From the perspective of production companies and OTT platforms, it seems like the OTT side is overwhelmingly in a dominant position.
When production companies submit proposals or scripts to an OTT platform, the platform conducts internal reviews to select projects for investment.
Thus, only after being “selected” can a production receive funding and be included in the lineup, meaning production companies are invariably at the mercy of the OTT platform.
“Oliver Green from Finesse’s international content management team, pleased to meet you.”
“Finesse’s South Korea branch manager, Seo Yoonseop, pleased to meet you.”
In that sense, it’s quite an unusual event that Finesse personnel would visit us.
Given that it wasn’t just someone from Finesse’s Korea branch—it was the branch manager himself, this was more than noteworthy.
However, judging from the atmosphere between the two men, it was clear that the key figure here was Oliver Green, the foreigner.
Glancing at him, he seems like someone dispatched directly from Finesse’s headquarters. With the Korea branch manager accompanying him, it’s evident he occupies a highly significant position.
We sent them two one-minute teasers cut from the first episode, yet for them to rush over like this is highly unusual.
“There is no need for pleasantries; let’s watch the footage.”
Indeed, one cannot fully grasp the essence of the show from just two teasers.
As soon as the two men arrived, a makeshift screening session began. With all relevant parties gathered, two dramas aired back-to-back.
“Ah, that’s Steampunk New York…”
“Wow, this level of quality… ”
“San Francisco… it’s incredible…”
From the very start, Steampunk New York and San Francisco delivered a striking impact.
All-CG opening scenes from the drama, likely the ones that swallowed the most investment, provided an overwhelming visual satisfaction in just a few minutes.
“Whoa, my god. Gatling?”
Of course, the climax of the episode was Violet the demolitions expert blowing up San Francisco International Airport.
Heavenly Yuah’s Gatling gun fired off with tremendous firepower, turning everything to rubble. Thanks to the polished CG, it felt far from the somewhat naive set used during filming.
Frankly, it was almost hard to believe that the calm woman sitting there watching the footage and the manic young woman wielding the Gatling gun were one and the same.
Even the content experts from Finesse, who must have seen all kinds of media, were unable to keep their mouths shut at the overwhelming force on screen.
“…It’s astonishing.”
Likewise, the depiction of Steampunk Joseon left them in awe.
The background—a mix of the archaic late Joseon period and steam technology—though jarringly anachronistic, felt all the more real.
Because the royal court failed to establish proper law and order, powerful aristocrats exploited and oppressed the common people, creating a perfect dystopian atmosphere that fit seamlessly into the steampunk theme.
“Luna…”
Towards the end of the second episode, the Han River ferry dock bathed in moonlight featured Wolhee singing alone, spotted by Lee Myung.
Their intense eye contact concluded our prepared footage of the second episode.
With me, Moon Suyeon, and Heavenly Yuah, all the main characters were introduced, giving the Finesse side a clearer understanding of their choices.
“…Very good.”
Oliver’s expression was bright, almost as if he discovered the rumored feast to be even more bountiful than expected.
Even for me, this felt much more accomplished compared to the old “Joseon Gold Rush” project, which makes sense considering the vastly different budget.
Or, perhaps Finesse is even more delighted that a drama that could have ended up elsewhere is now firmly in their hands.
After all, Finesse hasn’t completely dominated Korea’s OTT industry.
Despite holding around 50% of the market share globally and nearly 60% in North America, Finesse’s share in South Korea doesn’t even reach 40%.
Forty percent may be impressive, but it’s far from a monopoly.
When combined, Finesse’s rivals, ‘Blue’ and ‘DreamTV’, hold about 50% market share.
Thus, Finesse wouldn’t want to miss out on a project like this.
It’s also why we’re in a position to negotiate from a slight upper hand.
“Let’s finalize the contract. Naturally, based on the general format for original content…”
“Hmm, I believe the calculations should be somewhat different.”
“What do you mean?”
“The situation isn’t the same as for Finesse original content; therefore, the terms should differ.”
“…That.”
In Finesse’s original content production agreements, they generally cover 120-130% of the production costs, with Finesse retaining all rights.
Any profits derived from production or planning ultimately amount to only 20-30% of the production cost.
Though this is not insignificant, it is indeed an unreasonable contract under current circumstances where the drama is already completed.
Finesse’s claim to all the fruits stems from two things:
Providing stable funding for the production costs and assuming the risks of failure.
But in this case, the situation is completely different. Rather than Finesse funding the production of the drama, this involved Finesse purchasing an already completed drama.
They are essentially examining the already completed piece and deciding to purchase, so the notion of them monopolizing all the profits is overreaching.
“So, what do you propose?”
“We don’t want much. Just additional rewards tied to performance.”
