A self-financed Canadian documentary, made by first-time, Toronto-based filmmaker Adam Benzine, has been nominated for an Academy Award.

Benzine’s 40-minute film, Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah, has been nominated in the best documentary short subject category, marking an incredible 12 months for one of the most successful Canadian films of 2015.

Benzine served as the film’s writer, producer and director. In addition to its Oscar nomination, the film has been the subject of multiple North American bidding wars, resulting in sales to the CBC and other major broadcasters internationally. The film had its world premiere at Toronto’s Hot Docs film festival in April 2015, where it received an honourable mention in the best mid-length documentary category.

In other Oscar news, the Hungarian Holocaust film Son of Saul was nominated for best foreign film.

Son of Saul, which tells the story of a Jewish concentration camp inmate forced to help cremate his fellow prisoners, won the Golden Globe on Jan. 10 for best foreign language film.

Other Jewish Oscar nominees include Steven Spielberg, producer and director of Bridge of Spies, which made the short list for best picture. The film, which tells the story of a Cold War prisoner exchange, is based on a screenplay by filmmaker brothers Joel and Ethan Coen.

Also in the running is Israel-born super producer Arnon Milchan, whose Leonardo DiCaprio thriller The Revenant is in contention for best picture.

Jennifer Jason Leigh was nominated as best supporting actress for her role in the The Hateful Eight, about eight strangers seeking refuge from a blizzard during the American Civil War.

The documentary Amy, about the British Jewish singer Amy Winehouse, was nominated for best documentary.

The announcements were made last week in a ceremony in Los Angeles. The 88th Academy Awards ceremony will be held Feb. 28 in Los Angeles.

With files from JTA