When did the Oscars start awarding short films?

The Academy Awards first recognized short films at the 5th Academy Awards ceremony in 1932. The original categories were Comedy, Novelty, One-Reel, and Two-Reel. Today's three categories — Animated Short Film, Documentary Short Subject, and Live Action Short Film — have been in place since 1957.

How many Oscar short film ceremonies have there been?

There have been 95 Academy Awards ceremonies featuring short film categories, from 1932 to 2026, producing 300 winners.

What are the three Oscar short film categories?

The three current Academy Award short film categories are: Animated Short Film, Documentary Short Subject, and Live Action Short Film. This three-category structure has been in place since the 30th Academy Awards in 1957.

Oscar Short Film History — Every Winner Since 1931 (94 Years)

2020s

Ceremony Year	#	Animated	Documentary	Live Action
2026	98th	The Girl Who Cried Pearls	All the Empty Rooms	Two People Exchanging Saliva The Singers
2025	97th	In the Shadow of the Cypress	The Only Girl in the Orchestra	I'm Not a Robot
2024	96th	War Is Over! Inspired by the Music of John & Yoko	The Last Repair Shop	The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar
2023	95th	The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse	The Elephant Whisperers	An Irish Goodbye
2022	94th	The Windshield Wiper	The Queen of Basketball	The Long Goodbye
2021	93rd	If Anything Happens I Love You	Colette ▶	Two Distant Strangers
2020	92nd	Hair Love	Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You're a Girl)	The Neighbors' Window

2026 98th Ceremony

Ceremony Year	#	Animated	Documentary	Live Action
2019	91st	Bao ▶	Period. End of Sentence.	Skin ▶
2018	90th	Dear Basketball	Heaven Is a Traffic Jam on the 405	The Silent Child
2017	89th	Piper	The White Helmets	Sing
2016	88th	Bear Story	A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness	Stutterer
2015	87th	Feast	Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1	The Phone Call
2014	86th	Mr. Hublot	The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life	Helium
2013	85th	Paperman	Inocente	Curfew
2012	84th	The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore	Saving Face	The Shore ▶
2011	83rd	The Lost Thing	Strangers No More	God of Love
2010	82nd	Logorama	Music by Prudence	The New Tenants

Ceremony Year	#	Animated	Documentary	Live Action
2009	81st	La Maison en Petits Cubes	Smile Pinki	Spielzeugland (Toyland)
2008	80th	Peter & the Wolf	Freeheld	The Mozart of Pickpockets
2007	79th	The Danish Poet ▶	The Blood of Yingzhou District	West Bank Story
2006	78th	The Moon and the Son: An Imagined Conversation	A Note of Triumph: The Golden Age of Norman Corwin	Six Shooter ▶
2005	77th	Ryan	Mighty Times: The Children's March	Wasp
2004	76th	Harvie Krumpet ▶	Chernobyl Heart	Two Soldiers
2003	75th	The ChubbChubbs!	Twin Towers	This Charming Man
2002	74th	For the Birds ▶	Thoth	The Accountant
2001	73rd	Father and Daughter	Big Mama	Quiero Ser (I Want to Be...)
2000	72nd	The Old Man and the Sea	King Gimp	My Mother Dreams the Satan's Disciples in New York

Ceremony Year	#	Animated	Documentary	Live Action
1999	71st	Bunny	The Personals: Improvisations on Romance in the Golden Years	Election Night
1998	70th	Geri's Game	A Story of Healing	Visas and Virtue
1997	69th	Quest	Breathing Lessons: The Life and Work of Mark O'Brien	Dear Diary
1996	68th	A Close Shave ▶	One Survivor Remembers	Lieberman in Love
1995	67th	Bob's Birthday ▶	A Time for Justice	Franz Kafka's It's a Wonderful Life
1994	66th	The Wrong Trousers ▶	Defending Our Lives	Black Rider
1993	65th	Mona Lisa Descending a Staircase	Educating Peter ▶	Omnibus
1992	64th	Manipulation	In the Shadow of the Stars	Session Man
1991	63rd	Creature Comforts	Days of Waiting	The Lunch Date
1990	62nd	Balance	The Johnstown Flood ▶	Work Experience

Ceremony Year	#	Animated	Documentary	Live Action
1989	61st	Tin Toy	You Don't Have to Die	The Appointments of Dennis Jennings
1988	60th	The Man Who Planted Trees ▶	Young at Heart	Ray's Male Heterosexual Dance Hall
1987	59th	A Greek Tragedy ▶	Women — For America, for the World	Precious Images
1986	58th	Anna & Bella ▶	Witness to War: Dr. Charlie Clements ▶	Molly's Pilgrim
1985	57th	Charade	The Stone Carvers	Up
1984	56th	Sundae in New York	Flamenco at 5:15 ▶	Boys and Girls
1983	55th	Tango ▶	If You Love This Planet	A Shocking Accident
1982	54th	Crac ▶	Close Harmony	Violet
1981	53rd	The Fly ▶	Karl Hess: Toward Liberty	The Dollar Bottom
1980	52nd	Every Child ▶	Paul Robeson: Tribute to an Artist ▶	Board and Care

