Chapter 274

The wuxia dramas "The Legend of Chu Liuxiang" and "The Deer and the Cauldron" remain Yian's most profitable current projects.

Other projects are also substantial, such as "The Legend of Yang Yuhuan."

Although "The White-Haired Witch" performed worse than "The Legend of Xue Rengui" and "The Great Qing Imperial Harem," it genuinely boosted Fan Xiaopang's profile.

More importantly, Fan Xiaopang's fame has skyrocketed through films, advertisements, and exposure, and she is the only one among the Four Dan and Two Bing still consistently filming dramas.

Rarity commands value; since other actresses of her level no longer film dramas, Fan Xiaopang is now the most popular female star in television.

Because of this, many television stations are willing to buy in.

Moreover, most of Fan Xiaopang's dramas over the past two years have performed well, and even the few weaker ones still cleared the passing threshold.

Thus, the price for "The Legend of Yang Yuhuan" remains decent, qualifying as one of Yian's single-episode million-yuan target projects.

If it truly reaches this level, the total projected revenue could exceed 65 million yuan, and could be even higher if performance is strong.

Fan Xiaopang's role in this is not decisive, but undeniably crucial.

The Film & TV Department and Artist Management Department have begun studying whether Fan Xiaopang's next drama, "Crimson Snow," will be the fastest option, or if it will be the one after "Crimson Snow."

Both departments must evaluate Fan Xiaopang's value-add to projects and then allocate corresponding benefits.

Whether to establish the company's first studio is also under discussion.

Fan Xiaopang herself is somewhat indifferent to this.

Due to her special relationship with Yan Li, even without a studio, she lacks neither freedom nor financial benefits—the company has never shortchanged her.

However, her personal team wants fewer intermediaries, greater profits, and more influence.

Meanwhile, Artist Management does not want its biggest money-maker to become semi-independent and disrupt departmental control.

Where there are people, there is intrigue; this is true not just across Yian as a whole, but even around a single popular artist, endless disputes arise.

Besides its own productions, Yian has invested in "Golden Wedding" and solely distributed "New Shanghai Bund" and "Struggle."

"Golden Wedding" has the lowest asking price.

Lead actors Zhang Guoli and Jiang Wenli are both well-known in the industry, but their popularity and exposure remain questionable.

Moreover, this family-era drama genre is not particularly favored by the market.

To be fair, the audience for this genre is still considerable, and its upper limit is quite high.

But its lower limit is also low—or rather, most such dramas achieve only average ratings and reception.

As a result, opinions on "Golden Wedding" are divided: some are optimistic, others pessimistic, and television stations overall adopt a conservative stance.

Combined with its high episode count, "Golden Wedding" has the lowest per-episode price among these dramas, at roughly 650, 00 yuan.

"New Shanghai Bund" is vastly different: its cast is excellent, featuring Huang Xiaoming and Sun Li at the peak of their popularity, alongside powerhouse male actors like Huang Haibo and Li Xuejian and veteran performers.

Director Gao Xixi has had solid results over the past two years, and the drama itself is an adaptation of the massively influential original "Shanghai Bund," naturally drawing immense attention.

Even without Yian, if another reliable and capable distribution company took over, a per-episode million-yuan deal would still be possible.

But Yian's approach is more stable, and its other revenue streams are also higher.

Ultimately, after a trial broadcast on local channels, the drama was sold for its first satellite broadcast at 1. 5 million yuan per episode, totaling 44. million yuan (42 episodes).

This price may not have shocked the industry, but it was undeniably a significant transaction.

To be honest, Yan Li himself feels that even though he arranged Deng Chao's publicity stunt, Huang Xiaoming should still throw him a banquet to show gratitude.

Not to mention the marketing boost from the Big Four's top male star also benefited him; simply by Yian distributing Huang Xiaoming's three dramas—"The Deer and the Cauldron," "The Return of the Condor Heroes," and "New Shanghai Bund"—all surpassing one million yuan per episode, his value has been lifted enormously.

After all, with these dramas achieving such box-office success, Huang Xiaoming, as the lead, naturally became a market favorite.

Although Yian merely played a supporting role in this, it still warrants this young man—and even Hua Yi's two brothers—to treat Yan Li to a banquet.

Of course, Yan Li himself also made a small profit from it.

The distribution share for "The Deer and the Cauldron" is the same as for "The Return of the Condor Heroes"—16%.

For "New Shanghai Bund," other distributors competed fiercely; despite Yian's strong advantages, to secure the project, they made some concessions, settling on a 14% share.

Based on current trends, the combined revenue of these two dramas will certainly exceed 150 million yuan.

Especially "The Deer and the Cauldron," with a guaranteed minimum of 80 million yuan; at that figure alone, Yian's income exceeds 12 million yuan.

"New Shanghai Bund" is also performing well, with a real chance of reaching 80 million yuan; at least a 70–75 million yuan range is certain, giving Yian another roughly 10 million yuan.

Seen this way, Huang Xiaoming is barely a lucky charm for Yan Li.

Had he not already colluded with Hua Yi and been blocked by Qin Lan, from a practical standpoint, he would be Yian's ideal top star.

As for the final drama, "Struggle," its sales were also strong.

Although its cast isn't exceptional, Tong Dawei, Li Xiao, and Ma Yi are all popular young actors and actresses; though most others are newcomers, they are backed by the renowned director Zhao Baogang.

As previously noted, a TV director's fame and influence are vastly inferior to that of a film director.

To be called a renowned director with real clout means, in essence, only a handful are willing to be backed by television stations.

But Zhao Baogang is undoubtedly one of them; his numerous Haiyan dramas and signature works have earned strong recognition from the industry, media, and public, especially in modern-themed content, which TV stations practically compete to secure.

Had Yian not had such a strong reputation and Tong Dawei not brokered the connection, Zhao Baogang might never have entrusted "Struggle" to Yian for distribution.

Fortunately, Yian did not disappoint him—in fact, it exceeded his expectations.

Recall that "Struggle," as a modern drama with a relatively modest cast, had a modest production cost of around 15 million yuan.

Normally, due to Zhao Baogang's reputation, it would carry a premium over typical dramas, making it highly likely to break even on its first broadcast.

But Zhao Baogang never expected Yian to sell "Struggle" to four satellite channels, pushing the per-episode price to 800, 00 yuan.

"Struggle" has 32 episodes; at 800, 00 yuan per episode, that's over 25. million yuan—far exceeding the break-even point and netting a profit of 10 million yuan.

Zhao Baogang had long known Yian was excellent at selling dramas; even Hua Yi and Hai Run occasionally handed their key projects to Yian for distribution.

But he never imagined Yian was this powerful—if they keep selling like this, "Struggle" could become the most profitable drama his company has produced in years.

In fact, Zhao Baogang didn't realize that "Struggle" achieved such success due to one special factor:

First, Yian's TV drama distribution follows a premium strategy, deriving most of its annual revenue from just a few blockbuster hits.

Therefore, the more profitable a drama is, the more elite personnel and resources Yian devotes to it, often achieving market-shattering, record-breaking results.

Second, Zhao Baogang is a renowned director in the industry, with high output and consistently solid results.

Meanwhile, his company Xinbaoyuan has some capital but lacks the strength of Hai Run or Hua Yi, has no ambition to become a giant, and doesn't mind handing distribution rights to others.