Hasta La Motion!

The Academy Awards 2015 presented Oscars for Short Film to two winners: Feast (Animated Short Film) and The Phone Call (Live Action Short Film). We’ve included here all the nominations, with information on crews, storylines, actors, trailers, posters and online promotion.

Feast, a short film by director Patrick Osborne and producer Kristina Reed at Disney Animation, with writers Nicole Mitchell, Raymond S. Persi, stars the voices of Ben Bledsoe, Stewart Levine, Katie Lowes. Winston is a Boston Terrier that loves to eat. His master James spoils him with various junk food and leftovers topped over his dog food. One day, James develops a relationship with a waitress at the local restaurant, who has him take up a healthier diet and lifestyle. This upsets Winston, since he refuses to eat vegetables. When the couple break up, James and Winston return to eating junk food until Winston realizes James’ depression over the break-up, with a piece of parsley as his only reminder. Winston grabs the parsley and rushes out of the apartment, leading James to the restaurant to reconcile with his girlfriend and marry her. Over a year after moving to a new home, Winston spots a meatball on the floor and follows the trail to the couple’s infant son. The film ends with Winston feasting on dozens of cupcakes thrown off a table during the son’s first birthday party. The film is promoted on Disney Animation’s project site.

The Bigger Picture, animated by director Daisy Jacobs and character designer Christopher Hees, tells the story of two brothers (Christopher Nightingale and Alisdair Simpson) struggling to take care of their elderly mother (Anne Cunningham). “You want to put her in a home; you tell her; tell her now!’ hisses one brother to the other. But Mother won’t go, and their own lives quickly unravel as she clings to life. Screenplay is by Daisy Jacobs and Jennifer Majka. Music is by Huw Bunford. The film is being promoted online at thebiggerpicturefilm.com

The Dam Keeper, shot by directors Robert Kondo and Daisuke Dice Tsutsumi, stars Lars Mikkelsen’s voiceover skills. A young pig with an important job, and a new friend who changes everything. In a desolate future, one small town has survived because of a large windmill dam that acts as a fan to keep out pollution. The dam’s operator, Pig, works tirelessly to keep the sails spinning and protect the town, despite abuse from classmates and an indifferent public. When a new student joins Pig’s class, nothing will be the same again. The short film is promoted online at thedamkeeper.com, Facebook, @thedamkeeper, Instagram and IMDB.

Me and My Moulton, by director Torill Kove, is a humorous autobiographical short film based on Kove’s experiences as a 7-year-old girl in Norway, one of three sisters who long for a bicycle. The film explores the emotions of Kove’s character, who is often embarrassed by their unorthodox architect parents. Kove was quoted in a Toronto Star article as saying the story had been on her mind for years and that her goal was to convey a girl’s conflicting feelings about her parents: “These feelings are not easy for kids. It’s confusing when you don’t have all the insights that you get later in life to realize your parents embarrass you but at the same time you really love them. There are mixed emotions. The film is promoted online at meandmymoulton.com

A Single Life, by director Directed, animated and produced by Amsterdam team Job, Joris & Marieke, tells the story of Pia, who after playing a mysterious vinyl single is suddenly able to travel through her life at different ages and stages all within the space of one song.

Live Action

The Phone Call, by director/writer Mat Kirkby and writer James Lucas, tells the story of Heather (Sally Hawkins), a shy lady who works in a helpline call centre. When she receives a phone call from a mystery man (Jim Broadbent), she has no idea that the encounter will change her life forever. Also starring is Edward Hogg. The film is being promoted online at thephonecallfilm.com and facebook.com/thephonecall

https://vimeo.com/108833098

Aya, a 39 minute film by Oded Binnun and Mihal Brezis, features Aya (Sarah Adler), a woman who picks up a Thomas Overby (Ulrich Thomsen), a complete stranger. Overby, a Danish music researcher visiting Israel as a judge for the Rubinstein Piano Competition, believes Aya to be his assigned driver. The young woman, intrigued by his presence and the random encounter, does not reveal the mix-up and mischievously sets off with him for his destination – Jerusalem. For Aya this “outside of life” situation seems like the realization of a childhood dream, but Thomas’ introverted and detached way of socializing hinders the proximity she is longing for. As tension builds between them, leading to mutual struggle, Aya confronts Thomas with the truth and is finally able to share pure intimacy with him. The film is being promoted online at ayathefilm.com. Writers were Oded Binnun, Mihal Brezis and Tom Shoval. Compositing was by Ron Ganbar and Eran Feller.

Boogaloo and Graham, a short film by Out Of Orbit director Michael Lennox and writer Ronan Blaney, is set in Ireland. Jamesy and Malachy are over the moon when their soft-hearted Dad presents them with two baby chicks to care for, but the two boys are in for a shock when their parents announce that big changes are coming to the family. Stars are Martin McCann, Charlene McKenna, Jonathan Harden.

Butter Lamp (La Lampe au Beurre de Yak), is a 15 minute film by director/screenwriter and editor Hu Wei, producers ulien Féret, Yangxu Zhou, director of photography Jean Legrand, sound designer Hervé Guyadère. A young photographer (Genden Punstok) and his assistant suggest to Tibetan nomads to photograph them. On diverse and more or less exotic backgrounds, families present themselves to the photographer. Through these shots, the photographer will weave unique links with each of the various villagers.

Parvaneh, a short film by director Talkhon Hamzavi and producer Stefan Eichenberger, tells the story of Parvaneh (Nissa Kashani), a young Afghan immigrant who recently arrived at a transit centre for asylum seekers in the Swiss Alps. The only things she has got to know yet are the rural area surrounding the centre and the centre itself. The film also stars Brigitte Beyeler, Cheryl Graf, and Alireza Bayram.