Every year, Vancouver holds a huge short film contest called Run N Gun. One hundred and fifty-eight movies were made in under 48 hours. The films must be under five minutes long and follow a theme, use an object, and a line of dialogue that was relayed the night before. Since 2025 is the tenth anniversary, each film must also incorporate the number 10. All the movies played in front of large audiences. There were screenings every night at the Rio Theatre from June 23rd through June 25th. The top forty films were screened at a huge gala at the Orpheum Theatre. In 2025, Hollywood North followed one team for their short Street Kind.
We spoke with filmmaker David Trotter about his team’s experience.
HNMAG: Where did you grow up?
David Trotter: I grew up in Pennsylvania. I’ve been a dual Canadian/US citizen since 2023. I came to Vancouver for film school in 2016 and stayed.
HNMAG: Was one of your parents born in Canada?
David Trotter: No, my mother moved here, and I’m the youngest of four. Long story short, both of us discovered Vancouver, and our mutual partnership was to come here. We fell in love with the city, and through school, I discovered more about Canadian cinema and the industry. Prior to that, I had a narrow scope and was planning to move to Los Angeles. Over the years, I discovered that Vancouver gives back as much as you put into it.
HNMAG: When did you become interested in making films?
David Trotter: I did theatre in high school, and I caught the acting bug. When I learned more about what goes on behind the scenes in a video production class, that bug grew into filmmaking. I discovered that I really enjoyed being a lot more involved and creating the story.
HNMAG: You studied film and TV at Capilano University.
David Trotter: I graduated in 2020.
HNMAG: That might be a good time. It’s better than being in school during the pandemic.
David Trotter: I was producing a film, the director’s thesis film, that was scheduled to shoot on March 12th, 2020. It was very hectic. We were lucky that we were shooting off campus, so it wasn’t shut down.
HNMAG: You met Ryan Jamison at Capilano.
David Trotter: Exactly. He and I were in the same year and became friends pretty quickly.
HNMAG: This is your first entry into Run N Gun.
David Trotter: Yes. Ryan’s Run N Gun last year…
HNMAG: The Third Person. It won Best Picture.
David Trotter: I attended as a guest. I watched all the films, and I was so enamored by the Run N Gun community that I decided to give it a go.
HNMAG: Your DOP, Luke Hubner, had a very elaborate camera.
David Trotter: We shot with an Alexa Mini. I work in the industry as a script supervisor where I recently met Luke, and he’s great. He works a lot as a gaffer.
HNMAG: Yu Ching Yau, the script supervisor for Street Kind, was using a wonderful program on an iPad.
David Trotter: Yes, that was ScriptE. I got it before the pandemic. She was just starting with that application, but she has shadowed me on set a couple of times. It was great having her. It’s so fast-paced, you need someone to keep an eye on what’s going on. She did a terrific job.
HNMAG: Kama Sood was the Camera assistant.
David Trotter: Yes, we met at Capilano’s film program as well—and Jacob Harris, Ryan and I, co-star. Having my friends on set kept me relaxed when things got stressful. Natalia Ortynski story edited.
HNMAG: Josh Blumhagen was on sound.
David Trotter: That was the first time I met Josh. It was really nice having him on set. He was Ryan’s recommendation.
HNMAG: Did he work with Ryan on The Third Person?
David Trotter: He did, yeah.
HNMAG: That’s two people from the winning team. Antoni Alvarez joined us on set. He was the key grip.
David Trotter: I worked with him on vertical productions in town.
HNMAG: Who did the editing?
David Trotter: Nathan Young. J.B. McCarthy did the sound design.
HNMAG: Which editing suite did you use?
David Trotter: Adobe Premiere Pro. Nathan and I have worked a lot in the past.
HNMAG: Did you meet him at Capilano?
David Trotter: Yes, he was the same year as Kama, Ryan, Jacob, and me. Nathan did Run N Gun two years before. This is his third. He is a great asset as well as a friend. He’s a very proficient editor. Nathan and J.B. have worked well on other projects before.
HNMAG: Do you think you’ll do another Run N Gun again next year?
David Trotter: Yes, I’m going to make one regardless of how this one does. I really enjoyed the experience of how intense it was. Everyone comes together. It’s nerve-racking but also exciting. It was a really good team.
HNMAG: Could Vancouver produce its own content if demand from the service industry were to end?
David Trotter: That would be an optimistic outcome. I like to think about it that way. It’s incredibly important for Canadians to be able to tell their own stories.
HNMAG: Will more productions be set in Vancouver?
