Tips For Shooting a Good Short Film
In Cinematography, some professionals have managed to have a reputation based on the shorts they produce. Although there are professionals who prefer to produce feature films because they think it is more meritorious, making a good short film requires many skills, so on, we will give you some tips that will help you obtain good results in shooting short films.
What are the key points when producing a short film?
If you want to make a good short, the first to consider is that it is a task that requires a joint effort from all parties and exists activities that you can run parallel. This will help you optimize the available resources. Then, we have classified our tips while retaining the logical order in shooting short films.
Write script well
- You must allow enough time for those who write the script of the short film to do a good job which results in the budget you can get to produce the short.
- That the synopsis of the short film does not need more than one folio.
- Make sure that the number of sequences that make up the rundown of the short is in the range of 6 to 10.
- To procure using language that engages the audience the short film reaches, it should be simple and, at the same entertaining.
- Use descriptions only if they add something to the action of the short because there isn’t time for details.
- Focus on the theme of the short to avoid dispersions and reduce possible characters, time, and space.
- The script should not count everything, allow some concerns for the viewer to solve, and fill in the empty spaces.
- To write good short film scripts, you must first read and watch many successful short stories, mainly if you are starting in cinematography.
Take care of the details Pre-production.
- Leave nothing to chance, here where planning takes its fundamental role in the filming of shorts.
- Take your time in the selection of the technical and artistic team. You must perform the necessary tests focusing on the skills required by each member. The actors are essential, but the director of photography and the head of the production, for example, are no less important.
- Scenarios must be in line with the message you want to convey. You must get appropriate locations, even if it means investing more time.
- Create a detailed storyboard. For example, do not forget to place a vignette to each shot, indicating if it should involve camera movements.
- Do not skimp on meetings with the technical team. Having the different elements ready before filming, such as lighting and decoration, will avoid overdrafts in the budget.
Fine-tuning Production
- Check that every detail is ready before recording any scene. The best editing is the one that you avoided.
- During the filming of the short, it is better not to use zoom. In the case of wanting to focus on a specific object, it is preferable to work with subsequent editions.
- It is always preferable to record at times of the day than at night. In this way, images with poor quality or that come out opaque are avoided as much as possible.
- Sound is essential when recording a good short film. Although you can correct noises in post-production, you should make sure that there are no excessive auditory disturbances on stage.
Post-production of short films
- Just as the locations must be appropriate for each scene in action, the sounds and special effects must be correct. Many people watch a short film only to enjoy these elements.
- At this stage, let’s respect the copyright of the resources you add to the short and other legal aspects. Many productions have been troubled by third-party lawsuits.
- Besides, the correct synchronization of the setting of each scene with what happens there is fundamental in short film post-production.
There are no excellent short films without a good team
We have given you some advice structured in the different phases that make up the shooting of short films. However, remember that these are related parts that make up a unit. Therefore, what may malfunction in one of the parts will affect the correct performance of the others. So, we want to point out that the best advice is to take care of the harmony between all the parties involved in the shooting of short films.