A Comprehensive Review of Chinese Micro-Short Dramas (2018-2024): From Phenomenon Commentary to Paradigm Construction

This article takes Chinese micro-short dramas from 2018 to 2024 as the research object, and centers on the core proposition of “whether academic research responds to industrial practice”. Through literature research, case analysis and interdisciplinary integration methods, it systematically sorts out the development background, knowledge spectrum and core tension of micro-short dramas. Research findings show that the rise of micro-short dramas is the result of the resonance between technological innovation, platform promotion, policy guidance and user demands. Current academic research has formed three core lineages: “Media, Industry and Market”, “Text, Culture and Psychology”, and “Creation, Form and Trend”, covering five major knowledge dimensions. The deep-seated contradictions in the field are manifested in three core tensions: the demarcation between instrumentality and value, the game between platform dominance and industrial symbiosis, and the disconnection between theoretical transplantation and local experience. This article has established a systematic analytical framework for the research of micro-short plays, which not only promotes interdisciplinary theoretical innovation but also provides practical guidance for the high-quality development of the industry, and offers support for the dissemination of traditional culture and the construction of a culturally strong country.