I really didn't intend to make a living based on my looks.

Applause erupted from the audience. He Jiong nodded and turned to the other side: "Now it's the turn of the 'Swords of Legends' crew. Mimi, would you like to introduce our new drama to everyone?"

Yang Mi took the microphone from the staff member, a faint smile on her lips, but she didn't rush to speak.

She glanced at Jiang Chen beside her and said, "This drama is indeed a labor of love that we've worked on for a long time, but I won't say more about it today."

She raised her hand and gently gestured to Jiang Chen, her tone playful.

"As you all just witnessed, Jiang Chen's singing and swordsmanship are both outstanding."

"He personally adapted and polished the story of 'Gu Jian Qi Tan'. Let our male lead tell the story; he understands the script better than I do and has more authority to speak on it."

After speaking, Yang Mi smiled and handed the microphone to Jiang Chen.

In an instant, all eyes in the room focused on Jiang Chen.

Jiang Chen took the microphone and slowly began to speak.

"Everyone, let's not talk about anything else today, but about a small thing we did last year."

"I know that when many people hear the words 'fantasy drama,' what images pop into their minds? Special effects worse than online game CG, plastic costumes, and green screen effects so bad they make you feel uneasy, right?"

He shrugged.

"To be honest, when I first approached Mr. Meng with the adapted script to ask for the copyright, he asked me, 'Xiao Jiang, now that the copyright is given, how are you going to film it?'"

"I said, let's film with sincerity. There are too many smart people in this industry who want to take shortcuts, but we won't."

"Let's hear some data!"

He Jiong was stunned on the spot.

What the heck is that??

He has hosted Happy Camp for so many years and has seen countless promotional campaigns for various dramas, but this is the first time he has ever seen a drama promoted using data-driven methods.

The audience and guests were all stunned for a moment, and the scene completely went off track.

Jiang Chen's tone became more animated, "The entire series will be filmed over a period of one hundred days."

"Some might say that 100 days is normal and nothing special. But I want to ask, during those same 100 days, other film crews were just getting by, what were we doing?"

"The entire cast had over 500 custom-made costumes. Not a single garment was rented; they were all individually patterned and hand-sewn."

"The costumes for Baili Tusu alone went through more than a dozen revisions, but in the end only four sets were finalized. Why four sets? Because the director said that this set wasn't cold enough, and that set wasn't fierce enough, so we kept revising until he nodded and said it was okay."

"Let's talk about the footage. How much was filmed in the whole series? The rough cut was 8,000 minutes. How much was the final cut? Less than 2,000 minutes."

"What does that mean? Our ratio is four to one."

"We filmed for four minutes, but only used one minute. The remaining three minutes were all wasted."

"Why throw it away? Because it wasn't good enough!"

Lin Shen, who was watching from the side, was dumbfounded.

What's burning?

What is he burning?

Isn't this all standard procedure?

Why is this guy talking like it's something amazing?

"You can watch the trailer later and see the scene of Penglai, where the sea of ​​clouds surges and a sword cleaves the sky in two."

"That one shot took almost three weeks to render and polish. Three weeks, all for those four seconds."

His voice slowed down.

"I remember one thing Director Kong said that really stuck with me: the audience may not understand special effects, but they can tell whether you've fooled them or not."

The audience below the stage was completely dumbfounded.

"How much...?"

"It seems like it's 4 to 1..."

"What does that mean?"

"I don't understand either, but it sounds really impressive!"

"This is the spirit of craftsmanship!"

"Dude, you know what I mean?"

"Of course! I'm a professional."

"admire."

"I absolutely have to watch this show!"

"I want to watch it too! When will it air? I'm so impatient!"

Jiang Chen continued his speech.

"Speaking of dedication, I must mention the core of our entire drama, and also our female lead, Yang Mi."

"I remember there was a shot where Sister Mi had to turn around, just a brief glance, less than a second."

"After the first take, the director nodded and said it was a wrap."

"The state, mood, and atmosphere all meet the requirements, so it can be kept directly."

"But who initiated the conversation?"

"It's our female lead, Yang Mi."

"She said at the time, 'Let's do a few more. I'll change the emotions a bit, and keep more options so it's easier to choose later.'"

"That scene was filmed at night deep in the mountains, where the temperature was extremely low and the wind was biting cold."

She was only wearing a thin, traditional-style gauze dress, with no extra warm clothing inside or out.

"Once, twice, more than ten times."

"I repeatedly gathered my emotions in the cold wind, adjusting my gaze and demeanor over and over again, without complaining, without acting coquettishly, and without putting on airs because of my fame."

"Towards the end of filming, many crew members and lighting technicians on set saw what was happening and silently turned their heads away."

"The character Feng Qingxue is gentle, resilient, patient, and burdened with a destiny; she is a very difficult character to portray."

"Too soft, it won't stand up. Too hard, it will lose the purity of the persona."

"It was Yang Mi who meticulously crafted and refined the character, bringing out all the nuances and layers within her."

"Later, I chatted with Director Kong privately about the casting of the female lead. I said, 'Luckily, we found Yang Mi.'"

"The director said something to me at the time."

"It's not that we chose Yang Mi correctly, it's that the entire 'Gu Jian Qi Tan' series has struck gold."

"Let me talk about Director Kong again..."

The Happy Family on stage: "..."

In the end, He Jiong changed the subject.

This guy is so talkative!

We've been talking about data, then costumes, then source material, then the lead actress, and now we're going to talk about the director.

The key point is that the audience members were listening with great enthusiasm...

How about the host does it for him?

The recording ended at 11 p.m.

It lasted a full six hours.

The audience went from excitement to numbness, and some people in the last few rows started to doze off, prompting the director to signal security to quietly remind them.

On March 15, Jiang Chen flew to Shanghai again to participate in the final promotional event for "Beijing Love Story".

Chen Sicheng and his team attended several events. Jiang Chen, the singer of the theme song, sang "Anhe Bridge" on stage and was interviewed by several media outlets. When asked if he had considered becoming a full-time singer, he said, "Acting is my main job, and music is my hobby."

A day trip, and the results were good.

The finale of "Beijing Love Story" achieved a viewership rating of over 2, and his songs became popular again, with ringtone downloads increasing by 300,000.

His second song started making money, and he earned an extra source of income.

At the end of October last year, after investing 1 million yuan in miHoYo, Jiang Chen declared bankruptcy and still owed Yang Zi 200,000 yuan.

However, from November 2011 to March 2012, there were continuous earnings over those five months.

The long-tail effect of "The Power of Love" is still there. It was split into two parts, one for 13 and the other for 11, totaling 24.

"Anhe Bridge" was broadcast as the theme song of "Beijing Love Story" and received 17 views in the two months after its release.

With copyright in hand, you can enjoy a steady and sustainable business.

Of course, it's definitely not as good as "The Power of Love".

Folk songs are slow to gain popularity; without TV dramas to boost them, they would probably be in even worse shape.

With a total income of 41 yuan, 20 yuan was repaid to Zi Mei. After expenses and Li Yitong's salary over the past few months, there is currently 15 yuan left.

However, his most important job right now is with Cinepoly Records.

The other party spoke with him once, and their meaning was very clear.

We've already released two songs, "Anhe Bridge" and "Sword Heart." Let's add a few new ones. When "Ancient Sword" airs in July, we'll release an album, or an EP if we have fewer songs, and sell a lot of music.

This is also a standard practice for record companies: capitalizing on the popularity of movies and TV shows to quickly gain viewership, sales, and positive word-of-mouth.

Joint promotion of film, television, and music!

Jiang Chen naturally agreed.

But what song should we copy?

……