The next day.
The cast list for A Bite of China was also released.
Executive Producer: Zhang Ye
Executive Director: Zhang Ye
Chief Planner: Zhang Ye
Voice actor: Zhang Ye.
Assistant Directors: Ha Qiqi, Zhang Zuo.
Cameramen: Zhang Ye, Xu Han, Li Guotao, Zheng Xia, Huang Dandan.
Editing: Zhang Ye.
Wait a minute!
It was still the same as before. Many of the netizens were already numb to this. Every time Zhang Ye took part in a show, from the executive producer to the director to the planning and editing, it was always handled by him alone. In the industry, this was nothing new as Zhang Ye had always done it this way. But this time, it was even worse. Zhang Ye was even taking on the role of cameraman? Indeed, the core work of a documentary was the cameraman. For such an important role, Zhang Ye would definitely not be sloppy!
What was this called?
Some people said that he was showing off, but more people said that he was awesome!
He could f * * king take on all the positions in a show! He had taken all the positions by himself! Who else could do it? Even if they had the technology, they didn't have the energy!
Online.
The commotion on Weibo was still going on. Everyone was having a hard time digesting yesterday's breaking news. The main reason was that no one could understand what Zhang Ye was thinking. The things that Zhang Ye had done so far had left the people and the entire industry confused. No one could understand what was going on.
"Why?"
"Do you really want to use a documentary to compete with a variety show?"
"In the entire entertainment industry, no one is more daring than Zhang Ye!"
"There's no point in arguing now. Let's see the results!"
"But, do we still need to see the results?"
"Yeah, it's obvious that we can't win!"
"Rise to the Dance is so popular that everyone is trying their best to avoid it. Didn't you see that a few of the satellite channels have changed the time of their upcoming TV programs? Some of them were changed from Friday to Saturday, while some of them were changed from Friday at 8 PM to 9: 30 PM. But what about Zhang Ye? Not only did he not dodge, but he even ran into the muzzle? "
"That's why he's called Zhang Ye!"
"The weirdo of the entertainment circle truly lives up to his name!"
There was also a lot of news on the media.
"Zhang Ye declares war on Central TV Department 1 once again!"
"Was it intentional or a coincidence?"
"A Bite of China and Rise to the Dance's Broadcast Time Clash!"
"The first documentary in history to be shot with HD equipment is about to be released!"
"Rise to the Dance's press conference: Zhang Ye and his documentary are not viewed as rivals!"
"Perhaps the broadcast time is just a coincidence that makes people not know whether to laugh or cry."
"The quality of a documentary cannot be measured by the viewership ratings. It's fine to compare it with the documentaries of previous years, but there's no need to compare it with a variety show's viewership ratings. It won't be able to compare anyway!"
"The broadcast timing might just be a promotional strategy by Zhang Ye!"
"An astronomical 10 million RMB documentary: Is it really worth it?"
In the past few days, putting aside the other promotional activities related to music, concerts, movies, etc., Rise to the Dance was the one that appeared the most in the news and discussions regarding television programs. It was a rare variety show that had become popular even before its broadcast. It garnered even more attention than The Voice before its broadcast, and there was very little negative news about it. No new or old programs from any of the satellite channels in the country could compare to it. But now, with Zhang Ye's popularity and A Bite of China's extensive publicity, A Bite of China finally had a place in the news headlines. Although the exposure was still far from Rise to the Dance, compared to other documentaries of the same genre that were not doted on by anyone, A Bite of China's publicity was already very good.
...
Central TV Department 14.
In one of the workrooms, Zhang Ye was recording.
"China, with its diverse natural geography, allows people living in different regions to enjoy different kinds of rich staple foods. From the south to the north, there are thousands of varieties of refined staple foods. Not only does this provide a large amount of calories for the human body, it also influences the Chinese people's perception of the cycle of the four seasons, bringing them a rich, healthy, and interesting life.
