YouTube’s new ‘Shorts series’ feature brings episodic viewing to Shorts

As microdrama apps gain traction, YouTube is clearly betting that episodic short-form storytelling will stick around. And that the format belongs on Shorts.

At its Made On YouTube event on Wednesday, the company announced “Shorts Series,” a new tool that lets creators organize their Shorts into TV-style seasons and episodes. The feature brings a more traditional episodic structure to YouTube Shorts, complete with custom thumbnails and playback.

With Shorts Series, viewers can watch a selection of Shorts as a continuous story rather than simply scrolling from one standalone clip to the next. The series will live on a creator’s YouTube channel. 

The feature is rolling out to creators in the YouTube Partner Program across web, mobile and connected TVs.

The move comes as no surprise, given that YouTubers have already been experimenting with microdramas and increasingly, they’re considering it a serious business venture. 

For instance, internet personality Hannah Stocking has crossed into vertical drama, starring in the musical microdrama Playback, which premiered on Holywater’s MyDrama platform. Then there’s Joshua Ovenshire (TheJovenshire), a longtime YouTube creator who has moved away from traditional YouTube videos. He now works as an executive producer, making shows for vertical platform ReelShort, including a “Love Island”-inspired series called “Secrets and Soulmates.”

The format has even become popular enough to attract recognizable Hollywood names, too, with celebrities including James Franco, Issa Rae, and Jesse Tyler Ferguson getting involved.

YouTube’s new feature also puts the platform more directly into competition with a growing collection of microdrama apps. TikTok recently launched PineDrama, its own microdrama app, while others such as ReelShort and DramaBox have also grown in popularity. 

For YouTube, Shorts Series could be a way to keep viewers engaged without sending them off to other platforms for episodic vertical storytelling. Instead, they’re providing a way to access it all directly on YouTube. 

The company adds that Short Series builds on “Creator Shows,” which it announced at its annual upfront event last year. This gave select creators the tools to organize their content into a viewing experience designed for TV. Creators including Michelle Khare and Rhett & Link used the tools to structure their content into seasons and episodes, making it easier for viewers to binge on the big screen.

Other Made On YouTube announcements are also designed to help creators grow and engage audiences.  This includes “Live Showdowns,” which let creators pair up for interactive team challenges, expanded video A/B testing to compare different cuts or opening hooks, “Dynamic Thumbnails” to allow YouTubers to select the most engaging option from up to three creator-provided thumbnails for different audiences, new shopping features, and more.

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Lauren covers media, streaming, apps and platforms at TechCrunch.

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