“Confusion never stops, closing walls and ticking clocks...am I a part of the cure or am I a part of the disease?”
"Clocks" by Coldplay is a groovy song that I listen to during moments of relaxation or times when I need a pick-me-up. Since I don't know what this song is about, however, let's talk about the seconds, minutes and hours in a day, instead -- particulary as these elements pertain to shorts.
Wouldn’t it be cool if movie theaters that only show short films existed? As it stands, film festivals and special one-off screenings are the only places where you can usually find short films to watch. If there was an independent theater or cineplex that opened to screen short films exclusively, this could probably be a nice little market that catered to audiences who sought convenient forms of entertainment in the middle of their busy day. Consider this, there are times when you may not have enough time to sit through a two-hour long movie -- especially when you factor in movie previews, pre-shows, corporate advertisements and all of the other onscreen junk that many cineplexes screen before the scheduled showtime.
Case in point, last month I went to a popular sports bar for dinner with a friend and we had to wait more than 45 minutes just to get a table. Although we managed to pass the time by checking out the games at Parx Casino in Bensalem, PA, an estimated hour and 30 minutes (yeah!..and the food wasn’t even that great) is a hell of a long time to wait around for dinner. We could have watched several short films within that time frame. However, if we went to a movie theater to check out a feature length film such as Tyler Perry’s “Good Deeds,” we would have wasted an extra hour and possibly missed our table call. Imagine if there was a movie theater where you could go and check out a film instantly, knowing that it will be over in like 10 or 15 minutes -- wouldn’t that be a more enjoyable way to spend your time in certain circumstances?
While you ponder that idea for a moment, consider turning your home into a private movie theater the next time you host a birthday party or other social event. Tell guests to RSVP for tickets to see different films that are scheduled to play at your house at different times of the day.
You can rent films that neither you nor your guests have yet watched from places like Blockbuster, pull out some home movies to reminisce about or host a screening of independent films. The latter can be done by contacting the filmmakers directly or participating in international DIY film festivals such as Future Shorts, Secret Cinema or Couch Fest Films.
No matter how you select films to play at your makeshift movie theater, make it an all day marathon event, complete with a midnight awards ceremony where "The Academy" (made up of guests at your party) nominate and select winning films based on what they saw at your house. The guests who voted for those winning films get to "Win" their party favors and give an acceptance speech, therefore let them know at the beginning of the party that they have to vote in order to get party favors. Give the guests who voted for losing films different party favors than those of winning films.
What occasion would prompt YOU to turn your house into a movie theater?
Which movies would be on YOUR DIY cinema marquee?
Who would you invite to come visit YOUR spontaneous DIY home theater?
Would YOU buy tickets to see short films as a way to pass the time before doing other tasks such as waiting for a table at a restaurant, picking someone up at the airport, etc.?