Alok Mishra, Producer: My opinion on short films, look I think that people get to a place where they
just keep on doing short films and all they do is short films and they feel like “Ah, this is
all I can afford to do right now” but what they don't realize is that once you've done like three
short films I want to say (maybe even four) that's enough short films. If you want to do a feature,
it's time to move on to a feature because here's what I think, literally one short film, if you're
not dealing with a lot of money maybe you're doing it yourself, it takes like six months I want to
say to make a short film right? If you just took the time and energy and maybe even save the money
or got other people to come in with you, spend a year and do a feature because then you're in the
club. Then you can when you go to the festivals. You see how they treat you when you're a short
film and then you'll see how they treat you when you're a narrative feature narrative. You get more
respect that way. Plus I said you're in the club, people think you can be trusted to now do another
narrative feature if it's good. I mean hopefully it's good. If it's not good I can't help you but
if it's good then you're in the club. Like I said they trust you can probably find some investors.
It's such an achievement to finish like a full narrative feature. I mean it literally puts you in
another league. So I would tell you to if you've done three shorts four shorts max, don't do any
more shorts. The other advice I have for shorts if you're making a short keep it short people try to
make these 30 minute shorts and I'm like who's going to program you okay when you're thinking
about phone festivals they're trying to fit in like five to ten shorts in a short section now
your 30 minute short took up like three positions good luck on them good luck good luck on them
programming you let alone any of the festivals programming let's just the most magical short that
they can't live without but nine times out of ten it's not so if you're doing a short make it short.
Film Courage: What if someone spends $300,000 on a feature film and they never finish it?
Alok: That's not good because that shows that
I mean look a lot of things can happen your actor dies I don't know but beyond something
like that you should finish the movie you went to yourself you went to the investors uh you
ought to everyone who worked on that movie to finish the film I know there are a whole bunch
of reasons why people don't but if you don't then maybe you're not meant to be a filmmaker maybe
because you don't you shouldn't be wasting anyone else's money if you haven't finished the first
one unless someone died that's understandable but beyond that if you just didn't finish it because
you lost your passion or whatever you better find your passion because someone's money is out there
wouldn't you say that for a majority of first-time filmmakers they should try a a short first not a
feature I think look if you're trying to find your tribe a lot of times right like some people go to
film school and they find their tribe over there and they have the set sort of people that are
going to work with them the rest of their lives if you are some person living in the Heartland who
was never made a movie before and you've been reading a lot about it and watching a lot of
YouTube videos well you better start finding local people in your kind of neck of the woods that want
to help you and that you want to help as well in turn because you got to find your tribe you got to
literally go to the local theater department start talking to them start figuring out can I get some
actors who might want to be in my movie for free because maybe they do want to be in your movie for
free you have to find the people that are going to help you become the filmmaker that you will become
you need a tribe to do that so you need to go and figure out who those people are and start working
with them and start like becoming “besties” with them right I mean I that's a it's a I can't stress
that enough like it's it's very important to be around like-minded people right and in
now the world is much smaller you can find these people online I mean I remember when I was doing
my festival run I was we're trying to get into festivals I was so frustrated I couldn't figure
out like all these festivals are so secretive I started a Reddit group talking about like we would
all talk about film festival rejections and who we got into oh that one's releasing they're they're
releasing they're saying yes to people over here already we became a community in this microcosm
we became a community and that's that threat is still going on Reddit to this day it's like five
years old or something but I mean just online I found people right who were going through the same
drudgery as me and to have the same frustrations and whatever else you can do that online you
can get suggestions you can find mentors you can people are willing to help if you if you reach out
to them and ask them questions I'll give you some time they can't give you all the time but they'll
give you they'll give you something right and then again your local community you have to find your
live if you want to make a movie because it's not just you and to your question should you show
up to your shorts sure start off doing shorts but don't just stuck into shorts because it's
sooner and sooner or later it's not as hard as you think to make a movie for all the time you
were putting into this short you could take a year and probably make a movie now it may take
you two years to make a movie if you're doing it off and on or whatever else that's fine too
and I would tell you this like look you're going to have a lot of people who doubt you right you
may have a parent or an uncle or a cousin it's always making fun of you “Oh that's crazy Charlie,
he's making his movie!” Whatever, fudge those people. You have to do what you have to do okay
you have your crew you have your your team and you're going to keep on making them even if it
takes you two years to make that movie and hell it may not be a good movie this time right but you're
going to learn a hell of a lot you're going to learn a hell of a lot and hopefully you'll get
in somewhere hopefully have a little Premiere or whatever else and people can feel validated people
feel more validated when you're making a movie outside of California they want to help you they
want to see like they want to see you succeed a lot of times they'll let you have the diner for
free at two o'clock in the morning as long as you don't burn it down right they'll help you
you just got to put yourself out there and have a good crew and and and don't stop trying to make
the movies like I mean if you that's in your heart you have to do it you have to do it you
should do it absolutely so many people have a romantic notion about filmmaking wouldn't
it be better that they try their hand at several short films before jumping into the feature Club
I mean like I said I I think that's fine a lot of people if they're going to film school or taking
any film classes that are they get they get their feet wet a little bit with some of that
I would say like look it's about getting assembling your your tribe your crew of
sorts right so doing the short films can help you find that that team can also help you learn
and I don't think it's it's unwise to do so I just think there's certain people who like
they're on their eighth or tenth short now right they've done the shorts they've won the awards
like they've gotten like maybe even some people who want to give them some funding or whatever
but they're just scared in certain ways too and the other part of it is like they don't think
that's enough money to do their vision well guess what there's a cheaper version of your
vision out there I promise you this so don't get I mean do the shorts find your tribe do all those
things right find the actors you like working with that like you Tarantino has his crew of people he
always works with and stuff and you can find those people too at the same time that don't you keep on
doing too many shorts It's indicative to me that you're you're fearful something's holding you
back you should take the time and energy take that year or two instead of doing any shorts
we're doing a feature and we're going to talk to everybody like we're going to shoot this as we
have money so we're going to shoot this like four different times you might need to keep your hair
cut over there you need to keep that mustache or grow that mustache back when we need you to
but and don't gain any weight okay don't get you lose some weight lose them whatever it is
so you can look the same game spend the time make the movie it puts you in a different Club
I promise you this but if you need the time if you're a young burgeoning filmmaker and you've
never done anything sure why not shoot like two or three shorts but make each one count
like learn something from each one just don't go shoot like one after the other because it's just
I feel the art in my heart no no have a good story let's win some awards this time let's
like let's submit to some festivals let's get some people to recognize you for your
talent because that's only going to help you get money for the future let's say that's an idea.