You can order Kim's book from Michael Wiese Productions here.
Dave Watson: First, congratulations on the book. How did this book come about?
Kim Adelman: This is actually the third edition of MAKING IT BIG IN SHORTS. The first version I wrote in 2004, before YouTube existed! I updated it once in 2009, but that was before Kickstarter existed. So this new edition is yet another update to address current tools that exist for filmmakers.
As to why I originally wrote it, I was lucky enough to produce 19 short films. I wanted to share with others what I learned.
DW: Did this book start with the philosophy “Less is more?” This is something I’ve applied to film time and time again.
KA: Less is definitely more when it comes to short films, especially when it comes to length. Ask any festival programmer who deals with short films, and he or she will tell you the number one problem with most shorts is that they’re too long. It’s often because the filmmaker is the writer/director/producer/editor and doesn’t have the necessary distance from the material to be a ruthless editor.
DW: Shorts appear to create opportunity. You write early on about having a creative voice, which makes a filmmaker attractive, and thereby creating a brand. Does being a filmmaker invoke becoming a businessperson?
KA: There’s a chapter in my book called “You and Your Short Film” which is based on an annual lecture I present at USC for graduating film students and alumni. It’s about evaluating if your film accurately represents your vision for yourself as a filmmaker now and in the future. I don’t think this is about thinking about yourself as businessperson as much as thinking about yourself as an artist. What makes you unique and interesting to others? I wish more filmmakers would really think about this before making their short. Thinking like a businessperson should come in later, during exhibition/marketing.
DW: At one point you say refusing money is okay. When is it?
KA: Did I actually say refusing money is okay? Offer me money and see how fast I take it! But to be serious, there are opportunities for filmmakers to get involved in branded entertainment – what you’re making is paid for and acts as advertising for a product. If you take the money to make “advertainment,” you won’t have the same freedom as if you were making something for yourself without any strings attached. That’s why I say you might want to think twice before jumping at such an opportunity.
I personally think there is a lot of interesting work being done under the mantle of branded entertainment. For example, Sean Baker of TANGERINE fame did a 12-minute short called SNOWBIRD for KENZO. Spike Jonze also did one for KENZO.
DW: One of the most original filmmakers working in mainstream films today. You also discuss responsibility. Have you encountered many filmmakers that find this difficult or do most own what they do one hundred percent?
KA: Here’s the thing. Most people who make shorts have never made a film before. It’s their first attempt at filmmaking. Understandably the final result can vary in quality. It’s important that filmmakers don’t put pressure on themselves to hit it out of the ballpark on their very first try. Shorts are a learning experience.
It’s always interesting to go back and watch short films by people we now revere as filmmakers. You can appreciate the rawness of their nascent talent. George Lucas, for example. The shorts he made as a student at USC are googleable. Are any of them Star Wars quality? No, but he never could have made Star Wars without having made these shorts first. I repeat: shorts are a learning experience.
DW: Festival circuits appear to be key to promotion, and this landscape changes, at least a little, from year to year. What’s paramount to promotion aside from getting your film and yourself to festivals?
KA: You are absolutely right that with a certain kind of film, getting your film and yourself to festivals is the best way to launch yourself as a filmmaker. Most filmmakers blow all their money making their short and don’t save any cash for the festival circuit. It costs money to apply to the fests. If you’re lucky enough to get accepted, you have to self-fund travel and accommodation. It’s not cheap, but it’s worth it.
Once you’re at the festival, you can be a promotional demon – passing out postcards and buttons or whatnot – but I think the most important thing is to enjoy the experience. Appreciate the audience response at your screenings, make friends with the festival programmers and volunteers, hang with your fellow filmmakers, etc. This is your time to meet people who will support you for the rest of your career.
DW: With the advent of widespread Internet accessibility now over twenty years, how has it affected the market and landscape of short films?
KA: As I mentioned, the first version of Making It Big in Shorts was written before YouTube existed. Being able to watch shorts online changed everything. On the positive side, your film can be seen by everyone immediately. We can all watch George Lucas’s old shorts right now. Negatively, your short online is competing for eyeballs with cat videos, Beyoncé music videos, and George Lucas’ old student films. You can’t rely on “if you build it, they will come.”
As for making money off internet exhibition, I wouldn’t count on it. In general, short filmmaking has never been, and continues not to be, a big money making endeavor.
But if you’re making short films because you want to share your vision with the world, it’s never been easier to make a film and put your work online. What are you waiting for?
DW: What’s next for you?
KA: Making It Big In Shorts hits bookstores on December 15, 2016. I’m going to be doing a free workshop based on the book at The Writers Store in Burbank in January.
Also for the past decade I’ve co-programmed an annual short film event called FOCUS ON FEMALE DIRECTORS at the American Cinematheque in Hollywood. Our twelfth annual screening is happening on January 18th.
And I’m looking forward to previewing all the shorts playing at the upcoming 2017 Sundance Film Festival and picking five must-see films to write about for Indiewire.
DW: What is your favorite cinematic moment? One that inspired you early on and still does to this day?
KA: To continue the George Lucas theme… Back when I was producing short films, there was another short that was on the festival circuit at the same time called GEORGE LUCAS IN LOVE. It’s a parody of SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE, but it’s so much better than that description implies. The film got a ton of buzz when it debuted, and it’s definitely withstood the test of time. I can’t even pick out a favorite moment – I just think it’s delightful from start to finish and it stars Martin Hynes. It’s only nine minutes long, and viewable online:
George Lucas in Love
Dave Watson: First, congratulations on the book. How did this book come about?
