"Coda."

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced the list of 10 animated shorts that will advance in the voting process for this year’s Academy Awards. There were fifty-eight shorts under consideration, and narrowing the list down had to be tough because there was a lot of competition this year. For instance, "Lava" from Pixar was not selected for inclusion, and that studio now has not had a nomination since 2011 ('La Luna').

There are several previous Oscar winners on 2014 shortlist, illustrating the fierce competition this year:

• Torill Kove, 
• William Joyce and 
• Brandon Oldenburg, and two-time Oscar nominee 
• Bill Plympton (two-time nominee)

Disney is represented, as usual, with Patrick Osborne’s 'Feast.' Disney veteran Glen Keane is represented with his directorial debut 'Duet.'

There are two student filmmakers among all the industry heavyweights: Daisy Jacobs’s The Bigger Picture and Réka Bucsi’s Symphony No. 42. They are all worthy efforts. Our own favorite, for what it is worth, is 'Coda,' a brilliant Irish effort. 'Duet' is quite elegant and almost certainly will be nominated. 'Feast' is slick and has the Disney look, with brilliant lighting, but is a bit iffier. 'Symphony No. 42' also has received some good buzz.

"Feast."'

The 10 shortlisted films are below in alphabetical order.

The Bigger Picture
Daisy Jacobs, director, and Christopher Hees, producer
National Film and Television School

Coda
Alan Holly, director
And Maps And Plans

The Dam Keeper
Robert Kondo and Dice Tsutsumi, directors
Tonko House

Duet
Glen Keane, director
Glen Keane Productions & ATAP

Feast
Patrick Osborne, director, and Kristina Reed, producer
Walt Disney Animation Studios

Footprints
Bill Plympton, director
Bill Plympton Studio

Me and My Moulton
Torill Kove, director
Mikrofilm in co-production with the National Film Board of Canada

The Numberlys
William Joyce and Brandon Oldenburg, directors
Moonbot Studios

A Single Life
Joris Oprins, director
Job, Joris & Marieke

Symphony No. 42
Réka Bucsi, director
Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design Budapest

The shortlist was selected by the Academy’s short films and feature animation branch reviewing committee. The Committee viewed the entries last month at screenings in Los Angeles and New York (they could have just done it online, but they have their traditions).

Now, short film and feature animation branch members will select three to five nominees from these 10 titles. The branch screenings to determine the nominees will be held in Los Angeles, New York, London, and San Francisco in December. The nominations themselves will be announced on January 15, 2015.

2020