Chapter 10. The Idealist
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"...Eh, isn't that a good thing?"
Hearing Jolyne Cujoh's accusations, Pucci looked at Jolyne with a blank expression, then glanced at Shinbo.
As if asking the seasoned veteran Shinbo, who had ample funding—Is this reasonable?
Since when did the boss stop caring about the source of funds?
Are they worried about their employees being too cautious with spending?
Even a coal boss wouldn't be like this.
Oh, right.
Among the businesses run by the Joestar family, there's Joestar Real Estate, which handles real estate transactions, and the SPW Foundation, which started as a major oil conglomerate before transforming into a biomedical and high-tech company...
Thinking about it this way, it does make sense.
However, isn't Green Dolphin Studio only related to the Joestar family through Jolyne? The other affairs have nothing to do with the SPW Foundation or Joestar Real Estate, right?
Otherwise, why would Ryoko Kakyoin have suggested using Joseph Joestar's name to seek sponsorship in the first place?
And after he expressed his financial considerations, even Kakyoin Ryoko, who didn't agree with his approach at the beginning, had to succumb to the reality of the situation.
The funding shortage wasn't fake.
So why...
Perhaps because she sensed the confused looks from Pucci and even Akiyuki Shinbo, who had also never heard of such a request, they looked at her.
Jolyne Cujoh, who had already prepared this rhetoric on the way here, pretended to be affectionate and said, "Pucci, Minamizawa, what do you think of the current industry?"
"...Uh, it should be okay," Pucci said uncertainly.
Although he was new to the industry, as a transmigrator, he knew that this world had dimensional counterparts and devices that could fully utilize their advantages.
He thought that the entertainment industry in this parallel world was not on the brink of collapse.
And Shinbo Akiyuki, in this regard, is a talented player himself.
In Pucci's previous life, the Japanese TV animation industry was dominated by BD sales. Shinbo Akiyuki was able to crush a lot of seniors and became one person who occupied two positions among the top ten in historical sales: "Bakemonogatari," which ranks second after "EVA," and "Puella Magi Madoka Magica," which ranks sixth.
He also nodded and felt that the industry was not finished yet.
"No, the industry is on the verge of collapse!"
Jolyne Cujoh lamented, "Pucci, do you know why I agreed with you not to hire Johnny's idols despite knowing they would bring massive traffic and popularity to our work?"
"Because I believe these idols who can only sing, dance, and rap are not worth the price! Even if using my great-grandfather's name can get us a discount!"
Although her real reason was to lose money, she took the moral high ground using online criticisms of certain idols to hide her true intentions.
Besides, she wasn't wrong.
"The essence of fully immersive filming is to make the audience feel the most realistic visual experience, as if a real story is happening in another world."
"But what about those idols?"
"Even if some idols genuinely try to transform, most are controlled by the character templates in the fully immersive device, acting like robots."
"If their roles are almost like NPCs, why not use NPCs directly? NPCs with customizable appearances are definitely more attractive than those idols!"
Although fully immersive filming seemingly eliminated age and role difficulties, allowing men to play women, actors to return to their childhood state, or portray non-human characters without needing child or animal actors, most adjustments were already at their limits. Actors who could portray non-human characters were incredibly rare.
Even with memory suppression, most actors subconsciously believed they were human. If their subconscious conflicted with their non-human appearance in the script, they might go crazy like Marvel's Deadpool, causing chaos in the script world and ruining the shoot.
This was why idol dramas relying solely on looks still thrived in the fully immersive film era. With a set character template and a not-too-extreme actor's subconscious, idols could continue to act based on their looks.
However, such works were at the low end of the fully immersive film industry's hierarchy, similar to traffic-driven dramas in traditional media. Some people loved them, while others despised them.
Clearly, Pucci and Shinbo, though not opposed to these cash-grabbing dramas, weren't particularly fond of them either.
Seeing their changing expressions, Jolyne Cujoh secretly smirked and continued, "I want to change this industry!"
"I want to prove that spending money on those idols is less worthwhile than investing in the overall production quality. We should showcase the true advantages of fully immersive works and bring the audience a sense of reality as if they were in another world!"
"Now, Director Pucci, do you still think not spending more budget is a trivial matter?!"
"..."
Is this the Joestar bloodline? Even in another world, with different jobs and goals, the Joestar bloodline still shines brightly, filled with golden spirit.
Looking at Jolyne Cujoh, who radiated the light of an idealist, wanting to change this dismal industry with her own efforts, Pucci sighed inwardly.
However...
"But President Cujoh, the budget for 'Phantom Blood' didn't need that much in the first place."
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