It's reasonable for me to be a three-time Golden Horse Award-winning director and an all-around

Chapter 290 The fake Li Kui met the real Li Kui? The man is Wang Baoqiang, the woman is Zhao Liying… (Seeking monthly votes)
Despite the doubts, people in the industry are usually quite honest in their actions and behavior.

Just one day after the casting announcement for "The Witch," Ruishijie received a mountain of actor resumes!
Even though she's just a supporting actress, she's still highly sought after by many.

After all, being able to play best friends and act opposite Liu Yifei in a drama means that subsequent promotions can be bundled together, and even take advantage of her fame and popularity.

This alone is enough to attract countless artists to flock to it!
At the same time, Starlight Pictures.

Jing Tian had just returned from filming a music video in Hollywood and rushed to the company with great enthusiasm, where she found Lu Zheng.

"Uncle Lu, I've received my admission letter from Beijing Film Academy. My teacher told me to report for duty on September 1st!"

She waved the notice in her hand, her face beaming with undisguised joy.

She was overjoyed that her hard work had finally paid off.

"Haha, good." A satisfied smile immediately appeared on Lu Zheng's face. "With the label of 'formally trained,' your acting career should be smoother in the future."

"Yes, a lot of people say that!"

Jing Tian nodded vigorously, in an exceptionally good mood.

But the next second, as if she had suddenly remembered something, she asked with bright eyes, "By the way, Uncle Lu, I saw that Ruishijie's new movie 'The Witch' is casting. When should we go and sign up?"

After working with Liu Yifei on "Taken" and "Sunny Sisters", the two became very good friends in private.

Therefore, in Jing Tian's view, it would be even happier to continue working together on "The Witch".

However, to her utter surprise, Lu Zheng shook his head and said firmly, "Tian Tian, ​​we're not going to audition for this movie."

"Huh? Why?" Jing Tian was slightly taken aback, her face full of confusion. "The quality of Ruishijie's projects has always been quite good, and the cooperation before was very pleasant."

Lu Zheng looked at her, his tone tinged with helplessness: "It's good, but haven't you noticed? Every time we go to Ruishijie, even if we get a role, it's always a supporting one."

Jing Tian tilted her head, her eyes exceptionally pure: "A supporting role...is there a problem? I think I can learn a lot from it."

At this point, her mindset hadn't been tainted by the utilitarianism prevalent in the industry, so she didn't see anything wrong with playing supporting roles. She only wanted to accumulate experience and improve herself through filming.

However, Lu Zheng shook his head and his tone became serious: "In the past, it was to build up your popularity and fame, so playing supporting roles was fine, but we can't continue like this."

"What's going to happen?"

"I want you to play the female lead!"

Lu Zheng narrowed his eyes, his tone filled with unwavering determination, "My next plan is to have you join the cast as the female lead from your freshman year of college, instead of continuing to act alongside other actors, especially those of the same age."

“But…” Jing Tian frowned slightly, somewhat insecure, “I don’t think I’m qualified to play the female lead yet, right? Would the production team even want me?”

"Don't worry about that, I'll take care of it." A hint of confidence appeared on Lu Zheng's face.

Having been in this industry for several years, he had long since figured out the ropes.

With money, there's nothing you can't do!
If no one is willing to let Jing Tian play the female lead, she can simply invest her own money to start a project, which would only cost a little more money.

Once Jing Tian becomes famous, these investments will eventually be recouped many times over.

"Ok."

Jing Tian nodded as if she understood, but the smile on her face faded considerably.

After all, not being able to participate in the "Witch" crew meant not being able to see Liu Yifei, let alone the person she admired so much, so she couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.

"Oh, right." Lu Zheng suddenly remembered something else and reminded her, "From now on, you should have less contact with Liu Yifei."

Jing Tian looked up abruptly, her eyes filled with confusion: "Huh? Why is that?"

"Because I'm planning to have you copy her path, the two of you are very likely to become competitors in the future," Lu Zheng said bluntly.

In his view, the entertainment industry is a battlefield where the strong prey on the weak.

So-called friendship is sometimes nothing more than a pretense for exchanging benefits.

Jing Tian frowned even more deeply.

She looked down at the acceptance letter in her hand, pondered for a moment, and when she looked up, her eyes were exceptionally firm:

“I can have less contact with her, but I don’t agree to argue and fight with her online like other female celebrities.”

