Kapitel 21: Anyone Remembers Xue Feifei?
Redakteur: Henyee Translations
Shooting a show could be torturous sometimes.
The outsiders thought it was a glamorous job because they didn't know it well enough. Only those working in this line of business knew how much hard work was involved.
A one-minute long scene could cost a few hours to prepare in advance, which included the setting up of the scene, makeup, camera positions and adjustment, and remembering the lines, so on and so forth.
The most frustrating thing was that after hours of preparation, that one-minute shoot could end up a failure because of all sorts of mistakes the actors or actresses could make and they would have to retake it over and over again.
Luckily, Meng Lang didn't have to worry about that.
He was used to making soap operas and crappy shows and didn have too high a standard for performance skills.
Taking the current scene as an example, the actress playing the fairy queen was twitching unnecessarily, obviously because she was nervous. Any director who aimed for perfection would find that unacceptable and would ask for another go.
But Meng Lang didn't find it a problem. The tremor was barely detectable on camera and he found a retake completely unnecessary.
"Blue, did you let Moon escape again?"
"I'm sorry, Your Majesty."
"Forget it…"
"Cut!"
The camera stopped rolling and the actresses held their breaths, waiting for a verdict.
Meng Lang looked at the monitor with a frown. "You look too serious. Lighten up a little."
All four actresses sighed in relief.
Good, the director wasn't scolding them.
They could live with a retake. After all, NGs were common during shootings.
Once Meng Lang had pointed out the problem, the actresses followed the instruction and the next take went smoothly. Neither the fairy queen, nor Blue Fairy looked as serious when they spoke again.
"Won't it look too… cheeky?"
Wang Kui asked tentatively. "The fairy queen is still a queen. Shouldn't she be at least a little mad at her subordinate, who has failed at her task?"
Everyone was grinning and Wang Kui found this to be a bit off.
Meng Lang glanced at him sideways. "Are you the screenwriter?"
Wang Kui shook his head.
"Or the director?"
Wang Kui shook his head again.
Meng Lang pursed his lips. "Then, stop asking questions, as if you know how to make the show better than me, the screenwriter/director."
Wang Kui was speechless.
"But, I'm the producer!" thought Wang Kui.
Fine, the man was indeed the boss of the company, the director, and the screenwriter…
After chasing Wang Kui away, Meng Lang was much more efficient with the shooting once the watchful eyes were gone.
Even the actors and actresses found the speed impossible.
Every scene was given a pass after one go?
And there was one NG after nearly half an hour?
How efficient was this director?
He was like the fastest gunman!
An occasional one-take shoot could be attributed to the talent of the actors/actresses, but if all shoots were like that, then there was something wrong with the director.
"The next scene is for Xue Feifei. Look relaxed and don't speak your lines with deadpan faces, okay?"
"Sure, Director Meng!" replied Yang Yuqing.
…
Xue Feifei's scenes were the hardest part of the shooting of Balala the Fairies.
Because Xue Feifei didn't have a physical body!
More precisely, Xue Feifei was a bug with wings. It could fly and was a virtual role who called itself a "genie sage", but was in fact more like a "genie idiot".
It was the genie sage of the Fairy Encyclopedia and was there to help Ling Meiqi and Ling Meixue to learn their magic.
Probably because of the limited budget, Xue Feifei, the role that should have sparkled, fell to the background in the original version. Years later, even Yan Lili was still remembered by some audience, but that adorable genie Xue Feifei had long been forgotten.
Meng Lang had recreated this show, but he had made some changes based on the original version.
For instance, Xue Feifei, who hadn't been created properly in the original version because of the low budget, had more scenes in Meng Lang's version. Moreover, unlike the original version, this time, Xue Feifei could appear in the same scene as the main characters and interact with them.
In the original version, whenever it was Xue Feifei's turn, the image on the screen would be switched to some empty area so that Xue Feifei could show up alone.
Only a handful of scenes had Meiqi, Meixue, and Xue Feifei together, but it was done in the post production, where Xue Feifei was "inserted" into the picture and the result was rather unnatural.
Why did that happen?
The reason was very simple. They didn't have enough money for special effects and couldn't create a satisfactory Xue Feifei.
After all, Xue Feifei was a virtual role and its movement had to be created frame by frame with special effects, which was very expensive. In the original version, Aofei had probably screwed up on the character Xue Feifei because of the limited budget.
Once Meng Lang came up with the script of Balala the Fairies, he decided that he would make Xue Feifei right this time.
And that was to create more sources of income, too!
