Oscar Spotlight: I AM THE PRIZE – Sai Karan Talwar on Masculinity, Manipulation and the Performance of Success
From the seductive promises of online self-help culture to the increasingly complicated expectations surrounding contemporary masculinity, writer-director Sai Karan Talwar explores the fragile relationship between identity, influence and control in I AM THE PRIZE, an Oscar-qualified short film starring Russell Tovey. Examining the psychological contradictions of a charismatic self-help figure, I AM THE PRIZE, from writer-director Sai Karan Talwar, asks uncomfortable questions about the people … Continue reading Oscar Spotlight: I AM THE PRIZE – Sai Karan Talwar on Masculinity, Manipulation and the Performance of Success
Oscar Spotlight: ODESSA shows how appearances can deceive
WARNING: this interview contains spoilers! The audience is initially encouraged to see Josef, Irene and Rolf as a vulnerable family simply trying to survive. How important was it to you that viewers form that emotional connection before the story begins to challenge their perception of who these people really are? It was essential. The connection is not the start of the film; it is what … Continue reading Oscar Spotlight: ODESSA shows how appearances can deceive
Oscar Spotlight: Daniel Audritt and Kat Butterfield on bringing joy and reality to end of life
The time-loop has become a familiar cinematic device, from Groundhog Day to more existential variations on the form. What made you feel it was the right structure for a story about a man in a hospice, and how did you set about making repetition feel like a revelation rather than a gimmick? Well at first we were drawn to it because the concept felt quite … Continue reading Oscar Spotlight: Daniel Audritt and Kat Butterfield on bringing joy and reality to end of life
Female Directors to Watch in the 2027 Oscar Race
A new wave of female filmmakers is making a major impact on the 2027 Oscar race, with Oscar-qualified live-action shorts tackling family trauma, gun violence, school distress, mortality, identity and the political legacy of pop culture through bold, deeply personal storytelling. Among this year’s standouts are Saoirse Ronan’s PAPER PLANE, Kathryn Ferguson’s NOSTALGIE, Nora Arnezeder’s AGNÈS, Georgia Parris and Natalie Lauren’s UNAUTHORISED ABSENCE, and Kat … Continue reading Female Directors to Watch in the 2027 Oscar Race
Oscar Spotlight: Aaron Chalke on Turning Death, Grief and Irish Humour Into The Death Notice of Eamonn McCarty
The writer-director of The Death Notice of Eamonn McCarty talks Michael McElhatton, finding humour in mortality, learning from the Oscar-winning filmmakers behind An Irish Goodbye, and why qualifying for the 99th Academy Awards still feels like a dream. For Irish filmmaker Aaron Chalke, an idea rooted in one of the most familiar traditions of his childhood has taken him somewhere he never quite imagined: into … Continue reading Oscar Spotlight: Aaron Chalke on Turning Death, Grief and Irish Humour Into The Death Notice of Eamonn McCarty
