Here are five short films that are Oscar-eligible shorts. This is my attempt to help acquaint you with some of the contenders for this year’s Academy Awards. “Moeder,” “Then Comes the Body,” “Fireline,” “Will I See You Again?” and “Sunflower.”
Moeder
This 20 minute film, directed by Salomon Ligthelm focused on the deaths of 298 civilian passengers when the Russians shot down Malaysian Airlines MH17 on 7/17/2014. The flight, filled with civilians who were primarily Dutch citizens, was 50 kilometers from the Russian/Ukrainian border in Donetsk when a surface-to-air missile took it down, killing all aboard. Apparently, the Russians thought the plane might have arms or ammunition aboard, since it was close to the fighting.
A phone from the plane fell to Earth and landed in the back yard of one of the locals. Vitalik Ivanov picks it up and hears a woman’s voice say (in Dutch). “Daniel, can you hear me?” The fellow who found the still operative phone (and the corpse?) of a Dutch victim in his back yard is a Rozspyne miner. He and his fellow miners are sent out into the fields to locate the bodies of the victims. Once they find the bodies they then mark them with long white flag poles. The hero of this film finds a dying horse fatally wounded by falling debris. Vitalik has to finish the job the Russians started and dispatch the injured animal, which is traumatic for him. None of Vitalik’s co-workers (miners) are happy about being assigned this non-work-related task, either. One of them mutters, “We’re miners, not soldiers.”
The Landscape
The landscape for all of this action is like a background for a Ukrainian Gothic portrait in the manner of American Gothic. It is a beautifully photographed bucolic, pastoral setting. In just the opening moments there is a shot of the miner, smoking, silhouetted in the frame of the back door of his home, a beautifully composed shot. Vitalik has just heard the sounds of bombs or falling debris hitting the ground. His wife (Yeva) says, “It sounded like the end of the world. And perhaps it was, for some.” The sound effects were exceptionally well-done.
The couple is offered $100 for an interview. Yeva is pregnant. She says, “We can use the money.” Vitalik struggles unsuccessfully to remain composed throughout the interview. He ultimately translates a few Ukrainian words into Russian and sends the mother of the Dutch victim (“Moeder” translates to “Mother”) the bad news of her son’s death in his back yard, via the phone that fell from Flight MH17.This was a riveting, well-done, timely short. It made me feel even more concern for Ukraine after the U.S. November 5th Presidential election. The sound, cinematography, and acting were all top notch.
Then Comes the Body
Jacob Krupnick has filmed the story of ballet in Nigeria. The enterprising individual who taught himself ballet from YouTube videos. This story leads to the founding of a Nigerian Classical Ballet Company in Lagos, Nigeria, called Leap of Dance. This schools goal is to teach ballet to other Nigerian children. Daniel Owosoni Ajala has taught several talented Nigerian youth to dance, and they have become so good that other nations are offering them scholarships to study ballet in places like Belgium and South Africa.
The film had its World Premiere at Tribeca in 2023, It had its International Premiere in Melbourne and its European Premiere at Cameraimage. It was named Best Short non-fiction and short shorts in Tokyo and Krupnick’s work became viral sensation during the pandemic. The 14 minute, 44 second short had excellent sound, edited and mixed by Zach Egan, with a score by Martin Veloz. The primary dancers are Olamide Olarwe and Precious Duru. The film’s message: “First comes the heart; then comes the body.” That message has been my mantra in selecting which of these 5 Oscar-eligible shorts is most impressive. “Then Comes the Body” has heart and plenty of it. All were done well, but the top two had way more heart.
Fireline
“Fireline” was a 13 minute 23 second short about incarcerated firefighters. It was directed by Robin Takao D’Oench, a Japanese American writer/ director/ producer from NYC. Robin is a Film Independent Project Involve Directing Fellow and a graduate of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. These Wildland firefighters were photographed by Ming Jue Hu and the script was written and directed by Robin Takao D’oenoh. Lena Waithe (and 3 others) executive produced this story of Otto Reyes (Bobby Soto), an incarcerated inmate who has just learned that his request for parole has been denied.
Not long after learning that he is not getting out of prison early, he and the others are called to go battle a fire. Joshua Caleb Johnson portrays Shawn Davies and Fabian Alomar was Primo. Otto has secured an illegal cell phone, which he wants to use to call his daughter to wish her a happy birthday. The visual special effects of a fire bearing down on the firefighters are excellent. It seemed very short in comparison to the others, which, in fact, it was.
This film was presented at the Tribeca Film Festival and was part of the official selection at HollyShorts. It was made as part of Indeed’s Rising Voices program – an initiative set up to discover, invest in and share stories created by BIPOC filmmakers and storytellers. Rising Voices was created in collaboration with Lena Waithe, Hillman Grad Productions, Ventureland and 271 Films. “Fireline” has qualified to be considered for the 2025 Oscars®. The acting was fine. The special visual effects were better than in the Angelina Jolie 2021 film “Those Who Wished Me Dead” and on a par with 2018’s “Wildlife.” (Carey Mulligan and Jake Gyllenhaal).
Will I See You Again?
Michael Perez-Lindsey, a queer Mexican-American director, has helmed a well-acted vignette that depicts the funeral of a former friend that brings two former lovers back together after many years. The deceased friend, Jim Turner (Robert Okumu) has left an inheritance for the two former lovers, but they can only inherit it if they each answer 5 questions honestly while hooked up to lie detectors. The Black former lover is portrayed by Hosea Chanchez as Max Palmer. His former white love, Paul Jensen, is portrayed by Nick Wechsler.
The entire set-up seemed unlikely and unrealistic. The song that played at the end, performed by Jalen Ngonda, who co-wrote it with Mike Buckley was a very Barry White-esque rendition of “Come Around and Love Me.” While it fit the prerequisites of the contrived plot, it was also a bit over-the-top. Having the two leads grasp each other’s fore-arms at film’s end (24 minutes 13 seconds) represented a happy ending. The best way to sum up what was not working with this one would be to use the words of “Then Comes the Body”: “First comes the heart.”
This one lacked a realistic premise: no genuine heart. I was not the right audience for this sentimental-but-unrealistic project. That said, it had a very professional sheen and the gay community might enjoy the theme of reconciliation and love recovered despite 20 years of alienation.
Sunflower
“Sunflower” short.
This 16 minute, 26 second short from Mateusz Balcerek was based on a true story about Danuta Gorecka. Danuta is the director’s grandmother, and what happens to her during WWII in 1944 as a child. (Poland, Italy, the United Kingdom and the U.S. collaborated). The little girl who played Danuta (Martyna Zazula) did a very credible acting job. She was told to hide under the bed while soldiers entered her home and shot her grandfather dead. There is another close call in the yard, when Danuta and her mother Alicia (Sylwia Boron) are almost apprehended while building something that I suspect was a coffin for the dead grandfather. The music by Roberto Mengoli was good. The Guildhall London Symphony Orchestra and the London Music Central Kids’ Choir performed beautifully. The linking motif of a sunflower (Slonecznik) used animation effectivel.
