Night Train Media and Spirit Studios have announced funded development of a vertical microdrama series, to be launched by Night Train Digital across platforms worldwide.
The partners said the “pioneering project will be one of the first of its kind to come out of the UK, brought to life by a collective of emerging UK writing and acting talent”.
The move into short-form drama is in response to the rapid growth of the sector. With dedicated microdrama platforms like ReelShort, DramaBox and ShortMax booming, the market is projected to be worth $14 billion by 2027. Having taken off in China, the last few months have seen a ramping up of interest among young US audiences.
Herbert L Kloiber, CEO Night Train Media Group, said: “The global explosion in vertical content is something we’ve followed closely and our aim is now to elevate the quality in this space by bringing top class writing and acting talent to the production. NTM’s core business of scripted drama development, combined with the expertise in digital exploitation we’ve been growing at Night Train Digital, makes this the perfect marriage for us, and we’re so excited to be doing it in collaboration with the team at Spirit.”
Matt Campion, creative director and co-founder Spirit Studios (pictured), added: “We’re thrilled to be producing our first vertical drama at Spirit Studios. With more entertainment than ever consumed vertically, we’re perfectly positioned as a multi-platform studio to create scripted stories designed for the way audiences watch them. We’re excited to push the boundaries of short-form storytelling, with an ambition to grow mobile-first brands that can evolve into books, TV, films, and more.”
Neil Francis, the newly-appointed managing director of Night Train Digital, said: “This project aligns perfectly with our vision to not only exploit traditional rights but also to develop digital first content that can form a key part of our future growth. Off the back of our Virtually Parkinson AI Podcast, this development enables NTD to continue to push boundaries and experiment with formats that evolve the distribution landscape.”
The project is currently entering a development stage, funded by Night Train Media and Spirit Studios, with recruitment for creative talent ongoing.
