Chapter 302: Cross-Age Filming
Upon hearing Nanaly’s name, Lin Tian’s expression was even more shocked.
Her? She can join too?
If we just look at the record…
Nanaly was nothing but a newcomer from abroad, boasting hardly any domestic honors in the cello department, except for making it to the quarterfinals in the Parrot Zither Cup.
Of course, there’s a gap even among the top eight.
Let’s not even mention the bottom tier.
Some face elite competitors and put up a valiant fight, even if they ultimately lose—honor intact.
Others could have had a chance to win, only to pop some champagne mid-way and get smashed, and then say, “Hey, I’m not in the top eight, I’m in the scientifically compared ‘seven, six,’” and finish off with, “Hey, being in the top eight of sixteen is still better than staying home!”
From Lin Tian’s point of view, Nanaly was clearly in the former group.
But hey, Nanaly had her own words to say!
In the same provincial competition, what kind of opponents are you facing, and what kind am I facing?
Out of those top eight, which ones—Bai Xi, Gan Yan Yu, or Yun Qiu Qiu—are even human?
“.”
After a round of thought, Lin Tian still recognized Nanaly’s strength.
In any other province, she’d definitely be a favorite to win.
But making it to the national competition? That was beyond his imagination.
“Because she’s Nanaly, I guess?”
He Zhi Chen said,
“The Nanaly family has a certain influence in the cello world—enough for the national music association to give them some face.”
“Oh.”
With that statement, it didn’t seem so strange anymore.
“Of course, the most important factor remains Nanaly’s performance in the Parrot Zither Cup; if she wasn’t good enough, she wouldn’t have been chosen. Plus, reaching the semifinals of the Parrot Zither Cup isn’t something just any cellist can achieve.”
He Zhi Chen added.
“Mm.”
Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu nodded.
Regardless of how it shook out,
Since He Zhi Chen brought it up at this moment,
It meant Nanaly was indeed not a rival to be underestimated.
Over this period, Nanaly had been challenging various competitions—her determination was impressive.
“What competitions has she participated in?”
Gan Yan Yu asked curiously.
This girl, showing interest in other competitors—it seems the Dragon Zither Cup really is important.
“Let me check.”
He Zhi Chen scrolled through his tablet,
“From what it shows, she’s currently in and preparing for:”
“The Bristol International Cello Competition, the Liverpool ‘Philharmonic’ Cello Competition, the Edinburgh International Cello Competition.”
“And that’s not even counting those she has signed up for, but whose contestant details haven’t been released yet!”
“All these are mostly performance competitions, and the timings are perfectly staggered; she often finishes one and rushes right to the next.”
“What a trooper. She’s practically on a national tour at this rate.” Lin Tian remarked.
I mean, can the British Cello Association really allow participation in so many competitions at once?
“Is it really necessary? She’s already confirmed to be in the Dragon Zither Cup. Why the need to fluff her resume so much?”
All these competitions might sound “international”—which is intimidating—but they don’t hold much value overall, mostly featuring local young artists from British academies.
Plus, they’re just performance events, not exactly tickets to the Ke’er Cup; their effect is quite limited overall.
“To keep her skills sharp, you know?”
He Zhi Chen said,
“Performing on stage is vastly different from practicing; high-intensity stage performances help keep the fire burning before the Dragon Zither Cup arrives.”
“But isn’t the Dragon Zither Cup still a ways off?”
Lin Tian was stunned, “Isn’t that a bit crazy?”
He couldn’t help turning to Gan Yan Yu,
“What did you two experience in the UK for her to hate you so much?”
“I dunno! I haven’t done anything!”
Little Gan denied it, wearing an innocent expression.
But hearing the previous comments, she felt a lot of pressure.
Though each time Nanaly showed up, Gan Yan Yu kicked her aside like a cat on the street, the pressure she exerted was even less than half of Bai Xi’s.
But Lin Tian knew, deep down, Gan Yan Yu cared about this “old rival.”
Now, there were two competitors who’d given Gan Yan Yu quite a bit of trouble in the Parrot Zither Cup.
One was Bai Xi, adept at modern music.
In the national competition, where the judge panel generally favors modern music, she’s hit the jackpot.
The other was Nanaly, who, despite the Dragon Zither Cup being some time away, kept battling and battling, just to one-up Gan Yan Yu once again.
No matter how you slice it,
The Dragon Zither Cup was bound to be a hellish battlefield.
Moreover,
This was without considering the champions from other provinces.
Each one of them wielding real skills honed through fierce competition.
Bearing the glory of their respective provinces.
Absolutely not to be underestimated!
“.”
They were all improving.
In contrast, Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu,
Aside from Lin Tian, who had participated in an international piano performance as accompaniment and grown a bit,
The two hadn’t shared the stage together yet.
