Exhibition

The various ways of presenting and exhibiting short films is just as diverse as that of movies and music videos.

Film festivals are one of the more obvious places to view a series of short films. A film festival is usual an annual event that showcases various films that usually follow the theme of the evening. For instance it may be a robot theme, and therefore the organisers will choose some of the best robot related films to show. These films can be recent releases, old favourites, or even international films. The festival can even be dedicated to a particular actor or director, it's completely up to the organisers of the event. But it is at film festivals where award winning short films are likely to be showcased and first officially shown to the public or attendees.

Another way of presenting short films or a series of short films is via DVD. Animation companies that produce the short films are likely to release a DVD collection of their films so they are available for buying and owning. Animation companies like Pixar have done this on numerous occasions, releasing their official 'Pixar Short Film Collection' DVD. Collaborative DVD's are also created, such as Batman: Gotham Knight, and The animatrix. This is where various animation companies produce a short film based on the same character or story idea, and each animation studio have their own take on how the characters and setting are presented, usually using their own particular style.

Another way short films can be showcased within DVD's is in the extras or the special features. Normally trailers for related features are put here, but it is also common for short films that relate to the main feature to be displayed here. For instance, The film '9' is due to be released in cinema's soon, based on the short film by Shane Acker, but when the film is released on DVD, it is likely that the original short film will be in the special features or extras for anyone to watch that may not have seen the original story.



Due to the expanding technologies of the world of today it is possible to gain popularity through the Internet. Anyone is able to create websites and show their own work to the entire world. Thanks to websites like Youtube, Vimeo and Megavideo, it is even possible for people with no knowledge of creating websites to upload their own videos they have created. This makes the Internet the easiest place to find and view short films. Many Oscar award winning short films by students from various universities around the world can be found by searching on Youtube alone. And using searcgh engines like Google you can easily locate various producers of short films and other works, amateur or professional to delve into.

Open Research

As I plan on producing a short animated film, I will be directing all my open research at animation, animation studios and various techniques used in animation for short films.


Essentially, and most commonly, a short film follows a very loose path that includes lots of enigmas leaving the story very open ended. This approach tends to work best as it requires no final outcome, and no introductions of time, location or character need to be included.

Another approach for short films, most commonly related to that of Pixar's animated short films, is that of comedy. Presenting a quick, comedic sketch visually, allows for everyone to enjoy the film and immediately be pleased. These allow for a quick fix of entertainment, but can soon become old and loose their touch, which is why it's important for the studio to keep producing new sketches.



Short films can also have that sympathetic factor. Like the film 'kiwi' by Pixar. The film starts with you thinking, 'aww, what a cute little bird', then you wonder what it's doing, nailing long logs into a cliff, must be something cool because the little bird is so cute. Then you see it's a tree. Curiosity rises. Then he jumps and pops his little wings out, the camera turns and you can see that he has simulated flying by falling, just so he can feel like a real bird and you get another 'awwwwww!' from the audience, then the tear of joy runs down his face and that's it, everyone is immediately in love with kiwi. It becomes a massive hit because it's nostalgic, the bird is cute, and it makes some people laugh.

Different short films can also collaborate to tell a story or a number of different stories, as long as they are all based around the same idea. Take the 'Animatrix' for example. Lots of short films, each no longer than 10 minutes long, created by various different animation studios, to tell their side of the matrix story. The thing that makes the 'Animatrix' a good focal point of research for short animated films, is you can see the many different approaches that can be taken just to present a story based on the same idea. You can see a number of different animation styles, from clean lined styled animation in 'Beyond', to the more sketchy loose semi-real look of 'Kid's Story'.
This form of collaboration of short films is also apparent in 'Batman: Gotham Knight', where once again, the different studios each produce a short film based upon a similar idea, in this sense, Batman. And much like 'Animatrix', each short film has it's own style of animation, usually related to the animation studio that created it.



Around the world short films or 'shorts' are expected to be very different durations. In Europe, a short film is expected to be anything from 1-15 minutes, and the story usually involves a plot twist or is dedicated to showcasing visuals and or appearance. whereas in America, a short film is usually expected to be no longer than 50 minutes, and typically revolves around one character and the events the befall upon him/her. An example of a longer 50 minute short film could be 'Dead Leaves', an animated short film from japanese animation studio Production I.G. and directed by Hiroyuki Imaishi, also known as 'Mr Toonz'. The story is centered around the two main characters, Retro, who for some reason has a TV for a head, and Pandy, and their escape from the DL (dead leaves) prison facility. The film is one of my all time favourites, and it's made by one of my favourite animation studios. Although focusing on the characters as expected from a longer duration short film, Dead Leaves also is a visually stunning piece of animation that break the boundaries between real and surreal.




