Artists and Orphans: A True Drama is a documentary film directed by filmmaker Lianne Klapper McNally. Following the story of a theater group attending an arts festival in the Republic of Georgia, Artists and Orphans: A True Drama was nominated for Best Documentary, Short Subject at the 2002 Academy Awards.
Awards for short documentary films have been distributed by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) since 1941 when the National Film Board of Canada’s short documentary Churchill’s Island bested 11 other nominees.
In order to be eligible for a nomination in the Best Documentary, Short Subject category, a film must meet several general and specific requirements. The Academy describes documentary films as nonfiction motion pictures that address important historical, social, and scientific topics, or otherwise possess artistic or cultural significance. In order to qualify for the Short Subject category, documentaries must be no longer than 40 minutes in length. Like other films, short documentaries must have a recognized theater run and adhere to that year’s timeframe for submissions, among other regulations.
