the same time pursue some hidden benefits from the official.

But Yan Li still got some unexpected surprises.

For the cooperation on this project, Yan Li contacted the Shandong Provincial TV Station and persuaded the other party to take the lead in broadcasting "The Seven Fairies".

Compared to "Railway Guerrillas", this project is the one that really makes money.

Shandong Provincial TV took the lead, and Shanghai TV already had a preference. Yan Li also had some connections with Tianjin TV when he released "Conquer" before.

If he could acquire another satellite TV station, he was confident that he could raise the first-round broadcast rights of "The Seven Fairies" to 2600 million to 3000 million.

If the crew makes a bigger move, it is not impossible for a satellite TV station to negotiate 800 million.

It would be difficult to have more, after all, with the four TV stations broadcasting simultaneously, the cost of purchasing dramas for each satellite TV station has gone down, and the ratings and advertising revenue have also gone down.

The cost of the drama "The Seven Fairies" is there, and the TV station is cautious and will not fool people.

Yan Li is not greedy either.

This amount is much higher than the exclusive broadcast price of Hunan TV Station, which can directly recover the investment and make huge profits.

The most important thing is that he didn't spend a penny on "The Seven Fairies", so whatever he earned was profit.

...

In May, Yan Li took time out to visit Northeast China.

The drama "Survival of Migrant Workers" has been filming for some time. After all, I am the first producer of the drama and have invested several million in it, so I have to go and see it.

Ji Province, Songshi

"Survival of Migrant Workers" rented a construction site here to shoot most of the scenes in the whole drama.

When Yan Li arrived at the filming site, if it weren't for the crew and cameras, he almost thought he had come to the wrong place.

Those actors, with dusty, dark and rough faces, squatted there with a reserved, simple and slightly rustic and cunning smile on their faces, speaking their hometown dialect, just like the migrant workers in real life.

It cannot be said to be almost the same, because a considerable number of extras are simply migrant workers hired by the crew.

But those genuine actors have also integrated into the film perfectly. If some of the actors are not well-known and familiar, it is almost impossible to tell the difference.

Yan Li gave Guan Hu a thumbs-up, a rare gesture: "Director Guan, great crew, great actors."

He could see that Guan Hu had definitely put in a lot of effort.

The relevant actors were carefully selected and probably received some training and advance preparation. For example, their skin color must have been exposed to a lot of sun before joining the group.

He was not pretentious during the filming. He wore dirty, sweaty clothes when necessary and lay down in the shed when necessary. He did not act perfunctorily when working, but pursued a reality close to that of a documentary.

Yan Li had actually encountered this kind of crew once, which was Gao Qunshu's "Conquer".

However, the subject matter of "Conquest" is a bit far away from the general public, and the documentary feeling of "Survival of Migrant Workers" is stronger.

From the perspective of an actor and film and television practitioner, Yan Li admires this crew very much.

But as the owner and distributor of a film and television company, Yan Li felt more and more uncomfortable the more he read on.

The subject matter is not appealing to begin with, and it’s filmed so…straightforwardly, so forget about broadcasting it on satellite TV for now, and it’s not easy for local channels to distribute it.

Yan Li was even a little worried that the drama would be banned and removed from the shelves.

Without disturbing Guan Hu and the others from filming, Yan Li met up with the show's producer Li Xing and leisurely observed the construction site.

The appearance of this uninvited guest naturally attracted the attention of some actors.

"Who is that?"

"He's so handsome, he must be an actor. Isn't that Mr. Du's cousin the young man?"

"That's bullshit! Have you ever seen an actor being accompanied by a director for conversation or a producer for shopping?"

"He's an actor. I've seen his plays. He played Wu Tian in Conquer."

"Yes, I remember it too. It was him."

Several actors were chatting when an ugly man with long hair came over with his teeth bared, and his voice reeked of oysters.

"What are we talking about?"

"Look, there's a newcomer."

