98th Oscars® Shortlist for Animated Short Films (2026)
Full List with Trailers, Festival Wins & Official Qualification Paths
Last Updated: 16th of December 2025
The Academy has officially announced the shortlist of 15 live action short films for the 98th Academy Awards. These films are now in the running for the Best Live Action Short Film award at the 2026 Oscars®. Below is the full list of the shortlisted films, including trailers, festival details, and official links where available.
For a more comprehensive look at all Oscar-qualified live action short films, see the full list here.
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List of all 15 shortlisted Animated Short Films 2026 (alphabetical order)
- AUTOKAR by Sylwia Szkiłądź (Belgium/France/Poland) - FULL FILM AVAILABLE
- BUTTERFLY by Florence Miailhe (France) - FULL FILM AVAILABLE
- CARDBOARD by J.P. Vine (UK)
- ÉIRU by Giovanna Ferrari (Ireland)
- FOREVERGREEN by Nathan Engelhardt & Jeremy Spears (US)
- THE GIRL WHO CRIED PEARLS by Chris Lavis & Maciek Szczerbowski (Canada)
- HURIKÁN by Jan Saska (Czech Republic) - FULL FILM AVAILABLE
- I DIED IN IRPIN by Anastasia Falileieva (Czech Republic/Slovakia/Ukraine) - FULL FILM AVAILABLE
- THE NIGHT BOOTS by Pierre-Luc Granjon (France)
- PLAYING GOD by Matteo Burani (Italy/France)
- THE QUINTA’S GHOST by James A. Castillo (Spain)
- RETIREMENT PLAN by John Kelly (Ireland) - FULL FILM AVAILABLE
- THE SHYNESS OF TREES by Sofiia Chuikovska, Loïck du Plessis D’Argentré, Lina Han, Simin He, Jiaxin Huang, Maud Le Bras & Bingqing Shu (France) - FULL FILM AVAILABLE
- SNOW BEAR by Aaron Blaise (US) - FULL FILM AVAILABLE
- THE THREE SISTERS by Kognov Timur (Cyprus)
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AUTOKAR by Sylwia Szkiłądź (Belgium/France/Poland) - FULL FILM AVAILABLE
🎬 Synopsis: In the 1990s, 8-year-old Agata travels alone by bus from Poland to Belgium. When she loses her pencil while writing a letter to her father, her search beneath the seats transforms into a dreamlike journey through a magical world of anthropomorphized animal passengers, turning the harsh reality of migration into an imaginative initiation experience.
🌟 Qualified through: Grand Prize at Poland's Animator Festival
🔗 https://www.instagram.com/szki_szki/ 🔗 https://vimeo.com/ondemand/autokar
BUTTERFLY by Florence Miailhe (France) - FULL FILM AVAILABLE
🎬 Synopsis: A man swims in the sea. This brings back memories. They are all connected to water, from his early childhood to his adult life. This will be the story of his last swim.
🌟 Qualified through: Grand Prix International Competition at Stuttgart Festival of Animated Film
CARDBOARD by J.P. Vine (UK)
🎬 Synopsis: When an overwhelmed single dad pig moves his piglets into a trailer park, he fears he's failed his family. But soon his kids create a wildly imaginative game, and Dad has a choice between dwell on the past or join them on their adventure.
🌟 Qualified through: Screenings
🔗 https://locksmithanimation.com/films/cardboard
ÉIRU by Giovanna Ferrari (Ireland)
🎬 Synopsis: When the water mysteriously disappears from the well in a warrior clan's village, an intrepid child descends into the belly of the earth to retrieve it.
🌟 Qualified through: Best Animated Short at Riverrun International Film Festival & Grand Prize at Indy Shorts International Film Festival & Best Animation Short at Galway Film Fleadh
🔗 https://www.cartoonsaloon.ie/eiru/
FOREVERGREEN by Nathan Engelhardt & Jeremy Spears (US)
🎬 Synopsis: An orphaned bear cub finds a home with a fatherly evergreen tree, until his hunger for trash leads him to danger.
🌟 Qualified through: Grand Jury Prize – Animated Short at AFI FEST
🔗 https://www.forevergreenfilm.com/
🔗 https://www.instagram.com/forevergreen_short_film/
THE GIRL WHO CRIED PEARLS by Chris Lavis & Maciek Szczerbowski (Canada)
🎬 Synopsis: A haunting fable about a girl overwhelmed by sorrow, the boy who loves her, and how greed leads good hearts to wicked deeds.
