Huayu 2011: Starting with Hilarious Men

Chapter 92: Need a Supporting Role: Gulnazar

Zheng Nan invited Cai Yinong to meet at the private kitchen where they first met, which was a clever little idea.

"Wasn't Director Zheng planning to enter the film industry? Why is he suddenly interested in television dramas?"

Cai Yinong had a very good first impression of Zheng Nan and wanted to recruit him, but Zheng Nan declined, citing the need to make a movie.

No matter how successful a woman is, she has her share of petty thoughts. Today, Cai Yinong teased Zheng Nan as soon as they met.

"Making movies is a dream, but it's so difficult! You have to climb high walls to get into the film industry!" This is Zheng Nan's truest thought.

"Zheng Nan, you're not old-fashioned at all. I know some people who are incredibly old-fashioned. They think they have some talent and can break the decades-old unspoken rules of the entertainment industry, but they never learn until they hit a brick wall." Cai Yinong looked at Zheng Nan with admiration.

She originally thought that Zheng Nan, a college student, had achieved such great success that even if he wasn't blinded by it, he would have to stumble and fall before he could give up some unrealistic fantasies.

"We'll still make the movie when the time is right, and we might need Mr. Cai's help then."

The agreement between Zheng Nan and Sohu regarding the betting on online drama viewership is currently kept confidential.

"Don't talk about movies!" Tsai Yi-nong gets angry whenever movies are mentioned.

Tangren established its film division in 2004 and has produced and distributed several theatrical films and television movies.

For example, the movie "Suspicious" which was invested in and released in 2005 cost five million yuan but only grossed three million yuan at the box office!

Other theatrical releases also failed to make a splash, leading Tsai Yi-nung to suspect that Tangren Media was simply incompatible with the films.

"Let's talk about TV dramas. Here's the script, Ms. Cai, please take a look." Zheng Nan didn't want to rub salt into Cai Yinong's wounds, so she quickly took out the script for "The Best of Us."

"So thick?" Cai Yinong was surprised when she saw the stack of A4 papers.

"I've already filmed the sequence, a total of 24 episodes, and the plot summary, character lines, and everything else are all here." Zheng Nan had prepared everything with utmost sincerity in order to cooperate.

"High school romance dramas." Cai Yinong flipped through a few pages and got straight to the point: "Are there any comparable dramas from recent years?"

"There haven't been any comparable TV series in recent years," Zheng Nan shook her head.

In recent years, there have only been two types of mainstream youth dramas: one is melodramatic and painful youth dramas, and the other is youth idol dramas.

"The Best of Us" does not belong to either of the above two types.

"The story makes sense, but market acceptance can't be guaranteed. How much investment are you looking for?" Tsai Yinong gave her assessment after a quick glance.

The fact that there are no comparable TV dramas in recent years proves that they have not been tested by the market, so Tsai Yinong's evaluation is conservative.

"No investment is needed; Sohu invested ten million yuan to film this production."

"You've got investment? Then why are you contacting me?" Cai Yinong thought Zheng Nan was coming to her to solicit investment because he didn't have money to film.

"We have received investment, but my company is too small to support the entire production team. I'm afraid that if we force ourselves to film it, it will affect the quality of the work. That's why I'd like to collaborate with you."

"How does the cooperation work? What will Tangren get?" Cai Yinong doesn't run a charity; she needs to charge a fee to cooperate with Tangren.

Since the work was produced entirely by Sohu, the copyright would definitely not go to Tangren Media. Television dramas, on the other hand, have the highest and longest-lasting copyright revenue.

Cai Yinong was curious to know what benefits Zheng Nan was willing to give up besides copyright.

"I hire a mature team from Tangren Media that has experience in filming TV series at market price, and then I mark the work as a collaboration between the two parties. In addition, Tangren can freely choose the roles in the script, except for the male and female leads, of course, the candidates must fit the character settings in the script."

Zheng Nan certainly doesn't want Tangren to cast a middle-aged actor to play a high school student.

