Documentary shorts nominees home in on gun violence, celebrate female musicians
The five films nominated for the documentary short subject Oscar, in the words of the poet, hit you hard and soft. They delve into crimes and their aftermaths, celebrate a trailblazer and delicately touch on the hopes of one young schoolgirl.
Though its central event is the sentencing of the Parkland school shooter, 'Death by Numbers' is really about how such stories don't end when the news coverage does. The film follows Parkland survivor Samantha Fuentes.
Director Kim Snyder says that when Fuentes addressed the convicted killer, who had expressed white-supremacist sentiments, in open court before his sentencing, she spoke powerfully about the youth trauma that resulted from his violent attack. 'Her having the courage to face this guy and say what she needed went beyond guns. It's resonating for people because it's really about standing up to hate in all its forms.'
A former Marine commits a brutal murder during a robbery. Years later, he's captured, convicted and sentenced to death. 'I Am Ready, Warden,' based on reporting by L.A. Times writer Keri Blakinger, chronicles the period leading up to the 2022 execution of John Henry Ramirez in Texas, as well as the impact of the crime on the victim's now-grown son, Aaron Castro.
Director Smriti Mundhra was with Castro when the news broke that Ramirez, who had become a devout Christian while on death row, had been executed. 'It was one of the most emotionally charged things I've ever filmed,' says Mundhra. 'I think he was unprepared to hear those words. It was like a punch in the gut for me [as well] to hear those words.
'We really believed John had changed. And we really believed Aaron needed and deserved closure for all the years of trauma he had to carry. We had to hold those two truths in our heads and hearts at the same time.'
In 2018, a Chicago barber was stopped by police who'd noticed he had a gun. He showed them his concealed-carry permit, but after a sudden altercation, he attempted to flee and was shot to death. Filmmaker Bill Morrison assembled a multiperspective view of the fatal 'Incident' through available video footage, including from police body cams.
'I think the power of the film is that it keeps delivering shocking revelations,' he says. For instance, though the victim's gun was never drawn, footage shows two officers discussing how 'he had the gun and pointed it right at' the officer who fired.
The footage also shows the lack of attempts to revive the suspect lying motionless in the street. 'I thought that it was a stronger choice to use what was available to the public, rather than interview people or introduce other sources,' says Morrison.
Ema Ryan Yamazaki's film doesn't tackle big sociopolitical issues, but it's just as compelling as documentaries that do. 'Instruments of a Beating Heart' delicately observes the ups and downs of a Japanese first-grader working to participate in a school performance of Beethoven's 'Ode to Joy.'
Yamazaki spent a year at a school with a thousand kids. Her eventual subject, Ayame, 'was so special, and I was waiting, praying, hoping for something to unfold. She was always not quite with the program. Always a little bit late but also had a strength, guts. So, when she epically failed her first audition, then came back the next day to go for another instrument, I knew ….'
Of a scene in which a teacher comforts Ayame when she's upset after being strictly corrected by the band director, Yamazaki recalls, 'She says, 'Don't worry; I'll be scolded with you.' Both my camera guy and myself, we just lost it.' '
Orin O'Brien was the first woman to be a full-time member of the New York Philharmonic, hired in 1966 by Leonard Bernstein himself. The accompanying ballyhoo struck a dissonant chord. The child of movie stars, she shunned the limelight, picking an instrument — the double bass — that blends within the ensemble. She resisted her documentarian niece's attempts to tell her story for years.
