The short play "Kuangbiao" leverages the business of tens of millions with a cost of 100,000

Short dramas are going viral, and the market is hot. Low-cost mini-program short dramas are attracting a large number of new players, but can they continue? This article reviews the rise of mini-program short dramas in the past three years: from platform promotion and capital drive to the current hype era of "betting on probability". It reveals the generation logic of "scattered flowers" and "hype probability" in the short drama industry through successful cases and shooting details, and at the same time reminds the urgent need for industry upgrading amid stricter supervision. Recommended for producers and investors with ideas.

The movie "Her" swept the Dragon Boat Festival movie market and also received countless discussions on social platforms.

Before the heat has faded, a derivative short drama related to "Her" appeared again at this year's Douyin Short Drama Annual Enjoyment Conference, becoming an "extra supplement" to the movie, which will reveal the past and present of the M Theater in the movie.

Short dramas, once neglected, are appearing more and more frequently in the film and television industry and on mobile phone screens.

iQiyi, Youku, Tencent and other long video platforms have launched short drama series, and various short dramas on Douyin and Kuaishou have gradually matured, with over 100 million views. With the increase of various platforms and capital, short dramas have become a red ocean, but there is a business that "makes a fortune quietly" under the surface of the red ocean - mini program short dramas.

"Several larger short drama companies in the industry basically have related projects. This year, many new companies are also working on this area, and everyone wants to get involved." Dashan, who used to work in a traditional film and television company and later entered the short drama industry, told reporters that there have always been many "wealth myths" of mini-program short dramas. Previously, a mini-program short drama had earned tens of millions of yuan in revenue with a cost of more than 100,000 yuan.

With low barriers to entry, quick money-making and the ability to make a fortune quietly, mini-program short dramas have become the hottest topic of discussion in the short drama industry this year. Producers and investors who once focused on platform short dramas have entered the market one after another, and practitioners in the traditional film and television industry have also begun to enter the market. Some companies have directly collected a large number of short dramas to make money quickly in this sinking market.

01 Short plays, three years of "frenzy"

“Please recommend some skits!” “The more earthy they are, the more addictive they are; the more ridiculous they are, the more exciting they are.” “I’ve watched seven or eight skits recently and I can’t stop!”

Various recommended blogs and posts about short plays

There are more and more discussions about short dramas on social platforms. The short dramas that were once criticized as "earthy" and "metaphorical" have gradually become the "electronic pickles" of many people - they have a fast pace, are short in duration, and can be quickly watched in free time.

If we only look at the length, "Never Expected" and "Diaosi Man", which were produced around 2013, can be regarded as the originators of short dramas. If we limit it to vertical screen short dramas, iQiyi has already launched vertical screen short dramas in 2018, but it was not until the rapid rise of short video platforms and the changes in the film and television industry during the epidemic that vertical screen short dramas gradually entered the public's field of vision and matured, and then ushered in an explosion - short video platforms have cultivated users' fragmented and vertical viewing habits, and the film and television industry has turned to short dramas with shorter cycles due to the epidemic and the inability to shoot long dramas.

From 2021 to 2022, the number of key online short dramas increased from 58 to 172. In 2022, Youku, Tencent and other platforms saw tens of millions of yuan in short drama revenue sharing. Kuaishou also stated in its financial report that by the end of 2022, the total number of views of Kuaishou Star Short Dramas exceeded 50 billion, and more than 100 short dramas had an annual view volume of over 100 million.

With the increase of traffic and money, countless platforms and companies that smelled the trend began to produce short dramas and compete for traffic. iQiyi, Youku and Tencent Video focused on horizontal screen short dramas of less than 10 minutes, while Douyin and Kuaishou focused on vertical screen short dramas of less than 3 minutes.

On March 29 this year, the 10th China Internet Audiovisual Conference released the "2023 China Internet Audiovisual Development Research Report". The report showed that among the 1 billion short video users, 50.4% of users have watched micro-short dramas, micro-variety shows, and instant noodle shows of less than 3 minutes.

