Anime Production, Starting with Healing the Audience

"How is that deception?" Fang Zheng muttered, hearing Yang Li's words. "There's no problem calling this a battle anime~"

"Heh, do you want me to help you contact a security company?"

Ever since learning of Shiru's impending death from Fang Zheng that day, Yang Li hadn't contacted him for several days, seemingly still sulking about Fang Zheng letting Shiru bite the dust.

These past few days, thanks to Zhang Siyu's hard work, the ACG Culture Company had finally started to resemble an actual company.

Zhang Siyu, using the five million in startup capital Fang Zheng provided, first rented an office space of over two hundred square meters in Shanghai's Qinghui Building as the company's temporary headquarters.

Logically speaking, given Fang Zheng's fame, his company shouldn't be crammed into such a small, rented office space of only a few hundred square meters.

But there was no helping it; Shanghai was incredibly expensive, with some people working their entire lives and still not being able to afford a toilet there.

Although Fang Zheng had won ten million as the champion of the Annual Best Creator Competition, that ten million, while seeming like a lot, was hardly enough when it came to spending.

Especially in an expensive city like Shanghai.

So, out of necessity, Zhang Siyu could only rent an office space as a temporary measure.

After all, the company had just been founded, and setting expectations too high wasn't realistic. Comparing the current ACG Culture Company to a behemoth like TT Group would be seeking humiliation.

One must know their own limitations. Zhang Siyu knew that ACG's future was definitely bright, possibly even reaching world-class status, but not right now.

ACG was like an infant in swaddling clothes, needing careful nurturing and patient cultivation.

With an office location secured, the trademark Fang Zheng had registered finally had a purpose, and the ACG Culture Company was officially established in Shanghai.

During this time, Fang Zheng held a very low-key company opening ceremony. It wasn't that he didn't want to be high-profile, but the only attendees were Zhang Siyu, Yang Li, and himself as the Chairman, making it impossible to be grand.

Although the cost wasn't high, in a sense, it was a sorrowful, bleak kind of sorrow~

There was no helping it, as Zhang Siyu was the only official employee when Fang Zheng's company opened, and Yang Li was roped in just to make up the numbers.

ACG quietly opened in Shanghai's Qinghui Building. Thanks to the recruitment advertisement Fang Zheng had posted on an interview program, a considerable number of people had submitted their resumes.

From this pool of applicants, Zhang Siyu personally conducted interviews, finally managing to staff the company's core departments.

"Chairman Fang, I think you should find a personal secretary."

Early in the morning, Zhang Siyu arrived at Fang Zheng's home and knocked on his door.

Seeing Fang Zheng's groggy eyes, Zhang Siyu sighed helplessly and slowly said.

"What's wrong?"

Fang Zheng looked at Zhang Siyu, confused. He didn't understand why she was asking him to find a secretary. Did bosses need to have pretty personal assistants?

"My dear boss, take a look at your phone. Do you know how many calls I made to you from last night?"

It was better not to mention it. The moment Zhang Siyu brought it up, she got angry. Yesterday, she had wanted to discuss the promotion of "Akame ga Kill!" with Fang Zheng, but she couldn't get through to him no matter what.

That's why she came to Fang Zheng's doorstep so early in the morning.

Sometimes, Zhang Siyu felt foolish. She was the CEO of the company and only received a salary, yet she felt no different from Fang Zheng's nanny.

If it were in the past, she would never have believed that she would stoop so low as to serve a man!

"Uh... I was too tired from working last night, so I fell asleep." Fang Zheng's face stiffened. Seeing Zhang Siyu's dark expression, he felt a bit awkward.

He had been working tirelessly in the system space these past few days, practically without sleep for several projects.

It wasn't until last night, after completing all the preparatory work for "Akame ga Kill!", that he finally couldn't hold on any longer and collapsed onto his bed, sleeping like a log.

He only woke up when Zhang Siyu knocked on his door early in the morning.

"That's why I said, Chairman Fang, you should find a personal secretary, so I don't have to run back and forth like this." Zhang Siyu looked at Fang Zheng's tired expression, and her frustration gradually subsided.

She sighed and said, "Otherwise, if there's an urgent matter and we can't reach you, Chairman Fang, it could lead to big problems."

Just like yesterday, she had made dozens of calls without anyone answering, to the point where she started suspecting Fang Zheng had been kidnapped by those fans who were losing their minds online.

In the ACG Community, after Fang Zheng uploaded the promotional PV for "Akame ga Kill!", he had ghosted those fans.

At first, the fans were somewhat rational, knowing that producing anime took time. But as time went on and Fang Zheng remained silent, the audience and fans grew increasingly anxious.

Coincidentally, at this time, Fang Zheng seemed to have vanished into thin air. There was no news from A Company, no updates on Weibo, and even the online buzz had started to die down.

Fang Zheng's actions caused the fans' last shred of rationality to disappear, with many already threatening to dox him.

"Alright, I'll find one when I have time."

Fang Zheng also felt that Zhang Siyu had a point. Moreover, as the chairman of a company, how could he not have a secretary by his side?

If word got out, wouldn't other CEOs laugh him to scorn?

"Come in and let's talk~"

Fang Zheng belatedly welcomed Zhang Siyu into his room, then served a pot of clear tea, and they sat facing each other.

