Go back in time and be a chaebol

Chapter 2748 The First Wave of Human Advantage (Happy New Year everyone! May you have great luck and make a fortune!)

We need to make TV series like movies. What does that mean?
Of course, the filming costs will be much higher!

Why did Chen Mo say that, according to the production standards of a TV series, it was impossible to present a complete story?

This is because most TV dramas are filmed in studios.

In fact, the novel is a road movie. To fully capture the "on the road" aspect of a road movie, a lot of location shooting is necessary, which is why a road movie cannot be filmed in a studio.

Limited by the scenario.

"Just like the TV series 'Journey to the West' that was filmed twenty years ago, it didn't cause any reaction because it was filmed in a studio with simple sets and poor effects."

Looking at the silent boss, Chen Mo said again:

"Therefore, if you want to film 'Journey to the West' well, you must overcome the difficulties of shooting on location. You either have to spend a lot of money and time to find suitable locations all over the world, or you can only accept the outcome of poor filming results. But if you do that, the TV series will most likely fail."

"In other words, if you want to make a good film, you have to make it like a movie."

"right,"

Chen Mo said bluntly:
"Moreover, as a road novel, Journey to the West has a very wide plot span, and it is always on the road. The outdoor scenes involved are also very diverse, from towering mountains and lush forests to boundless deserts and desolate Gobi, as well as shimmering rivers, lakes and seas and mysterious fairy caves. For each kind of outdoor scene, a suitable filming location needs to be found."

After a pause, Chen Mo continued:
"Moreover, these outdoor locations are diverse and vary greatly. The terrain of the ancient city is limited and cannot meet the shooting needs at all. We may need to travel to multiple countries."

Finding suitable filming locations might require going to Afghanistan or India, such as the Bamiyan Buddhas in Afghanistan or the ruins of ancient Buddhist temples in India. This would not only consume a lot of time and energy but also incur significant additional expenses; the cost of location shooting alone would be a considerable sum.

After a moment's thought, Chen Mo said:
"And this brings up the issue of funding. Such a large-scale production would definitely require an astronomical investment. I roughly estimated that just the location shooting, set construction, prop making, plus the actors' salaries, staff wages, and post-production editing, special effects, etc., would probably cost at least 60 to 70 million yuan to make."

Moreover, considering the expenses for special effects and contingency funds for unforeseen circumstances, the final investment may be around 100 million yuan.

Hearing this number, Li Yiyang wasn't surprised. After all, the production cost of movies has been rising. When he made "Terminator" for 860 million yuan, the media already considered it a "low-budget science fiction film."

In Kuching, a medium-sized film production requires an investment of approximately 2 to 5 million yuan. If we were to film a 100-episode series of "Journey to the West" using film standards, with 50 episodes as the standard, each episode would cost 2 million yuan to produce, which is already considered "low-cost".

"One hundred million yuan! That's quite a lot!"

After hearing Chen Mo's words, Li Yiyang frowned deeply, a serious expression on his face, and tapped his fingers lightly on the desk.

Seeing his boss deep in thought, Chen Mo reminded him again:
"Boss, it's not just a lot, it's enough to shoot ten blockbusters. With such a large investment, success would be great, but if it fails, the company will definitely suffer a major blow."

Because film production costs are constantly increasing, a failed blockbuster can not only severely damage a film company, but may even lead to its bankruptcy.

That's why Chen Mo was so cautious.

Chen Mo's reminder made Li Yiyang nod. After a long silence, he slowly spoke:
"Such a large investment certainly requires caution. Moreover, producing such a high-cost TV series is indeed very risky; will the market be able to accept it?"

This is also a problem, but fortunately, our TV series is filmed in seasons. I think we can divide it into four or five seasons, with the first season ending with "Havoc in Heaven," and each season having about 10 episodes. This way, the investment can be reduced significantly, and even if the market doesn't accept it, we can afford the losses. What do you think?

This is also the most popular production method for SEA TV series. Popular series like "Love Boat" have even been filmed for more than 7 seasons and more than 80 episodes. And some series have ended before their pilot season is even over.

Listening to his boss's decision, Chen Mo, having worked with him for so many years, naturally knew Li Yiyang's personality: once he set his mind on something, he wouldn't give up easily.

He was silent for a moment, then, as if he had thought of something, he frowned slightly and said:

"Boss, actually, if we want to save money and reduce risk, there is another way, but I don't know if it's feasible."

Upon hearing this, Li Yiyang said:

"Oh? What method? Tell me quickly!"

