If you want to ask what is the most popular form of work in the film and television field at the moment, the answer is micro-short dramas. In an episode of just a few minutes, the plot climaxes one after another, and the "cool moments" come one after another. Micro-short dramas s

Category：entertainment

2024-05-10

If you want to ask what is the most popular form of work in the film and television field at the moment, the answer is micro-short dramas. In an episode of just a few minutes, the plot climaxes one after another, and the "cool moments" come one after another. Micro-short dramas stimulate the audience's "dopamine" and capture a large number of loyal users. Some people say, "I feel uncomfortable if I don't watch it for a day." The "wild surge" of

's huge traffic has caused all walks of life to pay attention to and discuss micro-short dramas. Previously, "Zhejiang Propaganda" published an article exploring the phenomenon of micro-short dramas being "hot". Today we will go one step further and talk about this topic -

, an emerging film and television form with obvious "Internet genes", what influence and impact has it brought to the traditional film and television industry? What kind of enlightenment can we get from looking at the development of micro-short dramas?

一

In recent years, the development of micro-short dramas has been far beyond imagination. From first-tier cities to fourth-tier and fifth-tier counties, from inland and across the ocean to Europe and the United States, the trend of micro-short dramas is getting stronger and stronger, becoming the inevitable "new outlet" in the film and television industry. How popular is it? You might as well perceive one or two from three dimensions. The market performance of

is "cooking oil". A China micro-short drama market research report shows that the market size of micro-short dramas has reached 37.39 billion yuan in 2023, about 10 times that of two years ago. It is predicted that the market size is expected to exceed 50 billion yuan this year. According to platform data from

, the number of registered short drama-related companies in my country will reach 22,500 in 2023, and there are currently 78,100 short drama-related companies, becoming a part of the film and television market that cannot be ignored. At the same time, micro-short drama apps have been launched one after another, and some leading apps have been downloaded more than 10 million times. The user group of

is "all ages". micro-short drama users continue to penetrate into all age groups and professional groups. Research shows that more than 30% of Chinese netizens watch micro-short dramas every week, more than 90% of micro-short drama audiences watch micro-short dramas at least once a week, and 54% watch them more than 4 days a week.

Among users of micro-short dramas, 41% pay to watch through membership purchases, top-ups, etc. In addition to young and middle-aged people, many elderly people are also "addicted" to micro-short dramas. Some netizens shared that the elderly at home often stay up late to watch TV shows until the early hours of the morning. A media survey found that many elderly people spend thousands of yuan on short dramas every month.

Upstream and downstream enterprises are "showing their special talents". The popularity of micro-short dramas has promoted the transformation of some traditional and established film and television bases. In Hengdian, Zhejiang, known as the "Oriental Hollywood", there were more than 1,000 micro-short drama crews stationed at its peak. Therefore, "Hengdian" was ridiculed by netizens as a "vertical store."

In the state of industry blowout "explosion", a large amount of investment has poured in, and multiple entities have entered the game. Some are working hard to build micro-short drama brands, and some brands have customized short dramas to be embedded in soft advertising, each showing their unique skills to seize a "piece" of the micro-short drama market.

The crew of the micro-short drama filmed at the Hengdian Film and Television City. Photo source: "Hengdian Release" WeChat public account

二

As a new form of the film and television industry that has emerged with the development of the mobile Internet, the popularity of micro-short dramas has greatly influenced the creation of long-form dramas, It has had a huge impact on the traditional film and television industry, which mainly focuses on long-form films. It represents the comprehensive transformation and Internetization of film and television production models.

For example, the creative process is "extreme compression". Generally, a 30-episode TV series takes one or two years from project establishment to star broadcast, and can range from three to five years. Micro-short dramas, because of their small size, less content, and low cost, pursue "fast and never break" in creation. The overall cycle is continuously compressed, and the time for actors to join the team is shortened. The screenwriter can come up with the script within a few days, plus filming. It will take one to two weeks, and it will be available online in a month if possible.

For example, the content logic is "moving around". There is a golden principle of "first six seconds" circulating in the micro-short drama industry, which means to attract the audience's attention within 6 seconds. Therefore, the content of micro-short dramas must provide strong stimulating "emotional value". The techniques commonly used in traditional film and television creations such as foreshadowing and foreshadowing are replaced by a 30-second "hook" (referring to setting up suspense to connect the plot), two episodes to complete revenge, and five episodes. "The face was swollen" was replaced by a fast-paced narrative with countless twists and turns in ten episodes.