"These are very good terms. What do the Tang people need to give in return?"

"I hope Tangren Media can help resolve the location issue, as the main filming location is a school, and Tangren Media is also handling the approval process. In addition, I am the director on set, and I don't want the hired team members to have any objections."

A team that has filmed TV series must have many seasoned veterans.

Some seasoned veterans like to bully newcomers. Seeing that Zheng Nan is young, they might try to do something sneaky on set.

Zheng Nan needs Tangren's help, but she was also hired at a high price. If there are really such blind people, Zheng Nan will definitely not be polite in order to maintain her position in the crew.

To avoid an unpleasant situation if something goes wrong, it's better to lay the unpleasant truth out upfront.

"Of course, there are all kinds of people in a big forest. There are always some blind fools. When you encounter such people, you should fire them and just let them get lost." Cai Yinong said this in a very domineering way.

Since its establishment, Tangren Media has gone through many ups and downs over the years, and Cai Yinong has encountered many strange things.

Some clowns like to take credit for the team's success, and then they get carried away and think that the team can't do without them, gradually turning from a meritorious contributor into a black sheep.

In her earlier years, Tsai Yinong still held onto old feelings for this kind of person, making her hesitant and indecisive in dealing with them.

However, if you don't deal with this black sheep, the project may fail, and he won't have to take responsibility.

After suffering several losses, Cai Yinong realized that hesitation only leads to more trouble.

"Does this mean President Cai has agreed to the cooperation?" Zheng Nan asked quickly, seeing Cai Yinong's indignant expression.

"Besides the male and female leads, who are the characters with the most screen time in the script?" Tsai Yi-nong was just recalling the past and got a little emotional, but her emotions did not cloud her judgment.

"The male lead is definitely Lu Xinghe. Besides the male and female leads, this character is the most important. Among the female leads, Jiang Niannian and Jian Dan have slightly more scenes," Zheng Nan said.

The core storyline of "With You" revolves around the three main characters: Geng Geng, Yu Huai, and Lu Xinghe. The male and female leads occupy more than half of the screen time, Lu Xinghe has 20% of the screen time, and the remaining screen time is taken up by other characters.

"I'll take the synopsis and go back to the company to discuss it. I'll give you an answer as soon as possible." Tsai Yin-nong is quite satisfied with this cooperation method.

"Take care, we'll wait for your message."

After seeing Cai Yinong off, Zheng Nan looked at the untouched dishes on the table and sent a message in the QQ group: "Is anyone still hungry?"

""

A day later, Cai Yinong responded that cooperation was possible, and the specific details would be discussed later.

They also took the roles of Jiang Niannian and Jian Dan, but didn't take the important supporting role of Lu Xinghe.

Zheng Nan thought about it and realized that there really weren't any male artists under Tangren Media who were suitable to play Lu Xinghe.

-

It's impossible for Brother Hu, the top guy in the company, to condescend to play a supporting role.

Yuan Hong's previous contract expired, and he is currently in a tug-of-war with Tangren Media.

Lin Gengxin, a newcomer who recently signed a contract, became popular last year with "Scarlet Heart" and is currently very popular. You can't watch the web series.

Needless to say, the rising star Jiang Jinfu is also being heavily promoted.

Tangren Media planned to cast Jiang Jinfu in "Xuan-Yuan Sword" for his debut, so they wouldn't let him act in a web series.

"Who are Tangren going to cast for the roles of Jiang Niannian and Jian Dan?" Zheng Nan asked.

"Two actresses you know."

"I know them?" Zheng Nan didn't know many actresses, and most of them she knew from guest appearances on "Hilarious Men."

Zheng Nan invited actresses who were guest stars on "Hilarious Men" to be somewhat famous, so how could they possibly act in a web series?

"Gulnazar and your junior Guo Xiaoting, Gulnazar plays Jiang Niannian, and Guo Xiaoting plays Jian Dan." Seeing that Zheng Nan really couldn't guess, Cai Yinong stopped keeping her in suspense.