HuaYu: Starting with Photography to Navigate the Entertainment Industry

Xu Lang's decision to become a director was not a sudden whim.

Ever since he signed the performance-based agreement with Huayi Brothers, he's been thinking about how to make money.

And after the "God-level Photography System" was upgraded to the "God-level Video System," Xu Lang felt that he had found his direction:

Cameraman and director!

In a film crew, besides the director, the cinematographer holds the highest position and has the most power.

Cinematography is also the best path to becoming a director.

With the god-level camera system, Xu Lang had no intention of slowly working his way up from cameraman to director.

The best approach is to go straight to the point and practice on a movie!

After making this plan, Xu Lang began to study directing-related things in a targeted manner.

Fortunately, he had a background in photography and videography, which reduced the difficulty by about 70-80%.

"Sister Tao, will you be the female lead in my first film?"

Xu Lang extended the invitation, half-jokingly and half-seriously.

"I?"

Seeing Xu Lang's smiling face, Liu Tao quickly stepped back.

"Forget it, your first step will inevitably involve Bai Jie."

"Ha ha!"

Upon hearing this, Xu Lang burst into laughter.

You know what, Liu Tao really knows himself.

"This film is actually in my plans, but it's a short film, we can just make it and watch it ourselves."

"Stop it, don't mess with me!"

Liu Tao and Xu Lang started joking and playing around again.

the next day.

Xu Lang continued to work as an interviewer at the Beijing Film Studio office. Bored, he also thought about becoming a director.

"What kind of film should I use to practice on?"

Right now, he only has the script for "The Legend of Sword and Fairy 3" in his hands.

Using this show as practice?

Xu Lang was truly reluctant to part with it.

This is a hugely popular drama; Xu Lang is making money off it!

Another point is that these kinds of fantasy dramas rely heavily on set design and special effects, and require a large investment.

Xu Lang's meager savings are simply not enough to make an investment.

"The best choice is a modern urban drama, which is small-scale and has a low cost."

But it still has to be a hit!

As Xu Lang was thinking, he saw a beautiful figure walk in, wave at him, and greet him.

"Hello, junior!"

"Um?"

Xu Lang looked up and saw the girl who was greeting him. She was quite tall, at least 1.69 meters, and had a slender figure.

He has a long face, a broad and prominent forehead, clear brow bones, and narrow, single-lidded eyes with a direct gaze, exuding an indomitable spirit.

Her lips have a slightly hard line, and she looks a bit aloof when she's not smiling, but once she smiles, her youthful spirit is instantly revealed.

It's not absolutely stunning, but it's very pleasing to the eye!

"Wang Luodan?!"

"Haha, junior brother, you actually know me?"

Wang Luodan was very happy and took the initiative to walk up and shake hands with Xu Lang.

Xu Lang knew about Wang Luodan mainly from his previous life.

In this life, he only knew that Wang Luodan was also at the Beijing Film Academy, a few years ahead of him, and seemed to be in the same class as Huang Shengyi, but he had never met her.

Xu Lang is now considered a celebrity at the Beijing Film Academy, so it's normal for Wang Luodan to know him.

"Want to try out for a role?"

Xu Lang asked.

"Yes, I'm already in the second semester of my senior year and I'll be graduating this year, so I need to find a role to play as soon as possible."

Wang Luodan glanced at the assistant director beside her as she spoke, but did not say anything.

However, the meaning was already very clear: they wanted Xu Lang to help them.

Xu Lang understood her meaning, but since she didn't say it explicitly, he was happy to play dumb.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, the audition officially began.

After the audition, Wang Luodan and Xu Lang waved goodbye.

The assistant director, who also knew that Xu Lang was producer Li Gongda's favorite, took the initiative to come over and ask:

"Should we keep a close eye on this Wang Luodan?"

Xu Lang pondered for a moment and then said:

"I don't know either, let's follow the normal procedure."

"Okay!"

During the subsequent audition, Xu Lang kept getting distracted, thinking about things related to Wang Luodan.

To be honest, he has some face blindness when it comes to Wang Luodan, and he often confuses her with Bai Baihe.

However, after Bai Baihe's "Lingxi Finger", he was able to distinguish them.

In truth, he was more interested in Bai Baihe.

However, I know Wang Luodan because of a role she played:

Miley!

Thinking of this role, Xu Lang suddenly had a thought, and slapped his thigh.

"Holy crap, I know what I need to practice on!"

Xu Lang's first thought was, of course, the TV series "Struggle".

This drama, which depicts the post-80s generation's journey from campus to society, swept through the entire film and television industry as soon as it premiered in 2007, and was an absolute phenomenon.

More importantly, this drama is a modern urban drama, so the costumes, styling, and filming locations are relatively simple, and there are no special effects.

This means that the investment is small, which Xu Lang can afford at present.

"Yes, that's the show!"

This is a typical example of a show where you can make a lot of money with a small investment.

Xu Lang spent the entire day pondering the TV series "Struggle".

Back then, he was really obsessed with this show.

"I wonder if this drama has started production yet!"

Xu Lang silently calculated the time in his mind.

"It's January 16, 2005 now. This drama seems to have aired in the first half of 2007, which is almost two and a half years ago."

According to the normal process of TV drama production, this drama has definitely not started yet; at most, the script has just been completed.

"But how do I buy the script?"

Although Xu Lang knew the general plot, it was still impossible for him to write the script himself.

The original screenwriter should be brought back to write the script.

In one day, Xu Lang invested four attribute points into his memory, and only then did he recall some information about "Struggle".

But most of what he remembered were clips from the TV series "Struggle." As for the script, he only remembered that it seemed to be related to Huayi Brothers.

However, with this one point, Xu Lang felt that was enough.

After all, he is now a partner of Huayi Brothers.

He quickly sent Li Xue a text message.

"Mr. Li, I'm looking for a script called 'Struggle,' it seems to have been written by a screenwriter within our system. Could you help me find it? I'd like to acquire it!"

Li Xue didn't intend to pay attention to the information at the beginning, but she became interested when she saw the information that Xu Lang wanted to acquire it.

Huayi Brothers hasn't yet paid Xu Lang the first installment of 500 million yuan. If they can pay less by buying the script, it would be a worthwhile deal.

"Okay, I'll do my best to help you find one."

So Li Xue really put all her effort into finding scripts.

Just as Xu Lang was focusing his attention on "Struggle," Cai Yinong from Tangren Media sent him news.

"Xu Lang, the four stars for the drama 'Chinese Paladin' have all been sold for the first run!"

"One drama, four stars?"

Xu Lang had gained some understanding of the distribution process. The meaning of "one drama on four satellites" was that "Chinese Paladin" would be broadcast simultaneously on four satellite TV channels.

This represents money!

Xu Lang felt a surge of excitement and asked in a slightly hesitant voice:

"How much does it cost per episode?"