Unlike the Academy Award for best picture, which usually prides the biggest achievements in American and English cinema over the last year, the Oscar for best live-action short film is a more international accomplishment. This year’s entries hail from Switzerland and Israel, France and China, and they are as diverse and creative as any crop of films produced throughout the last year. They are truly the best of the best, ready to fight it out for the coveted honor at the Oscar ceremony, hosted Feb. 22. The live-action shorts will be released as one program at Landmark’s Nuart Theatre on Friday.
“Aya”
Directed by Mihal Brezis and Oded Binnun
Not a lot happens in Israeli short “Aya,” but what does appear on screen is concise and fruitful. Aya is a woman (Sarah Adler) who, while waiting at an airport terminal exit, is mistaken by Thomas Overby (Ulrich Thomsen) to be his driver to the hotel. She plays along with the charade, and quietly drives Mr. Overby to Jerusalem, making melancholy, though meticulous small talk along the way.
“Aya” is about the relationship between Thomas and Aya, one that sprouts from mistake, but blossoms into something more. As a Danish musician, Thomas finds Aya’s impulsive personality intriguing, leading to an unconventional scene of car romance that, needless to say, strikes a vivid chord. The film doesn’t have the most hard-hitting ending, with a resolution that cuts straight to predictability, but it’s saved by a well-directed bittersweet mood.
“Boogaloo and Graham”
Directed by Michael Lennox
Growing up is always hard, but with the right plot device, it can be a snap. An Irish tale, “Boogaloo and Graham” follows the lives of two brothers living in Belfast who are given a special present from their parents: two young chicks, which they give the titular names. They take their oddball pets everywhere they go, developing a sincere, adorable friendship with them when they receive bad news: their mother is pregnant, and demands that the messy birds go.
“Boogaloo and Graham” is set in the 1970s, during a time when “the Troubles” were at a historic worst, with militant occupation and street violence occurring throughout the nation. This detail, which incorporates into the plot in an abrupt, commanding climax, gives the short a triumphant warmth. “Boogaloo and Graham” is about life, in its most endearing, comical and difficult moments. Family is family and friends are friends, just as pets are pets, however unusual and frustrating they may be to deal with. Sweet and short, “Boogaloo and Graham” accomplishes great things without a dull moment, and should rightfully not be ignored as a nominee.
“Butter Lamp” (“La lampe au beurre de yak”)
Directed by Wei Hu
Every year, at least one of the live-action shorts presents itself with such an uncharacteristic style that one can’t help but feel curiously contemplative afterwards. “Butter Lamp” is that for this year’s entries – a series of scenes depicting a young traveling photographer and his assistant who take pictures of Tibetan nomads as they pass by. For each photo, the itinerant cameraman gives suggestions for how to improve their stances, their clothing and their props, layering each image with large backgrounds that range from a Beijing Olympics podium to a tropical beach.
The short is entirely static, with the camera never moving from its initial position. This gives “Butter Lamp” a literal frame of mind that’s as amusing as it is unpredictable. Anything or anyone can enter the photo area at any point in time, whether it be a handful of children or a baby yak. A postmodern type of humor couples each scene which, whether straightforward or hectic, feels thoughtfully essential. “Butter Lamp” is a critique on culture, an insight into how falsehood and famous imagery is taking away from the natural beauty of the world around us, amusingly demonstrated with what is easily the most clever idea surrounding this year’s batch of hopefuls.
“Parvaneh”
Directed by Talkhon Hamzavi
Parvaneh is an Afghan girl who recently immigrated from her home country to the Swiss Alps in seek of asylum. Out of her element, she desperately wants to send money to her sick father back in Afghanistan, but she is too young to legally do so. She employs the help, and eventual friendship, of Emily, a Swiss native who also assists Parvaneh in learning a bit more about the rural area she where now resides, even if that means finding some trouble along the way.
The strongest element that “Parvaneh” has as its disposal is Nissa Kashani, who with no previous acting credits to her name, brings a hesitant, struggling soul to her titular character. Coupled with Cheryl Graf playing Emily, their story feels as natural as a teenage, overnight adventure could. It is a liberating, satisfying tale of a relationship born from unfamiliarity and fear that comes to mean something grander. Although it has the predictable obstacles of adolescence that one would come to expect, “Parvaneh” is an engaging and handsomely filmed short that isn’t fleeting in genuine appeal.
“The Phone Call”
Directed by Mat Kirkby
There is a classic idea employed by many short films with bold acting personalities – an unusual interaction between two people changes their lives for the better. In this case, those two actors are Sally Hawkins as Heather, a shy operator of a telephone counseling service, and Jim Broadbent as a mysterious old man on the other end of the line requesting her help. Nearly the entirety of “The Phone Call” takes place at Heather’s desk, slowly following her dreadful glances from her notepad back to the clock on the wall as she realizes the purpose behind the man’s call.
Perhaps the most unoriginal of the five nominees, “The Phone Call” hardly goes in unexpected directions as it broods over the concepts of happiness and mortality. What director Mat Kirkby truly drives for, however, is emotion, and he knows how to make the best out of what are almost entirely facial shots. Kirkby’s denouement is one that shouldn’t be taken lightly, especially in regard to Academy voters, who may see the short through for its powerful resonance.