How can you become a star without money?

Chapter 241 Such a huge figurine? It's so realistic!

Anime and comic conventions have a long history.

One of its earliest origins is the 1930 American science fiction gathering, where science fiction enthusiasts and film fans exchanged ideas, and then incorporated comic book elements. The earliest offline gathering mainly based on comics was Comic Art held in 1964, which mainly involved official American/European comic book companies such as Marvel and DC.

However, the first anime convention in Japan, the leading country in the world of anime and manga, was in 1975. At that time, it was mainly a female-oriented doujinshi creation circle. It was also the first to realize the revenue model of doujinshi creation by selling doujinshi, which laid the foundation and provided impetus for later derivative works, doujinshi, cosplay and other derivatives.

Furthermore, the concept of ACGN culture matured. The development of ACGN dissemination in China began around the millennium, initially consisting of small-scale enthusiast groups of around a hundred people.

In 03, Guangyue established YACA, becoming the first non-governmental organization in China to plan and integrate a large number of ACGN cultural exhibitions and cosplay activities. It was the birthplace of these activities and received recognition from the United Education and Culture Association. In 05, it assisted in the first national-level large-scale animation and comics exhibition, which was officially led by the government and held in Lin'an, promoting the development of digital cultural and entertainment industries such as comics, games, and novels.

In 07, Xianggu, the president of Fudan Boiling Point Comics Club, founded the ComiCon 1111 (CC) doujinshi convention. With the help of the scale of the ChinaJoy event in Shanghai and the convenience of online social media platforms such as Tieba and forums, it attracted a large number of anime and manga enthusiasts, officially laying the foundation for Shanghai as the base of ACGN.

However, in 08, a disagreement arose within CC, mainly regarding whether to commercialize the event. Subsequently, the event was split into two: CC and Xianggu founded COMICUP Shanghai Comic Festival (CP for short).

The first generation of internet slang, "雷到" (léi dào), spread rapidly due to the feud between CC and CP.

The independent portal, Xianggu, turned the CP event into a twice-yearly event and actively launched a forum. In the second year, it attracted thousands of enthusiasts to participate, and its development speed was very fast. By 10, it had become the most influential ACGN organization in China.

At the end of May this year, the CP04 edition saw a record high of nearly 400 booths. With the help of the popularity of the World Expo, the number of participants also steadily exceeded 5. For the first time, the 15 yuan ticket price covered the basic operating costs of the event, making it no longer just a passion event.

Realizing that the CP Festival was on track, founder Xianggu began to try to contact some game companies to get sponsorships, hoping to make the October anime convention more organized and at least provide some basic support for security, NPCs, and other personnel.

Xianggu visited more than a dozen game/cultural and creative companies in Shanghai, but they all rejected her because they thought the CPs were too small and the content was relatively niche and did not match the Chinese user base. Just when she began to think about whether she should incorporate some game elements to expand her audience.

A company called Xinghuo Games approached her, wanting to invest millions to acquire CP Modu Festival. At first, Xianggu thought she had encountered a scammer, but soon Xinghuo's public relations team brought Bilibili founder Xu Yi to visit her.

Since the collapse of AcFun, Bilibili has become the main base of the ACG (Anime, Comics, and Games) community. Xu Yi's appearance directly dispelled Xianggu's concerns. After learning about Xingyou's company strength and its plan to create the largest comic convention in China, Xianggu decided to accept the acquisition after two days of consideration.

Not only does Xinghuo have money, but it also has a large number of licensed Japanese anime IPs and even owns a Japanese online anime platform.

China's awareness of copyright has gradually become clear, especially in the field of 'anime and manga fan fiction'. Infringement is a very sensitive issue, and many events have collapsed and been ostracized by the community due to infringement.

Because CP hasn't commercialized, it hasn't addressed this issue yet, but the success of ticket sales this year has made it clear to her that development is impossible without commercialization.

Stargame retains CP's activities, but on the basis of that, it aims to become the "Shanghai International Animation and Comic Exhibition," directly comparable to the world's largest Tokyo Anime & Comic Exhibition. The scale of the event is conservatively estimated at tens of thousands of attendees, and it may even surpass ChinaJoy in the future.

For a normal person, hearing that a game company wants to become an international entity would seem absurd and fantastical, but in the world of anime and manga, it becomes quite exciting.

Xu Yi and Xianggu, the two main creators, were immediately ignited by their inner chuunibyou (a Japanese term for someone with delusions of grandeur). With a super high budget of 100 million yuan for Xingyou, they joined forces with domestic companies such as Gaia Starry Sky, Boiling Point Comics, and Manyou Magazine. In order to ensure the quality of the live event, Xianggu also suggested acquiring a cosplay forum in Shenzhen.

