After rebirth, I became a great master

Chapter 498 Money can make the world go round

Because what Zhou Haoran did was so interesting, Yang Ziye, the director of the documentary "Into Silicon Valley," wanted to get involved after hearing about it.

Let's work together on this project.

Director Yang Ziye, who is of Chinese descent and speaks some Chinese, asked, "If this project succeeds, it should attract a lot of attention, right?"

Dongfang Lang laughed and said, "Of course! With the title of 'United Nations' attached to it, who wouldn't be confused?"

Yang Ziye didn't quite understand what he was saying. "This time we're giving out a major award in the fashion category. Can we also give out a major award in the film category in the future?"

"what?"

Dongfang Lang's face froze.

Yang Ziye realized, "Can't it be a film award?"

Zhou Haoran said, "It is certainly possible to issue film awards in the name of the United Nations, but the effect would be very poor, or even the opposite. There are too many international film awards, and people in China have realized that no one cares about those frivolous awards. The only truly prestigious international awards are the Oscars and the three major European awards."

Yang Ziye's expression changed slightly, "That's quite a high standard."

I put that thought aside.

She was initially quite interested; if Zhou Haoran, Xu You, Dongfang Lang, and others could really make the "United Nations awards" model work, they could then create a major film award...

As the only expert in the small team, she might just become the president of the film festival.

the next day.

The group headed straight to New York.

Nobody has ever been to the United Nations building before, let's go take a look first.

Right in Manhattan.

I only realized after visiting that the main function of the United Nations building is tourism, and secondarily, it's for holding United Nations meetings.

It was written on the sign as soon as you entered.

It is open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday to Friday.

For the general public.

They charge admission fees.

Depending on the venue visited, such as the Great Hall of the People, conference rooms, library, secretariat, etc., different tour packages have different fees.

Tickets are generally between $10 and $15.

It's very cheap.

There are so many tourists!

Zhou Haoran, Xu You, Dongfang Lang, Qiao Hai, and two ladies, Yang Ziye and Ji Yingyang, bought tickets and went in.

According to Director Yang, they want to walk through the entire United Nations building.

Only by seeing it firsthand can you truly appreciate where the best place to shoot a film is.

The tour guide was a Latino man who wore glasses.

Xu You struck up a conversation with her, "The United Nations is so open every day, what happens when the UN has a meeting?"

The female tour guide simply replied, "The United Nations headquarters is open to the public during working hours. UN meetings are only scheduled on rest days or public holidays."

Xu You then asked, "The tour time is too short; each place only gets about ten seconds..."

"A dozen seconds isn't enough time for you to take a picture?"

The female tour guide was not happy.

Xu You said, "This is too hasty."

"With so many tourists, what will happen to the tourists behind us if everyone stands there for too long? We need to treat everyone fairly, so please don't waste other tourists' time." The female tour guide led her dozen or so tourists, waving her hand, "Alright, that's enough for the tour. Follow me, we're going upstairs!"

Xu You was still not giving up, so he followed and continued to question, "Would you be in such a hurry if distinguished guests came to visit?"

"Ok?"

The female tour guide became increasingly dissatisfied with him.

Xu You asked in a low voice, "What should I do if I want to visit this place alone for half an hour or an hour?"

The female tour guide irresponsibly said, "Then go to the reception room in the Secretariat building to apply. Go find them, don't come looking for me!"

Xu You was somewhat angry.

Fortunately, Zhou Haoran chatted with an elderly professor tourist and finally understood the reason for this place.

When the United Nations was first established, it had no money. The whole world was recovering from World War II and had no money.

The United States gave the United Nations a small plot of land and also provided a loan of $6500 million, so the headquarters building wasn't very large. As business grew and the number of secretariat staff increased, the office space became insufficient.

They rented two more buildings right next door.

The United Nations' daily administrative offices are located in two rented buildings in Manhattan. The main building of the UN headquarters is primarily used for ticket sales and meetings.

The United Nations building is a "commodity".

Goods will have prices.

For a fee, you can do anything legal and compliant inside the United Nations building.

Qiao Hai, who was standing nearby, couldn't help but sigh after hearing this: "It really is a capitalist society. As long as you have money, there are no limits."

Zhou Haoran chuckled and said, "It's not about money; it's that these institutions don't have any government funding to back them up, so they have to rely on themselves. They're struggling to even keep up with daily operations, so let alone talk about dignity."

"That's the information gap!"

Qiao Hai truly experienced this firsthand.

Even Dongfang Lang, who had anticipated this, was quite shocked at this moment. "Is the United Nations building like this? Are other places like this too?"

Zhou Haoran nodded. "Pretty much. If you want to play football, you can go to the Bernabéu or Camp Nou. Just set up two teams and play there. As long as you pay."

