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AustraliaDuanju: The Chinese Origin of Short Dramas
Duanju (短剧) is Chinese for "short drama". In China it names the vertical phone serials that the rest of the world now watches in apps like ReelShort and DramaBox. This page covers the Chinese side: where the format started, how big it is at home and how China regulates it. For the basics, such as how free episodes, coins and VIP plans work, start with what is a short drama.
Ask MiraAI host
AI host Duanju (短剧) is Chinese for "short drama". In China it names the vertical phone serials that the rest of the world now watches in apps like ReelShort and DramaBox. This page covers the Chinese side: where the format started, how big it is at home and how China regulates it. For the basics, such as how free episodes, coins and VIP plans work, start with what is a short drama.
Mira answers only from this site's pages, with links. She is AI and can be wrong: check the source.
What does duanju mean?
Duan means short and ju means drama. In China the word covers serial dramas filmed upright for a phone. Wikipedia's duanju article says the series typically feature episodes of one to two minutes. English has several names for the same thing. Micro drama is the industry's term, and vertical drama points at the 9:16 frame. Clips of these shows in social feeds get called reel dramas. No company owns any of these labels.
Where did duanju start?
On Chinese short-video apps. Wikipedia's duanju article traces the format to comedy sketches and serial clips on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, and on Kuaishou from around 2018. Earlier video serials had appeared on Youku Tudou from 2013.
| Year | What happened |
|---|---|
| 2013 | Early serial short videos appear on Youku Tudou |
| Around 2018 | Sketches and serial clips spread on Douyin and Kuaishou |
| 2019 | Kuaishou opens a dedicated section, Kuaishou Small Theatre |
| 2020 | The NRTA recognises duanju as its own genre of online video |
| 2020 to 2022 | Studios standardise on 9:16 shooting and production cycles often under two weeks |
| From 2022 | Explosive growth at home, then export through apps such as ReelShort |
All rows come from Wikipedia's duanju article.
How big is duanju in China?
By audience, far bigger than the international business. Wikipedia reports 576 million duanju users in China by June 2024, or 52.4% of the country's internet users. By the end of 2024 the figure was about 662 million.
| Measure | Figure | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Users | 576 million (52.4% of internet users) | June 2024 |
| Viewers | About 662 million | End of 2024 |
| Market | Over 50 billion yuan, about $7 billion | 2024 |
| Direct content revenue | An estimated 63 to 65 billion yuan | 2025 |
| New native titles on Douyin | More than 20,000 | 2024 |
| Jobs created | More than 600,000 | Estimate |
Source: Wikipedia's duanju article. Omdia, the research firm, says China accounts for much of a global market it puts at $11 billion in 2025.
Which Chinese platforms carry duanju?
The country's biggest tech companies. Wikipedia names Douyin (ByteDance), Kuaishou and WeChat (Tencent) as the main distribution platforms. Each runs its own brand for short dramas: ByteDance has Red Fruit, Kuaishou has Xi Fan and Tencent uses WeChat Video Accounts. These are Chinese services. The international apps sell a separate catalogue in English and other languages.
Why are most duanju free in China?
Because ads pay for them. Wikipedia describes three business models, and China has moved to a different one from the one US viewers know.
| Model | How the viewer pays | Where it leads |
|---|---|---|
| In-app purchase (IAP) | About $0.30 to $0.50 per episode, or $10 to $15 per series | High-income markets such as the US |
| In-app advertising (IAA) | Free, paid for by ads | China by 2025, plus Southeast Asia and Latin America |
| Hybrid (IAAP) | Free episodes, a paywall, reward ads and optional plans in one app | The most common model worldwide |
The per-episode and per-series figures are Wikipedia's ranges, not a price list. For dated plan prices in each app, see the prices guide.
How does China regulate duanju?
Through the National Radio and Television Administration (NRTA), China's broadcast regulator. It recognised duanju as a genre in 2020. Since then it has added review rules and clean-up campaigns.
- Budget tiers, February 2025. Sixth Tone reported new NRTA rules that sort productions by budget. Key titles cost 1 million yuan (about $137,000) or more. Regular titles cost 300,000 to 1 million yuan. Both need review by provincial regulators before release. Smaller titles are checked by the platforms.
- License numbers. Platforms must show a government license number on every title before release. A white list keeps unlicensed shows from being promoted or earning money. Breaking the rules can mean removal, fines and blacklisting.
- June 2026 campaign. Wikipedia says the NRTA moved against "harmful, lowbrow, and pirated" content, aimed at shows seen as harmful to children, wealth-flaunting, overly sexualised or copyright-infringing.
- June 2026 draft. Global Times reported a draft regulation on June 24, 2026. It keeps three categories and puts sensitive themes, such as politics, military affairs and religion, in the strictest one.
These rules apply in China. Apps sold abroad answer to App Store and Google Play age ratings in each country.
Is AI changing duanju?
Fast. The Next Web reports that AI-generated titles made up 38% of China's top 100 micro-dramas in January 2026, up from 7% a year earlier. The report names ByteDance's Seedance 2.0 and Kuaishou's Kling 3.0 among the tools used. The AI short dramas guide explains how that differs from the apps you use in English.
How did duanju reach apps outside China?
Chinese-backed companies took the model abroad. ReelShort, run by Crazy Maple Studio and backed by Beijing digital publisher COL Group, launched in August 2022. DramaBox, from Beijing's Dianzhong Technology, followed in April 2023, per Wikipedia. By 2025 the US had become the largest revenue market outside China, worth an estimated $1.3 billion that year, according to Wikipedia's duanju article.
Origin does not settle ownership. To check who sells a specific app, read the seller on its store listing and see who owns short drama apps.