Film Festivals

	Encounters	LFFS	RSS
When Did They Start?	1995 – Brief Encounters	2003 – The Halloween Short Film Festival – 2008 LFFS.	1998-Rushes Soho Shorts
When DO They Take Place?	Bristol – November	11 Venues all over London. 8-17 Jan 2010	10 day festival 21st-31st July
What Awards Categories Are there?	International Jury Award South West Jury Award DepicT! Awards Film Club Teenage Jury Award Best British Award UK Film Council Award Cartoon d’Or Nominations Online Audience Award 4mations International Newcomer in Animation Award South West Screen Audience Award Film Club Child Jury Award Animation/Action Nahemi/Kodak prize for Creative Film making Cinematography	UK FILM COUNCIL AWARD for best Film of the Festival, Shooting People Comedy Award, Current TV Documentary Award, East End Film Festival Award, Time Out Award for Best London Film Sci-Fi, London Award for Best Horror Film, Wallflower Press Award for Best Experimental Film	The international category The long form category The documentary category The animation category The best new-comer category Music video category The broadcast design category
How To Enter?	Can be sent via DVD or www.yousendit.com	Unavailable information as festival has just finished	15 pound per film. Submit via uploads or DVD Post
What Kind Of Film Do You Need To Apply	Wide range of genres because the wide range of awards.	Wide range of genres because the wide range of awards.	Wide range of genres because the wide range of awards.
How Big Is The Festival? Sponsorship? Event?	Huge amount of sponsors including big companies etc. that suggests it is big scale.	Over 200 screenings. 6000 tickets sold.	1200 professional & amateur filmmakers 140 films in final selections.

Short Films On TV

In the 1960s and 1970s, Television channels provided only some minority viewer that were scheduled into 'filler' and late night slots. This would give the impression that they were not very important at the time and were only shown when Broadcasters and Channels needed to fill a slot up - where the term 'filler' is given.

However as we moved into the 90s, short films were given more prime time slots one of which was a BBC2 Series called 10x10 which was broadcast in association with the British Film Institute (BFI. This was a new series that showcased only short film. It was a huge leap forward for the showcasing of short film.

In 1993 the BBC launched 'Video Nation.' It was, and still is on the internet, a populist mass observation on the Close-Up straight to camera video diary style short film. This Video Diary style was to give a great influence to the generation of reality TV in 2001.

There are now very few examples of Short Films being shown on TV. However, recently, Virgin 1 has had a Short Film Festival showcasing a competition also. The 21st Century has completelchanged the way short films are showcased. With the increase of interactive media and online video sharing has led to the increase of showing Short films online.

Some examples of these are BBC Film Network and Movieola.

Protest & Free Cinema

Protest and Free Cinema came about in Britain in the 1950s.

Free cinema was a huge step forward in some social characteristics. These productions were black and white documentaries capturing fly on the wall footage. They are seen as the basis of reality TV and documentaries. They followed working class people in Britain, which as mentioned above, was a huge step forward. Up until now, working class people were portrayed as being 'unworthy' and were commonly stereotypes as criminals. The release of 'We Are The Lambeth Boys' by Karl Reisz showed this to be very different and it was huge barrier breaking moment for the divide between classes.

When creating these short films, they usually used hand held 16mm Bolex Cameras using an unpaid crew and experimenting with sound and style. These films were funded by the BFI Experimental Film Fund and concentrated on the working class within the work place and in society.

From a Sociologists point of view, short film, especially Free Cinema, may have been a key event in the change of division of cultures and classes. But little research has been done on the work of short film acting as an agent of social change.

A History of Short Films - Avant Garde/Experimental/Arthouse

Because Hollywood and Mainstream films were so popular, short films could not compete. Because of this it found its own home as a type of art. 

Avant Garde and Experimental films took a strong interest in short films. They take on a range of filmmaking styles that are very different from the practices of mainstream cinema, and they often oppose them. 

An 'experimental film' is often characterised by the absence of linear narrative, the use of various abstracting techniques, such as shots being out of focus, or painting or scratching the film, and the use of non-diegetic sound. 

A famous Director in the Avant Garde and Experimental scene was Maya Deren. She was very prominent in the 40s and 50s. She was not only a filmmaker, but she was also a film theorist. She was also a choreographer and a photographer, which comes across in some of her films.

