Your Movie Might Be the Wrong Length | Indie Film Podcast

How do you know if your story should be a short film or a feature? In the final installment of our Conceptual Mistakes in Indie Filmmaking series, we’re breaking down story size, short film vs. feature film structure, and why forcing a story into the wrong runtime can create major pacing and storytelling problems. Indie Film Podcast | S2E31 We’re talking about how long a short film should be, why some short films become overstuffed, why so many feature films feel padded, and how story structure, escalation, character arcs, and dramatic events can help you figure out what format actually fits your idea and serves your story best. Whether you’re writing a short film, developing a feature, or trying to figure out if your screenplay has enough story to sustain a longer runtime, this episode is all about letting the story dictate the length! (Please, not the other way around.) In this episode: 00:00 - Short Film vs. Feature Film: Defining Story Size 01:14 - Screenwriting Mistakes: Padding Your Runtime 02:40 - Film Festival Strategy: The Ideal Short Film Length 04:48 - Short Film Structure: Why Shorts Are Poems, Not Novels 08:24 - Indie Filmmaking Lessons: Why Editing Makes You a Better Writer 10:43 - Psychology of Storytelling: How the Brain Processes Plotlines 13:21 - Causality in Screenwriting: The Memento Case Study 19:02 - Crafting Villains: The Power of Unrelatable Characters 22:47 - David Lynch’s 70 Index Card Screenwriting Method 25:57 - Escalation vs. Repetition: Raising the Cinematic Stakes 31:45 - Short Film or Feature? How to Know What You’re Writing _____________________________________ Show Links: Household, by Robbie Lemieux:    • HOUSEHOLD | Suspenseful gay horror short f...   Chit Chat Webseries, by LowerGentry Studios:    • Chit Chat   Why Your Brain Turns Life Into Stories: https://www.scientificamerican.com/ar... The Man Who Would Not Shake Hands:    • The Man Who Would Not Shake Hands   _____________________________________ Follow Indie Film Podcast: Instagram:   / indiefilmpodcast   TikTok:   / indiefilmpodcast   Web: https://www.indiefilmpodcast.com Newsletter: https://indie-film-podcast.kit.com/68... Get Featured on the Pod: https://www.indiefilmpodcast.com/submit #IndieFilmmaking #ShortFilm #FeatureFilm #StoryStructure #FilmmakingTips