"Please have a seat, don't be nervous."
"Uh-huh, not nervous."
At three in the afternoon, Wu Wenyue and Li Peifeng finished lunch and began scheduling interviews in the newly set up, modest studio.
A team focused on short videos roughly requires six positions.
Director, content planner, actor, cara operator, editor, operator—this is the basic structure. A person can take on several roles, potentially handling all six positions alone.
Many major influencers started solo, establishing a studio or company once they hit a substantial follower count, signing more actors, and hiring additional behind-the-scenes staff.
But for a startup studio with only one actor, generally two versatile hires are sufficient. Cara operation and editing can be one person, and directing, content planning, and operation can be another.
Add an actor, and a team of three is ford. With more employees, financial pressure increases, and the workload may not justify it.
The interviewees are all students from North China Normal University, majoring in dia or new dia directions. They were recomnded either by friends or teachers associated with Wu Wenyue, making them seem quite reliable to Li Peifeng.
Interview questions were alternated between the two. Wu Wenyue would ask, then Li Peifeng, rotating each turn.
The forr one genuinely did howork on short videos, asking rather professional questions...
"Applying for cara operator? What's your weekly film viewing count? Which type of movie do you generally watch? When filming my face and body, which angle and distance do you think achieve the best and most beautiful effect?"
"If you're the director and I'm the actor, I want to film a short video with the keywords basketball, looks, beauty, and clothing. What would be the primary color of the shots? How would makeup, clothing, and props be matched? How to shoot with no makeup, clothing, or props? If forgotten, how to redy at the shoot location?"
"You're applying for the operation position with relevant experience and can also handle content planning and editing. If I'm the actor, how would you design my positioning, which short video platforms suit, what's the user demographic, and how will it monetize in the future? Without a budget, how many followers can you gain in a month? With a budget of a hundred thousand, how many followers in a month? Provide a specific plan."
These were Wu Wenyue's interview questions, which she asked without expression, exuding a strong presence. The opposing party stuttered a long ti in response.
Li Peifeng was more casual, always grinning, warm and friendly, often starting with...
"Hand over your phone, let see your likes on TikTok, okay?"
"..."
"Work-related need, not prying into your privacy. We're in this field, you're here for an interview, so I want to know what you usually watch, how long you spend on TikTok daily. If you're on TikTok less than an hour a day and want to work in this field, it doesn't quite add up in my view."
No refusals, Li Peifeng would casually glance through the interviewee's TikTok and ask questions about their liked videos.
Questions like, "What do you think was the elent making this video popular?" "What are the reasons your own short video account isn't gaining traction?"
Short questions but still profound.
Like so web writers who update briefly daily yet remain interesting.
Thus, during the interview, Li Peifeng spent more ti looking at phones than people.
The deepest impression left on him was from a bespectacled guy's phone, who was applying for the cara position and was a heavy TikTok user, utilizing it for five hours daily.
Among his forty thousand likes, all were scantily-clad models or diverse beauties—sporty, sexy, youthful, innocent allure...
"I'm primarily learning style coordination."
The bespectacled guy smiled shyly, "And also borrowing shooting techniques to see how characters can be captured more beautifully."
"A talent!"
Li Peifeng held the guy's phone, swiping down for over five minutes without reaching the end, expressing deep admiration and decisively telling the frowning Wu Wenyue, "This guy is an absolute genius, we have to take him!"
...
A total of five interviewees, three won and two n.
Two applied for director roles, also capable in operation and content planning. They suggested several suitable video styles and content for Wu Wenyue's filming, and presented a rough future developnt plan. Despite seeming nervous while speaking, their thinking was quite structured and clear.
Three applied for cara operation and editing, with skills in directing and operation. They ca equipped with stabilizers, tripods, caras, and phones for shooting, ready to start with gear. Two applicants had distinctive looks, even capable of cao acting.
Overall, the five candidates are quite similar, without particularly outstanding resus—none have tead up with major influencers—but have moderately engaged with the industry.
It's a bit too derogative to call them novices, yet they aren't full-fledged veterans.
Overall, they et Li Peifeng's expectations. Being undergraduates or grad students, they clearly lack substantial experience, yet exhibit potential worth cultivating.
Moreover, as students, they aren't asking for high salaries, focusing on learning and practice. Three out of the five asked a common question: "Can internship certificates be issued?"
