Creative partnerships : fundraising for short film projects

Although exhibition opportunities for short films are expanding in the digital age, problems of obtaining financial and marketing support remain. However, a number of creative initiatives, involving partnerships between companies, funding bodies and filmmakers, show that fundraising is possible even for projects that are difficult to sponsor. One of these is Brief Encounters, the Bristol Short Film Festival, which, over the past six years, has created long-term partnerships with a range of companies and funders, and built a new and successful festival. These creative partnerships are explored in this paper.