Anime Production, Starting with Healing the Audience

"Damn it! I knew Big Shot Fang was holding back a big move!"

"Here's a joke: Big Shot Fang wants us to remain calm~!"

"Big Shot Fang: After watching the latest episode of Akame ga Kill! tomorrow, please don't act impulsively. Impulsivity is the devil!"

"My heart shattered the moment Shiru died. I felt like the whole world turned gray. There will be no more love."

At this moment, the viewers who had watched the live broadcast last night finally understood why Fang Zheng had specifically given that reminder at the end.

Now they understood. They understood everything!

But if they could, they wished they didn't understand. They truly couldn't accept, nor did they want to accept, this ending!

Seeing such a beloved, naturally cute girl with glasses exit in such a tragic manner truly made all the viewers feel unprecedented anger.

If they could, they really wanted to send Fang Zheng their heartfelt care and blessings!

"Heh, I waited two days for this ending. That's it, I'm out. Brothers, see you at Qinghui Building tomorrow!"

"Remain calm? Calm your mother! Fang Zheng! You're a complete beast!"

"A super exciting, passionate battle anime. Big Shot Fang, do you have a misunderstanding of those words?"

"Fang Zheng, you scoundrel, you have no conscience! Give me back Shiru! Give me back my tears!"

After the latest episode of the anime Akame ga Kill! was broadcast, the viewers instantly erupted. They all transformed into angry netizens, appearing on forums, Weibo, and anywhere they could vent their frustrations.

Fang Zheng even discovered a post on the A Company forum where fans were plotting.

They were actually planning to form a group to come to Shanghai to give him a "thought education"!

Watching the replies grow at a visible rate, Fang Zheng's heart trembled.

He had expected the viewers to go berserk and get angry after watching this episode of Akame ga Kill!, but he never imagined things would escalate to this extent.

Currently, there were already thousands of fans who had signed up for the event on that post, and the number of fans who could be mobilized was still increasing.

Thousands of people coming to Shanghai to educate him...

Just picturing the scene made Fang Zheng feel dizzy. The end of the world couldn't be any worse than this!

"Hiss~ This is getting a bit out of hand~" Fang Zheng worried about his tomorrow. The warning he had given yesterday seemed to have no effect at all; instead, it backfired.

A miscalculation! A complete miscalculation!

It was clear that these enraged fans, in their extreme anger, wouldn't care about anything else. They just wanted to vent.

And he, the original creator, as the culprit behind Shiru's demise, was naturally the primary target.

"No, I need to think of a way to divert the fans' attention~" Fang Zheng paced back and forth in his office, his mind racing, considering how to appease these 'fragile' fans.

"Knock, knock, knock~"

"Come in!"

Zhang Siyu pushed open the door to Fang Zheng's office and walked in. She looked at Fang Zheng with concern and asked, "Director Fang, are you alright?"

She had also watched the latest episode of Akame ga Kill!. After all, Esdeath, whom she voiced, appeared at the end of the sixth episode, so she naturally paid attention.

And she had seen the viewers' reactions after the sixth episode. The prominent post on the forum had even left her somewhat dumbfounded.

Before, she thought such things only happened in fan circles, but now it seemed... Fang Zheng's self-sabotage was quite successful.

Although his fans had always been very laid-back, even a cornered rabbit would bite. Not cherishing such a good fan base was so bad that even heaven couldn't stand it~

"Is something wrong?"

Fang Zheng stopped and looked at Zhang Siyu.

Was he alright?

He was practically facing a real-life mob of fans, so was he alright?

However, Fang Zheng also knew this was his own doing. Who told him to deceive the audience by saying it was a passionate battle anime in the first place?

On one hand, the audience was completely unprepared, and on the other hand, Shiru's death was so abrupt.

With such a drastic contrast, it was only natural for the audience to collectively riot.

"Director Fang, the Vice President of TT Group is here to visit. He said he has something he wants to discuss with you."

Although Zhang Siyu wanted to help Fang Zheng, she also knew that Fang Zheng's relationship with the audience was very delicate.

This could be seen from the few times Fang Zheng had argued with fans, yet they still remained loyal to him.

If she rashly got involved between Fang Zheng and the fans, it might have the opposite effect, so Zhang Siyu gave up after thinking about it.

It was better to let Director Fang handle this matter alone~

"TT Vice President?" Hearing Zhang Siyu's words, Fang Zheng frowned, feeling a bit suspicious. "What is he here for?"

In response to Fang Zheng's question, Zhang Siyu slowly shook her head. She also didn't know the purpose of his visit.

Compared to their ACG Culture Company, TT was undoubtedly a behemoth. Relying on its dominant position in social software, TT could be considered the strongest internet company in Xia Country.

