The short animation film ‘Ice Merchants’, by João Gonzalez, is nominated for the Oscars, which is unprecedented for Portuguese cinema, according to the nominees list announced today.
For the first time, there is a Portuguese-made film in the nominees for the Oscars, with ‘Ice Merchants’, directed by João Gonzalez, nominated for the award of best animated short film.
Besides ‘Ice Merchants’, also in the running for a nomination were ‘O homem do lixo’, by Laura Gonçalves, in the category of best animated short, and ‘O lobo solitário’, by Filipe Melo, for the Oscar of best short film, in real image.
Ice Merchants’ is the third film by João Gonzalez, produced in Portugal by Bruno Caetano, through Cola Animation, and co-produced with France and the United Kingdom.
The film, without dialogues, has as its starting point the image of a house on a mountain, leaning over a precipice. From there, the director developed the story of a father and son, who produce ice in the inhospitable house where they live, and from where they jump every day by parachute to sell it in the village, at the foot of the mountain.
João Gonzalez signs the direction and the soundtrack of the film and shares the animation, in 2D, with the Polish Ala Nunu.
Before reaching Oscar nominations, “Ice Merchants” had an award-winning 2022 premiere at Critics Week at the Cannes Film Festival in France.
According to the Short Film Agency, João Gonzalez’s film has been through more than a hundred film festivals, won 44 awards and was seen by 8,425 viewers.
The ceremony of the 95th edition of the Oscars is scheduled for 12 March.
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