China's largest studio backlot Hengdian World Studios is leveraging its resources to capitalize on the booming vertical drama trend sweeping the country, attracting an increasing number of vertical drama crews with an optimization of its sets tailored for the genre.
The backlot has welcomed more than 600 vertical drama crews in the first quarter this year, more than half of last year's total 1,100 crews.
Huaxia Cultural Park, a production base for costume dramas in Hengdian, now hosts dozens of vertical drama crews every day.
"Both the sets and our costumes are becoming increasingly refined. The industry is clearly maturing toward higher production quality," said actor Xia Jinmu.
"Hengdian [now] offers more supporting services and access to massive pools of extras and crew. It's truly a treasure trove for short-form production," said a vertical drama director named Gao Bo.
Huaxia Cultural Park has dozens of specialized sets for various vertical drama genres, and it plans further upgrades to meet growing demand.
"Beyond our costume and modern sets, we're seeing growing demand for virtual production stages. We'll be investing in virtual sets for vertical dramas in the second half of this year," said Shen Tuhang, staff of Huaxia Cultural Park.
China's largest studio backlot adapts to vertical-screen trend amid micro drama booms
U.S. stocks ended lower on Tuesday as lingering uncertainty over the second round of peace talks between the United States and Iran stoke investors' concerns over rising tensions in the Middle East.
The process of the expected second round of peace talks between the United States and Iran seems stalled as Iran reportedly decided not to take part, accusing the United States of violating the ceasefire. Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump announced to extend the ceasefire on some conditions.
At the close of Tuesday's trading session, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 293.18 points, or 0.59 percent, to 49,149.38. The S and P 500 sank 45.13 points, or 0.63 percent, to 7,064.01. The Nasdaq Composite Index shed 144.429 points, or 0.59 percent, to 24,259.964.
Ten of the 11 primary S and P 500 sectors ended in red, with real estate and utilities leading the laggards by going down 1.94 percent and 1.75 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, energy bucked the trend by adding 1.31 percent.
Following Apple's leadership reshuffle announcement, the company's shares fell 2.52 percent on Tuesday, leading the declines among the "Magnificent Seven" technology giants.
Apple said Monday that CEO Tim Cook will become executive chairman of the company's board of directors, while John Ternus, Apple's senior vice president of hardware engineering, will become the company's next CEO effective Sept 1, 2026.
US stocks end lower amid uncertain 2nd round of peace talks with Iran
