For the first time ever at the ANU Film Group, you can catch all of this year’s Oscar-nominated animated short films in one night. With their wildly different animation styles – from hand-drawn frames to stop-motion – these five extraordinary works also make their mark with poignant stories reflecting issues such as climate change, teen sexuality, mortality, and the complex journey of life.

• AN OSTRICH TOLD ME THE WORLD IS FAKE AND I THINK I BELIEVE IT
(Directed by Lachlan Pendragon, Australia, 12 mins)

When a telemarketer is confronted by a mysterious talking ostrich, he learns that his universe is stop motion animated. Putting aside his dwindling toaster sales, he sets out to convince his colleagues of his discovery. From Brisbane-based student filmmaker Lachlan Pendragon.

• THE FLYING SAILOR
(Dir. Amanda Forbis and Wendy Tilby, Canada, 8 mins)

In 1917, two ships collided in Halifax Harbour, causing the largest accidental explosion in history. Among the tragic stories of the disaster is the remarkable account of a sailor who was blown skyward over distance of two kilometres before landing naked and unharmed.

• ICE MERCHANTS
(Directed by João Gonzalez, Portugal/UK/France, 15 mins)

A father and his son live a life of routine as they make ice and then parachute off a cliff from the vertiginous house where they reside, in order to deliver their wares to a village far away – until, one day, disaster strikes and upends their practice.

• THE BOY, THE MOLE, THE FOX AND THE HORSE
(Dir. Charlie Mackesy and Matthew Freud, UK, 33 mins)

Based on the book of the same name, this is a story of kindness, courage, and hope in traditional hand-drawn animation, following the unlikely friendship of the title characters as they journey in search of the boy’s home. 2023 Oscar winner for Best Animated Short Film.

• MY YEAR OF DICKS
(Directed by Sara Gunnarsdóttir, USA, 26 mins)

In this coming-of-age tale based on Pamela Ribon’s critically acclaimed memoir, a fifteen-year-old girl with an overactive imagination is stubbornly determined to lose her virginity, despite the pathetic pickings in the outskirts of Houston in the early 1990s.

PRESENTED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE ANU ANIME AND GAMING SOCIETY

17-year-old high schooler Suzume’s journey begins when she encounters a single, weathered door standing upright in a field near her hometown of Kyushu. Mysteriously drawn to its power, she opens the door and accidentally sets off a chain reaction of doors opening all over Japan, unleashing destruction and revealing portals to other worlds. As the country stands on the brink of disaster, Suzume discovers that only she can see these doors – and must find a way to close the portals forever to prevent further disaster.

Stunningly animated and emotionally poignant, this is another masterpiece from Makoto Shinkai, the director behind such recent anime hits as Weathering with You and Your Name.