LayarHijau – The fact is clear: short dramas in China are often criticized for weak stories and acting. Yet, ironically, this has become a turning point. Instead of ignoring them, traditional TV and film industries are now studying this format. Its popularity has skyrocketed and generated significant revenue, even if the quality is questionable.
This phenomenon was highlighted at the CEIS 2025 China Entertainment Industry Annual Conference in Beijing on January 9, 2025. Hosted by Entertainment Capital Theory with industry partners, the conference emphasized that major players need to understand the secret behind the success of seemingly simple content.
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Short-Form Content Market Surpasses Box Office
Wu Lixiang, founder of Entertainment Capital Theory, presented surprising data: the market value of short dramas in China has exceeded 50 billion yuan, higher than the total box office revenue of 42 billion yuan. This shows that short-form entertainment has become a major revenue source in the entertainment ecosystem.Additional figures show that live streaming and digital gifts bring in 269 billion yuan, while mini-game advertisements reach 50 billion yuan. Despite their simplicity, quick and easily accessible digital entertainment has become a dominant trend.
Why Do Audiences Crave Simple Content?
Why do dramas with lower technical quality attract viewers? Zhao Youxiu, Vice President of Tinghuadao Production, explained that short formats allow experimentation and innovation without heavy production burdens.
Modern audiences prefer content that is fast, light, entertaining, or emotionally comforting right away. For example, Xiaoxiang Renjia showcases everyday life in a warm and relatable way, while To the Wonder (known in China as My Altay), a long drama adapted into short format, is appreciated for its light and healing qualities. These examples show that fast storytelling and emotional resonance matter more to today’s viewers than lavish production.
Traditional Industry Adapts
The traditional entertainment industry is now quickly adopting lessons from short dramas. Qi Kang, General Manager of iQiyi Canran Studio, emphasized that content innovation remains key even with limited viewing time. He views long and short dramas as complementary formats.
Shao Xuan from Alibaba Entertainment suggested compressing long drama episodes to make storylines more engaging, following the fast pace of short dramas. Meanwhile, leaders such as Li La from Tencent Video and Yang Sheng from Perle Interactive highlighted using technology and AI to reduce costs and create interactivity that captures digital audiences’ attention.
The focus now is on quickly attracting and retaining viewers, a core strength of short dramas.
Production Efficiency and Global Potential
The biggest advantage of short dramas is production efficiency. Long dramas take 2–3 years to produce, making them slow to respond to trends. Short dramas, with 5–15 minute episodes, can iterate quickly and go viral more easily.
Screenwriter Zhou Jiansen explained that short dramas have changed audience expectations: they want concise, viral stories with simple but emotionally strong scenes. Examples like To the Wonder and New Life Begins (Youku) combine long drama storytelling with short format and still attract attention.
Short dramas also teach distribution efficiency and have high global potential, according to Zhai Fang from Straw Bear Entertainment. Short video formats are easily accepted internationally. AI increasingly helps with translation and co-writing for adapting long dramas, though it cannot yet replace human creativity, notes Zhang Lin from CMC Capital.
Key Lessons for Mainstream Industry
The most important takeaway from CEIS 2025 is that traditional TV and film industries are now learning from popular short dramas, even those that seem simple. They adopt the ways short dramas engage viewers: fast, concise storytelling, efficient production, and high interactivity. According to Wu Lixiang, “The more unpredictable the industry environment, the greater the opportunities for entertainment to grow.” In other words, when trends and audience preferences change rapidly, the ability to adapt quickly becomes a key to success.
Source: Zhihu.com