Chen Mo nodded and said:
"Boss, the story framework of Journey to the West is based on the mainland. After all, the author could not have gone to Afghanistan or India at that time, and the scenes in the story are all based on the terrain of the mainland."

The mainland is vast and rich in resources, with towering mountains, dense forests, deserts, and Gobi, not to mention countless rivers, lakes, and seas. Filming there will definitely save us a lot of time and money compared to traveling to multiple countries to find suitable locations.

Filming in mainland China? While Li Yiyang was still considering the feasibility, Chen Mo added:
"In addition, the labor costs in mainland China are much lower than ours. The wages of cameramen, actors, makeup artists, script supervisors, and other staff there are only a few dozen yuan a month, which is even less than the price of a boxed meal for a day."

"We only need to send a director, screenwriter, and a few key staff members from our company to coordinate and guide the filming. Then, we can recruit actors, cinematographers, makeup artists, and other staff in mainland China to form a filming team, and then we can film this TV series directly in mainland China."

Chen Mo became more and more excited as he spoke.

"In this way, the overall investment will be greatly reduced. Location shooting does not require much money, the staff's wages are also very low, and with the cost of prop making, post-production editing, special effects, etc., it may only cost one or two million yuan to shoot one season. Even if it is five seasons, it will only cost around ten million yuan."

Listening to Chen Mo's idea, Li Yiyang raised his eyebrows slightly, and his smile grew wider. As he listened, he considered in his mind that Chen Mo's method was indeed feasible. It could not only save a lot of investment and reduce risks, but also find the most suitable location for the plot and produce better results. It was a win-win situation.

After Chen Mo finished speaking, Li Yiyang couldn't help but nod in agreement:
"This method is indeed excellent; in terms of cost, there's no lower option! We can certainly give it a try, however..."

Making movies is actually quite similar to corporate production. Labor costs account for a large portion of the expenses.

Each person there earns only a few dozen yuan a month, which is not even enough to cover the cost of a boxed meal here.

With such low labor costs, how could anyone not be tempted?

While agreeing, Li Yiyang added:
"However, there is a problem. The situation there is different from other countries. We are a foreign film company. If we go there to shoot a TV series, we will definitely need to cooperate with the relevant local departments and obtain their approval. They will certainly not allow us to shoot alone. We may need to co-produce, but this requires assembling a filming team and recruiting staff. Will they agree to such cooperation?"

After all, we don't communicate much right now.

Seeing the boss's worried expression, Chen Mo shook his head and said:

“Lyon, I don’t think we need to think about this much. After all, compared to us, they are more eager to communicate with the outside world right now, and they certainly wouldn’t want to miss such an opportunity.”

I believe they will definitely agree. Besides, such co-productions can earn foreign exchange, since we need to hire a large number of local actors and staff.

Nodding slightly, Li Yiyang pondered for a moment before speaking:
"Okay, in that case, let's give it a try! You go and find out if it's feasible first, then contact their relevant departments and ask for their opinions to see if they agree to let us film. Also, we need to discuss the specific cooperation methods carefully."

After Chen Mo left, Li Yiyang leaned back in his chair, pondering whether the matter could be successful, when another thought flashed through his mind.

What about the male lead?

Li Yiyang thought of the male lead because Journey to the West is not just a road movie; it's also a film with a strong male lead.

Of course, the main male protagonist of the novel is not Tang Sanzang, but Sun Wukong.

So the question is, who should play Sun Wukong?

Li Yiyang couldn't help but start thinking, and one male celebrity after another flashed through his mind.

Lee Yi Yang, a top male star and director in Kuching, knows many actors.

But after thinking about it for a long time, I couldn't think of a male star who would be suitable to play Sun Wukong.

What kind of actor is suitable to play Sun Wukong?

With a furrowed brow, Li Yiyang continued to ponder the image of Sun Wukong in Journey to the West.

What should Sun Wukong look like?

His mind wasn't just filled with descriptions from novels, but also with Sun Wukong from other film and television works.

Journey to the West, as a classic masterpiece, has been adapted into movies, animated films, and, of course, dramas.

They have different images in different works, but all of them seem to be somewhat unsatisfactory.

It can't be said to be unsatisfactory. Li Yiyang muttered to himself:
"It should be said that... it should be said that... how should one be suitable for a movie role? What kind of image should Sun Wukong have in a movie?"

He frowned, then began to ponder in his mind. Since none of the male actors he knew were suitable, after thinking carefully for a while, Li Yiyang muttered to himself:
"What if we just held a talent show to select suitable male actors?"

(End of this chapter)