This year’s BAFTA-nominated shorts include two standout frontrunners in their respective categories, Kathryn Ferguson’s Nostalgie, a leading contender in Live Action Short, and Luke Angus’s Solstice, one of the strongest frontrunners in Animated Short. Working in radically different modes, both films have emerged as defining works of this year’s short film race.

Nostalgie, Live Action Short Frontrunner

Kathryn Ferguson’s Nostalgie has positioned itself as a frontrunner in the Live Action Short category. Starring Aidan Gillen as Drew Lord Haig, a faded 1980s English pop star drawn out of retirement for a performance in Northern Ireland, the film turns a nostalgic comeback into a searching moral and political reckoning.

As Drew discovers that his music has been repurposed in ways that contradict its original intent, Nostalgie explores how art can acquire unintended political meaning long after its creation. Written by Stacey Gregg and based on a short story by Wendy Erskine, the film balances intimate character study with a sharp awareness of history and collective memory.

With cinematography by double Oscar-nominated Robbie Ryan and original songs by Dan Smith of Bastille, Nostalgiecombines technical pedigree with cultural urgency. Backed by Film4 and Globe Originals, and featuring a predominantly Northern Irish cast, it stands out as one of the most serious and accomplished contenders in the Live Action field.

Solstice, Animated Short Frontrunner

In the Animated Short category, Luke Angus’s Solstice has emerged as a clear frontrunner for its visual restraint and emotional depth. Told entirely without dialogue, the film follows a lonely Inuit man enduring the endless Arctic summer daylight in the hope of being reunited with his lost love.

Set within the vast stillness of the Arctic Circle, Solstice uses landscape, light, and rhythm as its primary storytelling tools. The result is a quiet but devastating meditation on grief, devotion, and endurance that demonstrates the expressive power of animation beyond dialogue or spectacle.

Following his Best Animated Short-winning Alienated, Angus continues to refine a style that blends technical precision with intimate human feeling. With a strong international festival run and BAFTA nomination, Solstice stands as one of the most compelling animated contenders of the year.

Two Categories, Two Frontrunners

In a competitive year for short filmmaking, Nostalgie and Solstice have emerged as frontrunners in Live Action Short and Animated Short respectively, films that exemplify how ambition, craft, and emotional intelligence can define the very top tier of BAFTA’s short film categories.

Film Business Magazine