David Trotter: There are so many aspiring and young filmmakers in Vancouver. Vancouver will set its mark in the film landscape. It’s been boiling up so long. The drive to tell good and meaningful stories. Everything is here in terms of talent and desire. We don’t know how or when. Bizarre circumstances could be that push. It’s too often that Vancouver doesn’t get to play itself. It’s happening, but we are getting close to where Vancouver is really seen as being dramatized, for most viewers around the world who haven’t seen that before.
We also had a conversation with Run N Gun founder Joel McCarthy.
HNMAG: How does this year’s Run N Gun compare to last year?
Joel McCarthy: The films are awesome. Every year, there is a slightly different flavour. This is the year we finally feel we are ready for it. We have been growing too fast. Last year, it felt like we threw ourselves in the deep end, and we survived it. This year, we know what the deep end feels like. We have a lot of new blood in finals with people who haven’t been there before, and they have finally climbed their way up. It’s really exciting to see so many improve as filmmakers. The other thing worth mentioning is just how great our team is this year. Our festival is only epic because of our festival co-director Sasha, our amazing events team, editors, graphic designers, operations team etc. They make it all happen!
HNMAG: Were there more submissions this year than last?
Joel McCarthy: Yes. Last year, we allowed one hundred and fifty-five entries. Of that, one hundred and forty-eight made it. This year, we upped it to one hundred and sixty with the assumption that eight or nine would not deliver. It turned out that one hundred and fifty-eight delivered.
HNMAG: Only two entries didn’t make it?
Joel McCarthy: Yeah, it’s really impressive.
HNMAG: What year are we in for the Run N Gun?
Joel McCarthy: This is our tenth year. It’s a big one! For so many years, we were the little kids’ table, doing our own thing. Now we have come in as one of the bigger film events in Vancouver. We have become an institution, whether we like it or not.
HNMAG: Is Run N Gun your full-time job?
Joel McCarthy: I wish it made enough money for me to survive on that. No, I work freelance with different contracts. Run N Gun is definitely passion. We are finally in a position to actually pay a few people, but nobody is getting rich.
HNMAG: Is the freelance work within the film and TV industry?
Joel McCarthy: I make documentaries, corporate videos, teaching, it’s all film adjacent.
HNMAG: Some Run N Gun teams go through the Union of British Columbia Performers (UBCP) Ultra Low Budget (ULB) program. Does the festival help with that process?
Joel McCarthy: UBCP is now a silver sponsoring partner. They see the value in Run N Gun and allow us to do what we do. They have been great. We help to create a step-by-step guide. UBCP covers the insurance for actors. It’s no cost to a UBCP actor for anything related to the ULB.
HNMAG: What was the theme for this year’s Run N Gun?
Joel McCarthy: The theme this year was Time. We have multiple dice to pick the theme, the line of dialogue, and the object. We roll them live on screen. There are over 166 possible variations.
HNMAG: What were the winners for the line of dialogue and the object?
Joel McCarthy: The line of dialogue was “We’re going to need a bigger _____”. The object we also like to have something that goes in a number of different ways. This year it was a card. It could be a tarot card, a green card, a credit card, a memory card….Each film also had to visually or audibly have a ten in it. Just because it’s our tenth year. We like to have a fun fourth element. Last year we had landmark.
HNMAG: A landmark is great as it helps distinguish Vancouver. We’re most of the shorts set in Vancouver, or is that hard to tell?
Joel McCarthy: There definitely were ones that went hard in that direction, but since they have to be under five minutes, they don’t have time to focus on the specific environment.
HNMAG: What is a takeaway for the Run N Gun?
Joel McCarthy: The big thing is that it’s about the audiences. We sold out the general slots in four minutes and the student slots in nine minutes. Going forward, we have to figure out how it’s more sustainable. We already secured the Orpheum for 2026.
The doors at The Orpheum opened at 2 pm on July 5th. It was an amazing atmosphere as many attendees dressed up in fun costumes that had nothing to do with their actual films. A lot of the patrons have been attending for years and knew each other. Run N Gun has grown into a real supportive community. Thirty-nine films were selected to play that day and evening because there was a wild-card movie, which won the Rio audience choice award. That movie screened again at the big event. It was called Rolex 60. It’s a comedy about a new Rolex watch that will allow you to gain back one minute of time, but just once. It was one of the funniest and best-made movies that we saw. Ryan Jamieson made the intro film as the previous year’s winner. It was hilarious and a huge hit. Of course, we were also excited to see Street Kind. It was funny, exciting, and slick. A big congratulations to David and his team. Run N Gun also hired a sketch artist for attendees to get their customized caricature. If you have any desire to be part of a film crew and have a fun, intense, creative weekend, you should get a team together for 2026. Just make sure you sign up right away, as the slots fill up fast!
