I sometimes forget that I wanted this to be a blog about indie filmmaking as much as I wanted it to be about fiction. With that in mind, I wanted to do a post about one of my favorite types of movies… the one-minute movie.
The one-minute movie is a great start for indie filmmakers to cut their teeth… although it’s also a great outlet for more experienced filmmakers looking for a project in between their longer projects. Many film festivals now are either completely dedicated to one-minute films or they have a one-minute category. The key search terms for such festivals on Filmfreeway are: one-minute, one minute, 1 minute, sixty seconds, 60 seconds, short short, and micro.
For indie filmmakers, the one-minute movie has many benefits. Although, like any film, they could be expensive, on the whole I’ve shot all of my one-minute films for less than $25… and often, because I use props I already have, they don’t cost me anything. One-minute films tend to have less locations and can usually be shot in one day. They also have less scenes/shots, so the indie filmmaker can really focus on the cinematography of each shot. (Sometimes with longer projects, as the shooting day wanes, I find myself getting in the mind frame of “we just need to get this shot” which can detract from quality).
A one-minute film that I watched early in my filmmaking venture really opened my eyes to how powerful a one-minute film can be. You can watch Polyanna by Roman Gubin here:
Obviously that one had some budget behind it… and it actually looks like it was a longer film, and Gubin decided to make a one-minute version as well (which filmmakers can do—and I have done!—which allows you to submit to more festivals as you have a longer and a one-minute version to submit).
I’m not really going to talk about cinematography or shooting techniques when it comes to one-minute films. I’m still slowly learning the nuances of those myself and probably will never get as good as a truly dedicated cinematographer.
What I want to talk about – and which I believe is my strength – is the one-minute script. So, this blog post applies to budding screenwriters too because a one-minute script might be the first opportunity for them to see their words adapted for the screen.
A traditional narrative one-minute film (nothing experimental or art house) functions a lot like a joke. That’s not to say that they are all funny. It’s just that they have a build-up and then an ending with a real payoff. I don’t necessarily call the endings twist endings (never like that term… almost like you’re tricking the audience). Instead, I call them inevitable, satisfying, but also unexpected.
And, remember, with a good joke the buildup can be just as satisfying as the punchline. And, there’s a real balance… what needs to happen in the buildup to make the payoff as strong as possible?
These two neighbors who have lived next to each other for years discovered their common interest in fishing. On a Saturday, they take a boat out to a lake, drop their worms over the side and wait. As it turns out, they have little in common and little to say to each other… and the fishing is absolutely dead. Not even a nibble. After three hours, one of the neighbors reels up his line, reaches into his tackle box, takes out a stick of dynamite, lights it, and then throws it twenty feet from the boat into the water.
Boom! A huge explosion of water erupts into the air. A moment later, huge fish begin to float to the surface stunned from the blast.
“What the hell are you doing?” the other neighbor asks.
Without answering, the other draws up the anchor, rows to the fish, and begins scooping them into the boat with his net.
“Are you crazy? Do you have any idea how illegal that is? This is why the world is falling apart. People feel they can do whatever they want. They think the rules don’t apply to them.”
The other neighbor, seemingly oblivious, keeps scooping the floating fish into the boat.
“You can ignore me all you want, but as soon as you’re done there, I demand that you take me back to shore. I’m calling a game warden. Neighbor or not, you’re not getting away with this. Do you hear me? Do you?”
Without answering, the other flops the last fish into the boat, reaches into his tackle box and takes out another stick of dynamite. He lights it and then tosses it on the boat floor next to the other guy’s feet. Then he looks the ranting neighbor in the eye and asks: “You come out here to talk or to fish?”
I believe that joke works because of the setup. Even the dialogue in the setup is satisfying. I believe if the objecting neighbor doesn’t go on long enough, the payoff falls a little flat. If the dialogue goes on too long, the payoff isn’t worth the wait. Just like with making a one-minute film, there’s an art to telling a joke. Plus, before the payoff even happens, you have this odd moment where the neighbor is lighting dynamite and using it to fish! It creates a mystery that gets the audience wondering… where is this going? So, they are ripe to experience the ending.
The nice thing is that a one-minute script tends to be one page long. It can be worked and reworked until it’s perfectly fine-tuned. And it should be… before any kind of pre-production happens. Live with the script and make certain the story works on paper first.
For my own one-minute films, I often start with a unique location or prop that I already know is available to me. That becomes my starting point for creativity. For instance, I have an oil change pit in my garage. It goes some six feet down with cement walls and a cement floor. I decided I was going to write a script using that pit… and ended up writing a script called “The Pit.”
Sometimes I’ll start with an idea. I often hear older guys say things like “If I knew at 20 what I know now, my life would have turned out differently.” Playing off of that idea, I wrote a one-minute script called “Eleven Eleven.”
Another time, I was inspired by a flash fiction piece by my good friend Josh Maday. I had to adapt it to work with what I had available to me. I called it “A Fool and His Money.”
“The Pit” cost me nothing… I bought the cereal, but my kids ended up eating it after I was done shooting. “Eleven Eleven” cost nothing. “A Fool and His Money” cost me about $6 because I bought the coin flips.
So far, “Eleven Eleven” has had 12 film festival acceptances with one Best Micro Comedy win from Avalonia Film Festival. “A Fool and His Money” has had 5 acceptances with one award for Best Micro Comedy from the Berlin Flash Film Festival. And “The Pit” has had 7 film festival acceptances.
I hope watching some one-minute films has inspired you to write and shoot your own… or to write one and find someone to shoot it. To get inspired, you might think in terms of… “what’s a unique location or prop I can use to get inspired? What’s an idea that can be pulled off in a minute?”
I’ll end with what has been my best one-minute film to date (with 19 festival acceptances and 5 awards)… it’s called “Stood Up” and takes on more serious subject matter.
If you find my blog posts instructive, please consider purchasing a copy of my new book of short stories, The Neighborhood Division, as a donated payment for the "class."
Read a review: Here
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.