Will we see an upset in the Best Live Action Short race at the Oscars?

Jacob Sarkisian
·4 min read
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Wes Anderson is long overdue an Oscar. The iconic director has been nominated seven times and lost on all seven occasions. He earned his eighth nomination this year for Best Live Action Short Film for his Roald Dahl adaptation “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar” (shared with Steven Rales).

However, Anderson could find himself trumped again as there is an impactful, emotional, heartfelt obstacle in his way: Misan Harriman‘s “The After.” Harriman, who rose to prominence as a photographer, has created one of the year’s most talked about short films with “The After.” The Netflix short follows David Oyelowo as a man who suffers an extraordinary loss and attempts to go through the ensuing healing process.

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The movie has earned plenty of A-list supporters, with Angelina Jolie, Jeff Bridges, and Oprah all making it known how much they adored the tragic short film. Meghan Markle also conducted a Q&A with Harriman about the film, cementing the short’s status as one to watch in the Oscars race. This is a film that has won the hearts and souls of many A-list voters. These voters will make clear their passion for this short to plenty of others and, as such, “The After” has amassed a high-profile reputation of “the little short that could.” Meanwhile, several voters that I’ve heard from have stated that they believe the short film categories should be reserved for up-and-coming filmmakers like Harriman rather than established, A-list, Hollywood directors like Anderson. This could prevent people from voting for Anderson.

Indeed, taking a look through the history of Best Live Action Short Film shows that voters often choose to award newcomers over veterans. It’s rare that big names are nominated in this category but, when they are, they don’t often win. For example, Tom Berkeley and Ross White won for “The Irish Goodbye,” triumphing over Alfonso Cuarón and Alice Rohrwacher for “Le pupille.” The only occasion in recent history when an already-established name won was in 2022 when Riz Ahmed won alongside Aneil Karia for “The Long Goodbye.” But that is one instance and one instance only. In general, voters are much more inclined to nominate filmmakers like Harriman and give them a deserving platform as they begin their breakthrough into the industry.

Besides, “The After” already has some strong awards pedigree. It won Best Live Action Short Film at the HollyShorts Film Festival, which qualified it for the Oscars. It also won Best Short Film at the African American Film Critics Awards. Plus, it is nominated for Best Short Film at the prestigious at this year’s NAACP Image Awards, where Anderson’s “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar” didn’t make the cut. “The After” beat “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar” to win Best Short Film at the Astra Awards.

“The After” is a film that has remained in the hearts and minds of many who have seen it. It possesses power in its simplicity and packs a punch with imagery and the unspoken rather than speels of dialogue, which is something a lot of filmmakers will appreciate.

It is nominated alongside “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar,” “Red, White and Blue,” “Invincible,” and “Knight of Fortune.” Currently, we are predicting that Anderson and “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar” will win the Oscar. However, “The After” is right behind in second place, and this writer, for one, is predicting that Harriman will win the Academy Award and make Anderson wait another year to claim his first Oscar. For those of you unsure what to predict in these short categories — you should seriously consider predicting “The After.” I know that’s what I’ll be doing.

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