“This is what I wanted to say, Mr. Lin Tian, Ms. Gan Yan Yu.”
He Zhi Chen adjusted his glasses.
“During this time, you both must keep your skills sharp.”
“While creating new works is certainly important, cooping up at home is nowhere near as effective as playing an actual performance.”
Lin Tian personally resonated with this.
When he and Gan Yan Yu recorded new pieces, they’d practiced endlessly.
However, significant breakthroughs in piano skills often happened in those precious competition moments.
Only by standing on stage could he unleash his potential under pressure.
“Do we need to compete too?” Gan Yan Yu, ever so obedient, was the first to inquire.
“Not really.”
He Zhi Chen replied, “Just hold your concert well—that’s all!”
If the event goes smoothly,
Then the least they could expect is over ten thousand attendees.
That’s not something just any concert hall can compare to.
Ten thousand? In Qingzhou, they’d think you were attacking the Sunny Day Concert Hall!
With so many eyes and media watching, plus this being your first concert,
You can imagine the pressure!
Using this stage to maintain skills for the upcoming Dragon Zither Cup, indeed a marvelous choice.
Suddenly, Lin Tian remembered something and asked,
“What’s the current attendance rate looking like?”
Previously, He Zhi Chen had mentioned needing De Pu’s endorsement to boost their heat for the event at the International Cultural Center.
Now that yesterday’s announcement has dropped, attendance should be no problem, right?
“It’s cleared a significant hurdle.”
He Zhi Chen tinkered away on his tablet,
“From the data as of last night, this announcement should convert about 20% more fans; album sales are still on a steady rise.”
“If the concert starts like this, the expected attendance rate shouldn’t fall below 66%.”
“Still only two-thirds?” Lin Tian felt a bit dissatisfied.
It seems like there’d still be a massive chunk of empty seats!
“That’s quite impressive; 66% attendance at the Qingjiang Cultural Center is no small feat.”
He Zhi Chen teased, setting expectations lower before continuing,
“Once your promotional video is filmed and your visibility expands, I estimate the attendance could double!”
Monday.
At Starlight, the same place.
Outside the company’s entrance.
“Let’s welcome Teacher Moonlight and Teacher Cat!”
With the director’s cheerful shout, all the crew members burst into applause.
In everyone’s gaze,
The young man and woman stepped out of the car.
One was dressed casually, with striking features that conveyed a very pure handsomeness.
The other, in a floral dress, exuded a goddess-like coldness and distance the moment she appeared.
“Wow, she really is as beautiful as in the photos!”
“No wonder Old Wu was blabbering about how excited he was after the last promotional sh**t for three days straight. Deservedly so!”
“Let’s hope their shooting for the commercial goes as smoothly as the photo sh**t!”
“.”
The crew members whispered among themselves, amazed to see Moonlight and Cat in the flesh for the first time.
The photo team responsible for portraits and the commercial team weren’t the same; though they had similar functions, including photography and lighting, they were entirely different groups of people.
After all, the company was just a few floors, a couple of offices, and lunch had to be divided up!
If the ace photographer Wang Jun was the one ensuring the endorsement activity’s minimum standards,
Then the legendary crew led by director Ma Lei was the ceiling of Starlight.
Endorsement posters often boiled down to a few photographs.
Certainly, good photos could enhance user experience and deepen the spokesperson’s image, just like before, causing Moonlight and Cat to gain some influence.
However, commercial videos were another ballgame.
The impact of a successful commercial could even outweigh the product’s quality itself.
Whether a product achieves qualitative leaps hinges entirely on how well the commercial is executed.
“Hello, Teacher Moonlight, I’m Ma Lei.”
Director Ma Lei greeted friendly.
Just by his smile, one could tell he was a pretty easy-going guy.
“Wang Jun mentioned you both performed excellently and are trustworthy partners.”
“Director Ma is overestimating us; this is our first time participating in such a sh**t. We just hope we don’t drag the crew down.” Lin Tian humbly responded.
“Well, I hope we can complete today’s sh**t smoothly!”
After following the crew cars, they arrived at a photography studio at another company.
By now, the site had already hosted a batch of early-arriving staff, seriously adjusting the lighting.
This studio spanned over 500 square meters,
With a variety of setups, electric trains, rooms, restaurants—every section themed for a different application.
It was Lin Tian’s first time in such a place, and he was quite fascinated.
The sections were connected by dark corridors.
Usually, only one angle of a scene was used; as soon as you changed the viewpoint, you’d likely see a wall-less expanse filled with lights and photography gear.
Lin Tian first became aware of the concept of photography studios while watching a work by Tounoki Kana.
In one of her most classic pieces, a girl in a school uniform sat in a classroom, where the teacher was lecturing while she mischievously finger-danced her desk mate, Chu Nan.
