Who says Beijing Film Academy has no great directors? (2002)

Chen Yan and Liu Yifei ate fried noodles at a small stall near the film set.

Suddenly, Chen Yan's phone rang.

"Boss, Huanyu Star has contacted you. Yao Zhuangxian wants to meet with you."

Chen Yan thought for a moment and said, "Okay, tomorrow. I'll go to Shanghai and pay a visit to the father of the Legend of Sword and Fairy series."

Liu Yifei held a chopstickful of fried noodles, staring blankly at Chen Yan.

Chen Yan suddenly had a flash of inspiration: "Qianqian, how about we go to Shanghai tomorrow?"

If I were to bring Zhao Ling'er, the chosen one, along, things would probably be half done.

"Okay, then you can tell your mom." Liu Yifei didn't care, and then lowered her head to show off the fried noodles again.

Liu Yifei ate with great relish: "This fried noodle is so delicious, Chen Yan, I want to eat it again next time."

Chen Yan replied, "Okay."

So when Liu Xiaoli came to pick up Liu Yifei that evening, Chen Yan told her about his trip to Shanghai to discuss a collaboration, and mentioned that he wanted to take Liu Yifei with him.

Liu Xiaoli was taken aback. "Won't Qianqian's going cause you trouble?"

Chen Yan glanced at Liu Yifei, who was still in a daze, and replied, "I'm going to talk about the next TV series I found for Qianqian. Qianqian's foundation is still a bit weak. This TV series will make her a household name in mainland China."

Although Liu Xiaoli didn't understand, she still trusted Chen Yan completely, so she said, "Okay."

So the next day, Chen Yan gave the entire crew a day off. The two main actors were getting old and were getting tired of filming continuously, so it was a good opportunity for them to rest.

After arranging everything, Chen Yan took Liu Yifei and flew directly to Shanghai.

This resulted in Cai Yinong, who was anxiously searching for the location of Chen Yanxin's film crew and wanting to visit them, arriving empty-handed.

In February, the capital city was still chilly and desolate.

Cai Yinong watched as the staff repeatedly told her, "Director Chen isn't here; the entire crew has the day off."

Cai Yinong choked up, holding the project proposal for the Legend of Sword and Fairy in her hand.

"Alright, let's come again tomorrow."

At this moment, Chen Yan was leading Liu Yifei, who was curious about everything, into the Shanghai Softstar office building.

In the conference room, Yao Zhuangxian was with Zhang Yijun, and Chen Yan was with Liu Yifei.

The two shook hands politely.

Yao Zhuangxian was shocked the moment he saw Liu Yifei.

"This young lady is Liu Yifei, the female lead of the recently popular movie 'Heartbreak', right?" Yao Zhuangxian thought to himself, comparing the two in person. Miss Liu was even more beautiful and refined than she appeared on screen.

Liu Yifei smiled and nodded, but didn't say anything.

Yao Zhuangxian then turned his attention to Chen Yan: "As far as I know, Director Chen has already obtained the copyright for the Legend of Sword and Fairy series from Yongyule, so why is he still coming to me?"

Chen Yan remained calm and shifted his body slightly backward: "Because I saw the drawbacks of the Legend of Sword and Fairy copyright, I wanted to ask President Yao to improve it."

Upon hearing the words "the drawbacks of the Legend of Sword and Fairy," Yao Zhuangxian paused for a moment.

Yao Zhuangxian frowned slightly: "What drawbacks?"

Chen Yan didn't say it directly, but instead changed the subject to Liu Yifei: "In the adaptation of the Legend of Sword and Fairy, the protagonist Zhao Ling'er will be played by Ms. Liu, who is right next to me, and I will find the most professional team in China to adapt it."

"However, if the first Legend of Sword and Fairy becomes a huge hit, someone will inevitably follow suit and want to make a sequel. I know that the Legend of Sword and Fairy is like his own child to President Yao, and he certainly cannot allow others to make random changes or alterations."

At this point, Yao Zhuangxian showed a look of agreement.

After nodding slightly, he indicated that Chen Yan could continue.

