Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film facts for kids

The Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film is a special prize given out every year by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). You might know these awards better as the Academy Awards, or simply the Oscars! This award has been given since the very early days of the Oscars, starting in 1932. It celebrates the best animated short films.

The name of this award has changed a few times over the years. From 1932 to 1970, it was called "Short Subjects, Cartoons." Then, from 1971 to 1973, it became "Short Subjects, Animated Films." Finally, in 1974, it got its current name: "Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film."

In the past, the award usually went to the producers of the short films. But now, the rules say the award goes to "the person most directly responsible for the idea and how the film was made." If more than one person was super important in making creative choices, they can even get a second Oscar statue!

For a long time, only films from the United States were nominated. But in 1952, a film from the National Film Board of Canada called The Romance of Transportation in Canada was nominated. This was a big step! The first time a short film not in English won was in 1961. It was called Ersatz (The Substitute) from Zagreb Film in Croatia.

The very first film to win this award was Flowers and Trees by Walt Disney. Walt Disney is a legend! He holds the record for the most nominations (39) and the most wins (12) in this category. Another famous animated series, Tom and Jerry, was nominated 13 times and won 7 Oscars! The Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series from Warner Bros. also did great, with 16 nominations and 5 wins.

Among international studios, the National Film Board of Canada has won the most, with 6 Oscars. From Britain, Nick Park is a big winner. He won three times: once for Creature Comforts and twice for his Wallace & Gromit films.

The Academy says a "short film" must be no longer than 40 minutes, including all the credits at the end. Before the final nominees are announced, 15 films are chosen for a "shortlist." Below, you'll see some of the winners and nominees from different years. The winning film and its creators are always shown in bold and highlighted in yellow.

Winners and nominees

The films highlighted in yellow were the winners, with their titles and the names of the people who won shown in bold.

1930s

2010s

2020s

See also

In Spanish: Anexo:Óscar al mejor cortometraje animado para niños

• List of submissions for the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film
• Academy Award for Best Animated Feature
  • List of submissions for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature
• List of animation awards
• BAFTA Award for Best Short Film
• The 50 Greatest Cartoons: As Selected by 1,000 Animation Professionals
• List of animated short films
• List of Academy Award–nominated films
• Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film
• List of Academy Awards for Walt Disney
• Arthouse animation
• Independent animation
• Adult animation

Superlatives

Here are some cool facts about the winners and nominees in this Academy Award category:

Multiple nominations and awards

This table shows animation studios or animators who have received many nominations and awards in this category.