Huayu: The young actress is heavily dependent on me

September 28, 2014, Pengcheng.

When the plane landed at Bao'an Airport, Chen Li glanced at the sky outside the window.

Bai Mengyan sat next to him, flipping through the project proposal for "So Cute Us" the whole way.

"Boss, with this little money, will people even be interested in what we produce?" she asked nervously, closing the proposal.

"I'll check it first," Chen Li said calmly, stuffing her boarding pass into the side pocket of her backpack.

His decision to join Tencent Video this time was not made on a whim.

2014 was the inaugural year for Chinese web dramas, with major platforms vying to acquire high-quality content.

iQiyi announced last year that its core strategy is exclusive broadcasting plus self-produced content, and it has already established its content advantage.

Youku Tudou firmly holds the top spot with a market share of 22.82%.

If he were to sell "So Cute Us" on iQiyi, given iQiyi's recent high-profile announcement that it would produce 30 self-produced dramas in 2015, buying one of his dramas would be a piece of cake.

However, iQiyi already has hit shows like "The Ferryman" and self-produced dramas like "Back in Time" that are popular across the internet. If they put a low-budget youth drama in, it won't even make a ripple in iQiyi's content pool.

Penguin Video is different.

2014 was a pivotal year for Tencent, as it shifted from broadcasting TV drama copyrights to producing its own dramas.

At the beginning of the year, it was announced that it would focus on three major areas: mobile strategy, flagship content, and original production. It plans to collaborate with leading production companies such as Ciwen Media, New Classics Media, and Yu Zheng Studio to produce 500 episodes of high-quality self-produced dramas, with a focus on comedy, suspense, and romance.

"So Cute Us" falls right on the "romance/youth" theme, and Tencent Video's current strategy is "to have plenty of money to invest and pursue high-quality works".

The newly launched seasonal drama "Darker" had an investment cost of nearly 73 yuan per episode, breaking the record for online drama investment at the time and becoming one of the most popular online dramas.

More importantly, in order to attract high-quality young content, Tencent lowered the threshold for new projects that year, and the decision-making process of its procurement department was also shorter than that of iQiyi.

Chen Li had thought it through before setting off:

He gave "So Cute Us" to Penguin not because Penguin is the best, but because Penguin is in need of manpower at the time.

The platform needs new content to prove that its self-produced dramas can become hits, and his dramas are exactly the "needed answer," so the level of attention he receives is far greater than that of iQiyi.

The headquarters of Tencent Video is located in the Science and Technology Park of Nanshan District, Shenzhen. The glass curtain wall of Tencent Binhai Building reflects a dazzling white light under the sun.

Bai Mengyan looked up at the towering glass curtain wall, her mouth agape in a small "O" shape:

"This is the headquarters of Tencent Video? It's even more impressive than Sister Fan's company..."

Chen Li patted her on the shoulder: "Don't be nervous when you go in. We're here to discuss cooperation, not for an interview."

"I...I wasn't nervous at all!" Bai Mengyan retorted stubbornly, but her fingers unconsciously twisted the edge of her scarf.

As the two entered the building, a cool breeze mixed with a faint fragrance greeted them.

In the spacious lobby, a huge Tencent Video logo adorned the backdrop for the reception area, and several professionally dressed receptionists were answering phones. Chen Li stepped forward:

"Hello, we have an appointment with Director Wang from the purchasing department at 10:30."

After checking the list, the receptionist smiled and nodded: "Okay, please wait a moment, I'll take you there."

The elevator stopped on the 18th floor.

The frosted glass door slid open to both sides, and a rush of air mixed with the aroma of coffee and the warmth of electronic devices wafted out.

The open-plan office area is bathed in the autumn sunlight streaming through the floor-to-ceiling windows, and the desks between the workstations are filled with various penguin plush toys and anime figurines.

Yesterday's meeting minutes are still on the content operations team's whiteboard on the left:

The third season of "The Voice of China" concluded with a total viewership of 18.7 billion, leading all variety shows in Q4.

On the right-hand aisle wall hangs a row of posters—"The Darker," "The Ghost Files," and "We Are 15," all of which are key projects that Tencent Video has been focusing on in the past two years.

Bai Mengyan suddenly tugged at Chen Li's sleeve: "Boss, um!"