'It wasn't until she was thinking of retiring, during the pandemic in 2021, that she finally said yes,' says filmmaker Molly O'Brien. Her aunt agreed to participate only after 'I finally got her to trust I was going to make a film that was uplifting about the double bass — which is misunderstood; the underdog of the orchestra — uplifting classical music and uplifting women in the orchestra.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
Minnesota exhibit uplifts Two-Spirit and LGBTQ+ voices in Indigenous art
Minnesota exhibit uplifts Two-Spirit and LGBTQ+ voices in Indigenous art Arnold Dahl-Wooley, who grew up in northern Minnesota's small towns and is a member of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe, realized as early as kindergarten that he wasn't crushing on girls like other boys his age. When he got older and heard his voice played back on a cassette tape for the first time, he panicked. He didn't want his voice giving away his secret. School history textbooks referred to Indigenous people as 'savages' and discussed them in the past tense. The Catholic Church, which ran mandatory Indian boarding schools into the 1960s to eliminate Indigenous culture and language, considered homosexuality an abomination. To be Native and Queer invited harm and ostracization, and the likely loss of friends and family. Dahl-Wooley, who's now 54 and an advocate for others who are Indigenous and LGBTQ+, wasn't ready to risk that. 'I changed the way I talked. I made sure I walked right, sat right and did what was typical heterosexual male,' he says. That included dating girls and joining school sports. He graduated from Cass Lake High School, but pretending to be someone else was exhausting, and he felt like he was breaking until he came out to his family at age 19. 'This is who I am, and I'm ready to walk away if you're going to stop loving me,' Dahl-Wooley remembers telling them. 'It was one of the most freeing moments of my life.' Learning more about Ojibwe heritage at Bemidji State University changed the colonial and Christian narratives he had been taught. Most notable was discovering that long before Europeans arrived, Indigenous nations across North, South America and the Caribbean had roles for people who didn't identify as exclusively male nor female. The term 'Two-Spirit' (2S) term was decided in 1990 during the Annual Intertribal Native American, First Nations, Gay and Lesbian American Conference in Winnipeg, Canada to cover these historically honored and respected tribal citizens who often served in roles such as healers, medicine people and visionaries. 'The Two-Spirits are people who can see through the eyes of more than gender,' says October, he opened an office in Bemidji, Minnesota for Two-Spirit Advocacy, a grassroots organization that helps other Indigenous 2SLGBTQ+ members to find community resources, make connections and to see their strengths and gifts. Find your medicine Artist and activist Penny Kagigebi, who just turned 60, lives in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, about 80 miles from Bemidji and close to the White Earth Reservation where she grew up. It's one of 11 tribal nations in the state. Like most of them, it's in a largely rural area. Like Dahl-Wooley, she had no community supports or role models for being anything other than a heterotypical female while growing up. She always felt out of step with peers, she says, and then had her first relationship with a woman at age 26. They were open about their relationship, and Kagigebi faced workplace discrimination. When what became a four-year legal battle took a toll on her health, she found vital support through PFLAG in Fargo, North Dakota, and turned to Native knowledge for healing. In the 2000s, she learned to make Ojibwe porcupine quillwork and birchbark basketry with elders. She puts her own twist on her baskets and containers with designs that tell of finding your own path, and depicting rainbows of color through quills, beads and ribbon. On one birchbark basket, she depicts her tribe's origin story with blue and red ribbon representing the men and women who came from the stars. In between those, she has other ribbons representing Two-Spirits who also came from the stars. She's realized the importance of being visible as an 2SLGBTQ+ elder for others who crave role models or someone to talk to. In Native culture, it's important for each person to find and share the gifts they have. 'What is that medicine and superpower each of us has in us?' she asks. For her, it's being able to collaborate with others. She uses her art and workshops to spark meaningful conversations and to connect with people. Kagigebi curated what may be the first show of its kind in the country. Called 'Queering Indigeneity,' it opens Sept. 18, 2025 at the Minnesota Museum of Art in St. Paul and runs through Aug.16, 2026. The exhibit brings together visual art, videos and other works from 16 Indigenous artists ages 20 to 73 from the Upper Midwest and Manitoba. Each explores identity and shares perspectives as Two Spirit, gender fluid or Native Queer creators. 