TikTok and Made By Us Studios announce vertical series deal at MIPCOM

TikTok and Made By Us Studios announced a multi-year partnership at MIPCOM on 14 October 2026 to make creator-led vertical series for TikTok and its PineDrama app. The first two projects, Player and The Knock, bring named creators and production teams into a slate intended for viewing in the platforms' vertical format.

The Hollywood Reporter described the agreement as TikTok's second major microdrama deal, following an April partnership with Issa Rae's Hoorae Media. Neither report gave release dates, episode counts or budgets for the newly announced series, so the deal establishes the projects and their creative teams without setting a timetable for viewers.

Player and The Knock lead the slate

Player is a romantic revenge thriller starring Hannah Stocking. She is also an executive producer and contributed to the script, giving the creator a role in shaping the story as well as appearing in it. Jonas Barnes is a producer; Arun Blair-Mangat and Chela Reyna wrote the series, and Louiza Zouzias directed it. The announced credits show how the partnership combines a creator in a leading role with a separate writing and directing team.

The Knock stars Adam Rose and Zaria Simone. R.H. Stavis created and directed the project, while Spooky Pictures and Moby's Little Walnut Productions are executive producers. Moby composed the music. Deadline called it a genre micro-series; The Hollywood Reporter said its precise genre had not yet been specified. The reports therefore identify the cast and production participants but leave the nature of its story less defined than Player's.

Made By Us brings creator management into production

Made By Us Studios is the production arm of Made By All, a creator management company. The Hollywood Reporter identified its leaders as former Range partner Tanya Cohen, Made By All founder Leanne Perice and production president Nic Stanich. Deadline reported that the studio launched earlier in 2026 as Made By Us expanded from social marketing into digital production. The new TikTok agreement gives that production operation an announced slate with two named projects.

Cohen, the studio's co-CEO, characterized vertical series as a next step for creators. She said the aim was to develop a storytelling approach suited to the way audiences consume entertainment, rather than simply making smaller versions of television. Deadline reported that Perice, the other co-CEO, said the studio would work with creators from the initial idea through production. She described the partnership as a way for them to develop scripted stories and take leading roles in those projects.

The Hollywood Reporter said Made By All represents creators including Dhar Mann, Teyana Taylor and Adam Waheed. It also noted that Mann is already making microdramas with Fox and Holywater. Those existing creator relationships give context to the studio's stated plan to put online talent at the centre of scripted vertical work; the reports do not identify those three creators as cast members in the two TikTok projects.

TikTok's earlier Hoorae series provides context

TikTok's earlier arrangement with Hoorae Media produced Screen Time. The Hollywood Reporter said it premiered in April, and both outlets reported nearly 580 million global views for the series. Deadline described it as the top-performing show on TikTok and PineDrama. That reported audience figure helps explain the platform's interest in another microdrama partnership.