2. Katie Murdoch
The Length
Obviously as it is a short film the length is not
going to be as long as a normal film. The average
short film is between 5-10 minutes. With it being
so short, it needs to be fairly easy to follow and
the narrative should NOT drag as it will become
tedious, leaving the audience bored.
Our short film will last approximately 5 minutes,
following normal conventions.
3. Katie Murdoch
Characters
With it only being around about 5 minutes, the
maximum characters you should have is 3; this is
because you need to know all about the
characters. If there were more than 3 characters,
the audience would not know a lot about them
making it difficult to follow.
We have decided on having 3 main characters who
the short film is based around so the audience can
get to know these better as oppose to having 6 or 7.
4. Katie Murdoch
The Concept
As they are only 5 minutes long, the subject
matter is typically normal day-to-day things such
as being in your house, going to school, going out
with friends etc. This is so the audience can relate
to it, as it is familiar environments that they are
used to in their lives.
We are basing our short film around the main
characters everyday life therefore it will be in places
such as their homes, school etc.
5. Katie Murdoch
Todorov’s Theory
Todorov’s theory is used in practically all films:
1. Equilibrium – everything is normal at the start
2. Disruption – something happens to spoil the balance
3. Thwarted Attempts/Realisation – characters' try to restore the balance but are
unsuccessful
4. Struggle and Resolution – eventually characters succeed in restoring the balance
5. New Equilibrium – new order is created, sometimes back to the first equilibrium
We are also going to follow Todorov’s theory when
making our short film.
6. Katie Murdoch
A Twist
Practically all short films include a twist to its plot;
this is an engaging device to keep the audience
alert and interested because if it was just running
smoothly it would be pretty boring. They can be
abstract or fairly normal.
We will include this to our stinger so it is engaging.
7. Katie Murdoch
Budget
Short films are normally low budget films created
by normal people. However there are also
sometimes big companies such as Film 4 who have
created short films, which are similarly low budget
in contrast with the price of normal films.
With us being students producing a short film for a
school project, it will obviously be low budget.