Ceremony Year	#	Animated	Documentary	Live Action
1979	51st	Special Delivery ▶	The Flight of the Gossamer Condor	Teenage Father
1978	50th	Sand Castle ▶	Gravity Is My Enemy	I'll Find a Way
1977	49th	Leisure	Number Our Days	In the Region of Ice
1976	48th	Great ▶	The End of the Game	Angel and Big Joe ▶
1975	47th	Closed Mondays ▶	Don't	One-Eyed Men Are Kings
1974	46th	Frank Film	Princeton: A Search for Answers	The Bolero
1973	45th	A Christmas Carol	This Tiny World	Norman Rockwell's World... An American Dream
1972	44th	The Crunch Bird ▶	Sentinels of Silence	Sentinels of Silence
1971	43rd	Is It Always Right to Be Right?	Interviews with My Lai Veterans	The Resurrection of Broncho Billy
1970	42nd	It's Tough to Be a Bird	Czechoslovakia 1968 ▶	The Magic Machines

Ceremony Year	#	Animated	Documentary	Live Action
1969	41st	Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day	Why Man Creates ▶	Robert Kennedy Remembered
1968	40th	The Box	The Redwoods ▶	A Place to Stand
1967	39th	A Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass Double Feature ▶	A Year Toward Tomorrow	Wild Wings
1966	38th	The Dot and the Line ▶	To Be Alive! ▶	The Chicken
1965	37th	The Pink Phink	Nine from Little Rock ▶	Casals Conducts: 1964
1964	36th	The Critic ▶	Chagall ▶	An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge
1963	35th	The Hole ▶	Dylan Thomas	Heureux Anniversaire
1962	34th	Ersatz (The Substitute)	Project Hope	Seawards the Great Ships
1961	33rd	Munro	Day of the Painter	Day of the Painter
1960	32nd	Moonbird ▶	Giuseppina	The Golden Fish ▶

Ceremony Year	#	Animated	Documentary	Live Action	One-Reel	Two-Reel
1959	31st	Knighty Knight Bugs ▶	Glass	Grand Canyon	—	—
1958	30th	Birds Anonymous ▶	Ama Girls	The Wetback Hound	—	—
1957	29th	Mister Magoo's Puddle Jumper	The True Story of the Civil War ▶	The Bespoke Overcoat	Crashing the Water Barrier	The Bespoke Overcoat
1956	28th	Speedy Gonzales	Man in Space	—	Survival City	The Face of Lincoln
1955	27th	When Magoo Flew	Men Against the Arctic	—	This Mechanical Age	A Time Out of War
1954	26th	Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom ▶	Thursday's Children	—	This Mechanical Age	Bear Country
1953	25th	Johann Mouse	The Alaskan Eskimo ▶	—	Light in the Window	Water Birds
1952	24th	The Two Mouseketeers	Neighbours ▶	—	World of Kids	Nature's Half Acre
1951	23rd	Gerald McBoing-Boing	Benjy	—	World of Kids	Beaver Valley
1950	22nd	For Scent-imental Reasons ▶	Why Korea? ▶	—	Grandad of Races	In Beaver Valley

Ceremony Year	#	Animated	Documentary	One-Reel	Two-Reel
1949	21st	The Little Orphan ▶	A Chance to Live	Symphony of a City	Seal Island
1948	20th	Tweetie Pie ▶	Toward Independence	Goodbye, Miss Turlock	Climbing the Matterhorn
1947	19th	The Cat Concerto ▶	First Steps	Facing Your Danger	A Boy and His Dog
1946	18th	Quiet Please! ▶	Seeds of Destiny ▶	Stairway to Light	Star in the Night
1945	17th	Mouse Trouble ▶	Hitler Lives? ▶	Who's Who in Animal Land	I Won't Play
1944	16th	The Yankee Doodle Mouse ▶	With the Marines at Tarawa ▶	Amphibious Fighters	Heavenly Music
1943	15th	Der Fuehrer's Face ▶	December 7th ▶	Speaking of Animals and Their Families	Beyond the Line of Duty
1942	14th	Lend a Paw ▶	Churchill's Island ▶	Of Pups and Puzzles	Main Street on the March!
1941	13th	The Milky Way ▶	—	Quicker'n a Wink	Teddy, the Rough Rider
1940	12th	The Ugly Duckling ▶	—	Busy Little Bears	Sons of Liberty

Ceremony Year	#	Animated	One-Reel	Two-Reel	Comedy	Novelty
1939	11th	Ferdinand the Bull ▶	That Mothers Might Live	Declaration of Independence	—	—
1938	10th	The Old Mill ▶	A Night at the Movies	Torture Money	—	—
1937	9th	The Country Cousin ▶	Bored of Education	The Public Pays	—	—
1936	8th	Three Orphan Kittens	—	—	How to Sleep	Wings Over Mt. Everest
1935	7th	The Tortoise and the Hare ▶	—	—	La Cucaracha	City of Wax
1934	6th	The Three Little Pigs	—	—	So This Is Harris!	Krakatoa
1933	5th	—	—	—	The Music Box	Wrestling Swordfish
1932	5th	Flowers and Trees ▶	—	—	—	—

Oscar Shorts History

2020s

2010s

2000s

1990s

1980s

1970s

1960s

1950s

1940s

1930s