February 28, 2005

Next year they'll be handing 'em out in the parking lot...

Chris Rock's joke hit straight to the point... Why The hell were the short film awards given out in the Balcony!?!? It's probably the biggest moments in their careers, but the nominees and winners for Best Animated short and Best Live-Action Short were segregated from the rest of the Oscars. The winners weren't even allowed near the stage last night.

Not only that, but they didn't even show 5 second clips of those films!!! I still remember when i was 13 years old and watching the Oscars for the first time, seeing a series of 5 second clips of the animated short nominees and thinking "WOW! Those look really cool, where can i see that?" I've stil never seen them, but those 5 second clips are burned into my brain. Most people will never see these films. The Oscars are the only chance these short films will ever be noticed by the mainstream. Those two awards are practically the only representation of independent film-making at the Oscars, but last night the Academy sent a clear message of "You're not worthy" to all short-subject, independent film-makers.

Anyway... that said, I am very happy for the two animated winners last night: The Incredibles was definitely the best animated feature (even though it was worthy of a "best feature" nomination, and the other two nominees weren't even worhty of a greenlight). And Chris Landreth's "Ryan" is a really innovative and wonderful film. Both of these films really push through the barriers of what animated films can be while still remaining accessible and entertaining. Applause and admiration to everyone involved in these films.

Posted by tom at 09:36 AM