LayarHijau.com—This week, the topic of actor salaries in China's short drama sector has been trending on Weibo, particularly focusing on salaries that can reach up to 30,000 yuan (around $4,200) per day.
Yesterday, discussions regarding short dramas in China once again gained traction, comparing the industry's development to that of 2023.
In the recently concluded year of 2024, the short drama industry experienced rapid expansion, intensified competition, and significant iteration. This year, themes surrounding dominant entrepreneurs (霸总) began to penetrate the middle-aged and elderly market, while free short dramas captured nearly half of the market share. On the international front, the market recorded extraordinary growth, with increases in multiple folds.
However, competition within the industry has become increasingly fierce, leading to sharply rising production costs, as reported by Sohu.
Li Tao, CEO of Fengxing Culture, explained that, for example, actor salaries have increased significantly. An actor's salary that was around 1,000 yuan (approximately $140) per day the previous year now ranges between 2,000 and 3,000 yuan (approximately $280 to $420) per day.
After starring in successful dramas, leading male and female actors can even earn between 3,000 and 5,000 yuan (approximately $420 to $700) per day, whereas in 2023, very few actors received daily wages exceeding 10,000 yuan (approximately $1,400).
In the second half of last year, many short dramas centered on employee layoffs were released intensively. There are rumors in the industry that one drama project related to layoffs achieved a profit 35 times greater than its initial investment. Li Tao confirmed this information to Blue Whale journalists, adding that only this one project and a few others were truly successful, while many others did not yield significant returns.
Previously, several media outlets in China discussed the high salaries of short drama actors. This topic made it to the hot search list on Weibo, with many netizens expressing their envy of these stars' success. According to recent reports, some top actors in short dramas can earn over 10,000 yuan (approximately $1,400) per day. Despite these high salaries, actors still face various challenges in their careers.
The short drama industry in China is rapidly evolving, with many new and established actors gaining popularity. Successful dramas like Hi, Mom and Love Before the Dawn have propelled names like Teng Zewen, Li Muchen, and Xu Mengyuan to stardom. For instance, Li Muchen is known as the only S+ actor in the horizontal drama category, earning up to 30,000 yuan (approximately $4,200) per day, while mid-tier actors typically earn between 6,000 and 8,000 yuan (approximately $840 to $1,120).
Over the past year, the free short drama market has shown significant growth, nearly capturing half of the market share. Previously, online marketing was almost the only way to introduce short dramas, serving as the core of this business. However, Li Tao revealed that several leading online distribution companies are currently undergoing transformation.
The short drama industry appears to be facing new challenges amid rapid growth and changing market dynamics.