Super shorts: six films on the Oscar short list were created with 3D graphics.(Film)

What do a decimated animator, an adorable little boy, a sadistic soldier, a crude caveman, a devious gopher, and a blue cat dancing the tango with its own tail have in common? They're short animated films selected for consideration by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences for an Oscar nomination this year. And the animators and artists who created all these films relied on 3D tools to tell their stories. Everything else, from the style to the software the artists used, is as different as the stories the six films tell.

One (Lorenzo) originated in a large studio, three (In the Rough, Gopher Broke, and Fallen Art) were made in small studios, one (Birthday ...