Indian short film Kush among Oscar hopefuls

Indian director Shubhashish Bhutiani’s short film “Kush” has been shortlisted by the Academy for the 10 live-action shorts for the Oscars. Three to five out of these 10 films will be selected for Oscar nomination by the Short Films and Feature Animation Branch members. The 25-minute film has been produced by Shubhashish’s father Sanjay Bhutiani through their Red Carpet Moving Pictures banner and stars Sonika Chopra, Shayaan Sameer and Anil Sharma.

The film was inspired by a true story that his teacher told him, for his graduation project at New York’s School of Visual Arts. The film’s story revolves around a school picnic where a teacher tries to protect Kush, the only Sikh child in the group from the riots that followed the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1984.

Kush won the Orizzonti Award for Best Short Film at the 70th Venice International Film Festival 2013 and jury prize at Hamptons International Film Festival. Branch screenings will be held in Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco in December. The 86th Academy Awards nominations will be announced on January 16 and the Oscar ceremony will take place on March 2, 2014 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood and Highland Center.

Caption: indiatoday.intoday.in

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