"Huh? Why?"

This time, it was Lu Zheng's turn to be puzzled, as this was the first time Jing Tian had explicitly rejected his arrangements.

“Because we are good friends.” Jing Tian’s voice was not loud, but it was filled with unwavering seriousness. “I don’t want to lose this good friend because of me.”

These words immediately startled Lu Zheng, whose ambition was at its peak.

Looking into Jing Tian's clear eyes and the purity that had not been tainted by the filth of the industry, he was speechless for a moment.

"Silly girl, there's no such thing as true friendship in the entertainment industry."

Lu Zheng frowned, trying to make her face reality.

"I know." Jing Tian nodded gently, but her tone remained firm. "It is precisely because I know this that I cherish my friends even more."

She wasn't unaware of the complexities and cruelty of the entertainment industry; she had heard many stories of people turning against each other for resources.

But it is precisely because of this that she wants to preserve this pure friendship even more.

Previously, when filming "Taken" and "Sunny", Liu Yifei took extra care of her.

The two filmed together during the day, slept and chatted together at night, and occasionally went to hot springs, shopping malls, and video games together...

This mutual appreciation and friendship is a rare warmth she has felt in this superficial circle.

She didn't want to break up completely for some unfounded reason.

Looking at her stubborn expression, Lu Zheng opened his mouth, but ultimately said nothing more.

He knew Jing Tian's personality; she seemed gentle, but deep down she had her own principles.

Since she's being so insistent, we can only go along with her for now.

When she truly enters the core of this industry and competes for resources with other female celebrities, she may realize that some things are ultimately beyond her control...

……

……

Since this is Xue Xiaolu's first time directing a film, producer Lü Rui inevitably has to put in extra effort.

Sure enough, during the initial screening of audition resumes, he made a special trip to the project team to follow up on the progress.

After flipping through just a few pages of the list, he couldn't help but swear: "Seriously? What's wrong with Huayi Brothers? They're even sending out singers' resumes? This isn't a variety show stage, what's going on?"

Looking at the names Pu Bajia, Song Xiaobo, and Wu Jianfei on the list, Lü Rui was speechless.

He did know that Huayi had recently spent a lot of money to sign several stars who came from talent shows.

These people are singers, they have absolutely nothing to do with actors, what's the point of sending them their resumes?
"Could it be that they want us to select them so they can make a cameo appearance in the movie, boost their popularity, and incidentally increase box office revenue?"

Xue Xiaolu is quite perceptive and quickly guessed Hua Yi's intention.

"Ha, you've certainly got a good plan."

Lu Rui curled his lip and threw the resumes into the trash can.

Such a cameo, devoid of any acting skills, only makes the movie's plot seem particularly abrupt.

If he really wanted to find cameo actors, he could just make one phone call and plenty of talented actors would be willing to come. Why would he need them?

Seeing this, Xue Xiaolu didn't say anything more and continued to select actors for auditions.

However, after calming down, Lü Rui suddenly discovered a strange operation that Huayi had been doing all along.

They don't treat their own people like human beings!
To be precise, they don't treat the company's "veterans" as human beings.

Just like when "The Banquet" was first released, even though Zhou Xun had signed with a company, Huayi Brothers was focused on pleasing Zhang Ziyi and helping her with marketing.

Then, in "The Forbidden Kingdom", Li Bingbing was clearly a direct descendant of Huayi Brothers, but Zhao Yanzi appeared most often in the marketing materials.

Now it's even worse. Instead of recommending the many classically trained artists under the company, they're sending over the resumes of several singers who came from talent shows...

What the hell is this lousy habit?
"No wonder Wang Jinghua wanted to run away," Lu Rui muttered to himself.

The more he thought about it, the more he realized that Huayi would probably be in trouble again soon.

Based on current information, with Fan Bingbing's departure, the artist management department has split into two factions.

One faction consisted of the Li sisters, Li Xue and Li Bingbing, while the other faction was led by Zhou Xun.

In addition, Huang Xiaoming, who just signed with Huayi Brothers, and Deng Chao, who played an important role in Feng Xiaogang's "Assembly", are also rumored to be signing with Huayi Brothers.

These guys are all ambitious; if they clash, they'll probably beat the dogs out of their heads.
Even more interestingly, there are rumors that Alec Su and Ruby Lin are going to switch jobs from Chiung Yao's company to Huayi Brothers.

