Last year was the first time that I had the privilege to cover the HollyShorts Film Festival, and the line-up for the next iteration has been announced. Taking place August 10-20, the festival will include films by Ricky Gervais, Alex Lawther, and Alden Ehrenreich, and the winners of this festival will be eligible for Academy Awards consideration. To get an idea of the breadth of films featured at HollyShorts, you can look through some coverage from last year.
Shadow Brother Sunday, The Brave Locomotive, and Jack and Sam (all pictured below) are a few of the titles on the hunt for the festival’s top prizes. Check out the official press release below.
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The Oscar® Qualifying HOLLYSHORTS FILM FESTIVAL returns for its much-anticipated 19th edition from August 10- 20th, 2023, from an impressive 6000 entries, over 400 films form this year’s exciting program.
This year, the Academy® granted the festival their 4th OSCAR®-qualifying award for Documentary short film, this accolade will join their other three top awards, Best Short Film Grand Prize, Best Short Animation and Best Short Live Action. The winners of these awards will be eligible to be considered for a 2024 Academy® Award!
Just some of the documentary short films selected for the 19th edition include “How to Rig an Election: The Racist History of the 1876 Presidential Contest” directed by Emily Kunstler and Sarah Kunstler, narrated by Tom Hanks, “They Came From All Over” directed by Academy® Award winner Rayka Zehtabchi, OSCAR® winner Ben Proudfoot’s “Forgiving Johnny” and Jordan Matthew Horowitz’s “Jack and Sam”, produced by Academy® Award winner Andrew Carlberg.
The star-studded live-action short film entries include Iain Softley and Disney Plus’ “The Shepherd”, produced by Alfonso Cuaró and featuring John Travolta, Christopher Patrick Macken’s “For the Safety of Theo” executive produced by Charlie Day, Jenn Shaw’s “Gaps”, produced by Queen Latifah, Bella Thorne’s “Paint Her Red”, Jorey Worb’s “Bite” starring Troian Bellisario (Pretty Little Liars), “Shadow Brother Sunday” directed by and starring Alden Ehrenreich (Star Wars), Harry Holland’s “Last Call” starring Tom Holland and BAFTA Nominee Lindsay Duncan, Margaret Miller’s “Poof” starring Catherine Curtain, Academy® Award winner Chris Overton’s “In Too Deep”, Charles Whitcher’s “Mundo”, executive produced by Eva Longoria and “For People in Trouble” directed by Alex Lawther and executive produced by Matt Damon alongside Ben Affleck.
Animation short film entries feature WB’s “Daffy in Wackyland”, directed by Max Winston and OSCAR® nominee Andrew Pierce Chesworth’s “The Brave Locomotive”.
Notable music videos include Lauren Keke Palmer’s “Big Boss” and Ron Mael, Russell Mael and Richie Starzec’s “Sparks” starring Cate Blanchett.
Additional noteworthy selections include Karen Bryson MBE’s directorial debut “Monochromatic”, Kayla Abuda Galang’s “You Left Me on the Boulevard”, Lauren Finerman’s “Flower” produced by and starring Misty Copeland, Lola Blanc’s “Pruning” starring Madeline Brewer (The Handmaid’s Tale), Ethan Dolan and Grayson Dolan’s “Nothing Left to Give”, Conor Dooley’s “Gold and Mud” starring Ana Fabrega (Los Espookys) Rudy Martinez’s “Ham”, Oscar Boyson’s “Power Signal”, Michael Spiccia’s “I’m On Fire” starring Jamie-Lynn Sigler (The Sopranos), Sue Zarco Kramer’s “Swipe NYC” starring Lisa Edelstein (House MD) and Bridget Moynahan (Blue Bloods), Marta Szymanek’s “Eden” produced by OSCAR® nominee Maciej Ślesicki, Stephanie Kaznocha’s “Confessions” starring Sister Alva (Curb Your Enthusiasm) and Eve Sigall (Yellow Jackets), Michael Schwartz’s “Snatched” starring Tatiana Maslany (Orphan Black), Dany Pino’s “Unión de Reyes (Union of Kings)”, as well as Tal Granit and Sharon Maymon‘s “Restraining Order” produced by Oscar Nominee Kobi Mizrahi.
HollyShorts is devoted to showcasing the best and brightest short films from around the globe, advancing the careers of filmmakers through screenings, networking events, and various panels and forums. The festival showcases the top short films produced in 40 minutes or less.
To view the full list of official selections visit: http://www.hollyshorts.com
This year’s hybrid celebration of short films will take place in person with screenings at the world-renowned TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood and virtually through the official festival streaming platform BITPIX.
HollyShorts screenings will take place from August 10-20 at TLC Chinese Theatres, 6801 Hollywood Blvd. 3rd Level, Hollywood, CA, 90028, followed by the annual awards gala on August 20th.
For additional information and tickets visit https://hollyshorts2023.eventive.org/passes/buy
