On Sunday evening Denmark turned one of its three Oscar nominations into a win as Anders Walter’s Helium grabbed the coveted Hollywood statuette for Best Live Action Short Film. For Kim Magnusson's production house M&M Production, this was the fourth Oscar in that category after Election Night (1999), This Charming Man (2003) and The New Tenants (2010).
The other Danish Oscar contenders The Hunt by Thomas Vinterberg and The Act of Killing by Joshua Oppenheimer that were running respectively for Best Foreign Language Film and Best Documentary left empty handed. Despite losing to the US music film 20 Feet from Stardom, Oppenheimer told the UK newspaper ‘The Guardian’: "I honestly feel we have already won. The film has caused a level of change in Indonesia beyond anything we could have hoped for three years ago. We didn't make the film to win an Oscar; but to open up possibilities for real change." The Hunt and The Act of Killing were both supported by Nordisk Film & TV Fond.