TCJ Productions
Short film research
History of a short film
In the beggining of fill production all flms were short as people who went to watch these films were just interested in looking at the new concept(s) being introduced within society
Feature length production only developed as the cinema industry became established, with purpose built venues and complete film programmes.
In the 1920s tickets for feature length films were supported by second features- which were short comedies in cartoon form that were usually 5-10 minutes.
In the 1950 due to rise of television, short films were no longer poplar. Short films migrated to other media over the years due to the development of feature length film production- particularly within television and the internet, but with mixed results.
In the UK, television has been absolutely central to the success of short films like the Wallace and Gromit series (1989-95), which reached popularity associated with unique features. TV still schedules most of its short films at off-peak times.
On the internet, short films are enormously popular but they must work hard to be seen as there are various distractions and amounts of competition within thr Internet; the unlimited access that the web provides hardly replaces the atmosphere of a theatrical screening or television broadcast. In the UK, short film is generally ubiquitous, it thrives in popular culture through advertising, pop videos and electronic media, but all of them are often dismissed as ephemeral.
Short film has become more popular within our modern society due to many new medians, which our pre-industrail society may not have had, such as: film festivals and Internet platforms such as YouTube- allowing audiences and aspiring filmmakers to make short film and attract an audience from their bedrooms. Video editing software is now easily available on laptops, it is usually installed when the product is bought or can eaily be downloaded. This allows filmmakers to be experimental without having to spend a lot of money on their production.
Short films are experimental and have small casts as well as a low budget. Due to technological convergance proliferation has been allowed to happen, cameras are now moderised, and have been adapted to the fast growth of society, the quality of proudcts have now been improved and now you can get a product that does everything, such as a mobile phone. 'Filmmakers' now have access to relatively high quality cameras that are not that expensive to buy and can do everythng or can even use their mobile phone to produce a short film. Which in turn allows filmmakers to produce short films that are of higher quality which is what audiences like to see.
Short films attract niche audiences but dur to the rise in internet platforms they can reach a wider audience easily and much more cheaply. The rise in the amount of short film festivals have allowed aspiring feature length filmmakers to get their 'foot in the door' within the production industry, as they have the ability to expereiment and cross boundaries creating something new and original.
What is short film
Defined by Length
-
Short films should be no longer than 40 minutes.
-
'Short films are long films that finish earlier' - indicating that such films need to imply more than they can show in their limited screen time.
Defined by Content
-
Short fiction films are considered to be the literary equivalent of the poem or short story, if feature length films have come to represent the novels.
-
The best short films are considered to be precise and intense.
-
Short film is '...a good idea, succinctly told. Less is more'.
-
An effective realisation of one particular idea through a depiction of a carefully considered emotion or the capture of a particular moment.
-
Good short films represent a refinement of ideas and the distilled essences of their creators ‘imaginations.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes or less, including all credits"
Defined by Form
-
Same variety and diversity that feature length films provide.
-
Short films can be fiction or non-fiction, and may be individual enterprises or collaborative endeavours.
-
The form and function of a short film should be recognised as multifarious.
-
Flexibility of short films is its greatest assets.
-
Short film crosses all boundaries of all categories of film production.
No consensus exists as to where that boundary is drawn.
Defined as Vocational
-
Short film has been a laboratory for experimentation and innovation.
-
Short film production can lead producers into feature length productions.
-
Short films are often included on the show reel portfolios that are considered to be an apprenticeship for professional filmmaking.
-
'calling card' film has been used to describe short films that seek to establish identity of their creators and get their foot in the door of the business.
-
Short film initiatives by the UK Film Council seek to serve this purpose- by supporting budget filmmaking with the hope of improving the national cinema industry.
Defined as 'other
-
Short film is often talked about in terms of what it is not. For instance, it is frequently (and unfairly) compared with the dominant form of the feature-length film,
-
Short film has long been associated with alternative filmmaking, both in terms of its content and the freedom of expression it affords.
-
Away from constraints of industrial production, high finance and the need to tailor films to the expectations of audiences, those who make short films are more likely to retain creative control.
Why this research was completed
Research into short films was conducted in order for me to know what a short film is and what it consists of in order for me to produce my own short film to the best of my ability.
By doing this research I have now gained an insight into what audiences would expect from a short film in general let alone one produced by students as well as production and distribution companies.
It also allows me to know what my film will need to be made up of, in order for it to fit within the category of short film.
Without doing this research I may have produced what we considered to be a short film instead of what an actual short film is, by trying to take a feature length story or plot and clamming it into a shorter amount of time, this may have created confusion and loss within its audience so by researching I have not only helped myself but I have also benefitted my future audiences, as doing research has allowed me to know about what I am going to produce, making it come across clearly through final product instead of having confusion and loss within the theme of the short film.
Doing this research it useful to me as it states the differences between the short film industy and the feature length film industry.
I will be using this rearch as guidelines in order for my short film to be classed as a short film.
To conduct this research, information was taken from:
-
Summer research project- media studies short film booklet-
-
Wikipedia