Shadow of Chinese Entertainment

Chapter 49 Preparatory Group

Hu Xiaobei took a deep breath, tidied himself up briefly, and quickly cheered himself up, ready to devote himself to the crew work that was about to begin.

After going downstairs, he walked briskly into the preparatory group with some anticipation.

As soon as he stepped into the preparation room, Hu Xiaobei felt the heat and noise coming at him.

The air conditioner was humming and running at full speed, but it couldn't suppress the heat in the room at all.

In the room of dozens of square meters, tables and chairs were scattered in a crooked manner, all kinds of documents and papers covered the table tops, and the corners were rustling in the wind from the fan.

The staff members gathered in groups of two or three. Some of them argued loudly until their faces turned red, gesturing to emphasize their points, while others looked helpless and kept shaking their heads and sighing.

The walls were covered with colorful posters, timelines, and scene sketches, the tape curling and teetering.

The wires on the ground are tangled and intertwined like messy vines, connecting computers and printers, and one can easily trip if not careful.

Look at the various lists on the table, filled with marks and dots.

The models and prices of various items were mixed up in a mess, as if silently telling of the difficulty and complexity of the preparation work.

Seeing Hu Xiaobei coming, Zhou Xiaowen immediately stood up with a relieved smile on his face.

He clapped his hands and gestured to everyone to be quiet.

"Come on, everyone, stop for a moment. Let me introduce you. This is Hu Xiaobei, the strongest college entrance examination champion in history. He is also my right-hand man who I specially recruited from Beijing Film Academy.

He has a solid foundation in literature and is an expert at organizing information and analyzing scripts. We will inevitably have dealings with him in the future, so please take care of him.

If he does anything wrong, please forgive me. If you have any questions, you can come to me."

As soon as these words were spoken, the staff members understood and cast curious glances at him.

Hu Xiaobei smiled shyly, greeted politely, and then followed Zhou Xiaowen to get to know the team members one by one.

Art director, prop master, photographer... Wherever he went, Zhou Xiaowen pointed out the difficulties and work focus of each group in a few words, and Hu Xiaobei silently kept them in mind.

In everyone's eyes, the newly arrived Hu Xiaobei is just a young assistant who just graduated from school and has little experience.

But once he had the endorsement of the chief director, coupled with his own fame, people naturally looked at him with friendliness, without a trace of contempt.

A reliable mountain is always a reliable supporter, but a blacksmith must be strong himself and have his own abilities in order to gain a firm foothold in the crew.

Hu Xiaobei didn't take all this to heart. Under Zhou Xiaowen's arrangement, he quietly pulled over a chair and sat next to Zhou Xiaowen, as quiet as an invisible man.

Then he quietly activated his spiritual perception ability, sensing everyone's discussions and micro-expressions, not missing any key information.

While quickly looking through the materials around Zhou Xiaowen, he memorized the loopholes and information in the discussion one by one.

As soon as the meeting ended, everyone dispersed. The art team gathered together to discuss the scene style, and groups of two or three flipped through picture albums looking for inspiration.

The props team gathered together to take inventory of the existing items and discuss what new gadgets they still needed.

The costume designers went out together, saying they were going to the fabric market to feel the materials and look for styles.

The photography team fiddled with their equipment and exchanged new ideas for shooting.

Hu Xiaobei plunged into the small data room.

The information room was hot and quiet, and piled high with documents.

The room was silent, with only the sound of quickly turning pages.

Hu Xiaobei sat in front of a table piled with documents, concentrating on comparing information.

He was completely unaware of the harsh environment and was completely focused on sorting out the key information for the crew's preparations.

The art team wants ancient scene restoration drawings, the props team urgently needs a list of customized special props, and the costume team is hard at work searching for detailed explanations of ancient clothing patterns.

He also searched through the vast amount of information on the highly compatible lens specifications the photography crew had been discussing. Hu Xiaobei compared the detailed specifications of various brands of equipment to see if they could meet photography needs and the performance indicators that matched the artistic conception.