Short films have so many conventions, it all depends on the creators wants and needs. The plot can be entirely open ended, usually used for short films of a duration of around 1-10 minutes, or it can be a short story that follows a character as he/she is making there way through a series of events, or meeting a character. Aesthetically, short films have no conventions at all. Short films are a good way to showcase a style or idea without having to spend years on it to get it finished (unless of course you want to).

Genre Comparative Study

Upon watching these two short films, you realise, much like many of the short films you'll find, they are computer generated. Both short films are very similar to that of the Pixar animated shorts, both aesthetically and plot wise.
Oktapodi uses love as the plot developer. the two small octopus are shown as being in love in the very first shot of the film. Then instantly the female is snatched up and taken by a squid butcher of some sort, and thus the whole thing kicks off and the male tries to save his love. The whole film is very funny and portrayed beautifully. The scenes within the van, and driving down the streets include some well composed shots and you really feel like your part of the action, which works very well with the pace and in maintaining interest, not that it's not interesting already. The character designs for the film are also very beautiful, the squids look like squids while retaining a comical and cute feel to them, and the antagonist is tall and skinny, like a tower, seemingly representing a colossus to the little squid, and thus is obviously a threat to them.
My favourite shot of the whole film is the shot when the butcher first notices the male squid at the van window, and the squids brain is waving in the wind. There's a suttle perspective to this shot that makes the squid seem so small and insignificant, and therefore making us feel for him and makes us want him to prevail in his task. Then of course he gets punched in the face, which just makes me laugh so much.
The palette used for this film is also well selected. The soft tones of the town make us aware that it's there, but doesn't distract us from the action. While the bright pastel colours of the squid let us know that they are important and keeps our eyes on them at all times.

Although details in Kiwi are much simpler than in Oktapodi, they really help to bring out the softer side of us all and then hit us with its incredibly tear jerking storyline. Basically Kiwi cannot fly, they are an exstinct bird and this is a film to show possible why. This particular Kiwi spends his life nailing trees to the side of a mountain only to later jump off the mountain in an attempt to simulate flying, even though he will inevitably die when he hits the floor.
Kiwi works so well as a short film as it hits us all in the heart and we really sympathise with him/her. It opens with a close up of the floor and kiwi's feet come in dragging something, this opening is much like the opening to Oktapodi, getting straight to the point and introducing the main characters involved. All of the shots composed in this short film are well placed. enough is shown to see what Kiwi is currently doing, but the whole picture is not shown until the end, and therefore nothing is given away. Throughout the entire film you begin to ask questions, what is Kiwi doing? why is he/she doing that? where did that hammer and nails come from? all these questions help maintain our interest throughout the film. And because Kiwi is so cute, we are interested in what he's doing and why he's doing it, everyone has a soft spot for cuteness, and this short film really takes advantage of that. Our emotions upon seeing what Kiwi has been working on, and seeing the amount of trees he's actually nailed to this mountain, are heightened by the music. When he jumps off the cliff, goggles on, and pops his little arms out and starts flapping them, the music kicks in. A soft lullaby score that once again hits us in the soft spot. Everything comes together, questions are answered, the music is there, and everyone watching cannot hold it in any longer, Kiwi cries and and the audience join in to, whether it be physically or mentally, everyone cries. The huge and well constructed build up has the same result for everyone, and that's why Kiwi is such a well done short film.
Both aesthetically and constructively, Kiwi and Oktapodi have so many similarities, but their differences are what make them truely unique and stand out.

Initial Short Film Analysis

'Tir Nan Og' is a short animated film by Fursy Teyssier as an end studies project. Prior to watching the short film I expected lots of long shots showing off the environment or specific areas of interest. I also expected that the meaning behind the story was not entirely obvious, and everyone that watches it would come up with their own outcome or conclusion. Another generic convention I expected to see within the short film was that it would either have no music, or be very reliant upon music and sound to maintain a nice pace and sense of anticipation or wonder. Short films also tend to not introduce characters with dialogue, unless this is needed to forward the narrative, and instead you accept the characters you see as being the main protagonist/s.
Upon watching the short film, the mysterious storyline convention became apparent, we don't know where we are, who these two people we are seeing are, and why they are playing a piano out in the desert, as it would seem. The strong enigma based story lines behind short films work really well, as it has no need for reason and the audience just accept what it is they are seeing. Also, although the creator of the short film may have an answer to the happenings of the story, the audience will probably come up with a thousand more possible outcomes and answers, and this key factor is what makes a short film watch able.
The plot of 'Tir Nan Og' is accompanied by a beautiful soundtrack. My expectations were not challenged here, and the soundtrack did a great job of helping the story along and adding atmosphere and mystery. This is something a lot of short films do, especially animated ones, as the addition of music adds depth to the visuals.
The main characters within the story although important, were not named, this would be because within a short story, its the visuals and events that tell the story and less the characters. This short film, in particular, does this very well, The audience follows the little girl in the story, who is seemingly as puzzled as the audience, and the film works well as the audience can relate to the girl and uncover the mystery together. This relationship then ends when the masked man reveals himself and the camera cuts to a long shot of the cliff so the audience don't get to see who it is and possibly get some questions answered, but instead is left hanging. This then, opens up even more questions and anxieties, leaving the audience in the perfect state of curiosity.

