I really don't want to make bad movies!

Wang Zhengchuan immediately realized: "You want Jiang Xixi to be the female lead?"

"Her popularity among freshmen is enough to bring us a huge amount of traffic."

"This...isn't that a bit inappropriate?"

"What's wrong?"

Wang Zhengchuan, who has a wide network of connections and often inquires about gossip, replied, "I've heard my friends from the acting department mention her. She is indeed beautiful, but her acting skills are completely terrible."

"The theme of this short film is 'breaking free from the cocoon,' which feels quite profound. If you cast a girl with absolutely no acting skills, the film's reputation will collapse, right?"

"Don't worry, the film I'm going to shoot doesn't require any acting skills or reputation." Xia Ming tapped Wang Zhengchuan on the head. "Please ask your acting classmate for Jiang Xixi's QQ number."

"No acting skills required at all?"

Wang Zhengchuan listened, completely stunned.

Although the freshman project is only intended to promote academic exchange, enable freshmen to quickly get started with filmmaking, and cultivate an academic practice atmosphere.

However, the newcomers who are able to participate still hope that their work will be recognized by the public.

After all, the filming is self-funded, and if we don't win a prize, wouldn't we lose a lot of money?

"Have you finished writing the script? And found the equipment and venue?" Wang Zhengchuan asked while helping Xia Ming inquire about information in the group.

"It was written a long time ago," Xia Ming assured him with a smile.

A few days ago, when Xia Ming saw the school's announcement about the micro-film project, he had already finished writing the script.

He checked the recent blockbuster movies that would be released in theaters, and the most popular one was the Transformers spin-off series, "Bumblebee".

Xia Ming couldn't let this opportunity slip by; he had to take advantage of the fact that the top-ranked micro-film could be uploaded to streaming media to ride the wave of popularity.

Coincidentally, there was a knock-off movie called "Bumblebee" in my previous life.

"The Big Hornet" from Thiseasylum Asylum Films.

The film is only 80 minutes long, and with its shoddy special effects and bizarre plot, it has garnered a mere 1.8 rating on IMDb and a 3.1 rating on Douban, making it a truly outstanding example of a bad movie.

As a time traveler, Xia Ming naturally chose to plagiarize the script, recreating the story of the giant wasp based on his memory.

Don't ask why plagiarism is necessary to make such a terrible movie.

If a normal person were to write a script to capitalize on a trending topic, they probably wouldn't be able to get such a low rating even if they racked their brains.

What human could come up with such a bizarre plot as "an alien UFO turns the town's residents into zombies, then the three main characters fight the UFO and zombies with a giant robot hornet made by hand, and finally the protagonists are arrested by the police and interrogated for forty minutes"?

These storylines are even interwoven, combining a nonsensical structure with cringe-worthy special effects to deliver the greatest psychological blow to the audience.

Considering the situation on Earth, Xia Ming felt that only an epic-level flop like plagiarism could earn a score below 4.0 on the DB website.

As long as the plot is slightly modified at the end, it can just gravitate towards the theme of "breaking out of the cocoon".

While they were talking, Wang Zhengchuan had already found Jiang Xixi's QQ number by simultaneously searching through seven QQ groups and sent it to Xia Ming.

Jiang Xixi's QQ nickname is XIXI, and her profile picture is a polar bear wearing a diving helmet.

Xia Ming sent a friend request, but it was not accepted for a long time.

"Never mind, I'll just go find her. Could you ask her which class Jiang Xixi is in and where she has classes?"

"Wow, your efficiency is amazing!"

"Time is tight and the task is heavy."

Xia Ming got out of bed, dressed, washed up, and tidied himself up. Before leaving, he heard that Wang Zhengchuan had already found out the news.

"Jiang Xixi is in the third class of the acting department. She has already finished her exams and should be working part-time at the sixth canteen now."

It must be said that although Wang Zhengchuan usually seems carefree and irresponsible, he is absolutely skilled in information and connections.

Seeing Xia Ming push open the door and leave, Wang Zhengchuan quickly chased after him and added, "Hey! If you're going to the cafeteria, bring me some food!"

"dad!"

……

Jinghai Film and Television Academy, Canteen No. 6.

Although summer vacation is approaching, more than half of the students still choose to stay on campus, and the cafeteria remains crowded.

Following the information given by Wang Zhengchuan, Xia Ming found the window of the "Chinese fast food" restaurant.

One meat dish and one vegetable dish, 10 yuan.

