I, Hiroshi Nohara, the star of Japanese cinema

Chapter 123: Suzuki Seito's excitement! Kantotai's rebirth from the ashes!
In Ming Ri Hai's elegant eyes, there is a fire burning at this moment that is enough to consume everything.

He looked at the young man in front of him who was as calm as if he was talking about the weather. His heart, which had long been hardened as a rock by the field of power, began to beat violently uncontrollably.

"Fans...fighters...topics...traffic..."

He muttered to himself, chewing these unfamiliar words full of futuristic meaning on his tongue again and again. Every time he savored them, the shock in his eyes became more intense.

Suzuki Seito, a veteran who has worked at Kanto TV for most of his life, is now like an elementary school student who is learning calculus for the first time. His face is full of pure confusion and... a deep sense of powerlessness as if he was hit head-on by the tide of the times.

"I...I actually found that I couldn't understand something."

He smiled wryly and shook his head, his voice filled with a deep sense of desolation. "What do you mean by 'selling participation'? What do you mean by 'anti-fans are also traffic'? Guangzhi-kun, these things you're talking about... I feel like they're completely different from the TV shows I've been filming for thirty years."

"Because we are indeed no longer in the same world, Suzuki-senpai."

Nohara Hiroshi said calmly, "You live in an era of one-way communication: 'I speak, you listen.' What I'm about to usher in is an interactive era: 'I speak, you criticize, he praises, and we celebrate together.'"

"This, this, this..." This made Suzuki Seito feel like he was struck by lightning, and he froze there.

"Oh!?" Asumi suddenly raised his head, and a burning heat that was almost greedy burst out in his eyes!
Although he didn't understand it, he had been in a leadership position for a long time after all.

Asumi can be said to be very clear.

A new era...

There will definitely be people who will have their mouths full of fat, their bowls full of food, and even leave their names in history.

Fame and fortune are gained!
After carefully considering Nohara Hiroshi's words, Asumi's voice trembled slightly with excitement. "Hiroshi-kun, that 100 million yen championship prize you mentioned... I just did a rough calculation. Just by cooperating with Telecom Telephone Co., Ltd. and opening a payphone voting channel, the share we can get is probably even more than that! This... this is simply a very profitable business!"

"It's more than just a huge profit." Nohara Hiroshi chuckled.

That smile carried a hint of superiority, a sense of overwhelming power over the business models of this era: "Deputy Director Ming Rihai, what you see is just the tip of the iceberg. Once the 'fan support group' model matures, and once those 'warriors' fighting for the honor of their hometown are fully assembled, the commercial value generated around this IP will be an astronomical figure that you cannot even imagine."

"From selling merchandise to offline tickets for the regional finals; from advertising revenue from contestant endorsements to the potential future personal variety shows for the champions... this is a true, self-sustaining, self-reliant entertainment empire."

And this is the fan circle culture that has been so mature in China in the past that countless people have been corrupted by it!

silence.

Deathly silence.

Asumi and Seito Suzuki stared blankly at the young man in front of them.

I felt that my brain, those two professional brains filled with the "iron rules" and "experience" of traditional television, were completely crushed into powder at this moment by a more primitive and purer powerful force called "capital"!

They finally understood that this young man was not producing a show at all.

He is directing an unprecedented large-scale commercial experiment, with the entire Neon as the stage and 120 million people as the actors!

……

This raging fire, named "100 Million Yen Dream" and ignited by Nohara Hiroshi himself, burned across the entire Neon Islands with an unmatched prairie fire the next day.

From the snow-covered Sapporo in Hokkaido to the scorching heat of Fukuoka in Kyushu; from the bustling Osaka in Honshu to the tranquil and quaint Takamatsu in Shikoku...

The eight major geographical regions of Japan seemed to be ignited by this sudden frenzy overnight!

"Have you heard about that TV Tokyo show 'Super Transformation'? The winner gets a 100 million yen prize!"

"One hundred million?! Oh my god! This... this is even more outrageous than winning the lottery jackpot, right?!"

"It's more than just prize money! Didn't you read the newspaper? This is a regional competition! If Hokkaido wins, we can crush those arrogant guys in Tokyo!"