The founder of this forum is a cosplayer enthusiast himself, and his level of accuracy in recreating cosplay costumes and props is top-notch in the industry. With the sponsorship of Xinghuo Costumes, the quality of makeup and costumes at the anime convention has been greatly improved.

The event was held in the Thames Town commercial district and was reported to the local authorities in advance. The three-day event was expected to attract 3 to 4 visitors. The town was closed off except for a paid entrance, with tickets priced at 15 yuan per person. As a cultural tourism revenue-generating project, it naturally received local support.

After nearly a month and a half of preparation, the town's main public areas have been transformed, with more than 600 stalls of various sizes categorized by type. Almost all the anime and manga fan clubs in the country have been recruited, with more than 2,000 staff and participants alone.

Because the quality of the cosplayers was not very high, in order to get off to a good start, Wang Yao issued notices to most of the models under Tianhuo to participate in the event.

The anime convention was mainly divided into two areas: one was the anime enthusiasts' area led by Xianggu and her friends, and the other was the 'Chinese style area' sponsored by five companies: Xinghuo Apparel, Bilibili, Mixue, Ms, and Mulan Street.

The "Chinese Style" section mainly showcases the "Chinese Style" elements of Xinghuo Apparel, including clothing, accessories, and other products. Although it is not fan-made clothing, it includes niche categories such as Lolita/Hanfu, accelerating the integration with the ACG (Anime, Comics, and Games) culture.

To this end, they specially invited Xuanji Technology (Qin's Time), Zhulong (Gu Jian), and Daewoo (Xian Jian) ​​to set up official booths and co-branded products.

The event officially kicked off on July 7.31st. Taking advantage of the large crowds at ChinaJoy and World Expo, Kanpianer.com, the online ticketing service provider for both events, quietly distributed some soft advertisements for "Magic Comic Con" to people under 25 years old.

Although there was no extensive promotion on social media, more than 4,000 tickets were sold on the opening day thanks to CP's user base and ticket advertising. Early in the morning, anime and manga enthusiasts from all over the country, most of whom were dressed in 'strange costumes', gathered at various entrances of the town, waiting for the event to start.

Because of the large number of people involved in the event, the local authorities dispatched many "hat uncles" to patrol the surrounding area, and ambulances were on standby at all times. The event was very well organized, which gave the participants a great sense of security.

The exhibition started at 9 a.m., and at 8:30 a.m., the Mixue cartoon mascot Snow King dressed in a mascot costume appeared at each entrance, as well as Mixue's mobile booth, which attracted the attention of many people.

The adorable-looking person had a sign that read "Free with ticket" on their body.

"A 15 yuan ticket, plus a free Mixue lemonade? This event is much more cost-effective than ChinaJoy."

"Brother, what is Mixue lemonade?"

"You don't know Mixue? Are you from out of town? It's the most popular tea brand in Shanghai right now, and this cup costs 3 yuan."

"Only 3 yuan? Yesterday at CJoy, a bottle of mineral water cost 4 yuan."

"Our CP has really made something of themselves; they actually have the money to buy us water."

"Yes, yes, in the past, you had to go up two floors to find a restroom at exhibitions."

"Is that the CP Jiong Cat? It looks exquisite but somewhat unfamiliar."

"When do we get in? I'm so curious!"

Just as the crowd was buzzing with discussion, a sudden, abrupt neighing of a warhorse rang out. Then, a creature that shouldn't have appeared in a metropolis like Shanghai appeared before everyone's eyes, causing commotion and panic.

The warhorse, clad in gleaming armor, carries a knight in full armor, wielding a red-flag lance that gleams with a cold metallic sheen in the sunlight, creating a powerful visual impact and a sense of oppression.

What kind of spectacle is this?!

Why are there people cosplaying as heavy cavalry?!
"The time has come, open the gate." The heavily armored knight reined in his horse at the gate, inserted the red flag in his hand into the flagpole, and spoke in a deep voice.

At this moment, the gate of the security booth at the entrance opened, and three cosplayers dressed in gorgeous costumes walked out. Their costumes were extremely luxurious, with layers of flying fish patterns embroidered with gold thread. The fish heads were angry like dragons, and the fish bodies were stretched out with wings. The scales shimmered with fine golden light in the light and shadow. A black phoenix belt tied around their narrow waists, and the embroidered spring knife scabbards on their waists were inlaid with silver-white silk. The scabbards lightly touched the armor plates with a crisp sound.

