NASA’s Artemis II Crew Returns Home After Historic Moon Mission
April 14, 2026
Issa Rae is making a comeback to digital content with her newest partnership with TikTok. Rae’s digital studio HOORAE Digital and TikTok have teamed up to release a microseries on the platform titled “Screen Time.”
Rae is one of the biggest names in Hollywood, having produced hit shows, starred in high-grossing movies, and worked alongside some of the industry’s biggest names. Now, she is stepping into a new format: microseries.
This partnership signals a broader shift as the microseries format moves mainstream, reflecting how audiences are consuming content today. Built for shorter attention spans and mobile-first viewing, these bite-sized formats are gaining traction across platforms. “Screen Time” will premiere on TikTok later this month.
The Innovation of the Micro Series
Micro series represent the latest evolution of content in today’s attention economy. Episodes are usually 30 seconds to 5 minutes long, hosted on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts. The videos are shot in vertical format, optimized for viewing on a phone screen, so consumers can watch them on their commute, between tasks, or while multitasking. The format intentionally compresses stories, delivering suspense, character arcs, and a full narrative in a much shorter time.
Microseries first emerged in 2018 on the Chinese app Douyin, developed by ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok. Since then, Sensor Tower reported that cumulative in-app revenue on short-drama apps has approached $2.3 billion. Microseries put the audience first and make it more convenient than ever to consume content.
Related post: Issa Rae Poised To Grace Stage as Keynote Speaker at Black Tech Week
A Return to Digital Content
Before creating the hit show “Insecure,” Rae built her career as a digital storyteller. In 2011, she released “The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl,” a web comedy series where she served as both creator and lead actress. The show wasn’t backed by a major production studio; instead, it was homemade – unpolished but real. Rae portrayed black people, and particularly black women, with nuance, humor, and wit that had not been seen in Hollywood before. The show deeply resonated with her audience and quickly went viral.
Rae represents the generation of storytellers who turned to platforms like YouTube to release their own shows when legacy media companies wouldn’t fund them. She maintained full creative control and ownership of her material, even recently turning down an offer to remake “The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl” into a TV show. Now, she returns to creating for digital platforms with her partnership with TikTok.
Related post: Issa Rae Inks First-Look Film & TV Deal With Paramount
Why Watch “Screen Time”?
Screen time follows a suspense-filled relationship drama in which two couples are forced to confront their past when a mysterious figure hijacks their double date. The cast features Brittney Jefferson, Eric C. Lynch, Jasmine Luv, Xavier Avila, and Jenna Nolen.
The mystery figure asks one critical question: “If your private words and photos went public tomorrow, would you survive it?” The couples must confront their secrets in this high-stakes drama as they attempt to salvage both their relationships and their lives.
Related post: From Grey’s Anatomy to Shondaland: How Shonda Rhimes Built a Media Empire
Rather than asking viewers to commit hours to a traditional TV series, this microseries reflects the growing demand for short-form storytelling that audiences can consume directly from their phones.
