The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences released the 10 short films that have made the short list for the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film. The longstanding trend has been that international shorts dominate this field and not much has changed. Only four of the 10 films appear to be by American or American-based filmmakers. It’s also worth noting one of them, “Rise of a Star,” features French cinema legend Catherine Deneuve which gives it a more than 50/50 chance of making the cut.
Jane, Icarus, An Inconvenient Sequel make Oscar’s Documentary Shortlist
Members of the Short Films and Feature Animation Branch viewed all the eligible entries for the preliminary round of voting. Both Short Films and Feature Animation Branch members will now select five nominees from among the 10 titles listed below. Branch screenings will be held in Los Angeles, London, New York and San Francisco early next month.
Nominations for the 90th Academy Awards will be announced on Tuesday, January 23, 2018.
The contenders are as follows:
“DeKalb Elementary,” Reed Van Dyk, director (UCLA)
“The Eleven O’Clock,” Derin Seale, director (FINCH)
“Facing Mecca,” Jan-Eric Mack, director, and Joël Jent, producer (Dschoint Ventschr Filmproduktion)
“Icebox,” Daniel Sawka, director, and Camille Cornuel, producer (Iceboxthefilmco)
“Lost Face,” Sean Meehan, director, and Sam McGarry, producer (Soma Films)
“My Nephew Emmett,” Kevin Wilson, Jr., director (New York University)
“Rise of a Star,” James Bort, director, and Boris Mendza, producer (Fulldawa Films)
“The Silent Child,” Chris Overton, director, and Rachel Shenton, writer (Slick Films)
“Watu Wote/All of Us,” Katja Benrath, director (Hamburg Media School)
“Witnesses,” David Koch, director (Lux for Film, Diez Films and Paradoxal)