Huayu: I Have a Doraemon

Chapter 109 Good Karma

Seeing Lin An and Lin Cong bickering, and then glancing at the reactions of the other crew members, Song Dian nodded slightly.

As Wei Jia said, the crew members had a very good relationship with each other, and could even be said to have gotten along very well. The core of this relationship was most likely Lin An.

"Bankruptcy?"

Song Dian casually joked, "How did you come to that conclusion? Do you think our environment here is terrible?"

Lin An didn't really want to answer, but he knew the situation and it was unlikely he would remain silent.

He repeated the difference between CCTV and local TV stations with a helpless tone, and said, "Actually, this doesn't mean much, because everyone knows it. It just depends on whether you are willing to make this decision."

"Oh? What do you mean?" Song asked, squinting.

This old man, he's already said it this way, why is he still pretending... Lin An said calmly, "Nowadays, the content of local TV stations is too similar and lacks distinctive features. Instead of continuing to refine current affairs, it would be better to completely shift to entertainment and become a pure entertainment platform."

Lin An never thought that TV station employees were fools. Anyone with eyes could see the serious problem of homogenization in local TV programs.

In fact, CCTV had tried "separation of production and broadcasting" in 2000, but it was abruptly stopped.

A year later, Shanghai came again, which shows that the higher-ups are still somewhat powerless.

Now it all depends on which company is willing to follow suit and to what extent.

Lin An looked at Song Dian and said calmly, "Establishing the station on news is a national policy. Most of the people in your station are media professionals who work on current affairs, so shifting to 'entertainment' won't be easy."

He paused, his tone becoming complicated, and said, "But it gets harder and harder as you go on; even a drastic measure might offer a glimmer of hope."

The government will not allow all TV stations to shift to entertainment; it's first-come, first-served. If you miss your niche, you won't be able to switch later.

The conference room fell into an eerie silence.

Song Dian's lips moved slightly, then quickly closed again, and her gaze towards Lin An completely changed.

Ji Tao remained silent for a moment, then suddenly realized that Lin An's approach to Pang Jingming had a deeper meaning.

Is this kid planning to take advantage of the "separation of production and broadcasting" trend to get a piece of the pie?

That's not impossible.

Apart from CCTV, almost all television stations are now operating at a loss. Although they are public institutions, they are actually managed like businesses.

The fact that GG revenue has become a benchmark is the best proof of this.

Lin Cong also pondered the recent series of actions taken by the government and felt that Lin An's analysis made a lot of sense. Now it was time to see how local TV stations and the State Administration of Radio and Television would play their game.

With the World Championship (WT0) imminent, clinging to one's small territory is no longer effective.

Once the internet develops and information becomes more transparent, catching up on things won't be so easy.

Compared to these people, He Jiong found it a bit difficult to understand, but having worked at CCTV, he roughly understood what Lin An meant by "only by cutting off one's own arm can one have a chance of survival."

Specializing in entertainment is something to try, but not everyone should try it? He Jiong began to speculate in his mind.

If He Jiong was struggling, then Li Xiang, Li Weijia, and the rest of the cast were completely lost.

They don't understand how simply recording a song for a festival could be linked to the nation, national policy, and the need for drastic measures.

Why do you, a 19-year-old teenager, know so much?

What exactly is your family background?

"According to your logic, what do you think our station should do?" Song Dian leaned forward slightly, his tone becoming completely serious.

Lin An was silent for a few seconds, then shook his head: "The nail that sticks out gets hammered down. It's best not to make any big moves in the short term."

Song Dian's eyebrows twitched slightly, and he nodded to indicate that they should continue.

Lin An then said, "Don't launch large-scale reforms; instead, simplify within the existing framework. Refine existing projects..."

Entertainment-oriented and popularized.

Song Dian straightened his back and said in a deep voice, "Is there a specific method?"

How could this be? He Jiong was speechless, feeling that his producer was making things difficult for him.

Lin An nodded: "Yes."

His voice wasn't loud, but the entire conference room fell silent: "Just adjust the time allocation for the program segments. Shorten the song and dance time, remove the behind-the-scenes footage and interviews, increase the game time and make it more fun."

Song Dian frowned, lost in thought.

He Jiong also lowered his head and pondered, considering the feasibility of the idea.

Li Weijia seemed a little lost, and subconsciously asked, "Won't the audience get bored if the game lasts too long?"

