132: The 132nd day of being popular
After the job posting, Yao Bianliang gradually received some resumes and submissions.
Among them, the highest number came from screenwriters who sought her out.
Probably because her job posting was too targeted, most of the inexperienced aspiring screenwriters who saw it submitted their scripts with a "let's give it a try" attitude.
"Tsk, what are these screenwriters doing? Eight out of ten scripts are about love."
Yao Bianliang sighed as she looked at the titles of these scripts.
Didn't she make it clear enough in the job posting? She wanted innovation, something niche!
You hide under the guise of a niche drama, but the protagonist is falling in love, following the same clichés as other sweet dramas. Can this be considered niche?
In any case, these kinds of dramas were absolutely unacceptable.
After eliminating various popular themes, Yao Bianliang was left with only 20%.
"Hmm... a war-themed drama? This seems good." Among the remaining few scripts, Yao Bianliang finally found one that she could consider.
Soldiers in suits, hair gel, extravagant lifestyles. If such a drama were really produced, the audience would surely criticize it to death.
However, soon after, Yao Bianliang remembered the rules of the host and dismissed the idea.
No, producing such a morally distorted and lousy drama would definitely not be allowed by the system.
Helpless, Yao Bianliang eliminated all the messy and lousy scripts and set them aside.
On the table, only the last three scripts remained.
One was a youth campus drama that praised the teacher-student relationship, another was a drama related to the medical industry, and the third was a palace drama set in the immortal world.
Yao Bianliang immediately ruled out the youth campus drama.
It mainly focused on the teacher-student relationship, with warmth and nostalgia. If not handled well, it could easily become another "To Our Youth".
As for the palace drama set in the immortal world, it told a story of power struggles among immortals, intermingled with deep torturous love and a funeral pyre for chasing a wife. It had innovative plotlines and decent quality.
Clearly, this was not her first choice either.
After careful consideration, Yao Bianliang turned her attention to the last script.
"A drama related to the medical industry... Hmm, this script seems good?" Yao Bianliang pondered.
Despite the abundance of doctor-themed dramas nowadays, the truth is that most of them revolve around romance.
Whether the male lead is a doctor or the female lead is a doctor, the development inevitably leads to a love story.
However, this script was quite the opposite.
The screenwriter took a broad approach, using the perspective of a female nurse as the entry point to portray the group of medical professionals. The descriptions of various medical cases were detailed and realistic, with many instances requiring the use of professional terminology.
Doctors, nurses, patients, family members, hospital management... Each character had limited appearances but was well-rounded.
Each medical case was like a standalone storyline, presented to the audience in approximately five minutes.
In the second-to-last storyline, the female lead, who was a nurse, watched helplessly as her friend died on the operating table. She was filled with pain and regret, which became the most crucial turning point in her life.
In the end, the hospital organized a medical aid mission. For the sake of her ideals, the female lead bid farewell to her parents and loved ones, and selflessly applied to go to a challenging environment to continue saving lives.
The theme of this drama was to pay tribute to medical professionals, but it also touched upon some real-life issues such as doctor-patient relationships and healthcare resources.
Yao Bianliang couldn't help but admit that the quality of this script was quite good.
However, the main problem lay in the fact that the overall tone of the drama was too oppressive!
Each medical case was filled with struggles, pain, and exploration of human nature, creating a suffocating atmosphere with a faint glimmer of hope.
It wasn't until the female lead embarked on the journey of medical aid that the audience finally glimpsed a ray of hope.
But that was all there was to it.
There was no perfect happy ending, and the female lead didn't achieve worldly success. Although the ending hinted at hope and redemption, it was only concentrated in the last storyline.
"This drama is really good," Yao Bianliang couldn't help but feel pleasantly surprised.
Despite the audience's constant complaints about "mindless sweet dramas" and "mentally challenged screenwriters," most of them might not be willing to watch a purely realistic film or television work when it is actually made.
Just imagine, after a long day of work or studying, when people finally get home and want to relax by watching some short dramas.
But then, as they scroll down, they come across a heavy-toned drama—
Slow-paced, taking forever to get to the point, accompanied by heavy and emotional background music.
Wouldn't that just ruin their mood?
Most people would probably choose to skip it altogether.
In reality, what most viewers truly enjoy is a combination of realism and dramatic conflicts in film and television works.
In such works, you can explore reality, reveal human nature, but the drama as a whole must have highlights, turning points, and climaxes that can give the audience a sense of satisfaction and pleasure.
That's when it can be considered a work that combines commercial and artistic values.
Those films and television works that receive critical acclaim but fail to attract audiences only achieve the former, without the latter.
Yao Bianliang still remembered that in her previous life, there was a director who made a film with a theme of disaster and famine.
In that film, all the actors showcased exceptional acting skills. In order to portray the sense of famine, they even lived on meagre rations for half a month, aiming to capture the state of extreme hunger.
The film had a storyline, depth, and profound meaning.
But so what?
This drama ultimately flopped miserably, becoming the bottom of the box office.
And now, what Yao Bianliang desires is precisely this kind of work!
It has its unique depth and value, enough to meet the requirements set by the system; at the same time, it has extremely low commercial value and nobody would watch it.
That's the perfect option!
Yao Bianliang checked the calendar again and a smile appeared on her face.
Great, if this drama can be successfully filmed, it should be released during the Spring Festival.
She vaguely remembered that in her previous life, the director who filmed realistic themes released their movie during the Spring Festival season.
As a result, due to the storyline being too oppressive, it incurred heavy losses.
After all, during the joyous occasion of the whole family celebrating and welcoming the Lunar New Year, how many people would actually want to watch such a depressing film?
Although what she's filming this time isn't a movie, the logic behind it should be the same.
If no one wants to watch it, it means there won't be any viewership.
And the system's requirement this time is precisely that the viewership must be sufficiently low.
Yao Bianliang flipped to the last page of the script, looking at the name signed there—
An Xincheng?
"Okay, it's you!" Yao Bianliang's lips curled up slightly.
With this kind of script, even if it receives good reviews, it will undoubtedly flop completely!
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