The literary era since 1979

After learning about the market situation of Japanese comics from Kadokawa Reihiko, Fang Yan and Pan Yaoming decided to split their forces into two groups.

Suzuki Yoko temporarily served as Pan Yaoming's translator and went to Shogakukan to discuss the licensing cooperation of its popular comics.

Fang Yan brought Hashimoto Yui to attend the internal preview of "Love Letter" jointly organized by Shochiku and Kadokawa Pictures.

As soon as the two entered the screening room, they saw that there were already quite a few people sitting in the room. They all stood up suddenly and greeted them warmly.

Fangyan scanned the room calmly: Okuyama Jun, Kadokawa Haruki, Matsuzaka Keiko, Akimoto Yasushi, Iwai Shunji…

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, seeing that everyone was present, Aoshan Rong gave his secretary a look:
"Now that everyone is here, let's get started."

As soon as these words were spoken, the room, which was originally bright as day, suddenly became pitch black because of the drawn curtains, and it was pitch dark where one could not see one's hand in front of one's face.

A beam of light shot out from the opening behind everyone, projecting onto a small screen that quickly glowed.

Kadokawa Haruki lowered his voice and said, "Mr. Fangyan, this film is still a rough cut that has not been edited yet."

Fangyan let out a light exclamation. Matsuzaka Keiko had told him on the phone that Shochiku and Kadokawa Pictures had already discussed that the movie "Love Letter" was scheduled to premiere on Christmas Eve, just in time for the Christmas season. But now there was only a month and a half left until Christmas.

Okuyama Rong said with a smile that although "Love Letter" was a rough film, it was actually completed almost perfectly. The only flaw was in the songs and soundtracks of the film. Although experts were invited to compose the theme song and the ending song, they were still unsatisfactory and seemed to be missing something.

"Fangyanjun is a music master and the author of the original work, so we hope to hear your opinion."

Haruki Kadokawa cast a meaningful look.

Looking at the scene where Keiko Matsuzaka appeared at the beginning of the movie and saw her lying quietly in the snow, Fang Yan took out two manuscripts from his briefcase leisurely, "Actually, I also prepared a theme song and an opening song for Love Letter. You can compare them."

As he spoke, he handed one of the songs to Okuyama Rong and said, "This one is the theme song, sung by Keiko."

Okuyama Rongyi took it and immediately turned his attention from the screen to the manuscript paper. The first line clearly read the title of the song:
"Hanasaki's Journey".

Keiko Matsuzaka just glanced at it from a distance.

On the third night that Fangyan arrived in Japan, she spent the entire night learning to "sing" songs with him in Fangyan's room.

She even knew the song "Hanasaki Ku Taroki". Fangyan also wrote a Cantonese song with the same melody but different lyrics, called "Piaoxue".

Fang Yan looked at her, his eyes full of smiles, and everything was said without words.

At this moment, a familiar face suddenly flashed in my peripheral vision. A handsome young man was standing by the window, and the white curtain was gently blown by the wind.

Keiko Matsuzaka said casually, "This young man is called Kimura Takuya."

Yo ho!

Fang Yan raised his eyebrows. From the moment he finished writing the script for the movie "Love Letter", he basically had a hands-off attitude. Apart from appointing Iwai Shunji as the director and Matsuzaka Keiko as the lead actress, he did not arbitrarily interfere in the casting of high school boy and girl Fujii Itsuki.

Unexpectedly, I got a pleasant surprise. Takuya Kimura came to play the "male Fujii Itsuki".

"Originally I wanted to recommend Hiroyuki Sanada, who I worked with on Dotonbori River, but he's a bit older."

Keiko Matsuzaka said: "So we held an audition, and after three rounds of selection, we finally chose the young actor who met everyone's expectations."

A casual question in dialect said that Takuya Kimura is now 15 years old and in the third grade of junior high school. He happened to catch the audition for the male lead of "Love Letter". His aunt and mother, who are "Love Letter fans", signed him up, and he immediately caught the attention of Okuyama Takeshi, Kadokawa Haruki and others.

"It just so happened that the agency jointly founded by Shochiku and Kadokawa Pictures was short of idol boys worth cultivating, so they chose him."

Keiko Matsuzaka smiled and said, "Of course, we also signed a few children who were not selected in the finals. They are all very promising young people." Fang Yan teased, "They have entered the role of senior management of the agency so quickly."

While the two were chatting and laughing, Haruki Kadokawa, Yasushi Akimoto and others were no longer interested in the movie and turned their attention to another manuscript in his hand.

"Fangyan-san, this is the song for the ending theme, right?"

There was a hint of impatience in Akimoto Yasushi's tone.

"Asking knowingly."

Fangyan narrowed his eyes into slits.

Akimoto Yasushi smiled naively, with a hint of shrewdness in his smile. The Little Bear Club was invited to guest-star as a middle school student in "Love Letter", and even conducted layers of auditions within the team to select the female Fujii Itsuki, and finally the role fell on "Kudo Shizuka".

"You could have the whole Bear Club singing along to this song."

Fangyan handed over the manuscript. "But in my opinion, it would be best to select two or three girls who are good at singing from the team to sing this song with the heroine Kudo Shizuka to make up for her shortcomings in singing skills and voice..."

"Mr. Fangyan is right!"

As the pioneer of Japanese girl idol movies, Haruki Kadokawa naturally has a lot of experience and vision in finding and discovering girl idols.

It is precisely because of this that they value Kudo Shizuka very much and regard her as the successor to Yakushimaru Hiroko. After she leaves the Little Bear Club, she will become a member of the Shochiku Kadokawa Joint Office like Kimura Takuya, and will also be one of the supernovas that they are cultivating with all their efforts.

Faced with the bosses' instructions, Akimoto Yasushi agreed timidly and then looked at the paper.

"I can't forget the late summer I spent with you.

Future dreams and great wishes,
I believe we will meet again in August 10 years later.
That most beautiful memory,
Our first encounter was so accidental.
At the crossroads on the way home,

I heard you say to me, 'Let's go together'..."

Seeing his fascinated look, Fang Yan gave an imperceptible smile.

Obviously, "We Still Don't Know the Name of the Flower We Saw That Day", the theme song of "Anohana", "Secret Base" touched his heart, and also added a touch of warmth to the "sad but not sorrowful" tone of the movie "Love Letter".

"Dialect-san!"

Yasushi Akimoto asked seriously how this song should be sung.

“This is a sample.”

Fangyan took out a tape from his bag, which contained a demo that he had commissioned Suzuki Yoko and Hashimoto Yui to sing.

Akimoto Yasushi stared at him intently, and he said that since he was the planner and promoter of the Little Bear Club, the composition, arrangement and recording of the song would be entirely his responsibility.

“These two songs must be finished before Christmas.”

Okuyama Rong said seriously: "Before the movie is released, it will be broadcast on the radio station for the first time to warm up for the release of "Love Letter"."

Fang Yan smiled and said, "How about it, do you dare to take on this important task?"

Akimoto Yasushi's eyes were firm, and he promised solemnly, "I will go through fire and water, Fangyan Sang!" (End of this chapter)