BY KAREN BOSSICK
Ten short films from around the world exploring such topics as today’s necessity to deal with voice-activated cars will be featured in the Sun Valley Museum of Art’s 2023 MANHATTAN SHORT Film Fest.
Sun Valley film lovers will have the opportunity to join more than 100,000 film enthusiasts around the world during the week of Sept. 28-Oct. 8 when the 26th Annual MANHATTAN SHORT Film Festival screens at the Magic Lantern Cinemas in Ketchum.
The films will be screened at 4 and 7 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 28. And audience members will have the opportunity to vote on the Best Film and Best Actor awards. Each short film is automatically Oscar-qualified by virtue of their selection by MANHATTAN SHORT.
This year’s lineup examines how we face adversity, whether imposed by others or from personal circumstances. Some films are dramatic; others humorous. All are inspirational.
This is the sixth year The Museum has offered Wood River Valley residents the chance to see the shorts.
Every year, I am so impressed with how, when the lights come on, the discussions begin in earnest between filmgoers who are trying to pick their favorite film and best actor. People take the voting seriously, and every year the winners worldwide match the winners picked by our Wood River Valley audience!” said Kristine Bretall, director of programming for The Museum.
The MANHATTAN SHORT films are:
- Sunless (USA), about two men trapped in the confines of a tiny submarine.
- Voice Activated (Australia), about a florist with a stutter who must cooperate with a voice-activated car on the way to an important delivery.
- Yellow (Afghanistan), about a woman buying her first full-body veil as she faces an uncertain future in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan.
- Tuulikki (Finland), about a woman who plots her escape from her over-protective mother.
- The Family Circus (USA), about a Vietnamese-American family whose attempts to cover up a drunk-driving incident begins to unravel when they spill their emotional baggage in front of police.
- Career Day (USA), about a washed up ‘90s pop star and his boy band going viral when they reunite for his daughter’s elementary school Career Day.
- Snail (Iran), about a singing audition that takes a dramatic, unforeseen turn.
- The Record (Switzerland), abut a magical vinyl record that “reads your mind and plays your lost memories.”
- The Stupid Boy (UK), about the meeting between a man who’s been groomed for a terrorist attack and a local lad who sees things differently.
- Soleil de Nuit (Canada) depicts a group of Canadian astronauts tasked with an added mission by a Native American elder while training for a moon landing.
Tickets for films are $10 for SVMoA members and $12 for nonmembers. Reserve tickets at https://svmoa.org/. Or, call 208.726.9491.