China’s ultra-short dramas will enjoy long-term success
Entertaining and innovative, micro-dramas are flourishing both at home and abroad in 2025
By Nicole Fan, 1843 intern, The Economist
“Cut!” barks the director, and chaos erupts at a film studio in Los Angeles. Actors rush off to change their costumes, while crew members scramble to arrange new props. It is only the second day of filming and they have already crammed in a week’s worth of cliffhangers. Filming a micro-drama, the latest new-media format to emerge from China, is just as fast-paced as watching one. “It’s soaps on steroids,” a scriptwriter explains.
Explore more
This article appeared in the Culture section of the print edition of The World Ahead 2025 under the headline “Long story short”
Discover more
The World Ahead 2025
Ten business trends for 2025, and forecasts for 15 industries
A global round-up from The Economist Intelligence Unit
Superforecasters in 2025
What the “superforecasters” predict for major events in 2025
The experts at Good Judgment weigh in on the coming year
Obituary in 2025
The rings of Saturn will disappear in 2025
First observed by Galileo, this occurs twice every 29 years
By Invitation: Science & technology in 2025
Casey Handmer says solar power is changing the economics of energy
Large-scale production of synthetic fuel is now feasible, argues the founder of Terraform Industries
Science & technology in 2025
Space missions to watch in 2025
Humans may fly around the Moon, and robots will explore new frontiers
