3. Rosa
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MG11zhX6_jo Whilst Rosa is virtually non-stop action, it's also different from all other entries on this list because it is rendered fully in CGI. Even more fascinatingly, all the work was done by one man with no additional funding whatsoever during the course of one year. With this short, the storyline takes a backseat while action moves forward. The setting is an immensely murky and dreary post-apocalyptic city - seemingly oriental, considering the architecture. This short has ashamed tens (or even hundreds) of science-fiction settings during 10 short minutes with the levels of atmosphere that it manages to set up. The protagonist is a Rosa-class cyborg that was supposed to wake up at that exact moment for some reason. Unfortunately, two hostile cyborgs woke up, too, and combat ensues. Considering the fact that all natural life died off during the apocalyptic event and the fact that Rosa's blood revives the plants and insects, it just might be that the Rosa-class cyborgs were designed with a specific purpose to be killed off so that life continues. Of course, it's just a theory and the reality might be something else entirely, but we won't have to wonder for too long. As it would seem, the author has been given resources to make it a full-feature live action movie, which wasn't his plan all along at all. Rosa has the potential to sweep the floor with everything else that comes out in the same release window as it does. This short stands as a proof that talent is the best measure of success and that with enough effort, virtually anything can be pulled off.