April 28, 2023 | Issue 3219
Since late March, the offline activities of the film and television industry have hardly stopped, and practitioners have indeed felt the vitality of a long absence in the process of rushing to the scene, but the emotions transmitted from the top down are rational.
On the one hand, Gong Yu called for innovation and refused to cater in his speech at the Spring Promotion Conference, which shows that the determination of the long video platform to insist on reducing costs and increasing efficiency and long-term will not waver. In the hottest micro-short drama track, the platform also showed the attitude of "roll content without roll production".
On the other hand, the general climate of the industry is still cold, and the second-round dramas broadcast by first-line satellite TV are normalized, and there is a trend of intensification; The results of last year's "difficult meeting" are directly reflected in the number of launches and finalities in the first quarter of this year - even much less than during the prevention and control period.
List of finale dramas from January to April (incomplete statistics)
Some players have already left, some have moved to the mini-drama track, and the athletes who remain in the long theater will only become more rational. To some extent, the dramas that can be started and finished now are either competitive in content or lineup, or have cost advantages, and there is always hope of breaking through on one end.
Before that, we were
"38 new dramas start, the rarest are these nine"
The article analyzes the situation of the opening drama, and today's article will take a look at the appearance of the finale drama since this year.
01
Although there is no theme of the same magnitude as in the past five years, there are still traces to follow in the areas where the main theme is concentrated, one is the theme of resisting US aggression and aiding Korea, the other is to commemorate the 130th anniversary of Mao Zedong's birth, and the third is to reflect the policy achievements of the new era and show the working status and spiritual outlook of government officials.
Written by Lan Xiaolong and Chen Qiongqiong, "Winter and Lion" directed by Gao Xixi is the fastest progressing of the three dramas to resist US aggression and aid Korea. This work has traveled a long way from the script to the film, but the process of transformation into a drama is exceptionally smooth, and the reason is not difficult to perceive. Gao Xixi has strong control on the set and can always complete the shooting task in time within the specified time.
In addition, his experience in creating themes is also rich, and he is able to step on fewer minefields during the production process, which ensures progress. If nothing else, the drama will be broadcast around July 27 this year (the anniversary of the signing of the Korean Armistice Agreement in Panmunjom).
There are at least four works commemorating the 130th anniversary of Mao Zedong's birth, namely "The Great Avenue Fire", "Blood and Glory", "Ask the Sky" and "Kunpeng Strikes the Waves", the fastest progress is "The Avenue Fire", which was completed in August last year, and the other three have started filming, of which the filming of "Blood and Glory" has gone through more than 200 days, and this month has just completed the shooting task in the Longyan area of Fujian, and will complete the finishing work in Shijiazhuang, Hebei and Beijing.
In addition to the two major themes, there is the Executive Board, which focuses on the group of court enforcement judges; "The Banner of Fathers" about forestry reform and ecological inheritance; and "Rivers on the Day", which is also an ecological and environmental protection theme.
When there is no major tribute node, entering the ecological environmental protection theme is indeed an insurance choice, but it has to be mentioned that the same type of works have never been absent in recent years, and the implementation rules and stories of ecological environmental protection do have a refreshing effect, and how to establish a two-way connection with the audience is always a difficult problem that it needs to face. If this matter is not solved, it is easy to fall into the dilemma of self-hilarity.
02
Costume dramas are still the majority, accounting for nearly one-third of the 24 finale dramas counted.
Although costume fairy tales and costume romance have long had a homogeneous tendency, in the process of Chinese dramas going overseas, it firmly occupies the position of "business card". Their stories are not unfamiliar to their audiences. The three lifetimes of reincarnation, saving the lives of the three worlds, the inspirational ambition of traditional women, and the love of both men and women, these keywords can roughly summarize the creative style of works such as "Shenyin", "Cloud Feather", "Burning Wind", "One Nian Guanshan" and so on.
There are two directions that costume dramas need to pay special attention to, one is detectives, and the other is farming.
Last year's "Tang Dynasty Mystery" was not only a hit, but also caused an unexpected effective discussion, reflecting the audience's thirst for this category.
Starring Hu Bingqing, Zhai Zilu and others, "Wind and Moon Bag" tells the story of a female catcher and a young man joining forces to solve a strange case.
"Nine Righteous People" is a bit like the costume version of "Murder on the Orient Express", telling the story of nine people who are inextricably linked to the case for different reasons to come together to avenge the unjust death of the girl.
There is a "Tian Geng Ji", starring Zeng Shunxi and Tian Xiwei, which is based on the pastoral farming life of the Song Dynasty, telling the story of two protagonists who fight relatives, farm business, make a fortune and know and love each other.
After the practice of dramas such as "Son-in-law" and "Qing Qing's Daily", iQiyi has been effective in the exploration of "costume + light comedy", as long as the lineup is not bad, almost one fire is produced, and the key costs can be controlled. From business war to court, to this farming drama, if this combination can adapt to different types of stories and achieve good broadcast effects, it may have a profound impact on the overall creation of costume dramas.
03
In the finished urban drama, the female drama retreats obviously. An "Orange Light" tells the story of a female investor who bottoms out and makes a comeback in adversity. There is also a "Good Things in Pairs", which tells the story of a stay-at-home mother who has been betrayed to complete her transition from a housewife to a working woman.
Last year, several women's topic dramas and group dramas were cold after they were broadcast, which seemed to herald the end of this wave of creative fever. From the perspective of creative ideas, women's dramas are returning to the narrative of "My First Half of Life", and they are no longer obsessed with the shaping of female group portraits. I hope that this turn will also usher in a new breakthrough in women's personalities.
In addition to the above plays, works such as "South to North", "Staggered Scenes", "Border Water Past", "Father's Flag", "Lone Eagle" and other works are also eye-catching. Period dramas or suspense dramas have always been a high incidence of popular and quality dramas, they all have mature creators and mature actors, but there is not much trend to talk about, and it is directly arranged when broadcasting.
【Text/Xu Xinqiang】