After reviewing past feedback, he also repeatedly calculated the quotes from different suppliers, vowing to find the most cost-effective solution for each group.

The sky outside the window gradually darkened, and the city lights began to come on. Until late at night, when everyone was asleep, only a single lamp was still on in the information room of the entire preparation site.

Hu Xiaobei rubbed his temples, stretched, and returned to the dormitory despite his fatigue.

First, type out the information you have organized in your notebook, with the high-priced, low-spec equipment highlighted on it making it particularly eye-catching.

Early the next morning, Hu Xiaobei knocked on Zhou Xiaowen's door with the printed results of the battle.

"Who is it?" Zhou Xiaowen's lazy voice came from inside the room.

"Lao Zhou, it's me, Xiaobei!" Hu Xiaobei raised his voice.

The door creaked open, and Zhou Xiaowen, sleepy-eyed with his sparse hair on both sides disheveled, yawned, "What's going on so early?

Hu Xiaobei didn't even come in, but just handed him a stack of sorted documents with a confident smile on his face.

Zhou Xiaowen took the information and just glanced at it. His sleepy eyes suddenly widened: "Good job, Xiaobei, you are very efficient!
Hu Xiaobei yawned and said, "Old Zhou, take a look first. I'm going to have breakfast now and we'll talk in detail when I come back." After that, he turned and left.

"Go ahead, go ahead. Thank you for your hard work. Come back quickly after eating. Wait... remember to bring me some food." Zhou Xiaowen waved at him and his eyes fell back on the information.

Hu Xiaobei responded, humming a little tune, and walked towards the restaurant with big strides.

Zhou Xiaowen carefully read the information handed to him by Hu Xiaobei, and was more and more surprised.

Regarding yesterday’s discussion, the document not only lists the corresponding solutions, but also accurately identifies high-priced, low-spec equipment.

The alternative options for the resources required by each group are also listed in detail, with the best cost-effectiveness.

He sighed inwardly: This guy is really reliable, my vision is second to none, well... not bad, not bad.

It was a wise move to bring him into the team. It will save us so much trouble!

Hu Xiaobei finished his exquisite breakfast slowly and leisurely, and brought Zhou Xiaowen a pancake with soy milk.

Then he slowly walked back to Zhou Xiaowen's room.

As soon as he entered the room, Zhou Xiaowen patted the information with a smile on his face: "Xiaobei, this information is very practical. I will coordinate with each group according to this in today's meeting. You can also talk about it."

Hu Xiaobei was stunned, but said nonchalantly, "I? Why don't you print out a few more copies of the information and distribute them? You should do the talking, and I'll help answer the questions."

Zhou Xiaowen understood his thoughts and was also grateful for his kindness. Although he was an old director, it would be a good idea for him to establish his authority in the new crew.

He pointed to the lists of high-priced, low-spec equipment and asked in a testing tone, "What do you think of this?"

Hu Xiaobei handed over the breakfast and said nonchalantly, "This kind of thing, how can a little Karami like me get involved?

Aren’t there several alternatives above?
Otherwise, why don't you consult with Big Beard? Tighten what needs to be tightened, and loosen what needs to be loosened."

Zhou Xiaowen took the breakfast swiftly and put it into his mouth: "You are so experienced despite your young age.

The gap between people is so huge. When I was your age, I was still... Alas!

Hu Xiaobei pointed at the documents and asked for his opinion: "Please check which documents need to be printed out. I'll go prepare them in advance."

Zhou Xiaowen took a sip of soy milk and asked contentedly, "Don't you know better than me? Do you need to ask this again?"

Hu Xiaobei chuckled and didn't argue: "You're the director, aren't you? As an assistant, I have to ask for your valuable advice."

Zhou Xiaowen glanced at him without answering and started eating the pancake.

(End of this chapter)