Joseph Russo

SECTION ONE – CONVENTIONS OF SHORT FILMS

40 MINUTES OR LESS

• If a film is more than 40 minutes, it is classed as a feature length film. Some examples of short films are:

• “Don’t Move”

• “Lights Out”

• “Mama (2008)”

LOW BUDGET

• Short films are usually produced by independent companies/directors who are in the early stages of their film careers. Some examples of small institutions are:

• “Toma 78” (Mama, 2008)

• “Sepulture Productions” (Lights Out, 2013)

• “Bloody Cuts” (Don’t Move, 2013)

SMALL CAST

• Partly for financial reasons but also to not overcomplicate the short narrative. For example, “Don’t Move” only has a cast of 7 people and “Lights Out” has a cast of just 2 people.

SIMPLE NARRATIVE

• Time constraints require a narrative that is less complicated and may only follow one linear narrative arc rather than many sub-plots.

• For example, “Don’t Move” has a very simple narrative and gets straight to the point rather than having an introduction that leads up to the main part of the narrative.

A TWIST

• The narrative device of a twist technique enables shorter stories to have more ‘exciting’ elements.

• For example, at the end of “Don’t Move” there is a twist that the audience does not expect where the main character dies. The audience would have expected her to survive because the film gives this impression.

NICHE AUDIENCE

• Short films are predominantly made for a smaller, more niche audience (usually genre based).

• As they are genre based, the audience depends on the content of the film. For example, short horror films are most likely aimed at a younger audience. The producers take into account that they are aimed at a smaller audience so they use conventions and narratives that are best suited for them.

ONLINE DISTRIBUTION

• Short films are distributed online rather than being released at a cinema.

• The main reason for this is that they are too short (40 minutes or less) to be released at a cinema. They are still likely to be successful when they are distributed online because of the audience. They can easily access these short films online so still have a niche audience that they target.

• An example of this is the short film “Lights Out” which was distributed online and has over 2 million views on YouTube.

CREATIVITY

• Short films often use particularly arty camerawork and creative sound and editing is used. The film makers like to experiment with these techniques as they are likely to be early on in their film careers and want to show what they can do.

• An example of creative editing is in the short horror film “Lights Out” when a figure appears when the character turns the lights off and disappears when she turns it on. This is very creative and shows that the producer is thinking of different ideas in their film.

CONVEY EMOTION

• Often one emotion is demonstrated throughout the narrative as there is only enough time to do this. As they are only short films, there is only a short narrative so the characters only briefly show their emotions.

• Close up camera shots are used to convey characters emotions in short films.

• An example of the emotions used in some short horror films are fear and sadness. In “Don’t Move”, a lot of close up camera shots are used to convey the characters emotions which are clearly fear and sadness.

LESS DIALOGUE

• More imagery rather than dialogue is used in short films to create meaning. There would not be enough time in short films to have a lot of dialogue and this could link to the convention of having a small cast. Less cast members means less dialogue so it gives the director more time to create meaning with imagery.

• An example of less dialogue is in the short horror film “Lights Out” where there is one main character and no dialogue is used at all.