Raising actors requires considerable investment, which is completely different from being a singer.
From time to time in the industry, it happens that a small agency gets lucky and makes a lot of money because the singer it signed becomes famous overnight. However, no agency has ever made a fortune quickly by signing a new actor.
To train actors, you need to invest continuously in the early stage.
After a new actor signs a contract, they should not think about making money for at least the first three years. They will continue to strive for opportunities to appear in small roles. In order to increase their popularity, they will even pay advertisers to use them...
This is why pillow business is so common among actors.
The number of TV series produced by mainstream TV stations throughout the year is just there. Competition for actors is fierce, and agencies have to constantly negotiate with TV stations to establish good relationships. Some with deep pockets even invest in TV series themselves.
Not to mention anything else, Watanabe Mayumi supported Inamura Izumi, and her investment in "Kitchen" alone was tens of millions of yen. Now the film has been well received, making a small fortune, and Inamura Izumi has won one or two domestic film festivals.
Nominated newcomers, successfully gold-plated resumes, and constant invitations to auditions - this is a good result that everyone is happy with. But if it is the other way around, it will be wasted.
Precisely because there is a lot of early investment and a long time to train actors, the length of the annual contract is correspondingly long, and it is normal operation from ten to eight years. If a singer fails to improve after three records, he may be given up, but if an actor does not perform for three years, he will be given up.
Flowering is normal.
To run an actor department, you either need to have enough capital, or you need to be small and precise, and be prepared to work together for ten years.
However, once the company has an actor who can stand up to the TV station, the subsequent returns will be very considerable. Making money is the basic thing. In addition, you can also use top actors to exchange resources with the TV station. For example, help with trumpets.
, inserting newcomers into the play. Or in a play where one's own actor plays the leading role, the theme song is sung by one's own singer...
In the early stage, the singer supported the actor, and in the later stage, the actor returned the favor to the singer, helping each other to win.
At this stage, Watanabe Manyumi's U-MIZ has not yet produced a well-established actor, and although Watanabe Productions is behind her, she has been separated and has limited support from her family, and there is no support from a consortium with a lot of money, so she can't do it.
To spend money to invest in TV series.
Therefore, we can only take the two current paths.
"It doesn't sound like Kenyin." Watanabe Manyumi said sarcastically to an old acquaintance.
Yanyin transformed into an actor department, and the Sasakawa Foundation behind it strongly supported it. Mr. Nozaki was much more relaxed than she was - of course, this was purely to make fun of other companies to liven up the atmosphere.
"It sounds strangely envious." Iwahashi Shinichi cooperated with her.
Watanabe Wan Yumi smiled and said, "I'm so envious."
"Then I feel much more peaceful." Shinichi Iwahashi deliberately joked at her, "After all, I have the second lady of Watanabe Productions behind me."
"Don't come here." Watanabe Wan Yumi scolded with a smile.
Joking aside, he turned around and said, "Over at Yanyin, the signer seems to want to start with the models in fashion magazines."
Apart from anything else, the model's appearance, figure and temperament are clear at a glance.
"Where's Wan Yumi-san?" Iwahashi Shinichi asked.
She thought for a while, "On the road, training schools, magazines, auditions, that's basically it. Inamura, who is currently being praised, has achieved good results, while Takashima-san is taking the route of honing his acting skills in a down-to-earth manner."
The reason for the different treatment is that Izumi Inamura is young and is suitable to be sent to act in idol dramas. In a few years, when he grows up, he can take on urban dramas. This is the right age.
But Takashima Reiko was already twenty-three years old when she was signed, and her appearance was mature and dignified. Unless she met a suitable role, the probability of becoming the protagonist was not very high, and she could only follow the path of the backbone of the agency.
to cultivate.
"Inamura is very popular now, but Mizuno is not very happy."
Watanabe Manyumi mentioned it, and Iwahashi Shinichi remembered that she was talking about Mizuno Asami who came out of the same audition as Inamura Izumi.
"At that time, Mizuno was still the champion," he said.
Watanabe Manyumi nodded, "The entertainment industry is a place where the best are not as good as the right ones." She changed her subject, "The actresses are mainly Izumi Inamura right now. I plan to recruit a few more newcomers, but there is no need to be greedy."
"This time we plan to recruit male actors." She mentioned, "It is not easy for an agency that only deals with actresses to develop."
Male actors have a longer flowering period and are "late bloomers". Once they become popular, their blood is thicker than that of actresses and they can withstand the impact of various things.
