There are three separate annual compilations of Oscar-nominated shorts, with the animation reel always more popular than the live-action and documentary offerings. This year, that category is dominated by the US more than at any time in recent memory.
The sole non-American nominee is Timothy Reckart’s “Head Over Heels,” which deploys stop-motion animation for a surreal romance about longtime spouses — he lives on the floor, and she lives on the ceiling. Even more surreal is Adam Pesapane’s two-minute, stop-motion “Fresh Guacamole,” amusingly prepared from various non-food objects like a hand grenade.
There are a couple of big-studio sponsored shorts that have already appeared in front of animated features. John Kahrs’ black-and-white (except for one splash of red, à la “Schindler’s List”) “Paperman” explores how paper airplanes advance a romance in a beguiling midcentury Manhattan. “The Longest Daycare,” is a hilarious spinoff from the TV series, “The Simpsons,” starring Maggie Simpson at the Ayn Rand School for Tots.
Disney animator Minkyu Lee is responsible for the longest and most beautiful of the shorts (all dialogue-free), the independently produced “Adam and Dog,” which imagines how man’s best friend fits into the biblical narrative. As usual, three bonus shorts are included to pad the category out to feature length.