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Updated: Jan. 17, 2025

Now that the shortlists have been unveiled for the impending 97th Academy Awards, it’s time to start figuring out which movies will actually be nominated. Nowhere is this more difficult than in the three short-film categories. But don’t worry, we’ve got you covered! Below you’ll find the 15 semifinalists in the Best Documentary Short category along with descriptions and embedded videos and/or links where available.

Some of the topics included in this year’s crop are the kangaroo-harvesting industry in Australia, a family weighing whether or not to pursue being cryonically frozen, a death row inmate seeking to make some sort of peace in his life before his execution, a trans lawmaker in Montana fighting anti-trans legislation, and how the children of Ukraine are coping living in a war zone.

Here is your 2025 Oscars Best Documentary Short cheat sheet, ranked based on Gold Derby...

Bill Marsh can teach your kid to swim. In fact, he may be better at it than anyone else.

If you think that’s no big deal, consider this: “In the United States, drowning is the leading cause of preventable death for children ages 1-4.” That statistic is cited in A Swim Lesson, the Oscar-shortlisted short documentary that follows Marsh in the pool as he instructs a new class of tots. For little kids, the 8-day-long process can be traumatic – at first.

“They’re hysterical and then they’re vomiting, and then they’re crying, and then they’re running out of the pool,” shares Rashida Jones, the filmmaker and actor who directed the documentary with Will McCormack, a fellow actor-director. McCormack, Jones, and producer Emily Arlook all put their kids through Marsh’s program.

Directors Rashida Jones and Will McCormack

Jones’s son participated in the class in August 2020. “Definitely,...