Firms that only have actresses are more likely to go out of business and lose their presence in the industry. Not to mention anything else, just the three problems of "scandal", "marriage" and "childbirth" are enough to drag down a popular actress.
"By the way, I have something to tell you." Shinichi Iwahashi maintained a sense of propriety and did not discuss the route planning of her office with Watanabe Wanyumi in depth.
Watanabe Manyumi looked at him and waited quietly for the next step.
"Kikuchi Momoko-san." He suddenly announced his name, "She called me in private."
"Then what?"
"Kikuchi-san's contract with her current agency expired, and she asked me for help." Iwahashi Shinichi explained to her.
Watanabe Wan Yumi was greatly surprised, "When did you and Kikuchi-san get on the line?"
"Get on the line." Iwahashi Shinichi couldn't help but laugh at her statement. However, Watanabe Wanyumi didn't accept his trick and looked at him, waiting for him to explain the matter clearly.
"Isn't Kikuchi-san a fan of ZARD?" he reminded.
Watanabe Wan Yumi nodded, "I know that."
"Previously, at ZARD's final concert at Nakano SUNPLAZA, Kikuchi-santo also arrived and visited the backstage team." Shinji Iwahashi told her the old story.
At that time, others were also backstage, and they met and chatted with Momoko Kikuchi.
When ZARD performed in Kansai, Momoko Kikuchi sent a flower basket to the band and had dinner with the band. Afterwards, Momoko Kikuchi called Shinichi Iwahashi and took the initiative to talk about having dinner with the band.
Afterwards, it was said that she exchanged contact information with Kamaike Sachiko and even met and had dinner together in private.
The tickets for the final show of the tour were mailed to her long before the Kansai Arena. She was bound to be there that day, and because she had just interacted with Kamai Sachiko, she went backstage - and then bumped into Shinichi Iwahashi.
A face.
The day after the performance, Momoko Kikuchi called Shinichi Iwahashi again. This time, she asked him for help.
The contract expired, but he asked Shinichi Iwahashi for help. Without him having to elaborate, Watanabe Wan Yumi could guess what this "help" was for. However, there was a big difference between being a fan of the band and then asking him for help.
It's too much.
"Kikuchi-san wants to terminate the contract with the office." Watanabe Manyumi said.
Iwahashi Shin nodded, "Generally speaking, that's what happened. From what she said, she felt distrustful of the office staff in terms of route planning."
She thought for a while and asked, "What then?"
"I asked Kikuchi-san if she still wanted to continue singing." Shinichi Iwahashi said, "If you still want to be a singer and an actor together, then it's best to stay in your current agency."
"But on the other hand, if she is determined to terminate the contract, it is best to also be prepared to completely end her career as an idol singer and transform into an actor." Shinichi Iwahashi said what he said at that time, and then told Watanabe Mayumi.
Watanabe Manyumi thought about it for a moment, guessing Iwahashi Shinichi's thoughts and plans, as well as his attitude towards Kikuchi Momoko. He didn't intend to extend a hand, but he did point out the way to Kikuchi Momoko.
It’s obvious that Momoko Kikuchi’s idea of singing and shadowing is not going to work. If she still insists on having both sides, there will be no need to change jobs for one reason, and she will offend the firm for another reason.
If you really want to change firms, you must not only give an explanation to the old firm, but also think about your next steps.
"What did Kikuchi-san say?" Watanabe Wan Yumi was curious.
Iwahashi Shinichi smiled and said, "I didn't say anything at the time, I just said 'Thank you, I will think about it carefully'."
As for the consequences of consideration...
"Then, a few days ago, before the THEBLUEHEARTS program was broadcast." Shinichi Iwahashi continued, "Kikuchi-san called again and told me that he had already considered it."
"She decided to give up singing and focus on her career as an actress." Shinichi Iwahashi said and smiled again.
This time, even Watanabe Manyumi smiled.
"I want to focus on my career as an actor, so I thought of you."
"Kikuchi-san was very grateful to me for recommending her to star in Fujifilm's commercial. I guess she felt that I saw the qualities in her."
Shinichi Iwahashi boasted unknowingly.
Watanabe Manyumi looked like she was watching his show.
He didn't care at all and continued, "That's why you want me to be the introducer and recommend her to a suitable firm. After all, I don't run a firm."
After Iwahashi Shinichi finished speaking, he also looked back at Watanabe Manyumi.
"Don't you want my small office to accept Kikuchi-san?" she asked.
Iwahashi Shinichi neither admitted nor denied, "Kikuchi-san told me that there was an agent who had been taking care of her. He wanted to use her fame to set up a firm and kept inviting her to be independent."
