ShortList Film Festival Kicks Off With 12 Award-Winning Finalists

TheWrap is proud to present the 12 finalist films in the 2023 ShortList Film Festival, chosen from award-winning shorts from across the world in the past year. This year’s films tell personal stories that captivate and inspire — including a film about two Chinese grandmothers, a film about scuba diving in the ruins of a tsunami and one film about the LAPD blowing up a neighborhood.

The films – which include narrative, documentaries and animation - are available to watch and vote on from June 28 through July 12, exclusively on TheWrap.

The award-winning short film that is chosen by TheWrap’s Industry Jury will be honored with the prestigious Industry Prize. This year’s jury comprises award-winning producer Christine Vachon, director Elegance Bratton, veteran producer Amy Baer and PR veteran Joshua Jackson. The Shortlist is programmed by respected short film programmer Landon Zakheim.

The top-ranking short film that receives the most online votes will be honored with the Audience Prize.

The student short film with the most online votes will be awarded the coveted Student Prize.

The winners will receive prizes worth $10,000 from Kodak, Blackmagic Design, Scriptation and The Camera Division.

WATCH AND VOTE HERE

How the films were chosen: To qualify for the ShortList, a film must have won a festival in the previous year. The 12 finalist films that span narratives, documentaries and animation are chosen by a panel including Zakheim, Wrap awards Executive Editor Steve Pond and Editor in Chief Sharon Waxman. The Shortlist is returning this year after a three-year hiatus due to the COVID pandemic.

Here are the nominees:

• “Birds” by Katherine Propper

• “Cousins” by Karina Dandashi

• “Love, Barbara” by Brydie O’Connor

• “Meantime” by Michael T. Workman

• “More Than I Want To Remember” by Amy Bench

• “Năi Nai & Wài Pó” by Sean Wang

• “Nowhere To Go But Everywhere” by Masako Tsumura and Erik Shirai

• “Oasis” by Justine Martin

• “Rest Stop” by Crystal Kayiza

• “Team Dream” by Luchina Fisher

• “The Record” by Jonathan Laskar

• “When The LAPD Blows Up Your Neighborhood” by Nathan Truesdell

WATCH AND VOTE

Industry Jury

TheWrap is proud to welcome these distinguished members of our 2023 Industry Jury:

Amy Baer’s three-decade entertainment career is multi-faceted – experience with major studios, an entrepreneurial start-up, and traditional producing. Collectively, the films she has supervised and/or produced have grossed over $2 billion worldwide. Currently, Baer is President of Landline Pictures, a film production label launched in February 2020 with MRC Film (“Baby Driver,” “Knives Out”). Landline produces feature film content that focuses on a 50+ audience for both theatrical and streaming distribution. Its first film, “Jerry & Marge Go Large,” starring Bryan Cranston and Annette Bening, and directed by David Frankel (“Marley & Me”), had its World Premiere at the 2022 Tribeca Film Festival before launching on Paramount + in June 2022.

Christine Vachon is an Independent Spirit Award and Gotham Award winner who co-founded Killer Films with Pamela Koffler. Over two decades, they have produced more than 100 films, including some of the most celebrated and important American independent features: “Boys Don’t Cry,” “Still Alice,” “I Shot Andy Warhol,” “Carol” and more. In TV, Vachon executive-produced the Emmy-awarding winning projects “Mildred Pierce” (HBO) and “Halston” (Netflix). Upcoming releases include Celine Song’s “Past Lives” (A24) and “May December” starring Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore.

Elegance Bratton is an award-winning and boundary-breaking director, writer and producer. He began making films as a US Marine after spending a decade homeless. His work captures stories untold with an intention to show the universal power of our shared humanity. Bratton’s films have played in over 200 film festivals worldwide including the New York Film Festival, Toronto, Sundance, Outfest, BFI, Doc NYC, and the BlackStar Film Festival. He was recently named one of VARIETY’s 10 Directors to Watch for 2023.

Joshua Jason is the founder and owner of Joshua Jason Public Relations (JJPR) and one of the most sought-after publicists for independent authors and publishers. JJPR specializes in entertainment campaigns, awards strategy, and event management. With long-standing relationships in the industry, JJPR has strategized and executed several Oscar campaigns for entertainment companies such as Warner Bros, Searchlight, Focus Features, Apple TV, A24, Magnolia Pictures and more. In addition to the US market, JJPR has represented more than 40 different countries.

Student Short Films

We are proud to showcase exceptional works from the top film schools. These films are a testament to the future of the film industry, and your vote will have a direct impact on the success of these talented young filmmakers.

Here are the student film entries:

• “All I Know” by Obinna Robert Onyeri (UCLA)

• “Backlog” by Jacqueline Elyse Rosenthal (USC)

• “Holy Cowboys” by Varun Chopra (LMU)

• “Palm Sunday” by Wes Andre Goodrich (Columbia University)

• “Ricky” by Rashad Frett (NYU)

• “Sammy, Without Strings” by Ralph Parker III (UNCSA)

• “Spaceship” by Jorge Camarena (AFI)

• “Where No One Lives by Li Anne Liew (Chapman)