Platforms are entering the market and capital is increasing investment, but the most popular discussion in the short drama industry is "mini program short dramas", that is, short dramas played on WeChat, Douyin and Kuaishou mini programs: these platforms have a short video foundation and can better reach the audience of short dramas. There is no need for too many jump processes to open the mini program, and users can directly complete the paid viewing.

On BOSS Direct, a large number of short drama companies are recruiting staff for mini-program short dramas. Large companies such as NetEase, Himalaya and Motian have also posted content recruiting producers, directors and screenwriters for mini-program short dramas.

NetEase and Motie's mini-program short drama recruitment information

Dashan, who is from a filming team, told reporters that short dramas became popular around September last year, and this year they have seen an explosive growth. Many companies have begun to create mini-programs to broadcast short dramas, and some contractors have actively sought cooperation.

Players have their own reasons for choosing to enter the mini program instead of putting short dramas on the platform.

First, it is exclusive to the revenue and has low construction costs. When short dramas are released on various platforms, they basically need to share the profits with the platforms, but mini programs can enjoy the revenue exclusively. Mu Zi, who works in a short drama company, told reporters that the construction cost of a short drama mini program is less than 20,000 yuan. "This kind of mini program does not have a big technical threshold and can be copied quickly. Many companies can do it. At present, our company's mini program is outsourced, and we plan to recruit technical personnel to specialize in mini programs later."

Second, the revenue sharing cycle is short and there are more monetization models. Producer Han Wenwen told reporters that it takes at least half a year for iQiyi, Youku and Tencent Video to get the revenue sharing from attracting investment, which is a relatively long cycle, while mini-program short dramas will be shorter and faster. Lao Can, who runs a short drama company, also said that many mini-program short dramas can get the revenue sharing the next day after they are released.

Short drama distribution has become a hot topic in the sideline circle

At the same time, mini programs also have more monetization possibilities. In addition to paid viewing, Mu's short drama mini program can also embed advertisements and act as a short drama distribution agent. "As long as the user recommends it and someone pays, 50% of the fee can be returned to the recommender." This monetization model is almost unseen on platform short dramas.

Third, the creative environment is relatively relaxed and can better reach the sinking market. The creators of platforms such as "iQiyi, Youku, Tencent Video, Douyin, and Kuaishou" target young female user groups, while mini-program short dramas focus on men in the sinking market. Some bizarre plots that cannot appear on mainstream platforms and outdated earthy and bloody plots are everywhere in mini-program short dramas, accurately reaching the sinking market.

According to a report by iQiyi, a data intelligence service provider, more than 70% of micro-drama users are from the middle and low-income groups. Muzi also said that the audience positioning in the short drama industry is "middle-aged and elderly groups, sinking users, platform short dramas are mainly female users, and mini-program short dramas are mainly male users."

Various reversal clips in mini program skits

Click to watch the short drama on the mini program, a delivery boy marries the daughter of the richest man, a down-and-out security guard turns out to be the richest man in the country, a son-in-law slaps the face of his father-in-law’s family who look down on him... The familiar formula is like the cool novels that once dominated the sinking market, transformed and reappeared in a new form.

02 Shooting 100 episodes cost less than 100,000

The short dramas on these mini programs basically have more than 100 episodes, each episode is 1-2 minutes long, the first 10-15 episodes are free, and subsequent episodes will be charged. Because one episode costs 0.8-1 yuan, it is also called "one yuan drama". Even with recharge discounts, it costs 50-80 yuan to watch a short drama.

These skits, which are not cheap, have low costs.

Information about purchasing short play scripts on social platforms

Dashan told reporters that a short play can be completed in as little as a dozen days, and some small companies can produce more than 20 short plays a month. "You can buy a script for 10,000 yuan, and the shooting cost may be less than 100,000 yuan."