"Of course, it is not easy for an individual to set up an agency," said Shinichi Iwahashi. "The protector that the agent found was Shinei Productions."
Watanabe Wan Yumi said "Ah", "I see."
Iwahashi Shinichi turned back, "The son of the president of Shinei Production is a fan of Kikuchi-san. Because of this, Kikuchi-san's trust in the manager has also been shaken."
He guessed in his heart that the reason why Kikuchi Momoko called Nadong again to explain to the agency that she had decided to give up singing and concentrate on being an actor was because she knew the agent's inner plan.
Shinichi Iwahashi couldn't help but recall the accident when he received the second call from Momoko Kikuchi.
In the phone call after ZARD's concert, he mentioned a few words about Kikuchi Momo, saying that he had no intention of intervening in her affairs, but because of her fate with ZARD, he had an idea.
But I didn't expect that Momoko Kikuchi would make a second phone call after that. It was this second phone call that made Iwahashi Shinichi somewhat happy.
"Kikuchi-san's office cooperates well with her. I heard from her that if it hadn't happened that Seiko-san was independent, he wouldn't have been suddenly embarrassed by the office. But as long as Kikuchi-san stopped singing, then the office would also
I won’t embarrass her again.”
She stopped singing, which not only made her determined to transform, but also gave an explanation to the office.
In other words, she left the firm because she wanted to change careers, not because she betrayed her. The path she wanted to develop was inconsistent with the overall direction of the current firm. Even if she changed to a new firm, it would not threaten the old firm.
The training cycle for actors is too long and the investment is high. It is far different from training idol singers, where you can earn money all the time.
Momoko Kikuchi was moving to a profession where she was not recognized and would probably slip to the edge of the industry and no such person could be found. This made the firm soften its attitude towards her termination of contract and departure.
Moreover, she no longer sings. The agency holds the original rights to her songs since her debut and can dispose of them at will. Subsequently, she will cooperate with the record company from time to time to release selected albums to defraud money, which are all routine operations. Although she
She has run away, but I can still pull her out to exploit her from time to time, not to mention that I don’t have to worry about the dissatisfaction of the record company and the agency later. To a certain extent, it’s quite refreshing.
There are benefits and steps. In this case, the office will relent and put away its previous toughness.
"If Wan Yumi-san takes over Kikuchi-san, she can use her reputation to lead new members of the agency to appear in TV dramas." Shinichi Iwahashi mentioned.
Watanabe Mayumi is not very interested in Kikuchi Momo, "I don't want to borrow this fame."
She saw it clearly, "The firm is currently focusing on Inamura, and I plan to recruit male actors later. If a popular idol like Kikuchi-san comes to my place, it may be more troublesome to promote her than to promote a newcomer."
The high is the best and the low is the low. Iwahashi Shinichi silently added to Watanabe Mayumi's words in his heart. Of course he understood the thoughts of the overbearing president. In a sense, he was already prepared for Watanabe Mayumi to reject Kikuchi Momo.
"Then," Shinichi Iwahashi changed the subject, "How about I introduce Kikuchi-san to another firm?"
Watanabe Wan Yumi looked at him, "Which company are you thinking of?"
"Isn't Kenyin about to show off his talents?" Iwahashi Shinichi reminded.
Watanabe Wan Yumi was stunned for a moment, then suddenly smiled, "Have you thought about it again?"
"Yes, and no."
Iwahashi Shinichi was vague, "The acting department of Kenyin has not improved yet. Even if we have to spend money to promote newcomers, we can't let newcomers who no one knows play important roles in TV series... If we really want to do that,
The production company won’t agree either.”
"But it's different if there is a popular idol as the introduction." He said.
Momoko Kikuchi had a hard time with Watanabe Manyumi, who had to rely on singers to support actors. But when she had a large sum of money in hand and was just waiting for an explosion, the introduction just came to her door.
Iwahashi Shinichi remembered that Nakamori Akina once told him that the agency mobilized her to film a TV series. There was a 100% plan to let her lead new people.
"Then what?" Watanabe Manyumi asked.
Iwahashi Shinichi reacted, "What then?"
"What benefits do you want to get from introducing Kikuchi-san to Yanyin?" She looked like she had already seen through him and would never believe him.
"What's the benefit?" Iwahashi Shinichi replied, "Let's talk about the benefits after Kikuchi-san is transferred to Kenyin."
If we can't negotiate, it won't matter no matter how beautiful the idea is.
