I became famous in the entertainment industry by burning incense

People are ultimately different.

Director Xu went to great lengths to obtain a channel from Chu Chenliang to sell DVDs overseas.

However, when the message was sent in Jinli's personal name to renowned directors and powerful investors, they responded much more enthusiastically.

These investors weren't unfamiliar with such text messages, but those who sent them were people who needed their help, creating an unequal power dynamic between them.

Those people read it and then forgot about it; they didn't take it seriously.

But if Jinli sends it in her own name, then it's different.

If they help Jinli with this matter, Jinli will owe them a favor.

A favor from a famous celebrity can be incredibly useful.

It can be used for shooting commercials, TV dramas, variety shows, magazine shoots...

Of course, none of these were filmed for free.

However, given Jinli's star power, there are some gigs that simply cannot be booked by her, no matter how much money is offered.

Once she has done him a favor, she will agree.

After learning that Jinli had inquired about overseas distribution channels for "Counterattack," the renowned directors and investors took it very seriously and all replied that they would help her inquire.

Hard work pays off!
Three days later, Jinli received some information from Director Zhong (the director of "The Dream Builder").

Zhong Wentai originally called Jinli, but couldn't get through, so he switched to calling Chenxi Entertainment to communicate with Sui Lingfang.

Director Zhong hesitated for a moment and said, "I've heard this information, but it's not through my own channels. I'm just passing on a message for someone else."

Sui Lingfang asked sharply, "Who?"

Director Zhong: "One Hundred Million Media".

Sui Lingfang searched her memory for the company and quickly found it, but she had some doubts:
"Hasn't Yiyi Media been investing in idol dramas in recent years? They've been involved in both modern and historical dramas. How do they have access to overseas film distribution channels?"

Director Zhong said, "This all starts with the background of Yiyi Media."

The shareholders of Yiyi Media are complex, with 20% of the shares held by foreigners who control distribution channels in dozens of Southeast Asian countries, including Thailand and the United States.

It's not that having that person guarantees a release in dozens of Southeast Asian countries; it's just that their introduction gives you a 70% chance of getting the opportunity.

Director Zhong seemed to remember something and added, "Do you know about the idol dramas that Yiyi Media has produced in recent years?"

Sui Lingfang didn't have much of an impression. After all, who watches idol dramas and would specifically search for who produced the show?

She took out her tablet and quickly searched for Yiyi Media's achievements in recent years.

I don’t know, I’m scared.

Her expression turned serious.

"In recent years, Yiyi Media has released nothing but terrible films. Whether it's modern or historical dramas, they're all awful. On professional film and television websites, they all have ratings between 5 and 6. Not a single one of them is even passable."

Netizens have given those dramas very bad reviews. Last year, it was rare to find a popular young actor and actress joining a period drama, but the editing of that drama had major problems.

Viewers expressed that the film was confusing, with the director's direction being unclear and difficult to understand, resulting in a low rating.

Sui Lingfang asked doubtfully, "So, does Yiyi Media really have overseas distribution channels?"

The production quality of the drama is so poor that she really doubts whether it's just hype.

Director Zhong affirmed, "They definitely have overseas distribution channels. This time, they heard that Jinli wanted to help 'Counterattack' find overseas distribution channels, so they took the initiative to contact me, hoping that I could make an introduction."

He explained, "Actually, many people in the directing circle know that Yiyi Media has overseas distribution channels because we often receive filming invitations from Yiyi Media. They hope to invest in us to produce a TV series."

"As for why they look for directors in the film industry instead of the television industry."

Director Zhong paused for a moment, then said with a smile, "It's probably because the recent dramas they produced didn't do well, so they think the director is more of a problem, and they've developed a distrust of the director and don't want to train new talent."

Therefore, we hope that directors who make movies can switch to making TV series and directly poach talent.

One of their key advantages, and one they always emphasize, is having overseas distribution channels.

Director Chung revealed another secret that many people don't know.

"Although the dramas produced by Yiyi Media in recent years have been terrible, they have never lost money on any of them."

Releasing a show only domestically would definitely result in a loss, but all those shows recouped their costs through various overseas distribution channels, making their overseas distribution networks very strong.

Sui Lingfang suddenly realized, "So that's how it is."

When she saw those reviews online, she felt something was off.

A company that specializes in making bad movies, and not just one bad movie, but several years' worth of bad movies.

Why doesn't this kind of company go bankrupt? Instead, it continues to produce terrible shows and even shows signs of growing bigger and stronger.