In addition to looking for screenwriters on recruitment websites, many companies also use the slogan "high money for scripts" to attract writers to submit their works on Xiaohongshu, Tieba, Douban and WeChat official accounts. The number of words in a script is about 500, and more than 100 episodes need to be written. The price of a completed script is 10,000-30,000 yuan, and excellent scripts can get additional platform revenue.

"This price is very low for screenwriters in the traditional film and television industry, but it is very high for small writers." Lin Wan, a junior, has written novels on some online platforms before. This year, he began to try writing short play scripts. He sold a script in just two months and earned 10,000 yuan.

Lin Wan joined a group of screenwriters with more than 60 people, more than half of whom are college students. In Lin Wan's opinion, short play screenwriters only need to "use templates" and mix various face-slapping and reversal plots according to the latest popular themes. The coherence of the plot is not very important. "The editor said that the target group is the sinking users, and it doesn't matter if the plot is outrageous, as long as it is exciting and melodramatic."

Many screenwriters under Dashan can finish writing a script within 7 days. After the script is sold, it has little to do with the screenwriter. "There was a script that earned more than 1 million yuan in 5 days. It was a script that was bought out directly, and the screenwriter only received 8,000 yuan in royalties."

Many short drama companies have cooperative producers or their own crews. Most of these crews are located in non-first-tier cities such as Hengdian, Changsha, Chengdu and Changchun. In addition to extras, a crew may have no more than 20 members, and many of them have to take on multiple roles. It is common for the producer to be the director, supervisor and post-production at the same time. A mature streamlined shooting process has also been developed. It takes no more than 7 days to shoot a 100-episode short drama, and the fastest is only 3-4 days.

A short play actor in Hengdian told reporters that perhaps half of the crews in Hengdian are now shooting short plays. The fees for short play actors are not high, with extras making more than 100 yuan a day, and the pay for male and female protagonists is only 1,000 to 3,000 yuan a day. Many short play crews will shoot for more than ten hours a day. "Mini program short plays are all vertical screens, and three or four people are crowded on one screen, so there is no need for so many actors. In fact, it is mainly to reduce costs."

This is also why many short drama producers are in non-first-tier cities, and short drama companies are more willing to shoot urban short dramas - the shooting costs in first-tier cities are higher than in non-first-tier cities. Costume scenes, costumes and special effects all cost more, while urban dramas can be shot by just renting a villa or borrowing a venue.

Costume short dramas with higher costs

Under the circumstance of extreme cost compression, the cost of a mini-program short drama, including shooting and post-production, will not exceed 100,000 yuan at the lowest. Many short drama companies will directly purchase the finished short dramas. The purchase price of a mini-program short drama of average quality and non-exclusive is less than 10,000 yuan. The price of an exclusive and high-quality short drama will be higher, but basically will not exceed 100,000 yuan.

There are also different profit-sharing standards for the cooperation between the contractor and the short drama company or platform. The first is the profit-sharing system, where the company or platform will give the contractor a guaranteed minimum income and a profit-sharing of user payments, which can reach 7% or higher. The second is the buyout system, where the company or platform spends a certain price to buy out the series, and the contractor cannot obtain subsequent profit-sharing. In order to gain higher profits, many contractors will choose a cooperation method that guarantees a minimum income and a profit-sharing.

Dashan said that two years ago, the cost of shooting a short drama for a mini program was only 30,000 to 40,000 yuan. "With more and more companies entering the market, the shooting prices of slightly better contractors have almost all increased. If you pursue quality, the production cost will be more than 200,000 yuan."

03 The "hot item" of betting on probability

For mini-program short dramas, the most important stage is actually the traffic investment stage.

Lao Can told reporters that the platform will receive the platform's traffic and support policies, while the mini-program short drama is equivalent to building a new platform by itself, with basically no traffic, and can only rely on investment to attract traffic.

Being considered as a key short drama delivery, the salary is high and the pressure is high

Mu Zi also said that compared with the content quality of the short drama, the platform's investment intensity and accuracy would be more important. The initial investment cost of a short drama would be 2-3 times the production cost.

