Japanese Entertainment: A Comeback Beginning from Bankrupt President

In his spare time, Kazuya Sawashiro can also enjoy hot pot and sing songs with Aki Amano, having a great time.

Now that wages have come down, it's time to treat ourselves to something nice.

After a good meal, I went downstairs to the convenience store to buy two ice creams to treat myself, and then came back to my directing class.

Good times are always fleeting; learning is the essence of life.

When that strange knowledge entered Amano Aki's brain in a strange way, she regretted why she debuted so early instead of studying hard and going to university. Now she wouldn't have to worry about not having enough brainpower.

It's a bit complicated; just switching between close-up and wide shots gave Amano Aki quite a headache.

Kazuya Sawashiro is a bit better; he has a larger knowledge base than Aki Amano, so he can easily adapt his knowledge with a little tweaking.

But it would be difficult for Amano Aki.

...

Receiving funds isn't just about having a nice meal; it's about using the money to do more things.

For example, the preparation of filming locations and props. Although this is a low-budget film with very low requirements for the scene, and most of the shots in the film are in one room, the room still needs to be prepared.

Even if it's just a wooden plank backdrop, you still have to find a place for it to be set up.

Leaving it on the street would just be asking for trouble.

First, we prepared the budget, then contacted the venue and prop makers, arranged extras and temporary staff with Misaki Tachibana, and also sought help from Apple Japan to resolve the issue of filming equipment.

Mobile phone shooting remains the core of this film's production.

However, there was more than one camera position, so Zecheng could only borrow some from them and put their names in the first column of sponsors later.

Since it wasn't an unreasonable request, Apple Japan staff approved it for Kazuya Sawashiro. A batch of equipment would be delivered to the office soon, and they would also arrange for someone to train him on how to use it.

We've been partners for a long time, haven't we?

The equipment issue was easy to resolve, but the venue was a different story.

The only place that can build such a large set indoors must be a recording studio belonging to the production company. But the production company and the TV station are one and the same, so it's no wonder they would rent the space to Kazuya Sawashiro. They would definitely make excuses to refuse.

A simple "the location has already been arranged by the production team" was enough to dismiss Kazuya Sawashiro. After all, TV stations film dramas and movies every quarter, so it's normal not to find a recording studio. There's no way to find fault with "exclusivity."

Like other low-budget films, those that can't even afford to rent a recording studio will go to the countryside.

The countryside is also a good option for Kazuya Sawaki.

However, there are also differences between rural areas.

In Tokyo you can say Saitama Prefecture is the countryside, but in Shikoku, which doesn't even have a Shinkansen, wouldn't you have to say it's worthy of being called the Tokyo metropolitan area?

So Zecheng and He Ye had to screen them one by one to find the countryside where the transportation and rent were both suitable.

He wasn't comfortable leaving this to someone else, so Kazuya Sawashiro cleared his mornings to visit rental properties listed online to see if they were suitable for filming.

After searching for a week by himself, he finally found a suitable match for Kazuya Sawashiro.

In Tokorozawa City, Saitama, there is a villa that is available for rent.

There was one place in the house that particularly pleased Kazuya Sawashiro: the basement that the original owner had used to store alcohol. After inspecting the site, Kazuya Sawashiro found that the basement's ceiling height and space perfectly matched his expectations.

He was still worried that the outdoor set would take up too much space, but then he found a villa with its own basement.

Because it's a villa, there are many rooms, and we were able to decorate some interior spaces as well.

The dream room belongs to that.

What's even more coincidental is that the homeowner is a fan of Aki Amano.

Because it was a rental for filming, the agent was unsure of what to do, so they told the landlord about Kazuya Sawashiro's request. This led to the realization that "the world and Japan are so small," as Aki Amano has fans everywhere he goes.

Upon hearing that the house was rented for Aki Amano to film, the landlord was very generous and gave the house to Kazuya Sawashiro at a very low price, just so he could make an appearance in the drama.

Kazuya Sawashiro had never heard of such a request before, so he agreed without hesitation.

The core of the entire series is Amano Aki, but the people around her also need actors. Let alone a single scene, it would be fine to have him play Amano Aki's father in the series, since this father only appears at the police station after he goes missing.

The role wasn't great, but it was still a role that got some screen time, wasn't it?

After reaching this secret deal, he signed the rental agreement and obtained a one-month filming permit.

The original Buried Alive only took half a month to film. Although the manpower for this remake is not very sufficient, with Aki Amano's professional acting skills as support, it can be completed in a month, and then time can be spent on retouching.

Full of confidence, Kazuya Sawashiro told Aki Amano the exciting news after she returned from practice.

"Major announcement!"

"Amano, I've found you a father. Do you have any requirements?"

When Sawashiro Kazuya uttered those lewd words, Amano Aki, who had just finished get off work, immediately rolled her eyes at him.

"Can't you speak normally?"

"Because it's more shocking to say it like this..." Kazuya Sawashiro pretended to be pitiful, pouting as he slowly told the truth: "I found a house that was willing to rent to us for filming. The landlord made a deal with me, which was to let him appear on screen as a condition for lowering the rental cost, so I agreed to let him play your father in the drama."

"Ah..." It took Amano Aki a while to process what Sawashiro Kazuya was talking about. He excitedly said, "Isn't this a huge profit? By the way, could you find a few more kind-hearted people like this and see if you can get some more donations?"

If sending out an insignificant role can secure a filming location, could we perhaps expand our thinking and market reach?

Who knows, there might be another ATM that automatically takes the bait, waving its credit card and saying "spend it however you want."

"Do you want to crowdfund a movie? That really drains your fanbase and makes you a target for financial crime investigation organizations. You know how annoying they are."

Ze Cheng wasn't trying to scare Amano Aki, but rather that given their current situation, they should avoid doing things that could easily cause trouble, otherwise others might use it against them.

I can't let the goodwill I've just built up be wasted like this.

"That's true, it's better not to cause trouble," Amano Aki stopped her wild thoughts and sat up straight to be her obedient child. "So when are we going to have a reading session? If the actors don't understand what their roles are, there will be a lot of unnecessary trouble during filming."

"Well... let me finish writing the script first."

Sorry, Kazuya Sawashiro still couldn't turn the story into a script for filming.