He said, "Our show airs weekly, and even the most ingenious game will get boring if viewers watch it too often."

Lin An nodded and then shook his head: "Of course, that's how it is for competitive games with well-defined rules, but fun games are much more playable."

He said, "Flying chess will always be more popular than Go. As long as the game's luck factor is high enough, you won't lack entertainment value."

That's true. A game that's absolutely fair isn't really fun... Since "Happy Camp" is going for an entertainment route, it should carry on the fun factor to the end... As He Jiong nodded, his eyes grew brighter and brighter, and one idea after another popped into his head.

He couldn't help but give Li Xiang a look, indicating that he would talk to Lin An privately later.

The other person must have all sorts of strange and wonderful ideas in their head.

Why are you looking at me? Li Xiang was a little confused and couldn't figure out what his partner meant.

Song Dian, who was in the middle, understood He Jiong's meaning and realized that the young man in front of him was an unprecedented treasure.

But amidst his excitement, he also felt some wariness and doubt: "Screenwriter Lin has told me so much; it can't just be a friendly sharing, right?"

Damn it, didn't you just insist that I say this? You're unhappy if I don't say it, and you have doubts if I do. Are you crazy? Lin An cursed inwardly, thinking that good people never get rewarded, but he still explained, "My film company has just opened, and there are still many things I don't understand. This conversation is just to establish a good relationship."

Song Dian fell silent again.

After an unknown amount of time, he said solemnly, "I will remember this kindness from President Lin."

He picked up his teacup, raised it towards Lin An, and then drank it all in one gulp.

It's clear that Song Dian genuinely values "Happy Camp".

After learning the direction of the program's reform, he stopped working and, together with He Jiong, Li Xiang, and Li Weijia, carried out sweeping reforms of the program at the station.

Lin An was also forcibly detained by the group, who refused to let him leave no matter what.

Two o'clock in the morning.

The whiteboard in the meeting room was already covered with flowcharts and game rules.

Song put down the marker, took two steps back, and stared at the densely packed writing for a long time in silence.

His voice was hoarse as he said, "In all my years as a producer, this is the first time I've had to scrap the script and start over the day before filming."

He Jiong leaned back in his chair, his eyes red, but he wasn't sleepy at all.

He read the new script three times, becoming more and more excited with each reading: "I think the audience will go crazy if this version is recorded."

Li Xiang yawned and did not refute He Jiong.

She glanced sideways at Lin An in the corner.

The latter was completely paralyzed, his head resting on the back of the chair, his eyes half-open and half-closed, looking as if he might faint at any moment.

"Lin An, wake up."

Lin An did not respond.

Li Xiang waved her hand in front of him: "The rules for your 'Who's the Spy' game on the whiteboard are too simple. Could you explain them in more detail?"

Lin An slowly opened his eyes and said in a tone of utter despair, "It's like everyone gets the same word, except for one person who gets a different one. Everyone takes turns describing their word, and then they vote to find the mole. The mole who survives to the end wins."

"It doesn't sound difficult." Li Weijia nodded thoughtfully.

"You'll know once you play it," He Jiong said with a smile. "These kinds of games require real-time interaction."

Song Dian's gaze remained fixed on the whiteboard; he did not participate in the discussion.

After a while, he turned around, walked up to Lin An, and extended his hand.

"After recording tomorrow, if the results are really good, I would like to formally invite you to be the program's consultant."

Lin An raised his eyelids slightly and shook hands with him: "No need for an advisor, I'm too busy. But we can talk on the phone if you have any thoughts."

Song didn't press the matter. She withdrew her hand and turned to Li Weijia, saying, "Take him back to the hotel. We're recording tomorrow, so he can't look too haggard."

Li Weijia agreed.

A week later.

Happy Camp airs on Saturday night at 7:30 pm sharp.

Three days later, in the editorial office of Hunan TV.

Song Dian stood at the door, clutching a newly printed viewership ratings report in his hand.

The door was pushed open, and He Jiong and Li Xiang walked in.

"How is it?" He Jiong's voice was noticeably more tense than usual.

Song Dian didn't say anything, but simply handed over the report in his hand.

He Jiong took it, glanced at it, and his expression instantly froze.

"Is this for real?" His voice trembled slightly.

Li Xiang leaned over to take a look and gasped in shock.

On the report, a line of bold black text was clearly printed:

The national viewership rating for "Happy Camp" was 14.7%.