Viewers watching the Academy Awards are usually clueless when the winners of short films are announced.
There’s a good reason, of course: Few people ever see them.
There was a time, until sometime in the 1960s, when short films such as cartoons, serials and comedies, along with newsreels, were standard-issue programming before double features.
It’s a shame they’re so rarely shown in theaters now, because they are often really good. Spokane’s Magic Lantern Theatre will screen the 2016 Oscar Nominated Short Films: Live Action this week, and the animated shorts are scheduled to open Feb. 5.
The contenders this year in both categories make a trip to the movie theater well worth it. The artfully rendered and often exceptionally made nominees range from tragic heartbreakers in war-torn areas to whimsical space flights of fancy.
The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences defines a short film as being an original picture no longer than 40 minutes long, credits included. That’s made to order for people with short attention spans, or those who look forward to a variety of viewing experiences in one sitting.
Here’s a look at the live-action shorts:
“Ave Maria,” directed by Basil Khalil, Palestine/France/Germany, 15 minutes: Five nuns following a vow of silence in a Palestinian convent receive unexpected visitors when an orthodox Jewish family’s car breaks down on the Sabbath. Surprises await.
“Shok,” directed by Jamie Donoughue, Kosovo/UK, 21 minutes: The danger of trading with Serbian soldiers catches up with two Albanian boys in this brutal and tragic story based on true events. A child’s bike may not look the same after watching.
“Everything Will Be OK,” directed by Patrick Vollrath, Germany/Austria, 30 minutes: Michael, a divorced father, picks up his 8-year-old daughter, Lea, for a trip to the fair. But he has something else in mind in what turns quickly into a gripping thriller as experienced by the girl’s growing unease.
“Stutterer,” directed by Benjamin Cleary, United Kingdom/Ireland, 12 minutes: Typographer Greenwood has a severe stuttering problem and is thrown into a panic when the woman he has a six-month Internet relationship with announces she is in London – and wants to meet. The ending alone is worth the price of admission.
“Day One,” directed by Henry Hughes, United States, 25 minutes: An Afghan-American interpreter working her first day with U.S. military forces in Afghanistan is quickly confronted by the horrors of war. That includes a pregnant woman who is married to a captured bomb-maker and will die unless her baby can be delivered.