In Balala the Fairies, both Meiqi's fairy flute and Meixue's fairy harp could be sold as toys. In that case, why couldn't Xue Feifei, the virtual character, be made into a stuffed toy?
Stuffed toys were one of the most enduring categories in the toy market. They were timeless pieces and someone was always buying them.
From this point of view, it was worthwhile to spend a little more money on the special effects to make Xue Feifei right.
The special effects for Xue Feifei were a difficult task, for it involved an extra "modeling" step. Creating a virtual role out of the blue was a task that involved a lot of work.
Luckily, it was the year 2014 now…
If it had been 10 years ago, Meng Lang would have to give up on this character the same way Aofei had.
In 2014, the special effect technique was nothing like what it was ten years before.
Xue Feifei, the character that couldn't be done properly in the original version, could easily be done by just about any special effect studio with enough money.
Meng Lang still chose to outsource the special effects of Balala the Fairies even when Pengda Pictures had already set up a special effect studio of its own, but it couldn't take the job for lack of employees.
He hired Thunderbird studio again.
Meng Lang was impressed by the Rolls Royce Thunderbird sent to pick him up when they worked on Blazing Teens and since the special effects of Balala the Fairies weren't all that complicated, he thought anyone could do the work.
His phone began to ring when Meng Lang was busy shooting Balala the Fairies.
He tapped the screen to find Mr. Tao sending him an emoji on Wechat.
"Are you there?"
"No…"
Meng Lang deleted the word as soon as he typed it in the chat box, then replied, "Hello, Mr. Tao. How can I help you?"
"It's nothing, really! I'm told that you're making a feature show similar to Blazing Teens and I'm just wondering if it's possible…"
The old man had probably had a taste of the pie from the free broadcasting rights of Blazing Teens. Here he was, asking about this new show when it had only just started shooting.
"I've talked to CCTV-14 already. If everything goes as planned, they're going to have the first-round broadcasting rights."
Mr. Tao sent a meme that expressed utter bewilderment.
Then, a gif that expressed his grievance.
"I was the first. I was the first every time… We were the first to broadcast and rebroadcast that show!"
He couldn't understand how things turned out this way. They had worked together so smoothly on Blazing Teens!
"The National TV has stolen my project! I'm so mad!"
Kapitel 22: Shooting the Show
Redakteur: Henyee Translations
"What's this?"
"It's a Fairy Crystal Necklace."
"What's it for?"
"It's a media for magic and one can also use it to transform into a fairy.
"So…"
Meng Lang cut Mr. Tao off before the latter could finish. "Mr. Tao, don't you have work to do?"
This guy showed up on the shooting site early the following morning.
It wouldn't have been a problem if he was only visiting, for there was no secret on the shooting site. Mr. Tao could come as often as he wanted and Meng Lang wouldn't care less.
But this guy simply had too many questions!
Apart from all the questions, he was drooling over the fairy flute and Fairy Crystal Necklace. Had it not been for the adamant objection of the costume group, the old man actually wanted to try a fairy costume on himself.
Meng Lang didn't know what to do.
Meng Lang didn't have to guess to know why Mr. Tao was here, but since there was a better channel, there was no reason for her to give up the chance!
The CCTV-14 was the most viewed children's channel that had the largest coverage, which was much better than most provincial satellite channels.
Would anyone abandon such a great platform and give the show to Jiangchuan Children's Channel instead? Of course not.
"Director Meng, are you really not going to think about it? We don't want an exclusive right, but a first-round right only," said Mr. Tao expectantly.
Meng Lang wanted to say yes to Mr. Tao. After all, the guy was already humble…
However, he hadn't heard from the National TV yet and the deal hadn't been finalized. If he agreed to Mr. Tao without careful consideration, he might have ended up offending both channels.
Sitting on his director's chair, Meng Lang took off his baseball cap. He then rose to his feet and led Mr. Tao to where the props team took their breaks.
After making sure that no one was around, Meng Lang said, "Mr. Tao, you're making it difficult for me. We're still in the process of shooting and you haven't even seen the completed work yet. Why the rush?"
"Of course I'm in a rush. It's free…"
Before Mr. Tao could finish, Meng Lang cried out in surprise. "You greedy old man! You're getting used to the free lunch, aren't you? Who told you that Balala the Fairies is going to be free?"
"You're going to sell it this time?" Mr. Tao was baffled.
Meng Lang nodded.
Pengda Pictures had given Blazing Teens out for free to open up the market. Although the production cost had been covered later by selling the exclusive online and overseas broadcasting rights, making a huge profit at the same time, Meng Lang's initial plan had only been to open up the market.
