The most interesting thing about Kagiso Modupe’s new production company is not simply that it will make films. It is that Modupe Studios has put vertical micro-drama directly into its production strategy.
Vertical micro-drama is moving from social-media novelty towards a distinct screen business with its own platforms, production cycles, monetisation models and storytelling grammar. Modupe Studios matters because an established South African filmmaker is putting that format inside his slate rather than treating mobile video as marketing around conventional film and television. If the experiment works, it could expand not only where South African drama is watched, but how episodes are written, framed, financed and distributed in the first place.
Announcing the company in September, Modupe revealed plans for new films alongside a series of vertical micro-dramas to be released exclusively on Hektik, a platform built around vertical streaming. This is not a television show being chopped into promotional clips after production. The short-form, phone-oriented work is being conceived as part of the slate itself.
For years, the phone has been where television went after the episode was finished. Kagiso Modupe is betting that it can also be where the story begins.
That distinction is bigger than an aspect ratio.
A vertical frame changes what storytelling rewards. Faces occupy more of the screen. Intimacy becomes easier to manufacture than spectacle. Exposition has less room to wander. Episodes designed for short-form consumption need reasons for the viewer to stay almost immediately.
Those are creative constraints, not merely technical ones.
For years, short-form platforms have been useful to the television industry mainly as marketing infrastructure: clips, teasers, reaction moments and fragments designed to push audiences somewhere else. Modupe’s move points towards another possibility—a production pipeline in which the phone is not the billboard for the drama. It is the cinema.
That does not automatically make vertical fiction the future of South African television. The format still has to prove that audiences will follow characters and narratives with the same commitment they bring to conventional series.
But Modupe Studios is asking the more useful question first: what happens when South African fiction is designed for the device on which it will actually be watched?
The answer may require new pacing, new performance instincts and new economics. That is precisely why the experiment matters.
Story index Key points, people & topics
Key points & topics
- With Modupe Studios, the filmmaker behind Losing Lerato and Pound 4 Pound is putting vertical micro-drama directly into his production strategy — treating the phone not as a promotional screen for television, but as a...
- Kagiso Modupe’s new production company will make films and vertical micro-dramas for Hektik. The more interesting idea is what comes with that decision: South African fiction conceived around the phone from the beginning...
- Kagiso Modupe’s new Modupe Studios will produce films and vertical micro-dramas for Hektik, bringing mobile-first storytelling into its South African production slate.
Frequently asked Answers from the desk
What is Modupe Studios?
Modupe Studios is a new South African production company launched by actor director and producer Kagiso Modupe in September 2026.
Who founded Modupe Studios?
Modupe Studios was founded by South African filmmaker and actor Kagiso Modupe.
What will Modupe Studios produce?
The announced slate includes new films and a series of vertical micro-dramas.
Where will Modupe Studios' vertical dramas be released?
Modupe says the vertical micro-dramas will be released exclusively through Hektik.
What is Hektik?
Hektik is a South African mobile-first streaming platform focused on professionally scripted vertical micro-dramas.
What is a vertical micro-drama?
A vertical micro-drama is a scripted episodic story created primarily for portrait 9:16 mobile viewing with episodes typically lasting only a few minutes.
Why are vertical micro-dramas made for phones?
Their framing episode length pacing and cliffhanger structure are designed around how audiences use smartphones rather than adapting conventional television after production.
Is vertical drama the same as TikTok?
No. Both use vertical mobile screens but micro-dramas are structured scripted series with characters continuing narratives episodes and cliffhangers rather than standalone social clips.
How long are micro-drama episodes?
There is no universal length but many leading formats use episodes of roughly one to three minutes.
Why does vertical framing change filmmaking?
A narrow portrait frame alters composition blocking close-ups camera movement and how much visual information can appear at once.
How we reported this Sources, verification & accountability
- Reporting type
- News
- Verification
- Verified — multiple sources
- Reporter / responsible desk
- Viranova Entertainment Desk
- Primary evidence
- Based primarily on Kagiso Modupe’s September 2026 announcement of Modupe Studios, which states that the new production company will develop films alongside a series of vertical micro-dramas for exclusive release on Hektik. The announcement was independently cross-checked against IOL, Bona and OkMzansi, all of which confirm the Modupe Studios launch and vertical micro-drama slate. Hektik’s own public material confirms that it operates as a South African mobile-first platform built around professionally scripted 9:16 micro-dramas, while the Gauteng Film Commission confirms its involvement in developing local industry knowledge around micro-drama production, distribution and monetisation. The wider market context was checked against Reuters, Omdia and Media Partners Asia reporting. Omdia estimates global micro-drama revenue reached $11 billion in 2025 and projects $14 billion in 2026, while Reuters reported in August 2026 that the format is drawing increasing investment and participation from established entertainment businesses.
