Short docs, big Oscar hopes: "A Night at the Garden," "My Dead Dad's Porno Tapes" and "Los Comandos"

Out of more than 100 qualified films, 10 have made the contenders list for the 2019 Academy Award for Documentary Short Subject, which the Academy released December 17. * * * If Charlie Tyrell’s short film win this year’s Academy Award, the presenter will get to announce, “and the Oscar goes to ‘My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes.’” It’s kind of irresistible, but despite the provocative title, the film is not really about a parent’s pornography collection. * * * Joshua Bennett and Juliana Schatz’s documentary short “Los Comandos” chronicles the efforts of an entirely humanitarian and voluntary rescue squad in El Salvador. Bennett: The genesis the project is part of a trilogy of films called “Humanity on the Move.” It’s about forced migration of refugees, so it’s capturing people’s journeys, and why people leave their homes. Do you think the film’s humanitarian issue, the focus on youth and gang violence, as well as the issue of migration make this film appealing to the Academy?