Short of the Week
An abnormal year produced an abnormal Oscars. I’m not much of expert, my M.O in recent years has been to let it run in the background while working on the computer, but I personally enjoyed the intimate, more focused approach the virus necessitated. Opinions are divided, but kudos from me to Steven Soderbergh and team. Plenty of storylines emerged—the diversity of the winners, the strong showing by streamers, and yet another weird ending, but no major news will emerge from the Short Subject winners. That’s Ok! It was an unusually strong year for quality of nominee in the 3 categories, and though we may disagree with the Academy on the winners, it is still such a treat to have these filmmakers recognized on such a grand stage, in front of a global audience of millions.
So, in case you missed it, here are the winning films
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Best Animated Short Film
If Anything Happens I Love You by Will McCormack and Michael Govier
Told through stark, almost colourless animation, McCormack and Govier’s emotive tale of parents struggling to deal with the grief of losing a child in a school shooting, felt like an obvious favourite for this year’s Animated Short Oscar and the Academy voters didn’t go against expectations. With Arnar Gunnarsson’s Yes-People lacking the emotional impact the committee usually favour and Adrien Mérigeau’s Genius Loci and Erick Oh’s Opera feeling a little too “arthouse” for their tastes, the only real competition seemed like it would come from Oscar powerhouse Pixar, with the charming Burrow. However, with the history of this category proving that the more moving, heartfelt short usually won, the award, as expected, was handed over to Netflix short If Anything Happens I Love You.
FULL FILM ON NETFLIX | WATCH ACCEPTANCE SPEECH
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Best Documentary (Short Subject)
Colette by Anthony Giacchino
If the winners of the Animation and Live Action awards felt like something we could have predicted, Giacchino’s Guardian doc Colette picking up the Best Documentary (Short Subject) Oscar was a little more unexpected. Up against a mix of hard-hitting journalistic pieces (Do Not Split) and more experimental, lyrical work (A Love Song for Latasha), once again it feels like the emotional pull of Giacchino’s 25-minute film won the voters over. The story of 90-year-old Colette confronting her past by visiting the German concentration camp where her brother died, the short mixes aspects of the portrait documentary with historical elements to make an insightful and moving watch – you might want to grab a stack of tissues if you’re going to watch this one.
WATCH ACCEPTANCE SPEECH | Q&A – THE GUARDIAN
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Best Live Action Short Film
Two Distant Strangers by Travon Free & Martin Desmond Roe
“I can’t breathe” – words that will haunt humanity for years to come and a phrase that is central in the premise of Free and Roe’s powerful Netflix drama Two Distant Strangers. We’ve seen the time loop scenario used for comic effect, sci-fi blockbusters and scares in features, but in this 32-minute tale of a man trying to get home to his dog it becomes what Roe describes as a “great metaphor for what America is going through right now”. Two Distant Strangers beat off some strong competition to scoop this year’s Best Live Action Short Film Oscar, but feels like one of the most fitting winners with seen in recent years.