Vertical preflight Before the first shoot day, plan for: 9:16 safe zones; close-up and eyeline coverage; episode cliffhangers; slate and file naming; rapid continuity; mobile-first audio; space for captions; promotional cutdowns; thumbnails; and protection for a horizontal version if you might need one.
Compliance preflight • Confirm which SAG-AFTRA agreement applies. The Verticals Agreement covers serialized projects with chapters of three minutes or less. • Lock performer, location, music, artwork, trademark, stock and underlying-IP rights. • Set explicit limits on face scans, voice cloning, digital replicas, generative alteration and AI training. • Build E&O clearance records as you shoot. • Plan deliverables: clean masters, captioned versions, textless elements, M&E, dialogue stems and localization scripts.
Templates with vertical additions • Series bible: episode map, hook and cliffhanger index, paywall placement, continuity grid. • Call sheet: agreement status, intimacy and stunt flags, portrait-frame notes. • Camera report: orientation, stabilization, safe-zone exceptions, dual-format coverage. • Continuity log: episode boundaries, cliffhanger frames, pickup priority, ad selects. • Delivery manifest: runtime, codec, aspect ratio, captions, M&E, key art. • AI asset ledger: tool, model and version; input rights; modifications; consent; terms.
Delivery in 2026 YouTube treats eligible square or vertical uploads up to three minutes as Shorts. TikTok Series lets eligible creators sell collections of up to 80 videos, each 30 seconds to 20 minutes.
Localization is now a pipeline Transcription, translation, adaptation, voice rights, synthetic or actor dubbing, timing, lip sync, subtitles, on-screen text replacement, QC and delivery. When choosing a vendor or tool, check languages and dialects, speaker limits, glossaries, human review, data retention, voice consent, security, API access and per-minute cost.
AI in production AI is moving from isolated assists toward end-to-end production, which makes provenance, consent, character consistency, version control and QA central. One report on China counted 128,000 microdramas released in Q1 2026 with more than 95% using AI — a China-specific figure that shouldn't be generalized to U.S. production.
Hiring vendors Distinguish what a vendor says it can do from verified credentials, reviews and credits. Ask about service area, union status, minimum call, insurance, accessibility, turnaround, vertical credits and response time. Find vendors in the Resources directory.