CONVENTIONS OF SHORT FILMS

After watching many short films I have found that there are no real conventions to a short film. A lot of short films don't even have narratives that particularly make sense or have a conclusion of any sort. This means that a short film can be about any topic at all, for example Point Of View is a day in the life narrative that has no purpose or morals that the viewer is supposed to take away. On the other hand many short films try to pull as many emotional strings as possible and are based around a deep issue, such as Jump which is about a man who wants to commit suicide. My research so far has led me to believe that the short films that are about deeper issues are more effective as they leave the viewer to think about the issue the film addresses. Because of this I have decided my film will be a drama about a child with some sort of ASD (Autism, Aspergers, etc), and it will deal with the problems that children who suffer from this have to face.

The style of filming I will use will vary as I hope to show part of the film through the point of view of the child with ASD, and part filmed in the 3rd person. The camera work in the child's POV will be much more dynamic and suited to their personality. For example even if another character was speaking, the camera may focus on an entirely unrelated object in the room. In the short film Point Of View the entire short is filmed as if through the character's eyes and I plan to use ideas from this short to help me make the POV filming look realistic. This more unconventional style of filming is more suited to shorts as the audience isn't put off by it since it will only last 5 minutes, where as a feature film with this sort of filming may frustrate the audience.

The soundtrack for my short film will be very simple and probably sparse throughout the film and won't be one track that simply runs over the entire film. I have found in my research that many short films do just have one basic track that plays over the film such as An Ordinary Day, and I have found that this can be a bit repetitive and dull, and mean that the soundtrack doesn't actually add much to the film.

Similar to the camera work the editing will vary depending on the POV. When from the child's POV, high speed editing will be used with the possible use of quick cutaways, similar to in Bear when the girl is about to cycle off the cliff. Otherwise the editing is likely to be more low speed, regular and conventional such as in Kafe in order to contrast the two views.

The locations i use will be simple everyday locations to emphasise that this is what life is like for a child with ASD everyday. Similar to An Ordinary Day the film will by about everyday life for the child and the people around them. Because of this the locations won't be especially intriguing to the audience however with the style of filming and cinematography this will hopefully bring the mise-en-scene to life.

Unlike any of the short films I have found I plan to make a more stylised film. The Plan is the most stylised of the films I research, however instead of black & white film I intend to use colour as a tool to show how the child feels or the things that affect him. For example when filming from the child's POV every colour could be enhanced and could include extremely quick cutaways to coloured lights when he is upset or confused.

In conclusion, I have decided that my short film will be a drama about a child who suffers from some form of ASD. I will aim to use more unconventional ways of filming with interesting cinematography when showing through the child's eyes, to show the contrast between how a sufferer of ASD sees the world in comparison to a non-sufferer.

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