Short films get the shaft. It’s more than likely you haven’t even heard of this year’s crop — even the ones nominated for Academy Awards.

But with feature films getting longer and longer, short films might be the only category in the genre that still evidences some discipline on the part of filmmakers. Though even here, some like to stretch the rules to their limits: Every single one of the short documentary films nominated clocks in at 39 minutes or more. The Academy defines a short film as one with a running time of 40 minutes or less.

Recommended Stories

Red One is a fast, furious, and forgettable holiday misfire

Oscars nominates ‘Emilia Perez’ star as first transgender actor for best actress

Iraq War documentary, once shelved by PBS, sees the light 17 years later