The long-haired ugly man took a look and immediately said, "What newcomer? The big boss is here."

The other actors were stunned. Compared to them, this ugly man with long hair was on good terms with director Guan Hu and was well-informed, so they naturally believed what he said.

"Big boss? So young."

The ugly long-haired man looked at them in confusion: "You don't watch the news, Yan Li, haven't you heard of Li Bingbing's girlfriend?"

Some actors were confused, while others suddenly realized: "So it's him, I was wondering if he looked familiar."

The long-haired ugly man didn't take it seriously and said to himself, "Now that we know who it is, be careful, or else you'll run into trouble and even the supervisor won't be able to save you."

...

At noon, the crew took a break for lunch. Yan Li also ordered one and ate the lunch box with them. While eating, he asked Guan Hu about it.

"What time does the filming end tonight?"

Guan Hu glanced at the assistant director, who said, "We have a night scene tonight, and it'll be around 10 pm."

Those who often work on film crews know that if the agreement is to finish at 10 pm, it is considered fast if it can be finished by 10:30. It is common to drag on until 12 o'clock or even after midnight.

Yan Li has worked on several film crews, and the number of times he was able to finish work on time or early can be counted on two hands.

"Contact two restaurants tonight and arrange for extra meals to improve the brothers' meals. I'll pay for it."

"Thank you, Mr. Yan."

The assistant director was very happy. Usually when investors come, they will invite the director and a few leading actors out for dinner.

Just now, I saw Yan Li eating a box lunch when it was time for dinner. I thought he was being frugal, but it turned out that he was generous and treated the entire crew.

The assistant director is a big mouth, and he may be trying to make Yan Li famous and put an end to this matter.

Soon, the entire crew was in high spirits. The investment cost of the "Survival of Migrant Workers" crew was so high, and the food conditions can be imagined.

The leading actors have high incomes and can go out to satisfy their cravings from time to time.

In order to save money, most ordinary cast and crew members can only make do on the set. It is rare for someone to treat them, so of course everyone is happy.

Yan Li stayed on the set in the afternoon to watch the filming, mainly because the actors performed very well and competed with each other, making it look like a micro-drama. He enjoyed it very much.

When the actors were taking a break, Yan Li went over to smoke some cigarettes and chat.

Although "Survival of Migrant Workers" has a small investment, it has many talented actors.

Tao Zeru who played in "Black Hole", Ma Shaohua who played Mr. Sun's special actor, Sun Song who played Wang Husheng in "Desire", and Sha Jingchang (the uncle in the courtyard house), a veteran actor who has starred in many dramas.

Yan Li had seen the plays of these actors, and there were also some actors he was not familiar with.
For example, if Yan Li had not read the script and knew that the ugly man with long hair, Xue Liu, played by him, was an important role, he would have thought that he was just a migrant worker who played himself in the extras.

After chatting for a few minutes, Yan Li was even more surprised that the actor named Huang Bo was actually his junior at the Beijing Film Academy.

No, isn't it true that school enrollment is so... a hundred flowers blooming?!

"I'm from the 2002 dubbing class, a vocational college."

Perhaps noticing Yan Li's surprise, Huang Bo explained.

He has gotten used to it. When others hear that he is a student of Beijing Film Academy, their first reaction is that the threshold of admission is so low.

"Then we are not destined to be together. I am also a vocational school student. The year you entered the school, I graduated. Otherwise, I would not be able to hear you call me senior brother."

Yan Li realized that he was judging people by their appearance, so he tried to make amends and use his alma mater to build closer ties.

Huang Bo was also a smart person, and he took advantage of the situation and said, "You are still my senior after graduation. Besides, we met outside the school, so we are destined to meet." Yan Li smiled. He didn't like to recognize senior brothers and sisters, but he liked to recognize junior brothers and sisters.

However, this was the first time he met a junior brother like Huang Bo who was older than him.

After chatting for a while, Yan Li received a call, said hello, and left.