🌟 Qualified through: Best Canadian Short Film at Toronto International Film Festival
🔗 https://www.nfb.ca/distribution/film/the-girl-who-cried-pearls
HURIKÁN by Jan Saska (Czech Republic) - FULL FILM AVAILABLE
🎬 Synopsis: Hurikán rushes to save his favourite beer stand from closure by fetching a new keg to impress the bartender he crushes on. In a wild Prague district, he faces robbers, cops, and his own thirst.
🌟 Qualified through: Best Animation Award at HollyShorts
🔗 https://www.maurfilm.com/portfolio-items/hurikan_en/
🔗 https://vimeo.com/ondemand/hurikan
I DIED IN IRPIN by Anastasia Falileieva (Czech Republic/Slovakia/Ukraine) - FULL FILM AVAILABLE
🎬 Synopsis: At the onset of Russia's full-scale invasion, Falileieva and her boyfriend leave Kyiv to visit his parents in Irpin. The city becomes a battleground, but the danger is not only outside the house.
🌟 Qualified through: Best Animated Short at Fest Anča International Animation Festival and BIAF Grand Prize at Bucheon International Animation Festival and Best Short Film at Manchester Animation Festival
🔗 https://www.maurfilm.com/portfolio-items/i-died-in-irpin_en/ 🔗 https://dafilms.com/film/18830-i-died-in-irpin
THE NIGHT BOOTS by Pierre-Luc Granjon (France)
🎬 Synopsis: While his parents are welcoming friends, a child leaves home in the middle of the night and enters the undergrowth, wearing rubber boots. There, a strange beast, curious and solitary, will lead him into the heart of the forest.
🌟 Qualified through: Cristal for a Short Film at Annecy International Animation Film Festival
PLAYING GOD by Matteo Burani (Italy/France)
🎬 Synopsis: Fragile clay Sculptures come to life in a bare workshop, craving more than just existence. When their Sculptor abandons them, they must discover the power of belonging.
🌟 Qualified through: Best Animated Short at Tribeca Film Festival and Grand Jury Awardat Animayo Gran Canaria
THE QUINTA’S GHOST by James A. Castillo (Spain)
🎬 Synopsis: After the death of his wife, Spanish artist Francisco Goya withdraws from public life to a crumbling house on the outskirts of Madrid and is tormented by the ghosts of his past.
🌟 Qualified through: Screening
🔗 https://www.thequintasghost.com/
RETIREMENT PLAN by John Kelly (Ireland) - FULL FILM AVAILABLE
🎬 Synopsis: In the throes of his overstimulated, energy poor midlife, Ray fantasises about everything he'd love to do in retirement, once he finally has the "time.”
🌟 Qualified through: Animated Shorts Competition Jury Award at SXSW and Best Irish Professional Short at Animation Dingle and Best Animated Short at Bali International Film Festival and Best of the Festival Award at Palm Springs International ShortFest
🔗 https://www.retirementplanfilm.com/
🔗 https://www.instagram.com/retirementplan_film/
THE SHYNESS OF TREES by Sofiia Chuikovska, Loïck du Plessis D’Argentré, Lina Han, Simin He, Jiaxin Huang, Maud Le Bras & Bingqing Shu (France) - FULL FILM AVAILABLE
🎬 Synopsis: When Helene visits her aging mother in the countryside, she discovers that the older woman seems to have formed a strange bond with plants, insects and the old oak tree at the end of her garden.
🌟 Qualified through: Bronze Medal at Student Academy Awards
🔗 https://www.gobelins-school.com/news/shyness-trees-graduation-short-film-2024
SNOW BEAR by Aaron Blaise (US) - FULL FILM AVAILABLE
🎬 Synopsis: When a lonely polar bear can’t find a friend… he makes one.
🌟 Qualified through: Best Animated Short at Santa Fe International Film Festival
ℹ️ Aaron Blaise is a previous Oscar nominee for co-directing Disney’s BROTHER BEAR.
🔗 https://www.instagram.com/aaronblaiseart/
THE THREE SISTERS by Kognov Timur (Cyprus)
🎬 Synopsis: Three sisters live a lonely life on an isolated island, each in their own small house. One day, circumstances develop in such a way that they are forced to rent out one of the houses.
🌟 Qualified through: Best Animated Short Film at Santa Barbara International Film Festival
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Related Pages:
- Complete List of Oscar-Qualified Live Action Short Films 2026
- Complete List of Oscar-Qualified Animated Short Films 2026
- Shortlist for Live Action Short Films (2026)
- How to Qualify for the Oscars (Live Action Short Films)