The short drama company first edits the short drama into slices and places information flow ads on platforms such as Douyin, Kuaishou, WeChat and Baidu to attract users to click on the mini-programs embedded in the ads, or click to jump to the WeChat mini-programs, and use the free viewing of the first few episodes to attract users to pay to unlock subsequent plots. This link is very dependent on traffic.

"Mini Program short plays are like selling cakes. You can decide to buy the ingredients, make the cakes, and make beautiful carvings, but the final sales of the cakes are very dependent on the people who help you sell the cakes. If the salesperson is not good, then no matter how beautiful the cake is, it will be useless." Han Wenwen told reporters that the traffic investment stage is what determines the "life and death" of Mini Program short plays, and she will also pay more attention to the platform's traffic investment capabilities when looking for a cooperation platform.

The pitchers will first release a large number of short dramas into the market in batches to test the target audience and appropriate unit price of the short dramas. Then they will start targeted investment and "bombing" the target group to see how the market responds. They will then increase investment in dramas with good feedback. This is almost a gamble on probability and the pitcher's ability.

Under this mechanism, the return rate of most mini-program short dramas is not high, and losses are common. However, as long as there is a hit, a low cost of 100,000 or 200,000 yuan can be used to leverage an investment return of millions or even tens of millions.

Many producers are shooting short dramas like crazy, just to bet on the probability of a hit by running the show: a hit drama can receive more than 500,000 yuan in revenue sharing in 3 or 5 days, and subsequent traffic can bring even greater profits. Some producers are even willing to pay for the short dramas themselves, just to get more investment from the platform. Dashan's shooting team paid nearly 30,000 yuan for the production of a costume short drama. "If it becomes a hit, there will be hundreds of thousands or even millions of revenue sharing, which is much more profitable than the tens of thousands of contract fees."

However, with more and more players entering the market, mini-program short dramas have become more and more homogeneous, and the bonus period of traffic investment has begun to fade. In the early days, the ROI (return on investment) of traffic investment could reach 2, but now it has slowly dropped to 1.5 or even lower, but many companies are still investing in this low-cost leverage game, "as long as the ROI is greater than 1.2, they will invest."

In the eyes of many practitioners, the entry of more and more players is not a big deal. As long as they are willing to invest, they can earn more than their peers. What really worries them is that the mini-program short dramas that were once produced wildly are facing the risk of supervision.

In mid-April this year, Kuaishou, Douyin and WeChat successively issued announcements on the standardized management of short dramas in mini programs, and removed nearly 2,500 short drama mini programs. Although many companies have copied and put new mini programs on the shelves, searching for related mini programs on the three platforms now no longer finds any content, and users can only enter through streaming ads and used mini programs.

On June 1, short dramas also ushered in the "license" era. Mini program short dramas also need to be issued a license by the State Administration of Radio and Television in accordance with relevant censorship management regulations before they can be broadcast online. This also means that the "bloody" and "vulgar" plots that mini program short dramas used to attract the sinking market will gradually disappear.

On YouTube, the number of views of short dramas can reach hundreds of thousands

Although regulations may change at any time, many players are still actively purchasing scripts and shooting short dramas, hoping to leverage millions of yuan in revenue sharing at a low cost. In Dashan's view, "no one can predict what will happen in the future, but if you don't make the money now, you will miss the opportunity." Even if the mini-program short dramas can no longer be made, she and the shooting team can turn around and make short dramas on the Douyin and Kuaishou platforms.

Mu Zi's company has begun to turn its attention overseas, preparing to start overseas short drama business. "Just like the online literature that was popular in Southeast Asia, Europe and the United States before, people all over the world can't resist the melodramatic and exciting literature. We just need to change the language and actors. There is always money to be made in the sinking market."

Author: Wang Zhan, Editor: Si Wen

WeChat official account: E-Commerce Online (ID: dianshangmj), see sharpness and insights, and focus on innovative media on the Internet and new business.