I am a historical film director in the entertainment industry.

Chapter 133 The Hierarchy of Contempt

Whether you're a regular viewer or someone in the film and television industry, there's a common misconception that television personalities are more likely to expose their lack of skill when they try to make movies.

For example, Sun Li, who won a grand slam of awards in the field of television dramas, turned to the film industry.

As a result, Sun Li, who was brilliant in the TV series, gave a bland performance in the movie.

Some say that television dramas are the true test of acting skills.

For example, Li Gengxi, who later won the Golden Rooster Award for Best Actress, was the one who dragged the show down in the TV series "The Sword and the Brocade" and "The Long Season".

The latter statement, at first glance, seems to contradict the natural order, but upon closer examination, it makes some sense.

Indeed, many film actors struggle to adapt to the world of television dramas.

For example, Zhang Ziyi is highly regarded in the film industry, and no one has ever said that her acting skills are bad. However, in her only crossover role in the TV series "Shangyang Fu", her performance was incredibly affected and pretentious.

He completely ruined his reputation.

Why does this phenomenon occur?

Movies are first and foremost commodities, sold directly to audiences, not to television stations.

A director needs to captivate the audience within two hours to make money.

This means that the film's narrative must be tight and not waste the audience's time, but the filming process must be meticulous, and no amount of time is too much to ask.

For a single shot, a film director might do countless takes, driving the crew crazy.

Film directors will spend time guiding actors into the right emotions for a scene, repeatedly adjusting the actors' state during filming.

If an actor's acting skills are at a level of 60 points, then under the direction of a high-level film director, they can achieve an effect of 80 points.

This is also why film directors dare to boldly use amateurs.

For example, Zhang Yimou likes to use newcomers in his films, and he always trains them very well.

Compared to movies, TV series are produced in a much more rudimentary way.

After all, TV dramas are not sold directly to viewers after they are produced. In the early days, they were sold to TV stations, and now they are also sold to video platforms.

Both television stations and video platforms profit from advertising; the longer viewers spend watching a show, the more they earn.

There have even been bizarre instances of television stations inserting TV dramas into commercials.

On the other hand, most people watch TV dramas to kill time.

Unlike watching a movie, you won't be staring at the screen all the time.

This inevitably leads to a characteristic of TV dramas: dragging.

If the plot is drawn out and dramatic enough, it can attract more viewers; if the episodes can be stretched to seventy or eighty, there will be more product placements.

Some disgusting directors even repeatedly use flashbacks to tell the same plot, making it seem like the plot could be edited into one or two episodes.

Therefore, for the main creators of TV series, their workload is greater than that of making movies, but the production cycle and budget are tighter than those of movies.

Ultimately, there's no inherent superiority between TV dramas and movies; it all comes down to whether the director, screenwriter, and actors have put in the necessary effort.

For example, before filming the 87 version of "Dream of the Red Chamber", it took ten months to polish the script and two years to select actors. All actors went to training classes before filming began.

The acting skills trained by such a production team couldn't possibly be bad. However, the future remake of "Dream of the Red Chamber: A Perfect Match," despite using more advanced equipment and artistic concepts, only resulted in a disaster.

There's no stronger actor between film and television.

Actors are ultimately a commodity; some are better suited for movies, while others are better suited for television dramas.

Truly good actors can convincingly portray any role, regardless of the film or television series they're in.

Having absorbed another memory, Cheng Sheng wouldn't be subject to this kind of hierarchy of contempt.

However, in Zeng Li and Su Chang's eyes, Cheng Sheng's actions were somewhat beneath his dignity.

"I wrote a TV drama script?"

Seeing the two women's shocked expressions, Cheng Sheng asked again, puzzled.

"Director Cheng, do you want to make a TV series?" Su Chang still couldn't believe it and asked again.

“Yes! Is there a problem?” Cheng Sheng said.

“This is a big problem. You’re a big movie director, why would you make a TV series? Do you know what people will say about you?” Zeng Li said, her eyes wide.

Upon hearing this, Cheng Sheng instantly understood.

I understand why Zeng Li and the other woman reacted so much when they heard that I was filming a TV series.

This is like a famous director making a web series; it makes people feel like it lowers their status.

But this kind of thing didn't matter to Cheng Sheng.

What's wrong with making TV dramas?
Although both acting in movies and television series are acting, and are essentially the same, the two art forms actually differ significantly in terms of scale, expression, duration, and other aspects.

Moreover, the audience, market response, and even the actors themselves will make a significant distinction between film and television art.

For example, not only television viewers but also the actors themselves may have consciously or unconsciously felt that acting in movies was more sophisticated, more artistic, and more abstract. Even very down-to-earth works and roles had to be presented on the big screen in cinemas, inevitably leading to a sense of high-class admiration.

In contrast, TV dramas are more down-to-earth and intimate in terms of subject matter, expression, and accessibility. They are more approachable and friendly, less distant, or perhaps less sophisticated.

So for many years, some movies had great box office results, and some movie actors had high incomes and great fame. The movie market was more prosperous than the TV drama market.

However, this trend is being reversed and changed in the future.

The rise of television stations and online platforms has created a greater demand for TV dramas, leading to the rapid growth of this market.

In particular, smartphones and computer networks have boosted people's interest in and access to TV dramas, driving the TV drama market to boom. As a result, TV drama ratings and revenues have repeatedly reached new highs in recent years. TV drama actors can not only earn higher salaries than those who act in movies, but also gain more popularity by going viral, winning more film contracts and commercial earning opportunities.

All of these factors have greatly boosted the popularity and popularity of the TV drama market, and this has become the norm, surpassing the occasional box office hits that only occur during prime time in the film market.

Film and television dramas, accessed through television sets and the internet, have a superior appeal, attracting more people and more attention, thus widening the gap between the two.

So don't be fooled by the fact that TV dramas aren't as popular as movies right now; in the future, the roles will be reversed.

Compared to the star-studded movies of the past, TV dramas are now produced in a much more luxurious way, with actors boasting greater fame and talent. Some actors who could previously carry a show on their own are now crowding into a single drama, with some even willingly lowering their billing to cooperate with each other.

In the future, many film directors and actors will gradually start making TV series.

Therefore, in Cheng Sheng's view, making TV dramas is not degrading at all, but rather following the trend.

(End of this chapter)