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“Hearts and Minds,” the 1974 anti-war film that caused a furor at the Academy Awards when it won the Best Documentary Feature Oscar, has been named recipient of the 2025 Legacy Award at the Cinema Eye Honors.

The doc from director and producer Peter Davis and producer Bert Schneider was made in the final years of the Vietnam War, which it presented as an unwinnable and criminal enterprise by the United States.

“Peter Davis’ film debunked the lies surrounding the then-still ongoing Vietnam War,” Cinema Eye founding director Aj Schnack said in a Tuesday statement to TheWrap. “’Hearts and Minds’ stands as one of the greatest films about war in the history of film and reminds us that attacks on unarmed civilians are neither new nor acceptable. We are honored to celebrate this film and to present Peter Davis with our 2025 Legacy Award.”’

In response, Davis added, “The Legacy Award honoring my...

"The most beautiful sound I ever heard is the empty, wavey air flows between the trees."...

Makayla's Voice: A Letter to the World, a compelling new documentary short directed by Julio Palacio, chronicles the extraordinary story of Makayla, a teenage girl living with a rare form of autism that has rendered her essentially nonverbal. 

Her parents, driven by an unwavering belief in her potential, embarked on a remarkable journey to uncover and understand the true depth of her inner world. Premiering Dec. 11 on Netflix, the film, which wonBest Documentary Short at Tribeca Film Festival 2024,captures their dedication and the profound experiences that have defined Makayla's life.

Executive produced by Academy Award winner Roger Ross Williams, Khari Cain, Mañana Cain, Rostam Zafari, and Dylan Mulick, and produced by Sam Hanson, Sasha Levinson, and Julio Palacio, Makayla's Voice: A Letter to the World, is crafted with sensitivity and respect for the complexities surrounding autism. With a uniquely in-depth perspective, the film...

As a broad spectrum of short films draw attention at film festivals and screening events, identifying frontrunners becomes increasingly difficult. Listed below are some of the noteworthy films that may win hardware during awards season, distinguishing themselves with exceptional artistry, festival recognition

or audience popularity.

Animated Shorts

“Self”

Written and directed by Searit Kahsay Huluf — one of Variety’s 2024 Animators to Watch — “Self” is the 11th film in Pixar’s SparksShorts series, a program designed to enable studio employees to develop their own short projects. Huluf ’s film combines CG and stop-motion animation to tell a story of self-discovery about a wooden doll that’s desperate to fit in with its peers. In addition to working with her Pixar colleagues, Huluf collaborated with Oscar-winning animation and VFX company Tippett Studio for help on the film’s stop-motion sequences, resulting in a unique blend of the two animation styles.

“In...

Exclusive: Netflix has lined up a blockbuster slate of short documentaries heading into Oscar season, including the latest from two-time Academy Award winner Ben Proudfoot in collaboration with the Obamas’ production company.

The streamer announced four acquisitions today, beginning with The Turnaround, directed by Kyle Thrash and Proudfoot, a documentary that “tells the story of Philadelphia Phillies’ superfan Jon McCann, who helped inspire an unlikely 2023 standing ovation for Phillies shortstop Trea Turner, which helped turn the team around after hitting a major roadblock.”.

As Deadline reported in late August, Higher Ground, the production company founded by former Pres. Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama, came aboard The Turnaround. Higher Ground produces, along with Proudfoot’s Breakwater Studios, Cookie Jar & A...

The inaugural World Culture Film Festival kicks off in Los Angeles Thursday, a four-day event “dedicated to showcasing films that inspire, educate, and celebrate diverse cultures.”

Wcff opens with Oscar-shortlisted dramedy The Monk and the Gun, directed by Pawo Choyning Dorji. The Bhutanese filmmaker — whose Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom earned a 2022 Academy Award nomination for Best International Film — will be present for a Q&a to follow The Monk and the Gun screening.

The festival closes with Wim Wenders’ Oscar-nominated Perfect Days, a drama about Hirayama (Koji Yakusho), a man who cleans Tokyo’s public toilets, which are renowned for their immaculate appearance.

‘Perfect Days’

“Hirayama clearly derives enjoyment from performing his work well,” the New York Times wrote in a rave review, “but there’s more to his life than labor, and more to this movie than a simplistic celebration of manual toil.”

The Wcff program includes more than 60 films,...

Griffin in Summer won the Founders Award for best U.S. narrative feature as well as two additional awards: special jury mention for new narrative director for Nicholas Colia and best screenplay in a U.S. narrative feature, which also went to Colia.

Meanwhile, Bikechess won Best International Narrative Feature, and Hacking Hate won Best Documentary Feature. Don’t You Let Me Go won the 12th annual Nora Ephron Award, and Come Closer and Witches topped the first Viewpoints Competition.

Additionally, Nnamdi Asomugha‘s The Knife won two awards: best cinematography in a U.S. narrative feature (Alejandro Mejia) and the best new narrative director award for Asomugha.

Some Rain Must Fall also won two awards.

A full list of this year’s winners follows.

More to come.

U.S. Narrative Competition

Founders Award for Best U.S. Narrative Feature: Griffin in Summer, director Nicholas Colia

Best Performance in a U.

Naomi Ackie, Daniel Mays, Jonathan Pryce, Henry Lloyd-Hughes and David Tennant have joined the cast of Netflix and Amblin Entertainment’s “The Thursday Murder Club,” based on Richard Osman’s novel of the same name.

According to an official logline, the series follows, “a group of friends in a retirement home who gather to solve murders for fun, but find themselves caught in a real case. The four members of the club are played by Helen Mirren (ex-spy Elizabeth), Sir Ben Kingsley (ex-psychiatrist Ibrahim) Pierce Brosnan (former union activist Ron) and Celia Imrie (ex-nurse Joyce).”

Chris Columbus serves as writer, director and producer with Jennifer Todd. Holly Bario, Jeb Brody, Eleanor Columbus and Jo Burn executive produce.

Tribeca Festival 2024 Competition Winners Include ‘Griffin in Summer,’ ‘Bikechess,’ ‘Hacking Hate’

Tribeca Festival has announced the 2024 winners of its competition categories at an awards ceremony at Racket NYC. Top awards went to “Griffin in Summer,...