Chen Yan then put forward his requirements: "There are already people in the industry eyeing the Legend of Sword and Fairy series. In another six months, film and television companies of all sizes will come to you for the adaptation rights."

Today one company makes a film about Chinese Paladin 1, tomorrow another makes a spin-off, each company changes its own plot and creates its own characters, resulting in a chaotic worldview and a broken ending.

In the end, fans will criticize you, your IP will be devalued, and your decades of hard work will be torn to shreds. In that case, instead of letting anyone touch it, why not renew a three-year exclusive agreement with us?

Within three years, Softstar and Softstar will no longer authorize any other domestic company to film or adapt Legend of Sword and Fairy. Within three years, they will only cooperate with me on live-action dramas.

Over the past three years, we have steadily built a reputation and national recognition for the first installment of the Legend of Sword and Fairy series, establishing the entire Xianxia (fantasy martial arts) genre and thus multiplying the value of the Legend of Sword and Fairy IP several times over.

"You've essentially put a protective lock on the Legend of Sword and Fairy IP yourself, don't you agree, Mr. Yao?"

"I gave the film crew a day off today and flew here specifically to show my sincerity."

Yao Zhuangxian was caught in a dilemma. On the one hand, he admitted that Chen Yan's words had moved him, but if there were any twists and turns after the three-year exclusive contract was renewed, then the Legend of Sword and Fairy series would not be able to restart for three years.

"Director Chen, I'm not questioning your directing ability, but you don't seem to have ventured into the fantasy genre, and it seems you've always focused on the film industry."

Chen Yan looked at Yao Zhuangxian and finally got to the point: "I won't film it myself; I will collaborate with Kyushu Audio-Visual in China."

"We will offer a generous, upfront licensing fee, without haggling or delays. For each subsequent sequel, we will share the revenue with Softstar Entertainment at a top-tier industry rate."

This way, you preserve the reputation of the Legend of Sword and Fairy series, have a stable long-term copyright income, and avoid dealing with all sorts of troublesome film and television companies coming to your door. It's worry-free, preserves value, and leaves a lasting impression—all three things are achieved at once.

"Moreover, I have another advantage compared to others." Chen Yan clasped his hands together and smiled slightly.

Yao Zhuangxian raised an eyebrow: "I'd like to hear the details."

"I'm the second director in China to have a film grossing 200 million yuan. My name will bring new viewership to this film. Also, my next film has been submitted for the main competition at the Cannes International Film Festival in France. If all goes well, it will be submitted in May. If it wins an award..."

Yao Zhuangxian widened his eyes slightly.

"Director Chen, I understand. Please wait a moment, I need to discuss this with my colleagues."

Chen Yan smiled and gestured, "Please go ahead."

As Chen Yan spoke, Liu Yifei tightly gripped the hem of her clothes with her small hands.

She understood: "Chen Yan, will they agree?"

Chen Yan first reached a cooperation agreement with Kyushu Audio-Visual before choosing to fly directly to Shanghai.

"Why don't they agree? I'm their best choice. I don't know what they have to say to refuse me." Chen Yanchong blinked at Liu Yifei.

As for Cai Yinong? Go play in the mud.

At most, we'll still let Hu Ge play Li Xiaoyao.

Chen Yan thought that unless it was absolutely necessary, it would be best to stick with the original cast. Chen Yan couldn't let anything go wrong with Liu Yifei's most classic story.

So this time he's going to write the script himself.

Yao Zhuangxian had only been discussing things for less than five minutes when he returned and smiled as he extended his hand to Chen Yan.

"It's a pleasure working with you, Director Chen."

"It's a pleasure to work with you, Mr. Yao." Chen Yan confidently shook hands with Yao Zhuangxian.

After signing the contract, Yao Zhuangxian chatted with Chen Yan for a few minutes.

"Actually, what prompted me to sign with Director Chen today was not only what moved me with his words, but also the fact that when I met Ms. Liu, it was as if the character I created had come to life."

Liu Yifei laughed out loud, and when she saw Chen Yan looking at her, she even raised her chin in a particularly exaggerated way.

See? I'm still quite useful!