"I'm in Tokyo, and this is some kind of movie star comeback system?!"

Chapter 100 Sweating profusely

Inside the surveillance area, Watanabe and Ishida's eyes were fixed on the monitor screen.

Through the footage, Watanabe immediately noticed that the camera position of Sakamoto Yu had been adjusted.

Even without watching the post-production editing, you can see that Sakamoto Yu's presence has been minimized.

This short scene was filmed quickly.

Jiro Ikuno picked up the megaphone and shouted.

Ishida looked at Watanabe and nodded slightly to her.

Watanabe smiled back, then his expression suddenly turned serious, and he reverted to his decisive and efficient demeanor.

"Ikuno-san, why are all the shots of Sakamoto Yuu from the side or from behind?"

"We signed a contract with the production team; your actions constitute a breach of contract!"

Watanabe didn't mince words and immediately pointed out the problem.

Jiro Ikuno was stunned by the question. After a long while, he turned his gaze to the executive producer.

He was just following orders; he didn't have that much authority of his own.

Watanabe and Ishida were aware of this, of course; she was just using it as a starting point.

After speaking, Watanabe turned his head and followed Ikuno Jiro's gaze to look at the executive producer beside him.

The executive producer's body was tense, and he himself did not realize that his straight back had unconsciously hunched over.

He was seen rubbing his trouser legs with both hands, his eyes secretly watching Ishida's expression.

When Ishida introduced Watanabe just now, the executive producer couldn't help but feel a chill.

Isn't this the end of it?!

He had just agreed to reduce the number of scenes featuring Sakamoto Yu by Miura's agent when his boss arrived immediately. What a coincidence!

The executive producer sighed inwardly.

If only I hadn't taken that chance! It's all that Miura's manager's fault. I was so blinded by greed to agree to it!

"Producer, could you please explain why you arranged the shots of Sakamoto Yuu in this way?"

Watanabe's words were like a knife slicing open the executive producer's face.

He swallowed hard, quickly glanced at Ishida's face, gritted his teeth, and bluntly told him the truth: "I'm very sorry! It was all my fault for making mistakes!"

The executive producer immediately bowed ninety degrees towards Ishida.

Ishida's face was expressionless, and no emotion could be discerned.

"The reason is that Miura's manager felt that Sakamoto-san's presence would affect Miura's presence as the protagonist."

The executive producer had beads of sweat on his forehead. "He came to me hoping to reduce the amount of Sakamoto-san's screen time by changing the camera angle and the lens."

"I'm truly sorry, it was my mistake; I failed to accurately diagnose the root cause of the problem!"

Watanabe was taken aback by the executive producer's decisive action.

She thought the other party would try to argue, but to her surprise, they admitted their mistake directly.

There were still many staff members on set at this time, and even Sakamoto Yu and Nakamori Akina were watching from not far away.

Watanabe felt helpless; he had underestimated the other person's courage and adaptability.

That immediate attitude of admitting defeat and cutting losses really shows he's a seasoned veteran.

The executive producer lowered his head, a chill running down his spine. At that moment, he only hoped that Ishida would let him go; everything else was negotiable.

Ishida was very clear about his subordinates' intentions, and he didn't intend to fire them over this matter.

Watanabe understood this principle and, seeing the situation, decided not to cause any further trouble.

"Sakamoto Yu's lens..."

"I'll get in touch with them immediately and make sure Sakamoto-san's footage isn't compressed!"

The executive producer, still bowing, glanced slightly at Ishida. "Let me speak with Ikuno-san first. After filming resumes, we can discuss it in detail in the office, how about that?"

Upon hearing this, Ishida looked at Watanabe, his meaning clear: was he satisfied with this solution?

Watanabe nodded, his face tense.

Seeing this, Ishida gave his subordinate a look.

The executive producer immediately stood up and gestured to Jiro Ikuno.

Jiro Ikuno quickly stepped forward to listen to the instructions.

Sakamoto immediately adjusted the camera position and reset it to ensure he could appear on camera.

After giving the instructions, Ikuno Jiro beckoned to the assistant director, who quickly stepped forward.

After hearing the instructions, the assistant director approached the cameraman.

In this way, one level after another, the entire production crew experienced a chain reaction, much like dominoes falling.

This scene seemed extremely comical to Sakamoto Yu, but no one at the scene dared to laugh or make a sound.

This was the rigid hierarchical system of the 80s.

The only sound on set was the whispered instructions from superiors to subordinates; otherwise, no one spoke, and it was eerily quiet.

