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The Rise of Micro-Dramas
Mouseler opened her session by spotlighting the first micro-drama featured in this year’s selection — a short-form series based on the novel Shutout by Jami Davenport. The story follows Caroline, who is unexpectedly reunited with her first love, Easton, now a professional hockey star who rehires her after eight years apart. Unbeknownst to him, Caroline has been hiding a life-changing secret: he is the father of her child. As their paths cross again, she must decide whether to reveal the truth before it’s too late.This bite-sized telenovela format has proven remarkably successful, with three adaptations already produced in the U.S., Canada, and Brazil within just one year. The series consists of 70 episodes of 90 seconds each and is available on the Rio Short app, with some premium access required. Originally launched in July 2024 in the U.S., it was adapted in June in French Canada and in July in Brazil. The short, addictive storytelling and vertical format have made it one of the year’s standout international hits.
Another upcoming micro-drama mentioned by Mouseler is “Maria Madre de Dios” (Mother Maria, Mother of God) — a vertical-format miniseries that will stream on Telemundo in the U.S. this December. Structured like an advent calendar of 25 episodes, it offers an innovative spiritual narrative style. Mouseler noted that micro-dramas are rapidly becoming one of the most adapted scripted formats in the market, signaling a trend likely to grow in the coming years.
Top Scripted Formats: Real-Time Global Ranking
Mouseler then revealed The Wit’s Real-Time Top Scripted Format Sales Ranking, available to subscribers of The Wit database. The current top three titles are:
Mother – Japan (Nippon TV)
Machos Alfa – Spain (Netflix)
Call My Agent – France
Among new adaptations, she highlighted The Crossroad, the Spanish remake of the Turkish hit Brave and Beautiful (60x50’, June 2025). The series tells the passionate love story of two young people from rival families.
Another Turkish success, Halef (110x45’, distributed by Inter Medya), follows a talented surgeon who must abandon his city life to return to his rural hometown, where he faces dark secrets and old rivalries.
From Spain, Mouseler also introduced The Maid’s Daughter (8x50’), a period drama based on a bestselling novel. Premiering in late November on AtresPlayer, and later on linear TV, the story is set in early 20th-century Spain and follows two girls raised in the same manor — one the daughter of the master, the other the maid’s child — whose lives are intertwined in a tale of love, revenge, and social division.
Adaptation Sources: Books, True Events, and Beyond
Mouseler presented data from The Wit’s Fresh Database, which tracks the origins of newly launched dramas worldwide. According to the figures, 16% of new series are adapted from books, followed by those inspired by true events, manga adaptations, internet-native series, micro-dramas, TV reboots or revivals, webtoon/cartoon-based shows, feature film adaptations, comic books, video games, theatre plays, internet talent, and app-based adaptations.
Interestingly, scripted format adaptations currently represent only 4% of new dramas launched over the past year — a relatively small but consistent category that continues to expand through international co-productions.
True-Event Dramas: Turning Reality into Storytelling
A significant portion of this season’s standout titles is inspired by real events, reflecting television’s ongoing fascination with reality-based storytelling.
Red Alarm (Keshet 12, Israel) – A powerful series inspired by the tragic October 7 attacks in Israel. The drama, which became an instant hit, has just aired its second episode, chronicling the human impact of those devastating events.
Estado de Fuga 1986 Drama (8x42’, Netflix Latin America) – Launching in December, this series revisits the 1986 restaurant massacre in Bogotá. It follows Leon, a literature student who discovers his close friend committed the atrocity, leading him to confront his own guilt and moral blindness. Distributed by Mas Ros Media.
Golden Boys (4x44’, Viaplay Content Distribution, Sweden) – Based on a true story and a book, this gripping drama recounts the rise and fall of two cousins behind Sweden’s largest financial fraud. It will premiere on TV4 in early 2026.
The Big F* Up** (8x45’, Streams, Belgium) – A darkly comedic take on real events from the 1980s, following a Belgian gendarmerie unit led by a rogue CIA agent who ends up turning criminal. Filled with disco and rock covers, the series debuts at the end of the month.
The Big Chase: Tokyo SSBC Files (9x60’, TV Asahi, Japan) – A sleek Japanese crime drama about three detectives from different backgrounds joining a new Tokyo police division specializing in data-driven criminal investigation.
I Fought the Law (6x45’, All3Media, UK) – Based on a true story and book, this moving legal drama centers on a mother’s fight against the UK justice system to bring her daughter’s killer to justice. It became a major ITV hit since August 2025.
In Flight (Channel 4, UK) – Another female-led story, exploring a mother’s determination and emotional strength.
Riot Women (6x60’, BBC One, UK) – Premiered last Sunday, this empowering dramedy follows five women of a certain age who form a punk-rock band to enter a talent contest. The band becomes a catalyst for self-discovery and change. Distributed by Mediawan Rights.
Red Flag (WRT Sales) – A modern psychological thriller where Luna, a 23-year-old student, gains access to the digital life of a 39-year-old advertising executive. What begins as a playful experiment soon spirals into a tense struggle over privacy, control, and intimacy.
Finally, Mouseler mentioned a Belgian road-trip drama centered on two sisters, one of whom is terminally ill and preparing for euthanasia — an intimate, emotional journey of love, freedom, and farewell.
Florentina, a young woman who learns to accept herself when she inherits a mysterious nightclub. Living in the hyper-standardized world of her mother’s fitness center, obsessed with physical appearance, Florentina’s silhouette doesn’t match the slim standards of this world. After a breakup and an unexpected inheritance, she discovers a secret nightclub where, surrounded by colorful new friends, she can finally blossom far from family expectations.
Virginia Mouseler’s 2025 Fresh TV Fiction presentation once again captured the pulse of global storytelling. From micro-dramas and literary adaptations to female empowerment and real-life tragedies, today’s scripted landscape mirrors a fast-changing audience appetite for authenticity, emotion, and innovation — proving that in the evolving world of television, great stories continue to transcend borders and formats.