'We're all meant to be different,' Kagigebi says. 'That's the joy.' Helping others feel less alone The connections and support can be vital, especially when processing experiences with homophobia, racism or both. Dahl-Wooley had moved to Oregon after college graduation, worked in a corporate career, fell in love and returned to northern Minnesota about 20 years ago to run his family's fifth-generation Big Winnie Store, RV Park and Campground At first, the move back was a shock. When they'd lived on the West Coast, medical staffs treated he and his partner, Matthew, like a couple, but when Dahl-Wooley ended up in a Bemidji emergency room, the staff wouldn't acknowledge them as such and weren't going to let Matthew, now his husband, be at his bedside when he was sick. Dahl-Wooley and Matthew were the first same-sex marriage sanctioned by the Ojibwe nation in 2013. That opened the door for other couples to follow. When he was asked to talk about his experience as a Two-Spirit person at a community center in Cass Lake, Dahl-Wooley was surprised that 30 people showed up. Invitations to talk to other groups followed, and he began speaking to health care organizations, law enforcement groups, schools and colleges, and other organizations to help them better understand and support the 2SLGBTQ+ population. The Trevor Project's 2023 report on Indigenous 2SLGBTQ+ young people showed that more than half of them seriously considered suicide in the past year. Almost half have also experienced food insecurity and more than a third have experienced homelessness. 'My goal is suicide prevention, anti-bullying, no self-harm and cultural inclusion,' says Dahl-Wooley. He keeps a database of churches, therapists, health care providers and more who are welcoming to the 2SLGBTQ+ community. He'll schedule Queer Tea events where people can come to have tea, play games, talk and be themselves. They might discuss ways to stay safe or use humor to cope with traumas many have experienced. Additional events might include an art show or gender-affirmative wardrobe clothing drives. He recalled a teen calling him one day, crying with gratitude because he saw Dahl-Wooley and his husband together in the community, laughing and living normal lives, which gave him the ability to see a future for himself. He was also recognized in an Oregon grocery store line by a young man who had needed help and found a video of Dahl-Wooley giving one of his talks online. 'People are paying attention whether you realize it or not,' he says. 'Sometimes just a little difference can save a life.' Kagigebi and Dahl-Wooley each hope that more visible 2SLGBTQ+ elders and younger 2SLGBTQ+ people such as the artists in the upcoming exhibit will make it easier for others to find their way and to better embrace the unique gifts they bring to the world. 'I want the Two-Spirit population to know how important and powerful they are — just as they are,' Dahl-Wooley says. 'We're sacred. We're honored, and we're respected. A lot of people need to hear that.' More information Two Spirit Advocacy Dahl-Wooley shares his story across the country, works with businesses and organizations to be more welcoming to 2SLGBTQ people and hosts events in Bemidji such as Queer Tea. Queer Indigeneity This exhibit opens Sept. 18 at the Minnesota Museum of Art in St. Paul and features 16 Indigenous artists who identify as Two Spirit, queer or gender expansive, including Giiwedin, a young artist and activist who made GLAAD's 20 Under 20 list of changemakers presented in Teen Vogue. The show will run through early 2026.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Celebrities react to LA protest against ICE detention policies
Following Donald Trump's deployment of the National Guard to Los Angeles, artists have been speaking out against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deportation raids and offering support to protestors in LA. As reported by Euronews, Trump deployed another 2,100 National Guard members and 700 US Marines, in what the authorities have dubbed Task Force 51 meant to "provide continuous coverage of the area" as unrest in Los Angeles continues. Many celebrities posted messages on social media supporting the protestors and criticising the National Guard's deployment, including Eva Longoria and Mark Ruffalo. Longoria took to Instagram to express her frustration and described the actions as 'Un-American', while Ruffalo shared a lengthy message to Instagram with the caption: "When you have working class people going after the poor and other working class people you know you are living in an oligarchy." He added: "The billionaire up at the top is stealing you blind, and you are worried about the poorest of the poor ruining your life? You are pointing your guns in the wrong direction... The president is a grifter." Ruffalo's post went viral, racking up to 200,000 likes—including from other celebrities, including Jennifer Garner and Halle Berry. Voir cette publication sur Instagram Une publication partagée par Mark Ruffalo (@markruffalo) Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong posted a scene from one of the LA protests to his Instagram over the weekend, which he captioned with a middle finger emoji and an ice cube emoji, while Tyler, The Creator wrote on his Instagram Story: 'FUCK ICE.' Singer and actress Reneé Rapp also condemned ICE's actions, writing: 'Fuck ICE fuck this administration fuck all of yall who are complicit in ensuring that this happened this is a fucking disgrace.' One of the most notable reactions came from Oscar-winning singer-songwriter Finneas, brother of Billie Eilish, who attended the 'very peaceful protests' himself and claimed to have been teargassed by authorities. 