Conventions of a Short Film

Conventions of a Short Film

The film I have chosen to discuss the conventions of a short film is 'Portrait of God'. 

It is a short HORROR film.

Convention	Evidence in film	Impact on audience
Storyline - The storyline is about a student, who is rehearsing her presentation on the subject of an alleged portrait of God. She begins to see the portrait and transport into a dark void where a creature who is supposedly God consumes her.	From 00:40 to 2:22, the student is clearly rehearsing for her presentation. From 3:15 to 4:30, we see the girl notice a disruption with the painting actually showing to her eyes. From 4:31 to 5:40, we see the girl transported into an empty void, where she is confronted by the creature. From 6:15 to 6:42, the girl has become victim to the entity.	The short storyline creates a big impact on the audience as it is unique and isn’t complicated for them to understand, leaving the audience to want to know more at the end.
Twist - One of the main points is that the portrait is actually ‘real’ due to the girl being able to see God, when most aren’t able to see Him. Another twist is that when the girl is ‘consumed’, when brought back to reality she has actually been standing in the same spot for over 3 days.	The twist in the short film can be a variety of things.  The first example is shown at 3:14 onwards. The second point is shown at 6:25, and 6:33.	The impact these twists have on the audience is very effective, as they don’t expect any of the outcomes that lies upon the girl.
Characters - As this is a short film, there are only two visible characters, the girl and God. There are voice actors used for recorded messages.	The main protagonist is a girl who is presumably a student. She is featured from the beginning of the film to the end. The main antagonist is an entity who is supposed to be God. It is seen from 3:30 to 6:20	The impact these characters have on the audience brings a clear understanding of who they should focus on.
Abstract Creativity - There is a creative use of religious imagery in the short film, with unique effects used as well to show off characters.	At 0:18, we see a bible quote on the screen “No man shall see Me and live.” -Exodus 33:20”. From 1:12 to 2:10, we hear unusual descriptions of God. From 4:15 to  4:27, we see a peculiar way to show off horror and creativity with the use of the portrait showing up outside of the projector. At 5:24, we see the girl being to pray whilst holding onto her religious cross necklace tightly, while the entity begins to stalk towards her.  At 6:12, the creature begins to engulf the girl in a blinding light from its mouth. At 6:25 and 6:28, we see the girl stood still in a trance with bloodshot eyes and her hands bleeding from holding her necklace so tightly.	These moments in the film will leave the audience in fear and awe. The way the the religious imagery has been portrayed is so remarkable, effectively leaving everyone with an open mind, questioning themselves and others if that is possible.  From the beginning, the audience is intrigued by the topic and what the girl has to show, especially with the voice messages shared. As the film progresses, the audience become fearful and yearning to know more.

This short film is different from a usual full-length feature as there is a lot more dramatic features shown to the audience. Full-lengths usually have:

• More easter eggs
• More music
• Longed out storylines (second film, third film)

Short films are more straight to the point and don't include the features listed.