Live Action Shorts - All nominees

 

An Irish Goodbye
Tom Berkeley 
Ross White 

A sweet and lovely film in which a brother comes home to help bury his mother.  His brother lives on the farm where they grew up, but can't live on his own because of his developmental disability. Ultimately, they agree that if the brothers can complete their mother's bucket list, then the brother who needs more care will agree to go to a care home. And the list is incredible! Finally the list brings the men together in the loveliest of ways, and this one is my pick to win.

Ivalu
Anders Walter 
Rebecca Pruzan 

Ivalu's has gone missing and her younger sister is determined to find her. The sister follows a black crow around her village with a secret suspicion that the crow is Ivalu. We learn slowly that Ivalu is being attacked by her own father, and that her disappearance is more of an escape.

Le Pupille
Alice Rohrwacher 
Alfonso Cuarón 

It's war time and this is a school for young girls in Italy. They are rebellious and wild, and the nuns aren't having it. When a wealthy woman brings a magnificent cake to the kids so that they will pray for her family, the nuns try to wrestle it from the girls' hands... except one little girl who wants a slice of cake! It was a cute little one and is favored to win due to Alfonso Cuaron's involvement, but this one was nothing so special that it should.

Night Ride
Eirik Tveiten 
Gaute Lid Larssen 

Ebba is waiting at the tram station in freezing cold weather.  When the tram finally arrives, the driver insists that it is time for his break and that the tram will leave in 30 minutes, though he will not allow her to come inside. She notices that the tram's doors are not locked and she climbs aboard. She can't resist! She tries the tram's levers and buttons and before she knows it, she's driving the tram. When she arrives at the next stop, she doesn't totally know what to do, so she stops and allows passengers to board. When some of those passengers begin to harass a young trans teenager, she steps in and rescues them (apologies, the film didn't make clear the teenager's pronouns, so I am using the generic "them.") and together they leave the tram. Which leaves the attackers to drive the tram and to be at the helm when... the police arrive. Great, funny, adorable ending.

Best Live Action Short Film
Cyrus Neshvad 

Oy, a tough one. A young teenager from Iran has been sent to Luxembourg to become the child bride of an older man. She does everything in her power to delay her departure from the airport, and when there is nothing left for her to do, she uses what little money she has to purchase a bus ticket. Her betrothed is furious and her father keeps trying to get her on the phone. Through a little bit of smarts and a little bit of courage, she finds a way to escape her fate.