On October 17, director Sun officially joined Alibaba's Digital Entertainment and established the Sanbianpo Studio, marking the company's first director-led series studio. Sun made it clear that the Sanbianpo Studio will focus on original content creation in the future and will fully leverage Alibaba's abundant platform resources and robust cinematic industrial capabilities, aiming to produce more high-quality series. Youku's Vice President Xie Ying also expressed excitement about the prospect of more ambitious directors with a sense of mission joining Alibaba's Digital Entertainment to elevate industry standards.

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The secure creative environment fostered by Alibaba Digital Entertainment and its forward-looking industrial strength were key factors in attracting Sun to join. He also revealed that the studio currently has one project in the planning stage.

Sun mentioned, “From ‘Asylum’ to ‘Clouds,’ and now to ‘Tales from the Edge,’ my works have primarily been broadcast on the Youku platform. Now that I have transitioned from being a partner to a colleague with the operations, promotions, and IP development teams, we can start collaboration much earlier. During the production process, we can fully consider various aspects such as marketing, broadcasting, and post-sales, allowing for better interaction with users to achieve optimal results. I've also visited the virtual filming studio, which gives me more confidence to experiment if I have future plans for sci-fi shoots.”

‘Tales from the Edge,’ as a powerful follow-up to Youku's Baiye Theater after ‘Dim Light’ and ‘Rebirth,’ employs extreme realism to create a brand new world—Sanbianpo. Every detail, from the environmental depiction to costume and language design, vividly reflects reality, allowing the audience to easily feel a sense of immersion and empathy. The series has maintained a Douban rating of 8.0, making it the highest-rated mystery drama of this summer’s broadcast season.

‘Tales from the Edge’ poster

With the widespread attention surrounding ‘Tales from the Edge,’ director Sun, along with Shen Ao, who directed ‘Rebirth,’ Xin Shuang, who directed ‘The Long Season,’ and Xu Hongyu, who directed ‘Under the Human,’ has been recognized as one of the "Four Emerging Directors" in national drama, representing a new force to carry the banner of China's film and television development. It is understood that the cooperative relationship between Sun and Youku has been ongoing for a long time. In addition to ‘Tales from the Edge,’ Sun's first directed series, ‘Asylum,’ was also aired on Youku. Furthermore, Sun's new project, ‘Suspicion Case,’ is listed in Youku's 2024-2025 schedule announced in September.

In recent years, Youku has taken a series of proactive measures to prioritize and sign new directors. For instance, Youku has launched multiple support programs for new directors, offering them financial backing, creative resources, and professional guidance. Additionally, Youku actively hosts various director training activities and workshops, inviting industry veterans to share their experiences, assisting new directors in enhancing their creative skills and artistic literacy. Moreover, Youku has established a dedicated platform to showcase new directors’ works, providing more exposure opportunities to help a wider audience discover and engage with their creations.

In the past few years, Alibaba Digital Entertainment has attracted many talented individuals from external film and television companies. Numerous experienced producers, such as Dun Qi from ‘Empresses in the Palace,’ former Wanda Film General Manager Yin Xiangjin, former CEO of Yan Yu Films Yan Bei, and Wang Jin, founder of Beijing Times Light and Shadow, have all joined Alibaba Digital Entertainment and established series studios. Currently, Alibaba Digital Entertainment boasts over 20 series studios in total.