'Tear-gassed almost immediately at the very peaceful protest downtown. They're inciting this,' he wrote on Instagram. Finneas also reposted a clip that appeared to show a reporter, Lauren Tomasi, being shot in the leg with a rubber bullet by law enforcement while she was reporting from the scene. Elsewhere, Grammy-winning rapper Doechii spoke out against the immigration raids in Los Angeles at the 2025 BET Awards last her speech, Doechii said that though she was 'honoured' by the award, she wanted to 'address what is happening right now outside of the building'. 'There are ruthless attacks that are creating fear and chaos in our communities in the name of law and order,' she continued, citing Trump's deployment of the National Guard. 'Trump is using military forces to stop a protest,' Doechii added. 'I want you all to consider what kind of government it appears to be when every time we exercise our democratic right to protest, the military is deployed against us. What type of government is that?'The heated situation has also prompted a fierce political backlash. Governor Gavin Newsom took to X to announce his plans to sue the federal government over the National Guard deployment, calling it 'an unconstitutional act.' "This is exactly what Donald Trump wanted. He flamed the fires and illegally acted to federalize the National Guard. The order he signed doesn't just apply to CA (California). It will allow him to go into ANY STATE and do the same thing. We're suing him."
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Gary Oldman on ‘Slow Horses' being ‘an extraordinary show to work on' and ‘one of the highlights of my career'
Gary Oldman is clearly having a ball playing the gruff, ill-mannered and often underestimated Jackson Lamb in the Emmy-winning Apple TV+ spy thriller Slow Horses. "We often laugh actually, while we're doing it. We crack up and then and do retakes," he tells Gold Derby. "It's been an extraordinary show to work on, not only because the material is very good and obviously the character is just a dream. But it's been really made all the more special because of the people working on the show. And that is really across the board from makeup, costume, DP, camera operator, clapper loader, although they're not really clapper loaders anymore," he says. "I love regrouping after a break and then getting back and seeing everyone. The set is very easy to work on in that respect. Just an incredible bunch of people and that really has made it, I think, one of the highlights of my career." (Watch our full interview above.) More from GoldDerby Michelle Williams and Jenny Slate on playing best friends in 'Dying for Sex': 'It was love at first sight' Seth Rogen on taking big swings with 'The Studio': 'Are people just going to think this looks insane?' 'Disclaimer' star Leila George on how she landed 'the best job of her life' Slow Horses is based on Mick Herron's series of novels, adapted by showrunner Will Smith (Veep), about a group of MI5 agents who are consigned to a dumping ground for rejects paying the price for their past mistakes. The outcasts of the British intelligence agency banished to the administrative purgatory of Slough House are known as 'slow horses.' They're expected to endure interminably dull, paper-pushing drudgery, along with occasional berating from their abrasive boss, Jackson Lamb. Oldman plays the rude, crass, and often drunk department head with a bracing panache, reveling in being as unapologetically miserable as possible, while showing flashes of the intellect, perceptiveness and savvy from his former life as a respected spy. The spy drama costars Emmy nominee Jack Lowden, Oscar and Emmy nominee Kristin Scott Thomas, Saskia Reeves, Rosalind Eleazar, Christopher Chung, Aimee-Ffion Edwards, Kadiff Kirwan, Freddie Fox, Chris Reilly, Joanna Scanlon, and Tony winner and Oscar and Emmy nominee Jonathan Pryce, with new additions to the show's riveting fourth season, including Tom Brooke as the newest slow horse and former "psych eval" operative, Ruth Bradley as the new head of "the Dogs," James Callis as the new "first desk," and Hugo Weaving as deadly mercenary Frank Harkness. SEE Gary Oldman, Jack Lowden, Kristin Scott Thomas, Jonathan Pryce: Here is every 'Slow Horses' Emmy acting submission for Season 4 After four seasons, with a