As the year starts to draw to a close, a lot of the industry focus turns towards awards season. In the weeks ahead, many online platforms will release their ‘Best of the Year’ lists. For eligible filmmakers, however, the key date to mark is December 17th – the announcement of the Oscar shortlists. This makes November and early December a crucial period for shorts and as teams vie for voters’ attention (if you’re one of these filmmakers, be sure to check out our article, How to Work With Short of the Week This Awards Season) we see a lot of short films come online. Something that was reflected in our November curation. — Rob Munday, Managing Editor
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Team Favorites
Although our November picks included a number of acclaimed films from the festival circuit, as is often the case, the shorts that really caught our attention where the stories that snuck up on us and caught us unaware – like the tales of a travelling jester, one man’s epic obsession with opening a nut and a strange black and white sci-fi about an isolated boy in space.
Open by Richard Paris Wilson
From such a simple premise, writer/director Richard Paris Wilson crafts a surprisingly potent story in Open, as the talented storyteller stretches the absurdity of this mundane fixation to its max, revealing a surprising emotional depth.
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Space Plug by Marcus Anthony Thomas
A striking, distinctive, and unforgettable short, Space Plug showcases the remarkable talents of Thomas and his producer Jordi Morera. If you’re craving something truly unique in your short film experience, Space Plug delivers exactly that.
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The Licensed Fool by Gareth Bowen
A medieval fever dream turned nightmare, The Licensed Fool is as gritty as it is beautiful to watch, with a grotesque sense of humor that perfectly captures the sentiment of the times.
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Shortverse Best of the Month
If you’re looking for more team favorites, then head over to Shortverse, where our screeners have selected their personal picks from the titles that caught our attention in October.