Review: 'Two Distant Strangers' highlights stellar class of Oscar shorts Oscar-Nominated Short Films program, a favorite on the Detroit Film Theater's annual calendar, unfolds virtually beginning Friday Adam Graham A White cop and a young Black man are caught in an endless cycle of violence in "Two Distant Strangers," an invigorating "Groundhog Day"-style tale with a social justice twist, and one of the highlights of the 2021 Oscar-Nominated Short Films program. Even in an off year for the Oscars (and for Hollywood in general), the Oscar Shorts program — which presents the Academy Award-nominated short films in three categories, Best Short Film (Animated), Best Short Film (Live Action) and Best Documentary (Short Subject) — delivers. The entire program plays at the Detroit Film Theater's Virtual Cinema beginning Friday, while Ann Arbor's Michigan Theater will show the Animated Shorts beginning Saturday and the Live Action Shorts beginning April 10.