Entertainment: I just want to be the boss behind the scenes

Chapter 155: "Class Flavor" Social Animal Worker
For literary and artistic workers, field research is a very important thing.

In many dramas in the past, especially those about rural or professional realities, directors would often take the actors to live in the village, or experience life with practitioners for a period of time before filming began.

As the saying goes, what you learn from books is always shallow, and you can only truly understand it by doing it yourself.

Many times, looking up information, reading introductions, and listening to others' instructions are not as practical as experiencing it for a few days.

When Meng Bai was adapting the script of "Forensic Qin Ming", he asked Qin Ming how to make the plot more realistic.

Section Chief Qin handed him a half-person-high stack of pictures, texts and video materials, saying that if he finished reading them, they would be enough for him to shoot ten forensic dramas.

Meng Bai estimated that it would take him at least half a year to finish reading all the information, so he asked him if there was a more efficient way.

"That's easy." Qin Ming said with a smile: "You can follow us to the scene for a week, and then you will know everything."

Meng Bai said confidently that it was easy, and then he actually stayed in their forensic department for a week.

I have to say that it is very efficient and I understand everything I need to know.

Of course, I have vomited everything that needs to be vomited.

Adhering to the principle of "I can't be the only one vomiting", oh no, it's "efficiency first", Meng Bai decided that all the actors of the "main trio" should stay in the Forensic Center for half a month before filming starts.

"It's just half a month, no problem." Zhang Ruoyun said indifferently.

Looking at the familiar "confident expression", Meng Bai gave him a thumbs up and smiled kindly.

In addition to the male protagonist "Qin Ming", there are two other protagonists in the play.

One is the criminal police captain "Lin Tao" and the other is the heroine "Da Bao".

The role of "Lin Tao" is easy to find. His character does not have any outstanding features, so any male actor with a tough appearance can be used.

After two rounds of auditions, Bai Yu was finally chosen.

When filming "Psychological Crime" before, he was asked to audition for the role of "Tai Wei", but unfortunately he was not chosen in the end because he looked too positive.

Fortunately, this time the role setting did not conflict with his image, and he finally became the "Criminal Police Captain".

The two male protagonists have been confirmed, but the next female protagonist is more difficult.

He auditioned for three consecutive days and interviewed more than a dozen actresses, but none of them satisfied Meng Bai.

"…Thank you for participating in the audition. Please leave your contact information. We will give you a reply within two days."

Watching the staff send away another girl who had just finished the audition, Wang Wei looked at Meng Bai and said, "Looking at your expression, this one should not work."

Meng Bai frowned and shook his head: "I can't say it's impossible, but it still feels a little off."

Wang Wei sighed. He had heard this reason no less than ten times in the past two days.

"In fact, I think the girl named Xu Lu who came yesterday is pretty good. She graduated from the PLA Art Academy, so her major is suitable. Her image and temperament are suitable, and she doesn't have any image baggage."

Wang Wei summarized the candidates from the past two days: "The girls we discussed before, Kan Qingzi, Mao Xiaotong, Cai Wenjing, and your junior sister Liang Jie, are actually all suitable."

With the booming online drama market, more and more traditional film and television companies have begun to pay attention to online dramas. Many companies have also chosen to let some of their own second- and third-tier actors and newcomers who are not very popular try to join the online drama market.

As a company that has produced several hit dramas in succession, ArcLight Pictures is naturally particularly valued.

As soon as the project of "Forensic Qin Ming" was launched, many people contacted Meng Bai through various connections, hoping to give their own artist a chance.

There are some people here who are not very close to me, so it doesn't matter if I just send them away. But there are also some people who are very close to me, and I can't just deal with them casually.

For example, Kan Qingzi, who Wang Wei mentioned earlier, and Li Qin are both from Rong Xinda, but she has always played the second female lead. This time, she also relied on Teacher Li's relationship to see if she could be chosen as the female lead.

There is also Mao Xiaotong, who is Zhang Ruoyun’s classmate; Cai Wenjing, who has been with her in more than 500 plays; not to mention Liang Jie, who is her junior sister with whom she has worked several times before.

In addition, what surprised Meng Bai the most was that Noon Sunshine also recommended someone to him, Yang Zi, with whom he had previously worked together in "The Battle of Changsha".

If we really talk about popularity and popularity, I guess Li Qin can't compare to her.

But there was no way. The role of "Xiaoxue" was too popular. Meng Bai seemed to be out of character during the audition, so he could only politely decline.

In fact, according to Meng Bai's idea, he really doesn't like to use such popular actors. Instead, he prefers to use little-known actors or newcomers.

"These people you mentioned are indeed all okay, but, how should I put it..." Meng Bai thought for a moment and said, "Don't you think they are a little too 'refined'? At first glance, they look like actors and entertainers, lacking a sense of professionalism."