Huang Bo was holding the Yuxi cigarette that Yan Li had just dispersed. An actor nearby joked, "Senior brother has already recognized it, why don't you want a phone number?"

"Who am I? Why should I need the boss's number?"

Huang Bo knew his own limitations. He was just an unknown little actor, so he shamelessly acknowledged someone as his senior brother just to make himself familiar to him. If he really treated someone as his senior brother, he would only be asking for humiliation.

As they were talking, one of the actors suddenly stood up excitedly: "Jiahui is here."

As soon as these words were spoken, many actors who were taking a break leaned forward to look at the slim figure in a shirt and jeans.

"Survival of Migrant Workers" is a typical man's play, with a lot of male actors and only a few female actors on one hand.

This has led to these actresses becoming popular in the crew.

Wang Ou, who played the leading female role Wang Jiahui, naturally left a very deep impression on the male actors in the crew because she was the most beautiful and had scenes at the construction site.

However, Wang Ou rarely comes to the set. Apart from filming his own scenes, he stays in the hotel, and his companions are other actresses and assistants.

Even when she showed up, she didn't communicate much with these male actors and her attitude was somewhat cold.

It's not just Wang Ou, the same is true for the other two actresses who have scenes at the construction site.

One reason was that the male actors looked too sloppy, and the other was that there were too many of them. Dozens of grown men staring at one woman would be scary for anyone.

But this does not affect everyone's admiration for Wang Ou.

And the colder she was, the more noble and pure she appeared, like a peerless white lotus that people could only admire from afar but not touch.

However, under the gaze of everyone, the white lotus today no longer had the arrogance and coldness of the past. Instead, it trotted towards Yan Li like a blooming peony and showed him a brilliant smile.

What was even more heartbreaking was that when Yan Li, who was on the phone, saw her, he just pointed at his phone.

Wang Ou stood obediently beside him, the smile on his face still unchanged, his eyes fixed on Yan Li, and he exuded a gentleness that no one in the crew had ever seen.

"........."

Huang Bo threw the smoked cigarette butt on the ground and crushed it with his foot. Along with the cigarette butt, countless people's hearts were also crushed.

...

After finally finishing the call, Yan Li saw sweat on Wang Ou's forehead and motioned him to wipe it off.

Wang Ouyou took out a tissue from his bag and wiped the sweat off his face. Seeing that Yan Li had some dust from the construction site on his body, he took out a new tissue and wiped it off.

She worked as Yan Li's personal assistant for a while, serving him during the day and at night, and formed a certain habit.

Yan Li was calmer than her, mainly because some people's views were a bit too strong, like a thorn in the side.

"Ahem, I'm on the set."

"Oh."

Wang Ou felt a little disappointed. She didn't care what others thought of her. She just wanted to take advantage of others' power and become the boss's wife.

The feeling of being the leading actress in the crew was so great that after getting to know Yan Li, she became more enthusiastic and obedient.

Although the two did not do anything intimate, Wang Ou followed Yan Li obediently, carrying bags and handing water, looking like both a secretary and a young wife, which still aroused the envy and resentment of many people.

Yan Li couldn't bear it anymore, so he took Wang Ou away from the big group to see another small group.

This is also Wang Ou’s main filming location, a small hair salon.

To be honest, Yan Li felt a little uncomfortable when he looked at this low-end hair salon and then at Wang Ou.

They are really not on the same level!

Wang Ou said that the director modified the script to make the plot more reasonable.

The heroine not only works in this small shop, but also has another place. In order to make money to support her children, she takes on both big and small jobs.

The owner of this hair salon was very caring towards her, so the heroine was willing to work there and became the top girl. Sometimes she could get the "hair washing" fee just by washing her hair.

When Yan Li arrived, he happened to catch the scene where Xue Wu, the brother of Xue Liu, played by Huang Bo, came here to "wash his hair".

