Filmgoers in California will unite with over 100,000 film-lovers around the world during the week of September 27 to October 7 when the 21st Annual MANHATTAN SHORT Film Festival returns to Arena Theater in Point arena.

     The 9 MANHATTAN SHORT finalists hail from eight countries with films from Austria, Canada, Germany, Hugary, Kosovo, New Zealand, USA, and two films from the United Kingdom. These Final 9 short films represent the best short films among 1565 submissions from 73 countries received by MANHATTAN SHORT for 2018, testimony to the enduring vibrancy and creativity of short films. This year's Final 9 represent an extraordinary range of film genres that includes intimate dramas, fast-paced animation, spine-tingling tales, a World War II epic, a film shot entirely underwater, and a comedy as part of the MANHATTAN SHORT program.

     The Final 9 are: Baghead (United Kingdom), Fire in Cardboard City (New Zealand), Home Shopper (USA), Her (Kosovo) Two Strangers Who Meet Five Times (United Kingdom), Someone (Germany), Chuchotage (Hungary), Fauve (Canada), Lacrimosa (Austria).

     All Final 9 short films will become Oscar-Qualified, meaning they will become automatically eligible for an Academy Award nomination, by screening for a week at Los Feliz 3 Cinemas in the county of Los Angeles Sept 21-Sept 27 with shows at 11 am -1:00 pm daily.

     You Be the Judge! Will MANHATTAN SHORT audiences select any Oscar winners this year? They did three years ago! MANHATTAN SHORT's 2018 Final 9 will not only entertain a global audience but will be judged by them as well. Cinemagoers 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.