好故事没有国界（A good story goes beyond borders） 。

这话，双语君（微信ID：Chinadaily_Mobile）不知道听多少个导演说过。

当时，觉得这话多少有点陈词滥调（cliché）。但自从国产剧（domestic series）接二连三地爆出进军海外市场的消息，双语君终于悟到：这果然是金科玉律。

双语君刚报过这条新闻（点击回顾）：

豆瓣上9分的《白夜追凶》（Day and Night）宣布被网飞（Netflix）买下海外发行权，这部网剧将通过网飞在全球190多个国家和地区播出。

After acquiring the rights of Chinese online series Day and Night, which scored nine points out of 10 on China’s popular review site Douban.com, Netflix plans to make it available in more than 190 countries and regions where it is active.

而想想上次网飞买的、动静挺大的国产剧是《甄嬛传》（ Empresses in the Palace），由此可见，好故事永远不缺买家。

但《甄嬛传》在海外播出时，为迎合北美观众口味，被生生从76集压缩到6集，导致情节不连贯，让这部在豆瓣上8.9分的优质剧，当时在网飞上，低到只有两星半的评分（满分五星）。 

When Empresses in the Palace was streamed on Netflix in the United States, its original 76 episodes were cut to six to cater to Western viewers.

But the condensed version had an impact on the characters, twists and suspense, and the public response to the serial did not meet the distributors' expectations, according to some Chinese industry analysts.

希望这几年，中国影视业的崛起和成长，能让国内片方更有文化自信，让《白夜追凶》不会遭遇同样水土不服的剪刀手。

而最近在网上热映的《海上牧云记》（Tribes and Empires: Story of Prophecy），也早早布局海外。

该剧在内地三大视频网站（video-streaming sites）上线的同时，海外发行也在进行中。

据双语君（微信ID：Chinadaily_Mobile）了解到，该剧已经在香港TVB和面向北美地区观众为主的Youtube上播出，韩国也会很快播出。此外，该剧也将陆续在马来西亚、新加坡和台湾播放。

中国片方给海外播出平台提供不含字幕的母带，由各区域的播出平台，按各自需求加字幕，或是加配音。

The fantasy series Tribes and Empires: Story of Prophecy, which has aired on Hong Kong’s TVB and the American video-streaming service Netflix,  will also be broadcast in South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan.

而今年早些时候，据说在越南、俄罗斯等国兴起汉语学习热的《楚乔传》（Princess Agents），也被中国国际电视总公司看中，包揽了该剧的海外发行。

据悉，《楚乔传》在Youtube上的播放量将近30亿。而且，据海外发行方统计：有一半的点击来自美国，而美国对楚乔最热情的观众群分布在加州，该州观众共收看《楚乔传》长达1.17亿分钟。而主要观剧人群的年龄分布，则在25岁到34岁之间。

Princess Agents has set a record for YouTube views – nearly 3 billion - making it the most-watched Chinese TV drama internationally. 

About half the clicks abroad have come from the United States, according to a report from the producers. California topped the list of states watching the series, having viewed 117 million minutes, the report says. The main age demographic ranges from 25 to 34.

这些“战绩”让发行方颇为看好该剧的海外发行。《楚乔传》预计翻译成9种语言，将发行到85个国家和地区，覆盖北美、非洲、欧洲和亚洲。而且，和之前《甄嬛传》在网飞播出时的大幅度压缩不同，《楚乔传》在海外播出的将是完整版，都加配音或加字幕。

目前，海外发行工作正在进行中，由于市场不同，进度也不同。发行方透露，有些国家流程繁琐，比如要进入日本市场，一般需要至少6个月的时间。

Distributors plan to translate Princess Agents into nine foreign languages for export to 85 countries and regions in North America, Europe, Africa and Asia. Unlike The Legend of Zhenhuan, Princess Agents will have all its episodes translated with subtitles or dubbing. 

But the distributors say the release schedule depends on the translation  workflow. For instance, for Japan it will take six months.

其实现在回想，两年前《甄嬛传》在网飞播出时，输得有点儿冤。

毕竟，从这几年的影视剧的民间口碑来看，国内外的评价，不至于能差别到这么大的程度。

大多数在IMDb、Rotten Tomatoes上获得高分的影视剧，在豆瓣上分数也不会低。这证明：环球同此凉热。

从《甄嬛传》到《白夜追凶》，从2011年到2017年，这六年，也是中国影视行业从狂飙猛进，到增速放缓、挤出泡沫的六年。

同时，这六年，也是海外市场对中国影视内容兴趣剧增的六年。

China’s movie and television industry has seen a shift from rapid expansion to a slowdown in the growth rate over 2011-2017, as overseas markets have shown an increasing interest in Chinese content.

这一点，东阳欢娱影视的老总杨乐感受很深。

 欢娱影视CEO杨乐与伊朗片商洽谈

她第一次跟编剧于正去法国参加戛纳电视节（MIPCOM），是2006年。当时，参展的中国影视公司为数寥寥，外国买家也鲜有问津者。

可前不久再赴戛纳，外国公司的热情却让她大为吃惊。从10月16日至19日，一共三天的电视节活动，前后有超过200家外国参展商光顾她的展位。

欢娱带了三部古装剧《朝歌》（Zhao Ge）、《延禧攻略》（Story of Yanxi Palace）和《凤囚凰》（Untouchable Lovers）前去参展。为吸引外国买家注意，他们在展台设置中国文化展示区，陈列绣制精美的帝后服装，以及用古法镶嵌的朝冠等。此外，还在展台播放纪录片，展示这些服饰的制作流程。

《延禧攻略》剧照

Yang Le, a longtime distributor, has observed these changes in the past decade. 

