Huayu: I'm being coveted by young actresses.

Chapter 17: The Decline of Sugar Figurines

Gu Luojin sat on the male lead's chair, yawning. It was already 1:30 last night after watching the movie, and she wouldn't be able to go to sleep until 2:00 after tidying up.

Wang Lu woke me up early in the morning to do my makeup and prepare for the morning's scene.

Gulnazar walked over: "Junior, you haven't had breakfast yet, have you? I brought you eggs and soy milk."

Gu Luojin didn't stand on ceremony at all. After peeling the egg and eating the egg white, she left the yolk in the bag.

"Junior, why aren't you eating the egg yolk?"

"Nazha, are you working out?"

"I didn't notice."

He's the type who looks slim in clothes but has a muscular physique when undressed.

After all, he understands the principle that moderate exercise attracts the opposite sex, while excessive exercise attracts the same sex.

"Want to see it?"

Wang Lu couldn't take it anymore. Hadn't they been flirting enough last night?

It started again first thing in the morning, is it even possible for a person to live like this?

She worried that if the two of them got together, she would be full just from eating dog food, and she wouldn't need to eat regular meals.

"I just don't want you to let me see it only because I asked to; that's so pointless."

Gu Luojin leaned close to her ear and whispered, "Then what should we do? Do you expect me to 'accidentally' undress for you?"

"Or... if you beg me, I might consider giving you 'VIP exclusive viewing rights'?"

Gulnazar turned away: "Who wants to see that? It's just abs, isn't it?"

"I don't know how well he's practicing yet. Maybe he'll only get one or two pieces."

"Okay, I was going to show it to you, but now you've missed the best opportunity."

"The director contacted me."

Gu Luojin stood up and walked toward the director.

Gulnazar was restless and uneasy because she couldn't see his abs.

"Junior, you can't escape. I've got you all wrapped around my little finger."

……

"Director Wu, is there something you need?"

"Just a heads up, today's tasks are quite heavy, so thank you for your hard work."

"I will unconditionally obey the arrangements of the production crew."

"Good lad, I knew I didn't misjudge you. I'll recommend you for a new drama when it comes out."

"Thank you, Director Wu."

As an actor, it's essential to maintain good relationships with directors in the industry to have opportunities to continue collaborating, especially with a renowned director like Director Wu.

Director Wu began his directing career in 09 with the comedy film "The Diary of a Jerk".

In 2011, he wrote and directed the short film "Movie! Movie!".

In 2012, he directed the crime short film "Car Washing," which garnered millions of views and won the Beijing Excellent Online Audiovisual Program Award for Outstanding Short Film.

In 2015, he served as the director of the suspense web series "Psychological Crime".

In 2018, he served as the director of "The Big Shot" and was nominated for Best New Director at the 27th Huading Awards.

In 2021, he served as the director of "Sweeping Away Organized Crime," a TV series adapted from real cases by the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission.

The average viewership rating for the three channels broadcasting simultaneously was 1.8%, with a combined viewership rating of 3.126%. It ranked first in viewership during prime time on CCTV-8 and sixth overall for the year.

The Cloud Harmony Index is an indicator used to evaluate the effective viewership of a TV series after removing abnormal clicks and excluding interfering factors such as behind-the-scenes footage, trailers, and special episodes.

It aims to more accurately reflect the actual popularity and audience attention of TV dramas.

In 2021, the online drama "Sweeping Away the Black Storm" ranked second with an average of 9076 views, surpassing well-known hit dramas such as "You Are My Glory", "One Life, One Love", "Zhou Sheng Ru Gu", and "Like a Flowing River 2".

Director Wu is also the producer of "Day and Night" and the co-producer of "The Grass and the World".

His achievements in the directing world are widely recognized.

The main reason was that he was interested in "The Storm of Anti-Corruption," and the introduction of him to other film crews was just a side effect.

……

After Director Wu left, Gu Luojin returned to his seat, and the smile on his face made Nazha realize that he had received a favor from the director.

