In recent years, with its unique content advantages and mature industrial system, Chinese micro-short dramas have rapidly become popular around the world, becoming a vivid carrier and communication force for Chinese culture to go global in the digital era. The creative practices and industry observations of film and television practitioners in France, the United States, Canada and other countries have shown that Chinese micro-short dramas are based on common human emotions and deeply cultivate localized creations, injecting new momentum into the exchanges and mutual learning between Chinese and foreign civilizations and the innovative development of the global cultural industry.
Shared values transcend cultural barriers
Reporter Dou Hanyang
In the second half of last year, "The Secret of Pei's Garden", a high-quality micro-short drama about the Anti-Japanese War, received a lot of praise on online platforms. Data shows that the play has more than 17 million views on Hongguo Short Play, a Chinese micro-short drama platform, and was successfully selected as the National Outstanding Online Audiovisual Works in the fourth quarter of 2025 by the State Administration of Radio and Television.
The play is based on the true history of Peijia Garden in Beijing. During the Anti-Japanese War, the underground party members of the Chinese Communist Party and the French doctor Bézier fought side by side, using the garden as a secret transportation station and opening a bicycle "hump route" to transport medicines. French actor Vincent Martial, who played Bessie in the play, left a deep impression on the audience.
"I'm an old actor." In Hangzhou, Zhejiang, Martial told reporters about his experience in the industry. In 2012, Martial came to China and starred in the revolutionary historical drama "Eastern Battlefield" in 2014. Since then, he has started his journey in the Chinese film and television industry. In the following 10 years, he gradually grew from a newcomer in the industry with no acting experience to a senior actor recognized by the industry, and has created a total of 105 film and television roles.
"Participating in the mini-series "The Secret of the Garden" came from an accidental opportunity." Martial recalled that he saw an actor recruitment order in the work WeChat group, and with the mentality of giving it a try, he sent his personal information. "Probably because I have experience working in a hospital before, and have played doctors in many film and television works, plus I am French, I was finally selected by the director."
Different from shooting a long-form horizontal screen play, the challenge of high-density lines and fast-paced scenes in a vertical-screen micro-short play gave Mattier a different experience. "The shooting cycle of the micro-short drama is very short. We completed the shooting in only 8 days." He said that the shooting happened in the summer, and in the outdoor environment with a high temperature of 40 degrees Celsius in Hengdian Film and Television City, long-term and high-intensity shooting was a great test for the actors' physical strength and concentration. "When time is tight and resources are limited, the team's adaptability and creative wisdom are stimulated. This is the unique charm of micro-short dramas." Martial said frankly that the efficient and compact creative model not only tests the professionalism of the actors, but also demonstrates the excellent strength of the Chinese film and television team.
As an actor who travels between France and China all year round, Martial is very optimistic about the development potential of Chinese micro-short dramas in Europe. "Young people are the core audience, and they are accustomed to watching vertical-screen micro-short dramas on their mobile phones. The key to effective communication lies in localization adaptation, such as improving the sophistication of scripts and lines and fitting the aesthetics of the French language; avoiding stereotypes and conveying common emotions with sincere stories; taking into account cultural characteristics and global resonance, so that common values such as love, struggle, and perseverance can transcend cultural barriers."
When talking about online literature, online film and television dramas and online games, which are known as the "three new things" for Chinese culture to go overseas, Mattier said that compared with traditional Chinese cultural export symbols such as food and kung fu, online film and television dramas have the unique advantages of being lightweight and industrialized. For foreign audiences, even if they do not have a full understanding of Chinese culture at first, they may become fans of Chinese short dramas and further develop an interest in China and Chinese culture.
In Martial's view, the overseas release of Chinese micro-short dramas is not only the output of content, but also the transmission of values and life attitudes. Chinese micro-short dramas that contain values such as struggle, diligence, and emphasis on family not only provide spiritual reference for some confused young Europeans, but also help break the one-sided understanding of Chinese society by Western media. "Micro-short dramas do not need to be packed with luxurious scenes. They only need to present struggle and growth in a natural and sincere way. They can become a bridge for cross-cultural exchanges and allow European audiences to see a true, three-dimensional and comprehensive China." Martial said.
High acceptance of localized customization
Our reporter You Yi
48-year-old American Zhong Jiarui has created a "story mill" in Chengdu, Sichuan, hoping to find more interesting short drama scripts. "Good stories can inspire people! I think it is meaningful to present creative ideas and real stories in a dramatic form."
Over the years in China, Zhong Jiarui has run a travel agency, taught English, worked as a translator, and also written full-length movie scripts. With the popularity of micro-short dramas in China in recent years, he has developed a strong interest in the creation of micro-short drama scripts. "I have always wanted to create a writing space and discuss with everyone how to write good stories. Whether it is a full-length movie script, the first draft of a TV series script, or a short drama script, I hope that different types of scripts can be created here." For Chung, "Story Mill" is like a story IP (intellectual property) business incubator. At the end of the course, everyone will get a clear and executable series concept, or the direction of the story for the entire season, or a complete or nearly complete pilot script for one episode.
One participant recalled the experience at the Story Mill: “We discussed story elements, character transformations, and how these come together to form a script. If someone writes an attractive story that makes people want to listen, watch, and read, everyone is happy for that person.”