Both of them already had national recognition and representative works.

After joining forces this time, they will never be content to be subordinates to others and will definitely fight for the right to speak.

Thinking of this, Lü Rui's expression suddenly became extremely strange.

The Wang brothers should now pray that the company has enough resources and that the listing plan can proceed smoothly.

Otherwise, with so many ambitious individuals crammed into one pot, the uneven distribution of resources might lead to another wave of artists leaving the country!

The more he thought about it, the more he felt that Ruishijie's decision not to act as an artist agent was incredibly wise.

While talent management may seem to secure high-quality actors, it actually involves too many conflicts of interest, factional struggles, resource allocation issues, contractual disputes, and so on.

These frustrating things only distract you, and it's far less fulfilling to focus on film and television production.

...

Two days later, just as the "Witch" project team finalized the first round of audition lists and sent out notices to the selected actors and their agencies, another bombshell news suddenly broke in the film and television industry!
The battle between Zhou Xun and Zhao Yanzi for the lead role in "Painted Skin" has officially come to an end.

As expected, the winner was none other than Zhao Yanzi!

Her winning formula is far more impactful than anyone imagined.

Just as the battle reached its climax, she suddenly announced that she would follow Fan Bingbing's example and establish her own studio, while also announcing that the studio had officially joined Huayi Brothers.

Upon hearing the news, Wang Zhonglei immediately expressed his opinion, his tone remarkably bold:

"We will invest a whopping 100 million yuan to fully support Zhao Yanzi's studio and help her career reach new heights!"

This news instantly caused a sensation in the industry!
Both industry peers and the media were stunned by Huayi's extravagant spending!

This is not only a reassurance for Zhao Yanzi, but also a declaration to the entire industry that she will become the absolute core of Huayi's next major promotion!

On the other hand, Zhou Xun's side had fallen completely silent.

Previously, her team and Zhao Yanzi's team had been locked in a fierce battle over the lead role in "Painted Skin," with press releases and leaked photos vying for the position.

Now that Zhao Yanzi has the backing of Huayi's 100 million yuan resources, she no longer has the confidence to compete and can only withdraw in disappointment.

Even Li Bingbing, who recently received a record-breaking 8000 million yuan renewal fee from Huayi Brothers, has completely wilted.

She originally thought she was the backbone of Huayi Artists Management Department.

But now, Zhao Yanzi has joined the company with her studio, and she immediately offered 100 million yuan in support.

In comparison, her 8000 million yuan renewal fee suddenly seemed lackluster.

With resources being allocated to her, her influence within the company is inevitably being diminished.

When Lü Rui saw the message, he couldn't help but marvel.

He could already imagine how Zhou Xun and Li Bingbing felt at that moment.

These two have probably cursed the Wang brothers' ancestors for eight generations!

When Zhou Xun signed with Huayi Brothers, he thought he would receive special attention and cultivation, but he was overshadowed by Zhang Ziyi and Zhao Yanzi.

Li Bingbing worked diligently for many years, finally outlasting Fan Bingbing and receiving a sky-high contract renewal fee, only to have her center position resources snatched away by the newly joined Zhao Yanzi.

Huayi's approach of prioritizing newcomers over the elderly and favoring whoever has the most popularity would make anyone feel frustrated.

The industry is abuzz with discussion:

"Huayi is really trying to make Zhao Yanzi the absolute number one star! A hundred million yuan in resources, holy crap, that's insane!"

"Tsk tsk, Zhou Xun is so pitiful. He just finished tearing it apart and then got his piece stolen."

"Li Bingbing is probably devastated. She has withdrawn her 80 million yuan marketing campaign, which is nothing compared to Zhao Yanzi's 100 million yuan."

"Three of the four Dan actresses and two Bing actresses have gathered at Huayi Brothers? And Huang Xiaoming and Deng Chao, the two of the four Little Fresh Meat actors... Goodness gracious, this is going to be a big game!"

"I heard it's for the purpose of going public..."

No one doubted Huayi's promise. After all, although 100 million was not a small amount for them, it was still something they could afford.

But many people are secretly wondering if Huayi really has enough resources to go around.

…………

Before we knew it, it was September 18th.

