Chapter 752 - 760: This is the Meaning

"Sister Tin, are you saying that if I can secure the role of the female supporting actor in the palace drama, I shouldn’t take the role of the female lead in the spy drama?" Jane Sampson hadn’t seen the script, so she was a bit surprised to hear Rock Bell suggest this; she had thought that even when considering the status of lead and supporting roles, Rock Bell would advise her to go straight for the lead role.

After all, Jane Sampson had taken on a few dramas and played too many supporting roles.

Though this supporting role in the palace drama is technically a secondary character, it’s still a supporting role.

"Right," Rock Bell nodded. "If you were a complete newcomer without any works, my advice would be the opposite. In that case, I would suggest you take the spy drama. But now, you already have several works to your name. You’ve built enough of a positive image in the audiences’ minds. The role of the female supporting actor in the palace drama is a tough one; if a newcomer were to take up such a role to start, they would likely be typecast going forward."

"I understand," Jane agreed repeatedly, "Without other works to build a positive image in the viewers’ minds, this villain role, if played well, could define me as a bad woman. It would make it harder for me to take on different character roles in the future."

"That’s exactly what I mean." Rock Bell appreciated this perceptiveness in Jane, "There was a case before where an artist quickly debuted with a villain role, delivered a fantastic performance, and was praised by everyone in the industry. However, that artist ended up playing villains for over 20 years. Now, when she walks on the street, people curse at her as a bad person, and some are even angry enough to throw stuff at her."

Jane knew whom Rock Bell was talking about. This senior, already a veteran artist, had discussed in a TV interview before Jane’s rebirth the frustrations of being scolded and having stinky eggs thrown at her by neighbors and strangers.

Seeing Jane fall silent again, Rock Bell knew what she was worried about.

"You’re different from that senior artist. Your previous roles have already established a good impression for you in the viewers’ hearts, so taking on this role would be beneficial for you," Rock Bell explained. "You’ve just wrapped up filming for a spy drama. Even if the new drama offers you the female lead, it wouldn’t benefit you as much as the female supporting role in the palace drama. Once you see the script, you’ll understand that her part is substantial, almost as much as the lead’s, and she remains central to the story until the penultimate episode."

"I’ll follow your advice, Sister Tin." Having not yet seen the script was unimportant; what mattered was that Jane trusted Rock Bell’s professional judgment.

"You’re such a good girl," praised Rock Bell with a smile. "I love artists like you who listen."

Rock Bell had handled artists who were too opinionated; there were benefits and drawbacks to that.

Frankly speaking, Rock Bell preferred someone like Jane.

"I’ll leave the script with you, so look it over carefully and think it through. I’ll reply to the film crew in a bit and then schedule your audition," Rock Bell thought. If Jane hadn’t been busy feeding James Black, Rock Bell would have liked to pat her on the head and praise her properly.

"What about the advertisement? When is it being filmed?" Jane looked at James Black’s hand and said, "Until his hand heals, I have to take care of him. I don’t know how long the ad will take to shoot. If it’s a long time, I might not be available."