"That's right! Why do the people from Kanto always get all the good things? This time, we from Northeast China must show them what true creativity is!"

This regional fire that had been suppressed for hundreds of years, catalyzed by the simplest and crudest fuel of "100 million yen", instantly burned into a raging flame that was enough to devour everything!

The audition registration points in major cities were completely packed!
The line in front of the registration booth in Shinsaibashi, Osaka, was so long that it seemed as if the end of the line was there. The scene was even more popular than the annual Tenjin Festival.

A middle-aged man, wearing a Hanshin Tigers baseball jersey and face painted, spitting profusely into the camera, delivered his "battle declaration" in a bold, Kansai-style accent: "We Osaka people are all about humor! Who else could be the champions this time besides us?!"

Behind him, countless Osaka citizens, also dressed in bizarre and imaginative ways, were shouting in unison the cheering slogan that had already resounded throughout Kansai:

"The soul of Naniwa is the best in the world!"

This craze spread rapidly like an inextinguishable plague.

Countless ordinary people were completely ignited by the tempting reward and the great sense of honor of "I can also bring glory to my hometown"!

For a moment, the entire Neon seemed to be caught up in a carnival of national performance art filled with black humor.

……

At the same time, in the production department of Kanto TV, which had long been forgotten by everyone, the atmosphere was as tense as a pre-war command room.

"Here it comes! Here it comes! The ratings are out!"

A young data analyst looked at the curve on the computer screen that was soaring like a rocket, his voice filled with disbelief and trembling.

Suzuki Seito's heart instantly rose to his throat.

He stared at the screen intently, his eyes, which had long been clouded by the torture of reports and meeting minutes, were filled with anxiety and anticipation.

"How much?" His voice was dry.

“Break…break through 15%!”

"Nani?!"

The entire control room erupted in an uncontrollable cry of surprise!

15%!

An afternoon show made up of "loser highlights" had a viewership rating of... 15%?!
This is no longer a simple success, it is a miracle that is enough to drive the entire Kanto Station crazy!

However, this is not the end.

"It's...it's gone up again! 17%! 18%! Oh my God! Minister! It's...it's still going up!"

The data analyst's voice had completely changed in tone. It was a kind of pure awe that came from the depths of his soul after witnessing a true miracle!
Finally, when the last frame of the program froze and the freshly-released final ratings report was delivered to Seito Suzuki, he looked at the glaring number on it, which was enough to make his heart stop beating. He was like being struck by lightning and completely froze in place.

20.1%.

"..."

The entire control room fell into deathly silence.

Everyone seemed to be strangled by an invisible hand, unable to utter a word.

They stared blankly at the number, and on their faces was only undisguised, bottomless shock.

This is horrible!

In a god-like way that none of them could understand, but they had to kneel down to worship him.

……

This viewing storm caused by "Super Change Audition Edition", which is full of counterintuitive views, spread much faster than anyone imagined.

While Tokyo TV was still reeling from the shocking data, the shockwave had already crossed geographical boundaries and slammed hard into the faces of its competitors who were watching from the sidelines.

Osaka, Kansai Television.

"20.1%?! A show made up of unsuccessful contestants?! On that rubbish time slot on Kanto TV?!"

Ichiro Gaya, deputy director of the production department, looked at the ratings report faxed from Tokyo and felt as if his heart was being tightly grasped by an invisible hand. Even breathing became difficult.

He recalled his original "Anti-Nohara Hiroshi Alliance" which was full of black humor.

I remembered my confident "encirclement and suppression" declaration.

I remembered my contempt for "amateur variety shows" which were full of professional superiority.

At this moment...

It was completely crushed to pieces by that terrifying number of 20.1%!
To know.

They themselves haven't even figured out what "urban legend" is!
Now, Hiroshi Nohara has started to create this kind of thing.

Isn’t this a bit too much?!

"Monster...that guy...he's not playing the same game as us..." He muttered to himself, his voice filled with the powerlessness and awe that came from being crushed by absolute strength.

He finally understood that his so-called "alliance" was nothing but a ridiculous joke full of black humor in front of that young man's absolute talent that was enough to subvert the times.

