Question by D: What is the max minutes for a Short Documentary Movie?
Or, the time allowed for independent film festivals, academy award qualifications, etc.
Best answer:
Answer by Lane K
Different film festivals define shorts differently. Some say anything under 30 minutes is a short doc, anything over 30 would be a feature doc. Some festivals say 70 minutes is the difference between a short and feature length documentary.
Don’t worry about it too much, find the right length for the story you want to tell. remember that the shorter a film is the easier a programmer will be able to find space for it in a festival. A 2 minute film can easily be shuffled in if it’s good enough but a 45 minute film had better be excellent to compete for space. That being said, let the shape of your story define the length of your film, not the rules of a festival.
Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!