novellhall Chapter 15 Authentic Earth Dog of the Wuxu Year
Chapter 15 Authentic Earth Dog of the Wuxu Year
We arranged afternoon tea, and I arrived around noon.
Chen Guanjiang chose to sit in the seat opposite the door so that he could see the person coming as soon as possible.
He gave the waiter a "coffee and beef" card and asked if Fong Yat-wah liked Sima English scones with Devonshire butter, so that it could be prepared and served in advance.
If the person doesn't arrive within an hour, a new one is brought in and the process restarts. The person sits there eagerly waiting, emphasizing a proper attitude.
Fang Yihua finally arrived late, after three cups of tea had been served. At the waiter's prompting, Chen Guanjiang quickly stood up to greet her, saying, "Ms. Fang, hello! I can hardly believe I received your invitation..."
Fang Yihua stared at the "child" before her, momentarily stunned, and asked incredulously, "You're Chen Guanjiang?"
"Let me introduce myself, I'm Chen Guanjiang!"
Chen Guanjiang lowered his eyes and said meekly, "You can call me Xiao Chen Ajiang, or you can call me by my nickname Si Gou or Gou Zai."
"Paparazzi?"
Fang Yihua became more and more confused. The owner of "Hyena Daily" was indeed Chen Guanjiang, but shouldn't Chen Guanjiang be 21 years old? What was going on with this half-grown kid?
Chen Guanjiang maintained his smile and said, "Born in 1958, the year of the Earth Dog, a true Earth Dog in the Chinese zodiac. I am the fourth child in my family. You can call me Dead Dog or Dog-like if you like, as the name sounds similar to my birth year."
“…………”
Fang Yihua was speechless.
I originally thought that Chen Guanjiang was a dog raised by Zou Wenhuai to bite Shaw Brothers, but I never expected that this guy would not shy away from admitting that he was a dog.
Chen Guanjiang immediately slapped his forehead and said, "Why are you still standing? Am I blocking your way? As the saying goes, a good dog doesn't block the road. Please sit down, please sit down..."
You can't hit someone who's smiling!
Invited to sit down in a daze, Fang Yihua looked at the tea and snacks she liked on the table and Chen Guanjiang's fawning face opposite her, and her anger subsided by a third.
Fang Yihua hadn't forgotten his purpose, and he lowered his voice, saying, "Ah Jiang, I came here today to ask, what are you trying to do by targeting our Shaw Brothers for three days straight?"
"Where does this word '搞' come from?"
Chen Guanjiang chuckled inwardly and retorted, "Shaw Brothers will ask newspapers to publish articles about celebrities to increase their popularity, and the newspapers will also sell better. It's a win-win situation for everyone, so how can you call it a scam?"
"Ha! They really are spouting nonsense..."
Fang Yihua was amused by this twisted argument, and retorted with a forced smile, "Don't you even look at what articles other newspapers are publishing? And what are you publishing?"
"It's suspected that Dillon and Jiang Dawei are a couple, that Shen Yi is a PR professional working as a hostess, and that Pan Yingzi is infertile. Do you know how much damage this will cause to Shaw Brothers?"
"Is that so? I'm sorry, Ms. Fang!"
Chen Guanjiang was shocked and said, "I am deeply sorry for my actions and the losses I have caused to Shaw Brothers. To ask for your forgiveness, I am willing to pay the price and compensate you for your losses!"
“…………”
Such a sincere apology and such a remorseful look left Fang Yihua speechless. Demanding compensation would only make Shaw Brothers seem petty and give them a bad reputation for bullying a child.
But if compensation isn't pursued, isn't that the real purpose of this dead dog's publicity stunt? If this dead dog isn't severely punished, won't other newspapers follow suit?
"I'm so sorry, I meant well but things went wrong..."
Just as Fang Yihua was bewildered, Chen Guanjiang, suppressing a laugh, continued: "I thought that film was a high-risk industry with high investment and slow return of funds, and that it needed safeguards to hedge against risks."
"I think celebrities are a valuable commodity. By selling their privacy, they can satisfy the audience's curiosity and make money from the invisible commodity of fame."
"Celebrities increase their fame and can then monetize that fame, creating a mutually beneficial situation. Looking back now, I realize I didn't think things through..."
"Wait a minute, I'm a little confused."
Fang Yihua quickly interrupted Chen Guanjiang's incessant chatter, her head in turmoil as she tried to sort out the thoughts crammed into her mind.
First of all, film is indeed an industry with high investment, high risk, slow capital return, and long production cycle.
Even though Shaw Brothers operated through a factory assembly line, the production cycle for a film was still about a month, something other production companies simply couldn't achieve with such high efficiency.
Even though "The Butterfly Lovers" was said to have been completed in half a month, only those in the know know the details. They filmed around the clock to rush the production, and the return on investment was even slower after its release.
All industries that have the above-mentioned shortcomings need means to hedge against risks.
In fact, every industry hopes to hedge and share risks, a point that Fang Yihua strongly agrees with.
Secondly, is celebrity fame an invisible commodity? This idea is novel, and Fang Yihua has long had this feeling, but she can't put it into practice.
Seeing Fang Yihua deep in thought, Chen Guanjiang chuckled to himself.
Film was born in 1895. At that time, people were more focused on the technology itself and were limited by technology and commercial applications. There were no so-called stars at that time.
The concept of a star emerged relatively late. At that time, the world was in chaos, and it wasn't until the 30s that people defined Florence Lawrence in 1910 as the first "movie star."
Movie stars truly rose to prominence in the 50s!
Today, production companies, theater chains, and Hollywood all know that "movie stars" have greater commercial value, but they have extremely limited commercial development of stars.
It wasn't until the 80s that "celebrity economics" (or "celebrity commodity studies") emerged, and by the 90s, the industry had gone to great lengths to extract all the value from celebrities, and this development process was finally completed.
Chen Guanjiang deliberately avoided making his point clear, using vague and ambiguous language to mislead the audience. Without sufficient theoretical and practical reference, this foolish woman simply couldn't see through this profit model.
"Tell me in detail... how can we achieve mutual benefit?" Fang Yihua asked awkwardly.
Chen Guanjiang suppressed a laugh and said, "By filming movies or TV series, celebrities can trigger a pleasant experience in the audience's previous works, making them look forward to the next work. This is how fame is sold."
"Some businesses hire celebrities to shoot promotional videos for their products. Celebrities earning promotional fees is also a way to sell their fame, just like when Wang Mingquan shot his first TV promotional video for Tissot."
"Many people have always thought that celebrities only have the opportunity to increase their popularity by making movies or TV series and relying on the screen. It is undeniable that this is the most widespread and direct way of communication."
Similarly, celebrities participating in television programs or giving personal interviews is also a way to gain popularity, make the audience look forward to their next work, and reduce investment risk.
"Among all forms of communication, gossip news has the lowest cost of dissemination yet the greatest reach."
"Big stars may not care about this increase in fame, but for them who have huge investments in their productions, huge investments are a kind of guarantee."
"But for most minor actors, they often gain the greatest fame with the least investment. They only need to sell a little personal privacy to increase their popularity, and then sell it through their works..."