In contrast, their ACG was just a small company established less than two months ago. The scale of the two was simply not on the same level.

Fang Zheng lowered his head and pondered for a moment. He didn't know this TT Vice President and had never had any dealings with such an important figure.

However, someone of his status wouldn't be so bored as to mess with me. Since he specifically asked to see me, the biggest possibility is that he's interested in me or something I possess.

And the only thing I seem to have to offer is just one thing...

"Anime!" X2.

Fang Zheng and Zhang Siyu reacted almost at the same time.

Especially Zhang Siyu, she suddenly remembered that when Fang Zheng won an award for "Star Dream" and introduced the concept of "anime," someone from TT seemed to have published an article about it.

Zhang Siyu picked up her phone and searched online for a while, and indeed found a similar report.

"Director Fang, there's an eighty percent chance the other party is here for anime."

Zhang Siyu handed her phone to Fang Zheng. The title on it read: [TT Vice President Sun Qian Expresses Interest in Inviting Fang Zheng to Join the Pan-Entertainment Plan].

Seeing this, Fang Zheng narrowed his eyes almost imperceptibly.

Fang Zheng had some understanding of TT Group's pan-entertainment plan, but precisely because he understood it, he was surprised by the enormity of TT's ambition.

And this Vice President—Sun Qian—was the first person to propose the "pan-entertainment" plan.

According to the other party's intention, the so-called pan-entertainment plan is centered around celebrity IPs, creating a fan economy, with IP as its core.

Pan-entertainment is also considered a major trend in the development of the internet economy, and TT is indeed at the forefront in this regard.

Currently, TT has already preliminarily completed the deployment of its pan-entertainment plan through the interaction of various cultural and creative aspects such as games, literature, film and television, and music.

As a recently emerging cultural form, anime's popularity has remained high, so it's natural for TT to pay attention to it.

Given TT's scale, they absolutely have the ability to produce anime themselves, but it's clear they haven't done so.

"Is it because they feel acquiring an existing one is more time-saving and labor-saving?"

A mocking smile crept onto Fang Zheng's lips. He knew exactly what TT was planning.

To use his reputation to help them perfect their so-called pan-entertainment plan was simply wishful thinking!

The core of the pan-entertainment plan is indeed IP. A good IP can be a character or a story. As long as anything loved by the public can become an IP.

At first glance, the so-called pan-entertainment plan seems good. After all, integrating various resources can create more excellent works.

But what this implies, most people don't understand.

IP needs endorsements, and endorsers need high fame, so the young idol stars who are currently being wildly pursued have almost become the first choice.

To pursue maximum profit, TT Group doesn't care who endorses it, how effective the endorsement is, or the quality of the work itself.

They will only choose traffic stars who have their own popularity, and then rely on their internet advantages to promote their works to the audience in an almost barbaric way.

This behavior is no different from force-feeding you shit!

In this way, the quality of the IP works derived from the pan-entertainment plan can almost be predicted.

And one consequence of the celebrity economy developing this way is the prevalence of fan circle economy!

The thought of his future works being endorsed by some effeminate pretty boy, or being cosplayed or awkwardly acted by some young idol with no acting skills, made Fang Zheng shudder.

That feeling was simply disgusting, just thinking about it made his hair stand on end!

"Director Fang, what are your plans?"

Zhang Siyu glanced at Fang Zheng worriedly, opened her mouth as if to say something, but ultimately didn't.

Matters that affect the company's future prospects were not something she, as CEO, could decide. Although she was the company's manager, the decision-making power had always been in Fang Zheng's hands.

"What about you? I want to hear your opinion."

Fang Zheng looked at Zhang Siyu. Without a doubt, he himself would refuse.

As the creator of anime, the 2D world was like his child. This feeling was peculiar.

Fang Zheng's goal was to create a prosperous 2D era. Before that, he didn't want anyone or any group to erode the purity and beauty of the 2D world by any means.

He didn't want the "anime" he had painstakingly launched to become another fan circle, filled with all sorts of monsters and ghosts, with a series of brainless operations that were simply an eyesore.

"Director Fang, I think it's better to refuse," Zhang Siyu said after pondering for a moment upon hearing Fang Zheng's words.

Undoubtedly, TT was a behemoth. If they chose to join, they could naturally obtain massive funds, resources, and a large number of promotional channels.

However, everything has its pros and cons. Once they joined the so-called pan-entertainment plan, it would be like pushing themselves into a quagmire.

Broadly speaking, anime that joined the pan-entertainment plan would no longer be a work that simply brought joy and sorrow to the audience, but would lean more towards serving the so-called celebrity IPs.