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Shorts on the Tube
What is a short film?
That's a very good question.
Here's what we know:
• We know that before the 1980's "short film" was called "short
subject", a technical description originally coined by the Indian Film
Industry.
• We know that in North America a short film generally refers to films
between 20 and 40 minutes. However, a short film can be a short as one
minute.
• We know short films often focus on topics that commercial films tend
to avoid.
In the early 1900's most American feature films shown in theaters was
preceded by one or more short films. They were either live action or
animated. Most often these short films were comedy and were vehicles
for Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and Laurel and Hardy.
Although most short films are better known outside the U.S., they are
becoming very popular with budding filmmakers. Short films are easier
to shoot than feature length films, they don't take much time and are
more likely to be watched by folks with the ability to provide
financial backing.
Short films are also becoming very popular as an extra feature on a
film's DVD. Both Pixar and Warner Brothers are leaders in including
short films with the DVD release of their feature films.
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