Filmmakers turn to really small screens

By Matt Moore

updated 3:50 p.m. ET Feb. 14, 2007

BARCELONA, Spain - Filmmakers seeking new venues for their work are being sought out by the wireless industry as it looks west to Hollywood and east to Bollywood for ideas to keep subscribers entertained and their revenue flowing.

But don't expect to see the latest blockbuster debut on cell phones. The short film is being touted as a natural for the small screen.

"I believe mobile viewers will be surprised and delighted by the diversity of these films," said Bill Gajda, the GSMA's chief marketing officer. "Ranging from the comic to exquisite, the radically different creative styles of storytelling play extraordinarily well to the unique, viral nature of the mobile medium."

The Sundance Institute is banking on it, not to make money but to help the art form of the short film find a new audience without having to rely on screenings at traditional niche theaters in major cities.

Sundance said it would make the films available to download from its Web site on Feb. 15, but did not disclose details, including if there would be a charge. For attendees at 3GSM, the films were available free via a web link sent by text message.

"This is a place for artists to experiment and get their work out," said Jonathan Dayton, who co-directed the Oscar-nominated "Little Miss Sunshine" with Valerie Faris.

The pair released their short, "A Slip In Time," as part of the Sundance Film Festival Global Short Film Project at the annual 3GSM wireless industry meeting.

"There is a whole new audience and, for filmmakers, it's such a great medium," Faris said.

The film stars two men and is a slow-motion study of a slapstick comedy, including banana peels, seltzer water and cream pies to the face.

The pair told The Associated Press on Tuesday that making it was no different from doing a big-budget Hollywood style production, except that the target screen is about 2 inches by 2 inches.

Dayton said making films for cell phones, PDAs and even iPods is cheaper than traditional outlets because the work is done digitally and there's no outside costs for distribution, such as transferring the film to DVD.

Maria Maggenti, who shot "Los Viajes de King Tiny," the tale of a small dog who travels the city while his owner is at work, said the impulse to share the film was surprising.

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