raknovel Chapter 108: The Shanghai Bund Craze Sweeps Hong Kong Island!
Chapter 108: The Shanghai Bund Craze Sweeps Hong Kong Island!
Chapter 108: The Shanghai Bund Craze Sweeps Hong Kong Island! (Please Subscribe)
"[Bruce Lee's physique +40%, immunity to side effects, Star Value +888]"
"Activate the top-tier skill [Jeet Kune Do Mastery]"
Miao Kexiu has always considered herself an atypical traditional woman.
She gave this interview when she was older.
Miao Kexiu said she believes she has the mindset of a traditional woman, but she has no desire to become a housewife.
She knew she didn't know how to take care of others, and she couldn't even cook; she had never even touched a rice cooker.
If she meets a man who makes her want to get married, she will marry him without hesitation and devote herself wholeheartedly to her family.
But if no such person appears, then there's no need to get married just for the sake of getting married.
In the following days, Zhang Shuai'an moved directly into the editing room of Golden Harvest.
He wanted to personally oversee Cheung Yiu-chung's editing of "Chasing Girls".
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Because Cheung Yiu-chung has more than one film to edit, the progress of "Chasing Girls" could be fast or slow if he wasn't keeping an eye on it.
Moreover, this is his first film, and he wouldn't feel comfortable leaving it unattended without his personal supervision during editing. Besides, being in the editing room himself means he can step in if Zhang Yaozhong can't handle the workload.
In the editing room, Zhang Shuai'an finally understood two things.
One question is why the job of editor exists in the first place;
Secondly, why do many Hollywood directors fight for the final cut?
Editing films is no human job, especially these days when movies are made on film. You really need to use scissors to cut and splice the footage bit by bit.
A 90-minute finished film typically uses about 3500 meters of film.
这年头，90分钟成片实际拍摄耗片比大概是3：1至5：1。
Zhang Shuai'an's filming speed and efficiency are already very high, but he has still shot nearly 12,000 meters of film.
At that time, the price of color film was about HK$350 per 100 meters, and Zhang Shuai'an spent more than HK$40,000 on film for this movie.
The cost of the film rolls was actually acceptable to Zhang Shuai'an.
What he couldn't quite accept was Zhang Yaozhong's scissors, which would often cut off nearly a hundred meters of film rolls after just a glance, making him tremble with heartache.
Sometimes, he couldn't help but say to Zhang Yaozhong, "Brother Zhong, did you look carefully before cutting? That last cut was so amazing, why didn't you want it?"
"They're obviously fake, didn't you see?" Zhang Yaozhong glanced at Zhang Shuai'an speechlessly, then pointed to a few of the photos: "Here, here—it's too obvious, what's the point of having them?"
Zhang Shuai'an paused for a moment, then carefully picked up the few meters of film and looked at it several times before finally seeing the truth in Zhang Yaozhong's words.
He could still accept this situation.
He simply couldn't accept any other situation.
"This scene was really well-shot, hilarious, and the actors were very dedicated, but unfortunately—" Zhang Yaozhong was praising it when he decisively cut the film with his scissors: "It's unacceptable!"
"Hey, you said it's hilarious, why can't we accept it?"
Zhang Shuai'an was now ready to argue his case, "We worked so hard to film this, and you just cut it out with a single sentence? Isn't that a bit disrespectful to our hard work?"
Zhang Yaozhong didn't bother to explain: "You're the editor, and I'm the editor?"
"You are!" Zhang Shuai'an said seriously, "But this is my movie, I can make the decisions, and I have Mr. Zou's consent."
Zhang Yaozhong said disdainfully, "In the editing room, I'm the boss. Don't even mention Mr. Zou, even if the Governor of Hong Kong came, he would have to listen to me here."
The two got into another argument, delaying the editing process.
Amidst this back-and-forth progress, the editing of "Chasing Girls" proceeded smoothly.
