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

Chapter 277: million to build a Peace Hotel

As the boss of a film and television company, one of the biggest advantages is that as long as a project is proposed, we can start working on it immediately.

In the field of TV dramas, Arc Light Pictures is a new player, but fortunately it has the leadership of the old player Huace Pictures.

The person in charge of the connection between Huace and Arclight is a woman named Fu Binxing. She is a non-executive director of Huace and also a very experienced producer.

In addition, she is also the daughter of Huace boss Fu Meicheng and Zhao Yifang, a typical second-generation film star.

The two had met before when ArcLight web series was being sold overseas, so they were quite familiar with each other.

"Mr. Meng, I've read the script. It's really innovative and exciting."

In the office, Fu Binxing said to Meng Bai with a smile.

She knew a lot about Arclight Films and Meng Bai, and knew that he was the most famous suspense screenwriter in recent years.

But it's just what we hear, and we still have to wait and see whether it's worthy of the reputation.

As a producer at Huace, she has also worked on spy war dramas, such as The Whisperer in 2012, in which she participated in the production.

Therefore, after hearing about the ArcLight project collaboration, she applied to be a co-producer to be in charge of the project.

After reading the script sent by Meng Bai, Fu Binxing had to admit that the rumors he had heard before were not exaggerated and that this handsome young man did have some ability.

In response to Fu Binxing's praise, Meng Bai smiled and said modestly: "Mr. Fu, you are too polite. Hu Guang is still a newcomer in the field of TV dramas. I will trouble you for more guidance on this project."

"Of course. After all, we have invested money, haha." Fu Binxing said with a smile.

Like the previous web drama projects, ArcLight has found several partners for this "Peace Hotel".

In addition to Huace Film & TV, there is also Ruyi Pictures, with which we have always had good cooperation.

Others include Qiyi TV, Penguin Pictures, and Youku’s Heyi Pictures.

The reason for finding several video platforms is to continue to deepen the relationship with these companies, including Youku, which I have never contacted before.

Another point is that Meng Bai hopes that the show can be broadcast on both TV and the internet in the future.

However, it must be said that the production process of TV series and web series is still very different.

The most typical thing is that before the project is officially launched, you must first complete the project filing review and obtain a filming permit before you can officially start production.

Fortunately, Huace Film & TV helped us in this step, so after about half a month of hard work, we finally passed the review without any problems.

Of course, this is just the first hurdle.

After the TV series is finished, it will have to go through another review before it can be sold.

After getting the filming permit, the next step is to start the crew's preparations.

As always, the crew building starts with choosing a director.

The directors of Arc Light, Wu Bai, are busy filming "Psychological Crime 2" and Wang Wei is doing the post-production of "Day and Night Chase".

As for Li Muge, with whom I had worked before, he was not chosen this time because the main scenes were all indoors and the large-space aesthetics that he was best at could not be utilized.

Other directors that I had previously considered were also passed over after consideration.

After all, spy war dramas are different from other types of works. They require a high level of grasp of the details of the film, so it is best to choose an experienced director.

Meng Bai had also thought about looking for Li Xue. After all, they had experience working together on "The Disguiser" before, and Noon did not require its directors not to take on other dramas.

But on the one hand, he has a medical drama "The Surgeons" to shoot next year, so there is some conflict in schedule.

Secondly, if he is asked to direct, he will have to bring the Noon Sunshine team with him, and Arc Light’s voice in the project will be limited.

So after considering the pros and cons, Meng Bai gave up this option. Since there was no suitable candidate at hand, it would be better to ask others for recommendations.

Finally, Fu Binxing contacted him and found a suitable option.

Meng Bai came to Huace today just to meet the director recommended by the other party.

After a brief exchange of greetings, there was a knock on the door. Then, the secretary led a young-looking man in.

"Boss Meng, let me introduce you."

Fu Binxing stood up and gestured to the man who came in: "This is Director Yang Lei. He has worked with us at Huace several times before and his abilities are outstanding."

"Director Yang Lei?"

Meng Bai extended his hand and shook it, then asked uncertainly, "Is it the one who filmed Red before?"

Yang Lei nodded: "Yes, it was indeed directed by me. I didn't expect that Mr. Meng had also seen it."

"Haha, since we're going to make a spy drama, we should definitely learn about some classic works from the past."

Meng Bai smiled with satisfaction and said, "Since it's Director Yang, I'm relieved. I'll have to trouble you again for this Peace Hotel."

Although the drama "Red" is not very popular, it has a very good reputation.

With a score of 9.2, it is considered the highest quality spy drama after "The Disguiser".

Meng Bai had watched this drama before. It was very different from other spy war dramas in terms of its grand and sweeping style.

The majority of the plot in this drama is not the intrigues between the secret agents, but the daily lives of the little people in that turbulent era, as well as the family and national hatreds implied above.

It can be said that it is a very special spy drama.

This is not bad, and "Peace Hotel" is also a special drama, so it is suitable.

So after meeting, Meng Bai just chatted for a few words and then decided that he would be responsible for directing.

"Mr. Meng, I have a question for you." Yang Lei said, "Regarding the setting of this drama, that is, the Peace Hotel, how do we arrange it?"

"We have discussed this before." Meng Bai said, "I plan to find a suitable place in Harbin and build a complete 'Peace Hotel' directly."

Yang Lei took a deep breath: "This, the cost of the scene should be very high, right?"

As a director, before shooting a project, you must first understand the personality of the producer.

Especially regarding the use of funds.

Meng Bai naturally knew what he was worried about, and said with a smile: "Don't worry, Director Yang, the scene has a budget of 2000 million in the funding plan."

To restore a "most luxurious hotel in Northeast China" according to the background of the 1930s of the Republic of China, it would certainly not be possible without spending a lot of money.

Of the more than 8000 million yuan budget for the entire "Peace Hotel", Meng Bai directly took out a quarter of it as scene expenses.

But if you actually count it, it’s not as much as it seems.

After all, after the hotel was built, almost all the shots of the entire film were shot here.

Compared to those projects that require constant switching of exterior scenes, it is actually not that much more expensive.

The only troublesome thing is that it will take a long time.

But it’s okay, I can take advantage of this time to finalize the cast.

(End of this chapter)