Make the Minutes Make Sense: Choose the Short Film Length That Serves Your Goal

If you’re making a short that’s longer than five minutes, be strategic about why. In this episode I break down how to pick a runtime that aligns with your endgame: aiming for TV? Make a 22-minute or 45-minute cut so it functions like a real pilot. Targeting kids’ TV? Try ~12 minutes so two stack into a half-hour block. Building a proof-of-concept for a feature? Keep it lean—ideally 5 minutes or less—so the idea hits fast (think Lights Out). Bottom line: your runtime should open doors, not close them.