Microdramas are TikTok turned up to 11, and they're coming for your time and money
Briefly

Microdramas are TikTok turned up to 11, and they're coming for your time and money
"They are as short as a toothbrushing tutorial but pack the same spicy wallop as a BookTok romantasy. They're as bingeable as a bajillion-dollar Netflix series, but with the stripped-down aesthetics of a Hallmark movie. I'm talking, of course, about microdramas-the fast, fizzy serialized videos flooding phones worldwide. In just a few years, they've become a full-blown phenomenon, generating billions in revenue without Hollywood's help."
"As studios grapple with a sluggish summer box office and another thin fall TV lineup, a growing legion of viewers is glued to stories made exclusively for their phones. Microdramas-or vertical shows, as they're often called-blend the raw emotion of K-dramas with a TikTok sensibility. Think high-intensity, telenovela-like series, unfurling in one-to-three-minute chunks across 50 to 100 mostly paywalled episodes."
Microdramas are fast, serialized vertical videos designed for phones, delivering one-to-three-minute episodes grouped into 50–100 mostly paywalled installments. The format combines K-drama emotional intensity with TikTok-style immediacy and telenovela plotting, producing high-intensity, bingeable narratives. Titles often feature melodramatic premises and romantic tropes that attract massive global audiences. The format has generated billions of dollars in revenue independently of traditional Hollywood distribution. Major studios and networks are taking notice as traditional box office and TV lineups struggle, prompting industry interest in adapting or partnering with successful microdrama creators. Production values are often stripped-down, prioritizing character-driven hooks and rapid episode turnover.
Read at Fast Company
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