Examples of Short Films

Inseparable
Inseparable conforms to many of the conventions of short films. This film features an extremely small cast with two main cast members, Benedict Cumberbatch and Natalie Press. This is quite common in short films as it deals with one plot unlike feature films which would have subplots with a variety of characters. Another way this follows the conventions of short films is the way in which the story is told within the film. The plot of the film is about twin brothers, both played by Cumberbatch, who lead completely different lives switching places after one of them finds out they have a terminal illness. It relies more on the camera shots and the details within them to put across the plot of the film. An example of this is when the main character visits his doctor, there is no dialogue in the scene but the images shown tell the audience that he has a terminal illness. This then allowed the filmmaker to be a lot more creative in the way they shot the film than if it was a feature film.


Sebastian's Voodoo from Joaquin Baldwin on Vimeo.
Sebastian's Voodoo is an animated short film about a voodoo doll trying to save the other voodoo dolls from being pinned to death by sacrificing himself and has won several awards from a variety of film festivals. It is a good example of a short film as it has a relatively simple plot which allows the animator, Joaquin Baldwin, to have a lot more creative freedom with the images he chooses, for example the use of voodoo dolls instead of simply people.


Day Of The Braindead from Si on Vimeo.
Day of the Braindead is a short film made for Tridentfest in Cambridge and involves a group of characters in a zombie-like state with the desire to annoy anyone they come into contact with. This film was shot and edited in four days with a small budget and it is quite common that short films would have relatively small budgets. The film also uses quite a bit of humour so it is like a parody of a zombie horror film.