Inside CineVerge: How Christopher Odom is Transforming Vertical-Native Storytelling with AI

During the COVID-19 pandemic, a significant share of the content production in Asia went vertical. Studios across the continent, particularly in China, began conforming existing content to vertical phone screens, birthing a new format that became known as “micro drama.”

It wasn’t long before the rest of the world caught on, and vertical micro dramas quickly became one of the fastest-growing formats in all of entertainment—now projected to reach $10 billion outside of China by 2027. 

But as much of this content was produced quickly, writing was often not a main focus, footage was often cropped to fit vertical screens, and episodes were cut at arbitrary points. 

With over 30 years in media and entertainment and 15 years teaching screenwriting, Chris Odom recognized that bringing better writing and purpose-made vertical visuals to micro dramas could elevate the format. So he set out to build CineVerge, an AI vertical studio that produces vertical-native micro dramas with higher production values. 

Introducing CineVerge: Vertical-Native Storytelling, Powered by AI

CineVerge is an AI vertical studio focused on producing vertical micro dramas, with every series created for the vertical screen from the start and every episode written with its own narrative arc. 

By leveraging the power of AI, the studio is able to produce visuals faster and for less money, with higher production values than live action filming would allow at the same budget. Drawing on his years of screenwriting experience, Chris has built a custom model that teaches CineVerge's AI how to write the perfect one-page scene. A human “AI Creative Director – Screenwriter” is used for script polishes and/rewrites and shepherds the overall creative vision of each series from concept to completion. And since the scripts are written around what AI generation does well, they translate more seamlessly into the final product in post-production.

After launching CineVerge just three months ago, Chris already has his flagship show, The Test, in production and is preparing to launch an initial fundraise. 

Traditional film and TV aren't going away, Chris explains, but verticals and other emerging media will keep growing as AI accelerates production and lowers the barrier to entry. "Five or ten years from now,” Chris believes, “CineVerge will be the Netflix of vertical series.”

Chris’s Journey to CineVerge

Before diving into verticalized content with CineVerge, Chris earned an MFA in Film and Television from UCLA, a PhD in Texts and Technology, Digital Media from the University of Central Florida, and spent 30+ years in media and entertainment across screenwriting, directing, documentary filmmaking, and film education. 

The idea for CineVerge came over a beer and a pizza when Chris was looking for a new direction. He recognized that a 72-second vertical episode—the average length of a micro drama episode—was essentially a one-page scene in a script. He’d been teaching screenwriting for 15 years at Full Sail University, focusing specifically on how to write the perfect page and the one-page scene. If anyone knew how to captivate an audience in 72 seconds, it was him. 

Chris originally planned to make The Test as a single proof of concept, but when an actor in his network reached out asking for writing credit opportunities, he recognized that the concept could become a whole production studio. Especially now, with the power of AI, Chris explains that he’s able to move at “warp speed.” “Things that would have taken me a week, a month, or a year can now happen in 20 or 30 minutes.”

Chris’s Advice for Fellow Founders

Chris is not a first-time founder, but CineVerge is the first time he’s embarked on the founder journey solo. By leaning on AI and other modern tools, like Every, Chris explains, he’s been able to fill the gaps in his knowledge and cover more ground, whether that’s fundraising mechanics or company structure. "Every just really puts the cinder block on the gas pedal to help you launch your startup and hit the streets to raise funding.”

And most importantly, Chris says, don’t give up—because you may be closer to success than you think. "Maybe it's not a yes today, but that doesn't mean it's not a yes tomorrow,” he says. “Sometimes you’re in the wrong place at the right time. But to be in the right place at the right time, you have to have the perseverance to take advantage of the moment when that day comes.”

To learn more about Chris’s journey, you can follow him on LinkedIn and visit cineverge.studio.