The 96th Academy Awards will take place March 10. Each year, the road to the Oscars runs through Indiana, thanks to Heartland Film’s festivals, and this year is no different. A total of 11 films honored by Heartland Film are nominated for 35 Oscars.
The 2023 Heartland International Film Festival showcased “Anatomy of a Fall,” “American Fiction” and “The Holdovers.” The three films each received five nominations, including Best Picture.
Three short films from the Indy Shorts International Film Festival went on to receive Oscar nominations. The short film “The Barber of Little Rock” had its world premiere in Indianapolis, won the Jenni Berebitsky Legacy Award and is now nominated for Best Short Documentary.
Indy Shorts alumni and past honoree Colman Domingo is nominated for Best Lead Actor for “Rustin,” which was the featured centerpiece film at last year’s HIFF. Domingo also was in “The Color Purple.” Heartland Film presented the Oscar-nominated film “The Color Purple” and the 13-time Oscar-nominee “Oppenheimer” with the Truly Moving Picture Award in 2023.
“We consider thousands of films every year to find the best stories for our audiences, and it is always so exciting to know that Indy Shorts and Heartland International Film Festival attendees had the opportunity to see these powerful Oscar-nominated films here first,” stated Heartland Film’s artistic director Greg Sorvig, a Carmel resident.
Heartland Film has a few more opportunities coming up for people to watch some of the nominated films.
On March 1-2, four fan-favorite films will be screened at the 12th annual Best of Fest presented by Heartland Film and The Historic Artcraft Theatre in Franklin. On March 2, Best Picture Nominee “The Holdovers” will be screened for free at 2 p.m. thanks to Focus Features. Best Lead Actor nominee Paul Giamatti plays a cranky history teacher at a remote prep school who is forced to remain on campus over the holidays with a troubled student with no place to go and a grieving cook. “The Holdovers” was the Closing Night film at the 2023 Heartland International Film Festival and received the IFJA Best Special Presentation Award Winner.
On March 7, Heartland Film will showcase a program of Oscar-nominated and Shortlisted films from the Indy Shorts International Film Festival at Fort Shorts. Fort Shorts is a new screening series of short films presented by Williams Comfort Air and Mr. Plumber. Details of the film program hosted at the Heartland Film Headquarters will be announced closer to the event. For more, visit heartlandfilm.org.
Below are the Academy Award-nominated films that Heartland Film honored in 2023.
- “American Fiction” | 5 Nominations including Best Picture | Heartland International Film Festival 2023, Humor & Humanity Award Winner
- “Anatomy of a Fall”| 5 Nominations, including Best Picture | Heartland International Film Festival 2023
- “The Barber of Little Rock” | Best Documentary Short Film | Indy Shorts International Film Festival 2023, World Premiere & Jenni Berebitsky Legacy Award Winner
- “The Color Purple” | Best Supporting Actress: Danielle Brooks | Truly Moving Picture Award 2023
- “Four Daughters” | Best Documentary Feature Film | Heartland International Film Festival 2023
- “The Holdovers” | 5 Nominations, including Best Picture | Heartland International Film Festival 2023, Closing Night & IFJA Best Special Presentation Award Winner
- “Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó” | Best Documentary Short | Indy Shorts International Film Festival 2023
- “Ninety-Five Senses” | Best Animated Short | Indy Shorts International Film Festival 2023
- “Oppenheimer” | 13 Nominations, including Best Picture | Truly Moving Picture Award 2023
- “Perfect Days” | Best International Feature Film | Heartland Film Festival 2023
- “Rustin” | Best Lead Actor: Colman Domingo | Heartland Film Festival 2023
