Although filmmaking is a highly technical discipline involving a variety of skills, making a short film is a good hands-on way to learn about filmmaking. The entry barrier to making a short film is lower than it has ever been due to advances in technology. Digital cameras require no film and allow for post-processing on standard personal computers. Here are some steps to follow when making a short film.
Choose A Short Script
Although a filmmaker might be tempted to grab a camera and begin shooting impromptu scenes, the best short films tell a story with a beginning, a middle, and an end. A script ensures that a film tells such a story. Looking to write your own script? Learn about screenwriting format to meet the industry standard.
One can always write a script, but an alternative which will get you to the filmmaking practice faster is to download a script from the Internet. For example, several sites offer duet acting scripts.
A duet acting script depicts a single ten-minute scene between two actors and often involves nothing but dialogue. Ideal for those just starting out, such scripts offer a great opportunity to dive straight into the process of familiarizing yourself with shooting.
Short Film Scripts For Students 2016
Create A Storyboard
Once a script is secured, one can make a storyboard, that is, a panel-by-panel outline of each shot. A storyboard resembles a comic book and determines the flow of the film and the sequence of its scenes. Much of the work in making a film is in setting up a storyboard, especially given that it saves a lot of time and organization work in the long run.
The advantage of this work is that it is less expensive and time-consuming than figuring out the flow of a film while filming. A good storyboard needn’t be an artistic masterpiece; as long as it allows a filmmaker to focus on camera work when it comes time to shoot the film, it’s a good storyboard. Try finding a storyboard template or examples to help you build it.
Scout for Filming Locations
Although a film’s locale will be determined by the script, it is important to find a suitable location to begin filming.
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![Scripts Scripts](/uploads/1/2/3/7/123744888/452871783.jpg)
For example, if a film takes place in a coffee shop, one has to decide whether to film in an actual coffee shop, which would require permission from the owners, or to mimic a coffee shop environment. If the film takes place outdoors, one needs to find a safe, legal location to film. If it takes place indoors, one needs to find an indoor spot where filming will not be interrupted. If the film relies on props, those, too, must be considered when scouting a location.
Be mindful that it’s not easy to find locations on the cheap, so unless you’ve got a sizeable budget for this, try to craft your script around filming locations that you’ll actually have access to rather than places such as banks or supermarkets.
Select A Camera
Traditional motion picture cameras are expensive, but digital cameras provide a far less expensive option for budding filmmakers. In fact, it is possible to use an iOS or Android device to make a short film and even a few successful feature films have been shot using only a smartphone.
The main disadvantage of these devices is storage space, so a prospective filmmaker may want to purchase a dedicated digital movie camera. Free fall unblocked. Although high end digital movie cameras are expensive, there is a market for less expensive consumer cameras. Such cameras can record high definition film and are highly portable. Moreover, they allow footage to be transferred to a computer easily for editing and post-processing. Learn more about film techniques and the 12 Camera Shots Every Actor Should Know.
Edit Your Film
Raw footage does not tell a story and often contains extraneous material not relevant to the script. A movie is made when raw footage is crafted into a narrative with a distinct beginning, middle, and end.
Don’t know how to edit videos? Fortunately, editing has been made easier with the current generation of video editing software. Although some can cost multiple thousands of dollars, for short films many of the free software packages usually suffice. Windows, for example, comes with Windows Live Movie Maker, which has stood the test of time for years.
Most Apple Macs come with iMovie, a movie maker designed for newcomers which is actually fairly powerful. If you’re a Mac user looking for a superbly intuitive mid-range option that won’t cost the bank, look no further than ScreenFlow (which is priced around $100):
Following these steps provides a hands-on experience with filmmaking and will give prospective film students a rough idea of of how to make a movie.
It should be stated right now – a short film isn’t a condensed feature film and writers (and directors) who are reluctant to accept this invariably fail.
The key to writing a short film is to keep it simple. It’s just not possible to squeeze a feature film idea or a particularly complex idea into a short format and do it justice. It’s a bit like trying to squeeze a novel into a short story – they’re different animals.
Focus on One Core Idea
It is duly noted that there are numerous successful short films that are experimental or metaphorical or anti-structure. These films don’t follow a conventional narrative or structure. And that is absolutely cool. But whether you are exploring a heady concept or telling a conventional story – your screenplay needs to consist of one core idea and everything needs to serve that idea – every action, image and line of dialogue. There’s no time to develop an elaborate plot, a raft of characters or lengthy set ups.
Multi-layered stories aren’t going to work and neither are stories, which rely heavily on the main character’s back-story. You simply will not have time to explore back-story. It’s also best to avoid subplots, numerous characters, multi-protagonists, expensive set pieces, and stories set in two or more different time periods.
Scope Your Story
Once you have a basic story idea, there are some questions to be asked and a number of decisions to be made:
- What is the core idea? What is my story about? (Premise)
- Who is it about? (Protagonist)
- What is the genre and style of my screenplay?
- Who or what is giving the Protagonist grief? (Antagonist)
- What is the question of my story?
- Whose POV is the story told from?
- What happens in my story? (Plot)
- How does it happen? (Structure)
- What is my screenplay about thematically?
- How can I convey my plot, action and theme in images?
Know Your Protagonist
Ask yourself is – who is the story happening to, i.e. who is my Protagonist? The Protagonist in any story is the central character, the character that the story is about and whose life is being made difficult or who simply wants something to change. They might not even necessarily be human, but they are the character the audience will be following.