In the past five years, "Story Mill" has held about 20 creative writing classes, attracting more and more people to participate. From memoirs to children's books, from scripts to novels, many good works were born here through collision and polishing. Chung Jiarui said: "Although some scripts have not yet been selected by film and television companies, I believe that playwrights who can touch the world with their words and stories can be produced here."
The "AI-driven global micro-short drama innovation and development report" shows that the global micro-short drama market size will be close to US$18 billion in 2025, and the Chinese market size will exceed US$14 billion, accounting for 77.78% of the global market. In the international micro-short drama market outside China, Chinese companies contribute about 90% of the market share.
In Chung's view, an important reason why Chinese micro-short dramas are popular in overseas markets is that they do not simply translate Chinese TV dramas into foreign languages, but are localized and customized at the creation stage to stimulate emotional resonance among overseas audiences. Zhong Jiarui said: "The production experience of Chinese micro-short dramas overseas is based on the combination of local stories and materials, and most of the cast and crew are also from the local area. For the audience, the film and television works produced in this mode are both familiar and fresh, and they are highly accepted locally."
In April this year, the 13th China Online Audiovisual Conference "China Audiovisual Overseas Forum" was held in Chengdu. More than 150 guests from government departments, audiovisual platforms, film and television institutions, data research and overseas communication fields gathered together to explore the advanced path of Chinese audiovisuals from "exporting works overseas" to "cultural landing".
Chung Kar-rui attended the forum with his latest micro-short play "Flying Tigers". The movie "Flying Tigers" is one of Chung's favorite Chinese films. He adapted the movie into a 13-episode mini-series, leaving a little suspense at the end of each episode. "This is a major feature of micro-short dramas. It has a fast pace and reversals, which attracts everyone to continue watching," he said.
"China's creative environment has set up many good communication platforms for micro-short drama creators like us, mobilizing the enthusiasm of practitioners and allowing more people to pay attention to and participate in the development of micro-short dramas." Zhong Jiarui said, "Good stories are regardless of nationality and are a passport for common human emotions. Chinese micro-short dramas can allow people with different cultural backgrounds to find resonance in the same story."
Good stories inspire emotional resonance
Our reporter Li Zhiwei
On a studio in Vancouver, Canada, an English mini-series produced by a Chinese production company is being filmed intensively. The director and producer of this drama are both Chinese, and the actors, photographers, service staff and other positions are all held by locals, forming an innovative model of "Chinese IP + local production".
The global popularity of Chinese micro-short dramas has given many North American film and television workers new job opportunities, and Canadian actor Evan Bacic is one of them. Since his first appearance in a micro-short drama in June 2024, he has completed the filming of 38 vertical screen dramas, including "Back to the Top" in collaboration with Maple Leaf Interactive, a Chinese micro-short drama production company.
"Micro-short dramas have brought me more job opportunities, allowing me to engage in acting full-time." Bacic's previous jobs were mostly as extras or shooting commercials. "Compared with the work of shooting micro-short dramas, the job is more stable and has better career prospects."
Maple Leaf Interactive was established in San Francisco, USA in 2016, and has branches and offices in China, Canada, Mexico, the Philippines and other countries. The company will launch ReelShort, the first micro-short drama application to be launched in the North American market in 2022, choosing the "local production" model. From actors, screenwriters to the filming team, they will mainly focus on local talents in the target market. This down-to-earth approach makes the content of micro-short dramas more in line with the local cultural environment and aesthetic habits. In November 2023, the application became popular overseas with its micro-short dramas with diverse themes. It rose to second place on the free list and first place on the entertainment list in the US Apple App Store. As of August this year, the application has been downloaded more than 450 million times.
Nowadays, the Chinese pinyin "duanju" has become an exclusive English word, referring to micro-short plays. Kerry-Lee Kroeger, the Canadian producer of Maple Leaf Interactive, said: "Love themes are the most popular genre, and fantasy and youth themes are also very popular. Generally speaking, the reason why Chinese micro-short dramas have become popular around the world is that they meet the emotional needs of modern people."
As more and more people watch TV programs on their mobile phones, the film and television industry is facing a transformation from "horizontal screen" to "vertical screen". "Although the communication medium has changed, what really attracts the audience is the story itself, and ReelShort is committed to creating stories that can deeply touch people's hearts. A good story can resonate with people all over the world. In the final analysis, everyone is pursuing happiness and the realization of personal value, and these are the themes that most micro-short dramas ultimately express," Kroeger said.
Maple Leaf Interactive cooperates with many Chinese creators. "Chinese companies have a lot of experience in creating vertical screen micro-shorts. From actor selection, service material library construction, to daily shooting capacity scheduling, Chinese companies have a mature production system with high operating efficiency." Kroeger said.
"At present, the narrative of Chinese micro-short dramas is no longer just following the trend, but using content as a boat to sail to the center of the global film and television production stage, becoming a creative trend that cannot be ignored." Nan Yapeng, vice president of Maple Leaf Interactive, said, "The discussion on vertical screen micro-short dramas not only marks the innovative leadership of Chinese Internet companies in the 3.0 era driven by micro-short dramas, but also injects new momentum into the high-quality integrated development of the global content industry."