Seeing that the matter was resolved, Sakamoto looked up and glanced in Watanabe's direction, their eyes meeting.

He slightly curled the corners of his mouth and nodded to her.

Watanabe's expression remained unchanged, but a fleeting hint of smugness flashed in his eyes.

The two tacitly avoided each other's gaze.

"You're still a bit green in this area. If you had gone back to the office earlier, we might have been able to discuss things like more screen time or other terms."

Taking advantage of the fact that no one was around, Ishida whispered a few words of advice to Watanabe.

Watanabe's expression softened slightly, and he stopped being so tense: "I can't push my luck too much, after all, he's my uncle's subordinate." Watanabe returned a genuine smile.

"You little rascal, you're still as clever as you were when you were a kid," Ishida said with a slight smile.

His gaze swept across the film set, finally settling on Sakamoto Yu's face. Although he had seen him before, Ishida always felt that this man's appearance was absolutely flawless.

"This time it's really not Miura's fault. The actor you recommended is indeed impeccable in terms of appearance."

When Watanabe heard Ishida praise Sakamoto Yu, he seemed thoughtful and added a few words: "Sakamoto-san's appearance is only one of his advantages. Don't be fooled by his inflated popularity. He has already signed several endorsement deals and subsequent drama contracts. As long as the broadcast maintains his exposure, his popularity will definitely rise again."

After Watanabe made a brief sales pitch, he fell silent.

Ishida knew Watanabe's words had a hidden meaning, and as he looked at the young actor on set, he secretly made his own plans.

"When do you think his Nissan endorsement will air?" Ishida suddenly asked.

Watanabe's lips curled up. "At the end of March, Fuji TV and TBS will air their evening dramas one after the other."

Ishida pursed his lips and fell silent again.

After a while, he waved to the executive producer and director, and when they came closer, he instructed them: "Give Sakamoto-san a close-up shot to highlight the atmosphere between Sakamoto-san and Nakamori-san."

Ishida then added, "Add a few more close-ups, and maximize his presence while ensuring the smooth flow of the narrative."

Jiro Ikuno was taken aback, his expression somewhat troubled.

The executive producer also felt something was off, "What about Miura's side..."

Ishida waved his hand, "I didn't add any scenes for Sakamoto. This is just normal character development. If he feels he can't handle a supporting role, let him come to me."

Ishida gave the order without giving a clear answer. This drama was originally intended for Nakamori Akina. The male lead's status was the same as in "Mom is an Idol," a supporting role. He was indispensable but not essential.

The executive producer took a deep breath and exchanged a glance with Jiro Ikuno. Since Ishida had given such an order, they could only do as he said.

On set, Akina Nakamori and Satomi Kobayashi watched the whole thing and immediately understood why Yu Sakamoto had seemed so nonchalant earlier; he had actually prepared a backup plan all along.

Satomi Kobayashi glanced at the man with a calm expression.

Miura's manager has really messed up this time. Everyone in this industry knows who's stupid.

However, she was also curious: with such strong connections, why would Sakamoto Yu agree to play a supporting role? Wouldn't it be better to be the lead?

Kobayashi silently observed Sakamoto Yu, feeling that this man was not simple and that she couldn't see through him.

Akina Nakamori glanced at Yu Sakamoto's manager, then her gaze fell on Yu Sakamoto.

She shifted her feet, moved closer to Sakamoto Yu, and asked in a low voice, "When did you call your manager?"

Sakamoto Yu shrugged and truthfully said that he had heard some news and had called his manager over just in case.

Akina Nakamori pursed her lips. "Why didn't you tell me earlier? I thought you had no idea what to do."

She squinted slightly and glanced at him sideways.

"You made me worry for nothing, didn't you?" she said with a hint of dissatisfaction.

Sakamoto Yu looked completely innocent upon hearing this, "What's there to talk about? I just didn't want you to worry about it."

Nakamori stared intently at his face, while Sakamoto Yu remained expressionless.

"How can you say such smug things with such a calm expression?"

Akina Nakamori crossed her arms, gave a meaningful hum, and fell silent.

Before long, the scene had been rearranged, and director Jiro Ikuno walked towards the three of them.

His gaze fell on Sakamoto Yu, a mixture of relief and apprehension in his eyes.

Ikuno Jiro pointed at the camera, "Sakamoto-san, there are a few shots that need to be reshot, and Nakamori-san, we'll also need to trouble you later."

""

The words were phrased tactfully, but everyone understood. No one pointed it out; they simply nodded in agreement.