Welcome to The Vertical Buzz, where vertical entertainment finds its voice. This week, host Buzz Leer sits down with Blair Bai, Head of Executive Producers for North America at DramaWave and one of the leading creative voices helping define the next stage of vertical storytelling.
Blair talks about her journey from Beijing Film Academy and USC School of Cinematic Arts to early vertical hits and her leadership role at DramaWave. She explains why vertical entertainment started as a format but has become a new creative language, how audience data is reshaping development, and why mobile-first storytelling is forcing Hollywood to pay attention.
Buzz and Blair also discuss genre expansion, production speed, DramaWave’s innovation, audience feedback, bullet comments, analytics, fast-burn storytelling, and the global growth of vertical entertainment. Plus: rapid fire, solo road trips, the Chinese film that inspired Blair as a child, and why the vertical audience can be summed up in one word: honest.
In this episode, you will learn:
• How Blair Bai became a leading voice in vertical entertainment
• Why vertical is more than just another content format
• How DramaWave is innovating in production and audience feedback
• Why vertical audiences respond differently than traditional TV audiences
• How analytics, comments, and retention shape future projects
• Why shorter storytelling does not mean easier storytelling
• Where Blair sees genre expansion heading next
• Why vertical creates new opportunities for actors, writers, directors, and producers
• How mobile-first audiences are reshaping Hollywood
• Why North America, Latin America, Southeast Asia, and India are major growth markets
Chapters
00:00 Welcome Blair Bai
00:30 Blair Bio and Credits
02:20 Sponsors and Setup
02:50 Is Vertical the Future
03:50 Career Path to DramaWave
05:15 Audience Insights and Genres
09:29 Vertical Innovation and Feedback
17:27 Rapid Fire Round
21:24 Audience In One Word
21:35 Solo Road Trip Reset
23:03 Film That Sparked It
24:09 Mentor From Childhood
26:25 Rapid Fire Sponsor Break
26:43 Hollywood Meets Vertical
27:50 Analytics And Fast Burn
30:55 Growth And Final Wrap
Sponsor: AEIRO (Arrow Air Purifiers)
AEIRO Air Purifiers help identify, reduce, and monitor airborne contaminants to create a cleaner indoor environment for homes and professional spaces.
Featured in this episode: AEIRO AC150, powerful enough to clean rooms 300+ sq ft, quiet enough for production, with smart sensor controls and true HEPA plus carbon filtration.
Website: AEIRO.co
Rapid Fire Sponsor: VertiCast
VertiCast is a casting app built for the speed of vertical storytelling. Actors can create profiles, upload clips, share availability, and make it easier for casting directors and producers to find them quickly.
Instagram: @verticastapp
Guest: Blair Bai
Blair Bai is a filmmaker, industry executive, and Head of Executive Producers for North America at DramaWave, where she oversees creative development, production strategy, and original content for global mobile-first audiences. A graduate of Beijing Film Academy and USC School of Cinematic Arts, Blair’s career spans film, television, commercials, music videos, and vertical storytelling. Her debut vertical series, Fated to the Forbidden Alpha, became one of the format’s early breakout hits, and she continues to help redefine how serialized stories are created, distributed, and experienced around the world.
Instagram: @bbbllaaiirr
Host: Buzz Leer
Instagram: @buzz_leer
A Glendale Podcast Studio Production
Instagram: @glendalepodcaststudio
Social Media Coordinator: Ana Karina Cano
Instagram: @anakarinacano
Theme Song by Grace Leer and Bryan Dawley
Public Relations and Media: Robb Leer
Leer Communications, Inc.
Special thanks to all of my support team, friends, and family.
Host, Buzz Leer
