Cast and crew pose for a group photo during a short-drama production in Quzhou, Zhejiang province. [Photo/Sanqu App]

Short-drama production is expanding beyond studios into tourism experiences in Quzhou, Zhejiang province, as local production company Meigao develops live-action and AI-generated content.

A short drama is an episodic television series ranging from a few seconds to over 10 minutes per episode, designed for online viewing on mobile devices.

The industry is expanding into tourism in Quzhou, with a short-drama experience base in Xitan village, Qujiang district, where visitors can pay to take part in short-drama filming.

Meigao said its cultural park for costume short dramas will also introduce filming experiences, allowing visitors to step in front of the camera rather than simply watch.

Several short-drama projects are currently being filmed at Meigao Short Drama Super Factory, a filming base in Qujiang district, Quzhou, with some previous productions reaching overseas audiences.

Meigao has also expanded into AI-generated short dramas, developing an AI short-drama production facility earlier this year and signing cooperation agreements with nearly 20 AI production teams. Its AI-produced short drama Yuanyang Pu has garnered more than 40 million views on Hongguo, a Chinese short-form drama platform.