2026 Oscar-Nominated Shorts: Documentary

Tuesday, March 3, 2026 at 12 PM – 2:30 PM

The Oscar-Nominated Shorts return to Proctors from Feb. 24–March 14. Showcasing the best short films from around the world, the 2026 Oscar-Nominated Shorts program includes films in all three categories: Animated, Documentary, and Live Action.

Not Rated, but the Producers recommend this be treated as if Rated R. 158 minutes, including a short intermission.

• All the Empty Rooms (U.S.): Directed by Joshua Seftel — In this moving short documentary, a journalist and a photographer set out to memorialize the bedrooms left behind by children killed in school shootings. 33 minutes.
• Armed Only with a Camera: The Life and Death of Brent Renaud (U.S.): Directed by Craig Renaud and Juan Arredondo — An intimate chronicle about documentary filmmaker Brent Renaud, the first American journalist killed while reporting on the Russo-Ukrainian War. In English, Ukrainian, Russian, Spanish, Arabic, and Somali with English subtitles. 38 minutes.
• Children No More: “Were and are Gone” (Israel): Directed by Hilla Medalia — In Tel Aviv, activists gather weekly to demonstrate their opposition to the war in Gaza with a silent vigil for the children killed in Israeli attacks. In Hebrew with English subtitles. 36 minutes.
• The Devil is Busy (U.S.): Directed by Christalyn Hampton and Geeta Gandbhir — This film chronicles a day on the frontlines in the battle for reproductive rights at a women's healthcare clinic. Besieged by protesters, the director of security takes necessary risks to safeguard staff and patients. 31 minutes.
• Perfectly a Strangeness (Canada/Chile): Directed by Alison Mc Alpine — In the dazzling incandescence of an unknown desert, three donkeys discover an abandoned astronomical observatory and the universe. A sensorial, cinematic exploration of what a story can be. 15 minutes.

Proctors, Schenectady, New York