In the eaarly 40s, Deren bought a 16mm Bolex camera and began filming 'Meshes in the Afternoon.' 

'Meshes in the Afternoon' starts with an arm reaching in from the top of the frame placing a flower on the floor. It is possible that the white flower is a representation of something, possibly purity or happiness, but the next shot we see of the shadow on the floor makes an active audience member think differently. The shadow helps with the tone of the film as you are not quite sure what is going on and keeps the suspense and mystery going.

'Meshes in the Afternoon' was created by Maya Deren and husband at the time Alexander Hammid. They created it with a desire to show a personal film that dealt with devastating psychological problems using influences such as 'Un Chien Andalou.' This is very apparent as the film is quite disturbing using a circular narrative repeating a number of psychologically symbolic images including a key falling, the record player, a mysterious Grim Reaper-like cloaked figure with a mirror as a face. It was originally a silent film with no dialogue or sound, until 1959 when Deren's third husband Teiji Ito added music influenced by Japanese Classical Music. It is occasionally not in sync with the visuals which adds to that slight displacing feeling that the film creates. 

When the key is dropped, the sound effect is very dramatic and adds to the fast paced cuts. It then slows down slightly once she has picked the key back up and goes back to the tempo of cutting that was originally there. 

At about five minutes, the audience can then see where Deren's choreography comes into play with her very graceful dance-like sweep across the floor through the curtains. It is also apparent when she starts moving around on the walls using her very straight posture and her body to portray this psychological problem she may have. 

Using Deren and Hammid's influence of 'Un Chien Andalou' there is one shot very significant that this type of niche viewer would relate between the two. A very distinct shot of her eye closed is also one that appears in 'Un Chien Andalou.'

"One Man Band" - Textual Analysis

Pixar Animation Studios is an American based CGI animation production company that has been creating animated feature length films since 1995 with 'Toy Story.' They are a critically acclaimed studios and have since gone on to make 9 more feature length films including 'A Bug's Life,' 'Cars' & 'WALL-E.'

However, before creating feature length animated films, Pixar Studios started out making short animations starting with 'Luxo Jr.' (which later became Pixar's famous logo) in 1986. It was then released in cinemas with the release of 'Toy Story 2' in 1999.

The short film 'One Man Band' was created in 2006 and had an initial theatrical release with the feature length film 'Cars.'

The first thing you experience before the short starts, besides the ident for Pixar, which has transformed a short film itself called "Luxo Jr.", is the sounds you would hear before a concert starts of the Orchestra warming up their instruments. Although the title tells you that it is about a One Man Band, this sets the viewer up to believe that the title could be ambiguous. This short film has quite a comedic element to it where the music and the sound effects builds you up to the opening of a curtain, behind which stands a single man.

There is no dialogue in this film, much like that of the other Pixar shorts. Unlike "Luxo Jr." this short film is made up of many different shots including a number of WS and CU. It has a sense of 'Cowboy/Western Duel' with the constant battling between the two musicians to get the money off the little girl, where the huge use of shots is used.

The comedic element is displayed throughout the short, despite short films not conforming to a genre. The little girl provides much of this with her taunting of the two men and the way she drops the violin as soon as she sees the bag of money.

This video has been removed from Youtube and cannot be linked to somewhere else.

This film has a strong ideology of conforming to the feature length film style of equilibrium-disequilibrium-equilibrium. Starting with the first man playing for the little girl, turning into disequilibrium all the way from the Violin Jester to the point where the big bag of money gets dropped and the girl is happy because the short has reached its equilibrium again.

A History of Short Films

Short films began in the US in 1910. It was at this time that films were lasting longer and the custom at the time was to show the feature film followed by a short subject. As identified in Short Film Codes & Conventions these short films could be of any genre, ranging from a cartoon to action. At the time, these were not called "short films" but called short subjects. However, they would soon become the first short films.

The earliest of the short subjects were commonly in the genre of comedy. But others had topics that would interest audiences and sustain their attention. However, by the 1930s, the short films were becoming less popular. There were fewer being made and most that were made were produced in-house. It was even possible that these short films were being financed by big film companies. Companies that had the power to force the owners of the short films to sell to the bigger companies. These companies were not only film production companies, but also cinema-chain-owners, or theatre-chain-owners as they were at the time. They would then turn what was a short film into a feature to reap the profits. This was known as block booking. This was then later declared to be illegal by the Supreme Court of the United States.

