LOS ANGELES (Dispatches) -- In the Shadow of the Cypress, a short film by Iranian directors Hussein Molayemi and Shirin Sohani, has won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short.
The 20-minute animated short follows a retired sea captain who copes with post traumatic stress disorder while caring for his daughter. The duo’s lives take a turn when they discover a beached whale, setting them on a profound journey of healing.
The film delves into the kind of mental and physical challenges the captain and his daughter face while living at sea, isolated from the world.
Other nominees in the category were Beautiful Men, Magic Candies, Wander to Wonder and Yuck!.
During their acceptance speech, the filmmakers started by saying that they had arrived in Los Angeles three hours before the ceremony due to a visa issue. “Believe me or not, three hours ago, our plane landed in LA,” said Molayemi.
Sohani said that they didn’t know whether they would make it or not until the day before the ceremony when they were granted a last-minute visa. They were unable to participate in other awards campaigns due to difficulties obtaining a visa.
In the speech, Molayemi said: “It’s a miracle, and speaking in front of this expectant audience is very hard for us. Yes, if we preserve and remain faithful, miracles will happen.”
The pair told Variety magazine in a previous interview that the short film took them six years to finish because it was entirely self-funded through development and production. They also said that they had been under sanctions for years, but things had gotten worse and “more complicated since President Trump’s time in office”.
In the Shadow of Cypress had earned major accolades at the LA Shorts International Film Festival, Lebu International Film Festival and Tribeca Film Festival.
It also left quite the impression by bagging multiple nominations at the Venice International Film Festival, Annie Awards, Anency International Animation Film Festival, Melbourne International Film Festival and Clermond Ferrand International Film Festival.