If the overseas distribution channels are very strong, this can also be explained.

They have many ways to sell the film, specifically collecting copyright fees from each country that imports it, which might even allow them to recoup their investment costs.

If you have a strong position in distribution, you can negotiate a high buyout fee and even get a share of the viewership revenue.

While chatting with Director Zhong, Sui Lingfang was also reviewing information about Yiyi Media.

She raised an eyebrow, finding it quite interesting.

Some netizens say that although Yiyi Media specializes in making bad movies and domestic audiences don't buy into them, some foreign audiences have a very good impression of their films.

Meanwhile, Yiyi Media has been jokingly referred to by netizens as OST Media, as it is involved in TV dramas but its heart is in the music industry.

Because several of their terrible dramas have produced catchy songs.

Whenever music bloggers compile a series titled "Great Songs Originate from Bad Movies," their TV dramas are always included.

Well, the licensing fees for those hit songs alone could probably make them a fortune.

This looks a bit like a film and television company that's not doing its job properly.

The topic then shifted to overseas distribution channels.

Sui Lingfang said, "But 'Counterattack' is a movie, while Yiyi Media's strength currently lies in the distribution of TV series. The two are not related."

Director Zhong smiled and said, "That's why they didn't come directly to you. They were worried that you would think they weren't professional enough, so they came to me to talk to you."

Based on my understanding of their shareholder, he has the ability to establish connections with cinema distribution channels in dozens of Southeast Asian countries.

The reason why Yiyi Media didn't make movies is that even if idol dramas are badly made, there are still various ways to recoup costs, but if movies are badly made, there are fewer ways to recoup costs.

Moreover, compared to television dramas, audiences are much less receptive to films, while many foreign viewers are more forgiving towards television dramas.

Director Chung frankly admitted: "Simply put, they have the ability to enter the international film distribution market, but they also know that their production may not be good, so they have always stayed in the comfort zone of TV series."

Sui Lingfang hesitated for a moment, then said, "I understand. Please give me the contact information of their person in charge, and I will take the initiative to communicate with them."

Director Zhong breathed a sigh of relief.

Yiyi Media has overseas distribution channels and experience in filming TV dramas.

If they do get in touch with Chenxi Entertainment, they might ask Jinli to film a self-produced drama by Yiyi Media.

This project could be a movie or a TV series. But as the director, he knew very well that Yiyi Media didn't have a suitable director or a good script, and that they could only produce terrible dramas from beginning to end.

To be fair, he didn't want to introduce Yiyi Media to Chenxi Entertainment.

He didn't want Jinli, a star with a promising future, to suddenly make a bad movie and damage her reputation.

However, he happened to owe Yiyi Media a favor, so he had no choice but to help make the connection.

Thinking of this, Director Zhong's eyes darkened slightly.

If his niece Qiu Qiwen hadn't personally come to him to ask for help, he wouldn't have chosen to repay Yiyi Media's favor in this way.

Sigh, celebrities!
As radiant as a flower, yet as fleeting as a flower.

Who can remain evergreen?
-
Sui Lingfang moved very quickly.

She first held a meeting with her team to discuss Yiyi Media.

Everyone felt it was worthwhile to make contact and see how it went.

Besides Yiyi Media, some other directors also sent in relevant information, but none of them seemed very reliable.

On the contrary, Yiyi Media, which was introduced by Director Zhong, clearly has distribution channels, and its bad dramas are constantly recouping their losses through overseas distribution channels.

This is considered the economic pillar of Yiyi Media, so it seems more reliable.

Furthermore, before Sui Lingfang could contact Yiyi Media...

After receiving a reply from Director Zhong that "it has been recommended and not ruled out," the relevant person in charge of Yiyi Media couldn't wait to take the initiative to contact Chenxi Entertainment.

The two sides communicated back and forth for more than half an hour.

Yiyi Media clearly stated: "Although we have only distributed TV series overseas in the past, we also have channels for movies."

If Jinli is willing to cooperate with us, we can fill the theaters of "Counterattack" in at least 10 Southeast Asian countries, and the scheduling can guarantee the basic schedule and will not be canceled.

As for how the schedule will be arranged in the week after its release, it will depend on how well "Counterattack" performs.

If the results are good, the theaters will actively arrange to add more screenings.

Yiyi Media also stated, "Jinli's influence is very strong in Southeast Asia, so there's no need to worry too much. Cinemas might even proactively add more screenings from the start."

