How are short films consumed?

Short Films can be consumed in many different ways; it is unlikely that you would go to the cinema and pay to see a short film, unless you see sequence of them. If you were interested in watching short films you are more likely to visit a short film festival, which are not uncommon, but are very small scale events where people submit their work to be watched by an audience who have a particular interest in short films for example the Edinburgh Short Film Festival. Short films are usually an aspiring directors passage to making feature films, as someone making a film by themselves would not have sufficient funds to pay for equipment, or actor/esses, time or editing equipment to pay to make a 2 hour long film, short films are a lot easier to make as they are... short! They do not require the same amount of editing, planning, filming, equipment and so on, although it is unlikely you could be a famous director and make lots of money by making short films, hence, they are a passage, and usually used for recognition.

Some people submit their work to online forums such as The BBC Film Network just for recognition of a piece of work they are particularly proud of and feel like they want to share it with the world. The BBC Film Network has hundreds of short films from part time directors who like to make and edit short films in their spare time as a hobby, and students who would like a wider audience on their work, it is a prime example of how short films are consumed.

Another example is the short and quirky animated short films we see at the beginning of a Pixar feature film, like the birds on the wire- "For the Birds", and the lamp squashing the ball- "Luxo" these are all popular short films and are just something that make people laugh before the real film, but if you asked somebody about them they would recognise what you are saying and know what you're talking about, but not necessarily see it as a Short Film, yet it is.