The close-up shots felt pretty decent, but when the camera pulled back to show the whole classroom, Lin Tian instantly lost the immersion.
Because the “classroom” looked way too fake!
Whose classroom had so few people, single desks, and classmates sitting so scattered? It was obviously staged!
Only later did he learn that the classrooms in Neon were likely just like that!
It turns out students in our Tianchao might just be less worldly than those in such a place, thus finding a classroom with that few desks to be so odd!
This turned out to be the reason for his drop in immersion.
However, sometimes, this wasn’t a bad thing—different backgrounds could spark more imagination.
This was similar to watching Neon works.
Most folks watching stories with a Tokyo background would tend to imagine layers of “exotic charm” over it.
Watching Neon high school students, enjoying their rich extracurricular activities, going shopping together, eating desserts, or singing karaoke after school,
Now that’s what youth should be!
In contrast, life as a high school student within the domestic context just doesn’t look that good.
Is the material as thin as less homework?
Are they afraid it would bring back painful memories?
Even when authors wracked their brains to create a romantically youthful shot—like passing notes during evening self-study—they barely even scratched the surface of that youthful vibe.
Wouldn’t that time be enough for Cheng Ge to sh**t a couple of rounds in campus life?
Lin Tian had a lot to say about this since he had the loudest voice here.
After all, he was a man who’d spent two lifetimes in school.
“.”
Fortunately, this time’s filming location wasn’t a classroom, so Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu lost their chance to portray high school students.
However, they made an even more ridiculous choice—a(n) office.
You know, the kind filled with computers, where overhead fans swung, and the air was thick with corporate despair?
“Did you both get the script I sent yesterday? Have you read it, teachers?” Ma Lei inquired.
“Yeah, I read it.”
At this point, Lin Tian wanted to grumble.
In fact, the ad was super simple.
It was about an office worker “Little Gan” who, while working at her computer, became drowsy, when the boss “President Lin” walked by and offered her a bottle of [De Pu “Pure Enjoyment” Fermented Milk].
As soon as Little Gan drank this bottle—which even her boss was drinking—her energy and probiotics surged through her, instantly rejuvenating her and transforming her gown.
The keyboard in her hands magically morphed into a cello, and her mouse became a bow, invigorating her entirely.
What a load—if work’s tiring, just go rest properly!
What’s with handing someone milk to squeeze more work out of them?!
Lin Tian really wanted to complain about this film, but given he wasn’t a professional, maybe people just liked this kind of thing?
But what he could not accept was…
“You’re sure me and her are playing office workers?”
Lin Tian stared wide-eyed, seriously questioning.
“.”
Upon hearing this, Ma Lei’s warm expression turned awkward in an instant; he quickly wiped the sweat from his brow,
“Ahem.”
“Teacher Moonlight, this… was actually unexpected.”
When Ma Lei initially received the commission from De Pu, the advertising director personally communicated with him to finalize this version.
But at that point, Ma Lei had no idea that the new endorsers, Moonlight and Cat, were actually high school students.
He’d only been informed they were two young classical musicians and confidently moved forward.
After all, upon hearing the title “classical musician,” anyone would assume it referred to a cadre of older individuals.
Attach the tag “young,” and naturally, it conjured thoughts of a dynamic and spirited youth duo.
Thus came this script.
Once he learned the truth later, Ma Lei instantly realized how absurd this was and promptly approached De Pu’s advertising director, stating the script needed massive revisions.
However, the director insisted they’d already settled on the big picture—the concepts of “workplace” and “job” were officially submitted to be appearing in the ad, and they couldn’t change that; only detail modifications were permissible.
Ma Lei was left with no option since he and Starlight were merely there to take the cash, while De Pu was the one calling the shots.
As long as De Pu had no objections, this director had zero say in the matter.
After all, it wasn’t like he was the one selling the milk!
If they were okay with it, then it was all good!
“.”
But now that he actually stood before Moonlight and Cat,
This director, with years of shooting experience, felt a wave of embarrassment wash over him.
This… was way too young!
Having them act in a workplace scenario ad was way too much pressure to ask!
If they were college students and had a bit of styling done, it’d still be acceptable.
But high school students? That might be making the audience feel like they were treating them like fools!
“Let’s just try it out first.”
Ma Lei said.
At this point, what else could be done?
They could only give it a shot.
“Alright then.”
Lin Tian resigned to it.
Since Starlight was getting paid to do this, why shouldn’t he?
Try it out, and who knows? It might just turn out great!
Soon, the two were taken to the makeup room.
When Lin Tian saw Gan Yan Yu grab a business outfit, a tight skirt, and some black stockings,
He suddenly felt,
Maybe this commercial isn’t so bad after all?
(End of Chapter)