Kim Adelman: This is actually the third edition of MAKING IT BIG IN SHORTS. The first version I wrote in 2004, before YouTube existed! I updated it once in 2009, but that was before Kickstarter existed. So this new edition is yet another update to address current tools that exist for filmmakers.
As to why I originally wrote it, I was lucky enough to produce 19 short films. I wanted to share with others what I learned.
DW: Did this book start with the philosophy “Less is more?” This is something I’ve applied to film time and time again.
KA: Less is definitely more when it comes to short films, especially when it comes to length. Ask any festival programmer who deals with short films, and he or she will tell you the number one problem with most shorts is that they’re too long. It’s often because the filmmaker is the writer/director/producer/editor and doesn’t have the necessary distance from the material to be a ruthless editor.
DW: Shorts appear to create opportunity. You write early on about having a creative voice, which makes a filmmaker attractive, and thereby creating a brand. Does being a filmmaker invoke becoming a businessperson?
KA: There’s a chapter in my book called “You and Your Short Film” which is based on an annual lecture I present at USC for graduating film students and alumni. It’s about evaluating if your film accurately represents your vision for yourself as a filmmaker now and in the future. I don’t think this is about thinking about yourself as businessperson as much as thinking about yourself as an artist. What makes you unique and interesting to others? I wish more filmmakers would really think about this before making their short. Thinking like a businessperson should come in later, during exhibition/marketing.
DW: At one point you say refusing money is okay. When is it?
KA: Did I actually say refusing money is okay? Offer me money and see how fast I take it! But to be serious, there are opportunities for filmmakers to get involved in branded entertainment – what you’re making is paid for and acts as advertising for a product. If you take the money to make “advertainment,” you won’t have the same freedom as if you were making something for yourself without any strings attached. That’s why I say you might want to think twice before jumping at such an opportunity.
I personally think there is a lot of interesting work being done under the mantle of branded entertainment. For example, Sean Baker of TANGERINE fame did a 12-minute short called SNOWBIRD for KENZO. Spike Jonze also did one for KENZO.
DW: One of the most original filmmakers working in mainstream films today. You also discuss responsibility. Have you encountered many filmmakers that find this difficult or do most own what they do one hundred percent?
KA: Here’s the thing. Most people who make shorts have never made a film before. It’s their first attempt at filmmaking. Understandably the final result can vary in quality. It’s important that filmmakers don’t put pressure on themselves to hit it out of the ballpark on their very first try. Shorts are a learning experience.
It’s always interesting to go back and watch short films by people we now revere as filmmakers. You can appreciate the rawness of their nascent talent. George Lucas, for example. The shorts he made as a student at USC are googleable. Are any of them Star Wars quality? No, but he never could have made Star Wars without having made these shorts first. I repeat: shorts are a learning experience.
DW: Festival circuits appear to be key to promotion, and this landscape changes, at least a little, from year to year. What’s paramount to promotion aside from getting your film and yourself to festivals?
KA: You are absolutely right that with a certain kind of film, getting your film and yourself to festivals is the best way to launch yourself as a filmmaker. Most filmmakers blow all their money making their short and don’t save any cash for the festival circuit. It costs money to apply to the fests. If you’re lucky enough to get accepted, you have to self-fund travel and accommodation. It’s not cheap, but it’s worth it.
Once you’re at the festival, you can be a promotional demon – passing out postcards and buttons or whatnot – but I think the most important thing is to enjoy the experience. Appreciate the audience response at your screenings, make friends with the festival programmers and volunteers, hang with your fellow filmmakers, etc. This is your time to meet people who will support you for the rest of your career.
DW: With the advent of widespread Internet accessibility now over twenty years, how has it affected the market and landscape of short films?
KA: As I mentioned, the first version of Making It Big in Shorts was written before YouTube existed. Being able to watch shorts online changed everything. On the positive side, your film can be seen by everyone immediately. We can all watch George Lucas’s old shorts right now. Negatively, your short online is competing for eyeballs with cat videos, Beyoncé music videos, and George Lucas’ old student films. You can’t rely on “if you build it, they will come.”
As for making money off internet exhibition, I wouldn’t count on it. In general, short filmmaking has never been, and continues not to be, a big money making endeavor.
But if you’re making short films because you want to share your vision with the world, it’s never been easier to make a film and put your work online. What are you waiting for?
DW: What’s next for you?
KA: Making It Big In Shorts hits bookstores on December 15, 2016. I’m going to be doing a free workshop based on the book at The Writers Store in Burbank in January.
Also for the past decade I’ve co-programmed an annual short film event called FOCUS ON FEMALE DIRECTORS at the American Cinematheque in Hollywood. Our twelfth annual screening is happening on January 18th.
And I’m looking forward to previewing all the shorts playing at the upcoming 2017 Sundance Film Festival and picking five must-see films to write about for Indiewire.
DW: What is your favorite cinematic moment? One that inspired you early on and still does to this day?
KA: To continue the George Lucas theme… Back when I was producing short films, there was another short that was on the festival circuit at the same time called GEORGE LUCAS IN LOVE. It’s a parody of SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE, but it’s so much better than that description implies. The film got a ton of buzz when it debuted, and it’s definitely withstood the test of time. I can’t even pick out a favorite moment – I just think it’s delightful from start to finish and it stars Martin Hynes. It’s only nine minutes long, and viewable online:
George Lucas in Love