- Additional verification
- Kagiso Modupe announced Modupe Studios in September 2026 with a slate spanning conventional films and vertical micro-dramas intended for exclusive release on Hektik. Multiple South African entertainment outlets independently reproduced the announcement, including its description of the new company as a fresh creative chapter and its mobile-first production plans. Hektik describes itself as a dedicated African vertical micro-drama platform headquartered in Sandton and founded in 2025. Its stated model centres on professionally scripted, fast-paced, cliffhanger-led 9:16 stories designed for mobile viewing. The company has also promoted pay-as-you-watch monetisation and revenue-sharing structures for African creators and rights holders. The Gauteng Film Commission has already collaborated with Hektik on a Business of Micro-Drama masterclass covering creation, distribution, monetisation and audience engagement, indicating that vertical drama is beginning to develop its own professional infrastructure within South Africa rather than remaining solely a social-media format. Modupe had publicly connected himself to the mobile-storytelling shift before launching the company. In April 2026, he presented a session at Limkokwing University titled The Business of Film: Why the Future of Film Lives in Your Pocket, discussing vertical streaming and the ways portrait-oriented viewing changes cinematography and distribution. Internationally, the format is expanding rapidly. Reuters reported in August 2026 that micro-dramas are attracting established studios, executives and production businesses, while Omdia estimates global revenue will reach $14 billion by the end of 2026. Media Partners Asia separately projects revenue outside China at $3.6 billion this year. Modupe brings established long-form experience into that experiment. He produced and co-wrote Losing Lerato, directed Thando, produced Losing Lerato 2 and created, executive produced and co-directed BET Africa’s Pound 4 Pound. BET subsequently distributed Pound 4 Pound in the United States.
- Image
- Kagiso Modupe
- Primary source
- Kagiso Modupe — Modupe Studios launch announcement
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Filed by Viranova Entertainment Desk for the Entertainment desk · Johannesburg, South Africa. Published 12 Sept 2026.
Sources
Primary material
Viranova obtained, attended or witnessed this directly.
- Kagiso Modupe announced the launch of Modupe Studios as a new production company developing films and vertical micro-dramas Kagiso Modupe accessed 12 September 2026
- Modupe Studios plans to release a series of vertical micro-dramas exclusively through Hektik Kagiso Modupe accessed 12 September 2026
- Modupe described the new company as work carrying his vision and a fresh start Kagiso Modupe accessed 12 September 2026
- Hektik describes itself as a dedicated vertical micro-drama platform producing professionally scripted fast-paced cliffhanger-led stories for mobile-first audiences Hektik App accessed 12 September 2026
- Hektik says its content is designed for vertical mobile viewing and positions the phone as the primary destination for its scripted dramas Hektik App accessed 12 September 2026
- Hektik has promoted a 50/50 revenue-sharing model for filmmakers whose existing content is reformatted and distributed through the platform Hektik App accessed 12 September 2026
Secondary material
Reported first by another publication or organisation, and credited here.
- IOL independently confirms that Modupe Studios will produce new films and vertical micro-dramas for exclusive release on Hektik IOL accessed 12 September 2026
- Bona independently confirms that Modupe announced Modupe Studios through his Instagram account and that its slate includes films and Hektik vertical micro-dramas Bona accessed 12 September 2026
- Kagiso Modupe discussed vertical streaming cinematography and mobile-first distribution during an April 2026 industry session titled The Business of Film Why the Future of Film Lives in Your Pocket Times of Eswatini accessed 12 September 2026
- The Gauteng Film Commission and Hektik held a Business of Micro-Drama masterclass covering production distribution monetisation audience engagement and opportunities in the format Gauteng Film Commission accessed 12 September 2026
- Hektik is described as a Johannesburg-based mobile-first platform for professionally made 9:16 micro-episode series using a pay-as-you-watch token model VC4A accessed 12 September 2026
- Omdia estimates global micro-drama revenue reached 11 billion dollars in 2025 and will reach 14 billion dollars by the end of 2026 Omdia accessed 12 September 2026
- Reuters reports that vertically shot micro-dramas are expanding rapidly and attracting traditional studios executives production companies and investors Reuters accessed 12 September 2026
- Media Partners Asia estimates micro-drama revenue outside China will reach 3.6 billion dollars in 2026 Screen Daily accessed 12 September 2026
- Losing Lerato credits Kagiso Modupe as producer executive producer and co-writer and the film received multiple awards at the Idyllwild International Festival of Cinema IMDb accessed 12 September 2026
- Pound 4 Pound was created and executive produced by Kagiso Modupe and co-directed by Modupe and Sibusiso Phakathi TVSA accessed 12 September 2026
- BET distributed the 13-part South African drama Pound 4 Pound in the United States and credits Kagiso Modupe as an executive producer BET accessed 12 September 2026
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