Do Over Press + Trailer: The Value of Shorts

Jordan Gasse-Plasse at Slackerwood wrote a nice little article about "Do Over" being released on +VHX. She did a great job of whittling down my rambling answers to her during our interview to get to the essence of the story. An editor always needs another editor.

We're trying something different with "Do Over" in that it is a short film we are selling rather than throwing up on +YouTube or +Vimeo for free. I know this makes it a tough sell. We're competing with thousands upon thousands of filmmakers around the world who have samples of their work easily accessible and more importantly, easily sharable.

Consumers are used to and expect to pay for streaming longer content. In people's minds longer content means it cost more to make, plus you're getting more entertainment value out of it when you think of "value" in terms of time or the amount of content.

But because something is short does not mean it wasn't any less challenging to make. Nor does it mean it was cheap to make. And most importantly - nor does it make it any less entertaining.


Asking someone to pay $1.99 for DRM-free access to a seven minute short comedy is about placing value on that work. It's about saying, I think this is good. I think it is worth not only your time, but also your money.

I certainly thought it was good enough when I put my own money into the film. And so did my key collaborators, co-writer/editor Taylor Allen and producer Andrew Logan.

Additionally, buying a copy of "Do Over" is much like buying a painting from an artist: You are supporting that artist's ability to create more work. Please consider showing your support for my work by purchasing "Do Over" right now. If you have even more confidence in me and my abilities than $1.99's worth, you can move the pay slider up and buy it for more - kind of like Kickstarter, only you're guaranteed a product at the time of purchase.

Charging for short content also may be a growing trend. Elevision curates shorts that have had a healthy festival run and also sells them for $1.99. +YouTube is launching subscription channels. And +Vimeo started Vimeo On Demand earlier this year.

I'm not advocating that every video ever made from this point forward should be put up for sale. I'd just like to see a balance between content that is free and content that aims to support an artists' ability to make more content.

There is no middle class in independent filmmaking anymore. It's either tent poles or micro budgets. And we can't Kickstart our way to financial stability. We have to find ways to support each other's works or else mediocrity and hegemony will become the status quo.

But hey - no pressure. I'm just, you know, letting you know where I'm coming from...

Read "The Value of Shorts: David Fabelo and his 'Do Over' Philosophy"

Watch "Do Over" on VHX for just $1.99:


Do Over Trailer from David Fabelo on Vimeo.