Dongfang Lang chuckled, “Domestically, they fence off scenic spots and charge admission fees, while abroad they open up many awe-inspiring places to the public and sell tickets… Trade is the essence of the world.” Zhou Haoran then thought of something and said, “The Vienna State Opera in Austria is a temple in the hearts of musicians worldwide. Anyone who can perform there is living up to their life’s dream.”

"Ok?"

"In fact, as long as you have the money, even elderly people can act."

"Really?" Ji Yingyang's eyes widened. "You're not lying!"

Zhou Haoran then remembered that Yangyang used to be an art student, and said with a smile, "If 'Everyone's Art Up' wants to create hype in the future, it can use this to its advantage, form a group to perform at the Vienna Golden Hall, and show off our national prestige!"

Ji Yingyang smirked, "That's a temple of art. If you bring something vulgar and commonplace there, you'll be incredibly embarrassed!"

Zhou Haoran didn't care. "What's there to be ashamed of? No foreigners are watching anyway."

"what?"

Ji Yingyang was stunned for a moment.

Zhou Haoran said, "If we really do that, we'll have to organize a group of actors to be the audience, otherwise it won't look good if the film is shot in an empty theater. It's a play, both on and off stage."

Ji Yingyang was speechless.

About half an hour in total.

We have finished visiting the United Nations Building.

Now it's time to get down to business.

Xu You stepped forward and went to the adjacent administration building to apply for time off.

Zhou Haoran then discussed the casting with director Yang Ziye: "Director Yang, New York is the center of American drama, right? There are many actors here, aren't there? We'll invite about 20 actors to serve as award presenters for the United Nations Grand Prize and related staff."

Yang Ziye said, "It's easy to arrange. There are too many actors in New York waiting for opportunities. Many actors are struggling to make ends meet and have to work at KFC or work as porters to earn a living. If you pay each person $200, it's easy to find a group of people."

Zhou Haoran smiled and said, "Then I'll trouble you. Do you want me to contact a management company? Or what other arrangements do you want to make?"

“A talent agency won’t work.” Yang Ziye shook her head. “Many low-level actors don’t have talent agencies; they rely on unions to find extra work opportunities.”

"Oh, then contact the TV drama guild?"

"Correct."

"Then let's make arrangements as soon as possible."

Zhou Haoran silently did some calculations.

It turns out that this "UN award ceremony" is quite costly. Coming to the US involves airfare, hotel, and food expenses; money needs to be given to the UN to rent the venue; and actors need to be hired.

The entry barrier is quite high!

Dongfang Lang excitedly asked, "Then could there be an interview process?"

"interview?"

Yang Ziye was somewhat surprised.

Qiao Hai's eyes lit up. "That's right! We can hold an interview session!"

"An interview is required?"

Yang Ziye thought it was ridiculous.

Unexpectedly, Ji Yingyang was also very interested. "Yes, Director Yang, we can hold an audition... to let us see the real state of these American actors!"

"This……"

Yang Ziye couldn't help but look at Zhou Haoran.

They're just picking some background actors, why would they need an audition?
Zhou Haoran laughed and said, "Director Yang, then you should arrange an interview session. These people are all interviewers, so let them experience firsthand what it's like to be a real casting director in the American film and television industry."

Yang Ziye has acted in many films and television series, although most of them were in the roles of assistant director, executive director, or assistant director. She is indeed an insider in the industry.

Hearing this, I couldn't help but chuckle.

It turns out that these young people were curious about the American film and television industry.

Xu You returned shortly afterward.

"How about it?"

Dongfang Lang called out from afar.

Xu You waved a form in his hand. "It's done!"

"It's done?"

Dongfang Lang was surprised.

Xu You ran over, laughing, and said, "I thought there would be some kind of review process, but there wasn't. They didn't even look at the advertising plan we wrote before. They don't care if you're shooting an ad or anything else; they're selling the venue."

"Just pay me?"

Zhou Haoran understood what he meant.

Xu You laughed and said, "That's right, as long as you pay."

"how much is it?"

"$650, United Nations Grand Auditorium, one hour."

"so cheap?"

Zhou Haoran felt that the fee was a bit low.

Xu You said, "There are many applications. Many celebrities or families come to visit, but they don't want to crowd together with the public, so it's all the same model. However, there are staff on site to keep an eye on things, so there are some places we can't go to and some equipment we can't move. We can only do simple filming. We can't lay out all the tracks like in a Hollywood blockbuster, because that would be too expensive."

"That settles things!" Zhou Haoran felt relieved. "We have the actors, the venue, and the NGO is registered. Next, we'll buy a certificate and make a trophy! We'll wait for the awards!"

Dongfang Lang slapped his thigh and stamped his foot. "Oh dear! If only I had made the trophies and stuff properly in China. If we had made them in America, they would have cost so many times more!"

Xu You smiled and said, "This is the first time we're doing this, so let's pave the way first. Once we have experience, it will be much easier to award prizes in the future."

(End of this chapter)