"Flying Swords of Dragon Gate" has not yet been released, and the Imperial Guards are a relatively obscure character. Most people present could not recognize what character they were cosplaying. However, the aura of those cosplayers, who were at least 1.8 meters tall, with their wasp waists and ape-like backs, dressed in gorgeous clothes, had already overwhelmed the aesthetic sense of everyone in the anime and manga community outside the room.

Besides their chuunibyou (adolescent delusions of grandeur), the biggest characteristic of the anime and manga fandom is their obsession with appearance. It's not just about looks; anything aesthetically pleasing easily appeals to their tastes and preferences. In an era when the average cost of a cosplayer's costume was less than a thousand yuan, the five-figure makeup and costumes of these three Imperial Guards were an absolute game-changer.

After the shock of the heavily armored knights, the appearance of the Imperial Guards was stunning.

The leader of the Imperial Guards pressed a switch, and the retractable gate slowly opened to a space large enough for three people to pass through.

"The Embroidered Uniform Guard is on duty. Idlers, please leave. Entry is by ticket only."

?

Is this incredibly handsome cosplayer actually a security guard?
The heavily armored knight next to him, isn't he a security guard?

This exhibition is incredibly high-level!

"I'm a little nervous." Naza, dressed in an Angewomon cosplay outfit, heard the sudden, deafening noise outside and gripped Zhang Tianai's hand tightly.

"Don't be afraid, this is the exhibition area, there will be no danger." Zhang Tianai smiled and patted her hand, then unconsciously moved her body slightly, feeling a little uncomfortable in the tight rubber suit.

Fortunately, it's indoors with air conditioning; if I had worn this outside in the sun, I probably would have been soaked in no time.

She and Nazha served as a key photo spot at the comic convention, acting as a landmark. No interaction was required; they simply needed to sit quietly on the stage and pose for photos.

Fortunately, both of them were wearing face shields so their faces couldn't be seen, otherwise they would probably have been trending on social media very soon.

Both she and Gulnazar are over 170cm tall, and with 10cm high heels, they looked like giants from a distance.

The first group of visitors to enter the exhibition area gasped in surprise.

"Holy crap! Such a huge figure? It's so realistic!"

"Wait, it's moving! It's not a figure, it's a live-action cosplay?! It's so accurate?"

"Mom, I think I've been chosen!"

"Did CP get their house demolished for compensation? Where did they find so many high-quality NPCs?"

When people are faced with something that is too exquisite, they feel a sense of illusory distance, and dare not get close but only observe and discuss it from afar.

"Those who want to take a photo can line up here. It's free for A/B station members, and 5 yuan per photo for others," a staff member with a camera hanging under the platform called out.

The crowd was boiling again.

Wang Yao intends to use the 'Magic Comic Exhibition' as a 'talent spawner for ACGN culture,' recognizing that people interested in anime and manga fan culture are naturally creative and driven.

Their dedication to their passion is selfless, even surpassing that of celebrity fans in some ways. They'll go to great lengths to promote their favorite characters, thus developing skills in writing, editing, and even programming. Wang Yao has essentially recruited all the relevant talent for new media positions in China, but these are all professionals who can handle basic tasks; they lack the skills for more advanced work.

For example, editing techniques and copywriting style are all areas where innovation requires brainpower and dedication.

The difference between the two is that one is only focused on completing the task, while the other has high standards for their work.

In its past, Bilibili was a talent hub that gathered together through passion, where new content and editing styles would emerge every so often, even influencing the trends of the entire internet.

Therefore, in order to attract all the talent interested in anime and manga, Wang Yao specially approved a live streaming budget to supply Bilibili with a full live stream of the "Magic Comic Exhibition" event.

The live stream format involves the host taking a tour of the exhibition from the audience's perspective and introducing its features, such as the 'card drawing area'.

Wang Yao bought so many small card IPs, just waiting to hold various card-opening events offline. The card-drawing area has a special venue of over a thousand square meters, where the audience can collect cards through various card-drawing games. It's a kind of disguised 'gambling on luck'. If you're lucky, you can spend a pack of money to open more than a dozen packs.

Secondly, there's the 'Fan Art Zone,' which is basically where fan artists exchange ideas. Spark Culture has an official booth with 20 novel/comic editors on hand. Fan artists can submit their work to the editors for review in person, and if they have talent or potential, they can directly sign a contract with Spark Culture.

Another section is a stage specifically prepared for 'home dance'. Tianhuo Media's artist department has professional talent scouts who are responsible for screening performers and seeing if there are any suitable talents through their stage performances. The exhibition directly turns into an audition.

