HollyShorts Makes History at the 98th Academy Awards

The 98th Academy Awards was the biggest night in HollyShorts Film Festival history. Four alumni films won Oscars in a single evening — sweeping all three short film categories — a feat no other short film festival has ever achieved in one night.

The Girl Who Cried Pearls, directed by Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski, took home Best Animated Short Film. Best Live Action Short Film ended in a historic tie between two HollyShorts alumni: Two People Exchanging Saliva(Natalie Musteata & Alexandre Singh) and The Singers (M.A. Davis & Jack Piatt). And All the Empty Rooms, directed by Joshua Seftel and Conall Jones, won Best Documentary Short Film. Nine HollyShorts alumni were nominated in total at this year's ceremony.

This is the culmination of a legacy that's been building for years. Since HollyShorts alumni first broke through at the Oscars, the festival has amassed over 50 nominations and 12 wins — making it one of the most powerful pipelines to the Academy Awards in the short film world.

The 98th Oscars didn't just celebrate these filmmakers. It confirmed what HollyShorts has always known: the best short films in the world play here first.