Two meat dishes and one vegetable dish, 12 yuan.

This affordable price has led to long queues at the Chinese fast food counter.

Xia Ming stood at the end of the crowd and immediately spotted Jiang Xixi serving dishes.

This was the first time Xia Ming had seen Jiang Xixi in person. From a distance, she looked like Yukishiro Tomoe from Rurouni Kenshin: Reminiscence.

His eyes were cold, as if to say, "I'm very unhappy to serve you."

Wearing a white apron and holding a large soup ladle, her bright eyes scanned the numerous dishes one by one before she scooped out a full plate of food with a swift motion.

Xia Ming quickly reached the front of the group.

He glanced at the dishes and said, "Spicy chicken, stir-fried pork, and soy sauce lettuce."

Jiang Xixi worked quickly, scooping up a full plate for Xia Ming with two spoonfuls, and placed the plate at the window.

However, Xia Ming did not leave immediately.

Jiang Xixi blinked, turned her head left and right, and seeing that the cafeteria aunt was not watching her, she scooped another spoonful of spicy chicken onto Xia Ming's rice.

"Enough! Enough!"

Seeing that Jiang Xixi was about to add more food to his plate, Xia Ming immediately interrupted her: "I didn't come here to eat, no, I did come here to eat, but I also have something to discuss with you."

Jiang Xixi remained silent, her eyes, sparkling like snowflakes, filled with confusion.

"Would you be interested in playing the female lead?"

There were still people queuing behind Xia Ming. After saying this, he picked up his tray, sat down at a nearby seat, and began to eat heartily.

Jiang Xixi ordered so much food that Xia Ming didn't finish his plate until the cafeteria was about to close.

At this moment, Jiang Xixi also finished her part-time job and sat down opposite Xia Ming with her lunch.

Only through close contact could Xia Ming truly understand why Jiang Xixi's votes were able to crush the other freshmen.

She is really beautiful.

Her skin looked like it had a built-in filter, so smooth that you could hardly see the pores, and from a distance it even looked like it was glowing.

Her eyelids drooped slightly, and her long eyelashes fluttered gently in the sunlight like snowflakes falling from the treetops.

In contrast to her delicate features, her eyes and lips never changed.

If Xia Ming were to choose one word to describe Jiang Xixi, the first word that would come to mind would be "brokenness".

It's hard to believe that she's a performing arts student.

"Are you sure you want me to play the female lead?"

Jiang Xixi spoke softly, occasionally raising her eyes to observe Xia Ming's expression: "I... I don't have any expressions when I'm filming."

"It doesn't matter." Xia Ming waved his hand. As long as Jiang Xixi's looks met the requirements, it was fine. "It's just participating in a short film project for freshmen. Excellent acting skills are not required."

"May I take a look at the script?"

"certainly."

Xia Ming opened his phone's memo app and handed it to Jiang Xixi.

Jiang Xixi was stunned the moment she saw the title of the drama.

"Are we going to make a Transformers movie?"

"No." Xia Ming pointed to the words "Constellation" and reminded him, "It's 'Transformers Constellation'."

"..."

Jiang Xixi doubted that she had heard correctly and repeatedly looked up to confirm with Xia Ming.

Perhaps the name is just a joke, but the content perfectly replicates "Transformers"?

She didn't say anything, but silently scrolled down the screen to continue reading.

Hmm... why would a UFO appear?

What does it mean that the townspeople have turned into zombies? Why are there zombies?

The next forty minutes were all police interrogation? What does that have to do with Transformers?!

Jiang Xixi was stunned and began to doubt whether Xia Ming was a human from Earth.

Is this a script that a human could write?

"Sorry, classmate. I... I probably can't act in this..."

Jiang Xixi placed her phone on the table and carefully pushed it back.

Then he picked up his spoon and began to eat in small bites.

Xia Ming knew that this script written by a genius would definitely be rejected.

However, he needs Jiang Xixi to play the role of the giant wasp in order to have a chance to reach the top spot in viewership.

Fortunately, on the way here, Wang Zhengchuan sent him information about Jiang Xixi.

She appears to come from a modest background and often works part-time to earn a living.

After a moment's thought, Xia Ming immediately said, "Three days to finish filming, 1,000 yuan in salary, all meals included."

Jiang Xixi raised her head slightly. Although her face was still expressionless, her frantically blinking eyes betrayed her.

She silently took Xia Ming's phone back, reopened the notes app, and began studying the script carefully while eating her meal in small bites.