Absolutely can be issued...
Once the interview concluded, the two debated on whom to hire but couldn't make a firm decision.
In the end, Li Peifeng chuckled and shook his head: "Hire them all, set a one-month internship period, during which the base salary is fifteen hundred. After they officially beco employees, pay will be as you said, a three thousand base plus commission and creative bonuses. After a month, evaluate their performances and decide who stays."
The salary isn't high, and in the Capital, it's even considered very low. But it's reasonable because these people are students, they have classes every week, and only co to work on weekends and in the evenings after class. With such flexible working hours, a reduced salary makes sense.
Li Peifeng also asked them their opinions on the salary, and they had no objections!
A monthly salary of three thousand won't attract rural laborers, but it surely can attract undergraduates from top universities like 985 or 211.
"But if we hire them all, won't the staff beco bloated? We don't need that many people."
"Then which ones do you suggest keeping? Which ones not?"
Wu Wenyue found it difficult to decide: "I feel they're all fine, and besides, it's just an interview; you can't really tell much."
"Exactly." Li Peifeng nodded: "Then just hire them all, try out for a month, and after the internship, you'll have a better idea. Besides, this is also a training period for you. Only hiring two or three employees won't teach you managent. Five employees, five brains with differing opinions, five mouths each with their own reasoning, you'll get a sense of how to manage staff."
You're not going to help ?
Wu Wenyue hesitated, wanting to ask that question, but refrained. She knew that Li Peifeng's main role was still writing novels and his own studies, so eventually, the studio still had to be managed by herself.
Let's do it, I'll work hard and leave the rest to fate!
"Brave Wenyue, don't be afraid of challenges!"
Li Peifeng offered comfort and then continued: "Call them and inform them to start tomorrow. I'll go out to buy things, like a whiteboard, computers, and printers. We need those office supplies. Also, buy two high-resolution phones; they can't use their own phones to take pictures. Otherwise, if soone takes photos with their phone and runs off, it's a hassle."
Wu Wenyue agreed with an "um": "Tell how much you spent, and I'll transfer the money. I've noted it in the accounts."
"Alright, it'll probably be less than twenty thousand. As for caras, those are too expensive. You can decide later based on the situation if you want to buy one."
"Hey, wait."
As she watched Li Peifeng leave, Wu Wenyue called out to him, noticing a puzzled expression on his face. She couldn't help but feel a bit annoyed: "We agreed, if Manning consents to this, you must et my parents before the Spring Festival!"
"No problem!"
Li Peifeng waved without looking back, but he was pondering internally.
Would Xu Manning really agree? Agree, my foot!!
...
"I'm back, co downstairs to help ."
At seven in the evening, Li Peifeng arrived downstairs at the studio, and since he had a lot of stuff, he called Wu Wenyue to co down and help. Surprisingly, Xu Manning ca along too.
"Did you get off work?"
"Yeah, let help you with this. By the way, you guys are moving quickly. Will the studio be officially operational tomorrow?"
The three chatted while entering the elevator.
After tidying up briefly, it was already past eight in the evening. They locked up and headed ho.
"Manning, tell him about that matter."
Upon returning ho, Wu Wenyue seed in a good mood. She humd a tune while cooking dinner and raised her eyebrows at Li Peifeng, who was helping in the kitchen: "It's about eting the parents."
Li Peifeng imdiately felt uneasy and looked at Xu Manning, who was sneaking bites of at, her expression incredulous: "You agreed?"
"I agreed!"
Xu Manning licked her fingers cheerfully and nodded: "Sure, during the winter break, you and Yueyue can et the parents, no problem!"
Li Peifeng's expression looked as if he had really seen a ghost, his words were stuttering: "Are you, are you sure?"
"I'm sure, but…"
Xu Manning, beaming with a smile, continued: "But, this weekend, you have to et my mom and dad first. They're clamoring to et my boyfriend; I've already arranged it with them. But after eting my parents and setting our wedding date, you'll have ti during the winter break to et Yueyue's parents, no interference."
"?"
At this point, not only was Li Peifeng stunned, but Wu Wenyue was also taken aback: "What… wedding date, we agreed before… didn't you ntion this? Are you kidding ?"
"Oh dear, got discovered?"
Xu Manning's smile was half mischievous, half teasing: "But Yueyue, you were the one kidding first."
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