fifth on the way (premiering Sept. 24), it's no wonder that Oldman loves this role, not only because it's a fun set to work on, but because the writing is so excellent. "If the source material is good, then it dictates what you do. It's a psychological and an emotional map that you follow. When you come up against bad writing, that's when you feel that you're working too hard for it. If you're breaking a sweat, then you know that you're not in the hands of a very good writer. It's a joy to speak this stuff and to navigate, both physically and psychologically, through the world of these people in this character," says Oldman. "As the seasons go on and incrementally more is revealed of Jackson, you as an actor are forming a more complete picture of him. And then of course we have Season 5, and that pulls back another layer of the onion to his character and really why he is the way he is," he says about fleshing out the why behind his grouchy, ill-tempered exterior. "It works in a way as a defense mechanism. He's not gonna let you in. You're not going to really get to know him. And that really is part of his skill also, because by doing that, he has an edge over you. I mean, we've said it before; people around him are playing checkers and Jackson Lamb is playing chess." The writers are have also proven to be very adept at cramming an abundance of plot and narrative into short and sharp six-episode seasons, leaving audiences breathlessly anticipating the next installment. The plot thickens as the show unwraps a self-contained mystery each season, while leaving room for getting to know the characters, who often amusingly bare the brunt of Lamb's witty asides and cutting insults. "As far as making the next one as good, if not better, you can't drop the ball," Oldman says about always wanting to up the ante. "There's a lot of people involved that come together. We have a standard. The audience are expecting something from us and we cannot disappoint. That's part of the reason why we do six episodes with a short break, and then we do another six, because who wants to invest their time in characters in a show and then wait two or three years for it to come back? We are very conscious of making the next one as good, if not better. So that's the first thing; audiences come back to the show and they're not disappointed." SEE Jack Lowden reveals his favorite bit of improv on 'Slow Horses': 'He doesn't know why he's doing it' "We're so used to glamor and the world of James Bond and tuxedos, martinis and casinos that I think the appeal of it is it's these very dysfunctional and often ordinary people who have to deal with all the stuff in their life who go to the launderette, who may have to make their car payments, have problems in their relationships and are dealing with a mortgage," Oldman says. "They're dealing with all the problems that we all deal with. They're ordinary people who do this extraordinary thing for a living. That's a part of its appeal. It's a spy show, but they are the every man. And of course, some of the things that come out of Jackson Lamb's mouth, I think maybe secretly we watch the show and think, we may have in our time had a bullying horrible boss and you think sometimes, 'Oh, I wish I could have a comeback like that.' He doesn't give a flying monkeys, you see? He's seen it all and can't track with the bureaucratic side of it all, of the Park and all of that crap. He's, he's been there, seen it, and he has no, uh, time for it. I think the kindest thing that Jackson can do is make life so miserable for the people that work for him, so that they get out of the game, because they don't wanna end up [like him]. I think that's probably the kindest thing that he can do. And yet, for all of his rough edges and bullying, he's incredibly loyal and would take a bullet for them." Asked his thoughts on why he seems to be widely revered and admired among other actors, the Oscar- and BAFTA-winning veteran actor replies, "I think it's very flattering. It doesn't occupy my thought process a lot, but it's always nice to hear that someone says something nice about your work. I'm a big one for, if I run into someone and I like their work or I like a performance, I'll say so. I even will drop a note to people and write them how much I liked their performance or their work. Less than a week ago I dropped a note to Tom Hardy and I said, 'I really like your work in MobLand.' I've written to different people over the years. I think it's a nice thing. I think it's a nice thing when a colleague likes your work. It's a lovely thing." Slow Horses Season 4 is now streaming on Apple TV+. SIGN UP for Gold Derby's free newsletter with latest predictions Best of GoldDerby Michelle Williams and Jenny Slate on playing best friends in 'Dying for Sex': 'It was love at first sight' Dan Fogelman and team on the making of 'Paradise': 'It only works if you have talented people who you trust' Brandon Scott Jones on CBS' 'Ghosts': 'I enjoy playing characters that are desperate' Click here to read the full article.