Sui Lingfang asked, "So, how do you plan to collaborate with Jinli?"

Yiyi Media said without hesitation: "Let Jinli film a self-produced drama series, with her as the absolute female lead."

She can choose the director, the script, and change it however she wants. She's in charge of the entire crew and can film it however she wants.

Sui Lingfang: ...

She took a deep breath, suppressing her anger, and said, "With Jinli's current status, there are plenty of movies waiting for her to film, why would she go back to filming TV dramas?"

Yiyi Media sensed the unfriendly tone in her voice and quickly said, "No, you misunderstood. We're not letting Jinli bid for free; we'll pay the market price."

We'll pay whatever fee she commands for filming TV dramas. As for the director, she doesn't have to use one of our directors; if she has a director she likes, we'll hire him.

As for the cast, besides Jinli as the absolute female lead, the roles of the third female lead, third male lead, fourth female lead, and fourth male lead can all be filled by Chenxi Entertainment. We only need one second female lead and one second male lead!

Sui Lingfang frowned. To be honest, the terms offered were too good to be true.

It's so good it's like a scam specifically targeting Jinli.

She asked, "Do you want the second female lead and the second male lead because you want to use Jinli's popularity to make them famous and actively promote them?"

Yiyi Media was so frightened that sweat broke out on their foreheads. They quickly said, "Of course not, we just want to make a high-quality drama that can wash away our previous humiliation!"
We will absolutely not let Jinli be a supporting character; we can give her enormous power.

If she's not satisfied with the script, she can change it at any time; if she's not satisfied with the supporting actors' scenes, she can also change them; and she can even appoint a director.

Even with film and television production crews, if she's not satisfied, we can find someone else!

Sui Lingfang roughly understood.

Perhaps Yiyi Media was also scared by the title of "source of bad movies" on the internet, and vowed to make a high-quality hit drama, which is why they set their sights on Jinli.

Although Jinli holds a high position in the film and television industry, it doesn't mean she can't act in TV dramas.

Because she started out in television drama production.

Unlike actors who enter the film industry right from the start, she doesn't have any so-called "fame or disgrace" burden.

She worked her way up from television dramas to film, and although she kept rising in status, Jinli herself never limited herself to making movies.

When we were choosing scripts before, Jinli said that if we couldn't find a good movie script, we could look at TV drama scripts.

but……

Jinli may not care whether she makes a movie or a TV series, but the company cannot be indifferent.

Sui Lingfang was still hesitant.

Yiyi Media further stated, "In this way, we can sign a script contract for up to two years, and Jinli only needs to film one of Yiyi Media's self-produced dramas within those two years."

She has the right to freely edit and select actors other than the director and the second female and male leads.

If you don't trust our script, you can easily create a script that Jinli likes yourself within two years. What do you think?

Sui Lingfang's heart was truly moved.

Two years is neither a long nor a short time.

It's definitely possible to spend two years polishing a TV series script.

Moreover, there is plenty of time, and if there is a director you like, you can coordinate your schedule.

She almost agreed on Jinli's behalf.

Sui Lingfang said, "I need to talk to Jinli and ask for her opinion."

The head of Yiyi Media breathed a sigh of relief. If they were willing to pass on a message to the artist, it meant there was hope.

If there's absolutely no chance, the artist doesn't need to know.

The person in charge said, "We look forward to your next call."

That evening, Jinli received a call from Sister Fang, who specifically discussed this matter.

Jinli asked, "Is Yiyi Media's distribution qualification reliable?"

Fangjie said, "Director Zhong personally recommended it, so it should be reliable. Moreover, we can write the terms of this exchange into the contract."

"Counterattack" will be released soon. If Yiyi Media fails to secure overseas distribution channels and breaches their contract, we can simply not produce it.

Jinli said with great interest, "It sounds like all the terms of the contract are in my favor. Except for the fact that I have to lower my status to film a TV series, they have shown the utmost sincerity. They even let me choose the director and change the script as I please."

Sui Lingfang: "Yes, I was also a little tempted, but after calming down, I realized that there are risks involved."

"You've already achieved considerable success in the film industry. Rushing into television dramas will raise a lot of questions, especially since it's a self-produced drama by Yiyi Media..."

She couldn't bring herself to say anything good against her conscience.

"The dramas they've made in recent years have all been terrible. I seriously suspect they're under some kind of curse." (End of Chapter)