CRITICALLY ANALYSING STUDENT SHORT FILMS

Female by Aissa Celeste C.

This short film has two main characters and is about one of the girls who loves the other; who has got a boyfriend to cover up her sexuality. There are flash back scenes of them throughout the film such as when they were children at the beginning, showing the audience that these two characters have been friends from the very beginning. They use bright colours for flash back scenes or memories and the music helps to develop the story, the bright colours attracting the audience's eyes and conveying these were happier times than those currently. There is very little talking throughout the short film but gets the message across to the audience, being inspirational and influential to those in a similar situation to the characters or are figuring out their sexuality.

I enjoyed this short film for the message that it gave young people who may be struggling with their sexuality to feel more comfortable in their own body. I also think that the shots in this short film are very cinematic and convey the story well for the lack of words spoken throughout the short film. The characters are easy to understand, although some fall into the stereotypes of jocks and bullies, but makes it easy to follow for the audience and maybe relate to the characters as well. They managed to take a relatable and important subject and bring some understanding into the topic, this being something that I want to convey in my own short film but more about friendships over relationships.

Tearaway by Seb Cox Films

Tearaway won Best Cinematography at the NaSTA (National Student Television Association), 2nd April 2016.

Tearaway won best short film 16-19 years at the international Brighton Youth Film Festival, 19th September 2015.

Hannah Stanfield's imagination is shown to distract her from running, imagining a world made of paper as she does so. Hannah is shown to have got a new trainer, Jack, who does not work with Hannah's imagination. They are both shown to becoming stressed with each other and cannot work together until absolutely necessary.

There are very cinematic shots and a good development of the story throughout, animation also being included along with the films. They use good suspenseful music to convey the story to the audience and to allow the audience to take in the visuals as well as the music.

Although the story was unique and interesting, I believe that the storytelling was the weakest element as in the script but was strong in the cinematography and music aspects. I enjoyed the short film overall and it was interesting to watch, this being able to keep the audience's eyes focused on the screen to try and understand what is happening. For my own short film I shall take some inspiration from this for the visuals, allowing me to experiment and have this as a point of reference in the future.

Emily by Piller Productions

Short Drama Film - Winner of the 100 Words Film Festival

The story is conveyed to be about a depressed character that is suffering from suicidal thoughts, being her narrating to her friends after her death. The music tells the story through music and very few words, a powerful story evident in relation to the cinematic shots used. There is very little talking throughout the short film but gets the message across to the audience but as mentioned before it manages to convey the feelings to the audience, being able to provoke emotion in the audience. This short film conveys a message to the audience about suicide prevention and awareness, being a topic that many understand and may even be able to relate to.

Similarly to the first short film, 'Female', it discusses a serious topic and can be seen as an awareness to suicide prevention. The characters are simple, although some fall into the stereotypes of jocks and bullies, but makes it easy to follow for the audience and maybe relate to the characters as well. They managed to take an important subject and bring a better understanding into the topic

Awake by Danny BlackStock

The story of this short film is that a boy who lives in the World alone narrates describing how he entertains his self and the fact that he woke up to no one being in the World. This leads to a well thought out and suspenseful twist at the end of the film, showing that everyone has disappeared as he has died. There are very cinematic shots throughout, the colours being bright and the backgrounds allowing the character to pop from the background, the contrast being well blended. The only issue with this film is the audio blending which can be heard jumping, the narrative also being quieter than the music, but is enjoyable and keeps the audience hooked.

This short film is the most different to the others that I looked at as it could have become very cliche but Danny managed to leave out enough information to add suspense and allow the twist to be effectual to the audience at the end of the film. This is an element that I wish to use in my own short film, this being a technique that I wish to implement into my video to help tell the story to the audience.

References

Freshu.io. (2018). 8 Inspirational Short Films Made By College Students | Fresh U. [online] Available at: https://www.freshu.io/dayne-disesa/inspirational-short-stories-made-by-college-students [Accessed 28 Feb. 2018].
Short of the Week. (2018). Watch the Best Short Films | Short of the Week. [online] Available at: https://www.shortoftheweek.com/ [Accessed 28 Feb. 2018].
YouTube. (2018). Awake - Short Film. [online] Available at: https://youtu.be/g_KYiNXHrks [Accessed 28 Feb. 2018].
YouTube. (2018). Emily (Student Short Film WINNER). [online] Available at: https://youtu.be/EdJDhqAGi4M [Accessed 28 Feb. 2018].
YouTube. (2018). Female | A Student Short Film (2017). [online] Available at: https://youtu.be/SSZI3GRtWNA [Accessed 28 Feb. 2018].
YouTube. (2018). Tearaway - Multi Award-Winning Short Film. [online] Available at: https://youtu.be/iE8n5wZ-m2A [Accessed 28 Feb. 2018].