Attended a NW Films BarCamp session this morning that focused on developing character and story within the confines of film shorts… so we’re talking anywhere from three to 30 minutes I guess. Wow. What a challenge. The group included the full range of practitioners, from newbies to career filmmakers, and it was interesting how the challenges of writing never really seem to change. The challenge is to nail it. To keep it clean. No clutter, no fat, no superfluous exposition. Just get it right.
This is true regardless of genre or form. Poems are the most demanding in terms of precision. But short films aren’t really far behind… or at least they shouldn’t be. Every word has to count. Every word has to contribute to the life of the story being told. But don’t listen to me… here are a few sites with some interesting pointers. BBC Writers Room on Short Films. Some pointers from IndieGoGo.