Duanju
Duanju (simplified Chinese: 短剧; traditional Chinese: 短劇; pinyin: duǎn jù) also called Chinese micro-dramas, Chinese short dramas, ultra-short dramas, or TikTok short dramas, are a type of web series that has gained popularity in China. These series are mostly adapted from web fictions and are released on new media platforms such as TikTok (抖音 in China). Each episode is very short, lasting only around one minute with anywhere from 60-100 episodes per show. The total duration is comparable to that of a movie. To facilitate viewing on mobile devices, Duanju are directly produced in a vertical screen. Short dramas are sometimes adapted into interactive movie games.[1]
History
[edit]Duanju originates from Chinese Web fictions that started around 2002. These fictions were written by users on websites such as Qidian and were released in installments, where readers had the option to pay per chapter or a subscription.[2]
Video-form duanju started in 2013 on Youku Tudou before moving to apps like TikTok, ReelShort, and Kuiashou. By 2023 the audience for duanju reached about 1.6 billion people.[2]
Production
[edit]Unlike the majority of content submitted to apps like TikTok, duanju are professionally-generated rather than user-generated. Chinese production companies hire professional actors and crew to shoot and edit the content.[3]
In China, duanju often are filmed in less than two weeks and on a very small budget.[2] The shows are typically freemium, offering a few episodes for free before monetizing the shows through a variety of means, including video-on-demand, subscription based models.[3]
Chinese production companies have started collaborating with their American and British counterparts to bring the content to English-speaking audiences. This is done either by dubbing the existing Chinese shorts or by re-creating the entire series with English-speaking actors. Productions in these countries are also on a very small budget and can be filmed in as little as 10 days for an entire season.[2]
Impact
[edit]Duanju micro-dramas are one of the biggest growth sectors in China's entertainment industry. In 2024, the market exceeded 50 billion yuan ($6.8 billion USD), which made it more successful than TV or film in China.[4]
Examples
[edit] |
- Kaibo! Duanju Ji (On Air! Micro-Drama Season) - Reached nearly 100 million views[4]
- Unparalled - earned gross revenue of $14 million after eight days of release[3]
- Take Me Home (金猪玉叶) - produced by Stephen Chow[5]
- "Billionaire hides his identity, works as a delivery boy but Sexy female CEO loves him at all costs"
- "Worldwide Prices Plummet by 10,000 Times, I Become the World's Wealthiest"
- "Global IQ Drops by 10,000 Times, I Become the World's Smartest Person"
- "Global Freeze, I Built a Doomsday Safe House"
- "After the divorce, I resumed my status as a rich lady. My ex-husband regretted it"
Copyright controversies
[edit]Due to the short production cycle and low cost, if a script becomes popular, many companies will rush to imitate it, resulting in the same plot flooding the internet, leading to sense of exhaustion, infringing on the original creator's copyright and other intellectual property rights.[6]
References
[edit]- ^ "China's next cultural export could be TikTok-style short soap operas". MIT Technology Review.
- ^ a b c d Armstrong, Stephen (2024-11-11). "'This will be the next film industry': The rise of the one-minute movie". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2025-01-30.
- ^ a b c Frater, Patrick (2024-09-27). "After TikTok, Micro Dramas Could Be China's Latest Disruptor to Global Entertainment". Variety. Retrieved 2025-01-30.
- ^ a b 李虹睿. "Micro-dramas making big waves". www.chinadaily.com.cn. Retrieved 2025-01-30.
- ^ Team, Dao (2024-06-05). "Famous Chinese film producer Stephen Chow steps into microdrama production". Dao Insights. Retrieved 2025-01-30.
- ^ "短剧虽短，版权不容侵犯 - 新华网客户端". app.xinhuanet.com.