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Editorial
China’s mini dramas may be onto something big
Audiences in Southeast Asia love Chinese micro series. In the US, interest in the format is picking up
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Editorials represent the views of the South China Morning Post on the issues of the day.
You have fast food and fast fashion, so why not fast soap operas? In our attention-deficit era of TikTok and Douyin, it was only a matter of time before content producers came up with bite-sized dramas that you can watch by scrolling on your smartphone. China has had huge success with the format. Now the industry wants to branch out globally, especially to Southeast Asia and the United States.
With the usual themes of romance, revenge and rags-to-riches journeys, mini dramas play like traditional television series that have been reformatted, so you can watch them anytime, anywhere on your mobile device. Watch out for pedestrians too engrossed in these dramas.
It remains to be seen whether Chinese mini dramas will take off overseas. They may inspire foreign imitations. Either way, the format could soon give Hollywood and American streaming services a run for their money. Mainland Chinese regulators have promised policy support and offered guidance on how to raise and maintain quality.
Called micro or short series, the dramas run just a few minutes per episode, with fast-paced storylines and frequent plot twists. People have flocked to RedNote, Douyin and Bilibili, among other platforms, to watch them.
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