Micro-drama season of 40 one-minute episodes: cost by Sume model

Micro-dramas are reported to be rising across TikTok, Reels and Shorts (Heyorca, read 2026-10-07). A season of 40 episodes at 60 seconds each is 2,400 seconds of vertical footage. The model you choose changes the bill by a factor of three, and changes how many cuts a viewer sees.

All prices are billed rates (list x 1.25, rounded up per job) for 9:16, with no retakes. Retakes multiply every figure.

One episode and the season

What a micro-drama needs from the model

Dialogue is the point of the format, so audio matters first. Omni Flash and MiniMax H3 always generate sound, and both take reference images, which is how you keep two actors looking the same from scene to scene. Omni Flash accepts up to 10 reference images and 3 reference clips of 3 seconds each; MiniMax H3 takes up to 9 images, 3 videos and 3 audio clips. Kling 3 in the Sume catalog accepts no reference input, so a character can drift between its clips.

Cut count is the other side of the cost. Six Omni clips per episode means five cuts per minute, which suits a fast micro-drama. Two Wan clips per episode means one cut, which suits a single long scene. Either way, plan scene breaks at the clip boundaries so the seams read as edits and not as glitches.

Keep faces stable across 40 episodes

Generate one hero still per character, host it at a public HTTPS URL, and pass it in input_references on every job. On Omni Flash refer to it in the prompt as <IMAGE_REF_0>. Re-use the same still for the whole season; a new photo each week is a new actor.

{
  "model": "gemini-omni-flash-1.1",
  "prompt": "<IMAGE_REF_0> sits in a parked car at night and says: 'You knew.' Close-up, rain on the glass.",
  "duration": 10,
  "resolution": "720p",
  "aspect_ratio": "9:16",
  "input_references": [
    {"type": "image_url", "image_url": {"url": "https://example.com/lead-actress.png"}}
  ]
}