He had given it out for free because that was the only way that anyone would broadcast the show. With the success of Blazing Teens, even if some TV channels would be scared off by the price, Balala the Fairies wouldn't have a problem finding its buyers.
Of course, Meng Lang wouldn't keep giving out free stuff.
Mr. Tao mumbled, "How much are you going to charge, then? The Jiangchuan Children's Channel may be able to afford it if the price isn't too high…"
Meng Lang stared at Mr. Tao, slightly surprised. He even circled around the latter a few times.
The strange look in Meng Lang's eyes gave Mr. Tao the creeps. He couldn't help but ask, "Is there a problem?"
"Yes! And a very big one!"
Smacking his lips, Meng Lang suddenly wanted to laugh. He blurted out. "Mr. Tao, I haven't bribed you in any way, have I?"
"Of course not! I've never accepted a bribe from anyone, you included," said Mr. Tao, shaking his head.
Then, there came the problem!
The man hadn't seen the completed work and there were no stars in the show, not to mention that the director was a nobody and the show was a medium budget live-action feature show. Why was he so eager to buy it?
Mr. Tao was either an inside man Pengda Pictures put in the TV channel, or a really, really kind man.
He was too kind a man to be real!
Meng Lang wavered a little at Mr. Tao's promise, but only momentarily.
Broadcast rights were mainly about reputations. What mattered was being broadcasted by bigger channels.
Meng Lang would still give the first-round broadcasting rights of Balala the Fairies to the National TV, even if he had to sell them at a lower price than to the Jiangchuan Children's Channel.
How much could the first-round broadcasting rights be worth, anyway?
As long as Balala gained its popularity, they would make a fortune selling the toys alone. Frankly, Meng Lang didn't think much of the petty amount the first-round broadcasting rights would make him.
After nicely sending Mr. Tao on his way, Meng Lang went back to the monitor, instructed the others to move to the outdoor shooting site, and got ready for the next scene.
…
Jiangchuan Yulin Middle School.
Meng Lang graduated from this school himself. Therefore, when he recalled that part of the story happened in a school, he contacted his old school right away.
The old headmaster agreed to the application of shooting the show on school grounds without hesitation.
Because it was a good thing for the school.
Not only did he cooperate with the crew, the old headmaster also made an implicit request.
He wanted the camera to capture the school uniform, the school badge, and the front gate!
The old master had racked his brain trying to attract more students to the school. Now that there was such a rare chance to promote the school, he would make very good use of it.
Meng Lang agreed to the old master's request.
The school scene needed a lot of extras.
Finding all those extras turned out to be a problem here in Jiangchuan. After all, it wasn't Hengdian…
Luckily, a lot of students rushed to the school after hearing about the shooting of the show, despite the fact that it was the weekend.
Meng Lang then found his extras, who could play themselves!
After giving instructions to the students of what to watch out for, the shooting started.
The students knew next to nothing about acting, but they were playing themselves and with Meng Lang's instructions, they looked at what students having classes should have looked like after a few NGs. They looked quite the part.
The classroom scenes went smoothly, but when it was time to shoot the free activity periods, the problem arose.
"Brother Director, I'm sorry…"
Xiaopang, the student playing "Shi Xiaolong", humbly admitted his mistake in front of Meng Lang.
For this scene, all he had to do was to say "Yeah… the class is over…" after the teacher announced that the class had ended, then pull the back door of the classroom open.
It was a very simple scene.
However, the boy just couldn't do it properly. He kept darting glances at Lin Xue, the actress playing Yan Lili, across the classroom.
Everyone on site knew what Xiaopang was looking at!
Meng Lang gave Xiaopang's head a little knock with his knuckle and said with a solemn face. "Do you know what you did wrong?"
"I shouldn't have looked into the camera…"
That was certainly not what he had been looking at!
Xiaopang had made a mistake all boys would have done. Recalling that he had stolen glances at girls before, Meng Lang didn't want to scold the boy any more.
But soon, when another extra was supposed to strike up a conversation with Meiqi and Meixue in the last row, there was a problem again.
One could explain Xiaopang's glances toward Lin Xue with male instinct, but why would that female student blush whenever she looked at Tao Mi?
"Are kids nowadays so precocious?" Scratching his head, Meng Lang asked Xiaopang's dad, who was next to him.
Xiaopang's dad nodded.
"They are. I would have a wet dream if I talked to girls back in my day. My son is much more impressive. He's in Year 2, but he's already had two girlfriends!"
Hello, dad? Was that a bragging tone?
Geschenke
-- Geschenk
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