Duanju

Duanju (simplified Chinese: 短剧; traditional Chinese: 短劇; pinyin: duǎn jù), sometimes translated in English as short drama,^[1] vertical drama,^[2] microdrama,^[3] vertical minidrama or mobile drama, is a type of short form web or television series that has gained popularity in China. These series are mostly adapted from Chinese web fictions and are released on new media platforms such as TikTok/Douyin (抖音 in China). Each episode is very short, usually around 1 to 2 minutes in length. While the duration of a single episode may range from 1 to 6 minutes, episodes longer than 3 minutes are relatively rare. A full series may include anywhere from 20 to 100 episodes, making the total runtime comparable to that of one or two full-length movies. Usually created for mobile platforms, many duanju are produced directly in vertical format to facilitate mobile viewing. They are optimized for vertical viewing on smartphones, catering to audiences who prefer bite-sized entertainment that fits into fragmented viewing habits. Because of their short length and mobile-first design, duanju are sometimes referred to as short dramas, vertical dramas, micro-dramas, or mobile dramas in English. Short dramas are sometimes adapted into interactive movie games.^[4]

Compared to earlier Chinese TV dramas, Duanjus contain more fictional and imaginative content. In terms of storyline, these Chinese short dramas can be compared to soap operas in English speaking countries, although in a faster-paced, more hyperactive style.

History

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.^[5]

Video-form duanju started in 2013 on Youku Tudou before moving to apps like TikTok, ReelShort, DramaBox, GoodShort, and Kuaishou. By 2023 the audience for duanju reached about 1.6 billion people.^[5]

In 2024, China's duanju market generated over 50 billion yuan (approx. USD 7 billion) in profit. The sector is also estimated to have created over 600,000 jobs.^{[6][7][8][9][10]}

International expansion

France

In June 2024, the French newspaper Le Monde reported on the arrival of short vertical series in France, mainly distributed via the ReelShort app, and noted their growing popularity among younger audiences.^[11]

Since 2025, the Asian platform Stardust TV^[12][13] has also expanded into France. Among its new titles is the French vertical series Les Aventures avec ma voisine (Next Door Adventure), produced by Guillaume Sanjorge. It is the first French series to be distributed on an Asian platform dedicated to vertical mobile fiction.^{[14][15][16][17][18]}

The emergence of mobile vertical fiction in Europe was highlighted during international events held in Paris on 23 November 2024^[19][20] and on 14 June 2025.^[21] Organized by the Studio Phocéen association, this event brought together creators, producers, and platforms to highlight this evolving form of storytelling. British producer Adam Gee was among the participants.

In July 2025, Gaëtan Bruel, president of the Centre national du cinéma et de l'image animée, mentioned the format for the first time during an official visit to Asia.^[22]

Ukraine

In Ukraine, Holywater, a company founded by Bogdan Nesvit, launched the mobile app My Drama, which distributes short vertical series of two to three minutes. The platform has gained a growing user base in Eastern Europe and reportedly generates several million dollars in annual revenue.^[23][24][25]

United States

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.^[5]

In the United States, producer Chris Wicke described duanju as "the next frontier of global mobile-first storytelling" in a Forbes article published in March 2025.^[26]

In 2025, Netflix adopted a vertical mobile feed. Journalist Isabelle Deromas Lebocq saw it as a sign of the growing influence of the duanju format.^[27]

Production in Asia

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.^[28]

In China, duanju often are filmed in less than two weeks and on a very small budget.^[5] 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.^[28]

Impact

Duanju (short drama or vertical drama) 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 one of the most profitable and lucrative sectors of the Chinese entertainment industry.^[29]

Examples

• Kaibo! Duanju Ji (On Air! Micro-Drama Season) - Reached nearly 100 million views^[29]
• Unparalled - earned gross revenue of $14 million after eight days of release^[28]
• Take Me Home (金猪玉叶) - produced by Stephen Chow^[30]
• "Billionaire hides his identity, works as a delivery boy but Sexy female CEO loves him at all costs".^{[citation needed]}
• "Worldwide Prices Plummet by 10,000 Times, I Become the World's Wealthiest".^{[citation needed]}
• "Global IQ Drops by 10,000 Times, I Become the World's Smartest Person".^{[citation needed]}
• "Global Freeze, I Built a Doomsday Safe House".^{[citation needed]}
• "After the divorce, I resumed my status as a rich lady. My ex-husband regretted it".^{[citation needed]}

Copyright controversies

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.^[31]

See also

• ReelShort
• DramaBox