From wild growth to "getting on the right track", the evolution of the short drama industry

The transformation of short plays from "rough processing" to "fine processing" reflects the progressive cultural consumption needs of the audience. From the refinement of content to the self-discipline of practitioners, short plays are trying to get on the right track. In the future, can short plays develop stably and long-term?

Looking back at the film, television and entertainment industry in 2023, short dramas are a keyword that cannot be avoided.

At the end of the year, short dramas have become a "powerful magnetic field" that attracts platforms, media, and audiences to participate. Along with this, there are various controversies surrounding the chaos in the short drama industry. How to regulate the development of the short drama market and avoid a sudden stop has also become the focus of attention of all parties.

If we take a longer-term view and look back at the development history of short dramas, a "new thing", and refer to the evolution history of online movies and other film and television forms, it is not difficult to find that short dramas are rapidly iterating themselves. From the refinement of content to the self-discipline of practitioners, short dramas are striving to get on the right track.

1. Say goodbye to the "wild growth" short play and strive to "get on the right track"

In 2017, short dramas emerged on the back of short videos and opened up a new content form: "vertical screen short dramas."

In 2019, with the entry of long and short video platforms and the olive branches extended by them, a large number of creators began to flock to the short drama track trying to get a piece of the pie. However, as the business model did not work, many teams returned empty-handed, and the "false fire" of short dramas cooled down for a while.

In 2021, platforms such as Douyin and Kuaishou began to explore paid models for short dramas. The film and television teams that entered the market again began to focus on cost control and input-output ratio, and the short drama industry gradually established a sustainable cycle.

In 2022, the exploration of short dramas in production, distribution, and subscription models gradually matured and began to enter the fast lane of rapid growth, with the number of filings increasing by 600% year-on-year.

Amid the industry's boom, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television put forward guiding opinions on "enhancing the innovation and creativity of short dramas and strengthening the management of online micro-short dramas", and measures to promote standardized governance have begun to be put on the agenda by major short drama distribution platforms.

In 2023, short dramas became popular amid the strong rebound of the entertainment industry, but at the same time, a large number of "mixed works" and "myths of getting rich overnight" also emerged, once again becoming the focus of public opinion.

Like any "new wave" in the entertainment industry, short dramas have also gone through detours, from the early "false prosperity" to the "content chaos" of similar themes, rampant piracy, and vulgarity in the past two years, all of which have been staged in industries such as "online movies". Just as "online movies" have experienced a "transformation" from high quantity to high quality, the short drama industry is also stepping up to "get on the right track" - with the joint efforts of industry self-cleaning, policy supervision, and platform guidance, it has moved from extensive to formal.

From the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television adding a micro-short drama category to the filing system, to the inclusion of short dramas in the "Internet Drama Distribution License", to the clear instructions on the phenomenon of short dramas' "rapid development, strong momentum, non-standardization, and many problems", the regulatory authorities have taken a series of governance measures for short dramas. The measures have greatly promoted the standardization of the industry in terms of access filing, content review, etc., provided a "standard" to rely on, and curbed speculation and malpractice in the industry.

The "self-purification" of the short drama industry has also begun to take effect. Leading film and television companies are entering the market in large numbers, which has improved the level of specialization in the entire process of the short drama industry. Some "gold-digging teams" that only come for profit have been eliminated.

The active response and close cooperation of major platforms to regulatory policies have also enabled the governance measures for short dramas to be implemented. The platforms have taken a variety of measures on their own initiative, taking comprehensive actions in content self-examination, promotion review, etc., and through the "normalization" of content governance, short dramas have been forced to embark on the path of high-quality development.

On November 15, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television announced that it would once again launch a one-month special rectification campaign for online micro-short dramas. WeChat, Kuaishou, Douyin and other platforms all took collective action at the first opportunity to remove a large number of illegal short dramas on the sites, deal with accounts that illegally posted short dramas, and severely crack down on content that touched the "red line" in all aspects such as release and promotion.

In addition to collective efforts to purify the short drama industry ecosystem, short video platforms are also guiding the industry towards diversified themes and sophisticated productions through various means, and working with outstanding practitioners to contribute to the long-term development of short dramas. Since 2020, platforms such as Douyin, Kuaishou, and Weishi have begun to test models such as joint production, copyright purchase, and traffic sharing, introducing more high-quality dramas to the platform and building their own content brands with quality labels. The healthy competition between platforms continues to raise the production level of short dramas.

Take Douyin as an example. As early as the beginning of 2021, it proposed to build a high-quality short drama track with the strategy of "head showcase + IP batching + personalized cultivation", which attracted many senior film and television companies to join. Last summer, Douyin released a list of "hot summer dramas", and more major film and television companies such as Huace Film and Television and Lemon Studios emerged. Under the guidance of the "strong production strategy", Douyin has continued to dig deep into the consumption needs of platform users in the past two years, relying on in-depth cooperation with head content providers, and continued to launch high-quality short dramas with diverse themes such as realism, urban emotions, and traditional culture. With a large number of high-reputation short dramas on Douyin appearing in the public eye, it has gradually reversed the stereotype of short dramas in people's minds.

In addition, short video platforms have also extended their efforts from content production to promote the upgrading of the short drama track from the aspects of talent reserve and ecological support. Taking talent reserve as an example, Douyin and Kuaishou have actively mobilized the resources of talents on the site and promoted their in-depth participation in short dramas, which not only helped the talents realize their dreams of becoming drama stars, but also injected more fresh blood into the industry.

