From the original barbaric growth to the path of professionalization and quality development
The micro-short drama that turns Hengdian into a "vertical store" is asking for quality from traffic
During the Spring Festival this year, micro-short dramas such as "I Was a Stepmother in the 1980s" and "New Year's Day" became popular. To the National People's Congress and the National People's Congress, many representatives and committee members discussed the development of micro-short dramas. It can be said that "short and flat dramas" Micro-short dramas characterized by "fast, refreshing, and refreshing" have become the biggest outlet in the film and television industry.
The eye-catching and profitable “electronic mustard”
Wang Hui, who has just been involved in micro-short dramas for less than a month, has already recharged more than 300 yuan on the short drama platform. Wang Hui, 49, is an accountant. In her previous opinion, short plays were "boring and a waste of time." However, she changed her mind one night after she couldn't sleep and saw a short play video on the Douyin platform. "It's too over the top." Wang Hui told reporters that the dramas she watches now mainly have themes of "emotion" and "revenge." "Although many short dramas are exaggerated, and sometimes I can guess the direction of the plot, but I still... If you can’t help but read on, you will feel a sense of loss after watching a drama.”
At first, in order to prevent herself from becoming addicted, Wang Hui only bought individual episodes, but after not watching much, she was asked to recharge, and she spent hundreds of yuan unknowingly.
The reporter saw on the short drama platform that in order to attract viewers to recharge, many short dramas are free for the first dozen or so episodes, and then they start charging. Sometimes even if you recharge your membership, some special episodes still need to be purchased separately.
Wang Hui’s daughter told reporters: “The short drama has deprived my mother of sleep time and money.”
Like Wang Hui, many people started watching short dramas on short video platforms. The "China Online Audiovisual Development Research Report (2023)" shows that micro-short dramas have a large audience. In the past six months, 50.4% of short video users have watched micro-short dramas, micro-variety shows, and instant noodles within three minutes (length is less than 3 minutes). ~5-minute animated short film).
Why are short plays so popular? Tianyu, the producer of the micro-short drama, believes that for the audience, "short, flat and refreshing" is one of the reasons why the audience likes to watch short dramas. "In the more than three years since the short dramas appeared, the audience has begun to suffer from aesthetic fatigue and emphasizes 'be cool'" 'The content of male videos has decreased, while female videos that emphasize emotions have always occupied a certain market."
Professional organizations enter the scene to produce short dramas
Yien data shows that in 2023 alone, more than 1,400 micro-short dramas were launched, with a year-on-year growth rate of more than 50% for two consecutive years; the number of micro-short dramas registered throughout the year was approximately 3,000, which is a considerable number.
"In industry terms, Hengdian has become a 'vertical store', and in many places you can see crews filming short dramas on vertical screens." Feng Bai, who has just finished filming a micro-short drama, told reporters that now in In major film and television bases, short drama crews have settled in one after another.
Feng Bai is a graduate student and has been involved in the production of micro-short dramas part-time for three years. He is mainly responsible for the crew coordination. "Each drama takes about more than a month from the beginning of preparation to the end of filming. During filming, the daily work rhythm is from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. This is already low-intensity compared with many short drama crews."
Feng Bai told reporters that the "short, smooth and fast" nature of short plays is even more reflected in the production of short plays. Although the overall production process of short drama shooting is the same as that of movies and TV series, it has low investment, short production cycle and faster financial return. The crew also tries to keep costs as low as possible in terms of personnel and scale. In order to save money, many short play screenwriters choose to be part-time screenwriters while in school. Sometimes the crew is short of actors, and Feng Bai has to appear as a "passerby".
Starring in "Oops!" Seo Ye-jin, an actor in popular short dramas such as "The Empress Comes to Work", has previously said that in the past, short dramas may not require scenes. They were shot on the roadside or in the street. Only the male and female protagonists participated in the script reading. But now, with the The audience's aesthetics have been upgraded, and the scenes, props, costumes, etc. are all improving. Before each filming starts, the actors will participate in script discussions and put forward some ideas to make the characters fuller.
"After several years of development, it is obvious that the production of short plays has developed from the original barbaric growth to a professional and high-quality direction." Looking at the development of short plays from a production perspective, Feng Bai has full confidence in the future of short plays. Confidence.
At present, a large number of professional film and television organizations, including Huayi Brothers and Ningmeng Film and Television, are entering the micro-short drama market and increasing their investment in micro-short dramas. Douyin also announced that it will join hands with more than 20 media to create high-quality short dramas.
On March 29, the "Xunguang Venture Capital Plan", a micro-short drama creator support program jointly launched by the China Network Audiovisual Association, Noon Sunshine, and Tencent Video, was officially launched. The three parties will provide support and assistance in the entire chain of theme planning, creative guidance, production and filming, broadcast operations, promotion and promotion, etc., to build a diverse and open creative space for the majority of creators.
Sun Jiashan, an associate researcher at the Central Academy of Culture and Tourism Management, said in an interview with the Workers' Daily that professional film and television organizations entering the market to produce micro-short dramas are not simply "dividing the cake", but jointly expanding the micro-short drama market. Professional film and television organizations can bring more resources and professional operation experience to the industry, which can not only improve the overall quality of micro-short dramas, but also further extend the life cycle of film and television IP. For example, the movies "The Lost Girl" and "All or Nothing" have launched derivative micro-short dramas, which not only enhanced the audience's stickiness, but also extended the life cycle of the IP.
Shift from high traffic to high quality
As the micro-short drama industry continues to advance rapidly, problems such as uneven quality, serious piracy, and induced consumption are increasingly exposed. On March 21, the China Internet Audiovisual Association issued a notice stating that the online mini-series "Teacher, Don't Run" had a vulgar plot, and the lines, scenes, and plot involved serious soft pornography and other violations. Previously, dramas such as the short drama "Black Lotus' Handbook of Ascension" were removed from the shelves for exaggerating the bad values of extreme revenge and using violence to counter violence.
"Micro-short dramas are not only the focus of the industry, but also have an important impact on the public." Zhang Yiwu, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and a professor at Peking University, believes that micro-short dramas have a promising future and require support and positive incentives from all parties in society. We should cherish the development vitality of micro-short dramas, cherish its development environment and opportunities, jointly protect the space for creativity and imagination, and promote greater development of the overall industry.
It is understood that at the end of 2022, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television issued the "Notice on Further Strengthening the Management of Online Micro-Short Dramas and Implementing the Creation Improvement Plan" to promote the continued standardization of the communication order of online micro-short dramas and the steady improvement of content quality. In November 2023, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television announced that it would take multiple measures to continue the management of online micro-short dramas, including accelerating the formulation of the "Detailed Rules for the Creation, Production and Content Review of Online Micro-Short Dramas" and studying and promoting the inclusion of online micro-short drama apps and "mini programs" into daily life. Organization management, etc.
"If the micro-short drama industry wants to develop in the long term, it must get rid of the misunderstandings of speculation, not be overly kidnapped by commercial interests, and get rid of low-level homogeneous competition as soon as possible." Sun Jiashan believes that the high-quality development of micro-short dramas cannot rely solely on external supervision. , Industry self-discipline is very important.
In addition to supervision, relevant departments have also introduced a number of measures to promote the quality and quantity of micro-short dramas.
"Micro-short dramas are no longer a blue ocean, but a very red ocean." Yu Ke, head of the plot business center of Kuaishou Entertainment Business Department, said bluntly that in 2024, competition in the micro-short drama industry will only become more intense and the market will become more standardized.
Workers Daily - China Industrial Network reporter Cao Yue and Wang Xianru Workers Daily - China Industrial Network intern Liang Yuchen