Conventions of a short film

1. Budget

1.1. Short film producers/directors are independent, meaning that they don't have the funds to produce a high budget film.

1.2. The low budget is maintained through the minimal use of locations, actors and props.

2. Characters

2.1. Due to the length and the simplicity of the storyline, most short films tend to only introduce 1-3 main characters.

2.2. As developing characters takes up too much time, which is already limited. Having a small cast is also a good way to keep the audience engaged and not to be bombarded with all the different cast stories

3. Storylines

3.1. Storylines for short films are usually kept simple and easy to understand due to the limited amount of time.

3.2. The story is more likely to be narrated and have a very limited amount of dialogue. The characters are developed based on their actions and on the way they are presented instead of long dialogue sequences

4. Distribution

4.1. Short films are rarely shown in big cinemas or on the television

4.2. Instead they are present in film festivals or broadcast on social media such as YouTube and Vimeo

5. Length

5.1. A short film will most likely last between 3 to 20 minutes, however the length varies and can last as little as 60 seconds up to 40 minutes.

6. Concepts

6.1. Short films often portray real life events as this allows the viewers to find the stories more intriguing.

7. Creativity

7.1. Since they are short and limited, short films tend to have a variety of creative shots. By producing short films, the film producers can be more imaginative and produce their own signature look on their films as they are less pressured to produce a profitable film to attract audiences

7.2. There are a high number of well-established film famous producers such as Spike Jones, Tim Burton and Martin Scorsese who still produce short films regardless of their popularity in the mainstrean