Huayu: I Have a Doraemon

Chapter 43 Give Me Some Face

In this era of limited entertainment, students don't have many ways to relax on a daily basis.

A videotape, a new album, or even a barbecue can make someone happy for days.

Against this backdrop, the story of students from their own academy raising investment, writing scripts, and competing with directors from the "red" (pro-China) camp is even more exciting than the Spring Festival Gala.

The news caused an instant uproar at Nortel.

People are signing up to join the group in droves. At this moment, everyone is familiar with Lin An, whether they know him or not!

As for any possible retaliation from the Beijing elite or the Ying family, who cares?

They are still students and struggling to make ends meet, so they have no time to worry about things that are so far in the future.

Apart from the senior performing arts students who needed to prepare for their graduation play, almost everyone else signed up to participate.

Even if I don't become famous, or even if my videos don't get broadcast, it's still good to be able to skip a few classes!

……

Lin An was extremely busy.

Zhang Hua's office is on the third floor of the office building.

He looked at the densely packed list in his hand and was momentarily at a loss for words.

"This is only part of it."

Zhang Hua sat behind his desk, holding a thermos, his tone tinged with schadenfreude:

"Some graduates also came to inquire about the news, and several of them are now popular celebrities."

Lin An stared in disbelief: "Really? They wouldn't even look at my paltry sums of money?"

There aren't many film crews these days, but it's not to this extent.

Zhang Hua said with a half-smile, "They look down on you, but they do like your direction."

He said, "The connections you have with the Beijing People's Art Theatre and the Central Academy of Drama aren't so easy to earn."

Lin An opened his mouth, but for a moment he was speechless.

He understood why Lin Cong had entrusted him with the entire task of casting; she didn't want to waste her energy on these interpersonal relationships.

But the problem is, I don't want to either... Lin An sighed, feeling that filming was really troublesome, with a lot of things to do even before filming started.

Seeing that the person hadn't become overconfident, Zhang Hua didn't continue to attack, but instead said:

"Do you need me to help you find actors? I have a few students who are pretty good at comedy."

Lin An thought for a moment, then shook his head and said, "I'll do it myself."

As he spoke, he picked up a water-based pen from the table and began to circle and draw on the list.

Yu Bo, Miao Pu, Yang Rui, Ling Xiaosu, Yang Xue, Dong Xuan...

Seeing how quickly he circled them, Zhang Hua was both puzzled and curious: "Do you know them?"

Lin An shook his head and said, "I don't know him."

Zhang Hua frowned slightly and asked, "Then what were your criteria for choosing them?"

Lin An thought for a long time, then said seriously:

"Their names are nice."

Zhang Hua: "..."

……

……

Starting a film crew is not an easy thing; even shooting just one episode requires a lot of preparation.

After leaving the office building, Lin An and Lin Cong found an empty classroom to continue working.

More important than casting is confirming the scene schedule right now.

They need to break down the location, characters, and timeline of each scene into an executable plan based on the script.

This is an extremely tedious job.

Use an A3 sheet of paper horizontally. Write the scene number on the left, a scene overview in the middle, and the characters and special props on the right.

Lin An lay on the table, using a ruler to draw a table. The grids had to be of uniform size and the handwriting had to be clear and neat. Otherwise, if the staff on site couldn't see it, it would be a disaster.

Lin Cong sat opposite him, holding a red ballpoint pen, making marks on a printed script.

"The third and fourth games can be combined," she said without looking up.

Lin An looked up at her and made a mark on the scene assignment chart.

"The dialogue in the seventh scene is too dense, and it would be very rushed to film it on set."

Lin An made another mark.

"Let's revise the scene description for scene 12. Change the second male lead's position from 'leaning against the wall' to 'leaning against the window' so that the lighting will be better."

Lin An continued making marks.

After an hour, the schedule was covered with annotations.

"You've done this before?" Lin Cong's eyes showed a hint of surprise.

"What hasn't this seasoned veteran done..." Lin An stretched his aching wrists and said calmly:

Even if you've never eaten pork, you've always seen pigs run.

Lin Cong chuckled and didn't press the matter.

After completing the scene breakdown, the next step was to find suitable filming locations.

Lin Cong said, "I can contact the PAGE Taihe photography studio. The cost is very low, but the time is limited."

Lin An reminded him:

"We're doing a sitcom, so the location is frequently reused. If we move the filming location often, the costs will skyrocket."

"you mean?"

"A dilapidated warehouse would be better."

Lin Cong thought for a moment and did not refuse.

Paige Taihe is her contracted company, and with that relationship, borrowing a photography studio is not a problem. But favors fade with use, so it's best to owe as little as possible.

"I have my own filming crew, and I also have access to equipment rental services."

Lin Cong leaned back in his chair, arms crossed, speaking slowly and deliberately:

"What about the set design? Didn't Teacher Zhang Hua say anything when you saw him this morning?"

Lin An shook his head.

A hint of disappointment flashed in Lin Cong's eyes, but it wasn't too unexpected.

As the saying goes, "every profession has its own secrets," and professors in the performing arts department really don't have much say in the fine arts department.

Lin An replied, "I'll take care of the set design, and I'll also provide the props and costumes."

Lin Cong paused for a moment, then said seriously, "Are you sure? Those people from the art department aren't so easy to deal with."

Lin An waved his hand and said, "Don't worry, I still have some influence in the art department."

Lin Cong was speechless for a moment, thinking to himself, "Aren't you a freshman?"

Why do people always give you face everywhere?

……

……

At this moment, in a studio on the third floor of the Yifu Building.

Tang Yu glared angrily at He Yuwen, slamming his fist on the table with a loud thud.

"Why should I bring people to the film set to work? I'm not going!"

He Yuwen didn't even glance at him, continuing to peruse the sketches in her hands.

A thick stack of A4 paper, at least seventy or eighty sheets.

The pencil sketches are clean and crisp, with exquisite compositions; each one is of a quality that can be used directly.

"Not bad," He Yuwen commented casually.

Tang Yu choked for a moment, his anger finding no outlet. He could only let out a loud "humph," plop down back in his chair, cross his arms, and turn his face to one side.

"What exactly did that guy surnamed Lin give you? Why are you helping him like this?"

He muttered, "We have absolutely nothing to do with the literature department, why are we being so eager to please them?"

He Yuwen raised her head and glanced at him:

"You should really put your mind to it; helping him is helping yourself too."

Tang Yu scoffed, looking completely unconvinced.

He Yuwen did not continue to persuade him, but simply took a folder from his backpack and placed it on the table.

"What is this?" Tang Yu glanced at it sideways.

He Yuwen did not answer, but instead pushed the folder in front of Tang Yu.

Tang Yu, filled with suspicion, turned to the first page and subconsciously read the title aloud in a low voice:

"Kung Fu Panda..."