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PODCAST

Inside Vertical Short Dramas

Short Drama Alliance with Maggie Han

🎙️ Go behind the scenes of the global vertical short drama boom.Hosted by producer Maggie Han, founder of the Short Drama Alliance, this podcast explores the rise of vertical short dramas through interviews with creators, producers, and industry leaders worldwide.Featuring conversations from the Short Drama Forum and the YouTube channel Short Drama Decode.Find us on Tiktok,Instagram, Facebook,X or threads — just search Short Drama Alliance.

tv & film film interviews

All Episodes

36:10

25Q4| Writing Vertical Dramas for MyDrama: A...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/29

Today’s episode comes from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum,featuring Yamile Vaena — a bilingual best-selling author from Mexico and a screenwriter whose career spans nearly five decades of storytelling. In this conversation, Yamile shares how she transitioned from novels to vertical dramas, why the format unlocked new creative and financial opportunities, and what she learned writing for major platforms across China, India, and the U.S. We talk about identifying ideas that actually work in one-minute

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27:53

25Q4 | From Actress to Creator: Why I Stepped Behind...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/28

Today’s episode features a conversation from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum, with Carin Smolinski — an actress, producer, and director who has appeared in 26 vertical micro-dramas and is now shaping the next wave of elevated, values-driven vertical storytelling. In this interview, Carin shares how she moved from entrepreneurship in Japan into acting in 9:16 dramas, what she’s learned across chaotic early sets to today’s professionalized workflows, and why she writes and produces projects that

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25:47

25Q4 | My First Vertical Short Drama: What Worked,...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/26

Today’s episode comes from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum, featuring Celia Xavier — an award-winning vertical writer, producer, actress, and a Top 6 Visionary Award finalist in the ReelShorts Vertical Series Competition. Celia shares how she transitioned from traditional filmmaking into vertical microdramas, the experience of producing her own 10-episode series, and what she learned about hooks, pacing, and emotional impact through the editing process. We also talk about audience behavior, character

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35:37

25Q4 | Unlearning Film Writing: What Vertical Dramas...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/25

Today’s episode features a conversation from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum with Isabel Dréan — a produced vertical-series writer with a #1 show on Vigloo, and the creator of the Vertical Series Masterclass and Vertical Incubator. In this interview, Isabel talks about what makes vertical stories work—from archetypes and emotional intensity to the “espresso shot” pacing of short dramas. She also shares insights on adapting long-form scripts into mobile-first storytelling, why horror and thrillers are

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25:31

25Q4 | Writing Vertical Short Dramas: A UK Production...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/24

Today’s episode features a conversation from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum with Bethany Thomson — the Creative Lead at Sea Star Productions, one of the UK’s leading vertical drama studios. In this interview, Bethany shares how she scouts and works with writers, how Sea Star collaborates with major platforms, and what makes vertical storytelling different from traditional TV and film. She also talks about the growing UK & European market, the tropes that still work, what new genres have breakout

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37:36

25Q4 | Actors in the Vertical Era: Liyanne Marie on...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/22

Today’s episode features a conversation from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum with Liyanne Marie — a Casting Director (CDA) and Head of Casting at Onset Octopus, working across film, TV, commercials, theatre, and especially vertical dramas in the UK and internationally. In this interview, Liyanne shares how casting for vertical dramas differs from traditional screen work, what she looks for in actors in a fast-paced mobile-first format, and why authenticity and emotional clarity matter more than ever

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33:50

25Q4 | Short Dramas Are Candy: Why Vertical Stories...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/21

Today’s episode comes from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum,featuring director Jen Yeuroukis, who works across Los Angeles and Europe in micro-drama and vertical drama production. In this conversation, Jen shares how she transitioned into vertical directing, what makes short-drama storytelling unique compared with film and TV, and why emotional clarity and structure matter so deeply in a 2–3 minute episode. We also discuss common script issues she encounters, how she thinks about pacing and emotional

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59:38

25Q4 | The 3-Hour Lesson from China That Changed How...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/20

Today’s episode comes from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum, featuring Judah Ray — founder of Butterfly and an ex-MGM development executive who has worked across more than 100 productions. In this conversation, Judah breaks down how he approaches Westernizing short-drama IP, what makes vertical storytelling fundamentally different from traditional filmmaking, and why formulas, retention mechanics, and data matter more than genre or style. He also shares insights from shadowing major platform shoots,

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29:00

25Q4 | Inside Short Drama Licensing: Cassandra Yang...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/19

Today’s episode features a conversation from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum with Cassandra Yang — CEO of RisingJoy, one of the most active global licensing hubs for micro-dramas, now connected with 50+ platforms across 20+ countries. Cassandra explains what truly defines micro-dramas, why mobile-first storytelling requires emotional hooks over logic, and the biggest misconceptions traditional film/TV professionals still have about the format. She also breaks down global demand trends, the rise of

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36:14

25Q4 | Vertical Dramas Aren’t TV: Kristen Brancaccio...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/18

