Short films are a crucial proving ground for up-and-coming filmmakers, and a very entertaining cinematic form for the audience. Almost anyone these days can make a short film, and there are lots out there, but the best ones are a superb showcase for new movie-making talent. The Academy Of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences selects the best of the year and nominates them for Oscars, in three different categories.
This year's nominees for Best Animtated Short Film are:
Dcera (Daughter)
(d. Daria Kashcheeva, Czech Republic, 15 min.)
The bond between a father and a daughter is imperiled by matters that go unspoken and hurts that are slow to heal.
Kitbull
(d. Rosana Sullivan, U.S., 9 min.)
An unlikely connection sparks between two creatures: a fiercely independent stray kitten and a mistreated pitbull.
Mémorable
(d. Bruno Collet, France, 12 min.)
Louis, a painter, and his wife Michelle are experiencing strange events. Their world seems to be mutating. Slowly, furnitures, objects, people lose their realism.
Sister
(d. Siqi Song, France, 9 min.)
A man thinks back to his childhood memories of growing up with an annoying little sister in China in the 1990s. What would his life have been like if things had gone differently?
Hair Love
(d. Matthew A. Cherry, U.S., 7 min.)
An African American father tries to do his daughter’s hair for the first time.
PLUS bonus shorts
Henrietta Bulkowski
(d. Rachel Johnson, U.S., 16 min.)
A stop-motion short about a young woman's journey to overcome her limitations and see her dreams take flight. Featuring the voices of Chris Cooper and Ann Dowd!
The Bird and the Whale
(d. Carol Freeman, Ireland, 6 min.)
A baby whale separated from his family discovers a caged bird, the sole survivor of a shipwreck. Together they struggle to survive, lost at sea.
Hors Piste
(Léo Brunel, Loris Cavalier, France, 5 min.)
The two best rescue workers in the region take off for their umpteenth mission. Professionalism and efficiency all around, but things don't really go as planned...