Best Documentary (Short Subject): Ranking Every Oscar Nominee
Written by Andreas Babiolakis
Last year’s winner: Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You're a Girl).
One of the most difficult categories for me is the Best Documentary (Short Subject) group. Year after year, I watch five (usually) intense films in a row. Even though they are short, that doesn’t mean they don’t carry so much weight to them; if anything, I feel like these shorts get right to the point and can sometimes be even more challenging to watch. This year is no different, with a couple of the hardest works to watch of all of the Academy Awards (not quality wise, but because of their stressful, devastating subject matters). I know I have these ranked, but just because I’m trying to commit to ranking every nominee. As I will state later, I find this particular category this year almost impossible to view as a critic, with the mindset of awarding any of these as artistic achievements. A couple of these films broke me. Here are your nominees.
Biggest Snub: Abortion Helpline, This is Lisa
A crucial discussion that needs to be had is the topic of the option for abortion for those with little to no income. In just thirteen minutes, Abortion Helpline, This is Lisa provides us with a few starkly different instances where women require abortions, but Philadelphia (and United States) legislation has made it increasingly difficult for them to be able to go forward. Hearing these crises through anonymous counsellors (all going by the name Lisa) is an eye opening experience that I think is important for the ongoing debate between pro life versus pro choice. That’s likely why the Academy didn’t select this film (it’s such a tricky subject, but so are some of the actual nominees’ topics), but it’s vital viewing in my opinion.
5. Colette
What you will find in the Short Subject category is the occasional few minutes spent with people who have stories to tell. Colette Marin-Catherine is one such person, and she gets her own short film Colette for us to follow her back to Germany for the first time in three quarters of a century. A survivor of World War II and the Nazi invasion of France, Colette tells us some of her memories on the way to the concentration camp where her brother was murdered. I can’t even speak about the moment we arrive, because it’s simply too much to recall; how can you discuss someone’s revisitation with the death of a loved one? I will say that it’s so strange that this is a part of a gallery mode in the video game Medal of Honor: Above and Beyond, leaving this game to be the first Academy Award nominee (of any capacity) ever.
Rating: 3.5/5
4. Hunger Ward
Without question, Hunger Ward was the most difficult film of 2020 for me to watch. Forty minutes of seeing children who are starving due to the Yemen Civil War, the hospitals devoted to trying to rescue and nurture them, and the families that have just learned that their sons, daughters, or relatives have just died from malnutrition. What can I even say about this? It’s hard enough to even revisit the film. I will say that it is an impactful viewing, and that the point is well made by forty minutes (even twenty was challenging). Because of its punishing nature, I can’t bring myself to watch this film ever again, no matter how well done it is.
Rating: 4/5
3. A Love Song for Latasha
This short honours the wrongful death of Latasha Harlins back in 1991 (who was killed by a store owner that accused her of shoplifting), but in such an inventive way. Many ‘90s throwback effects, images, and ideas are used to retell this story through the memories of Harlins’ cousin nearly thirty years later. We get the heaviness of her death just by discussion alone, and it’s interesting to see A Love Song for Latasha tell this widespread story in such a new, personal way: via illustrations, designs, and more. This is an extremely personal documentary told in quite a unique, unforgettable way.
Rating: 4/5
2. A Concerto is a Conversation
Last year’s Oscars had Walk Run Cha-Cha, which I felt was a nice idea but missed its mark (it featured a couple that reunited decades after the Vietnam War, who told their combined version of their heartbreak through the artistic form of dance). A Concerto is a Conversation is almost like a similar concept but more fulfilled. In this version, the entirety of one’s history isn’t turned into a melody, but both the music Kris Bowers (a composer who co-directed this film with Ben Proudfoot) and the stories his grandfather tell merge together, as if these are two coexisting melodies. It’s arguably the least intense documentary here (although there is still enough discussion about turmoil and societal difficulty), but A Concerto is a Conversation is also such a singular look at life as both a memory and a current experience.
Rating: 4/5
1. Do Not Split
The second most difficult film to watch is also the one that — I suppose — I got the most from. Field of Vision’s latest affiliated release Do Not Split is a pulverizing look at the Hong Kong protests, with actual inclusion of the initial phases of COVID-19 right at the end (and the uncertain outcome that will occur). Otherwise, we get thirty five minutes of push-and-pull, but with different angles and conversations every interval. Do Not Split is a very uneasy discussion made even more distressing, given its upfront and raw footage. I felt like I was within these riots, and was so fearful as to what was going on (the sounds of teargas going off, or the panicked stampedes). Do Not Split is certainly effective.
Rating: 4.5/5
Who I want to win: Again, I don’t really want any of these to win, in the sense that I believe one is better than the other, or that stories about starving kids, holocaust survivors, a distressed nation or systemic racism should be pitted together as artistic representations. I’m feeling indifferent this year, even though I’ve made my personal rankings and gave each film a score. I guess because it’s ranked first I’ll say Do Not Split, but I’m fine with any of these getting the Oscar. It almost feels wrong this year, with this particular pool of nominees. These are bigger than an award.
Who I think will win: Picking short films to win is usually very difficult. They can be completely random selections some years. I know that A Love Song for Latasha and Colette are both known about and actively discussed about enough that they likely are the front runners (although A Concerto is a Conversation has an advantage since it is made by Kris Bowers and is about him and his grandfather). If I had to guess, I think A Love Song for Latasha is well known, creative, current, and memorable enough to take this award, but it really could go to anybody.
Tune in tomorrow for our next Academy Award category! We’re reviewing every single nominee.
Andreas Babiolakis has a Masters degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Ryerson University, as well as a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from York University. His favourite times of year are the Criterion Collection flash sales and the annual Toronto International Film Festival.