The actor who plays Xue Wu is Song Wan, the King Kong in the CCTV version of "Water Margin". He is tall and strong, with a fierce but honest look.

Standing in front of the hair salon, he touched his bald head and smiled innocently at the girl standing at the door.

"Sister, do you want to wash your hair?"

The girl scoffed and joked, "If your hair has grown long, then wash it."

Xue Wu touched his head awkwardly and turned to leave, but was stopped by the girl and winked at.

"come in."

Xue Wu's eyes flashed with joy, but he was also a little shy and nervous. He glanced around and stepped into the house.

"..."

Yan Li watched with great interest from the side. This scene was shot very cleverly. One of the screenwriter and the actor must be guilty.

Wang Ou saw that Yan Li was watching seriously, so he leaned over and whispered something in his ear. Yan Li was a little surprised.

"Did I really take you to observe?"

Wang Ou nodded. The crew strived for authenticity, and naturally they would not miss the hair salon as an important plot point.

It is said that the boss lady originally wanted to find a real mama-san to play the role, but later the mama-san regretted it and refused to come, so she replaced her with a professional actor.

Yan Li was quite curious about this kind of hair salon. He had been to KTV and nightclubs, but had never been to a place like this.

After finishing the filming, he went to visit it specially. The outside was not much different from a normal hair salon, except that there were a few more rooms and beds inside. However, since it was the set of the crew, the environment was actually very clean.

Wang Ou followed behind him and saw Yan Li's excited look, and suddenly he had an idea.

Seeing that there was no one around, she stepped forward, hooked her fingers around Yan Li's belt, and whispered seductively.

"Brother, do you want to wash your hair?"

Yan Li: “…”

This girl is getting more and more aggressive. She dares to flirt with him even though there are still a lot of people outside the crew.

"wash."

But they definitely couldn't wash here, so Yan Li took Wang Ou to a high-end hotel in the city.

Although the atmosphere is not as good as that of a hair salon, it is cleaner and safer.

Wang Ou did what he said and really washed Yan Li's hair.

Yan Li lay in the bathtub, and she used the shower head to rinse and massage his head.

It's not just hand massage, but also massage. Although the technique is average, it is quite careful and meticulous, and Yan Li still feels very comfortable.

After washing her hair and taking a shower, Wang Ou also said that she would have a foot massage.

Yan Li was lying on the bed watching Wang Ou massaging his feet. He became a little impatient as the massage went on.

"Your technique is so poor, I'll teach you."

Yan Li got up from the bed, switched positions with Wang Ou, grabbed her feet, and demonstrated it to her step by step.

That night, Wang Ou learned Yan's massage and made great progress...

...

Yan Li stayed in Song City for two days and then went to Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province.

The system triggered a message that Heilongjiang Satellite TV is interested in "The Seven Fairies".

Yan Li didn't have high hopes at first. In his impression, the TV stations in the three northeastern provinces were more fond of TV dramas about the period, the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, police and criminals, history, and those with a Northeastern regional flavor.

For example, the series "Liu Laogen" and "Ma Dashuai" produced by Zhao Benshan were first broadcast on CCTV, and the rebroadcasts were basically monopolized by TV stations in the three northeastern provinces.

But after actual contact, he found that he had some stereotypes.

As many people don’t know, some TV dramas with more novel styles are first broadcast on Qilu TV in Shandong Province.

The TV stations in the three northeastern provinces do have the situations he described, but they also have the courage and determination to cater to the needs of young audiences.

Although Yan Li joined the team a little late, he eventually surpassed them.

It progressed rapidly and became the first satellite TV station to reach a joint broadcast cooperation with Shandong Provincial Satellite TV and "The Seven Fairies".

If Shanghai and Tianjin hadn't already made arrangements in advance, Yan Li, having tasted the sweetness, really wanted to go to Shen City and Chang City for a stroll...

----

ps: 10,000 more, please give me a monthly ticket

(End of this chapter)