This document provides context and information about short films. It discusses why people make short films, key changes over the past decade including increased accessibility of equipment and distribution online. The pros of short films are outlined, such as lower budgets and being a good starting place for new filmmakers. Cons include limited opportunities for promotion. Ingredients of a good short film are described like compelling storytelling, camerawork, and original ideas. Target audiences are identified as passionate people and film students. The conclusion discusses differing views on whether short films are in a "golden age" or have lost their effectiveness in storytelling.
2. LIST OF ARTICLES USED IN THIS PRESENTATION
http://old.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/feature/237 May 2014
http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/filmmaking/guide/introduction/why-
make-a-short
http://www.raindance.org/site/index.php?id=479%2C9358%2C0%2C0%
2C1%2C0 2012
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/film-life/7593291/The-long-
history-of-short-films.html 18th April 2010
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/film-life/7593767/Short-films-that-
launched-big-names.html
http://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2011/jan/14/best-short-films-
london-festival 14th January 2011
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/britain-
enters-a-golden-era-of-the-short-film-7179535.html 19th February 2012
http://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2013/apr/08/short-film-makers-
long-story 8th April 2013
3. INTRODUCTION
DV came and made privileged few short films makers into
potential film-makers.
On one hand, artistic film-makers follow a tradition of seeing the
short as an art form in its own right
On the other hand, the media and the film industry look upon
shorts as personal ads for would-be feature film-makers, which
are observed closely, in case a director of stand-out talent, such
as Lynne Ramsey, should show up.
Short films are of little importance to everyone else, as they no
longer have regular slots in commercial cinemas, and are not
considered to even be broadcasted on television, except at 3am,
when the broadcasters rarely take interest.
Aside from the film-makers close audience (friends, relatives,
etc.), there would hardly be anybody left watching the short films.
4. WHY DO PEOPLE GO AND MAKE SHORT FILMS?
People make short films to gain experience, and also
learn further techniques that can be used later on in
their career.
It is a chance to show off your skills to raise your
profile. You can also enable yourself to get to higher
level productions by undertaking this process.
Creating a short film gives you a lot of artistic
freedom over it. You can be creative and put what
you want in it.
Unique and risky ideas can be tried out in short films,
whereas these ideas wouldn’t be allowed if they
were to make a feature length film.
5. KEY CHANGES OVER THE PAST DECADE
A lot has changed over the past decades to short films.
Music videos and MTV came around in the early 80s and
had an impact on short films. Fast paced editing and
short narratives spilled into how people create short
films.
Films were very accessible to produce in the 90s.
Affordable recording equipment and digital technology
(slightly later on) was the main cause of this accessibility.
This process meant that independent short films were
easy to make and cheap to produce. A lot of people were
inspired by this and attempted to make their own.
People became able to distribute their films with great
ease and gain a larger audience for it, due to the internet
growing into a large hub over the past decade. The
producer can now gain new ideas on future short films,
from the responses from viewers, and work on how to
improve on their next attempt.
6. PRO’S OF SHORT FILMS
They can be produced on smaller budgets,
which have led to a higher amount of short films
being created, due to the low amount of funds
needed.
There is a wide range of genres of short film,
largely because they allow for more artistic
creativity.
Short films are a good platform for new film
makers to begin on. This is because they don’t
take much experience to create and are
preferably easy to make.
7. If the short film does not bill up to expectations,
there is a larger amount of time for problems to
be solved and put right, due to how short a time
the creation process is, whereas on the other
hand, the creation process on full length films is
much longer and more costly if it does not bill up
to expectations.
Creative and financial support is given to
filmmakers who make short films, giving them
confidence and opportunities to ask for
assistance in an aspect of their film
development.
8. CONS OF SHORT FILMS
The narrative for short films may be very complex,
due to the short period of time there is in this kind of
film. This may unfortunately mean that the audience
becomes confused, leading to more negative and
critical responses.
The opportunity to get your film promoted and
recognised by larger conglomerates and companies
is limited, as there are a large amount of short films
being made across the media. This is chiefly due to
how easy and accessible short films are to make.
9. INGREDIENTS THAT MAKE A GOOD FILM
Different personalities of people affect what they see is ‘a
good short film’. A quantity of people may prefer exciting
storylines, whilst others may want to be made to feel a
certain way. But certain primary things are needed to
make the short film successful.
Depending on the target audience, some people may
want interesting storylines, which keep them hooked and
compelled, whilst others may want a more unrealistic
story. Because this is a ‘“short” film’, there is a limit to
how much can be told in the story, so it must be told well
in this short space of time.
Camera work is also important in making a good film. It is
essential there is a wide range of camera shots, etc., and
that you have good camera ability. This will keep the
audience from succumbing to boredom, and will
hopefully keep them watching.
10. Making a short film longer defeats the basic object of
this type of film, so it must be kept short to appease
the audiences’ needs of watching a film that only
takes up a small amount of time.
The actors must be of an average quality (e.g.
succumbing to laughter or coming out of character
during the film). If the actors do not act in a
professional manner, this will decrease the chances
of your film gaining attention, as it shows the
producer cannot retain control of their actors, or find
people who can stay focused whilst being filmed.
Using unique and original ideas are imperative when
creating the short film. As a result, the film will be
more interesting and distinctive, gaining more
recognition and praise for coming up with a new
idea.
11. WHO ARE THE AUDIENCES FOR SHORT FILMS?
Passionate people are the general target
audience for short films. These people enjoy
seeing themes and issues explored, rather than
films with explosions.
Young film students will mainly watch short films,
as they are a good basis on which to start on for
their own careers in film, gaining inspiration and
ideas for their own short films.
12. CONCLUSIONS ABOUT THE SITUATION OF SHORT
FILMS
The article written by Sarah Morrison of the
Telegraph is positive towards shorts, as she explains
how Britain how entered a “golden age of the short
film”. Recent advances in film-making technology
and the internet has led to this rise in popularity and
content. There has been a 60% increase in the
largest short film catalogue, by Shorts International,
over five years. Future Shorts, a large film
organisation, saw their YouTube Channel gain a
100% increase in views, averaging around 2 million
views a month. However, in contrast, 2013 saw short
filmmakers being told old they had lost their art of
storytelling. A writer, who works for The Guardian,
describes why he thinks short films are not as
effective as they once were. The difference in
opinion in only one year between these two articles
