2026 Micro Drama Going Global to Africa: Current Situation, Challenges and Localization | Global Expansion Practical Camp

In the past three years, Chinese micro-short dramas have achieved remarkable results in going global. The "2025 Overseas Short Drama Industry Report" released at the 13th China Network Audio-Visual Conference shows that in 2025, the total downloads of overseas short drama apps reached 1.199 billion, a year-on-year increase of 268%; the total revenue was 2.329 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 133%. The number of active markets increased from 37 at the beginning of the year to 46, indicating a significant globalization trend.

Short dramas have become one of the most successful categories of Chinese film and television cultural products going global. However, it is easier to "go out" than to "go in". During the process of micro-short dramas going global, challenges such as cultural conflicts, legal risks, and public opinion crises are always present, testing every Chinese enterprise with the vision of cultural globalization.

01 New Trends and Industry Challenges in Short Drama Going Global

As one of the most successful categories of all cultural products going global, micro-short dramas have quickly penetrated into regions such as Southeast Asia and the Middle East through a highly market-oriented business model. Similar to their explosive growth in China, the rapid popularity of short dramas overseas lies in their ability to precisely meet the emotional needs of ordinary people - providing users with a good story experience in a shorter time through a fast, precise, and small-scale content form.

In recent years, the process of micro-short dramas going global can be roughly divided into three stages.

Before 2024, micro-short dramas emerged from scratch, and then hit dramas appeared, quickly entering an innovation explosion period. Since the first half of 2024, domestic screenwriting teams have successively launched their own brands overseas, initially verifying the commercial feasibility of micro-short dramas going global and opening the first door to the global market.

From the second half of 2024 to 2025, the micro-short drama market entered the second content upgrade period. While the market scale grew rapidly, the original model dominated by overseas scripts changed, the number of translated dramas gradually increased, and more new content forms emerged.

Currently, the industry is in the third stage of transformation. International film and television giants represented by Disney have also begun to layout the micro-short drama track; at the same time, the free models of platforms such as Netflix and TikTok are challenging the "free trial + paid unlocking" business model relied on by overseas short drama platforms represented by ReelShort.

Meanwhile, the development of AI technology is completely subverting the creation mode and business ecosystem of micro-short dramas - in the past, producing content required a long cycle and a large amount of manpower, but now AI can generate pictures with one click, greatly improving production efficiency. According to DataEye data, the North American market contributed 45% of the in-app purchase revenue of overseas micro-short dramas in 2025. In the first quarter of 2026, the number of overseas AI dramas/comic dramas increased by 700%, and North America was also the region with the most growth. AI short dramas have further intensified the homogenization involution, and the industry has officially entered a reshuffle and adjustment period, with most platforms falling into the dilemma of "increasing revenue but not profit".

The evolution of the three stages has inevitably affected every specific practitioner. First of all, in the past, one could stand out in the industry based on experience, but now one must have a deeper understanding of the life, aesthetics, and psychology of the overseas local market to launch better works.

Secondly, as the cost of paid promotion increases and the conversion rate decreases, short drama companies must rethink their promotion and marketing strategies and improve the quality of the content itself.

Thirdly, in the past, the production of short dramas was generally dominated by Chinese teams, but now the participation rate of local overseas teams is getting higher and higher. For example, the micro-short dramas produced locally in South Korea and Japan have shown strong market performance. Moreover, the shooting mode is further tilting towards localization. In the past, Chinese teams generally invited overseas actors to shoot in China, but now more links such as editing and post-production are gradually being localized. This means that future micro-short drama teams must have real overseas localization capabilities.

02 Opportunities and "Knowledge" of Micro-Short Dramas Going to Africa

Many people think that the cultural and video industries in countries along the "Belt and Road", especially in Africa, are underdeveloped. But in fact, the annual output of "Nollywood" in Nigeria exceeds 3,000, and countries such as South Africa and Kenya have mature theater systems.

Therefore, micro-short dramas have also been quickly welcomed on the distant African continent. According to the "Africa Entertainment and Media Outlook Report 2025 - 2029" released by PwC, the African subscription-based video-on-demand market is expected to grow to 4.6 billion US dollars by 2030.

Similar to the reasons for the popularity of micro-short dramas in other regions, on the African continent, the penetration rate of smartphones has exceeded 60%, the cost of mobile network services has been continuously decreasing, and the popularization of short video platforms such as TikTok among urban youth groups has provided a fertile ground for the spread of micro-short dramas. In the past, there was a lack of a new content consumption model of "high emotional density + strong narrative + extremely short duration" in the local cultural market, which enabled domestic micro-short dramas to have a dimensionality reduction impact locally.

When going to Africa, it is inevitable to adopt the strategy of "precise communication, one policy for each country". After all, Africa is composed of dozens of countries and regions with different cultures, religions, ethnic groups, and consumption habits, and the cultural and aesthetic preferences of the audience also vary greatly.

Take Eritrea as an example. Local audiences have a special preference for war-themed works; in Tanzania, after the family drama "A Beautiful Daughter-in-Law Era" was translated into Swahili, it once caused a national drama-watching craze in Tanzania.

In terms of shooting methods, although it is relatively cost-effective to shoot in China and invite foreign actors to participate, due to the distance from the local environment and the lack of on-site experience and understanding of local culture by the production team, special attention should be paid to avoiding plots that may harm international relations. If shooting on location overseas, the company must comply with local laws and regulations, including labor, taxation, environmental protection, and customs.

Secondly, in most African countries, shooting permits need to be obtained in advance for shooting overseas, and the use of drones is particularly sensitive. Take Tanzania as an example. The local government prohibits the entry of drones weighing more than 100 grams, and in some countries, even shooting aerial shots requires approval.

In some African countries, obtaining a national shooting permit is not enough, and the unwritten rules of local tribes also need to be considered. For example, on Zanzibar Island in Tanzania, an additional shooting qualification needs to be applied for. If the customs clearance procedures are incomplete, the equipment is very likely to be confiscated.

Taboos in religious culture should also not be ignored. In some countries, women cannot be photographed casually, and the consent of a male guardian is often required. The music related to the "Quran" cannot be used as background music at will, and the adhan cannot be "spoofed".

Time concept is also a knowledge in Africa. The scheduled appointment time often fluctuates by 1 - 2 hours. In many places, "on my way" may mean arriving several hours later. Therefore, when inviting local actors or partners to shoot, enough time needs to be reserved in advance to avoid delaying the normal shooting plan.

* The views expressed are from the interviewed institutions or individuals and are for reference only.

This article is from the WeChat official account "Comprehensive Service Port for Zhejiang Enterprises Going Global", author: Zhejiang Enterprises Going Global.