Your next drama might be a series of 1 to 3 minute episodes.
In China, 35% of people surveyed by Dentsu watch microdramas quite often or regularly, versus 10% to 11% in the U.S., U.K. and Australia (Wayne Friedman, MediaPost). AI has cut the cost from about 5000 yuan per minute to a few hundred.
In the future, this means that the next AI microdrama or sitcom will be based on where the person lives and suits their taste and language; not one sitcom that’s dubbed into many languages.
The Traitors is a 2021 Dutch reality competition format that has been recast in more than 40 territories (Esther Zuckerman, WSJ). This has transformed the show into a sprawling entertainment franchise where fans can:
- Buy the board game and hooded cloaks worn by the villains
- Show up for live experiences, like the West End stage show in London, or throw their own Traitors parties. These are tied to real places and people or
- Play the WhatsApp game hosted by a bot, where anyone any where on Earth can join a group of 30 for a week.
South Korea’s K-pop labels split the map the same way. Robot versions of their groups tour the world; their human counterparts play only in the cities where fans are willing to pay the most to see them live (Matilda Aquila Chia, WSJ).
The U.S. takes a different approach from China’s AI microdramas and South Korea’s K-pop robots, igniting the debate whether AI tools should help human filmmakers or replace them. Jeffrey Katzenberg launched an AI animation studio to help animators and filmmakers use AI tools to cut their production costs (Sharon Waxman, TheWrap). Runway’s CEO, Cristobal Valenzuela, told Variety that AI could “absolutely” replace actors while NVIDIA’s Richard Kerris replied, “Cris and I can agree to disagree.” In his view, AI becomes part of production “while artists and creative teams remain in control of the pipeline.”
AI can make a drama anywhere, but as The Traitors shows, people will pay for events in a real place with real people.
P.S. Mistakes are mine.