Manhattan Short Film Festival

Audiences in over 250 Cities Spanning 6 Continents Unite for One Week for One Purpose . . . to Judge the 10 Finalists in the 19^th Annual MANHATTAN SHORT Film Festival.

New York, NY – Sept 13, 2016 - Filmgoers in (XXXXX) will unite with audiences in over 250 cities spanning six continents to view and judge the work of the next generation of filmmakers from around the world when the 19th Annual MANHATTAN SHORT Film Festival screens at the YOUR_VENUE

The 10 MANHATTAN SHORT finalists hail from eight countries, with France and Australia represented by two films each. These Final 10 short films represent the best among a record 844 submissions from 52 countries received by Manhattan Short for 2016, testimony to the enduring vibrancy and creativity of the short film genre. In addition, for the first time, all of the Final 10 short films are Oscar-qualified, meaning they are automatically eligible for an Academy Award nomination.

The Final 10 are:

The Tunnel (Norway),  Carousel (England), Kaputt (Germany), Ella Got A Promotion? (USA), Hold On(The Netherlands), Bravoman (Russia) Overtime (Australia), Gorilla (France),  I Am A Pencil  (Australia), The Last Journey of the Enigmatic Paul WR  (France).

Which of these 10 short films is the best? That’s up to a worldwide audience to decide. Cinema-goers across the United States and around the globe will become instant film critics as they are handed a ballot upon entry that allows them to vote for the Best Film and Best Actor. MANHATTAN SHORT is the ultimate audience award that salutes the creative talents of both directors behind the camera and actors in front of it. Votes will be sent through to MANHATTAN SHORT HQ with the winner announced at ManhattanShort.com on Monday Oct 3, at 10AM EST.

MANHATTAN SHORT audiences know a good short when they see one. Two of the top vote-getters from 2015, SHOK (Kosovo) and Bear Story (Chile), became Oscar nominees, with the latter winning the famous statue in the best animated short category. This year’s crop of short films is equally exciting. Two short films, Kaputt and I Am A Pencil, are animations. Other entries run the gamut from comedy to drama to horror to science fiction. Film fans also will see well-known actors like Ewen Bremner (Carousel) of Trainspotting and Pearl Harbor fame as well as a number of young actors who will be the stars of tomorrow--with Ewen Bremner’s daughter, Harmony Rose Bremner, among them. Will father and daughter split the vote for Best Actor? The audience decides and hopefully, there will be no trouble in the Bremner household once the ballots are cast. MANHATTAN SHORT votes may determine the future success of the short films, directors and actors appearing in MANHATTAN SHORT. In short, there is something for everyone.

MANHATTAN SHORT’s international appeal is among its biggest attributes. "In times like these, cross-border events like MANHATTAN SHORT that contribute towards greater tolerance and understanding are needed now more than ever. MANHATTAN SHORT is about communities bonding together via their local cinema. I want to thank and congratulate all the filmmakers and cinemas involved in this global cinematic event. MANHATTAN SHORT is not going to cable TV or Video on Demand or anywhere else. So get down to your local theater to see 10 of the best short films the world has to offer," said MANHATTAN SHORT Founding Director Nicholas Mason.

The first MANHATTAN SHORT was held in 1998, when 16 short films were shown onto a screen mounted on the side of a truck in Little Italy's Mulberry Street in New York City, and has blossomed into a worldwide phenomenon. MANHATTAN SHORT is the only film festival on the planet that unfolds, simultaneously, in cinemas around the world, bringing over 100,000 film-lovers across six continents together for one week, to view the work of the next generation of filmmakers.