Short films are to filmmaking what short stories are to literature. “Shorts,” as they are often called, are films that tell a story in a small amount of time. This approach is a great challenge to the screenwriter and the director, who must create a film with maximum impact by the most economic means possible. Filmmakers often restrict themselves to a single, simple story line and a minimum of actors and locations: The opposite of what you see in feature films. In my experiences, the short filmmakers had a limited budget to work with, and in a few cases just 12 hours to complete principal photography. How some of these films were completed was nothing short of a miracle!
I mentioned the PBA30 program Atlanta Shorts in a previous blog. This program features short films made by Atlanta area filmmakers, and hopefully you have had an opportunity to check out their work. If not, tune in this week to The Best of Atlanta Shorts. This special program is devoted to the best shorts featured in the first season. A few of the filmmakers and actors might be on hand for a brief discussion of their work.
A couple of films on the program have CCLS connections. The Bread Squeezer director Kasia Kowalczyk and producer Tal Harris donated a set of stage platforms to the Libraries prior to their move to New York City. The film is a delightful comedy about an orphaned young man who compensates for the affection shown him by his parents by squeezing loaves of bread. Yours truly was the production sound mixer for The Cord, a short about a man’s determination to find what’s at the end of a very long extension cord.
The Best of Atlanta Shorts is scheduled to air on: Monday, September 17, 8:00pm; Wednesday, September 19, 9:00pm; Saturday, September 22, 11:00pm; Monday, September 24, 12:00am. Viewer discretion is advised.
Check the Atlanta Shorts MySpace page to view the Best of trailer and to see the complete episode listing. Information on the show, including how you can submit your own film for broadcast, can be found on the Atlanta Shorts page on the PBA30 website.
