Entertainment mogul: Starting his business with the internet

Chapter 90 Shi Miyuan

Coincidentally, a guest also visited Zeng Jia, the artist director of Tengda Culture, at that time.

"Mimi, has filming for 'The Return of the Condor Heroes' wrapped up?"

On the fluffy, soft sofa, Zeng Jia sat close to Yang Mi, holding her delicate white hand, his tone gentle and his expression kind.

Yang Mi was a little reserved. Although Zeng Jia had worked with her at Rongxingda before, Zeng Jia was the agent of Zhou Xun, the top female star, and they had basically had no contact with each other in the past.

Not quite used to Zeng Jia's sudden enthusiasm, Yang Mi smiled awkwardly and replied softly, "Yes, after completing some reshoots last month, filming wrapped up smoothly."

Zeng Jia nodded slightly. Since "The Condor Heroes" has already finished filming, if Yang Mi can star in "Nightclub", there will be no scheduling conflict.

Originally, if Zeng Jia hadn't left Rongxingda, she would have taken over Yang Mi's management affairs after Zhou Xun terminated his contract with Rongxingda in August. However, Song Ci's presence has quietly changed the future trajectory.

Originally, when Tengda Culture was preparing to shoot its first film, she and Zhang Zhao argued that Wang Luodan should play the role of Tang Xiaolian, or at the very least Lü Yi, and that the role should be played by one of the company's own artists.

However, Zhang Zhao's attitude was unexpectedly firm. He resolutely disagreed with Wang Luodan and Lü Yi taking on roles together and insisted on organizing a small-scale audition for the open casting call.

Zeng Jia couldn't fight against the powerful, so he had to settle for second best and thought of Yang Mi, an artist from his former employer.

So I told her about Tengda Culture's filming of "Nightclub" and, as a favor, asked her to audition for the lead role.

After exchanging a few casual words to build rapport, Zeng Jia got down to business: "I've read the script I gave you, right? How's the preparation going?"

Yang Mi nodded vigorously. She cherished the opportunity to appear on the big screen and had memorized the script thoroughly. She was extremely grateful to Zeng Jia.

"Thank you, Sister Jia, for giving me this opportunity. I'm ready."

Zeng Jia shook his head, not taking credit for himself, "You still have to rely on yourself! By the way, Zhou Xun is leaving Rongxingda next month, what are the company's plans for you?"

Arranged! Yang Mi was completely dazed. The company didn't really care about her anymore, so Zhao Ruoyao was temporarily assigned to take care of her.

Seeing Yang Mi's bewildered expression, Zeng Jia thought to himself, "This is why she wants to switch jobs."

A wise bird chooses its tree to perch on; Rong Xingda's attitude of neglecting his artists is destined for decline.

At this moment, Zeng Jia had already considered recruiting Yang Mi to Tengda Culture. She particularly liked Yang Mi's talent and believed that with a little nurturing, she could become another trump card in her hands.

At 1:45 p.m., in the lounge temporarily converted from the Tengda Culture conference room.

When Yang Mi arrived here after leaving Zeng Jiana, she saw that many actresses had already come to the lounge for auditions.

Although it was a small audition, Yang Mi counted more than ten people, some of whom were familiar faces she had seen on TV.

The expressions on everyone's faces varied; some were serious and solemn, while others were tense and solemn. Some were closing their eyes to rest and adjust their state, while others were making the most of the time to flip through the script and recite their lines.

A girl sitting at the very back caught Yang Mi's attention. She was the only one who looked the most relaxed, curiously looking around.

Perhaps because it was the girl's first audition, she was very excited, and when she entered the dressing room, the other person's gaze lingered on her.

Yang Mi and the girl's eyes met in mid-air. The girl smiled slightly at her, her dimples appearing, conveying a sense of inexplicable warmth and gentleness.

Yang Mi smiled at her, then found a seat in the corner and sat down quietly, waiting for the audition to begin.

The young woman was Liu Shishi, who had arrived here early to wait after leaving Jiang Tiantian's office.

This is the first time that two future top actresses born in the 85s have met, and they may not even remember each other at this moment.

Just before two o'clock, Gao Yuanyuan arrived gracefully.

Her makeup was exquisite and sophisticated, her sexy and charming face and elegant and captivating figure all exuded an intellectual and mature temperament, instantly putting invisible pressure on all the actresses auditioning.

The competition is fierce, Yang Mi thought helplessly. She thought she had prepared well for today's audition, but she didn't expect that even established actresses would be competing with her. It seems that she has no chance this time.

At 2 o'clock sharp, a staff member came to the door of the lounge and began calling people out from the list.

"First up, Li Xiaolu, please go next door for your audition."

A young woman stood up in response and confidently went to the audition room next door.

At this moment, no one present was in the mood to think about anything else. They kept glancing towards the door and silently calculating the time.