"Shanxi's Chen Village, an ancient village …
"The housewives are best at making pasta. They call the powdered grains as noodles …"
In the soundproofed room, facing the edited footage, Zhang Ye was using his intuition to match each sentence. His eyes were meticulous and his tone was calm and mature. It was obvious that he had deliberately lowered his voice to match the sound of the footage with his thickest voice.
Those who knew Zhang Ye would know that his hosting style was not like this in the past. In comparison, Zhang Ye's style of speech and voice was more of a brisk, humorous, and freakishly fast pace. Even when he was recording an academic program like Lecture Room, he did not use such a calm and steady broadcasting style. The reason was very simple. Every program should have a different broadcasting style. This was the most basic course and technique that Zhang Ye had learned back in Media College.
Variety shows? It had to be humorous!
A talent show? It had to be clear!
An interview show? It had to hit the nail on the head!
Naturally, a documentary also had its own style. Different documentaries required different styles, which was why Zhang Ye had used his current voice and tone for the recording. He had maintained the original narration style of his previous world's A Bite of China. As a professional radio host, Zhang Ye also felt that this style was most suitable for the overall presentation of A Bite of China. If he continued to use his usual humorous style, it was not that he couldn't record it, but that would have stolen the show's spotlight. This was not the focus of the documentary!
He recorded three episodes in one go.
Finally, after some tweaking and editing, the three episodes were almost done. Looking at the time, it was about time to eat. Zhang Ye left the soundproofed room and returned to his office.
Everyone was busy with work and no one went to the cafeteria in advance.
Ha Qiqi immediately reported, "Director Zhang, the promotional work has been carried out according to plan. The advertisements have also been released."
"How's the effect?" Zhang Ye asked.
Ha Qiqi nodded. "It's not too bad. Our Weibo promotions have already broken the 10,000 mark. There have also been more than 2,000 forwards and it's still increasing."
Zhang Ye asked, "What about the video hosting website?"
Ha Qiqi said, "The advertisements have already been released."
"Very good." Zhang Ye said, "Just do it according to the intensity of the promotions."
"Understood. It's just that our production budget is not enough, so there might be a gap in the advertising budget," Ha Qiqi said hesitantly.
The 10 million RMB that Director Yan had allocated to them was almost depleted by the time they returned. After spending the first day of promotions, it was almost depleted. No matter how much money was spent on such promotions, it would not be enough.
Zhang Ye nodded. "I've already spoken to Director Yan. Our channel will allocate a portion of the promotional expenses for us. It should be enough for the promotions to last until December. We're making a documentary, so there's no need for us to advertise like a variety show. There's no need for that either. We'll just do it according to the intensity of the advertisements that I've set."
But at this moment, Yan Tianfei's secretary suddenly walked into their office with an ugly expression on her face.
"Director Zhang!" the secretary said.
Zhang Ye was taken aback and felt that something was wrong. "What's the matter?"
The secretary said with a dark expression, "Director Yan wants me to inform you that the advertising budget has gone down the drain!"
"Gone down the drain?" Zhang Ye did not understand.
The other people from A Bite of China's program team also looked over.
"What happened?"
"Why?"
"Didn't Director Yan ask us to spend all of the 10 million RMB before coming back? That's why we don't have anything left. If the promotions go down the drain, how are we going to do the promotions? How are we going to broadcast it? "
Who didn't know how important promotions were?
So when they heard this, everyone got anxious!
The secretary immediately said, "It's not that Director Yan doesn't want to give it to us. It's just that other than our basic operating budget, we don't even have a single cent left! Just a while ago, Director Yan was called over by the station heads. Later on, without Director Yan's consent, the money was transferred from our channel to Central TV Department 1. They said that we were lending the money to Central TV Department 1 because we did not have enough promotional budget for Rise to the Dance! "
Zhang Zuo banged the table and stood up. "If they don't have enough, why should they ask us for it?"
Little Wang exclaimed, "Fuck!"