Today’s episode features a conversation from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum with Kristen Brancaccio — a writer-director who has created 16+ vertical dramas across major U.S. platforms, and one of the emerging creative voices shaping the fast-paced directing language of vertical storytelling. In this interview, Kristen shares how she transitioned from TV pilots and YouTube into vertical formats, why pacing and emotional turns matter every 10–15 seconds, and how she balances genre tropes, production

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30:26

25Q4 | The Vertical Gold Rush: Dana Protsyshak on the...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/17

Today’s episode features a conversation from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum with Cypress Bai — founder of Storypod Studio, former Head of Content & Production at DramaWave, and one of the key writer-producers shaping the English-language vertical drama landscape. In this interview, Cypress shares how she first entered the vertical space, how she approaches adapting Chinese and English web novels, and why structure, rhythm, and emotional clarity matter even more in short dramas.We also talk about

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11:42

25Q4 | From BL/GL Fandom to Global Reach: Jeebok Park...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/16

Today’s episode features a conversation from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum with Jeebok Park — the founder of the global micro-drama platform Shortime and Shortime Studio. Jeebok talks about what makes short dramas fundamentally different from film and TV, why emotional engagement matters more than any metric, and how BL/GL fandoms became the foundation of their global growth. We also discuss how Shortime works with creators around the world, what types of stories travel best, and why he believes

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46:33

24Q4 | Writing Vertical Stories: Cypress Bai on...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/15

Today’s episode features a conversation from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum with Cypress Bai — founder of Storypod Studio, former Head of Content & Production at DramaWave, and one of the key writer-producers shaping the English-language vertical drama landscape. In this interview, Cypress shares how she first entered the vertical space, how she approaches adapting Chinese and English web novels, and why structure, rhythm, and emotional clarity matter even more in short dramas.We also talk about

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38:39

25Q4 | What Fans Want: Jen Cooper on Story Shifts,...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/14

Today’s episode comes from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum,Featuring Jen Cooper — founder of Vertical Drama Love, a global vertical-drama advocate, media commentator, and one of the most influential community-builders in the space.In this conversation, Jen shares how she entered the industry as a fan and became a bridge between creators and audiences worldwide. We discuss fan behavior, global viewing trends, the rise of vertical-drama awards and festivals, and how fan feedback is shaping what gets

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22:18

25Q4 | Directing the Soap Opera 2.0 Mauricio Osaki on...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/13

Today’s episode features a conversation from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum,with Mauricio Osaki — filmmaker and creative director of Lupi Films, where he develops original short dramas and leads localization for multiple global platforms. In this interview, Mauricio shares how he first entered the vertical-drama space, what makes mobile-first storytelling fundamentally different from film and television, and why he believes the essence of short dramas is a modern, mobile version of the soap opera. We

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40:19

25Q4 | How 9:16 Productions Builds High-Performance...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/12

Today’s episode comes from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum,featuring Max Jiang and Joy Quinn, co-owners of 9:16 Productions, one of the most organized vertical-drama teams in the U.S. In this interview, they discuss how they approach performance, pacing, casting, and localization for mobile-first audiences—and why new genres like horror and thriller may be the next frontier in vertical dramas. Let’s dive in.📘 Want to dive deeper into the storytelling logic behind global short dramas?Check out my book

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29:22

25Q4 | Inside Vertical Casting: How Monika Dalman...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/11

Today’s episode features a conversation from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum,with Monika (Whitney) Dalman — a Casting Director, industry consultant, and producer who has worked on more than 80 vertical microdramas across multiple global platforms. In this interview, Monika breaks down how vertical casting really works, what production teams often overlook when adapting film/TV workflows to microdramas, and why performance, safety, and communication matter even more in this fast-turnaround format. We

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10:09

25Q4 | AI Motion Comics & the Next Wave of Short...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/10

Today’s episode comes from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum, featuring Lucas Zhang, CEO & Founder of Daogu Entertainment and co-founder of Dramago. Lucas has been at the forefront of China’s short-drama evolution — from live-action vertical series to AI-powered motion comics — and his teams have worked across the full pipeline: writing, production, post, distribution, and long-tail monetization. In this conversation, he breaks down:what truly differentiates short dramas from traditional film &

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33:40

25Q4 | From Viral Roles to Producing: Kasey Esser on...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/10

Today’s episode features a conversation from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum with Kasey Esser — an actor and producer recognized by Rolling Stone as one of the breakout stars of the vertical drama industry. Kasey shares how he entered the U.S. vertical-drama space early on, what he’s learned from starring in viral hits like Fated to My Forbidden Alpha and Love in the Shadows, and why pacing, romance, and emotional clarity matter so much on a mobile screen. We also talk about the rise of

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51:11

25Q4 | DramaBox’s Creative Engine: Jenny Rosen on...

Inside Vertical Short Dramas ·

2025/12/09

From the Short Drama Forum 2025 Q4In this episode, we share a conversation from our 2025 Q4 Short Drama Forum with Jenny Rosen —Junior Development Executive at DramaBox, vertical drama screenwriter, and traditionally published author.Jenny’s vertical dramas and web novels have generated over 70 million views across ReelShort and Wattpad/WEBTOON Studio, with her work featured in The Guardian, The Times, ITV, and Der Spiegel.In this interview, Jenny discusses:How she approaches writing for

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42 results

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