From Film Sets to Prompts: The AI Short-Drama Revolution in China

China's ultra-short drama industry — one of the country's fastest-growing entertainment formats — is being reshaped by AI-generated video production. In Zhengzhou, a major production hub, directors, actors, and crew members are facing shrinking budgets and fewer shoots as AI begins to displace traditional workflows. The uncertainty is stark: an industry that only recently boomed is now contracting for many of its human participants.

At the same time, cities like Wuxi are leaning into the transition, with AI studios producing short dramas faster and at a fraction of conventional costs. The story frames this not as a distant hypothetical but as an already-unfolding disruption — the central question shifting from whether AI will change filmmaking to what role, if any, humans will retain in it.