"Cheng Yuan, huh..?"
Lu Ze thought about it and soon recalled the basic information about this director.
This director was not as outstanding as Gu Mingde and was also a lot older than the latter. However, he was still one of the reputable soap opera directors and could be considered top grade amongst domestic directors.
However, he was different from Gu Mingde. The latter's work was based on war themes and was action-thriller centric. His works were targeted at the male audience at its core.
On the other hand, Cheng Yuan was renowned for his contemporary works. They were basically focused on emotions, and the absolute majority of his audience was female. His works required high-quality scripts, shooting finesse, and even the actors to some extent.
That was all Lu Ze knew about him. He said that the reason he was lacking compared to Gu Mingde not because he was not good enough or because his subject matter was bad.
Gu Mingde looked for a screenplay with depth and meaning, so while he didn't have a wide target audience, he was respected by everybody. Nobody could badmouth him.
Cheng Yuan's work, on the other hand, targeted a wide spectrum of audiences. However, since his works were centered around love and emotions, they inevitably contained situations like love triangles and negative emotions. Thus, he was heavily criticized.
Lu Ze sat on the couch again and looked at Shen Jinghan and Gao Wanzhi. Not long after that, the latter handed the script over to him.
Evidently, this was another contemporary piece of work. Perhaps after suffering defeat last year when he tried a change in his usual style, he had to helplessly return to his original subject matter.
However, this subject matter was a new field for Lu Ze. After all, he'd never shot contemporary work.
Flipping over to the first page, he read the contents.
Gao Xiaofei: second male lead. He's a migrant worker working in the capital after graduating from university. His long-time university girlfriend cheats on him and elopes with a second-generation rich guy. He develops feelings for another girl later and is cheated on again. Because of the financial pressure in the capital as well as being insecure about his income, he becomes a materialistic and gloomy person. In the end, he has to leave the capital in failure.
Lu Ze felt that this character was too wretched. In the end, he couldn't accomplish anything in either his career or love. However, he wasn't one to be sympathized with since he could have a bright future and was fully responsible for his own demise.
Once again, this work had dubious ethics and bore the concept of love. It had a four-way love triangle of complex relationships that showed the romance of a second-generation rich guy with an ordinary girl and Ms. Perfect with a migrant loser.
There were only six main leads. The three male leads and the three female leads stayed with each other through the entire show, presenting a 'til-death-do-us-apart' sort of love amongst each pair.
Furthermore, the most troublesome role to play amongst the entire work was precisely the second male lead. As for the first lead? Playing a cool, handsome, rich family's scion was indeed not that hard. They just had to demonstrate a few dashing poses and cool looks, and they were done.
In conclusion, this series was the same old cliche, targeting girls who had yet to reach adulthood but were already dreaming about sweet romance.
He simply skimmed through the dialogues since the two ladies were still waiting for him. Lu Ze placed the script back on the table and took a sip from the teacup.
"Have you read it? How's it?"
"Before this, I didn't have the confidence to work in the modern genre, but now I feel that there shouldn't be any problem. I can give it a try."
The role was the second lead, not some small side character. You could say that Zhang Lixian was a whole level different compared to Guo Xiaofei.
Since the company had provided him with an opportunity to audition for a second lead, even if it was a contrived melodrama which Lu Ze was not a fan of, he would accept it. This was not something in his control.
Gao Wanzhi nodded her head in satisfaction. "Actually, we've also put some thought before giving you this script. Until now, you've only worked in war dramas. If you continue to work in the same line, first of all, your image will turn rigid in the perception of the masses. Secondly, the target audience of the anti-Japanese war dramas is too small. It will be disadvantageous for your future growth. Through our investigations, we found out that Director Cheng Yuan will soon be starting on his new work. So, we will fight to get you this opportunity. All of you need is the courage to change."
The courage to change? Lu Ze couldn't wait any longer for a change. He had enough of dirt-covered sets everywhere and buzzing ears due to explosions. If he could change to a different genre, he couldn't be any more willing.
"Then, when do I have to audition?"
"Mid-January. You still have plenty of time to work with. However, you have to work hard too. The company hopes that you can secure this role on your own."
Gao Wanzhi's words were quite clear. According to the company's plan for him, he must change. If he couldn't pass the audition by himself, the company would look for an opportunity to increase his chances.
However, the higher-ups of the company would be disappointed in him, and they would have to reconsider how much it would be worth investing resources in him in the next phase.
In other words, if Lu Ze made the audition on his own, the resources the company managed to save would be reinvested with interest.
If he didn't manage to pass on his own, the company would judge whether to invest more after seeing the result of this show's broadcasts. They might decide to invest more, or they might decide not to.
Therefore, at this moment, Lu Ze was in control of his own life and death. Success meant more roles, and failure meant half-death and no roles.
Feeling the pressure, Lu Ze let out a sigh. "I understand, Big Sister Gao. I'll try my very best."
Taking the script, he folded it nicely and placed it into his bag. However, right at this moment, he saw Shen Jinghan reveal a mysterious smile to him.
"I feel that you two are being overly serious about this matter. I'll meet up with Cheng Yuan to find out more about the situation. Lu Ze, you don't need to be too worried either. I'll see when he has the time to have a meal with you."
Upon hearing her words, Lu Ze felt like slapping his head. How could he have forgotten? The company had its resources while managers had their connections. She had just said that she and Cheng Yuan were friends. Then, she should be able to more or less voice out his intentions, right?
That was the benefit of having a manager. They had friendly relations with all sorts of big and small directors, investors, advertising firms, and all the bigshots that could provide immense help to an artiste and sweep away all obstacles in the artiste's path.
However, Lu Ze felt a bit puzzled. How could a manager with such a wide network of connections have come to Qianshijia? Moreover, why did her contract with her previous artiste end?
Since he couldn't guess or raise this question either, he could only express his gratitude. "Then, I'll have to trouble you, Aunt Shen."
"Don't be so polite. As your manager, you don't have to thank me for such matters. Then, I'm guessing there's nothing else, right? With that, I'll take my leave here. Lu Ze, where do you live? Do you want me to drop you off?"
After Lu Ze declined her offer, the 50-year-old beauty took her red LV bag, put on her sunglasses, and left.
Following her departure, Lu Ze also bade farewell to Gao Wanzhi and headed back home.
It was still noon. Lu Ze went to a stationery shop and bought a few notebooks and pens. Back home, he went to his bedroom and began furiously writing.
Although the role was not terribly difficult, he still went all out. After all, no matter what, this opportunity couldn't slip from his hands simply because of his negligence.
He wrote uninterrupted up to six o'clock, more or less completing an 8,000-word autobiography of Guo Xiaofei.
There weren't that many words. This was because the material in the script wasn't that much either, and Lu Ze had to fill in the information about his life in the plot through his own imagination. Just these 8,000 words made his mind feel a bit dizzy.
After dinner, he continued to write some more, more or less accumulating 10,000 words. Making the bed with the washed and sun-dried bedsheet, he closed his eyes and went to sleep.
Entering the system space, he quickly browsed past the courses he'd already studied and eventually found a simulation course he would study that night.
Tonight's course selection was quite purposeful. He'd browsed through this course many times before but never studied it. Letting out a breath, and after a slight hesitation, he confirmed his course selection.
"Loading 'Urban White Collar's Daily Life And Thought Process' into Host. Get ready. 3…2…1…Course commencing."
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