After the much-awaited announcement of Oscar 2021 nominations last month, film enthusiasts in India can now watch this year’s Academy Award Nominations for Short Films from the comfort of their homes.
ShortsTV, the first and only global channel dedicated to short films, has collaborated with BookMyShow Stream, India’s largest homegrown Transactional Video-On-Demand (TVOD) platform, to present these films exclusively to Indian audiences. The partnership will bring this year’s most spectacular short films under the Live Action and Animation category starting 16 April, 2021.
Speaking on this initiative, ShortsTV CEO and founder Carter Pilcher said, “Last year’s Oscar Nominated Short Films were some of the last great movies many of our audiences saw in theatres before the pandemic. Now, as we emerge from these challenging times, we are thrilled to bring the joy of great cinema to our Indian audiences through the beloved Oscar® Nominated Short Films releases, which will be available to audiences through the virtual release. We are providing them a medium to enjoy their favorite shorts even at the comfort of their home. This year’s films are breathtaking and compelling – our audiences are gonna love ‘em!”
This year, for the first time, the Oscar-Nominated Short Films will have a virtual cinema release through BookMyShow Stream in India, allowing audiences to watch these films before the Academy Awards ceremony on Sunday, 25 April, 2021. These films will be available as compilations under the Live Action and Animation category, and can be accessed on rent at Rs. 149/- per category.
More about how to rent these 2021 Oscar-Nominated Short film compilations, are available on: https://in.bookmyshow.com/explore/c/stream. Users will be able to pre-book these films on BookMyShow Stream, starting today.
Commenting on the partnership, BookMyShow Cinemas COO Ashish Saksena stated, “BookMyShow Stream has successfully brought the magic of world cinema to the screens of Indian audiences with a thoughtfully curated content library from across the globe, making it the most diverse, richly curated TVOD platform at scale in India. On the back of compelling and long-term partnerships with global, local production houses, independent distributors and top film festivals globally, our aim has been to showcase the best of world cinema to millions of movie-lovers in the country. Our partnership with ShortsTV is a step forward in enriching this content experience for users, as we get ready to showcase this year’s spectacular line-up of Oscar-nominated short films and share the excitement around one of the most-awaited award cinema ceremonies in the world with millions of movie fans in the country.”
Coinciding with the theatrical and virtual releases, ShortsTV also launched “The ShortsTV Podcast – Award Season” and is releasing weekly episodes leading up to the awards ceremony. Guests include Academy members, industry insiders, this year’s nominees, previous winners and more. The podcast is currently available to stream on Spotify, Google Podcast and iTunes.
ShortsTV Asia president Tarun Sawhney added, “We are proud to be presenting the incredible Oscar Nominated Short Films exclusively to Indian audiences yet again this year. Short films have surged in popularity in India over the last couple of years & what is better than bringing Oscar nominated Shorts straight to your living room courtesy our partner BookMyShow Stream. Film buffs this year would be able to stream the world’s best short film directly on their screen without the hassle of traveling to a theatre.”
Nominations for the 93rd Academy Awards were announced on 15 March, 2021.
This year’s animated nominated short films are:
GENIUS LOCI
Director: Adrien Merigeau
Synopsis: One night, Reine, a young loner, sees among the urban chaos a moving oneness that seems alive, like some sort of guide.
Country of Origin: France
Running Time: 16 minutes
Language: French
IF ANYTHING HAPPENS I LOVE YOU
Director: Michael Govier, Will McCormack
Synopsis: In the aftermath of tragedy, two grieving parents’ journey through an emotional void as they mourn the loss of a child.
Country of Origin: USA
Running Time: 12 minutes
Language: English
OPERA
Director: Erick Oh
Synopsis: Opera is a massive 8K size animation installation project which portrays our society and history, which is filled with beauty and absurdity. Erick enables viewers to experience the range of in-depth emotions through this epic reflection of human life.
Country of Origin: USA/South Korea
Running Time: 9 minutes
Language: Non-Dialogue
YES-PEOPLE
Director: Gísli Darri Halldórsson
Synopsis: One morning, an eclectic mix of people face the everyday battle – such as work, school and dish-washing. As the day progresses, their relationships are tested and ultimately their capacity to cope.
Country of Origin: Iceland
Running Time: 8 minutes
Language: Icelandic
The Live Action Short films are:
FEELING THROUGH
THE LETTER ROOM
THE PRESENT
TWO DISTANT STRANGERS
WHITE EYE