I'm really good at this.

Liu Yishou slumped in his seat, and Zhang Hong awkwardly went on stage for the third time.

Fortunately, the presenter was a middle-aged male actor. The two only shook hands and did not hug. He just joked, "When will you ask me to make a movie for you?" and then moved aside.

Zhang Hong was satisfied; at least his clothes wouldn't get dirty again.

Keep in mind that this is a six-figure custom order.

In his past life, he had seen news reports about someone who bought a dress from a luxury store, wore it once, and then took it to be washed, only to find the dress ruined.

When I went to the luxury store to demand an explanation, the staff were quite surprised.

"Oh? There are actually people who buy our dresses and then take them to be washed?"

Their target audience is celebrities who want to go on stage or walk the red carpet.

Those celebrities almost never wear the same dress twice...

They will also avoid wearing the same outfit at the same ceremony.

Zhang Hong couldn't help but sigh, "Being a celebrity is really tough."

So he doesn't want to be a star; he'll just be a director who makes money.

Tsk, thinking about it this way, it's kind of funny that I would make "Flags of Our Fathers" even if it meant losing money.

Shaking his head, Zhang Hong began his third acceptance speech.

"How should I put it? It feels like time has flown by. It feels like just ten minutes ago that I was on the Feitian Awards stage last time."

Zhang Hong told a joke to lighten the mood.

but......

The air seemed colder than before.

It also has a musty, aged lemon scent.

Zhang Hong quickly tried to salvage the situation: "Actually, it was just good luck, not because I'm particularly capable. This time, I unexpectedly received a 1 billion yuan investment from China Heavy Industries, which enabled me to produce the TV series 'Mobile Suit Gundam'."

And that doesn't even include marketing costs, and the actors' salaries weren't much either. In other words, the 40 million yuan budget per episode was basically all spent on filming and post-production. We even built a dedicated filming base, and made several life-size Gundam models.

Zhang Hong scratched the back of his head modestly and said, "Actually, any of the directors here with an investment of my caliber could make a better film than me, really!"

The scene was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

If there were a thermometer, the temperature at the scene would definitely be below zero.

It's so cold!

"Anyway... keep going, everyone! One day you'll all get your own billion-dollar investment! Thank you all!"

Accompanied by...

There was no applause. Zhang Hong took a few steps off the stage, passed Wu Dingguo who had a complicated look in his eyes, and returned to his seat.

Liu Yishou grabbed his hand, trembling as he said, "Quick...quick! My left jacket pocket...I have some nitroglycerin pills!"

Zhang Hong panicked and hurriedly reached into his pocket.

After taking out the medicine bottle, Zhang Hong hurriedly opened it.

Then he froze.

What came out wasn't some quick-acting heart medicine, but a memory card.

"This is?"

Faced with Zhang Hong's doubts, Liu Yishou dropped the pretense and revealed a fatherly smile: "These are stills and behind-the-scenes footage from your four episodes of 'Blood-Stained Youth,' consider it a gift for you. Congratulations, Xiao Hong."

This gift was originally intended for Zhang Hong to give as a motivational gift when he returned empty-handed from the Feitian Awards, but now...

Liu Yishou sighed inwardly.

Now, let's not talk about motivating him anymore. Just give him this so he won't see it and it won't bother him.

Ugh...it's so sour...

Moreover, it's foreseeable that this kid will definitely reap a great harvest at the Golden Eagle Awards in the future.

"Thanks, Uncle Liu." Zhang Hong took the memory card and put it in his pocket.

There's no need for words of gratitude; he'll definitely come to help Liu Yishou whenever he needs it in the future.

Now, the ceremony is coming to an end, and the host is trying his best to create a lively atmosphere with enthusiastic words.

But it was no use; everyone's reaction was lukewarm.

It's also very sour.

It's just... boring.

Everyone came to the awards ceremony in high spirits, but then they ran into a weirdo like Zhang Hong!

It's not that he's causing trouble.

But that's what's most infuriating!

After all, we're all in the film and television industry; we can tell whether someone is genuine or just putting on an act.

They could really see that Zhang Hong was speaking from the heart; he wasn't trying to show off, and he wasn't even excited about winning the Feitian Award.

A newcomer who has only been in the industry for a few months has won two important awards, "Outstanding TV Series" and "Outstanding Actor". How can we, the seasoned veterans, put our faces?

The Feitian Awards are coming to an end soon.

Zhang Hong stroked his chin: "Uncle Liu, do you think they'll cut out part of our acceptance speech in the Feitian Awards video?"

His main concern is being blacklisted.

Being blacklisted means you can't make movies and earn money.

"No." Liu Yishou glanced at the two trophies in his arms, then felt the weight of the trophy in his own hand, and explained with a forced smile, "If we really wanted to target you, you wouldn't have been able to win those two important awards at all."

Don't worry, from what I know, it'll probably just be a tiny bit cut out, or maybe nothing at all.

After a pause, Liu Yishou said solemnly, "The Feitian Awards are more serious, so they won't be broadcast live, but the Golden Eagle Awards in half a month will be broadcast live on CCTV! Don't let your people pull any more tricks then."