On this day, the second installment of the "Qin's Moon" series of animations, "Qin's Moon: Hundred Steps Flying Sword," produced by Ruiyue Animation, successfully premiered on the children's channels of several television stations across the country.

Lü Rui didn't pay much attention to this project, since the money it was currently making was undoubtedly much less than the phenomenal profits of "Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf".

However, during his break, he still briefly checked the audience's comments on the show.

"It's that familiar intro to 'Moonlight Sonata' again. As soon as this song starts playing, I know my favorite show to watch while eating is back!"

"I have a feeling that Ruiyue Animation is playing a big game we don't know about. Just look at the quality of the visuals. Compared to other domestic animations, it's already miles ahead!"

"Gao Jianli's zither, Xue Nu's dance, and Gai Nie's swordplay were so cool!"

"No, I'm just wondering why 'Qin's Moon' can be released online, but my 'Rainbow Cat and Blue Rabbit Seven Heroes' can't be broadcast?"

"Hey bro, it can stream! Go to Tudou.com, they've already got the official license."

"Holy crap? When did this happen?"

"It's launching today! Along with 'Qin's Moon'."

Lu Rui browsed through the comments with great interest, nodding in satisfaction from time to time.

The speed at which netizens on Baidu Tieba collect and spread information remains as fast as ever.

Previously, after successfully getting "Hundred Steps Flying Sword" approved through Zhang Piming's connections, he specially arranged for someone to contact Hongmeng Cartoon, intending to acquire the online broadcasting rights for "Rainbow Cat and Blue Rabbit Seven Heroes".

At that time, online broadcasting had far greater authority to review content than television stations, giving them more room to maneuver.

Hongmeng initially didn't really want to sell it, seemingly still hoping to unblock it and allow this highly acclaimed animated masterpiece to continue airing on the children's channel.

But as time went on, they gradually lost hope...

The main problem is that the feedback from above is very poor, and there is no hope for it in the next year or two.

Ultimately, Ruishijie successfully acquired the online broadcasting rights at a high price and authorized Tudou.com to broadcast them.

Unfortunately, this animation cannot be promoted on a large scale at the moment. After all, it was previously taken down due to controversy over "violence," so it's best to keep a low profile. Therefore, Lü Rui arranged for it to be released together with "Hundred Steps Flying Sword," which can be seen as a way to quietly return by riding on the popularity of the latter, satisfying fans' expectations while avoiding certain public opinion risks.

Furthermore, the comment section's statement that Ruiyue Animation is playing a big game is indeed true.

Recently, Lü Rui arranged for the Ruixing Group team to target Shanghai Yongxu Culture and invested a negligible sum of money to successfully acquire a 40% stake in the company.

Then, the tokusatsu series "Armor Hero" was quietly launched.

The subsequent planning was handled by Yongxu Culture for the specific production, with Lü Rui remotely controlling the core settings.

The US has DC and Marvel series, while smaller countries have Ultraman, Kamen Rider, and various super teams, all of which are currently very mature superhero IP systems.

Lu Rui never thought of surpassing them, because it was completely impossible.

However, as the saying goes, "Among three people walking together, there must be one who can teach me."

Taking the best and discarding the worst, and gradually starting with the imprint of "Chinese culture" is definitely the right development path.

These are all experiences he gained from his past lives.

Therefore, he kept a calm mindset from the beginning, did not expect quick success, and insisted on the point that "our heroes must have the characteristics of our Chinese culture".

So he personally took charge and finalized a series of core settings:

Based on the traditional five elements of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth, and incorporating Tai Chi elements... As for the monsters, they are classified according to traditional cultural concepts such as greed, anger, and ignorance...

He dumped all these settings onto Yongxu Culture and told them to figure them out themselves.

His only request was that once the project was completed and filming started smoothly, he wanted to personally wear the Emperor Armor and film a fight scene to have some fun!

Meanwhile, the animated series "Boonie Bears," overseen by Ding Liang, has also entered the preparation stage.

At this point, he had completed all the pigs, sheep, bears, Kung Fu Panda, and Armor Heroes that he had planned in the early stages.

Meanwhile, in Hollywood, the Despicable Me project, overseen by Meledandri, is also progressing steadily.

Ruiyue Animation's grand strategy is already in progress, with its layout beginning to take shape.

Tian Xiaopeng was filled with relief at that moment.