一

The crew of the micro-short drama filmed at the Hengdian Film and Television City. Photo source: "Hengdian Release" WeChat public account

二

For example, the audience groups "each have their own enjoyment". micro-short dramas pay more attention to the segmentation and verticalization of the audience. For example, the common "male videos" and "female videos" have strong pertinence and clear audience circles. For example, male channel short dramas focus on "counterattack and comeback", while female channel short dramas tend to create "sweet love". In addition to male and female categories, there are also micro-short dramas that rely on their "down-to-earthness" to attract specific audiences such as delivery boys and construction workers.

Another example is the business model of "using small to expand big". At present, membership payment, advertising monetization, and e-commerce sales are the main profit models of micro-short dramas. Therefore, micro-short dramas are highly dependent on channels and traffic. In order to achieve higher exposure among massive amounts of content, the money spent on operations and streaming distribution generally accounts for a large proportion of the cost. The blessing of large traffic has also created the myth of sudden wealth such as "one drama can achieve financial freedom", stimulating the influx of more capital and entities into the micro-short drama track that "uses small to gain big".

Picture source of popular short plays on major platforms: "Zhizhu.com" WeChat public account

三

With the development to this day, micro-short plays are entering a new stage of development - from the 1.0 extensive period of "barbaric growth" to the pursuit of The 2.0 boutique era of higher quality. How do you view the current popularity of micro-short dramas and their future development?

The format has changed, but "content is king" has not changed. Some people say that the content industry is an industry of continuous innovation and there is never a shortage of new tricks. Micro-short dramas with condensed plots, fast pace, and direct emotions bring an unprecedented "feeling" to the audience, but the marginal effect of this "feeling" is diminishing. When users read too much, they will inevitably feel that many works fall into the trap of being clichéd and repetitive.

The ever-changing world, content is king is the ever-changing principle of the content creation industry. What’s “micro” about a micro-short drama is its size, and what’s “short” is its duration, not the content itself. While innovating the form, we need to actively respond to the call and demand for "good content" and perform "new group portraits" and big themes with small cuts and small volumes. This is a good way to see the subtle effects.

The product has changed, but the "audience needs" have not. communication science believes that media is not only a carrier of information, but also a carrier of ways of thinking. Throughout the history of media development, from newspapers and radio to television and mobile phones, the popularity of different media carriers and content products have all met the needs and habits of audiences in specific periods.

At present, the development of technologies such as 5G and live broadcast has opened up new content consumption space and visual scenes. The fragmented time and constantly distracted attention have helped micro-short dramas become the "upstart" of the industry. If you want to further grasp the needs of the audience and make the trend last longer, you must not only use algorithms to accurately reach the "comfort zone" in the user's subconscious, but you must also actively expand your territory and look for new trends. For example, it will break the dominance of content such as sweet pets, bosses, and ancient genres, and move into new areas of suspense, countryside, and intangible cultural heritage. The

track has changed, but the "industry iteration" has not. The upgrading of film and television creation is the general trend of industry development. The popularity of micro-short dramas is due to the diversification of expression forms and communication media, from horizontal screen to vertical screen, from large screen to small screen, from embedded platform to aggregate app to small program, which essentially reflects the iteration of the film and television industry and market expansion needs.

At present, micro-short dramas, with their outstanding adaptability, flexibility and diversity, have burst out with great potential in overseas communication, cultural and tourism integration and other fields. For example, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television launched the "Travel with micro-short dramas" earlier this year "The creation plan calls for greater cooperation between micro-short plays and local cultural tourism. Entering a new stage of development, actively link more industries, proactively embrace advanced video creation technology, explore the infinite possibilities of "micro-short drama +", and create more "1+1>2" superimposed industrial advantages, or micro The development trend of short plays.

Don't be short-sighted by being small. Micro-short dramas that rely on "coolness" to attract attention cannot only be "cool". When the accumulated industry bubbles and superficial glitz fade away, what can go far will be content and products that can withstand the test of time. and this should be the direction of every practitioner's efforts.

Source: Zhejiang Propaganda

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