Feb 9, 2021

Here are the finalists for the Academy Awards for Best Animated Short Film and Visual Effects

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced the 10 shortlists for animated shorts and visual effects that will advance to the voting process for the 93rd Academy Awards.

Ninety-six films were nominated in the animated short film category. Members of the Animated Short Films and Feature Films category will vote on up to 10 films from this list and will now select 5 nominees. The following is an alphabetical list of the titles of the ten nominated films in the Animated Short Films category.

In contrast to last year's short list, where only three of the ten films were American, this year six films were selected from the U.S. (one of them, "Opera" by Eric Oh, is a Korean co-production)

Four of the six American short films are, major American companies: "Burrow" and "Out" are from Disney/Pixar, "If Anything Happens I Love You" is from Netflix, and "To: Gerard" is from DreamWorks Animation.

Female directors outnumbered male directors this year, with only three of the ten films directed by women. Because some films featured more than one director, there were 12 male and 3 female finalists.

There are also many fresh faces among this year's nominees: 9 of the 10 films are by directors who have never been nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film. The exception is "The Snail and the Whale. All of the directors of "Kapaemahu" are first-time nominees, but Daniel Souza, the director of the animated short, has previously been nominated for an Academy Award for his short "Feral.

In terms of technique, seven films are primarily 2D in approach and three are CG. No stop-motion animations have been nominated.

Almost all of the most celebrated films of the 2020 festival, including the Grand Prix winner in Ottawa (KKUM by Kangmin Kim), the Grand Prix winner in Zagreb (Just A Guy by Shoko Hara), and the Jury Prize winner in Annecy (Homeless Home by Alberto Vazquez), were overlooked. Last month, we highlighted 15 outstanding films worthy of consideration by Academy members. Of those 15 films, only one finalist, Eric O's "Opera," was selected.

The 10 finalists in the visual effects category are listed below in alphabetical order by title.

Notably, the animated feature "Soul" is on the list of finalists in the visual effects category. Only recently has an animated feature passed the final round and been nominated in the visual effects category, Disney's "The Lion King" remake, which was nominated last year.

All members of the Academy's Visual Effects Division will be invited virtually on Saturday, March 6, to view 10-minute excerpts from each nominated film. Following the screening, the Academy members will vote on the final five films nominated for the Academy Award.

Nominations for the 93rd Academy Awards will be announced on Monday, March 15, and the Academy Awards will be broadcast live on Sunday, April 25, 2021.

Top photo: "Yes People."