Generally speaking, if the audition is short, it basically means the audition was unsuccessful; conversely, the longer the audition, the more the director and producer approve.

Li Xiaolu's audition took a while; she didn't return to the dressing room until about twenty minutes later.

Compared to the uncertainty she felt when she first entered, she now looked relaxed, with a faint smile on her face, clearly indicating that the audition went smoothly.

Everyone felt a chill run down their spines. The first person to be interviewed had already been chosen by the director, which meant she must have performed exceptionally well. With Li Xiaolu setting such a high bar, it would be even more difficult for others to win the director's favor.

Several more people were called over for auditions, but they didn't stay as long as Li Xiaolu, the difference was obvious. When they came out, they were all dejected, clearly rejected and eliminated.

"Next up, Gao Yuanyuan."

Gao Yuanyuan slowly stood up, straightened her skirt, and walked into the audition room with elegant manners and a gentle smile on her face.

Gao Yuanyuan knocked and entered. In the not-so-spacious audition room, there was a long table with three interviewers sitting behind it.

Gao Yuanyuan discreetly observed the three of them.

According to the seat card, the person sitting in the center is the producer, Zhang Zhao, the general manager of Tengda Culture, who has an imposing and dignified appearance.

On the right is the assistant director and casting director, named Ma Xin. She didn't recognize him, but he looked young and had a youthful face, so he was a young director.

To her surprise, the director on the left was actor Xu Zheng.

Suppressing her doubts, Gao Yuanyuan walked to the center of the audition room. The three people opposite her greeted her politely, "Hello, Mr. Zhang! Director Xu! Director Ma!"

After all, she was an established actress, while the assistant director, Ma Xin, was relatively inexperienced. He returned the greeting warmly, saying, "Hello, Miss Gao!"

Xu Zheng didn't put on any airs as a director, and responded with a smile and a nod.

Zhang Zhao looked down at Gao Yuanyuan's resume, his face expressionless, without a word of pleasantries: "Let's begin."

When Zhang Zhao spoke, Ma Xin abandoned his desire to chat with Gao Yuanyuan and immediately said seriously, "Ms. Gao, please talk about your understanding of the character Tang Xiaolian."

With a smile, Gao Yuanyuan spoke eloquently, "Tang Xiaolian is beautiful, intelligent, resourceful, and brave. She is always trying to find ways to save her companions and herself from danger..." Xu Zheng nodded frequently beside her; Gao Yuanyuan indeed understood the character very well.

Zhang Zhao listened to a passage that was very similar to what Li Xiaolu, the first person to audition, had said. After Gao Yuanyuan finished speaking, he said, "Well said, Miss Gao. Go back and wait for news."

"Okay, ah!" Gao Yuanyuan was initially delighted, but then realized what was happening and was surprised that it was over already!
It was only three minutes in total. Why not test her delivery of lines and examine her acting skills? All the extensive preparation work beforehand was for nothing.

Although she was unwilling, Gao Yuanyuan could only retreat in embarrassment since Zhang Zhao had already spoken.

Ma Xin was still young, and Gao Yuanyuan, who had just come out of the audition room, couldn't wait to express her opinion: "President Zhang, I think Gao Yuanyuan is good and very suitable to play the female lead."

Xu Zheng kept his head down and remained silent, leisurely picking up his water glass and taking a sip of tea. He felt somewhat disdainful of Ma Xin, his assistant who was a graduate of the Directing Department of the Central Academy of Drama.

Young people haven't experienced the harsh realities of society and are a bit arrogant. What's the use of thinking you're good? Nominally, there are three people interviewing, but Zhang Zhao is the only one who truly makes the decisions.

During this period, he was intensively studying directing skills and even went to the Shanghai Theatre Academy to find a temporary teacher through connections.

Last month, Tengda Culture suddenly approached him, expressing their appreciation for his talent and willingness to support his transition to directing. They even provided him with the script for "Nightclub" to test the waters.

Xu Zheng naturally wouldn't refuse such a windfall, as established directors in the entertainment industry have a much higher status than actors.

He had long wanted to shed the image of Zhu Bajie in the audience's mind, so he naturally seized this opportunity.

So he hit it off with Tengda Culture, and even though the contract terms were a bit harsh, he still agreed to direct "Nightclub".

Zhang Zhao neither agreed nor disagreed with Ma Xin's opinion. In fact, he himself was not very optimistic about Gao Yuanyuan, feeling that her appearance was too mature and bright, and not suitable for the role of Tang Xiaolian.

His favorite candidate was Li Xiaolu, who was the first to audition. She was quite good in terms of acting skills, lines, and other aspects.

Moreover, Li Xiaolu has a strong background, coming from a family of actors, and her elders have close ties with the August First Film Studio.

The entertainment industry is all about personal relationships and social graces. If he does Li Xiaolu a favor today, her elders might have to repay him in the future.