Tong Fu was also fuming. "Isn't … isn't this bullying us?"
The secretary took a deep breath and said with a dark expression, "Two months ago, the station spoke to Director Yan about this matter, but he did not agree to it. He transferred 85% of our channel's budget to you guys, which was the 10 million RMB. Director Yan did not want to lend it to Central TV Department 1, but he thought that since the 10 million RMB had been used up, the station would not bother about it anymore. But who could have expected that it would still be transferred away just now? All we have now is a million RMB or so, and it's all gone. The station heads said that Central TV Department 1 would return the money to us in a few days, but we all know that's impossible! The money that the station borrowed from our channel two years ago has not been returned to Central TV Department 1 yet! "
Huang Dandan was trembling. "The station heads are being … too harsh on us!"
Wu Yi said angrily, "This is no longer just favoritism!"
Everyone's hearts turned cold!
...
Upstairs.
It was still the same office.
It was still the same deputy station head.
"Old Yan, what's with your attitude?"
"Does the station think that we're easy to bully!?"
"We're all sister channels, so what's wrong with borrowing some money? It's not like we won't return it to you. With me as your guarantor, what are you afraid of? When the copyrights of Rise to the Dance are sold and the follow-up funds are recovered, I will also get back the money that Central TV Department 1 borrowed from you two years ago. It's only slightly more than a million RMB, so you guys should look at the bigger picture! "
"Their show needs to be promoted, but we don't need to be promoted? A Bite of China has already been released and we need money to promote it! But now, you're not even leaving us 100,000 RMB?? "
"Don't tell me that, Old Yan. Don't think that I don't know what you're thinking when you gave 10 million RMB to Zhang Ye's program team. 10 million RMB for a documentary, are you crazy? If Zhang Ye is crazy, are you going to be crazy along with him? You still want to promote it? Can't you just advertise it on your own channels? Is there a need to advertise it? Is there a need to advertise it for a documentary? 10 million RMB is enough to produce a few dozen documentaries! Yet you're wasting it all on this? How are you going to recoup your costs? How are you going to make up for this 10 million RMB deficit? "
"The money belongs to our channel. Do you think I don't have the right to dispose of it?"
"But there's no need to be so wasteful! What money can a documentary earn? You spent 10 million RMB, yet you can't even get back 100,000 RMB! The money that you lose still belongs to the station, isn't it? You're also an old comrade, so why do you keep making such mistakes! Rise to the Dance is the most important show of the year for our station. It concerns the station's strategic intentions, so we can't afford to lose it. Now that they are running out of funds for their promotions, just help them out a little. The station will not pursue the matter of you wasting 10 million RMB on a documentary for the time being! "
"Whose idea is this?"
"It's my idea, and it's also the idea of the station!"
Yan Tianfei bristled with anger!
...
Central TV Department 1.
In the program team office of Rise to the Dance.
Jiang Yuan had arrived and was looking for Xu Yipeng and Chen Ye. "The money has been borrowed from you, but it's not a lot, just slightly over a million RMB. Just make do with it for now."
Xu Yipeng said, "That's enough. Thank you, Director Jiang."
Chen Ye sighed. "If not for the stage being destroyed back then, we wouldn't have needed so much money."
Jiang Yuan smiled and said, "It's fine. Accidents are always inevitable. As long as the final result is good, that's all that matters. We only care about the results, and so does the station. This million RMB was borrowed from Department 14. I heard that they had used up all of the funds they had left for A Bite of China's promotions. You should know how much support we and the station have for you. We will spare no effort, so don't let the station down."
Xu Yipeng chuckled and said, "Don't worry, nothing will go wrong!"
Chen Ye also said confidently, "Our viewership ratings are aiming to surpass that of The Voice."
"That's good then!" Jiang Yuan was also very satisfied and was looking forward to it.
...
All of a sudden, the station was in an uproar!