Just as Zhang Shuai'an was confined to the editing room, the ratings of "Shanghai Bund" experienced an explosive increase!
The night "Chasing Girls" finished filming was its premiere, and the ratings were tallied the next day, reaching 49%, and that was just for the first episode.
Whether it was the executives at TVB or RTV, they all clearly realized that this was another massive drama series, and the subsequent ratings would definitely reach an astonishing level.
Sure enough, the second episode's ratings soared to 63%, the third episode reached 69%, and the fourth episode broke 70% —
This ratings frenzy was absolutely devastating, leaving RTV (Rediffusion Television) utterly powerless to fight back.
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However, this also made RTV realize the appeal of period dramas about the struggle for power in the Republican era. They immediately asked Tsui Siu-ming, Mak Dang-hung, and others to create a similar script and then put it into filming as quickly as possible.
In terms of viewership ratings, they definitely can't compete with "Shanghai Bund," but they must try to grab the tail end of the show's run.
On the radio station side, however, the atmosphere was one of joy and celebration.
Shao Yifu summoned Zhao Zhenqiang, Liu Shiyu, Huo Yaoliang, and others.
"You've done a fantastic job! 'Shanghai Bund' is now the undisputed star!"
Fang Yihua was the first to praise, "They beat ATV to a pulp! Last night's ratings reached 75%, and it's estimated that breaking 80% is just around the corner! Mr. Shao has decided to give you all a bonus."
Zhao Zhenqiang and the others repeatedly expressed their gratitude: "Thank you so much, boss! Thank you so much, Miss Fang!"
"You deserve this," Shao Yifu laughed heartily, pointing at them and saying, "But don't be too happy. After a few days of rest, we can start preparing for the sequel. This show is so popular, thirty episodes won't be enough."
"But—" Zhao Zhenqiang said with some difficulty, "The script is easy to write, but Anzai might not necessarily come to film it."
Shao Yifu waved his hand and said directly, "Even without Anzai, we can promote someone else. I think that Chow Yun-fat guy is pretty good."
Huo Yaoliang said somewhat awkwardly, "But Xu Wenqiang is already dead—"
"What are you afraid of!" Shao Yifu tapped the table lightly. "This kind of thing is too difficult for you writers. Just make up a brother for Xu Wenqiang. If a brother isn't possible, then a fellow villager or classmate—anything will do."
"The remaining characters can be retained."
He continued, "For example, the actor who played Ding Li, we could promote him to the second male lead."
Zhao Zhenqiang and the others exchanged glances, knowing they couldn't refuse, so they nodded and said, "Don't worry, boss, we'll find a screenwriter right away and write the sequel."
"That's more like it." Shao Yifu smiled with satisfaction. "Anzai is indeed a genius among geniuses, but our TVB isn't without its own geniuses. Chen Qiaoying and the others have been with Anzai for a while, so they've been influenced by him to some extent. Let them write."
"Alright!" Zhao Zhenqiang and the others accepted the order and left.
Not long after.
The phone on Shao Yifu's desk rang.
Fang Yihua stepped forward to answer the call and then responded calmly.
After she hung up the phone, Osaka Shaoyi replied, "It's CTS from Taiwan. They said they want to get this drama approved right now, along with 'Young Detective Bao Qingtian,' and they'll raise the price by two times."
Soon, the phone rang again.
In just one morning, Shao Yifu's phone rang more than a dozen times, all inquiring about various matters related to "Shanghai Bund".
Meanwhile, while "Shanghai Bund" was gaining popularity, a clothing brand called "Ban Ni Lu" also rose to prominence in a very short period of time, selling 50,000 to 60,000 pieces of clothing similar to Xu Wenqiang's in just a few days.
Many shopping malls have also realized what's happening and have started placing orders with this clothing company.
Other merchants sensed the business opportunity and followed suit, selling various related items. Some even claimed to be selling the same underwear worn by Xu Wenqiang.
The Shanghai Bund craze swept across the entire Hong Kong Island!
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