Those who are willing to participate in anime conventions and otaku dances are basically born with a "live streaming physique." They can currently add a lot of content to Bilibili, and in the future, they can be developed into streamers/influencers.

Finally, there was the "Traditional Chinese Style" section, featuring a collection of collaborative clothing from several sub-brands under Xinghuo Apparel and several major domestic IPs specializing in traditional Chinese style. There was also a "Traditional Chinese Style Fashion Show" in collaboration with Tianhuo Models, as well as album signing and performance events by traditional Chinese style singers signed by A-Station.

The first purpose is to promote traditional Chinese elements and sell products through fashion shows. The second purpose is to establish it as a core feature of the exhibition and make it a regular practice for publicity.

Wang Yao hasn't bought any traffic on social media yet, wanting to see which elements will generate more discussion if things naturally ferment. But without a doubt, at least within the small circle of anime and manga fans, starting today, the element of traditional Chinese style will be an unavoidable topic.

The goal is to incite conflict within niche communities like the anime/manga, traditional Chinese style, Hanfu, and Lolita fashion circles, because conflict is the primary driving force. To prove themselves to be the 'legitimate', these enthusiasts are expected to unleash astonishing potential and talent.

A one-hour live stream on Bilibili consistently attracted around 5,000 viewers. Considering Bilibili's daily active users are only around 100,000, this number likely represents about one-tenth of the site's total active user traffic.

The 'Magic Comic Con' was of very high quality and featured a lot of new and interesting things. Most importantly, it was very diverse in its elements. The combination of heavily armored knights and imperial guards quickly became popular in the Hanfu community. The Hanfu forum immediately uploaded the photos to the top of the forum, sparking considerable discussion.

However, it became popular because it was reposted on the Tiexue forum. The heavy cavalry armor was very effective on a male-dominated forum like Tiexue. The post received over a thousand replies in less than half an hour, mainly debating whether it was a style from a certain dynasty or a studio photo shoot. Local users in Shanghai immediately prepared to go offline to see for themselves.

However, as the traditional Chinese style fashion show began in the afternoon, the spread of the "Magic Comic Exhibition" accelerated significantly, with the number of viewers in the live stream approaching 10,000 and offline ticket sales exceeding 10,000.

Because the event was so popular, people from the surrounding area also came to join in the fun and watch, wanting to see what these strangely dressed young people were up to. However, most people were not willing to spend money to buy tickets to go inside.

After all, the town's commercial area is usually open to the public for free, so why waste money?
Fortunately, the surrounding university students were on holiday, otherwise the town would likely have been overcrowded. Thames Town's maximum capacity is 3 people, but Wang Yao allocated the venue based on 2 people. For safety reasons, Wang Yao ordered the number of people to be limited to 1 on the first day, which also created a queue for scarcity marketing.

Although it can't compare to CJoy in terms of scale, the 'Magic Comic Con' has clearly caught up in terms of discussion, with media outlets flocking to report on it.

Discussions on major social media platforms are beginning to gain momentum.

"Wow, so many people!" Liu Yifei exclaimed softly as she stood by the window, looking at the bustling crowd outside.

She's been filming "A Chinese Ghost Story" recently, and the film's publicity and distribution have been handed over to Kanpianer.com. Since one of the main production companies is Hu Mei's company, Wang Yao asked her to come back and cosplay Nie Xiaoqian to generate buzz for the film in advance by leveraging the popularity of the comic convention.

Unfortunately, Liu Yifei and Tang Ren also fell out, and her mother didn't want her to be too closely associated with "Chinese Paladin" and affect her development. Otherwise, if she had cosplayed Zhao Ling'er, it would have made the "Magic Comic Exhibition" a huge success.

“There are indeed a lot of people, but you'd better not go out during the day. It would be troublesome if you were recognized. You can go out for a stroll at night,” Wang Yao said with a smile.

"How long will this event last?" Liu Yifei asked, her eyes sparkling.

She's been in the mountains with the film crew for over a month now, and feels like she's turning into a wild woman. Now that she's back in the city, she's planning to meet up with some friends to soak up the atmosphere.

"The original plan was for three days, but if the traffic is high, it might be extended to a week," Wang Yao said with a smile.

Three days would have been enough, but given the current foot traffic and the Expo site's visitor volume, the event could be extended as a special cultural and tourism project in Shanghai. This way, Wang Yao could also try to secure sponsorships and recoup some losses in the following days.

The number of viewers on Bilibili's live stream is now consistently over 10,000, and there's expected to be another big surge tonight, potentially reaching 50,000.

