Home / Arts and Entertainment / SAG-AFTRA Unveils Verticals Agreement to Support Booming Microdrama Industry
SAG-AFTRA Unveils Verticals Agreement to Support Booming Microdrama Industry
14 Oct
Summary
- SAG-AFTRA launches new Verticals Agreement for micro and vertical dramas under $300,000 budgets
- Agreement aims to protect performers and support creators in fast-evolving microdrama format
- Microdrama revenues expected to reach $3.8 billion by 2030, surpassing theatrical box office in China
On October 14, 2025, SAG-AFTRA has announced the launch of its groundbreaking Verticals Agreement, a new media contract tailored for the needs of serialized micro and vertical dramas. The agreement will cover various productions with budgets under $300,000, providing critical protections and flexibility for creators, actors, and producers within the SAG-AFTRA union.
"This agreement works for the realities of these productions -- their pace, their budgets, and their creative ambitions, while upholding the union's core standards of actor protections," said Chief Negotiator and National Executive Director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland. The union perceives the advent of "verticals" as an exciting new space, with the fast-evolving format catching on rapidly. Variety reported last month that microdrama revenues generated $819 million in 2024, with projections to climb to $3.8 billion by the end of the decade. In China, microdrama revenues are expected to surpass theatrical box office this year.