"What have you been talking about? You've been talking for so long."

"Want to know?"

Naza could tell from Gu Luojin's upturned lips that he wasn't up to anything good.

But her inner curiosity made her unable to suppress it: "I want to."

"Then you have to grant me one request."

"You state your requirements first."

"Do you know? The sky misses rainbows and shooting stars, spring grass misses rain, hummingbirds miss trees and prosperity, the sea misses whales, origami cranes miss the wind, and letters miss pens."

"But I'd much rather see you wearing it elegantly..."

Despite her reluctance, Nazha agreed to his request: "It's just wearing black stockings, why are you making it sound so poetic? I'll wear them for you tonight."

This is the power of a senior student who instantly understands, and it's also why men like mature women. She can tell what position to change to and what clothes to change to just by patting their butts.

The girl was still babbling incoherently, and they gave her 200 yuan.

"Now you can tell me what benefits you got from Director Wu."

"There's no benefit to it. Director Wu reminded me that today's filming schedule is quite heavy, and it might be a bit tough."

"this one?"

Not getting the answer she wanted, Naza pouted, feeling very dissatisfied, and thought she had lost out big time.

"That's it? What benefits are you hoping for, Nazha? A new role from Director Wu?"

It's not Gulnazar's fault. In 18, she only joined one film crew, "The Big Shot," and was a supporting actress. Sugar Man's resources couldn't keep up with her career development, and her acting skills were also holding her back.

"Nazha, you're already so famous, do you still need to worry about resources?"

"Only new actors like us need to worry about where our next meal will come from. You're the number one actress now."

When it comes to her position as the top female star, Gulnazar is speechless. She didn't earn the title of "Sugar Man Queen" through her own abilities, but rather it was handed over to her by other female stars who left after Liu Shishi got married or Jin Chen terminated her contract.

Back then, the competition for the top female star at Huayi was fierce, with four leading actresses vying for the position until only Li Bingbing remained. The battle was incredibly intense.

……

By the time Naza became the top star of Sugar Man, Sugar Man had already declined.

She signed a 10-year contract with Sugarman and witnessed the rise and fall of Sugarman Films.

The last period drama that Tangren Films could be considered a "blockbuster" was probably "Scarlet Heart" in 2011. With this drama, Liu Shishi successfully rose to become the "top actress of Tangren" and established herself among the "85 Flowers".

The TV drama market is constantly changing, but Sugarman has been stuck in ancient costume dramas and fantasy dramas.

However, between 2014 and 2018, fantasy dramas such as "Swords of Legends", "The Journey of Flower", and "Eternal Love" continued to break viewership records and made artists such as Li Yifeng, Zhao Liying, and Dilraba famous.

This seems to illustrate a harsh truth: it's not that "fantasy dramas are no longer popular," but rather that "dramas featuring sugar-coated characters are no longer popular."

The fundamental reason for losing the ability to create blockbuster products is that Sugarman failed to grasp the trends of the times.

On the other hand, Sugarman's artist management business is facing a talent shortage.

Sugarman believes in promoting the actors they favor, so they constantly use their own artists in their self-produced dramas and allocate top resources to first-tier artists.

While this move can effectively reduce actor salaries and cut production costs, it can also lead to uneven distribution of resources within the company.

More importantly, this "casting methodology" has clearly failed.

The neighboring Noon Sunshine Entertainment already has several long-term professional casting studios, including CD HOME, which select actors with the highest suitability for the roles by building an actor database.

It was precisely because of this "inclination" that, as early as 2013, Lin Gou was willing to pay 195 million yuan in compensation to terminate his contract with Sugarman, as were actors such as Jin Chen.

After a series of artists left, Sugarman tried to retain them by transferring shares, but to no avail.

For example, Nazha was supposed to leave, and in the end, she did leave Sugarman.

After losing a series of high-profile celebrities, Sugarman became one of the earliest media companies to decline in China.