"Puff-"

He could no longer hold on. This man who had been a big shot in the Osaka television industry for half his life, slumped down like a puddle of mud on the leather chair that symbolized power.

That face, always filled with rage and resentment, had lost all expression, leaving only a deathly pale, ashen look, a result of utter devastation.

TV Tokyo, production headquarters building, staff restaurant.

Lunch break should be a moment for the TV station, a sophisticated machine, to take a short breath, but now it is like a fish pond with a depth charge thrown into it, with undercurrents surging everywhere.

No one was talking or laughing loudly. Everyone subconsciously lowered their voices, gathered in groups of three or four, and exchanged glances in a voice almost like whispering, sharing the shock that was enough to make the heart stop.

The focus of all their topics, without exception, was on the 17th floor, which had become the "holy land" of the entire production department - [Nohara Hiroshi Independent Production Department].

"Have you seen it? The 'Audition Version' on Kanto TV the day before yesterday?"

"I watched it! How could I not watch it? My wife and kids were all glued to the TV, laughing so hard they nearly blew the roof off the house!"

"Who says it isn't true? That guy with the cardboard box is my absolute source of joy! When I was at work today, all I could think about was him falling flat on his face!"

"This is the scariest thing!" A bespectacled, seemingly experienced data analyst lowered his voice, his eyes looking at a monster beyond common sense. "You know what? I was observing on the tram this morning, and everyone was quietly discussing 'Super Mutant'! This isn't just a simple variety show anymore; it's a nationwide carnival!"

"This is truly a planned program that everyone knows about!" Everyone around subconsciously took a breath of cold air.

"What I don't understand the most is this 'national audition,'" a section chief in charge of program planning frowned, his face filled with pure confusion. "I did the math. Setting up audition registration points in eight major regions across the country, and organizing such a large-scale offline support event, the total publicity budget must be several hundred million yen, right? This... this is simply burning money! Wouldn't it be more effective to invite a few top idol stars to support the show?"

"Who knows? Maybe... this is the difference between geniuses and us mortals."

Everyone looked at each other and saw a deep-seated awe of the unknown in each other's eyes.

I dare not talk nonsense.

After all, this was a plan specially approved by Deputy Director Asumi, and it was said that even Director Nobuhiko Sakata agreed to it.

They felt that the young man named Hiroshi Nohara was not playing by the rules of the industry at all.

He was creating rules in a way that they could not understand at all.

……

The executive deputy director's office was filled with smoke.

Takada Toshihide's face, which always looked a little gloomy, was now even more gloomy as if water could drip out of it.

He stared intently at the latest public opinion report on the table. Every positive entry about "Super Change" was like a red-hot steel needle, piercing his eyeballs.

Takashi Yasui and Nagaan Ito, the two variety show aces of the Tokyo school, have long lost their original arrogance and confidence.

They sat on the sofa with their heads drooped like two defeated roosters, their faces filled with confusion and bewilderment after being repeatedly beaten by reality.

"I also can not understand."

Confusion crossed Yasui Takashi's face. "What on earth is he trying to do? Spending all that money and making such a big fuss, just to get a bunch of ordinary people to chant slogans on the street? This... what's the point? Does he really think that relying on this childish 'regional confrontation' can shake the variety show empire we've built for decades?"

"Perhaps...his purpose isn't to shake us at all." Ito Changan said beside him with a complicated expression: "I always feel that we...seem to have been wrong from the very beginning."

"What do you mean?" asked Yasui Takashi.

"I don't know." Ito Changan shook his head and said, "I just feel that the scheme he set up is too big and too deep. What we see may be... just the tip of the iceberg. His real purpose may not lie in the variety show itself at all."

"Where else can it be?" There was a hint of irritation in Yasui Takashi's voice that he himself was not aware of.

"Perhaps it's just for publicity." Ito Changan pondered for a moment and gave an explanation that he himself felt was a bit far-fetched: "After all, except for the Kanto region, TV stations in other places are independently operated. It's not easy for our Tokyo TV programs to get good publicity resources from them. What he did was equivalent to using a roundabout way to create enough buzz for his program in those places."

These words made Takada Shunying, who was sitting at the top, frown even deeper.

