Whenever we talk about the Oscars, we always debate who is going to win Best Actor or which movie will win Best Picture. However, there is one category that always manages to make a lot of impact: Live-Action Short Film. The duration of the films nominated in this category might be short, but the stories they tell often leave a lasting emotional imprint, and this year is no different. The aforementioned category features five brilliant films, and one of the films fighting it out for the golden statuette is Alexandre Singh and Natalie Musteata's Two People Exchanging Saliva. 

The movie is an intimate and quietly provocative short that explores human connection through moments that feel both awkwardly real and deeply tender. Its minimalistic approach, combined with precise performances and a carefully controlled visual language, allowed small gestures to carry enormous emotional weight.

Those are some of the reasons why the film has been nominated for an Oscar, and although everyone is celebrating the monumental feat, for Musteata and Singh, the journey to the Oscars still feels more like a dream than a milestone they have fully processed.

Speaking exclusively to Netflix Junkie, the duo candidly opened up about the moment they got to know about the nomination. Natalie Musteata admitted that the whirlwind following the announcement left little room for reflection. For her, the experience still feels strangely distant, something almost dreamlike.

"It does still feel surreal to me. I feel like we've been, we've been sort of churning away for so long that we haven't really been able to sit with it and to really, like, think about it. I don't know if it'll feel real until maybe we're there, or maybe even like months after. There's something so dreamlike about it all," Natalie said.

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But that sense of disbelief is paired with quiet excitement. After years of steadily working, the recognition feels deeply meaningful. As March 15 approaches, the night they will walk into the Oscar ceremony alongside some of cinema's biggest names, conversations have naturally turned toward who they hope to meet.

For Natalie, one name immediately came to mind: Jodie Foster. The legendary actor recently watched their film, a moment that already feels surreal to the filmmakers.

She said, "Oh, that is so hard. You know, Jodie Foster recently watched our film, and we haven't met her. We don't know her. One of our actresses, Luàna Bajrami, acted in another film with her. So they did a little Zoom Q&A., and we have been fans of Jodie's for a very long time."

Alexandre, meanwhile, is equally excited by the possibility of crossing paths with filmmakers he deeply respects. Norwegian director Joachim Trier is high on that list. Although the duo had previously met him for two seconds, they hope the Academy Awards might offer them a chance for a longer conversation.

But that is not all. Alexandre also mentioned Oscar winners Emma Stone and Guillermo del Toro, whose works they admire the most. He said, "There are so many people. I mean, it'd be lovely to meet Emma Stone. I think Guillermo del Toro, because not only a filmmaker that we really love. I mean, the last few moments of Pan's Labyrinth are something that just lives in my head. But he is also such a wonderful ambassador for cinema and so generous and supportive of other filmmakers. Just to say hello and chat to him would be such a pleasure. It would be such a pleasure to meet them and to chat with them."

Whether or not they take home the award, the experience already marks a turning point for them and their film Two People Exchanging Saliva, one that still feels wonderfully unreal.

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Have you seen Two People Exchanging Saliva? What did you think of the weirdly addictive short film? Let us know your thoughts.