movies
BAFTA Adds AI Clause To Submission Rules
BAFTA has once again tweaked its submission rules.
In a series of new rules announced this morning, the headline additions include the expansion of the Outstanding British Film Longlist and the addition of a new clause on films created using generative AI.
The new AI law reads: “Where the use of Generative AI or other digital tools is relevant to the consideration of the work, BAFTA reserves the right to request additional information regarding the nature of such use and the extent of human creative involvement.”
BAFTA said the new AI clause will also be added to the rulebooks for its other 2027 awards. The organisation said the rule was created following consultation with the industry and with the aim of “reaffirming that the Awards recognise and reward outstanding human creative achievement.”
The Outstanding British Film Longlist has been expanded from 15 to 20 films. The category will retain 10 nominations, with five chosen by the membership vote and five by the nominating jury. The Outstanding British Film category was first introduced in 1947. Last year, Chloé Zhao took the award with Hamnet. Other previous winners include Edward Berger (Conclave), Jonathan Glazer (The Zone Of Interest), and Martin McDonagh (The Banshees of Inisherin).
Elsewhere, the Children’s & Family Film category has been renamed the Family Film category. BAFTA said the name “better reflects the types of films eligible for consideration and provides greater clarity for entrants, voters, and jurors, while the eligibility criteria and voting process remain unchanged.”
The 80th edition of the BAFTA Film Awards will take place on Sunday 21 February 2027 in London.
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The percentage of men watching microdrama used to be a “rounding error” but has exploded in the past two years, according to a new report from vertical video behemoth Holywater, which said microdrama audiences are being “redrawn.”
In Q2 2024, men made up just 1.1% of monthly active users to Holywater’s microdrama content, but this figure had rocketed to more than 30% just two years later.
Holywater described the growth in male microdrama viewers as “steady” rather than “driven by a single quarter or campaign” and said it is testament to the expansion of genres in the vertical video space.
Where once microdrama was dominated by romance, it is expanding rapidly into sci-fi, fantasy and other genres that are more palatable to the male viewer. “Romance is the spine of the audience – but the taste profile is broader than one genre,” said the report, which noted that horror and thriller remain “underserved” but are growing as the popularity of the likes of Backrooms and Obsession explodes with young people.
According to the report, 74% of users watch romance but 64.5% watch traditional drama and 54% comedy. Nearly half of respondents said they wanted to see more “stories adapted from books, films, or shows you already know.”
Holywater, which has big hits including Chained by Her Love, Young Elite and Secret Society: Till Blood Do Us Part, pointed out that its overwhelming majority audience remains female, who watch more frequently than men and for longer stretches of time. Men are “lighter viewers” and are far less likely to “fall into the super-heavy bucket” of audiences who watch more than seven hours per week, it said.
Ukraine’s Holywater is one of the largest in the exploding vertical video industry, has a content deal with Fox and recently received investment via a $22M capital funding round, the biggest of its kind in the microdrama space. Bosses recently told Deadline that microdrama has moved well beyond cheap, schlocky imitations of traditional TV and film. “People used to say YouTube was just a platform for cat videos, or Netflix would never succeed,” said co-founder Bogdan Nesvit back in May. “Naysayers should look back in the past because that will tell you a lot about the future.”
Microdramas skew younger
Holywater compiled the State of Microdrama Report with consulting firm Owl & Co, which pegged the global vertical video economy excluding China at a colossal $150B in 2026, up 41%.
Notably, the report’s authors found that the average microdrama viewer is getting younger.
Audiences aged 22-27 nearly tripled share of viewing over the past five quarters, now making up around one quarter of overall viewers to Holywater’s content.
Along with the shifting gender balance, this is also driving changes in what people want to watch, while it is making “in-bed viewing” more popular, a preference of the younger demographic, according to the report.
“In 2024, the microdrama audience was caricatured as a single demographic: women, 35-54, watching at night,” said the report. “Two years later, very piece of that picture is being redrawn in real time. The audience is still female-dominant. But it is also, increasingly, male, younger, and global.”
Numerous executives from the traditional TV and film world have moved into microdrama of late such as 5X Media’s Alon Shtruzman and Scott Einbinder, who yesterday unveiled New Short Media with a “consortium of investors” and projects including a “Mr. and Mrs. Smith-style action romance thriller.”
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EXCLUSIVE: The Roost Podcast Network is relaunching as Podium, a video-first business that debuts with a Trisha Paytas deal in the pocket.
The Roost’s parent, talent management and media company Night, has made the move two years after it acquired the podcast business, which now reaches 20 million monthly video and audio impressions and has 66 million followers across social media.
