The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the 10 finalists for the Animated Short Film race and none other than hometown hero Kobe Bryant has made the cut.
Glen Keane’s “Dear Basketball,” which the five-time NBA Champion co-wrote, has made the shortlist along with Pixar’s “Lou” and eight other finalists. Bryant has focused on non-basketball activities since his retirement in 2015, but worked with Keane, a Disney animation legend, to craft an animated short about his childhood love for basketball over the past year. The Lakers legend even hired John Williams to score it. You can check out a live reading of the short with Bryant and John Williams conducting below the list of this year’s 10 contenders.
Short Films and Feature Animation Branch members will now select five nominees from among the 10 titles on the shortlist. Branch screenings will be held in Los Angeles, London, New York and San Francisco in January.
“Cradle,” Devon Manney, director (University of Southern California)
“Dear Basketball,” Glen Keane, director, and Kobe Bryant, writer (Glen Keane Productions)
“Fox and the Whale,” Robin Joseph, director (Robin Joseph)
“Garden Party,” Victor Caire and Gabriel Grapperon, directors (MOPA)
“In a Heartbeat,” Esteban Bravo and Beth David, directors (Ringling College of Art and Design)
“Life Smartphone,” Chenglin Xie, director (China Central Academy of Fine Arts)
“Lost Property Office,” Daniel Agdag, director, and Liz Kearney, producer (8th in Line)
“Lou,” Dave Mullins, director, and Dana Murray, producer (Pixar Animation Studios)
“Negative Space,” Max Porter and Ru Kuwahata, directors (Ikki Films)
“Revolting Rhymes,” Jakob Schuh and Jan Lachauer, directors (Magic Light Pictures)
Nominations for the 90th Academy Awards will be announced on Tuesday, January 23, 2018.