Change In Breif

I have decided to change my brief from music videos to short films, in particular, animated short films. This is because it is an area of more interest to me, as animation and comics etc, are something i would like to look into for a future occupation, and i would like to use this oppurtunity to create a short animation that i could later use as evidence of my capabilities in my own personal portfolio.

Research - Music Promo Research

Music Promos are short video clips used to aid the promoting of a single and band. These clips vary from an average of three minutes to five, but can be much, much longer, running on usually for as long as the song is. The video clip can even run on for a longer period of time compared to the music promo. Music videos follow many conventions which all depend on the genre the music entails. These conventions can relate to narrative, visuals, camera and lighting and the six stages of analysis.

The Indie genre of music all tend to follow the convention of having quite a bizarre or corny story within the promo. Bands like Panic at the Disco include a story that fits the lyrics to the song. The video for 'I write sins not tragedies' depicts a wedding where the bride cheats on the groom, just as the song explains. Also the video for 'Wolf like me' by Tv on the radio, has the story of a man that wakes up only to find he has been turned into a werewolf. Those are just two examples, but it is very common for Indie based music to follow this convention.
In terms of Mise-en-scene within the Indie culture music, it varies depending on the band. Panic at the disco, as mentioned above, like to where very circus-esque clothing, making them look old fashioned and traditional. Where as other bands may just dress in casual smart attire. Saying this, Mise-en-scene can also depend on the music promo. If a narrative is involved, it is more than likely that the band will dress according to their characters. On the other hand, if no story is included within the narrative then it is likely that the band will dress in a familiar attire that will be recognisable, or even a trademark costume for the band.

Instrumental music although less mainstream in today's society also has its own conventions that the genre tends to follow. Although no links can be made between lyrics and visuals, there are obvious links between music and visuals. Taking the band 'The Album Leaf' as an example, and their track 'Twenty two Fourteen', all though no narrative is included with the track, the visuals are slow and often remain on the screen for long periods of time, adding to the atmospheric fantasia the music gives off. No particular things are filmed, just cityscapes, the streets of a town and nature. The video gives a sense of freedom and escapism. But it's the emotions put across that are what make this video work. Although not all the songs are purely instrumental, the ones that are do follow the typical conventions.
Scores written for the Star Wars films are purely instrumental. Some of these scores have music promos which can be found on the classical music channels. They may be less mainstream, but nevertheless they still get promoted and they still follow conventions. During the promo there is a strong use of extreme long shots showing the entire orchestra playing together, and neatly arranged around a large fantastic Colosseum or in a great hall. All musicians are formally dressed and look at one with the music, and a feeling of true passion is given off. Clips from the Star Wars films are also added to show the relation to the films, and this helps promote the film as well as the orchestra.

Rock videos tend to follow many different conventions, and it normally depends on the style of the song at hand, for rock songs can be slow, fast, loud, meaningful or completely random. One convention that is always followed, is showing the band performing their song, whether it be in a live performance, within the story space or outside the story space but on location. This is typical in almost every rock video made. Also a heavy promotion of the artist is also apparent. There are always close ups on the artist, and long shots showing the band playing their instruments. Lighting is also used well within the rock genre of music. 'Signals Over The Air' by the band 'Thursday' uses lots of dark lighting to hide the faces of the band, but during the chorus flashes of light occur which reveals more details to the appearance of the band and they become more recognisable.
Another conventions used some times in rock videos or more hardcore music involving heavy guitar riffs, is a camera attached to the end of the neck of the guitar looking down at the guitarist playing. This technique can be seen in 'Over The Air' (mentioned above), and is also appears in Hadouken's 'Liquid Lives' promo.
Many rock videos also tend to include band members from other bands or random famous people, this could be done to promote the popularity of the band as they are able to grab a hold of anyone they want to be included in the band. Songs like 'Learn To Fly' by Foo Fighters, includes Jack Black and Kyle Gass from Tenacious D, before they became a more popular artist. 'The Plot To Bomb The Pan Handle' by A Day To Remember includes a famous porn star. One of the best examples of this would be Nickelbacks's 'Rockstar' promo. The video includes hundreds of celebrities and random people miming the lyrics to the song. Although the band themselves are not in the video, it is a good technique used to promoting just how popular the band are.

