C2
by UntamedSJiang Fanxing hadn’t even been working for half a month before a number of casting directors from different sets added him on WeChat and called for him to be a featured actor.
In other industries, beauty may not be able to be monetized so quickly, but in the entertainment industry, beauty was the most primitive productivity.
Jiang Fanxing had also been in many film crews and found that more than 90% of the actors in it weren’t very good-looking, and their faces were quite rugged; almost all of them looked tough. Therefore, when Jiang Fanxing appeared on camera a few times, he was noticed by the casting directors, and they all called him to become a male lead number four or something.
Of course, the ones who could notice Jiang Fanxing weren’t big film crews; it was usually small web dramas with an investment of only a million yuan, and some were short video web dramas of three minutes. The probability of these productions being able to meet a large audience was basically low, so there weren’t many actors that would compete for such roles. Basically, as long as one looked good on camera, it was easy to play a role in such online dramas.
When his senior called again, Jiang Fanxing directly sent a screenshot of his account balance.
He’d only been running around for a month, running around as an extra and for some special roles, yet his savings were already over ten thousand yuan. So what was there not to like?
His senior didn’t call again.
Jiang Fanxing lived like a fish in water on the set. He was smart, good-looking, and could also talk well. Many people thought that even if Jiang Fanxing couldn’t be famous, with his appearance and emotional intelligence, he might still be able to become a male supporting actor who could be named in the future. Therefore, everyone treated him politely.
What was that saying?
A real beauty was like gold; it wouldn’t be buried. Even if he didn’t make it to the top of the industry, at least he could keep getting roles and get rich.
When Jiang Fanxing was in a scene, he stood out from the crowd and couldn’t go unnoticed.
Therefore, soon after, Jiang Fanxing received an invitation as a special actor, and his salary was directly raised to six or seven hundred yuan per day!
He was good-looking and tall, so his paycheck was higher than that of ordinary special characters!
Jiang Fanxing also found that many directors and actors on the set were in a very good mental state.
It was clearly a crying scene, but as long as the actors could use eye drops, they would accept the scene directly.
They avoided using wires if possible, and once they finally got one, they shot all the wire-hanging shots in one go.
There were also romantic scenes between the male and female leads. It was okay if the protagonist couldn’t remember the lines; they’d just say ‘take one, two, three, four, five, six, seven’.
The overall presentation was in a state of disarray.
Anyway, there was no platform that would buy the drama; it was just for self-entertainment.
They didn’t have any decent screenwriters, so why bother with someone’s acting skills? Even the director wasn’t good either.
He just had to make do; they’d finish filming this scene in three days. He’d just do whatever they wanted. That stupid capitalist didn’t understand acting anyway.
“With a budget of less than a million, what can I film? I can only afford to hire twenty extras, and I have to take one shot dozens of times.”
“Acting in a bad film is bad, but if you can be scolded by the audience, the investment for the sequel will come.”
……
Jiang Fanxing really liked this kind of atmosphere on the production team. Everyone was here to work, and it was also an unanticipated project, so naturally there wasn’t so much scheming and intrigue.
At first, it was indeed like this.
Then, when Jiang Fanxing was really invited by a casting director to become the sixth male lead in their production team, the younger brother of the male lead, a small supporting role with less than forty scenes combined, the trouble came.
“I’m sorry, Fanxing; the male lead of this cast of ours, I think, has changed his mind.” The casting director looked at Jiang Fanxing with some embarrassment. “So this thing we discussed before, right?”
“Oh, I can’t act, can I? It doesn’t matter; you guys should pay me the liquidated damages, and I’ll just go to the next group.” Jiang Fanxing had long been prepared to be replaced; he hadn’t held much hope. It was just that this group’s investment was small and there weren’t any famous actors; the supporting actors were all selected from the special actors and extras. That was why he agreed to come over and give it a try.
Moreover, after getting the offer, Jiang Fanxing had immediately submitted the drafted contract, agreed on compensation and other matters, and even made a recording, which the other party couldn’t refuse even if they wanted to.
Changing roles was a common occurrence in the entertainment industry, the outcome just depended on whether the defense measures were perfect or not.
“No, no, it’s not that. Our male lead is a little boyfriend of an investor. He has a decent figure, but he needs a more expensive makeup artist. However, the investment amount has also increased a bit. Don’t worry, you can still be the male lead number six, but you need to do some makeup.” The casting director had no choice. The director hoped he could find some handsome and beautiful guys to act, but the handsome and beautiful guys and girls who looked good on camera had already been reserved by various film and television companies and celebrity studios during their college years. Occasionally encountering a few unsigned individuals could quickly lead to them being signed.
These days, if one looked good, they could become an internet celebrity and go live streaming to sell goods, and if they had a little bit of popularity, they could even get a role as a male or female lead in a small web drama. Wasn’t that faster than starting as an extra?
Everyone had eyes; couldn’t they recognize who looked good and who didn’t?
That was also why Jiang Fanxing, who wasn’t signed to a studio or company, could have small roles as soon as he entered the industry. If he became popular, he might even be able to take the crew with him. There were many examples of such people carrying dramas, so everyone was happy to give these handsome girls and boys a chance to try their luck in small roles. It wasn’t about acting; it wasn’t about being an S-level big production; it was about becoming popular.