"Professional feeling?" Wang Wei was puzzled: "Teacher Meng, can we not talk about it in such an abstract way?"

Meng Bai smiled, but didn't rush to answer. He asked, "Have you ever worked? Not as a director, but as a part-time worker from 8am to 6pm."

Wang Wei recalled: "When I first entered the industry, I worked in a film and television company for a while."

"Then you should be able to feel that people who have attended the class have a special 'smell' compared to students who have not attended the class."

"smell?"

"I call it the 'work smell' that is unique to office workers."

Meng Bai explained that in his opinion, the biggest difference between the drama "Forensic Qin Ming" and the "Green Ivy Series" or other similar suspense and criminal investigation works is that the identity of "forensic doctor" has a very strong professional attribute.

So-called "criminal psychology", "criminal behavior analysis" or "detective" are essentially just personal abilities. Only "forensic doctor" can be said to be an identity.

Therefore, compared to "Psychological Crime" and other subsequent dramas, "Forensic Qin Ming" will have more attributes of a "workplace professional drama".

Strictly speaking, this should be considered a "criminal investigation drama" rather than a traditional "suspense drama."

The male lead "Qin Ming" has the aura of a protagonist, so it's no problem even if it's an "idol drama".

In comparison, Bai Yu feels like a "working man" who has been working for two years.

Wang Wei thought about it and found that the girls he had interviewed so far had no problem with their appearance and temperament, but they did seem to lack a bit of "professional temperament".

"We can adjust this later during the filming." Wang Wei said, "You are planning to have them stay at the Forensic Center for half a month. I think it will be fine after it's over."

Meng Bai nodded: "That makes sense. But we are still in the selection stage, let's take a closer look."

He checked the time and realized that the next actor for the audition would not be here for a while. Meng Bai stood up and went to the bathroom.

As one of the famous "audition centers" in northern Beijing, Jiuxian Apartment is always bustling with people.

Here, you can see all kinds of handsome and beautiful young men and women, most of whom are new actors in the "running group".

The so-called "running around" actually means submitting your resume to various crews.

Because many film crews' auditions are often concentrated in places like Jiuxian Apartment, many young actors will bring a thick stack of information when they come for auditions.

Once they arrive, no matter whether it is the crew they have made an appointment with before or not, as long as they can open the door, they will go in and hand in their information.

If time permits, you can also introduce yourself.

In fact, it is similar to graduates sending out resumes to many places, and the main purpose is to "cast a wide net."

Meng Bai stood at the corner of the corridor and watched for a while. He suddenly felt that these newcomers who were not well-known in the circle were more in line with his requirements.

I wonder if anyone has gone to Arclight to submit their resume. Maybe I can find a suitable female lead.

After observing for a while, Meng Bai decided to go back.

Just as he turned halfway, he felt as if he was bumped by someone.

Then, a girl with short hair stumbled beside her. She tried to wave her hands to keep steady, but the stack of color-printed resumes in her hands fell to the ground.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry."

The girl stood up and didn't rush to pick up the resume on the ground. She apologized to Meng Bai first.

"It's okay." Meng Bai didn't care. These girls studying acting were thinner than each other, and he didn't even shake just now.

Seeing the short-haired girl frantically picking up the resumes on the ground, Meng Bai did not just leave, but picked up a few for her.

"Ah, thanks."

"It's okay." Meng Bai handed her the resume in his hand, "It's just that some of them seem dirty."

"It doesn't matter, we can print it later." The short-haired girl waved her hand and said nonchalantly.

She looked up at Meng Bai and was about to thank him, but suddenly stopped. She frowned, stared at Meng Bai carefully, and then said with some surprise: "Hey, it's you!"

"what?"

Meng Bai looked at her in surprise. This girl actually knew him?

After taking a look, I found that she was of medium height, with short hair, and had delicate and artistic features.

Hey, come on, it seems that he looks a little familiar.

Seeing the other person's puzzled expression, the short-haired girl said, "Did you forget? You asked me for directions at Putuo Creative Park in Shanghai before."

After hearing this, Meng Bai actually had some impression.

It seemed that when he went to talk to Li Qin about investing in LeTV Pictures, the navigation pointed him to an outrageous route, and he happened to meet a girl from the same crew.

"You are the...Xiao Zhou, right?"

Meng Bai tried hard to recall the girl's last name from the edge of his memory.

Xiao Zhou nodded and said with a smile: "My name is Zhou Yutong. By the way, did I forget to ask your name last time?"

"Meng Bai."

Zhou Yutong nodded and said with a smile: "I didn't expect it to be such a coincidence. Are you here for an audition as well?"

"I work behind the scenes." Meng Bai said.

"what?"

Zhou Yutong was surprised. Do the people behind the scenes also have requirements for appearance now?

(End of this chapter)