The female period legend drama Splendid Splendor, broadcast simultaneously on CCTV-8 and Youku’s “Sheng Hua Theater,” has recently wrapped up with great success. The drama opened to massive attention and even narrowly broke the 2025 annual ratings record of The Source of All Creatures on CCTV-8, according to CVB (China Audiovisual Big Data). With outstanding ratings and rising popularity, it has sparked wide‑ranging discussions on social platforms and become a bright highlight on the screen this autumn.

Behind its popularity lies a strong production team. Adapted from the best‑selling novel The Ambitionist by Shi Tou Yu Shui, the drama is helmed by director Yu Ding, screenwriter Su Xiaoyuan, and chief producer Wang Jin. It stars Reyizha and Tony Yang, with powerful supporting performances from Mao Zijun, Chai Biyun, and special appearances by veteran actors Tu Songyan and Ding Yongdai. Centered on Chu Shaohua, a daughter of a traditional Chinese medicine family, the drama tells an inspiring story of how she breaks free from traditional constraints, ventures into the business world, and eventually grows into an outstanding female entrepreneur amid the turbulent Republic of China era.

What truly grounds the story is the production team’s pursuit of quality and detail. To authentically present business competition in the Republic of China, three economics experts were invited to guide the whole process, ensuring realism and depth in the plot. The team also strived for perfection in scene design — especially the iconic Shanghai Dock, a key setting that marks the heroine’s life turning point, embodies the intertwining of her emotions and career, and stands as a “witness” to her transformation.

It was here that she first arrived in Shanghai, lost and uncertain; here that she inspired Cheng Hui to regain his direction in life; here that she and Xia Chu fulfilled their promise, talked all night, confessed their feelings, and got engaged — only to lose him while waiting in her finest dress; here that she firmly refused help from her friend Erniu to avoid dragging her into a lawsuit;

And here that she and her business partner Wen Zhiqiu searched for newspaper clues through the night, deepening their trust as they solved crises side by side. Every inch of the Shanghai Dock carries Chu Shaohua’s emotional shifts, entanglements, and growth.

The entire “Shanghai Bund” scene was presented on a 28.5‑meter‑diameter LED screen. Combining high‑precision digital scenery and real‑time rendering technology, the crew seamlessly achieved day‑night transitions, weather changes, character interactions, and camera movements within the virtual studio. Chong Ya, Digital Production Director of Orca Entertainment and Virtual Production Director of Splendid Splendor, noted that only the front half of the cargo ship in the drama was physical; the cockpit, funnel, and river surface were all displayed on the virtual production LED screen. Through hard‑connection technology, on‑screen assets and real props were perfectly integrated.

The application of virtual production realistically restored the dock scenery of Republican‑era Shanghai: glistening Huangpu River, neatly arranged old warehouses, rickshaws and merchant ships coming and going… every detail brims with historical texture. Actors felt as if they were on a real dock, naturally embodying their characters’ emotions, while audiences were immersed in Chu Shaohua’s world. This greatly improved both shooting efficiency and visual quality.

The Shanghai Bund scene recreated with virtual production in Splendid Splendor.

As a pioneer in virtual production, EXCO VISION has previously supported the virtual scene production of popular dramas including The Puzzle of the Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival, Seven Heart Scrolls, and A Mortal's Journey to Immortality. This time, empowering Splendid Splendor, the company not only created a key emotional and plot‑driven scene with LED screens but also proved the vital role of virtual production in filmmaking. Virtual production breaks the space‑time limits of on‑location shooting, efficiently restores scenes of different eras and regions, and delivers delicate visuals that strongly support storytelling and character building. When virtual technology meets creative dedication, great stories find their perfect stage — resulting in the high quality and popularity of this drama.

Engineer Huang Chengming provided full‑time on‑site technical support throughout the shooting.

As Splendid Splendor continues to gain traction, we witness not only a powerful drama but also the unlimited potential virtual production brings to the film and television industry. In the future, EXCO VISION will continue to deepen its focus on VP virtual production, empower creativity with technology, build immersive stages for more great stories, and vividly bring every legend to life!