Fortunately, Lü Rui found Ding Liang to be in charge of the overall layout of Ruiyue Animation. Otherwise, if he, a director who focuses on individual projects, were to continue to manage such a huge matrix, he would have been exhausted and unable to handle it.

"Brother Liang, what exactly is Chairman Lü trying to do with such a large-scale operation? Why is he expanding so much into animation? He's already poured so much money into it, and he's still throwing more in. Isn't he afraid of losing money?"

When Ding Liang brought the report for "Hundred Steps Flying Sword" to Ruiyue Animation to summarize the data, she couldn't help but ask the question that had been bothering her.

Ding Liang smiled and asked in return, "Do you think the name 'Oriental Disney' sounds good?"

"It sounds great!" Tian Xiaopeng answered without hesitation.

For him, an animator, the name itself was exciting, as if it had some kind of adrenaline-boosting magic!

Ding Liang laughed heartily, his tone brimming with pride: "Just wait and see! If Chairman Lü's plan succeeds, the future animation landscape will be: Hollywood has Disney, and our Chinese-language market has Ruiyue Animation!"

At this moment, not only Tian Xiaopeng, but even Ding Liang himself could hardly contain his excitement.

The thought of participating in building a local animation empire that can rival Disney makes him eager to devote all his energy to helping this grand goal be achieved as soon as possible!

……

On the 20th, the auditions for "The Witch" officially began.

After getting up early and having breakfast, Lü Rui drove to the company.

On the way, while browsing the news, he suddenly saw a media report saying that Shen Ao and Lu Chuan had gone online to discuss their blogs again.

The trigger was a documentary film called "Nanjing".

This is a documentary filmed by an American director.

The film crew visited multiple locations and interviewed 14 survivors of the Nanjing Massacre. They then used video to present the rescue efforts of a group of Westerners in Nanjing.

For example, German businessman John Rabe once hid more than 600 Nanjing civilians in his home, and Mini Fauci, who taught at Ginling College, helped many women dress as men to avoid being bullied by the Japanese army.

In addition, there were American missionaries, doctors, and others who together established a refugee safety zone and did their best to protect more than 20,000 civilians.

In addition, the film is accompanied by stunning historical photos and precious historical film reels.

For example, John Magee's 40-minute film, shot with a camera, vividly presented the various atrocities committed by the Japanese army, leading the audience to face the Nanjing city full of ruins and rubble!
This documentary film has recently sparked a lot of discussion online.

After the media noticed this, they interviewed the production teams of "Nanjing! Nanjing!" and "Nanjing Photo Studio," which were both in production at the time, to ask for their opinions on the film.

When interviewed by reporters, Lu Chuan bluntly stated, "When will this cycle of revenge end..."

At the same time, the core ideas of "Nanjing! Nanjing!", which had been previously hidden, were officially revealed.

When the media flocked to the set of "Nanjing Photo Studio" to ask Shen Ao for his opinion on Lu Chuan's remarks, he surprisingly imitated Chen Kaige and recited a poem on the spot for Lu Chuan:
Biyangde: Rising Sun

"The lingering evening glow, the rising eastern sun..."

This poem is characterized by its precise word choice and profound imagery, making the reader feel as if they are actually there, and it has received high praise from netizens!
Lu Rui couldn't help but laugh out loud while watching the news, and immediately called Shen Ao: "Why are you arguing with Lu Chuan again?"

Shen Ao's tone was full of helplessness: "Brother Rui, you don't know, Taro has no appreciation at all. I was clearly praising him when I recited the poem, but he insisted on saying on his blog that I was cursing him. It's really baffling."

"Haha, you're really something, kid."

Shen Ao finally couldn't hold back anymore and said while laughing, "That guy has completely broken down. I heard that he has even stopped filming recently. Apparently, he smashed the monitors and has been arguing with me on his computer every day. He's completely obsessed."

"If you have time, scold him a couple of times; if you don't, just ignore him and let him suffer in silence," Lu Rui advised with a smile.

Recently, he has heard a lot of news from Jiang Wen.

For example, the script for "Nanjing! Nanjing!" was not written independently by Lu Chuan, but was the result of deep involvement from the Japanese Kadokawa Group.

The original script outline was provided by Japanese-American capital, and Lu Chuan simply expanded upon it.