While it will indirectly boost the overall platform's growth, the cost is also very high. Based on the current live streaming bandwidth, it would cost about 100,000 yuan to watch 10,000 people online for an hour. If there are 50,000 people online, it would cost 500,000 yuan per hour.

If it lasts for two days, it'll probably cost more than buying A/B station tickets, so we need to find a way to recoup our losses. Relying solely on ticket sales and product sales commissions definitely won't be enough to break even. Luckily, I met a lot of big names in the gaming industry yesterday. This kind of event, with online and offline traffic comparable to CJoy, will probably attract many people willing to pay.

"Then I'll invite a few friends over to play," Liu Yifei said happily.

"Wait here for a while, I'll have Yang Mi come and keep you company," Wang Yao said.

Yang Mi recently finished filming "Palace" and went back to the company to rest. It just so happens that she and Liu Yifei are quite familiar with each other.

"You're putting me in your office? Aren't you afraid of leaking trade secrets?" Liu Yifei looked at him with a smile.

"There's nothing secret about it, and besides, even if there were, you wouldn't understand it," Wang Yao said with a smile.

"Hey, that's a bit hurtful to say." Liu Yifei rolled her eyes.

Wang Yao waved his hand and left the office.

Liu Yifei glanced around the simply decorated office, then plopped down in Wang Yao's executive chair and muttered to herself, "Tsk, I must say, it's actually quite comfortable sitting here."

She has a slight case of OCD, and Wang Yao's desk was very messy. She originally thought that out of sight, out of mind and not to touch other people's things, but after waiting for a while, she got so bored that she subconsciously started tidying up the desk.

With a "crash," she accidentally picked up the folder and the files inside scattered all over the floor, startling her. She quickly squatted down to pick them up, annoyed that she had been so careless.

While arranging the documents by page number, I was suddenly drawn to a few glaring words.

'X Consent Form'????
What is this! ?

Liu Yifei thought she had misread it, so she looked at it again and found that it was indeed true.

It’s over.

They really discovered a secret.
Liu Yifei's heart pounded wildly, and she felt as if the blood in her body was about to boil. She didn't even dare to think too deeply, and only felt that she had a new impression of Wang Yao.

Oh man.

But what if it's not his?
It looks like just a contract template?
However, it's also strange to have such a strange contract template in the office.

"Sorry, sorry, there are just too many photos to take. Hey? Why is your face so red?" Just as Liu Yifei's brain was racing and almost crashing, Yang Mi, cosplaying Kakashi, finally arrived late.

"Oh, I accidentally kicked the corner of the table just now, it hurts." Liu Yifei came back to her senses and forced a stiff smile.

"What are you cosplaying? Is it also in the traditional Chinese style?" Yang Mi asked curiously.

"No, this is the makeup and costume of the film crew, for Nie Xiaoqian," Liu Yifei said casually.

"Oh, it's for the drama promotion, right? Then I'll take you to a quiet spot in the back of the residential area to take pictures." Yang Mi understood, pulled Liu Yifei out of the office, and got into the car through the back door.

"Sister Mi, when did you join Tianhuo?" Liu Yifei pursed her lips.

"Late April, I guess," Yang Mi thought for a moment.

"Back then, Tianhuo probably hadn't started making films yet, right? Why did they decide to sign with this company?" Liu Yifei raised an eyebrow slightly.

"It's already done. I signed the contract because President Wang promised me resources for 'Palace' and a guaranteed resource package. Compared to other companies, Tianhuo didn't make much noise at the time, but it did have real resources. Besides, I didn't have many choices at the time. President Wang is backed by Kanpian.com, so at least he can protect me," Yang Mi said frankly with a smile.

It's no secret in the industry that she and Li Shaohong parted ways.

"So how do you feel after joining?" Liu Yifei asked again.

"It's fine, but since I joined, I've been rushing to film, and I haven't had much contact with President Wang or anyone else in the company. I was signed to an independent studio, so at least my agent hasn't complained to me about anything strange. What's wrong? Why are you suddenly concerned about the company? Are you changing companies?" Yang Mi asked, somewhat puzzled.

If Liu Yifei were to switch companies, it would be a major scandal in the entertainment industry.

"It's nothing, I just saw that Tianhuo is doing well lately, so I wanted to ask around. After all, our company has a deep partnership with President Wang," Liu Yifei said with an awkward smile.

"President Wang is quite reliable. He's young and promising, good-looking, and I've never heard of him having any bad habits. Besides, you have family members to help you vet him, so why would you worry about him taking advantage of you?" Yang Mi joked.

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Liu Yifei said angrily.

(End of this chapter)