The short films nominated each year are typically a great way to learn about up-and-coming filmmakers. Additionally, established artists can experiment and expand their craft. The short form nominees can be an interesting glimpse into film innovation. Here is a rundown of this year’s nominated shorts.

Animated Shorts

Our Uniform

From Iran, a woman reminisces about her school uniform and other gender related issues in Tehran. It is mostly presented as drawings on clothing. Innovative, informative, and quite real. Of the animated nominees, this is probably the best and most deserving to win. Grade: A-

Letter to a Pig

From France and Israel, a holocaust survivor tells a classroom of children about a time a pig saved his life while fleeing Nazis. One of the children has a particularly artful dream about the story and humanity in general. The art is a mixture of realistic and abstract. Fascinating, but might be a little muddled in the dream sequence. Grade: B+

Pachyderm

From France, a woman recalls a summer visit to her grandparents. It is darker than it sounds, but at the same time not unexpected. The animation is fairly traditional. Grade: C

Ninety-Five Senses

The filmmakers behind Napoleon Dynamite present the story of a man recollecting upon the end of his life through his senses: touch, taste, etc. Tim Blake Nelson narrates as the man and different animators tackle each sense. This is one of the stronger nominees, though it plays a little folksy. Grade: B

WAR IS OVER! Inspired by the Music of John and Yoko

Two men in opposing sides of a war are playing a game of chess via carrier pigeon. The style is typical 3D CG animation, not unlike Illumination or Pixar, but lacks flair. The story is nice, but the inclusion of the titular song really sinks the short. Grade: C-

Live Action

The After

After his wife and daughter are murdered, a London corporate worker (David Oyelowo) becomes a ride-share driver to support himself while he mourns. On his daughter’s birthday, he picks up a family whose daughter reminds him of his own. Oyelowo acts extremely well, but ultimately it feels like the first part of a longer film. This is something that seems to happen more often with live action shorts. We are given a snippet and not a fully formed story. Currently on Netflix. Grade: C+

Red, White, And Blue

Faced with an unwanted pregnancy, a single mother (Brittany Snow) must drive nearly 8 hours from Arkansas to Illinois to get an abortion. There’s more to it than that, but it would be difficult to explain without spoilers. Shares a lot in common with Never Rarely Sometimes Always. A line of dialogue near the end falls real flat, and some will find it ham-fisted, but like Never Rarely Sometimes Always this short should be required viewing for all men. Grade: B

Knight of Fortune

From Denmark, a man is having a difficult time viewing his recently deceased wife at the chapel. He meets a man who seems to be having the same issue himself. It’s actually quite funny despite the mournful premise. The short shows an aspect of grief that rarely gets screentime: the weird things we do when we grieve. Grade: B+

You can even watch it here:

Invincible

From Quebec, the film shows 48 hours of the life of Marc, a teenager in a detention center. Marc is a bright boy focused on his freedom. An interesting character study that functions great as a short, but could easily expand without becoming too extraneous. Grade: B+

The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar

Probably the most entertaining of the nominees, Wes Anderson adapts Roald Dahl again with a star-studded cast including Benedict Cumberbatch, Sir Ben Kingsley, and Ralph Fiennes. This is one of four Dahl shorts Anderson released last year for Netflix. It has that layered narrative that Anderson often utilizes. Anderson fans will find much to love. It is a fun short, but at 37 minutes it may overstay its welcome a little. Grade: B

It is difficult to say which live action short seems the most deserving to win. Each of the nominees brings something to the table that is fascinating and/or thought provoking. With the exception of The After, any of the them could win and it would not be a surprise.

~Andrew