When she toured Cannes to promote Chinese television dramas in 2006, Yang was disappointed with her first visit to MIPCOM, the world's largest trade show for entertainment content held in the French city each October. Only a few Chinese companies were there, and they struggled to hold the attention of prospective foreign buyers.

But Yang's recent trip to Cannes for this year's trade show, held from Oct 16 to 19, was a pleasant surprise. More than 200 prospective foreign buyers visited her company's exhibition area, which featured imperial-style costumes and ornaments used by lead characters in three upcoming TV series - Zhao Ge, Story of Yanxi Palace and Untouchable Lovers.

老外们来来往往，杨乐不停给他们介绍这三部电视剧的故事。

有二十多家外国购片方对《朝歌》表示兴趣，其中有以往较少引进华语剧集的阿联酋、波兰和巴基斯坦等。其中，马来西亚和韩国已签约购买该剧在本国的发行。

So far, more than 20 prospective customers - coming from countries including the United Arab Emirates, Poland and Pakistan - have shown interest in purchasing the distribution rights of Zhao Ge. Buyers from Malaysia and South Korea already have signed contracts forZhao Ge.

《朝歌》剧照

也许，这三个从商朝到南北朝，再到清代的故事，其中历史的曲折幽深，宫闱的勾心斗角，对于外国人太过复杂。

但正如我们记不住漫威DC里的超级英雄名字，一样可以看炫目的动作戏看得津津有味，歪果仁也一样可以记不住这些古代帝皇将相的名字，但会被画面上精美的刺绣、氤氲的香炉和华丽的首饰吸引。

《朝歌》剧照

而且，爱情、人性、阴谋——这些埋在故事里的核，无论肤色或语言，谁都可以被感动被吸引。

Zhao Ge, named after an ancient dynasty's capital, is based on heroes and romances going back about 3,000 years; Story of Yanxi Palace is set in the reign of 18th century Emperor Qianlong and chronicles the rise of a royal maid to be the ruler's most-loved concubine; while Untouchable Lovers is about a fake princess who is dragged into controversy in fifth century China.

《凤囚凰》海报

再来看几组中国影视剧扬帆出海的大数据，大概可以一窥：这几年来，中国影视人如何“硬气”起来——

据广电总局公布的数据，目前已经有1600多部的中国优秀影视作品译配成了英、法、俄、西、阿、葡等36种语言，在100多个国家进行播出。

Statistics from the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television show that China so far has translated more than 1,600 domestic movies and television productions into 36 languages - including English, French, Russian, Spanish, Arabic and Portuguese - and they are being aired in more than 100 countries.

此外，2016年中国电视剧出口总额为5.1亿人民币，占整体电视节目内容出口总额的68%。

Last year, China's exports of TV series earned 510 million yuan ($77.2 million), accounting for 68 percent of the total earnings from exported television content, according to the administration.

但当国产剧在吸引海外迷妹的追捧，并让外国字幕组忙活的时候，我们也有必要听一听外国“圈内人”的意见。在他们看来，中国电视剧要大规模征战海外，还是有不少挑战。

Meanwhile, even as China is active in taking its small screen content to the rest of the world, potential buyers and industry watchers outside China pointed to potential challenges.

Michael Nakan是伦敦一家影视代理机构Clipper Media Capital的创始合伙人。他频繁来往于伦敦和北京之间，对中英影视剧都颇有了解。

在他看来，西方主流观众开始对中国影视剧内容感兴趣，主要是因为过去二十多年来，中国经济发展迅速，让他们希望通过中国的影视剧，看到中国正在发生什么，希望更多了解中国。

Michael Nakan, founding partner of the London-based movie and television agency Clipper Media Capital, said Western viewers are interested in China because of the country's booming economy during the past two decades. 

但在他看来，有些类型恐怕终归不好卖。“喜剧就是这样的。喜剧很少能在本国以外受到欢迎。比方说，英国观众就很难喜欢法国喜剧。”

But he said some genres will be hard to sell. "Comedy is something of a write-off. It rarely travels beyond its home territory. For example, it's hard to find French comedy which appeals to a British audience," Nakan said.

剧集长度也是个问题。许多英剧只有6集，美剧会长一些。但因为大多数中国剧集都是三十集以上，这会增加这种剧集吸引西方观众的难度。

"Also, the number of episodes is a key sticking point. Most British series are only six episodes, and even American dramas are getting shorter," he said.

So, with many Chinese historical dramas still being produced in tranches of 30-plus episodes, it will become increasingly difficult for Western audiences to engage with them, Nakan said.

Anke Redl是China Media Management Inc的创始人，该公司也是法国戛纳电视节在中国的代表处。

长期来往于欧洲与中国，Redl觉得，目前在欧美收看中国国产电视剧的主流观众，还是以华人为主；而对大多数西方观众而言，国产还是容易把他们看糊涂。她建议国产剧真的要“走出去”，还是走合拍或中外合作的路子，更靠谱些。

Anke Redl, founder of China Media Management Inc - the Beijing-based representative of MIP events - said most fans of Chinese television dramas abroad are limited to the Chinese community and Western audiences will get lost while following the same plots.

Redl said stories coproduced by Chinese and Western teams, especially with professionals who understand both sides, will work with foreign audiences.

这些年，各国制片人纷至沓来，既寻求将本国内容卖到中国这个庞大的市场，也渴望与中国展开合作。但同时，中国影视公司也在曾经热情澎湃、但或多或少有些盲目激进的“走出去”之后，有了更冷静的思考。

在吸引传统的东南亚观众和欧美华人之外，中国影视剧再如何扩大地盘，看来依旧任重道远。

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