Chapter 87: Movie Preparation
"Movies? Of course, I know!"
"A new movie theater recently opened in Konoha. Biwako and I went to see it twice last month..."
The Third Hokage seemed to be worried about being considered an out-of-date bumpkin, so he quickly showed off his knowledge of movies.
He stopped himself just when he was about to say that he occasionally used the telescope to get minor movies for free.
After clearing his throat, the Third Hokage asked again in confusion:
"So Hideki, are you planning to use the movie to promote your toys?"
"Is it really necessary to go through so much trouble?"
In fact, it's no wonder that the Third Hokage would think so.
Movies were still a new concept circulating mainly among the upper classes, so he naturally didn't understand the full power they held.
Because it would take a while to explain, and Hideki feared that Danzo might interrupt him again, he decided to keep the details to himself for now.
"It's just a small attempt," Hideki smiled and said.
"Many of the equipment and props needed for filming can be made by students in the puppetry class, which is also a good exercise."
"Besides, the target audience for this movie is children, so the characters should not be too old, and students can be selected for the roles."
"So, as long as you, Hokage, approve a certain amount of points for funding, this movie shouldn't cost much in actual expenses."
No no no.
Hideki, you are simply spreading the cost among all the ninjas who supported the points program, the Third Hokage thought to himself.
However, as the biggest beneficiary, he certainly didn't reveal this fact.
"Hideki, are you sure you have enough confidence?" The Third Hokage was still a little hesitant.
"I haven't fully figured out the specific approach yet, but I can guarantee that it will be effective."
"And the greatest significance of this attempt is to verify one of my hypotheses."
Hideki said with a smile, "Hokage, why don't you think about it..."
"If the promotion of the movie can make a toy popular throughout Konoha..."
"Then perhaps Konoha's Will of Fire can be better spread to all parts of the Ninja World through the medium of movies..."
...
A moment later, Hideki walked out of the Hokage's office with a smile on his face.
After making a big promise to promote the Will of Fire through movies, the Third Hokage had immediately surrendered.
So Hideki finally got permission to make the movie and the right to use a certain amount of points.
In reality, the idea of making a movie wasn't a sudden inspiration for Hideki. It had been in his plans for a long time.
Whether it's to promote the workshop's products or to continue improving everyone's perception of puppetry, movies were a very good choice.
And what Hideki just said wasn't entirely empty talk.
He genuinely believed that, if he had the energy in the future, he could imitate the style of the United States in his previous life.
It is through movies that Konoha's Will of Fire and values can be quietly promoted, subtly influencing the views of the audience both inside and outside the village.
It would be best if they could establish cultural hegemony and make Konoha a beacon in the ninja world that everyone aspires to...
In this way, it should be much easier to unite the power of the entire ninja world to fight against the enemies of the Otsutsuki clan in the future.
Of course, all this was just a dream. What Hideki needed to do first was to make the first move to prove his hypothesis and teach Danzo a lesson.
So after leaving the Hokage Building, Hideki went straight to the only movie theater in Konoha for a field investigation.
About an hour later, Hideki walked out of the cinema with mixed feelings.
The good news was that today's films were still in the early stages of development and even retained many traces of traditional Noh drama.
Therefore, even though Hideki was a layman in the film industry, he was confident that he could use the experience he had from his previous life to outshine the current film industry.
What was concerning was that the movies shown in the cinema were still black and white, with very average clarity.
It's no wonder that the Third Hokage had been skeptical about his plans to promote the film.
It was so dark that you couldn't even see your face clearly—who would care about your broken toy?
So if Hideki wanted to make the movie a success, he would have to figure out how to improve the camera and projector.
Due to time constraints, he didn't insist on 4K resolution or 3D images, but at the very least, he needed to produce color images.
Though this increased his workload, once it was achieved, no matter how bad the movie was, Hideki was sure that people would still pay to watch it...
Since improving the camera would take some time, Hideki decided to handle both tasks.
First, he would arrange for the preparation and rehearsal work for the students, and then he would begin the improvement process.
So, as soon as Hideki returned to the school office, he started deciding on the movie script.
The Shawshank Redemption, Inception, The Godfather...
Of course, Hideki didn't consider such masterpieces.
After all, he wasn't making movies to cultivate the aesthetic sensibilities of the people in the ninja world, but to sell toys.
So Hideki took a bunch of toys and placed them on the table as inspiration.
Ordinary toys might not be exciting enough, and Danzo could imitate them quickly, so it would be impossible to create a large enough gap.
The apprentices in the workshop were just beginning to learn how to draw runes, and it was unlikely that they would be able to draw complex rune spells in a short time.
Therefore, it would be difficult for Hideki to use high-tech toys like Pocket Golem as the movie's promotional object.
Fortunately, he didn't need to worry about Danzo plagiarizing. He just needed to buy enough time to capture most of the market.
Now, he just had to think about whether there were toys that could become flashy and cool by adding a few runes.
Hideki pondered for a long time before his eyes landed on a yo-yo on the table...
...
Early the next morning.
A new notice was posted at the entrance of the Ninja School, which once again attracted a lot of attention from the little ninjas.
The notice read:
["Fire Boy King" Crew Recruitment Announcement]
Do you have amazing acting talent and want to shine on the big screen?
Do you dream of becoming famous overnight and becoming a little idol for all the villagers in Konoha?
Now, the opportunity is right in front of you!
The movie "Fire Boy King", co-produced by Ninja School and Kimura Workshop, is in hot preparation and is now recruiting actors from all students. The specific roles and remuneration are as follows...
The young ninjas looked at the various characters and corresponding point rewards in the announcement, growing more excited, and began to discuss the matter.
"What is a movie?"
"You don't know? My dad recently took me to the new movie theater in the village. It was amazing!"
"But why is our Ninja School suddenly making a movie?"
"Who cares? Didn't you see that the protagonist gets five points every day? That makes me want to give it a try."
"Haha, with your looks, how could you possibly be the protagonist..."
"What do you care? It won't hurt to try anyway!"
"Yeah, it's such an interesting thing. It's not bad to participate as a passerby. The audition will be after school this afternoon. I must go and watch it!"
"Let's go together!"
"Count me in!"
"Me too!"
...
Sure enough, after school, a long line formed in front of the puppetry classroom that served as a temporary audition venue.
Even though everyone said they were eager to participate, they were actually filled with ambition.
You should know that the Ninja School had a special spy disguise course, so many students were quite confident in their acting skills.
So while everyone said they wanted to be an ordinary character, when filling out the registration form, they all wrote that they wanted to be the protagonist.
It's just the protagonist of a movie—how could it be difficult for them?
Hideki, who had taken time out of his schedule to manage the casting, thought so.
Unfortunately, when the audition started, he realized that he was very wrong...
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