The result was quite satisfactory, but after seeing Jiang Fanxing’s photo, the male lead sarcastically said a few words but he refused to openly say that Jiang Fanxing should be fired, as it would result in losses. Therefore, he proposed that Jiang Fanxing be covered up with makeup, hoping to take this opportunity to drive him away. If Jiang Fanxing chose not to act, there would be no need to pay a compensation fee.
He was the kind of bad guy who had to wait for the casting director to be the bad guy.
“Let the makeup artist make me look ugly, right?” Jiang Fanxing also understood many terms in the industry.
“They won’t make you look too ugly; they’ll just use some liquid foundation with deep color so that you don’t look so good in the lens.”
“Well, what’s the pay?”
“Of course, it’s still as we said before.”
“This isn’t acceptable,” said Jiang Fanxing, who pulled up the electronic contract from his phone and handed it to the casting director as he spoke, “Make makeup an additional clause. According to the agreement, if you add a request temporarily, I will charge an extra 300 yuan per day.”
The previously scheduled forty scenes would be filmed for twenty days, with a daily production fee of 500 yuan (discounted for long films). After twenty days, it would be a total of 10,000 yuan, and even after deducting taxes, there would be several thousand yuan, enough for Jiang Fanxing to rent a better house. If there was an extra 300 yuan a day now, it would be an extra 6,000 yuan, which was equivalent to taking on another role. Jiang Fanxing would only refuse if he was foolish.
“Um… ” The casting director paused for a moment. Where did this clause come from? He wasn’t the one who signed the contract, and he didn’t pay attention either.
“Don’t worry, I am from the Law Department of A University. This contract is absolutely reasonable and legal. If you don’t believe me, you can spend money to hire a lawyer to review it. “Jiang Fanxing smiled. “Do you want your crew to discuss it again?”
“Okay! ” The casting director gritted his teeth in response. Previously, the director had promised to keep Jiang Fanxing. Their drama was intended to be sold on a short video platform for revenue sharing purposes, and having a really handsome guy could save a lot of money on pre-promotion expenses.
“Okay, I will join the team on time, “Jiang Fanxing said, smiling and shaking hands with the casting director. “Next time, remember to call me if there is another opportunity like this.”
The casting director looked at him speechlessly and said, “Are you willing to pretend to be ugly? This will be your black history from now on.”
“If I become famous, this little bit of black history is nothing. If I don’t become famous, no one will pay attention to these black histories.” Jiang Fanxing was completely fearless. “I can play dead bodies, let alone play ugly roles.”
The casting director went back easily.
Jiang Fanxing also tidied up and prepared to go home to pack things. He would buy a facial mask for himself , so as to avoid being permanently darkened by the black liquid foundation.
“After allowing it once, you’ll be asked to use make-up from now on when you enter a group. All the juniors are competitors, and as long as you’re ugly on camera all the time, you won’t be able to get any good roles.” A voice came from one of the cubicles.
Jiang Fanxing frowned slightly.
He and the casting director had carefully chosen this corner to have a conversation, yet they were still heard?
Coming out of the cubicle was a man in his early thirties, with a slightly wrinkled suit and large dark circles around his eyes. However, he still looked quite handsome, somewhat like the elites Jiang Fanxing saw at the law firm.
“It doesn’t involve… What’s the matter?” Dirty words were on the tip of Jiang Fanxing’s tongue, but he changed them a bit.
“I just think you have the potential to become a popular influencer. You are tall and have long legs, a small face, and three-dimensional facial features, so you should be able to handle different styles of makeup. If you package yourself well, you should have a good starting point for your debut. ” The man looked at Jiang Fanxing as he spoke.
“Well, I’m a handsome guy, I know. When I was young, a bunch of people offered for me to become a child model.” Jiang Fanxing wasn’t afraid of the stage at all, but unfortunately, his parents were both teachers and doctors who knew a lot. They understood the importance of being low-key and didn’t need a child to take care of their family, so they both refused.
“Your handsome and self-aware state is quite suitable for entering the industry, ” the man smiled, handing over his phone, which showed a clear WeChat QR code on it. “Do you want to consider signing with my studio? At least if you encounter this situation again, you won’t be at a disadvantage.”
“What you said—did I suffer a loss just now?” Jiang Fanxing retorted.
The man fell silent for a moment; he really wasn’t at a disadvantage; it even seemed as if he had even gotten a better deal.
“Alright, I’ve added it.” Jiang Fanxing quickly added the other party as a friend. “Remember to send me a copy of your studio’s benefits and contract so that I can see what resources you can provide me with. By the way, I’ve made a resume; you can look it over, and if it’s suitable, we can discuss signing the contract on WeChat.”
Jiang Fanxing changed the man’s contact name to “Injustice #6.”.
Well, it was the sixth one he’d met these days that wanted to sign him.
He’d compare the benefits they could offer first and then decide which one to choose. Comparing prices from three different sources wouldn’t be a disadvantage.
He hoped to find the most suitable scapegoat—no, a boss who could speak up.
TN:
I’m a day late but I still made it 😅.
See ya tomorrow 🤸
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