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THE VERTICAL LEAP

BECOMING A FULL STACK FILMMAKER FOR VERTICAL DRAMA

Writing • Production • AI • Real-Time • Growth

The Shift

The Industry has moved vertical

Shorter formats. Faster Interaction. AI accelerates the entire pipeline.

The Opportunity

A vertical series is a lab for IP

Low cost. Fast testing. Instant audience feedback.

The most successful genre are some version of telenovelas - a language that has a long standing tradition in the Latin Community.

Latinx Advantage

Speakers

Luz Orlando Brennan

Luz Orlando Brennan is an Argentina-based, award-winning filmmaker, writer, and creative producer whose work spans live-action, animation, and hybrid formats. She wrote, directed, and produced La Estrella que Perdí, which won Best Feature at Cine Las Américas 2025, and was selected at major international festivals.

Her credits include Muerte en Buenos Aires, the Berlinale-selected El Prófugo, the internationally screened short En Crítica, and the Annecy-recognized animated short Dior. Most recently, her co-directed animated project won the Premio Madrid Film Office at MIANIMA 2025. With formal training from ENERC and UBA, Luz brings a multidisciplinary creative vision and a strong international festival track record.

Director, Writer, Producer

Ezequiel Asnaghi

Ezequiel Asnaghi is a seasoned producer and screenwriter with over two decades of experience across the entertainment and creative industries. Based between Los Angeles and Buenos Aires, he has led and delivered projects worldwide, spanning the U.S., Europe, Asia, and Latin America. He is the founder of Make Unit, a company focused on developing high-quality, innovative content across film, interactive media, and experiential formats.

His portfolio includes feature films, immersive exhibitions, VR experiences, and cutting-edge digital storytelling. Notable credits include executive producing La Estrella Que Perdí; serving as senior producer on Game of Thrones: Beyond the Wall VR for HBO at Framestore, which received an Emmy Awards nomination; leading content production for the Science Museum London exhibition Science Fiction: Journey to the Edge of Imagination; producing the permanent art installation Objeto Do Tempo for SESI in Brazil; and developing multiple innovation-focused projects in collaboration with Google.

Producer, Writer, Actor
Brand Builder

Matthias Metternich

Matthias Metternich is a brand builder who learned growth across the full stack — algorithm, influencers, affiliates, and retail. As CEO of Kiala, he helped build the #1 greens brand on TikTok and Amazon through relentless testing, a network of 5,000+ affiliates, and treating every scroll as a conversion event.

Previously, he co-founded Art of Sport alongside Kobe Bryant and five other pro athletes, scaling from launch to 30,000 retail doors through 500+ influencers, hyper-local campaigns, billboards, podcasts, radio, and remnant media — whatever it took to drive footfall. His work sits at the intersection of content, community, and commerce — where attention is earned by any means necessary.

Global Marketing Specialist

Carina Haller

Carina Haller is a co-producer of the Los Angeles Brazilian Film Festival (LABRFF), now in its 18th season, and a seasoned digital marketing executive specializing in film and interactive entertainment. She has led and supported marketing campaigns for major studio titles including Barbie, Dune, and Minecraft at Warner Bros., as well as iconic video game franchises such as World of Warcraft and Pac-Man.

A film enthusiast and strategic marketer, Carina is deeply engaged in digital innovation and in crafting impactful campaigns that connect diverse content with global audiences.

Why are we using vertical dramas as an example?

Market Size Growth
The global vertical drama market was valued at ~US $4.17 billion in 2024 and is projected to reach ~US $8.42 billion by 2031.

Daily Engagement with Short-Form Video
Users spend an average of ~45 minutes per session.

Microdrama Platform Usage
As of 2025, dedicated vertical series platforms like My Drama have reached 40 million+ users globally, with many new banner platforms launching and 1 million+ monthly installs.

Legacy Media Is Leaning In
Major traditional players are responding: at CES 2026, Disney+ announced mobile-oriented vertical video integration into its platform.

New Economics

  • Serialized short dramas are monetized through freemium, subscription, and micro-payments

  • Platforms are increasingly using AI tools to test story concepts and predict engagement

  • Traditional TV/film producers are exploring verticals as proof-of-concept pipelines before scaling to longer formats

Full Stack Filmmaker

  1. Writing

  2. Production

  3. Brand Building & Growth

  4. Ai Collab

Writing

  1. Writing for vertical drama

  2. Hooks and super hooks

  3. Melodrama, melodrama and… erm… melodrama

Producing

  1. Vertical production cycle

  2. The Toolkit

  3. Full stack budgets

Brand Building

  1. Build your brand

  2. Getting those eyeballs

  3. The full stack marketeer

  4. Extended universe

Ai Collab

  1. Build me a pitch deck

  2. Expand a story

  3. Build a teaser

  4. Build a marketing plan