Given Zhang Siyu's workaholic nature, she wouldn't come to his place to waste time unless it was for something important.

"Chairman Fang, I'd like to know the progress of the work on 'Akame ga Kill!'." Zhang Siyu took a sip of the clear tea, her brows furrowed slightly.

"The online buzz is starting to fade, and many fans are reaching their breaking point, so..."

Zhang Siyu didn't finish her sentence, but Fang Zheng knew what she meant.

In this era, nothing could maintain its popularity forever, not even the anime that had been a huge hit before.

Even the best works need promotion and budget for overwhelming advertising. People hate ads, but they never seem to decrease.

This is one of the important reasons why.

"Akame ga Kill! ... Ah, no! It's Akame ga Kill! that's finished filming, we just need to sort out the voice acting." Fang Zheng coughed twice, covering his embarrassment.

He almost blurted out his true thoughts, that was close!

Regarding the plot of Akame ga Kill!, currently only Fang Zheng knows it. Yang Li, that fiery woman, has guessed a little, but not in detail.

Therefore, Zhang Siyu only knows the name of Akame ga Kill! as a work.

Chapter Twenty-Eight: I Want to Sign a Contract (Seeking Everything)

"Oh right, are there any applicants for the voice actor position?"

Fang Zheng looked at Zhang Siyu. He had posted the recruitment information on the show and later on the community and major websites, but he didn't know if anyone had applied.

"Very few people applied for the voice actor position, and they weren't particularly professional, so the recruitment wasn't very effective."

Zhang Siyu's answer made Fang Zheng's heart sink. Voice acting and drawing are like the two souls of anime.

Aside from hard standards like plot and character design, voice acting can be said to be a key factor influencing an anime. However, anime is just beginning to emerge in this world, and voice acting is still a new profession for people, feeling quite unfamiliar.

Those who applied were not professionally trained, nor were they like Yang Li, who came from a professional broadcasting background. Most of them did not meet Fang Zheng's requirements.

"Is that so~"

Fang Zheng was a little troubled. He could handle the voice acting for male characters, but he couldn't do it for female characters. His current voice acting level was not enough to change his voice between male and female.

Did he have to continue improving his voice acting skills?

"No!"

Fang Zheng quickly shook his head. His current voice acting level was Lv5. To upgrade to Lv6, he would need ten million Reputation Points, and he didn't even know if Lv6 voice acting would allow him to switch between male and female voices.

Putting other things aside, the Reputation Points alone stopped Fang Zheng from considering this idea.

"Chairman Fang, perhaps Lily has a way."

Seeing Fang Zheng's troubled expression, Zhang Siyu offered a very feasible suggestion.

Yang Li came from a professional broadcasting and hosting background. She must know people with similar backgrounds. If she could get their help, perhaps she could find voice actors who fit the characters.

Moreover, broadcasting programs have high requirements, and students undergo systematic training, which aligns well with the profession of voice acting.

Hearing Zhang Siyu's words, Fang Zheng's eyes lit up. So many broadcasting students graduate every year. It's impossible for all of them to be as exceptional as Yang Li and end up working in television stations, right?

For those who haven't found their ideal jobs, Fang Zheng is confident he can persuade them to join his voice acting team.

If necessary, he could even sign contracts with them, making them professional voice actors under him. After all, the voice acting profession is very important for anime.

A voice actor isn't just suitable for one role; they can be used in his future anime works as well.

Furthermore, he could even cultivate the voice actors under him into stars, developing a celebrity economy for the voice acting industry wouldn't be impossible.

"Contact Yang Li immediately and see if she's willing to help!"

Fang Zheng rubbed his hands, somewhat excited.

The voice acting problem that had been bothering him for a long time seemed to have a solution, and he couldn't wait.

Once the voice acting is completed, Akame ga Kill! can be released on the ACG Community, which will also help to ease the emotions of the fans who have lost their minds.

Zhang Siyu contacted Yang Li. As luck would have it, Yang Li happened to have a day off today. Upon hearing Zhang Siyu's request, she agreed without hesitation.

They arranged to meet at the company. Afterward, Fang Zheng washed up and tidied himself, then got into Zhang Siyu's car to head to the company.

Naturally, Zhang Siyu teased him a lot on the way. After all, for a company boss to rely on someone else for a ride was a bit much.

Upon arriving at the company, Fang Zheng went straight to the office Zhang Siyu had prepared for him. After a short wait, Yang Li arrived.

"I heard you needed my help with something?"

Yang Li was not polite. She came into Fang Zheng's office as if she were in her own home and sat down casually.

"Why do you call it needing help? What's our relationship? This is called asking for a favor."

Fang Zheng curled his lips. This girl always made him uncomfortable from the moment she spoke.

"Isn't that the same thing~" Yang Li glanced at Fang Zheng dismissively, then got straight to the point. "Regarding the voice acting issue, I've found some people for you. They're all my old classmates from when I studied broadcasting. I'll call them over so you can see if they're suitable."

As Yang Li spoke, she picked up her phone and sent a message in the class group chat.

She graduated from Modu University with a major in broadcasting. After graduation, she also worked in Shanghai, and most of her classmates, like her, chose to stay in Shanghai.