The Academy Overlooks the Value of Short Films

When I heard about the elimination of the short film category of awards from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, I was appalled (“Axing of Short Subjects Draws Fire,” Nov. 24). I am a voting member of the academy and serve on the short film and animation committees. Our industry started with short films, and they should never be overlooked.

Many filmmakers made a very important statement with the shorter film length, much in the same way so many authors have enjoyed great success with the short-story format. It is not the length of a piece of art that gives it definition, but what the piece itself is trying to say and evoke.

Would you tell the great painters that paintings of subjects from the neck up had no artistic merit? These are the issues the academy needs to examine before making such a rash decision.

BOB BAKER, Bob Baker Marionette Theater, Los Angeles