To put it bluntly, this script was essentially written by the Japanese!
……

At 9:00 AM sharp, Lü Rui arrived at Ruishijie on time.

As he rode the elevator up, he saw that the corridor was already crowded with all sorts of men and women, all of whom were second or third-tier celebrities in the industry.

It's obvious that these people are all here for the casting of "The Witch".

Even for a small supporting role, many people would want to seize this opportunity to work with Ruishijie and partner with Liu Yifei.

Lu Rui first went back to his office to handle a few urgent documents, and didn't get up and go downstairs until 9:30. He entered the audition room through the back door.

The audition has already begun, and several girls who look to be around 10 years old are performing according to Xue Xiaolu's requirements.

Liu Yifei arrived early as well; today she was responsible for supporting the auditioning actors.

Seeing Lü Rui come in, she secretly winked at him.

Lu Rui nodded in response, then sat down next to Xue Xiaolu and watched the audition process with her.

The role being auditioned for now is the one where the female lead is a child.

The character is set around the age of ten, during the stage when she has just escaped from the gene laboratory in a sorry state.

This character has few scenes, but needs to accurately convey fear, vigilance, and a trace of undiminished purity.

The group of child actors all had tense faces and looked extremely serious.

After glancing at the queue, Lü Rui immediately recognized several familiar faces.

Shu Chang's cousin Song Zuer, Guan Xiaotong who appeared in "The Promise", Zhang Xueying whom she had met once before, and Wang Yuwen who just returned from filming "Nanjing Photo Studio"...

"what?"

Suddenly, Lü Rui's gaze fell on two faces that were slightly unfamiliar yet vaguely familiar.

He picked up the form in front of him and glanced at it. Goodness! They were all "old acquaintances"!
One is Xu Jiao, who came from the "CJ7" crew, and the other is Fei Xia, who won't become famous for many years to come!

Compared to her later glamorous stage name Lin Yun, the name Fei Xia does seem much more outdated.

Half an hour later, all the child actors who had auditioned had finished their performances.

This role doesn't actually have any complicated performance requirements; the core is just switching between a few facial expressions.

The terror of escaping from the lab, the wariness of strangers, the bewilderment when alone... the lines are pitifully few, almost entirely supported by eyes and micro-expressions.

After all the child actors had left, Xue Xiaolu turned to Lü Rui and asked curiously, "Director Lü, who do you think is more suitable?"

Instead of answering directly, Lü Rui asked in return, "Which performance do you think was the best?"

Xue Xiaolu thought for a moment and replied, "Song Zuer, she seems quite intelligent."

“Then let’s choose Wang Yuwen.” Lu Rui put down the information sheet, his tone calm but unquestionable. “We’ve worked together at Nanjing Photo Studio before. She’s very reliable and has a down-to-earth personality. We can just sign a renewal contract to save on future adjustments.”

Xue Xiaolu: "???"

She froze instantly, her face filled with confusion.

No, bro? So you already had a decision, then why did you bother asking me?

What she didn't know was that Lü Rui really didn't want to choose Song Zuer.

Although this person is indeed talented and their performance is impeccable, he always felt that the other person lacked the purity that a child star should have.

Those eyes were always darting around, carrying a shrewdness beyond their years, as if they were constantly scheming something, which made people uncomfortable just looking at them.

It's obvious that her family wants her to follow the same path as Shu Chang, establish herself as a child star, and then smoothly transition into an adult actress.

But they only learned Shu Chang's exposure, not her inherent steadiness and purity. Instead, Song Zuer was prematurely tainted by the mercenary and opportunistic nature of the entertainment industry...

……

The audition room door opened again, and the candidates for the second female lead, "Dai Qi," began to appear.

"Director Lü, Director Xue, I am Huo Siyan..."

Upon seeing the person in front of him, Lü Rui's expression became inexplicably strange.

The release date for "Apple" has been successfully set, scheduled for the National Day holiday, and promotional videos have been released recently.

However, despite Fan Bingbing's deliberate targeting, the label of "sexually promiscuous woman" has stuck firmly to Huo Siyan and can't be removed no matter what.

Perhaps due to the double blow of public pressure and career stagnation, she was in particularly bad shape.

His lines were delivered haltingly, his gaze was unfocused, and even his most basic emotional expressions were stiff, completely lacking the sunshine and approachability that a character should have.

