The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has honored its student winners from colleges and universities around the world at the 49th Student Academy Awards ceremony.  

The Gold, Silver and Bronze Medal awards were announced and presented during an in-person ceremony, a first since 2019, held at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures’ David Geffen Theater in Los Angeles.  

This year, the Student Academy Awards competition received a total of 1,796 entries from 614 colleges and universities around the world. The 2022 winners join the ranks of such past Student Academy Award winners as Patricia Cardoso, Pete Docter, Spike Lee, Patricia Riggen and Robert Zemeckis.

The 2022 Student Academy Award medalists are:

Alternative/Experimental

Gold: “Against Reality,” Olivia Peace, University of Southern California

Animation

Gold: “An Ostrich Told Me the World Is Fake and I Think I Believe It,” Lachlan Pendragon, Griffith Film School, Australia

Silver: “Laika & Nemo,” Jan Gadermann and Sebastian Gadow, Konrad Wolf Film University of Babelsberg, Germany

Bronze: “The Seine’s Tears,” Yanis Belaid, Eliott Benard and Nicolas Mayeur, Pôle 3D Digital & Creative School, France

Documentary

Gold: “Found,” Shuhao Tse, New York University

Silver: “Here to Stay,” Jared Peraglia, New York University

Bronze: “Seasons,” Gabriella Canal and Michael Fearon, Columbia University

Narrative

Gold: “Almost Home,” Nils Keller, University of Television and Film Munich, Germany

Silver: “Rooms,” Welf Reinhart, University of Television and Film Munich, Germany

Bronze: “Shedding Angels,” Freddy Macdonald, American Film Institute

First-time honors go to Pôle 3D Digital & Creative School.

All Student Academy Award-winning films are eligible to compete for 2022 Oscars in the Animated Short Film, Live Action Short Film or Documentary Short Film category.  Past winners have gone on to receive 65 Oscar nominations and have won or shared 14 awards.

The Student Academy Awards were established in 1972 to provide a platform for emerging global talent by creating opportunities within the industry to showcase their work.