Anniversary production

Ma Jihong, scriptwriter of the series, says stories about diplomacy are "mysterious and attractive".

She says: "To make a TV series on this theme was challenging and required courage."

The production team built replica interiors of the White House, the Kremlin, the UN Palais des Nations and the planes and trains that were in service at that time.

The cast and crew also traveled to several cities including Beijing, Yantai in Shandong province and Dalian in Liaoning province, and to Russia, France, Switzerland and the United States for filming.

"We had more than 50,000 actors, including over 100 foreigners, 50,000 props and 1,000 sets," says Song Yeming, director of the drama.

The cast was key to the drama, Song adds.

The production team decided to strive for their first choices of actors and actresses from the very beginning, choosing Tang Guoqiang to play Mao and Sun Weimin to play Zhou.

"Tang showed a deep appreciation of the script, which gave us a lot of confidence," says Gao Jun, the general producer.

Zhao Yifang, president of the drama's production company Zhejiang Huace Film and TV Co, attributes the success of Diplomatic Situation to the dedication of the production team.