Beyond quick clips

Mo Zhiying, one of the directors, joined the program in late 2021. With nearly a decade of experience in television documentaries, he recalled that traditional productions often focused on familiar subjects or educational themes, such as food or cultural heritage.

"They were designed to tell known stories in a more refined way, usually unfolding slowly and steadily," Mo explained.

Documentaries made for online platforms, however, follow a different logic.

"Although they are longer, they still operate under the rules of the short-video era," he said. "You need to capture attention within the first 10 seconds by spotlighting a central conflict or tension."

Driven by the program's pursuit of a more layered and unpolished kind of truth, the production process begins well before filming. Mo reconstructs each subject's public image using available online material and works to understand their inner motivations. By sifting through livestream clips, comments, and online debates, he searches for clues that reveal deeper truths — a process that can take weeks.

One of Mo's most memorable cases involved "Wanyan Huide", a Douyin influencer and psychological counseling content creator.

In 2023, her strong accent, unconventional views, and the label of a "Peking University psychology graduate" triggered heated debate online. "She once received more than 400 harassing phone calls in a single day,"Mo said.

When the team first approached her with cameras, they found someone guarded, cautious about speaking publicly.

Instead of amplifying controversy, the team focused on how someone marginalized in the internet age attempted to rebuild human bonds.

As Mo gathered more information, he discovered that even before going viral, the woman — in her 50s — had been livestreaming psychological counseling sessions two or three times a day, despite having very few viewers.

"If it were about money, it wouldn't make sense," Mo said. "We felt she was seeking something — perhaps comfort or healing through helping others."

That effort to understand, rather than exploit, eventually broke the ice.

In the documentary, the exaggerated internet meme faded away, revealing a real person yearning for genuine connection amid digital noise.

The 16-minute episode received more than 3.3 million likes, offering viewers a fresh perspective on someone who had once been widely mocked.

Mo recalled that the earliest episodes of When Life Shines were only about 10 minutes long. Viewers quickly voiced their desire for more, saying the episodes felt "too short".

In response, the Douyin Trends team extended the format, with each episode now running between 20 and 30 minutes. Starting in 2025, the program also began releasing new episodes weekly, with a fresh installment every Thursday.

"People assume long videos won't survive in a short-video era. But if the story is compelling enough, viewers are willing to invest their time," Mo said.