Screen story: Big surprises in small packages

They say that big surprises come in small packages. That is what must be meant when famous talent scouts all across the world first see
the short films made by a greenhorn before giving him or her a chance to direct a major motion picture.

Probably the most common examples these days of good quality short films are the products released by Pixar Studios, which tends to package a small story along with its major films.

It is to encourage exactly this kind of an effort that the International Film Festival in Nagpur (IFFN) has organised a short film contest. Not only that, but also probably for the first time anywhere in the world, the short films have been shown on the local television network, so that the masses can have just a preview of the talents of the years to come. In addition, they have also gotten to vote for the top 20 films, which are to be shown in the festival.

As a short film is definitely a different medium from a full length feature film, it is not defined in a very exact manner anywhere. It's like what a short story is to a novel. For example, in a short story, the reader has to imagine or understand on his or her own. Similarly, in a short film, the scene is just a part of a bigger story. On the other hand, a feature film can be a complete story, with little space for loose ends or pending explanations, explains Pradeep Ganguly, a film and music enthusiast.

Take for example the several of the short films made by a certain director, which are mostly based on the thoughts going through a man's mind on specific moments. There was one when he is about to be hanged when the director shows that a man is about to be hanged, but he miraculously finds a way out and just as he is about to be hanged, we are shown his execution. What we learn is that the entire escape sequence was imagined by the doomed man! It's all about the treatment of the subject within such a short span of time, he says.


Then again, another significance of a short film can be understood from the words of Meghnad Bodhankar, a senior journalist. He says, short film is an elementary part of film making and all great film makers have first directed short films before graduating to the level of full length features. A common misnomer is that a short film is essentially a documentary. Instead, it is actually a glimpse into the artistic talent and the promise the director holds.

Interestingly, the short film contest in the IFFN has another facet, which explains the importance and reach of short films. Aseem Gupta, the municipal commissioner of the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) has actually agreed to sponsor the prize for the winning entry to the socially relevant category and the NMC may actually end up using some of these short films to educate people.