Now in their third year and one-week prior to Oscar night, Magnolia Pictures and Shorts Internation have come up with the ingenious idea of putting out the yearly Oscar-nominated short films in the Live Action and Animation categories (10 in all) first in theaters and quickly followed up by a DVD release. It’s a nifty initiative on their part and great incentive to check out the short film form without needing to check out a load of other crap. We’ll be profiling a good chunk of the 10 filmmakers listed below with our monthly feature: Short Film Corner. Look for the 10-collection in theaters starting on the 15th in over 50 theaters across the U.S. Two thumbs up for you Magnolia!
The nominated Live Action Shorts are:
AT NIGHT; Denmark, Oscar® Nominees: Christian E. Christiansen & Louise Vesth. Three young women share their problems while spending the holidays in a hospital cancer ward.
IL SUPPLENTE (THE SUBSTITUTE); Italy, Oscar® Nominee: Andrea Jublin. The arrival of an unusual newcomer galvanizes the students in a high school classroom.
LE MOZART DES PICKPOCKETS (THE MOZART OF PICKPOCKETS); France, Oscar® Nominee: Philippe Pollet-Villard. A pair of unlucky thieves find their fortunes have changed when they take in a deaf homeless boy.
TANGHI ARGENTINI; Belgium, Oscar® Nominees: Guido Thys and Anja Daelemans. A man who must learn to dance the tango in two weeks asks an office colleague for help.
THE TONTO WOMAN; United Kingdom, Oscar® Nominees: Daniel Barber and Matthew Brown. A cattle rustler meets a woman who is living in isolation after being held prisoner for eleven years by the Mojave Indians.
The nominated Animated Shorts are:
I MET THE WALRUS; Canada, Oscar® Nominee: Josh Raskin. In 1969, 14-year-old Jerry Levitan snuck into John Lennon’s hotel room with his tape recorder and persuaded him to do an interview.
MADAME TUTLI-PUTLI; Canada, Oscar® Nominees: Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski. A timid woman boards a mysterious night train and has a series of frightening experiences.
MEME LES PIGEONS VONT AU PARADIS (EVEN PIGEONS GO TO HEAVEN); France, Oscar® Nominees: Samuel Tourneux and Simon Vanesse. A priest tries to sell an old man a machine that he promises will transport him to heaven.
MY LOVE (MOYA LYUBOV); Russia, Oscar® Nominee: Alexander Petrov. In 19th Century Russia, a teenage boy in search of love is drawn to two very different women.
PETER & THE WOLF; United Kingdom & Poland, Oscar® Nominees: Suzie Templeton and Hugh Welchman. A young boy and his animal friends face a hungry wolf in Prokofiev’s classic musical piece.
