HollyShorts Winners: ‘Trapped,’ ‘A Son And A Father,’ ‘Hurikán’ And ‘Voices from the Abyss’ Earn Oscar-Qualifying Awards

Four films have booked passage into the Oscar race after taking home awards at the prestigious HollyShorts festival in Los Angeles.

Trappeda drama directed by Sam Cutler-Kreutz and David Cutler-Kreutz, won the Grand Prix Award. The short starring Javier Molina and Keith William Richards centers on a “high school janitor [who] runs into a series of dangerous obstacles.” Trapped also won Best Drama. Scroll for the full list of winners.

“At the end of the day, the thing that I’m most grateful for is just the film has resonated with so many people,” David Cutler-Kreutz told Deadline after winning the two honors. “The goal is that people see the film and find that it impacts them, that it makes them want to think about the world or see the world a little bit differently. That’s why I do the work, that’s why my brother does the work.”

The Cutler-Kreutz Brothers earned a 2025 Oscar nomination earlier this year for their short film A link. The Grand Prix Award at HollyShorts puts them back in the Oscar picture for a second consecutive year.

“It’s really amazing… To be able to bring this story to all of the folks at the Oscars is really such a gift,” Cutler-Kreutz said. “One of the things from last year going through the Oscars, just the number of people that the film touches and number of people who see the film is such an incredible stage to be able to do that.”

The award for Best Documentary went to Voices from the Abyss directed by Irving Serrano and Victor Rejón. The film shot in black and white documents the La Quebrada Cliff Divers of Acapulco, a group of divers – young and old – who leap from cliffs at an elevation of up to 135 feet, or roughly the height of a 12-story building. (Full disclosure, I served as a juror for the documentary category).

Best Live Action Short was claimed by A Son and a Fatherdirected by Andrés Ramírez Pulido and starring Hugo Andrés Yate and Jhojan Estiven Jimenez. Logline: “Perceived as a problem child, Kevin cannot control his temper, often erupting when taunted. He is obligated to undergo behavioral therapy, but his father refuses to accompany him and surprisingly, his stepfather takes his place.”

The prize for Best Animation went to Hurricanedirected by Jan Saska, a film set in the Czech capital. “Hurikán rushes to save his favorite beer stand from closure by fetching a new keg to impress the bartender he crushes on,” notes a description of the film. “In a wild Prague district, he faces robbers, cops, and his own thirst.”

The award for Best Director went to Lee Knight for his live action short A Friend of Dorothystarring Miriam Margolyes. The story is based on a relationship Knight developed with a neighbor, an older widow who formed a strong bond with Knight and his husband.

“It was a unique friendship, someone who was lonely and in a way still had so much to give and no one really realized,” Knight told Deadline. “She had supported theaters for 50 years with her husband. He passed away. When she met me and my husband and realized we were actors, it gave her a new lease on life, and we took her to our opening nights. She would take us to plays on her arm going, ‘These are my boys, my boys.’”

“It’s a fictional story inspired by a real person,” Knight continued. “Miriam Margolyes, who plays the lead, I actually wrote it for her before we met. As I was writing it, I just thought, ‘Who could play this?’ And I think the inspiration of Shirley, who was my friend who passed away, and then Miriam Margolyes’ voice, it’s sort of an amalgamation of the two in a way. But it was very much written for Miriam.”

This is the 21^st year for HollyShorts. The festival presented more than 425 films, culled from 7,000 submissions. Among the presenters at Sunday night’s awards presentation was director Catherine Hardwicke, actress Sharon Lawrence and actor David Dastmalchian.

These are the winners announced at the ceremony at Mann’s Chinese in Hollywood:

Grand Prize Award – Trapped -Sam Cutler-Kreutz-David Cutler-Kreutz

Aapi Award – Mushroom Dad – Michael Yuchen Lei

Best Animation – Hurricane – Jan Saska

Best Cinematography – What disappears – Mario Lerma and Alex Rapariz

Best Comedy – Susana – Gerardo Coello Escalante and Amandine Thomas

Best Documentary – Voices from the Abyss – Irving Serrano, Victor Rejón

Best Drama – Trapped -Sam Cutler-Kreutz-David Cutler-Kreutz

Best Editing – Say Wuff! – Fabian sole

Best Horror – Heirlooms – Dan Abramovici

Best International  – The Painting & The Statue – Freddie Fox

Best Midnight Madness – Stomach Bug – Matty Crawford

Best Music Video – Earth Defender – Sil van der Word, Korrik Dozzy and Kynan Tegar

Best Podcast – Moonburn by Robbie Hyne

Best Producer – Money Talk$ – Tony Mucci (Director and Producer), Scott Aharoni (Producer), Bryan Schmier (Producer) and David Mazouz (Producer)

Best Sci-Fi – The Second Time Around – Jack Howard

Best Special Effects – Em & Selma Go Griffin Hunting – Alexander Thompson

Best Student Film – 1:10 – Sinan Taner

Best Thriller – Plastic Surgery – Guy Trevellyan

Best TV – Chasers – Erin Brown Thomas

Best Web Series – Hassan Hates Portland – Mischa Webley

Kodak Best Shot on Film, 16MM – Ragamuffin – Kaitlyn Mikayla

Kodak Best Shot on Film, 35MM – The Singers – Davis himself

Kodak Honorable Mention – Synthesize Me – Bear Damen

Latine Award – Healthy care – Lucia G. Romero

LGBTQIA+ Award – Dancing in Tomorrowland – Jacob grilled

Sagindie Award – The advance – Djiby Kebe

Social Impact Award – Rise – Jessica J. Rowlands

Best Sports Drama – Negro League Nights – Kyle Sykes

Best Sports Documentary – It’s On Like A Pot Of Neckbones – Joey Garfield

Top 10 Live Action Short Films Finalists –

A Son and a Father – Andrés Ramírez Pulido

Mercenary -Pier-Philippe Chevigny

Ragamuffin – Kaitlyn Mikayla

Yellow – André Hayato Saito

The advance – Djiby Kebe

Trapped -Sam Cutler-Kreutz and David Cutler-Kreutz

One Of Them – Mostafa minister

A Friend of Dorothy – Lee Knight

Rise – Jessica J. Rowlands

Script Awards –

ISA Story Award – Best Feature Screenplay – Dope Friend – Matt Ferrucci

Best Female Screenplay – The Unraveling by Samantha Mallory

Best Short Screenplay Grand Prize – Mudslide by Frederik ehrhardt