Unfortunately, he didn't dare to go against the big boss's wishes; the audition was just a formality, a publicity stunt.

Zhang Zhao gave the order, "Call the next person."

The staff quickly went to the adjacent lounge to call for more people.

"Master Liu!"

It turned out her name was Liu Shishi. Yang Mi remembered the girl who had made eye contact with her when she first arrived, and felt that she had a strong connection with her and wanted to get to know her.

Taking a deep breath, Liu Shishi walked into the audition room. She was a little nervous. Although her boyfriend told her that the role had already been decided, the person who auditioned before her was Gao Yuanyuan, so she thought that Gao Yuanyuan must have performed very well.

If he performs poorly and stands in stark contrast to Gao Yuanyuan, it would embarrass Song Ci and make him look bad in front of his subordinates.

Just like Gao Yuanyuan, Liu Shishi first greeted the producer and director, then stood there quietly, waiting for the interviewers to give instructions.

However, compared to Gao Yuanyuan's composure, Liu Shishi felt a little uneasy, after all, it was her first time participating in an audition and she had no experience whatsoever.

Zhang Zhao carefully examined the super-connected person in front of him. This was the first time he had met Liu Shishi. She was dressed in white, pure and gentle, with a quiet temperament. She had the standard first love face, which was indeed the type that young men liked the most.

He had inquired with Wang Jing and learned that the big boss was very fond of his childhood sweetheart.

Zhang Zhao was naturally very polite to Liu Shishi. Before Ma Xin could speak, he interrupted and asked, his tone no longer as cold and indifferent as before.

"Ms. Liu, could you please explain your understanding of the role you're auditioning for?"

Zhang Zhao didn't mince words with Liu Shishi, outwardly appearing to be all business, but the astute Xu Zheng still saw through his act.

Xu Zheng gave Zhang Zhao a meaningful look. Of all the girls who auditioned, this was the first time Zhang Zhao had spoken up, and his tone was noticeably different, gentle and friendly.

Having been in the industry for so many years, Xu Zheng was well aware of the ins and outs. He knew that the girl in front of him was probably someone important, and Zhang Zhao couldn't afford to offend her.

Before coming, Liu Shishi did her homework and even consulted her screenwriter boyfriend. Her textbook-like speech thoroughly explained the character of Tang Xiaolian.

Xu Zheng didn't care at all about understanding the character; Tang Xiaolian, the female lead in "Nightclub," was not a complicated character to begin with.

Every auditioning actor could speak eloquently, but nothing was original. He was currently carefully reviewing the resume Liu Shishi had submitted for the audition.

He graduated from the Beijing Dance Academy and is affiliated with the same school as Tengda's top male lead and second male lead, Qiao Zhengyu. That's not a big deal, since Tengda doesn't even use its own female artists, so he doesn't think Qiao Zhengyu has the power to arrange the female lead.

The only strange thing is that this girl's agency, Tangren Media, has never arranged a single project for her.

There are only two possibilities for a young woman to jump straight from the Shanghai entertainment circle to the Beijing circle for a lead role audition: either she's overestimating herself and indulging in wishful thinking, or she has powerful connections and influence. Judging from Zhang Zhao's attitude just now, this young woman is clearly the latter.

Seeing Liu Shishi's expectant expression, Zhang Zhao smiled and affirmed, "That's very insightful. It seems that Miss Liu has a very good understanding of the character. Please read a few more passages of the script so we can test your delivery of lines."

Liu Shishi cleared her throat and began to read the script aloud, her voice clear, gentle, and full of emotion.

Zhang Zhao nodded. Although she got the job through connections, she was still quite capable; at least she wasn't a terrible actress.

"Ms. Liu, that's enough for now. Please head back. We'll call you to let you know the audition results."

Upon hearing Zhang Zhao's instructions, Liu Shishi politely said goodbye and awaited the outcome.

"Next up, Yang Mi."

"Next up, Jiang Yiyan."

Actresses came and went as they auditioned, and two and a half hours passed in the blink of an eye. The half-day audition finally came to an end, and afterwards, the audition judges were discussing the final candidates.

Ma Xin, young and ambitious, had a strong desire to perform and wanted to overshadow Xu Zheng, who had crossed over to become a director. He loudly expressed his opinions to Zhang Zhao.

"Mr. Zhang, among these people, I think Gao Yuanyuan is the most suitable. She has an outstanding appearance, good acting skills, and the biggest fame, which will help boost the box office."

"Director Xu, what do you think?" Zhang Zhao asked Xu Zheng casually while arranging a stack of resumes in his hand.

Xu Zheng stretched his shoulders, which were stiff and sore from sitting for a long time, and replied with a smile, "It's all fine, Mr. Zhang, you can decide."

Upon hearing this, Ma Xin curled his lip, looking down on Xu Zheng even more. As a director, he had no opinion on personnel at all. What could an actor who crossed over to directing know about filmmaking?

(End of this chapter)