A short film is any film that is not a feature film as it is not long enough. A short film within boundaries tells the story of a full length film however it would obviously be within a shorter duration. In terms of narrative a short films narrative is self contained meaning that you need no back stories, trailers or research to watch and understand it. Therefore a short film has to have a beginning and end with equilibrium and a disequilibrium all within a short time frame. Some short films do this well and include a range of creative cinematography and sound to even further heighten the story however due to the high demand of success points a short film must cover in order to be successful many films fail. I have decided to watch two short films to analyse , these are ‘Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared’ 2011 directed by Joe Pelling, and Rebecca Sloan and He Dies at the End directed by Damien McCarthy 2010.
He Dies at the End directed by Damien McCarthy 2010 follows a young man working late in a desolated dark office, whilst at work a mysterious message shows up on his computer claiming someone he knows is going to die. After a range of sinister and eerie messages are received such as ‘are you alone?’ He eventually begins to become more aware of his environment and realises something is not right.
In terms of the form of the film it is effective with a self contained narrative, follows genre conventions, and is technically proficient. However when more aspects such as cinematography and editing looked at much contribute to the narrative and overall engagement of the film.
For example the film begins with a long shot of a man sitting at his computer desk, this is a typical shot used to open a scene as this shot and any master shot immediately establishes the environment. However the camera zooms in slowly on him as if we are put in the eyes of the ‘figure’ and are edging closer to the protagonist .The following angle used is a close up of a sign next to his desk saying ‘ life is full of surprises’. Through three camera techniques an eerie and suspenseful setting is created.
The editing in this short film contributes to the overall narrative effectively as it is shot in black and white, due to this every shadow and corner becomes darker; this aspect and the fact that the man repeatedly looks over his shoulder when this computer begins to ask him questions (the view to the audience is of a dark long hallway) create a terrifying building tension to which provokes fear within the viewer and fulfills the mystery/ horror genre conventions.
The sound in this short film is mainly diegetic as it is the noise of computers running and keyboards typing that are primarily heard by the audience. By having this atmospheric silence it makes the audience anticipate that something is going to happen such as a sudden loud jump scare. Overall this short film is simple yet effective as it creatively delivers a traditional mystery horror without over using clichés but still using genre conventions and delivering a provoking narrative.
The second short film I have chosen to analyse is called “Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared” directed by Joe Pelling and Rebecca Sloan 2011. This film is a British, horror, satire comedy. The film is meant to appear as a children’s TV show that contains singing and talking ‘puppet-like’ figures however it eventually takes an extremely dark turn.
The form of the film takes advantage of the puppet’s natural horror aspect and ironically Pelling and Sloan use the juxtaposition of puppets and musical numbers against psychedelic and disturbing content to provoke fear and a sense of unbalance with the audience.
The film follows three characters doing mundane stuff and teaching children how to do it such as counting and telling the time, eventually they begin singing a song, however as the song progresses it goes from innocent to being just slightly odd and uncomfortable before it takes a dramatic turn into insanity and horror.
The sound in this film contributes largely to the genre and themes of this film. For example the scene and imagery being shown to the viewer is disturbing however happy non-diegetic music is being played in the background therefore these two aspects are used to create uneasiness and irony. Using music that goes against what you see on screen is known as contrapuntal music as opposed to music that does match what is on screen which is known as parallel music.
The first camera angle used is just various medium shots to show us the environment such as panning over the kitchen and lunchboxes, however a slight foreshadow of the narrative is shown, e.g. whilst the camera pans over the kitchen it stalls around the knifes; drawing the audience’s attention to them before beginning to move on. A medium long shot is next used to introduce the characters which we see sitting around a table, as the film continues a friendly ‘light’ children song begins to play. However after a variety of long shots/ medium shots, there is a close up of a clown painting that has black paint running all down it creating a pool underneath it.
Furthermore uncomfortable extreme close ups of animals’ hearts getting glitter poured over it and death being spelt out in fridge magnets are used to make the audience feel uncomfortable with being in such close proximity of disturbia.
The editing in this film that draws attention is the use of visual effects. For example the life-like puppets become overly animated in the style of a low budget 90’s computer game, this doesn’t necessarily provoke fear in the viewer however the sudden change and hectic scenario all add to the narrative to create confusion and a sense of tension.
Overall the short film relies heavily on cinematography and sound to showcase an unusual yet thought provoking film that has gone on to win awards and be shown on TV networks. The potential for short films is particularly underrated as much of the time they can convey twice the emotion and provoke enjoyment more than many blockbusters released today.
Film Overload 
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