Know Your Antagonist
So once you know your protagonist and have an idea about genre – ask yourself what does my protagonist want; and who or what is stopping him/her? Or more simply – who or what is my Antagonist?
An antagonist can take many forms, anything from another character or monster to a force of nature or a council with a new bylaw. It or they is whatever is making the Protagonist’s life difficult.
Define Your Genre
Ask yourself – what type of film will this be made into? And what will the audience expect from a film in this genre? This is not about crushing experimentation or creativity but more as a reminder to self as you proceed, that your original goal was to write a short screenplay that scared / moved / amused / shocked the audience. When you get stuck, you can go back to this intention to remind yourself of your original goal.
Define the Tone and Style
You may also like to clarify for yourself what tone and style you have in mind, as this will influence the way you write your action and your dialogue. In the end the tone will be dictated by the director and the performances he/she elicits from actors, but the screenplay still establishes the foundations of the film’s ultimate tone by choices made by the writer in their characters, plot, direction (or big print), symbolism and dialogue.
Decide on the Point of View
Whose Point Of View (POV) are we seeing this story through? Is it the protagonist or is someone else narrating the story? There are numerous examples of this type of narration – two that spring to mind are “Ray” (d. & w. Tony Mahony) and “Zinky Boys Go Underground” (d.Paul Tickell, w.Adsid Tantimedh).
Focus on the Central Question
What is the question that drives the action of the story? Simple examples of such questions are Will the boy win the girl? or Will the boy ever meet his hero? The question of the film should be answered in some way by the conclusion of the film – even if the answer is ambiguous. The question of a short film can be tiny and very simple.
For a great example of a simple, universal story with a simple question, watch the Oscar nominated Two Cars, One Night (Taika Waititi).
Weaving the Plot
Brainstorm for possible events in the story without censoring yourself. Ask – what could possibly happen to my character given his/her situation? What could he/she possibly do? And then – what might happen as a result of his/her actions? Many elements will influence what happens in your story, including genre, pace and what you’re hoping to elicit from your audience. If you’re writing a comedy and you want the audience to laugh, then some funny stuff should be happening in your plot.
Reconstructing the Plot
When you’re re-drafting, you may realize that certain plot points or actions just don’t work in the genre you’ve chosen or they don’t illustrate the theme well or distract from the story you want to tell. At this point, you’ll change the plot points to find a more satisfying series of events and actions – and hopefully a more satisfying story.
Identifying the Theme
It’s simple enough to state what the story is about e.g. A man goes to extreme lengths in order to keep his dog. The underlying meaning of the story known as the Theme is more difficult to identify. It infuses the characters, emotional core, and plot. The theme can even be revealed in images, symbolism, and setting.
In an idea about the man trying to keep his dog – the theme might be loneliness or the desire to be loved. It could even be about the ridiculous nature of bureaucracy. And once you have identified what your story is about on a deeper level it can help you to improve the piece and give it unity by asking – do my images, symbols, music, motifs, scenarios and locations reflect my theme?
Find More Efficient Ways to Convey Information
Because you are short on time, any unnecessary business that doesn’t propel the story forward or isn’t necessary to the story should be avoided. For example, people driving or walking from one place to another – if the audience doesn’t need to see it, cut it out. The writer is constantly being challenged to find quicker or shorter ways to convey information. Consider the following cinematic techniques:
- Images/Symbolism
- Sound/Music
- Montage
- Recurring Motif
- Choice of Location
- Effective / Visual Characterization
Make Every Word of Dialogue Count
Ask yourself – how can I convey this same meaning in fewer words? When you are editing consider the following:
- Is the same thing being said twice?
- Can lines be replaced with an action that conveys the same meaning?
- Is the dialogue telling us something we can see?
- Is verbal conflict moving the story forward or revealing information about the character? If not – why is it there?
- Is the exposition natural or clumsy?
- Is the dialogue true to this type of character?
If your character’s dialogue isn’t moving the story forward, revealing information about them or someone else then it probably needs editing or re-writing.
Take a Break – Then Re-evaluate Your First Draft
An overwritten first draft is very common and writers are invariably and understandably resistant to significant editing because they have an emotional connection to the work. So how do you overcome this problem?
Firstly step back from the work (often having a break from it is a good idea) and before you start any re-writing, take an hour to ask yourself (and write down the answers to) the following questions:
Firstly step back from the work (often having a break from it is a good idea) and before you start any re-writing, take an hour to ask yourself (and write down the answers to) the following questions:
- What is the core idea of this script?
- What genre am I in?
- What emotions do I want to create in the audience?
Examine the main character, main and plot points – do they contribute to the core idea of your script? Is there too much back-story? Is all the interesting stuff happening in the past? If so, re-think your core story. What is the story or story element that excites you?
Examine Each Scene
Ask yourself:
- What is the purpose of this scene?*
- Does this scene contribute to the core idea?
- Does this scene end on a question that will lead the reader/viewer into the rest of the story?
- If a scene isn’t working – can I brainstorm another idea for the scene?
- Have I given too much screen time to unimportant or minor characters?
- What is the question posed by the beginning of your story? Does my script answer it? (If your script revolves around a bank robbery, your climax can’t be about the robber’s marriage break up.
*If you can’t answer the question that’s a good indicator that the scene might be redundant.
© Kathryn Burnett 2015