With the rise of television in the 50s, short films were attended to by independent film makers. However, television programming schedules included broadcasting some old short films or subjects. These were due to the television stations having bought the short films. But, by the 60s, short films had died out.

In the 1980s the term 'short film' was classed as something different to 'short subject.' The 'short subjects' were still defined as the short film that was shown in the earlier history at the end or beginning of films. 'Short Film' on the other hand are "contemporary, non-commercial motion pictures which are shorter than feature films."

Opposed to the restricted genres of short films in the earlier history, they are now very diverse, generally featuring themes that feature films avoid. Unfortunately they have to rely on art exhibitions and festivals in order to be noticed by the public.

Bibliography:

Kamau, R. (2007). A Brief History of Short Films. Available: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/199025/a_brief_history_of_short_films.html?cat=15. Last accessed 13 January 2010.

Short Film Codes & Conventions

A short film can last anything under 50 minutes and will commonly target niche audiences. These audiences will be active viewers in cinema rather than passive. Their narratives are often experimental and use captivating imagery to portray this. Stories can be close to realism and often contain a sense of grittiness. They allow young aspiring actors and directors to show off their talents by being unique and capturing an audience with their different styles. It also allows them to create a piece of work without having the financial difficulties when creating a feature film. Short films can be anything from music videos to video diaries to documentaries.
You will never find one short film that is the same.

Feature Film	Short Film
60-180 minutes	5-50 minutes
High Budget/Production Value	Low Budget/Production Value
Wider target audiences mean bigger profits	Niche audiences mean not so publicised.
Experienced Directors and Actors Unique Selling Points	Young aspiring Directors and Actors
Large crew/cast à usually using “stars”	Small crew/cast à not so well known and cheaper
Mass distribution à Global	Niche distribution à Regional ( could be via Internet)

According to Catherine Des Forges, Director of the Independent Cinema Office, a short film involves: "interesting storytelling, well structured work which draws in the audience quickly."

Gareth Evans explains, "short films are long films that finish earlier. A good idea, told well. Less is more."

Bibliography

BBC Film Network. (2010). Ashes. http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/films/p0057skh. Last accessed 4 February 2010.

BBC Film Network. (2010). Body. http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/films/p0064xq0. Last accessed 25 February 2010. 

BBC Film Network. (2010). Salaryman 6. http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/films/p004pb5n. Last accessed 4 February 2010.

Coffee Films. Coffee Films. http://www.coffeefilms.com/content.html. Last accessed 5 February 2010. 

Coffee Shorts. (2009) Coffee Shorts. http://www.coffeeshorts.co.uk/about.html. Last Accessed 5 February 2010.

Kamau, R. (2007). A Brief History of Short Films. http://www.associatedcontent.com/article199025/a_brief_history_of_short_films.html?cat=15. Last Accessed 12 January 2010.

Pixar. (2008-2010). Pixar's History. http://www.pixar.com/companyinfo/history/index.html. Last accessed 15 January 2010.

UK Film Council. UK Film Council Short Films. http://www.ukfilmcouncil.org.uk/shortfilms. Last accessed 5 February 2010.

Wikipedia. Big Shave, The. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Big_Shave. Last accessed 5 Febraury 2010.

Wikipedia. Cinema Extreme. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinema_Extreme. Last accessed 5 February 2010.

Wikipedia. Meshes of the Afternoon. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meshes_of_the_Afternoon. Last accessed 25 January 2010.

Wikipedia. Maya Deren. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maya_Deren. Last accessed 25 January 2010.

Wikipedia. Shane Meadows. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shane_Meadows. Last accessed 5 February 2010.

Youtube. 'Lovefield.' http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4meeZifCVro. Last accessed 5 February 2010.

Youtube. 'Meshes of the Afternoon.' http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPi9i3gfSAM&feature=player_embedded. Last accessed 29 January 2010.

Youtube. 'We Are The Lambeth Boys.' http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANb3l-jRfh0. Last accessed 29 January 2010.