Gorton is proud to be screening MANHATTAN SHORT Film Festival on October 3 at 11 am and 7 pm as part of our “First Thursdays” independent film series sponsored by Sheffield Foundation. Filmgoers in Lake Forest will unite with audiences in over 400 cities spanning six continents to view and judge the work of the next generation of filmmakers from around the world when the 22nd Annual MANHATTAN SHORT Film Festival screens at the John and Nancy Hughes Theater at Gorton. MANHATTAN SHORT is the only event of its kind. The Final Ten screen simultaneously across the world during a one-week period, with the Best Film and Best Actor awards determined by ballots cast by the audiences in each participating venue. By virtue of their selection by MANHATTAN SHORT, each short film is automatically Oscar-qualified. The Final Ten MANHATTAN SHORT finalists hail from seven countries with films from France, Iran, Canada, Finland, and Germany alongside two films from USA and a record three from the United Kingdom. These Final Ten films represent the best short films from among 1,250 submissions from 70 countries received by MANHATTTAN SHORT for 2019, testimony to the enduring vibrancy and creativity of short films worldwide. MANHATTAN SHORT continues to be a premier showcase for female directors with five of the Final Ten films directed by women, including one from Iran. This year’s Final Ten represent an extraordinary range of film genres that includes intimate dramas, spine-tingling suspense, and hilarious comedies, as well as genre surprises like a pair of science fiction films and one that focuses on tennis. “A narrative short film on sports is as rare as a centaur sighting,” notes Pia Andell, director of The Match. The MANHATTAN SHORT Final Ten are: Nefta Football Club (France), Debris (USA), Driving Lessons (Iran), Tipped (Canada), Sylvia (UK), The Match (Finland), This Time Away (UK), Malou (Germany), A Family Affair (UK) At The End of the World (USA). All Final Ten short films become Oscar-qualified, meaning they will be automatically eligible for an Academy Award nomination by screening for a week at the Los Feliz 3 Cinemas in the county of Los Angeles in Hollywood from Sept 20 to Sept 26.