Of course he knew it was a possibility.

But his intuition told him that things were definitely not that simple.

Every move made by that young man was filled with chilling and precise calculations.

This time, he spent such a huge price to set up such a shocking plan, and what he was aiming for was definitely not just a little publicity.

"never mind."

After a long time, Takada Shunei let out a long breath, which was filled with the fatigue and helplessness of a hero in his twilight years.

He waved his hand and said, "It's too late to say anything now. He's already gained power, and that old man Sakata is now protecting him like his own son. We... can't touch him for the time being."

However, looking at the two subordinates who had already lost all their fighting spirit, he comforted them in a low voice:
"Lie dormant. Now is our weak period. You two, do your own shows well and stabilize the basic situation. Don't take the initiative to provoke him again. Wait... wait for him to make a mistake!"

"Hi." Yasui Takashi and Ito Changan responded weakly.

They knew they had already lost the war.

At least, in the short term, the only about 20% of variety shows currently directed by the two of them have lost all possibility of a comeback.

After all, even the popular "Super Change Audition Edition" on Kanto TV has reached a 20% viewership rate.

So how do they fight?
Takada Toshihide ignored the two fallen aces and pressed the intercom button.

"Let Iwata get in."

Soon, a figure appeared at the office door like a ghost.

It's Masao Iwata.

He had long lost his former arrogance and arrogance, and had lost weight. His eyes, which were once full of ambition, now only had a kind of numbness and emptiness after being completely crushed by reality.

"Deputy Director...you are looking for me..." His voice was hoarse and full of humility.

Takada Toshihide didn't look at him, but just threw a document in front of him.

On it, printed in bold black letters, was a tempting title - [New Year's Eve A-level movie project].

"This is the project I negotiated." Takada Shunei's voice was flat, his emotions unrecognizable. "It's a costume action film. Budget: 300 million."

"boom--!"

This news was like a thunderclap, striking Masao Iwata's heart hard and creating a huge wave!
A budget of 200 million!

This... this is simply...

He stared blankly at the document, and for the first time, a faint light like a ghost fire rekindled in his empty eyes.

"Deputy... Deputy Director... You... You mean..." He stuttered and asked in a tone that sounded almost like a dream.

"In TV dramas and variety shows, we can't beat him for now."

Takada Toshihide slowly stood up, walked in front of him, stretched out his hand, and patted his still slightly trembling shoulder heavily. The voice was as light as the whisper of a devil, but with a cruelty that was enough to make anyone shudder.

"But movies... are another world."

“No matter how great that kid is, there’s no way he can even make a movie, right?”

He looked at Masao Iwata, and there was a heart-pounding madness flashing in his cold eyes.

"Iwata, this is your last chance."

"Use this movie to tell everyone, to tell that ignorant kid, how vulnerable his little tricks are when faced with true art that belongs on the big screen!"

"Go."

"Use the box office to give me back the face we've lost, bit by bit."

Masao Iwata stared blankly at the man in front of him who was extending an olive branch to him again. All the expressions on his already numb face had faded, leaving only a determination to fight to the death.

He knew that he had no way out.

He will no longer be a simple errand boy.

He will be the most important general who will charge into battle in this desperate counterattack of the Tokyo faction.

"Please rest assured, Deputy Director."

He bowed deeply to Takada Shunei, his voice hoarse and almost sorrowful: "I will never let you down again."

Looking at him like this, Takada Shunying finally revealed a satisfied, devilish smile on his face: "Don't be in a hurry to thank me, I have something else to entrust to you."

"Please go ahead." Iwata Masao nodded immediately.

"The male and female lead have been decided. Someone will contact you when the time comes."

Takada Shunei spoke calmly, his tone carrying an absolute command that left no room for doubt: "The performance fee for the male lead is 100 million yen, the female lead 80 million yen, and the rest is for making the movie for you. Do you understand what I mean?"

Iwata Masao was slightly stunned, his eyes flickering, but at this moment he had no other choice but to bow and say:

"Hi!"

PS: I have something else to do today, so the update is late. But I will try my best to update. Please give me more recommendation votes and monthly votes~
(End of this chapter)