What is a short film?

A short film is defined as a film that is less than forty minutes in length. Short films were originally coined in the North American film industry and intended to precede feature films. These short films were often comedic in nature and told a story in the space of a few minutes. Some examples of early short films are 'The Three Stooges' short films.

More recently, the short film has expanded into a genre of its own and become a brilliant medium for independant and young filmmakers to show an audience what they are capable of without having a massive budget. Because of this, short films are popular at festivals and art houses and can be a building block to feature films for young directing talent.