2026 Oscars Short Film Contenders: ‘Versa’ Director Malcon Pierce
Walt Disney Animation Studios' artistic director Malcon Pierce channels personal tragedy into a touching, dialogue-free story of loss and recovery.
Walt Disney Animation Studios' artistic director Malcon Pierce channels personal tragedy into a touching, dialogue-free story of loss and recovery.
This haunting 2D short sees its protagonist return to her childhood home in Mexico, where she unearths buried memories and the lingering ghosts of violence and loss.
This darkly comic black-and-white short is set in Prague, where a reckless romantic races through chaos to win his crush’s heart.
Vine's 'Cardboard,' produced by Locksmith Animation, follows a single dad and his piglet kids who turn hardship into adventure using pure imagination.
The dialogue-free short, produced by Agora Studio, explores love, sacrifice, and identity in a hauntingly familiar dystopian world.
'Two Ships' is a hand-drawn short that explores distance and connection as experienced by a couple occupying the same space, but with opposing schedules.
Miguel Rodrick’s neon-drenched short 'No Vacancy' delves into a man’s unraveling mind in a decaying motel and earns 2026 Oscar qualification.
Ida Melum’s stop-motion short 'Ovary-Acting' blends humor and heart as a woman literally confronts her uterus while debating motherhood.
Cartoon Saloon’s 'Éiru' is a visually lush Celtic myth about courage, nature, and divine balance, brought to life with a breathtaking color palette.
'Gigi' follows a transgender woman’s poetic journey of self-discovery through metaphors of water, mermaids, and transformation.
'Playing God,' a skin-crawling stop-motion short where abandoned clay figures fight for identity and belonging, earned qualification by winning the grand jury award at Animayo.
John Kelly’s 'Retirement Plan,' narrated by Domhnall Gleeson, has qualified for the 2026 Oscars after winning several major festival awards.
Sugar will write and direct the first U.S.-produced 'Moomin' film, marking her feature debut and bringing Tove Jansson’s beloved characters to theaters.
Zohar Dvir’s 'Butterfly Kiss' turns fear of commitment into eerie body horror as a couple faces love, change, and metamorphosis.
From the creators of 'Loving Vincent,' 'Cave of Dreams' is a hand-painted horror film diving into Francisco de Goya’s haunting late-life Black Paintings.
Aaron Blaise’s heartfelt, hand-drawn short 'Snow Bear' is a moving Arctic tale of loss, hope, and love, now qualified for the 2026 Oscars.
Oscar-winning filmmaker and story artist Mark Andrews wowed Comic-Con Málaga with an improvised storyboarding masterclass.
OpenAI’s AI-backed 'Critterz' is sold as a test of ‘democratizing’ animation, a framing that feels disingenuous in today’s industry context.
Cinesite takes on its first full animation and VFX feature with 'Smurfs,' now streaming on Paramount+, blending Peyo’s style with hybrid magic.
At Toronto, Ugo Bienvenu discusses the global influences behind 'Arco,' while Natalie Portman reflects on producing her first animated film.