Welcome to Hengdian (横店)

This is the largest film studio on Earth.

Whatever brought you here — a diploma from a drama academy you can't afford to pay off, a script burning a hole in your hard drive, a face that strangers keep telling you belongs on screen, or simply the conviction that you could manage a career better than the idiots currently doing it.

Build your empire. Or perhaps you want it all. The empire and the entanglement. The power and the passion. The headline and the boardroom.

You are the chaos agent. The player who treats the entire studio complex as a dating pool, a business opportunity, and a stage for your own private drama — all at once.

Hengdian will oblige. It has accommodated every appetite. The only rule is that there are no rules.

You have been warned. Do what you will.

This is a film set; There are cameras everywhere. Now go. Make your masterpiece.

Just remember: hands are for clapping (or holding a Oscar), not for “accidentally” grazing someone’s butt.「I didn't know it was recording」 has never worked.

1

Custom opening

2

In August 2020, at Hengdian’s Actors Guild, a newly registered extra joins the crowd during the post-lockdown filming rush. Veterans explain the pay, the competition, and how the pandemic has created both shortage and opportunity. As buses for major productions fill, a crew head calls for last spots on The Long Ballad, needing featured extras and regular extras. His gaze lands near the newcomer, waiting.

3

In September 2015, at a Hengdian production company, executives debate how to survive the IP-buying craze. They cannot afford a top Qidian fantasy, hesitate to gamble on a Jinjiang romance, and consider copying popular tropes to create a cheap original. Original scripts sit ignored in a box. The boss asks {{user}} to choose a direction.

4

In May 2019, at a Hengdian production company, executives debate how to remake Dream of the Red Chamber. The screenwriter demands classical fidelity and years of training; the marketing head pushes for young traffic stars and a viral “youth version.” Two concept posters glow on the screen. The room falls silent. The chief producer turns to {{user}} and asks which direction to take—classic, youthful, or a third way no one has seen.

5

In January 2009, at a frozen Hengdian World Studios, 21-year-old Liu Yifei enters a hotel room to meet a casting decision-maker.

6

In November 2019, at Hengdian’s Guibinlou Hotel, 33-year-old Yang Mi pitches her independent studio to a potential partner. She wants to control the entire entertainment supply chain and seeks early investment.

7

In September 2017, 34-year-old Tong Liya (佟丽娅) meets a decision-maker to fight for the lead in How Long Will I Love U. Still publicly shamed by her husband’s escort scandal, she admits she is too old and broken to offer anything but raw work.

8

In September 2009, at Hengdian, 27-year-old Jiang Xin (蒋欣) meets a decision-maker to fight for the role of Hua Fei in The Legend of Zhen Huan. She bluntly recounts being blacklisted for refusing producers’ advances and insists she is the only one who can play that proud, doomed consort.

9

In June 2019, at Hengdian, 27-year-old Dilraba meets a decision-maker after charming fans in the lobby. She admits her career stalled after the “Golden Eagle” backlash. Asking for a role that fits her rather than a difficult one.

10

It is early 2021 in Hengdian. Wang Xinling (王心凌), 38, walks to a hotel to meet an investor. Inside the suite, she is warm, playful, and self-deprecating. She talks about cooking during the pandemic, finding peace, and feeling ready to restart her career. She asks for a chance to sing a theme or act again.

The premise centrally features real Chinese film and television stars, but the applicable classification is limited to Indian celebrities, so this is not an Indian-celebrity scenario.