NEWS
Microdrama studio facilities scale up; new dedicated vertical production sets in Asia follow vertical viewing boom
29 September 2025
Studio facilities in Asia have started allocating dedicated space for vertical video production and new sets that recreate everything from New York streets to hospital lobbies are going up as the vertical video arms race intensifies.
Encouraged by outsize growth and soaring financial projections, production facilities are clearly eager to accommodate tight budgets and tighter shooting schedules of five or six days with sets that bump right up to each other.
In this every-minute-counts environment, insiders talk about the emergence of one-stop production shops that allow them to film on sets located steps away from each other.
The latest major build is at Hengqin in China’s Greater Bay Area (Hong Kong, Macao, Guangdong). Backed by the COL Group, the 10,000 square meter studio is billed as a one-of-a-kind facility designed for international productions. The studio will be used for microdrama app FlareFlow’s pipeline.
The Hengqin studio, scheduled to be operational by end-2025, will have 30 specialised sets and sound stages, with a focus on international locations such as New York, L.A. and other major cities around the world.
News of COL’s plans come a few months after Hengdian World Studios took to the floor at the 2025 Busan Contents Market talking about its sprawling facilities, including dedicated space for vertical drama production. Hengdian World Studios has 600,000 square metres of studio space, 50 live-action sets, end-to-end service, financial incentives and dedicated facilities for vertical formats.
Along with production company SpringReel ("Chasing My Rejected Wife") and others, Hengdian is part of The Hengdian International Short Drama Alliance, formed at the end of 2024 to establish a “short drama production factory”.
In Thailand, the Kantana Group has set up dedicated vertical drama space as part of its embrace of the format. This also includes its involvement in K-Shorts, a venture with Amarin TV and the MI Group annou...
Studio facilities in Asia have started allocating dedicated space for vertical video production and new sets that recreate everything from New York streets to hospital lobbies are going up as the vertical video arms race intensifies.
Encouraged by outsize growth and soaring financial projections, production facilities are clearly eager to accommodate tight budgets and tighter shooting schedules of five or six days with sets that bump right up to each other.
In this every-minute-counts environment, insiders talk about the emergence of one-stop production shops that allow them to film on sets located steps away from each other.
The latest major build is at Hengqin in China’s Greater Bay Area (Hong Kong, Macao, Guangdong). Backed by the COL Group, the 10,000 square meter studio is billed as a one-of-a-kind facility designed for international productions. The studio will be used for microdrama app FlareFlow’s pipeline.
The Hengqin studio, scheduled to be operational by end-2025, will have 30 specialised sets and sound stages, with a focus on international locations such as New York, L.A. and other major cities around the world.
News of COL’s plans come a few months after Hengdian World Studios took to the floor at the 2025 Busan Contents Market talking about its sprawling facilities, including dedicated space for vertical drama production. Hengdian World Studios has 600,000 square metres of studio space, 50 live-action sets, end-to-end service, financial incentives and dedicated facilities for vertical formats.
Along with production company SpringReel ("Chasing My Rejected Wife") and others, Hengdian is part of The Hengdian International Short Drama Alliance, formed at the end of 2024 to establish a “short drama production factory”.
In Thailand, the Kantana Group has set up dedicated vertical drama space as part of its embrace of the format. This also includes its involvement in K-Shorts, a venture with Amarin TV and the MI Group announced at end-August 2025.
In Malaysia, Iskandar Malaysia Studios is also investing in an inventory of ready locations to attract microdrama projects. The studio, which has just opened its hospital/police station sets, has prisons, airplane cockpit/cabin, courtrooms and cafes in its sets pipeline.
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