Hollywood’s Strategic Move into Vertical Dramas and Micro-Series

Over the past few years, short-form vertical dramas (mobile-first episodes usually under two minutes) and micro-series have moved from a regional trend to a significant global media category. Originally popularized in China under the term duanju, these series are designed for smartphones and structured with rapid cliffhangers to hold attention in scrolling feeds.

Major Hollywood players are now investing seriously in both production and distribution — not as cheap experiments, but as part of broader audience acquisition strategies tailored to mobile consumption.

What Vertical Dramas and Micro-Series Are

Vertical dramas are short narrative episodes created for vertical screens (9:16 aspect ratio) with runtimes usually between 60 and 120 seconds. Several companies use episodic release schedules with monetization through micro-transactions, subscriptions, or ad models that mirror mobile gaming economics more than traditional TV.

These formats differ significantly from traditional TV or film in production tempo and cost: while a traditional one-hour drama might take weeks to shoot, vertical dramas are often completed in days with compact crews and minimal locations.

Actual Revenue and Growth Figures

Global Market Size

Multiple industry trackers report rapid expansion of the vertical/micro-series market:

• By 2024, China’s duanju market reached approximately ¥50 billion (about US$7 billion) in revenue, surpassing traditional box office returns in that market.

• Analysts project China’s segment could exceed ¥100 billion (≈US$14 billion) by 2027 and potentially US$16.2 billion by 2030.

• Outside China, early-stage platforms are generating hundreds of millions in in-app revenue; ReelShort saw about US$130 million in Q1 2025 and DramaBox around US$120 million in the same quarter. Lifetime in-app purchases for ReelShort and DramaBox respectively are reported around US$490 million and US$450 million as of early 2025.

• Industry estimates suggest that in 2025 the global micro-drama industry could generate $11 billion in revenue, nearly double earlier figures, with substantial contributions outside China.

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Fox Entertainment and Holywater / MyDrama

In late 2024, Fox Entertainment acquired an equity stake in Ukraine-based studio Holywater, owner of the MyDrama vertical platform. As part of that investment, Fox Entertainment Studios committed to producing at least 200 vertical series over two years for distribution on MyDrama and associated apps.

Co-founders of Holywater have described the partnership as essential to appealing to U.S. audiences and scaling production beyond Asian markets.

DramaBox and Disney Involvement

DramaBox, a Singapore-based micro-series platform backed through Disney’s accelerator program, is actively raising US$100 million in new funding at roughly a US$500 million valuation to expand in the U.S. and diversify its genre slate.

Sensor Tower data indicates that DramaBox and competitors like ReelShort are leading the non-China market in in-app revenue, showing commercial viability outside their original regional base.

New Entrants and Hollywood Talent

Former Hollywood executives and creators are launching new companies targeting premium micro-series production:

• GammaTime, co-founded by former Miramax CEO Bill Block and others, raised about US$14 million in seed funding with investors including Alexis Ohanian and Kim Kardashian to produce high-quality vertical dramas featuring creators like CSI producer Anthony Zuiker.

This signals traditional industry talent betting on the format’s future viability and artistic potential.

Production Reality

A vertical production schedule is lean:

• Typical budgets are much lower than traditional scripted series, often in the mid-hundreds of thousands of dollars per project, though specific figures vary by company and region.

• Vertical episodes are shot rapidly, often in less than two weeks per series, with small crews and fast turnaround. Some productions emphasize data patterns — rapidly testing, revising, and releasing episode arcs based on viewer response.

• Union contracts (SAG-AFTRA and WGA) have been adapted to cover these formats, reflecting broader industry acknowledgment that vertical dramas are no longer fringe content.

Expected Impact on Cinema and Traditional Production

Vertical dramas are not currently replacing films or TV — but they are strategically complementing traditional content by capturing attention where most linear media struggle: on mobile devices with high scroll engagement.

Executives with studios investing in these formats describe vertical dramas as a way to capture younger, mobile-native viewers who spend significant time on phones rather than traditional TV or cinema screens.

Disney and Netflix are also exploring vertical short content within their core apps to fight back against subscription fatigue by integrating mobile-optimized storytelling alongside longer form shows.

There is industry debate about whether this will draw audiences away from cinema or long-form streaming — but the dominant view among participating studios is that mobile-first serialized content will expand total viewing minutes and monetization opportunities.

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