As Huo Siyan walked out of the audition room, she couldn't help but tear up.

Despite having already played the lead role in a movie, she was forced to compete for a supporting role due to a lack of subsequent resources from her company.

This sense of disparity brought a surge of indescribable bitterness and sorrow to her heart, and even sparked a bold idea!

Or... how about we find a chance to turn on him?!
The audition continued, and the next candidate walked in.

"Director Lü, Director Xue, my name is Yang Rong, and I graduated from the Shanghai Theatre Academy."

Huh?
so big!

Lu Rui raised an eyebrow and glanced at Liu Yifei, who had gotten up to act, without making a sound. He thought to himself, "It seems this girl still needs more practice."

Although Yang Rong is only 5 years older than Liu Yifei, her figure is exceptionally curvaceous, and in terms of size alone, she is at least 3 sizes smaller!
Such disparate external conditions are quite incongruous with the character's setting.

"I'm sorry, you're not really suitable for this role. Let's work together again next time."

Xue Xiaolu has extremely high requirements for the suitability of a role, and she gives a conclusion based solely on how well the actor's appearance matches the character.

Yang Rong's smile froze for a moment, but she forced a polite reply: "Thank you, Director Xue."

This was her first failed attempt to break into the film industry. As she turned to leave, her back was filled with disappointment and resentment...

Soon, another actress walked in.

"Hello Director Lü, Director Xue, my name is Liu Shishi."

Upon hearing this, both Lü Rui and Liu Yifei immediately became interested.

Tangren Media has been marketing Liu Shishi as a "little fairy".

Now that the real person was standing in front of her, Liu Yifei simply crossed her arms and looked her over with great interest.

Upon closer inspection, the two only share some similarities in makeup and styling. The differences in their overall demeanor and facial features are quite significant. The so-called "lookalike" is nothing more than a marketing gimmick.

The fake Li Kui met the real Li Kui!
Perhaps due to being watched, Liu Shishi seemed particularly uncomfortable, stuttering her lines, moving stiffly, and unable to even keep up with simple scenes with her co-stars, resulting in a very disappointing performance.

Lu Rui shook his head as he watched.

With this level of skill, how dare they market themselves as a "little fairy"?
Let's at least improve our acting skills first!

Just as Liu Shishi left, the audition room door was pushed open again.

A somewhat reserved voice rang out: "Hello Director Lü, hello Director Xue, I am Zhao Liying."

Upon seeing this, Lü Rui couldn't help but admire Huayi's marketing skills.

Wang Baoqiang is the male lead, and Zhao Liying is the female lead; both are labeled as "from humble backgrounds." One cultivates an image of honesty and simplicity, while the other creates a persona of being well-behaved and harmless.

This combination is quite interesting.

However, this statement only fools laymen.

It's important to understand that the entertainment industry is a dog-eat-dog battlefield.

If she were truly an innocent and harmless girl, how could she have climbed to the top of the entertainment industry?

Zhao Liying's audition was mediocre. Although her eyes held a tenacious spirit that refused to admit defeat, she lacked the sunny and relaxed feeling that the character should have.

Although she was trying hard to imitate the intimacy between best friends, her forced smile carried a hint of tension, and she couldn't quite get into character...

Finally, Xue Xiaolu made a light note in her notebook, looked up and said, "Thank you for your participation. I will let you know if there are any updates."

Zhao Liying nodded and quietly left.

However, the moment the door closed, the obedient look in her eyes vanished instantly.

She had just acted opposite Liu Yifei, and although she was completely outmatched, she felt a strange sense of satisfaction!

"So this is what it feels like to be a top female celebrity..."

Zhao Liying murmured to herself, her eyes now revealing an undisguised ambition!

……

time flies.

After several actors finished their auditions, Lü Rui rubbed his temples, looking at the list of candidates in his hand with a hint of helplessness.
"None of the above are suitable; they are either not in good condition, their temperament is not right, or their acting skills are lacking."

Xue Xiaolu strongly agreed: "The role of the second female lead seems simple, but in reality, it needs to complement the female lead's aloofness. She needs to have that optimistic feeling, but she can't steal the spotlight from the female lead. It's really difficult to choose."

Just as the two were talking, another person knocked on the door and came in:
"Hello Director Lü, hello Director Xue, I'm Bai Bing..."

(End of this chapter)