[Digital Today reporter Jae-won Choi] Australia’s long-running drama "Neighbours" is being recut into vertical short-form videos, igniting debate over what should be considered a microdrama.

On Oct. 1 (local time), IT outlet The Verge reported that RoseBerry Media will rework some episodes of "Neighbours" into short vertical videos and release them on the short-form streaming platform Epis. It will not change all 41 seasons from 1985 to 2025. It will first target two storylines from the late 2000s in which Margot Robbie appeared.

RoseBerry will use its own AI-based production process to reconfigure existing footage for mobile vertical screens. The outlet said it is hard to see this as the same format as traditional microdramas that became hits on ReelShort or DramaBox. Existing microdramas are produced on low budgets from the outset with phone viewing in mind, and have a distinctive narrative structure that places dramatic twists and cliffhangers in each short episode.

Microdramas grew around 2018, centered on China’s Douyin and Kuaishou. China market revenue rose to $7.0 billion in 2024 from $500 million in 2021 and is projected to reach $16.2 billion in 2030.

Recently, AI and reuse of existing content have emerged as new variables. In China, a survey found that more than 95 percent of about 128,000 microdramas released in the first quarter this year were generated with AI. Issues have also been raised about fewer jobs and lower pay for actors and production staff.

The outlet said that if content that cuts existing works and turns them into vertical form like "Neighbours" is also called a microdrama, the genre’s boundaries could blur. It has the advantage of reusing existing intellectual property without a big production budget, but whether original actors and production staff take part further and whether royalties are paid are also emerging as new points of contention.