Venice: Two Biennale College films enter the Oscar race
Cambodia has picked Polen Ly's 'Becoming Human' and Kenya Vincho Nchogu's 'One Woman One Bra' for the Oscars. Both were made through the Biennale's talent program.
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Two films from the Venice Film Festival's Biennale College – Cinema talent program will compete in the international feature category of the 99th Academy Awards, La Biennale di Venezia said on Oct. 15. Polen Ly's 'Becoming Human' (Khmer: 'Chiet Chea Manusa') represents Cambodia, and Vincho Nchogu's 'One Woman One Bra' represents Kenya. Both come from the program's 13th edition (2024–2025), were produced with 200,000 euros each from the Biennale and premiered at the 82nd Venice festival in 2025.
'Becoming Human' follows Thida, the guardian spirit of an old cinema facing demolition, who forms a bond with a living man, Hai. It was shot on a micro-budget in Battambang province, according to CambodgeMag; Ly said writing it "was like a meditative journey." 'One Woman One Bra' is set on the Kenya–Tanzania border: in the village of Sayit, land title deeds are about to be issued based on kinship, and Star, who is unmarried, risks losing her home. "What began as a political commentary evolved into a feminist narrative," Nchogu said.
The same day, the Biennale presented the 12 projects of the 15th edition (2026–2027) at Ca' Giustinian, nine from the international call and three from Italy, with teams from countries including Bolivia, China, India, Kenya, Romania, Rwanda and the United States. A first workshop was held in Venice from Oct. 5 to 15. The Oscars ceremony is scheduled for March 14, 2027.