In the Shadow of the Cypress, a short film by Iranian directors Hossein Molayemi and Shirin Sohani, has won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short.

The 20-minute animated short follows a retired sea captain who copes with post traumatic stress disorder while caring for his daughter. Other nominees in the category were Beautiful Men, Magic Candies, Wander to Wonder and Yuck!.

During their acceptance speech, the filmmakers started by saying that they had arrived in Los Angeles three hours before the ceremony due to a visa issue. “Believe me or not, three hours ago, our plane landed in LA,” said Molayemi.

Both started by apologising for their “bad English,” saying “we are not native English speakers, sorry”. They went on to say: “We dedicate our film and this special award to all those who are still fighting in their inner and outer battles, heroically and nobody knows about that. Especially to our fellow Iranians, who are still suffering.”

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https://www.thenationalnews.com/arts-culture/film-tv/2025/03/03/in-the-shadow-of-the-cypress-oscars-short-film-animated-hossein-molayemi-shirin-sohani/