The Oscar-Nominated Short Films of 2009

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Silly rabbit! Tricks are for bad magicians. Photo courtesy of Pixar

I recently had the privilege of plopping myself on the sofa for an evening with a glass of wine in one hand and a bowl of chocolate ice cream in the other (and for once it was completely unrelated to my secret addiction to Lifetime Television's empowering melodramas). Indeed, this time was different. This time was all about the Oscars, baby, and in particular the Oscar-nominated live-action and animated shorts. I was fortunate enough to preview all of the wonderful flicks this year and, I have to admit it was ultimately very hard to choose one or two favorites -- they were all (with the exception of a few bad eggs) charming in their own way.

From the get-go, I had my initial favorites. On The Line, by director Rito Caffi, was the first of them. Gritty, but gently moving at the same time, this story will strike an emotional chord in all of us, particularly in those who have ever made a split-second decision that they lived to regret. In the opening scene, we meet Rolf (Roeland Wiesnekker) a brooding, bearish man who is fascinated by a beautiful, but naive woman named Sara (Catherine Janke). Sara is unaware of Rolf's true intentions until their circumstances shift and they become connected for life in ways they never anticipated. On the surface this is a love story, but the characters and the underlying message go much deeper than that all within the impressive span of about thirty minutes.

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Brendan Fraser's Doppleganger. Photo courtesy of AMPAS

Next in the live-action pieces was Toyland and, boy, did I regret previously wasting my Kleenex on that silly Lifetime programming. Toyland is a tear-jerker, bittersweet and haunting to the core. Directed by Jochen Alexander Fredank, it follows the story of Marianne (Julia Jäger) and her young son, Heinrich (Cedric Eich), as they struggle to survive in Nazi-occupied Germany during World War II. When Heinrich discovers that his playmate David (Tamay Bulut Özvatan) may soon be moving away with his family to a far-off destination (which he does not yet understand is a concentration camp), Heinrich's mother explains to him that those who wear gold stars on their sleeves, like David, are moving away to a magical, safe place called Toyland. Fredank's use of intercutting throughout the story plays with the imagination and builds a series of cliffhangers that lead to an unforeseen, but uplifting ending. World War II is a subject matter that certainly doesn't lack coverage in films, but Toyland manages to stand out in the crowd nonetheless.

Moving on to the animated shorts, my two favorites were Lavatory Lovestory and Presto. Lavatory Lovestory, directed by Konstantine Bronzit, is a kitschy tale of one lonely woman's quest to find her true love in the unlikeliest of places -- a public restroom. Our heroine works behind the scenes, for lack of a better term, as a janitor, keeping the restroom's surrounding areas neat and tidy. Occasionally she receives tips for her hard work, but it's the gift of flowers one day from an anonymous donor that sets her heart sailing. While the animation is simplistic, the story is solid and the surprising twist at the end that reveals all is so cute it's almost disgusting.

Presto, directed by Doug Sweetland, is Pixar's latest and bravest short about a carrot-seeking magician's rabbit who is thirsty for revenge. Blink and you'll miss the charades in this fast-paced cartoon that will leave you laughing to the very last minute.

Overall, the list of shorts this year is impressive. In fact - let's face it - the nominated shorts are always good (even though no one ever makes a real effort to see them). Why not change that this year? Instead of letting your eyes glaze over while you endure Hollywood's latest lackluster blockbuster, head out to the Landmark or the Sunset 5 this weekend and support the dying art of short filmmaking! You won't regret it!

For a complete list of this year's contenders, visit the official Academy Award website.