Podium launches after signing a deal with podcaster, creator and actress Paytas, who is bringing her podcast, Just Trish, to the network.
The company will oversee distribution, audience development and brand partnership for the show, similar to what it does for the likes of This Past Weekend with Theo Von and Jeff Wittek’s JeffFM. Also on the Podium slate are Sam & Colby Reacts, The Yard and Weekly Teacap with Kristi Cook.
Paytas has more than 20 million followers across social platforms, and is known for her lifestyle vlogs, ASMR content and cosplay videos. She has also roles in more than 50 TV and film projects, including in Broadway’s Beetlejuice: The Musical, and HBO’s Euphoria.
Just Trish, which sees Paytas make unfiltered takes on pop culture and entertainment stories, launched in 2019 and currently has more than 160 million views.
“Just Trish started as me talking about pop culture with my fans, and it turned into the thing I love most,” said Paytas. “My fans show up for everything, and Podium understands how meaningful that is.”
“Trisha has built a deeply connected and loyal audience who have followed her journey from podcasting to Broadway,” added said Catherine Browne, VP of Revenue & Partnerships, Podium. “For nearly two decades on the internet, Trisha continues to entertain and surprise her audience with her creativity and talent.
“Podium was built for creator-first podcasts that cross multiple platforms, and we’re thrilled to partner with Trisha as we launch this new chapter and continue to expand our slate of female-led and pop culture podcasts.”
Night, which was founded back in 2015, now comprises a suite of divisions comprising Night Talent, Night Labs, Night Studios, Night Ventures and Podium. The rebrand of the podcast unit and signing of Paytas has been triggered by content trends in the space, according to Night founder and CEO Reed Duchscher.
“When Night acquired The Roost in 2024, we saw a company that understood something the rest of the industry was just waking up to: That podcasting is video-first, personality-driven, and powered by fandom,” said Duchscher.
“Two years later, this company has evolved from its origins. Podium is who this team and these creators are today, and there’s no better way to open this chapter than welcoming Trisha, one of the most magnetic influencers on the internet.”
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Netflix and Tyler Perry have committed to telling more Beauty in Black stories as the streamer has renewed the drama series for a fourth season ahead of its Season 3 premiere. In December, Netflix announced the show had been renewed for a third and final season.
The renewal arrives after a successful second season, released in two parts, which spent six weeks in the Global Top 10 and reached No. 1 in 17 countries, according to Netflix.
Beauty in Black is created, directed, written, and executive produced by Perry and follows two women leading very different lives. While Kimmie (Taylor Polidore Williams) struggles to make a living after her mother kicked her out, Mallory (Crystle Stewart) runs a successful business. They are entangled in each other’s lives.
In Season 2, the ruthless, backstabbing family behind a beauty brand — and an underground trafficking ring — will face a reckoning. Kimmie, the once-unassuming sex worker in their employ, becomes an unstoppable force of vengeance on a mission to rescue her kidnapped sister.
In the upcoming third season, Kimmie finally has a seat at the Bellarie table, but when a deadly family feud erupts, she’s forced into an uneasy alliance with Mallory. Together, they navigate a ruthless world of blackmail, revenge, and buried secrets as the family wages war against one of its own, threatening to bring the entire empire crashing down.
No date for Season 3 has been revealed.
“Beauty in Black is back for Season 4, and the Bellarie family’s story is far from finished. There was so much more I wanted to explore, and I’m grateful I get to keep telling this story, shared Perry. “To the audience that has been on this ride with us from day one, thank you for watching and sharing it with the world. More episodes are on the way!”
The cast also includes Amber Reign Smith, Xavier Smalls, Ricco Ross, Julian Horton, Steven G. Norfleet, Richard Lawson, Terrell Carter, Bryan Tanaka, Charles Malik Whitfield, and Debbi Morgan.
Bailey Tippen, Rodrigo Aburto, Randall J. Bacon, George Middlebrook, Greg Clarkson, Jasmine Burke, Aria Celeste Castillo, Gianmarco Duin, Philemon Chambers, Philip Boyd, Ty Anthony, Deeric Williams, Herb Magwood, Tre McBride, Kevin Savage, Jazmine Robinson, Kaja Brielle, Shay Mack, Steven Rho, Aaron Serotsky, Mikeal L Dwayne Griggs, Sara Spadacene, D’kia Anderson, Antoine Williams, Ty Courtad, Raven Chambers, Michael Butler, Jillmarie Lawrence and Jim Braswell round out the cast.
Producers include Angi Bones and Tony Strickland for Tyler Perry Studios, with music from Wow Jones & Jimijame$.
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Microdrama Audience Getting Younger & More Male, Holywater Report Finds
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