Our Best Short Film winner will receive our custom Global Shorts statuette which we ship anywhere in the world, free of charge. The award is manufactured by Society Awards, the same awards company that manufactures the Golden Globe and the Emmy. All winners will receive our Global Shorts Winner laurels in black, white, and gold.
Title: A Ranger Works Here
Runtime: 20 min
Country: USA
Director: Tim Yao
Placement: Award of Merit
Competition: March, 2026
Synopsis: “A Ranger Works Here” is a documentary following Oskar Zepeda’s PTSD growth journey after suffering a grenade blast while serving in the U.S. Army. He and those close to him share about his ups and downs, and how he is able to pull himself out of the trenches. When he hit rock bottom, it wasn’t one day, it was a whole year. Oskar is a work in progress, and aims to help others through his story.
I felt called to tell Oskar’s story the first time I met him at his barber shop. After hearing his story and how real it was, I knew others could benefit from hearing it. Oskar isn’t a veteran that tells you everything is good after receiving treatments and counselings. He keeps it real by telling you how he messed up last week, and what he’s doing this week to get back on track.
As an Army veteran myself, and someone who also went through my own struggles, hearing Oskar’s story motivates me to continue finding “the good” every day and fight for what’s right. One of the U.S. Army values is “honor” and telling Oskar’s story is one way I could honor him through my craft, while simultaneously making in impact within the veteran community.
|
Oskar’s PTSD growth story is still on-going, and is unfolding in real time.