By Steve Pond
See the original article here.
Jeremy Merrifield’s “Balloon,” Carolina Markowicz’s “The Orphan” and Siqi Song’s “Sister” have won the top awards at the 2019 HollyShorts Film Festival, which handed out its awards on Saturday Night at the Harmony Gold in Hollywood.
Those three films won in categories that automatically qualify a short for the Best Animated Short or Best Live-Action Short categories at this year’s Academy Awards.
“Balloon” stars Jonah Beres and Paul Scheer is the story of a high schooler who discovers he has superpowers. The film, made at the American Film Institute, is also a finalist at the 2019 Student Academy Awards.
Best Short Film Grand Prix – “Balloon,” Jeremy Merrifield