@Ryker – Sorry I didn’t show up, but I was at another Oscar party, and it would have seemed weird if I was chatting on my laptop the whole time. :/

@Skeletonframes – I actually disagree with you on The Lady and The Reaper. The problem I had with both TLaTR and French Roast is that they both felt like they lacked a distinct narrative style of their own. While TLaTR looked beautiful, it never really went beyond a too-long Looney Toons bit. I mean, they literally had the popping in-and-out of file cabinet drawers gag. And to say that Logorama has nothing below the surface is kind of missing the point. the filmmakers were trying to make a film about commercialism, not only the fact that the entire world was made out of corporate logos, but also because despite the fact that the film relies so heavily on a pre-existing knowledge of these brands on behalf of the viewer, it doesn’t matter, because these logos are so ingrained in our consciousness that we accept it.

But the Animated Shorts nominated this year were pretty lacking. In fact, I can name three animated shorts that are far better than ANY of the nominees this year.

1.) Skhizein – This one haunted me for days after I watched it. Amazing short about the incredible toll of schizophrenia. Watch it here: http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/12/24/watch-this-skhizein-an-incredible-animated-sci-fi-short-film/

2.) Runaway – Cordell Baker’s newest short (he directed “The Cat Came Back,” which won for best animated short in 1986) is a funny film with a ton of heart and some fairly black comedy. It’s has the slapstick feel that The Lady and The Reaper and French Roast were going for, but with a style all its own. Watch it here: http://films.nfb.ca/runaway/

3.) Kinematograph – A great short about an obsessive inventor, this may also be one of the most visually stunning animated films I’ve seen in some time. The opening shot is, to borrow a cliché phrase, absolutely breathtaking. Unlike the first two, I couldn’t find the full version online, but here is the trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcHX2ta8HFk

A short documentary about what Waltz himself calls, “The role of his lifetime”.
Stick with it till at least a minute in. It’s worth it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kUbGcRJUDu0&feature

Logorama really should not have won best animated short. That’s a rare category where I actually saw all of the entries and The Lady and the Reaper (not Raper) was definitely the best of the bunch. While technically excellent, Logorama didn’t form any sort of coherent plot nor did it have a greater meaning, other than, “look how cool it is when we make every car and building out of a well known logo. and Ronald McDonald kicks a kid in the face.” OK, maybe it should have won for homicidal R-Mac, alone.

We can all look back and say gee, did The Hurt Locker deserve all those awards? And I must say, F YEAH! Go out and see this movie folks, it was truly great…

7.) should be 8.)
8.) should be 9.)
9.) thru 14.) should be 13.) thru 18.)

Congrats, Brian.