"I'll try my best," Zhang Hong sighed. "Uncle Liu, that's not my focus right now. All I want to do is make money."

He whispered, "Uncle Liu, how do you TV dramas make money?"

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!

He really didn't know that.

Lin Muqing sold "Clouds Fall into the Mortal World" to Jixing Video for a fixed price of 30 million.

The TV series "Mobile Suit Gundam" was taken by China Heavy Industries and broadcast on CCTV for free. Zhang Hong was profiting from the money saved from the budget.

As for "The Flag of Our Fathers"... it left Zhang Hong penniless. I heard that the group of elderly people were planning to give the film to CCTV for free.

Zhang Hong still had no money.

However... to be fair, there are probably a lot of directors and actors who beg CCTV to air their shows for free. If you don't have the connections, you can't get them even if you give them away for free.

Liu Yishou glanced at him and felt his teeth ache even more.

This guy doesn't even know how to make money from filming TV dramas, yet he managed to win the Feitian Award...

He shook his head and explained, "Actually, there are several types. For TV series, there are only a few: find someone to invest, then take a salary, and if the director is capable, they can also negotiate profit sharing. After that, the series is filmed and then sold. They decide whether to sell it by the episode or as a package."

Later, there might be merchandise, DVDs, online streaming rights—it all adds up to quite a bit.

This is actually why popular TV dramas are sought after by both TV stations and websites.

TV stations aim for ratings, while websites aim for traffic.

Only with high viewership and traffic can they negotiate higher prices with Google Play, which will attract more businesses to use Google Play.

Zhang Hong clicked his tongue: "I always feel like... TV drama directors don't seem to make much money."

"If you compare them to film directors, that's true. Film directors get higher profit sharing, but to be honest, the chances of a film flopping are also higher." Liu Yishou shrugged. "If we're talking about the top of the pyramid, film directors' income and status are slightly higher than those of television directors. However, the income of middle and lower-level directors is definitely not as high as that of television directors."

Zhang Hong seemed thoughtful: "Then I think maybe I could try making a movie?"

His name is Zhang Hong. In order to make money, he shamelessly copied movies from his previous life without any problem.

Unfortunately, I can't move it because I don't understand it at all.

Even if he can describe the plot verbally, the effect of different people filming it will be completely different.

"Oh? You want to make a movie?"

A voice that was somewhat unfamiliar to Zhang Hong rang out.

Looking up, Zhang Hong realized that the awards ceremony had ended and the crowd that had just applauded enthusiastically had dispersed.

Several directors and actors who originally wanted to come and get acquainted with Zhang Hong are now too afraid to come—at least they'll wait until no one is around.

Who would dare come over now, and besides, no one's in the mood for it.

However, the person who spoke up didn't seem to care at all.

"Chairman Wu." Liu Yishou stood up and pulled Zhang Hong up as well. "Xiao Hong, let me introduce you. This is Wu Dingguo, Chairman of the China Film and Television Association."

Zhang Hong extended his hand and shook hands with him, saying with a grin, "Hello, Chairman Wu."

He recognized the person; it was the one who had been giving him a respectful, elder-like smile when he was on stage earlier.

It seems the China Film and Television Association is an official organization, and judging from how much respect Uncle Liu showed him...

If even Uncle Liu, with his personality, has to show him respect, then that means this big shot is a ruthless character.

After shaking hands with Zhang Hong, Wu Dingguo patted Zhang Hong on the shoulder and smiled broadly: "Young and promising! Keep it up! I hope you can lead the Chinese film and television industry to new heights!"

"By the way, I heard you talking about movies earlier, right?" He looked Zhang Hong up and down. "TV series and movies are definitely two different things, how about this?"

Wu Dingguo pondered for a few seconds before making a decision: "If you want to practice making movies in the future, you can contact me. Our TV and Film Association has funding to support young directors, and I can help you get approval. Although it's not a lot of money, only a few million, it can be used to test the waters."

As he spoke, he took out his phone and opened a chat app: "Come on, scan the QR code and add me as a friend."

Zhang Hong: "..."

The old man is really trendy.

He silently took out his phone and added the big shot as a friend.

"Okay, you guys chat. There are a lot of fun attractions and snacks in Beijing that you can try. I have a meeting to attend, so I'll be going now."

Wu Dingguo patted Zhang Hong on the shoulder and then left.

Watching the VIP leave, Liu Yishou smiled and said, "Not bad, it's good to have made connections with Chairman Wu. Xiao Hong, what are your plans for the next two weeks? Are you going back to Luocheng or staying in Beijing to wait for the Golden Eagle Awards?"

"Just wait, let's finish this quickly and go back." Zhang Hong pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm still thinking about what to do next."

As the two were talking, Zhang Hong's phone rang.

When I answered the phone, it was Lin Muqing calling.

"Feed?"

"Zhang Hong, Wang Ye just contacted me saying that General Manager Liang needs to speak with you."

Zhang Hong was taken aback: "Huh? What's wrong?"

Lin Muqing's voice remained cold: "People from Japanese and several European television stations have approached us; they want to import 'Mobile Suit'."

P.S.: Just got home, next chapter will be late at night.

I like it, I'm really good at it, I'm really good at it.