Zhu Tiexiong, a 32-year-old video artist with a massive following of 33 million on social media, is among the most recognised faces in China. Working in a small office in a serene neighbourhood of Chengdu, Sichuan province, he represents OST, a multichannel network that collaborates with over 5,000 creators to generate more than 200 billion videos. The short clips, mostly about Zhu in traditional outfits performing acrobatic stunts, are viewed over two billion times each day.
The scene at OST’s headquarters in Chengdu is a buzzing one, where many influencers are getting ready for live streaming and dancers are rehearsing for performances. The average age of the employees here is 24. These short videos earn massive revenue from advertisements on platforms like Douyin, the Chinese counterpart of TikTok.
However, OST and several such companies have started shifting their attention towards a new digital trend that has emerged from China and is now spreading across the globe – ultra-short dramas. These are soap operas with around 100 episodes, each being two to three minutes long. The trend skyrocketed in China during the COVID pandemic when movie theatres were shut down. These dramas are shot vertically, suiting mobile phone screens and catering to a viewer base that primarily uses platforms like TikTok.
Zhang Yang, OST’s head of scriptwriting for short dramas, notes that the immense popularity of these short dramas is due to their compatibility with the viewers’ busy lives. They are convenient to watch while commuting or sipping a cup of coffee and do not demand a long commitment. If the viewer doesn’t find the plot or the characters appealing, they can simply switch to another, hence optimising their fragmented watch time.
The constrained scope of the vertical format minimises the requisite for background detail, effectively cutting the expenses of developing one-act dramas that are significantly more affordable to manufacture in comparison with traditional soap operas. Highly skilled screenwriters and elite actors form the backbone of these short dramas, while less experienced performers, fresh from drama schools, fill the secondary roles. An impressive pace of production allows for an entire series to be shot in just one week.
The phenomenon of ultra-short dramas owes its roots to another digital revolution pioneered in China: web novels. These novels, published incrementally on daily basis, have drawn a strong follower base over nearly two decades. Initial chapters, that can be read in mere minutes, are accessible at no charge, however readers are required to pay to discover the unfolding stories.
Most ultra-short dramas follow the same business model. The audiences are offered initial episodes for free, but subsequent ones are tucked behind a paywall. Early concise dramas, some of which were adaptations of web novels, bear the expectation of always leaving their episodes on a suspenseful note.
Yet, the compact format, with episodes merely two minutes long, admittedly leaves sparse room for character progression or setting up a context. Zhang acknowledges that the storylines can occasionally appear disjointed and unconvincing.
She affirms that, “Extended dramas hinge on logic and continuity, whereas short pieces bank on conflict and incongruities. While we do delve into and potray some of the contention between principal characters, compared to longer dramas, the brevity of short dramas prevents it from being as well organised and logical.”
Many beloved dramas offer impassioned narratives of seemingly imperious bosses and youthful women protagonists where discord blossoms into romance. Others are historic portrayals, often weaving stories of love between an affluent aristocrat and a common woman.
Zhang explains the varying dynamics, saying, “We tailor our content for different demographics, both female and male, recognising their distinct tastes. Accordingly, our narratives are distinctively structured.”
Short dramas are also created keeping different age groups in mind. They offer content about the dynamics between a mother-in-law and a daughter-in-law for younger mothers, tales featuring dominant CEOs for young women, and stories of individuals rising from humble backgrounds for young men.
Chinese micro-dramas have gained a sizable following internationally, leading firms such as Beijing’s ReelShort to develop English adaptations in the United States. Among their most successful adaptations is ‘The Double Life of My Billionaire Husband’, which employs American actors and uses a US backdrop, yet retains the original narrative style and structure of its Chinese counterpart.
Themes such as familial conflict, domineering bosses, and covert personas, which appeal to Chinese audiences of these succinct dramas, seem to resonate just as well with international audiences. Examples of such crowd-pleasers on the ReelShot US app include ‘Falling for my Divorce Lawyer’, ‘The Double Life of a Billionaire Heiress’ and ‘Knight in Shining Suit’.
Most micro-dramas feature themes around love and power dynamics within a large metropolis, similar to the offerings found on TikTok domestically. However, when these are launched internationally, they undergo a localisation process, where the central characters are adapted to fit their new context. This particular narrative tends to travel exceptionally well, according to Zhang.
Until recently, China’s micro-drama content remained relatively ungoverned, subject mainly to the approval of online hosting platforms. However, new regulations introduced this month now require prior approval from local and national authorities before shows can go online.
Dramas with budgets surpassing RMB1 million (£111,000) or featuring “special” themes will now fall under the scrutiny of the National Radio and Television Administration. Smaller productions, on the other hand, must secure approval from provincial authorities. Inappropriate content, such as vulgarity or explicitness, will result in dramas being removed from online platforms.
In 2023, China’s short drama industry had a reported value of RMB37.4 billion (£4.2 billion), constituting nearly 70% of the country’s total cinema box office revenue. While the majority of short dramas generate income from paid viewership, there are also companies like OST which create sponsor-funded micro-dramas that are available for free viewing.
Zhang noted that the growing popularity of the short drama industry has seen an increase in brands wanting to invest in these brief narratives as a means of self-promotion. If a client expresses an interest in funding a short drama, a bespoke one will be created based on the brand’s identity. For instance, if the client is an alcoholic beverage brand targeting the 20-40 year-old male demographic, the characters and the narrative of the drama will be designed around these specific requirements, and integrated with other resources like social media influencers.
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