Rules for Making Short Films

While researching what different people believe to be the ways to make a good short films i have found what i believe to be the best rules for making short films:

1) You must use an original idea - Short film audiences do not tent to enjoy watching films that are along the same idea lines

2) Have a good script - The script in a short film has to be stronger then it does for a feature film because it has less time to engage and inform the audience

3) You NEED to engage your audience within the 1st minute - Many audiences lose interest in short films if the opening is too slow

4) Keep it short! - it seems a given rule considering it is for Short film but the shorter a short is, generally speaking it will be more successful

5) You must keep every shot interesting - for example during a short film your film making skills will normally be assessed more then it would be for making a feature film

6) You need a quality crew - because you have less people working on a short film those people you are using must be the best you can get if you want the best film - this also applies to the actors that you hire