“Performance-based rewards? But to my knowledge, no previous projects have shared such additional compensation…”
“That may hold true in Korea, but I hear many don’t follow this rule. And this situation is clearly different from general cases, isn’t it?”
The investor, Tian Financial, and the production company Phoenix have simple goals:
If the drama performs well, then they would like to share that success.
While it’s a fact that Finesse’s original content produced in Korea has never shared profit, that’s not necessarily true in other countries. Considering the conditions differ from standard original content, we can make a strong case.
At this point, the terms are almost equivalent to those of a fairy.
We are simply asking that profits be shared should the performance be successful, not for money upfront before seeing any results.
“To respect the relationship between S&M and Finesse’s headquarters…”
“That’s why we contacted Finesse first. However, neither Blue nor Dream wanted even exclusive rights, claiming they would offer a flat 120%.”
“Damn them…”
“And while we’re on the subject, wasn’t it better that we didn’t bring up the S&M angle in this situation?”
“…Ah, I apologize.”
“Yes, your apology is accepted.”
They really are aggressive.
If both sides were offering 120%, how much would be left?
Even though the drama looks like it will succeed, securing it this way is still feasible.
But, for the actors, entering Finesse, which holds the largest market share, is still the most profitable route.
Especially in North America, where Finesse’s share is nearly insurmountable.
The reach is truly incomparable.
Let’s be honest: to even submit your card for the Emmys or Golden Globes, securing North America through Finesse is the most efficient approach.
Heavenly Yuah herself, as an actor, must have chosen Finesse first for this very reason.
“…Alright. Let’s move forward. The details of the deal…”
“Yes, our conditions are as follows: thus…”
“That’s not excessively demanding.”
“We have no intention of creating conflict over a single drama. We just aim for reasonable adjustments.”
Ultimately, Finesse accepted our conditions.
To summarize, in exchange for Finesse securing exclusive broadcast rights, they would pay 120% of the production costs. If the show goes global and becomes a massive hit, they’d receive an additional 80%, based on production costs.
This would make the sale price of the show 200% of the production cost.
It seems like a mutually beneficial agreement.
Since both sides benefit from success, their gains would far exceed ours if that sort of result is achieved.
“So, Season 2 will also be on Finesse, right? I would like this clearly stated in the contract.”
“…Well… We’ll see. Nonetheless, noted.”
“To be honest, I’m even more excited about that. A steampunk gold rush set in America.”
Even the Finesse personnel aren’t hot-headed; they meticulously secured the rights to any subsequent works.
If Finesse doesn’t take all the rights, those rights would naturally default to us. This was an effort to reserve those rights early.
In Finesse’s position, steampunk America would indeed be more appealing than the steampunk Joseon.
Especially the opening scene with steampunk New York, which was a masterpiece even to me.
“Could they have anticipated this far and used New York as a starting point?”
So, it’s a sort of bait, right?
To instill the expectation that if the first season succeeds, the second season will bring something even better.
This isn’t something Finesse can overlook, is it?
Considering how carefully Heavenly Yuah and Yang Yuli planned this, it’s not hard to imagine they might be on to something.
Of course, we’ll have to wait and see if this actually goes into production.
After wrapping up the contract, Heavenly Yuah calmly offered her thoughts, stating how everything went according to plan.
“Our proposal was accepted by Finesse, and that was expected. Regarding the second season rights, I didn’t want to give them away prematurely but see it as them covering their bases.”
“Ah, your expression was somewhat off… Were you planning not to give them away?”
“I intended to use that as leverage to gain more. But if they brought it up, I planned to agree. Of course, we managed to get 30% more than the initial plan of 170%.”
So, the initial plan was 170%, but it escalated to 200%.
If the results weren’t satisfying, they might have either moved away from Finesse or kept the second season on hold.
But considering who I know in Flame and Heavenly Yuah, they’d probably have fought tooth and nail for Finesse anyway.
“But earlier, the Finesse side mentioned something about S&M and headquarters’ relationship.”
“Finesse holds shares in S&M. But that doesn’t concern us.”
“…Is that so?”
Indeed, that must be it.
It seemed strange that someone from headquarters would visit just because of a single drama, but it seems like there was a reason.
Still, it’s better not to pry too much into this.
The atmosphere grew tense when that topic came up.
Sometimes, not knowing is better. This seems like one of those cases.
And in Martial Forest, meddling where you don’t belong always leads to trouble.
“Then why exactly am I here?”
The contract went well, but why was I invited to this meeting?
I thought I was still the advisor to the Heavenly Demon.
Still, it was nice to get a first look at my acting debut.
“Could it be out of consideration?”
What? Heavenly Yuah showing consideration?
That’s unheard of in Martial Forest.
The world is truly a mysterious place.
—
And finally, why I was summoned still remains a mystery.
