first short turning into feature?

dvdguy · Jul 12, 2011

Hi y'all....

Anyone ever experienced their first short turning almost into a freakin feature?? The thing is, when I'm writing more and more ideas keep popping into my mind and the more I get into details the more sense my story makes. Suddenly that one scene spreads out into several other scenes. It's just crazy..
At first I was worried I might screw things up, but every minute I learn a little more on how to deal with keeping my ideas in place and not get everything confused regarding the story.

Anyone else with such experience???

Gonzo_Entertainment · Jul 12, 2011

The first rough cut of my first short was almost 45 minutes. The final runtime was 35 minutes, it SHOULD have been about 20 minutes.

Tinalera · Jul 12, 2011

I found that with my short(s), which I tried to combine into a longer (30 min) "short", but after getting feedback and advice and watching it a couple of months later with fresh eyes, it worked much better as either two different shorts, or one VERY edited short (the latter of which became about 9 min).

Flicker Pictures · Jul 12, 2011

I'd say let the ideas flow, put them on paper, and see how far you can get. Doesn't mean it will all be worth keeping or shooting, but you might as well get it all down on paper. Can't hurt, right? It's free.

My first movie was too long to be a short and too short to be a feature (40 minutes) which was certain death for festivals.

I see the writing process as growing a huge oak tree, then chopping it down to carve a chair out of it. Expand, refine, expand, refine... until your story is distilled down to its essential building blocks.

Who knows? There might be some gems waiting for you in those pages you haven't written yet.

Good luck!

rayw · Jul 12, 2011

Somewhere between your fat shorts and a thin feature your writing need to fish or cut bait.

Frankly, I can think up of feature premises PDQ.
Thinking up of shorts worth watching is pretty darn hard to me.

harmonica44 · Jul 12, 2011

Most film festivals prefer shorts under 15 minutes. Perhaps you could shoot a 15 minute version, then use all your other ideas to make a feature of the same story. And use the footage from the short and integrate it into the feature, that is if enough remains the same that you can.

dvdguy · Jul 12, 2011

Sooo.... over 15 minutes+ is a NO NO for festivals? Hmm...how long does a short have to be generally to be accepted on most festivals? That's a very nice idea Harmonica!

Beatlesfan1225 · Jul 12, 2011

dvdguy said:
Sooo.... over 15 minutes+ is a NO NO for festivals? Hmm...how long does a short have to be generally to be accepted on most festivals? That's a very nice idea Harmonica!

Some festivals require shorts to be under 45 minutes, some under 60 minutes... but yes it's mostly under 15. I'd go on Withoutabox and check the requirements for festivals your interested in.

But... If your short turns into a 40 minute + feature, submit it as a feature...

Gonzo_Entertainment · Jul 14, 2011

Most festivals will classify a film under 40 minutes as a "short", though for some it's 30 minutes or even less. Longer shorts can and do get programmed (both of mine have), but the consensus is you create a head wind when you go over about 15 minutes. If you make a 25 or 30 minute short it's going to have to be extra good for the programmers to program your one 30 minute film instead of two 15 minute films. If all three filmns were equally good (one 30 and two 15s) a lot of programmers would pick the two fifteens.

DirtyPicturesTV · Jul 14, 2011

I'd worry if my short had enough material, or a compelling enough premise, to stretch into a feature. You might, for example, have an interesting beginning and end in your short, but not enough of a story to flesh out your middle. Sustaining conflict and drama through an entire story is the hard part.