2020 Student Academy Award Winners: These 15 Short Films Are Eligible for an Oscar

Chris Lindahl
·2 min read

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced the 47th Student Academy Award winners. The 15 winning films, representing 18 individual student directors or directing teams, were selected by Academy member votes from 1,474 entries, representing 207 domestic and 121 international colleges and universities.

The gold, silver, and bronze medal placements in the seven student award categories will be revealed in a virtual program highlighting the winners and their films on October 21.

Today’s wins also mean the students are eligible to compete in the Animated Short Film, Live Action Short Film, or Documentary Short Subject categories for the 2021 Oscars. Past student-award winners have received 64 Oscar nominations, and won or shared 13 awards.

Previous Student Academy Award winners include Spike Lee, who won in 1983 for his master’s thesis film (“Joe’s Bed-Stuy Barbershop: We Cut Heads”), and “South Park” co-creator Trey Parker, who won in 1993 with “American History.” Other notable past winners include Patricia Cardoso, Pete Docter, Cary Fukunaga, Spike Lee, Patricia Riggen, and Robert Zemeckis.

Alternative/Experimental (Domestic and International Film Schools)

Curry Sicong Tian, “Simulacra,” University of Southern California

Animation (Domestic Film Schools)

Pilar Garcia-Fernandezsesma, “Ciervo,” Rhode Island School of Design
Daniela Dwek, Maya Mendonca and Chrisy Baek, “Hamsa,” School of Visual Arts
Kate Namowicz and Skyler Porras, “Mime Your Manners,” Ringling College of Art & Design

Animation (International Film Schools)

Pascal Schelbli, “The Beauty,” Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg (Germany)

Documentary (Domestic Film Schools)

Allison A. Waite, “The Dope Years: The Story of Latasha Harlins,” University of Southern California
Laura Zéphirin, “Making Waves,” New York University
Yucong Chen, “Unfinished Lives,” University of Southern California

Documentary (International Film Schools)

Maren Klakegg, “Dear Father…,” Westerdals Institute of Film and Media, Kristiania University College (Norway)

Narrative (Domestic Film Schools)

Karishma Dube, “Bittu,” New York University
Rommel Villa Barriga, “Sweet Potatoes,” University of Southern California
Talia Smith, “Umama,” New York University

Narrative (International Film Schools)

Percival Argüero Mendoza, “Crescendo,” Centro de Capacitación Cinematográfica (Mexico)
Marie Mc Court, “I Was Still There When You Left Me,” Institut des Arts de Diffusion (Belgium)
German Golub, “My Dear Corpses,” Baltic Film & Media School, Tallinn University (Estonia)

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