Chapter 100: Getting Ready to Shoot

"Today I also talked about Downton Abbey with Mr. Fellowes. I think many of his ideas are very good, so it has basically been confirmed that he will serve as the screenwriter and producer of this TV series, and preparations will begin soon."

"Actually, I have an idea that we should shoot both seasons at once..."

"That's a bit risky, dear."

Bonnie's worries were very normal for England at that time.

This requires talking about some differences between American TV series and British TV series. Unlike American TV series, which are often filmed for many seasons, in British TV series, only very few popular TV series are likely to be filmed for many seasons, such as Barron's previous life "Downton Abbey" and "Sherlock Holmes"...

Not only that, many British TV series have very short seasons. According to statistics, the average number of episodes of British TV series is only 6...

There are even some mini-series, where a season of TV shows only has three episodes...jokingly called "three-episode movies", the most famous of which is "Sherlock Holmes".

Just like in Barron's previous life, Downton Abbey had six seasons, which added up to 48 episodes, which means eight episodes per season - in fact, it should be seven episodes plus a Christmas special...

This number of episodes is not even as much as some Chinese TV series!

This situation has led to British dramas being produced with great care and attention to detail. The popular dramas are often particularly popular with the audience and are full of details - but at the same time, they are only aired after a few episodes, and then you have to wait for another year, which makes you feel a little unsatisfied.

Bonnie has now finished writing the second novel of Downton Abbey, which has also begun serialization in The Independent.

Therefore, it is completely feasible to shoot both seasons at once, and this has an advantage, which is that the average production cost per episode will be lower, and the audience will have to wait less time.

However, what Bonnie is worried about is that if the first season of the TV series does not receive a good response, then by only shooting one season, she can stop the loss in time; if she shoots two seasons at once, she will probably suffer a loss.

Barron is still very confident about this.

In addition to finding the producers and screenwriters of the previous life of "Downton Abbey" to ensure the quality of the TV series, he also prepared a sufficient budget for this TV series. He believed that with the popularity of the previous life "Downton Abbey" series - known as the No. 1 IP in Britain, there is no need to worry about being coldly received now.

In fact, the main cost of this TV series is the actors' costumes and the props that reflect the luxurious life of the nobility at that time.

In terms of props, using Chatsworth House, with its luxurious decorations, silverware and artworks, can save a lot of money.

Moreover, at the beginning, he also left behind many aristocratic costumes that have been preserved by the family to this day. These were originally high-end clothing in Britain in every era. They can definitely restore the luxurious life of the aristocrats of the old era in its original flavor, and at the same time, it will save a lot of costs.

Of course, there are still many costumes that need to be customized. In "Downton Abbey", every aristocrat changes clothes two to three times a day. In the first season alone, there are more than 600 pieces of aristocratic costumes that appear on camera. In this regard, we will definitely strive for perfection.

Finally, the situation of the actors also needs to be considered.

Because according to expectations, "Downton Abbey" is likely to be a series lasting six seasons, and it may also face a situation that many series or movie series will encounter - a surge in actors' salaries.

When the first part of a series becomes a hit, the actors' value will surely skyrocket. If they continue to participate in the show, their pay will naturally increase.

This isn't just true for two people, but for the entire cast of the series.

Therefore, in order to prepare for the future, Barron persuaded Summit Media to sign a 6+1 contract directly with the future main actors of "Downton Abbey" - six seasons of TV series and a possible movie in the future.

Of course, this does not mean that they are required to maintain low pay all the time, but that the pay for each subsequent film will increase within a reasonable range, and nothing too outrageous will happen.

"Actually, I think you're perfect for the main character Mary in this TV show, baby."

Now that everything has been basically confirmed, Barron said jokingly to Bonnie.

"Really? You also think I have a bad temper?"

In the novel, Mary, as one of the protagonists, is the eldest daughter of the manor and the most beautiful of the three daughters in the manor. She has a superior aristocratic temperament, is arrogant and strong-willed, and a little sarcastic... That's why Bonnie asked this question.

"Of course not. I just said that in terms of beauty, there is probably no one more beautiful than you."

Bonnie was very happy to hear Barron's sweet words. With a smile on her face, she said,

"This TV series is too important to us. I don't want to mess it up. I haven't studied acting myself, so I should hand it over to the most suitable person."

This is what Barron likes about Bonnie, she always knows what is most important and is not as confused as some women.

…

The TV series of "Downton Abbey" is about to start filming, which has caused heated discussions throughout Britain.

After all, this novel itself is a very hot topic recently and has many loyal readers - including Her Majesty the Queen.

Another point is that Halo, which owns the copyright of "Downton Abbey", and Summit Media, which is responsible for the production, announced that the filming of the first part alone will cost 50 million pounds, just to truly restore the once luxurious aristocratic life...

There is no lie about this. After all, if you take into account the renovation of Chatsworth House and the cost of filming two seasons at a time, well, if you round it up, it's almost 50 million pounds.

Anyway, almost all film and television dramas will exaggerate to some extent during their promotion. This time, they really didn't exaggerate anything more.

At present, it has been confirmed that Julian Fellowes will be the screenwriter and producer of this highly anticipated TV series. The director has also been confirmed, and the next step is to start selecting the actors.

Such a big production attracted the attention of many actors, who all wanted to join in.

Compared to Barron's previous life, the "Downton Abbey" series was only released in 2010, this is several years earlier, so it is definitely impossible for the original crew to return.

For example, Michelle, who originally played the eldest daughter Mary, was only 21 years old at the time and was still a student, and had not yet entered the acting industry...

Therefore, the cast will definitely be very different from Barron's previous life.

However, he would not worry about any of these. There were plenty of actors. Since Julian was able to find actors who were more suitable for the roles when he was directing this TV series in his previous life, he certainly would not say that he could not find any now.

He is actually looking forward to what kind of work "Downton Abbey" will be like this time.