Singer songwriters are a genre all on their own. Because the style of songs they write can often change, the conventions of their music promos can often change and follow the conventions of the genre the song fits. Artists like James Blunt, James Morrison and Newton Faulkner all fall into this category. Generally the promos include lots of promotion of the artist, including the artist within any included story space, and normally involved in a love interest. James Blunts '1973' has him singing about his love interest while walking down the streets of a quiet town. As he walks the lighting changes depending on the tempo of the song and the visual. The angles of which the camera is aimed at the artist also change. Long shots, mid shots and close ups are all incorporated to promote him as a solo artist. The video for 'Dream catch me' by Newton Faulkner is the best example of promoting the artist within this genre. The opening of the song includes extreme close ups of his mouth singing the song, and his fingers working the frets on the guitar. There are also lots of shots from behind so you can see his trademark red dreadlocks, and the video really aims to show him for who he is. The video for the song has him included in almost every shot of the video and this works really well for promoting him as this was the first single he released.

Grime music videos can include a number of conventions and styles. The dark synths in the background of the music already help add a atmosphere to the video. Chipmunks 'Who are you?' video is typical of this. The synth in the background helps give the grime feel to the song and the dark lighting in the video enhances this dark atmosphere. Props are used to give the video that street edge. You can see the artist and friends sitting on BMX's and just slowly moving to the music as Chipmunk rhymes. The whole video is a shroud in darkness, and this will promote the darker more gangsta side to the artist, so he grows in popularity in the more underground end of the music world aswell as his promotion in the mainstream charts.

Underground hip hop music promos are the most varying of all the genres. Because the bands are usually independent, or signed to their ow label, the videos are usually very low budget and most include cheap animation probably because it can be done by almost anyone and in a way is quite effective. One advantage of these promos is that so many different bands are included in each others videos, this is most likely just to help get their name out, and to show, that even though they are not mainstream and don't have lots of money, they are a community in their own. There is always a strong use of promoting the artist and the visuals usually match the lyrics or at least genre.

Research - The Growth of Music Videos (incomplete)

1924 – short video animations were made to accompany an orchestral score. Max Fleischer (Popeye, Betty Boop and Superman) began making 'Screen songs', which were a series of sing along animations.

1930 – cartoons would have bands performing their songs in live action sequences during the cartoon.

1940's – The Soundies were being introduced in Chicago. They were the original music videos. Short 3 minute sequences involving dance sequences and other things.

The original Walt Disney films were created around music, and this began to open doors for the link between music and visuals.

Musical films really began to innovate the idea of music videos. Madonna's 'Material Girl' has obvious links to the stage play 'Diamonds are a girls best friend', and the use of dance routines in music videos could have been inspired by the dancing involved in the on stage performances.

1959 – The term 'music video' was first coined by The Big Popper Richardson.

Late 1950's – The Scopitone was introduced. Which was a visual Jukebox.

1960's – began the innovation of music and visuals. After the introducing of the Scopitone in France, other version were patented in other countries.

1964 - The Animals made a promo clip for their hit 'House of the Rising Sun'. The video was in full colour, and featured long shots, mid shots and close ups the band doing a sequence of choreographed moves around a set.

1964 – The Beatles starred in a hit black and white film which included funny dialogue and well thought out musical sequences.

1965 – The Beatles starred in their second feature called 'Help!' The film was in ful colour and had the band go on a musical adventure involving assassins, around London and a number of different locations too

1965 – The Beatles began to make 'film inserts' which were pretty much music videos. This was so they didn't have to make an 'in person' appearances.

You could say that The Beatles were probably the first to start the trend of music promos. At the same time of their production of 'Film Inserts' , The UK band The Byrds began using the same technique.

1967 – promo video clips started to grow in importance. Many film inserts were produced by bands within the UK so that they could be seen on screen and not have to make a live appearance, much like The Beatles.

1966 – The first real 'plot' promo video was made for the Kinks single 'Dead End Street'. Although no lip sync was included, the on screen visuals were made to match some of the key words within the songs lyrics.

During this period, promotional clips began to grow in populraity, with bands like The Who and The Moody Blues making them they soon became very important in the music industry.
1974 – In the UK music videos and music itself began to reign. And the introduction of Top of The Pops really boosted musics popularity with the average person being able to see their favourite artists perform live, although they were miming. The other problem is that BBC had strict rules on the number of ''outsourced' music promos they could use.