Four Canadian-produced animated shorts have advanced in the 2013 Oscar race.

Chris Landreth’s animated short Subconscious Password, Theodore Ushev’s Gloria Victoria,  Jonathan Ng’s Requiem for Romance and Uri Kranot and Michal Kranot’s Hollow Land are four of 10 films moving ahead in the voting race for the 86th Academy Awards, out of the 56 films that originally qualified in the category.

The 3D-animated Subconscious Password is produced by the National Film board of Canada, with participation of Seneca College Animation Arts Centre and Toronto-based Copperheart Entertainment. The 11-minute film screened at TIFF after being named best short film at the 2013 Annecy International Animated Film Festival, where it had its premiere.

The NFB-produced Gloria Victoria explores the relationship between art and war, the third film in a trilogy directed by Montreal-based Ushev. The 3D short, produced by Marc Bertrand, had its North American premiere at TIFF this year.

Requiem for Romance, from Montreal-based filmmaker Ng, is a martial arts love story that explores a modern-day couple’s secret love affair. The six-minute  film won the award for best animation at the San Jose Short Film Festival in October, and earlier won for best art direction at the Anima Mundi festival in Brazil. The film received financial support from SODEC, Canada Arts Council, Bravo!FACT Charles Street Video and the NFB.

Hollow Land, a 14-minute short co-produced by the NFB (Marc Bertrand), Dansk Tegnefilm (Marie Bro) and Les films de l’Arlequin (Dora Benousilio), follows a couple who arrive in a new land and discover that it’s not what they expected. Filmmakers Uri and Michal Kranot are originally from Israel, and for the past seven years have been making films in different countries.

In the next voting phase, members of the Academy’s Short Films and Feature Animation Branch reviewing committee will select three to five nominees from the 10 shortlisted titles.

The nominations will be announced on Jan. 16, 2014 at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater.