The winners of the Aspen Shortsfest can prove to be a harbinger of things to come on Oscar night. Back in February, for example, Bear Story, a 2015 Shortsfest honoree, earned the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film, topping a field of nominees which included the Shortsfest selection We Can’t Live Without Cosmos. Another Shortsfest recognized film, Shok, was nominated this year for the Best Live Action Short Oscar.
Several categories of the Shortsfest yield Oscar-qualifying awards. Here’s a rundown of the 2016 Shortsfest winners, which capped a 25th annual festival which ran from April 5-10:
JURY AWARDS
The Jury recognized films with the following Oscar®-qualifying awards:
Best Animated Film ($2,500)
Deer Flower, directed by Kangmin Kim (USA/South Korea)
Best Comedy ($2,500)
Hounds, directed by Omer Tobi (Israel)
Best Drama ($2,500)
Thanks for Dancing, directed by Henrik Martin Dahlsbakken (Norway)
Best Documentary ($2,500)
Irregulars, directed by Fabio Palmieri (Italy)
Best Short Short ($1,000)
Mining Poems or Odes, directed by Callum Rice (Scotland/UK)
The Jury also awarded films in the following categories:
Best Student Short ($1,000)
Sea Breeze, directed by Chun-Yi Li (Taiwan/UK)
Special Recognitions:
I, Destini, directed by Nicholas Pilarski and Destini Riley (USA)
La Laguna, directed by Aaron Schock (USA)
Julia Pointner in Everything Will Okay, directed by Patrick Vollrath (Germany/Austria)
World Wide Woven Bodies, directed by Truls Krane Meby (Norway)
AUDIENCE AWARDS
Audience Award ($500)
Thanks for Dancing, directed by Henrik Martin Dahlsbakken (Norway)
Audience Special Recognition
Pickle, directed by Amy Nicholson (USA)
ADDITIONAL AWARDS
The Ellen Award ($2,500)
Irregulars, directed by Fabio Palmieri (Italy)
SEED&SPARK Best Crowdfunded Film Award ($250)
Sea Breeze, directed by Chun-Yi Li (Taiwan/UK)
The Youth Jury Award ($500)
La Laguna, directed by Aaron Schock (USA)