Following her gaze, a news report was playing on a TV wall at the end of the corridor.

Last week, iQiyi held its first online drama industry summit in Beijing. CEO Gong Yu announced that the company will produce 30 self-produced dramas in 2015 and has also established a 5000 million yuan reward fund for outstanding online drama scripts.

The scrolling text at the bottom of the screen reads:

The first year of online dramas saw multi-platform deployments and a full-scale battle for the market of 400 million users.

Chen Li looked at the screen, a slight smile playing on her lips.

iQiyi's massive campaign has effectively educated the market.

All platforms now know that web dramas are the next big thing, and Tencent Video needs to invest real money and resources to secure good content in this boom.

"Boss, there's another headline over there..." Bai Mengyan pointed to the Southern Metropolis Daily on the other side of the newspaper rack.

The latest entertainment news headline boldly proclaims:

Web dramas have had a breakout year, with iQiyi's "The Ferryman" surpassing 500 million views.

Chen Li lightly flicked the newspaper and said to Bai Mengyan:

"After a while, we'll put 'So Cute Us' in this spot."

Wang Yi, the purchasing department director, was a middle-aged man in his early forties. When he first saw Chen Li, his expression was actually a little surprised.

He had assumed that the person knocking on the purchasing department's door would be a veteran producer from Fan Bingbing's studio.

It turned out to be a young man in his early twenties, and he was so handsome!

Holy crap! Could it be Fan Bingbing's boyfriend?

"Hello, Director Wang, I'm Chen Li." Chen Li stood up and shook hands with him, her tone neither humble nor arrogant.

"Thank you for your help this time."

"You're too kind," Wang Yi quickly suppressed his surprise and warmly shook his hand.

"Let's go see a movie."

"Sister Fan has already spoken to me, so don't worry. As long as the film's foundation is decent, I'll get you the slots you deserve in terms of post-production scheduling and homepage recommendation."

"Thank you, Mr. Wang!"

During the screening, the projection screen slowly lowered, and the conference room lights dimmed.

Wang Yi sat at one end of a long table, with several heads of the marketing and copyright departments on his left and right sides, each with an evaluation form spread out in front of them.

Chen Li and Bai Mengyan sat on the other side.

Bai Mengyan gripped the thermos tightly, her palms slightly sweaty.

Chen Li leaned back in her chair, her expression calm.

The first episode opens with an empty, old-fashioned stairwell, where morning light falls precisely on the cracks of the third step, and a voiceover begins:

"Some people are destined to meet from birth. But meeting is just the beginning, not the end."

Xiao Zhao from the marketing department stopped twirling his pen. Having worked in web series purchasing for so many years, he knew all too well what it meant to "captivate from the start."

Most online dramas try to cram the main characters, conflicts, and jokes into the first three minutes.

The show opens with a static, empty shot lasting over ten seconds, without a single person in sight.

But when that crack and that narration came out, he felt a chill run down his spine, realizing that this director was something special.

"Oranges aren't the only fruit, but tangerines are!"

"The world never lets down lovely people, and we are so lovely!"

As the credits rolled and the lights came on, Director Li from the copyright department took off his glasses, wiped the lenses, and put them back on.

He had several evaluation forms for similar youth-themed projects, created by Tencent Video, spread out in front of him.

One of them was "Growing Pain," a show that the platform heavily invested in. The initial funding was three times that of the show, but when the first episode of the final product was submitted for review, several internal reviewers gave it an A grade.

After watching "So Cute Us", he didn't need to make any comparisons; he knew exactly where the difference lay.

There was a two-second silence at the conference table. The heads of several departments at Tencent looked at each other, their gazes finally settling on Chen Li.

The young man in his early twenties sitting opposite them was said to be a freshman in the Performance Department of the Taipei Film Academy.

He wrote the script, directed, and starred in the series himself. He also led his team to complete the production and post-production of the entire series.

Is this the legendary genius?

Xiao Zhao from the marketing department was the first to break the silence, his voice still carrying a hint of surprise:

"Director Chen, the music design of your show—the melody at the end of each episode is varied according to the theme of the episode. Such details are very rare in web series."

He paused, put down the pen he had been twirling, and his tone became serious.

"This work will definitely be loved by many people; I personally love it very much."