2. Small teams, light subscriptions, and platform distribution, short dramas open up new paths for the film and television industry

The reason why short dramas have experienced an explosion in the past two years is closely related to the re-allocation of resources under the tone of "prudent investment and inventory reduction" in the film and television industry. As the entire industry is in a state of tight production capacity and insufficient production, short dramas have become an alternative for many practitioners to seek a way out. As the enthusiasm for short drama investment continues to heat up, it has also helped the film and television industry accelerate its recovery.

For the entertainment market, the significance of short dramas lies not only in opening up a new living space for film and television practitioners, giving them another way to display their creativity and talents, but also in that through several years of exploration and trial and error, they have "traveled" to new paths for content production, trading, distribution and other links. For the long video and film and television industries seeking market breakthroughs, the "success" of short dramas undoubtedly has important reference value.

First, it is the "lightweight" production mechanism of short dramas. In the current conservative industry environment, projects with small teams, short cycles, efficient transfers, and quick start-ups are more likely to be favored by investors. "Lightweight" means that film and television creation can respond to audience needs immediately, innovate in a short period of time, and adjust and iterate based on user feedback, thereby greatly improving the market hit rate of the work and making film and television investment no longer a "bet" with unknown results.

The quick response of short dramas can help film and television companies "strike while the iron is hot" and maximize the derivative value of content IP. Nowadays, the linkage between film and television IP and short dramas is becoming more and more frequent. In the 2023 recommended film list announced at the Douyin Short Drama Annual Enjoyment Conference this year, derivative short dramas of the movies "The Lost Girl" and "The Lion Boy" appeared in it. In the future, the launch of derivative short dramas by popular films and TV series may become a routine operation in the industry.

Secondly, the "light subscription" model is also an important reason for attracting countless viewers to watch short dramas. Free trials can quickly capture the audience's attention and make them "planted" with a fast-paced and dramatic plot. The buyout system has changed the past problem of "members have to pay for previews to watch dramas", allowing users to "take the initiative to watch dramas" in their own hands. For the film and television industry, trial + light subscription can be used as a supplement to the video membership system, which not only gives the audience more choices and more freedom to consume their favorite works, but also provides a relatively reasonable business path for the production team to ensure the stability and sustainability of long-term content production.

Finally, the short drama industry has shown a trend of becoming more refined while it is exploding. This is also because following the platform's footsteps, a series of high-quality short dramas have been promoted and released on the "windfall" of short videos. Not only can large-scale, high-investment dramas become popular, but "small and beautiful" works can also "attract fans" through short videos with their excellent quality. The platform is becoming an "influence amplifier" for high-quality content, allowing teams that work hard to create content to reap positive returns. This is of self-evident significance for the film and television industry to achieve a virtuous cycle.

3. From “rough processing” to “fine processing”, short plays will release greater cultural value

The reason why short dramas have become a major "highlight" in the recovery of the film and television industry and captured more and more audiences is because they meet the users' needs for "multi-theme, multi-category cultural consumption" and are a beneficial supplement to medium and long film and television content.

In an interview with the media, Wood, assistant to the president of Changxin Media and head of short drama business, said: Compared with the "scrutinizing" perspective of long dramas, short dramas are more inclined to the "gazing" perspective, just like a video call, which allows the audience to gaze at the performance of the characters in a short period of time and be touched by the straightforward and extreme emotional expression. If used properly, this infectious power of face-to-face communication will allow the audience to directly enter the depths of the characters and gain an unprecedented emotional immersion, which can more effectively convey cultural values ​​and spiritual energy.

The short play "I am a Famous Actor" launched on Douyin during the summer season uses such a "gaze" perspective to depict the older generation of artists' adherence to and promotion of the national quintessence of Peking Opera, and the new generation of inheritors' adherence to the truth and innovation. Through the "zero-distance" presentation of the short play, the audience seems to have personally witnessed their sweating on and off the stage, their fearlessness of setbacks on the road to pursuing their dreams, and together with them, they have strengthened their belief in life to "be their own protagonist."

"Escape from the British Museum", which was widely popular on platforms such as Kuaishou, Douyin, and Xiaohongshu during the summer, also demonstrated the strong appeal of short dramas in quickly mobilizing the audience's emotions and inspiring their sense of home and country.

Compared with long dramas, short dramas are often closer to ordinary audiences in terms of story setting, camera angles, and aesthetic styles, and can carry a more "down-to-earth" realism. Take the short drama "Twenty-Nine" co-produced by Lemon Studios and Douyin in the first quarter of this year as an example. The reason why this drama has achieved both traffic and word-of-mouth is not only because it has the texture of a TV drama, but also because the plot is not at all unrealistic, which makes the audience empathize and truly presents the collective dilemma of women in the workplace and life.

In the short play "Surpass! Ajuan", a derivative of "Young Lion", we will also see an ordinary person who sticks to his ideals even when others question his "lifestyle". It can be seen that the form itself does not determine the value of culture. Micro short plays can be "micro but not weak, short but not shallow". They can use their unique advantages to focus on social issues, explore core values, and present grand themes of the times with small cuts.

The transformation of short dramas from "rough processing" to "fine processing" also reflects the progressive cultural consumption needs of the audience. We have reason to believe that short dramas will play a greater role in emotional comfort, social care, cultural heritage, etc. For the entire film and television industry, short dramas and medium and long dramas have never been in a competitive relationship. Instead, they can cooperate deeply in IP derivatives, mutual learning of models, and long-short cooperation to jointly meet the increasingly vigorous and diverse spiritual needs of the audience.

Author: Zhang Yuan; Editor: Mei Qi

Source: Public Account: Cultural and Entertainment Value Officer (ID: wenyujiazhiguan), value deconstructor of cultural entertainment, new consumption, and commercial technology.