The Short Shorts FilmFestival, Japan's largest short film showcase, has received accreditation fromthe Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Beginning with this year'sShort Shorts Award winner Redd Barna by Norwegian film-maker Terje Rangnes, the film that receives thefestival's top prize will be eligible for Oscar nomination.

"This is a great honour forShort Shorts," Short Shorts co-founder Douglas Williams said in a statement."And a great opportunity for the film-makers participating in our festival.

"With over 1,500 submissionsfrom around the world every year, we have seen many Academy Award winners comethrough our programming office in years past."

In other awards handed outat the event, Sirin Eide's Dykk (Dive) won the Jury's Award, Juan Solanas' The ManWithout A Head (L'Homme Sans Tete) won the Jury's Special Mention Award, GustavoLoza's Deep Silence (SilencioProfundo) took the audience award,and Sara Johnsen's Houdini's Hound(Houdini's Hund) won the Tokyo FilmSchool Student Jury Award.

The festival will embarkupon a national tour through to August and for the second year in a row willtravel on to Myanmar (formerly Burma) in late September.

Short Shorts organisers willalso programme a special selection of shorts for Expo Aichi 2005, the WorldFair that is set to take place in the Aichi Prefecture of Japan next summer.