Everyone knew that Central TV Department 1 did not have much money for a long time. All this while, they had not produced any good shows either. Even if there were a few shows that had passable viewership ratings, they did not make much money. They were all living off what they had earned. The only exception this year was The Voice. But even though The Voice was doing so well in the past, it did not earn much from it. A 100 million RMB title sponsorship fee? All of that had been used by Zhang Ye to produce the show. The rest of the secondary advertising and video broadcasting rights were their net income. As for the overseas rights? The other copyrights? That was all in Zhang Ye's hands. The reason why they had gone to court in the last lawsuit was because of a copyright dispute. As such, Central TV Department 1 really did not have much money left. This was also the reason why they wanted to snatch The Voice's copyright even if they had to fall out with Zhang Ye!
Right now, the investment for Rise to the Dance was even greater than that of The Voice. Coupled with the fact that the stage had been destroyed, the shortfall was even greater!
However, no one could have expected that at such a time, the station would still help Central TV Department 1 to ask for money from Central TV Department 14. Admittedly, the documentary channel's viewership ratings were very poor and was one of the worst in the station. But similarly, the funding allocated to them was also the least. Furthermore, A Bite of China had just finished recording and was in need of money to promote it. Yet now, it was forcefully taken away by the station just like that? Given to Central TV Department 1?
Everyone in the station was a little disappointed.
"The station has been getting weirder and weirder in recent years!"
"Yeah, what the hell is this?"
"I don't like Zhang Ye's temper either, but isn't this too much of a bully?"
"Yeah, Zhang Ye might be a bit of a jerk, but no matter what, he's still a hero who has made great contributions to Central TV Department 1. The contract had already been negotiated, but Central TV Department 1 went back on their word and wanted to snatch away Zhang Ye's copyright. Now, they even banned him. They were not in the right to begin with, but it wasn't enough to ban him. It wasn't easy for him to make a documentary, yet they still want to take away the last bit of publicity funding from him? Are they really not giving him a way out? And they even dragged Central TV Department 14 into this? Who did Department 14 offend? They really didn't handle this matter well and went too far! It really makes one feel bad! "
"Central TV Department 1 must have gone to the station heads for help!"
"Hai, who asked Rise to the Dance to become so popular before it even started broadcasting!"
"Yeah, compared to an entertainment show that's obviously going to become very popular, what's a documentary from Department 14? It will definitely have to stand aside and give the green light to Rise to the Dance! "
"I heard that Director Yan and the deputy station head slammed the table!"
"Director Yan's temper is just like that. Everyone knows that. He's a veteran, so no matter what he does, the station won't do anything to him. Now, we just have to see what the other person will do. There's still another person in Department 14 who has an even worse temper than Director Yan. Will Zhang Ye be able to take this lying down? The show is about to start broadcasting in less than two weeks, so where are they going to find the money? How are they going to promote it without money? "
"Who knows?"
"Actually, it's useless even if they promote it. Do they really expect him to be able to do whatever he wants with just a documentary? Even if he's a legend in the entertainment world, he still won't be able to do that! "
...
Department 14.
The program team staff of A Bite of China were cursing and swearing!
When the other people from the first and second office blocks heard of the news, they also came over. Together with them, they scolded Central TV Department 1 and Rise to the Dance and all their ancestors. Some of the bolder ones even scolded the station heads in whispers. All of them were so angry that they were trembling!
Wasn't this stabbing Yan Tianfei and Zhang Ye in the back?!
This was already giving everyone from Department 14 a hard time!
Furthermore, this was not the first time Central TV Department 1 had done something like this. They had done it before, but it was not as extreme as this time!
"I'm going crazy with anger!"
"How can they do this!"
"If Central TV Department 1 is human, then aren't we human?"
"Director Zhang, what should we do?"
"Right, we're just waiting for you to say the word!"
"Director Zhang, tell us what we should do! I've had enough of this! "
Everyone was agitated!
However, Zhang Ye appeared rather calm and did not say a word. Instead, he even had a slight smile on his face. No one knew if they were seeing things.
Everyone was taken aback.
That wasn't right!
What was wrong with Director Zhang?
If it were Director Zhang's previous temper, he would have rolled up his sleeves and gone to pick a fight with Central TV Department 1! Why was he still smiling at this moment? And he was still so calm?
Ha Qiqi exclaimed, "Director Zhang?"
Zhang Zuo also said, "Y-You're not angry?"
Zhang Ye smiled and said to everyone, "When I first joined the industry, no one thought that I could be a broadcaster. My unit looked down on me, and the leaders tried to suppress me, but I still managed to win the Silver Microphone Award that year. Later on, when I joined the television station, it was still the same. No one thought that I could do it, so they kept finding trouble with me and trying to trip me up. But in the end, my show still managed to become popular all over the country. Later on, I was even banned, but not by Central TV Department 1, but by the SARFT. I was placed first on the SARFT's blacklist, so a lot of people came to kick me while I was down. Everyone thought that I was done for, but as you all can see, I'm still doing very well, even better than them."
When everyone heard this, they all fell silent.
Zhang Ye smiled and said, "The things that I've experienced can't even be written in ten books. The difficulties and desperate situations that I've encountered are probably more than the dozens of people here combined. I've been arrested more than once. I've been banned, hijacked, and even piloted a passenger plane …"
Listening to Zhang Ye recount his experiences, everyone was filled with admiration. Director Zhang's achievements could really be said to be legendary. No one could compare to him!
Yan Tianfei's secretary was also listening attentively.
When he finished, Zhang Ye chuckled. "Later on, I realized that there's actually no obstacle that I can't overcome. No matter what I encounter, as long as I'm brave enough, I can overcome it. It's still the same now!" With a pause, he looked at everyone. "If we don't have money, so be it. We'll invest however much money we have in advertising. If we don't, then we won't."
Little Wang said anxiously, "But …"
"No buts." Zhang Ye smiled. "So what if we don't do any promotions?"
Huang Dandan wiped away her sweat and said, "If we don't do any promotions, there won't be any exposure. Without exposure, there won't be any viewership ratings!"
But Zhang Ye shook his head. "I really don't believe that we won't do any promotions this time. This time, we'll show them. Even if we don't do any promotions, who can stop me?"
Ha Qiqi was stunned. "What do you mean?"
Zhang Zuo's expression also changed. "Director Zhang, what do you mean?"
Yan Tianfei's secretary was also extremely shocked!
When they heard the meaning behind Zhang Ye's tone, everyone's hearts were thumping wildly!
They were really going to go up against Central TV Department 1! And it was even under the circumstances of not doing any promotions?!
H-How could this be possible?
Even with mass promotions, they were still far inferior to Rise to the Dance, let alone without any promotions? What could they use to fight against them?
...
Ten minutes later.
Yan Tianfei returned to Department 14 and returned to his office. He immediately called for his secretary and said, "Tell Little Zhang and the others that there's no more money left!"
The secretary said, "I've already spoken to Director Zhang about this."
Yan Tianfei picked up a cup and gulped down large mouthfuls of water. His breathing was very unstable and it was obvious that he was still in a state of rage. "Go and tell Little Zhang that even if I have to fork out the money myself, I will still pay for their promotional fees!"
The secretary hurriedly said, "Director Zhang said … there's no need!"
Yan Tianfei was taken aback. "There's no need?"
"He doesn't intend to do any promotions!" The secretary immediately repeated the words that Zhang Ye had said in the office, almost word for word.
When Yan Tianfei heard that, he was taken aback again. "Little Zhang really said that?"
The secretary gave a wry smile. "Yes, they were all Director Zhang's exact words. But I can tell that Director Zhang has also flipped out!"
Yan Tianfei exhaled. He, who was still fuming earlier, suddenly laughed without any warning. He said, "Alright, I understand!"
You understand?
Uh, just what do you understand?
The secretary was confused but was too embarrassed to ask.
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